Happy Birthday Bede Jr.

29 years ago today, in a little town called Sonoma, a baby was born. Today he is all grown up and spending his birthday and Christmas in Iraq. This is the 1st time in 29 years that he has not been with us on his birthday or Christmas.
At our Wed. morning mass here at work, Father Kubat included Bede Jr. in the special intentions. We all prayed for his safety and well being.


HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEDE!


We miss you,
We love you,
We wish you were here.




We are so proud of you and the work you do.
God Bless you and all those away from home serving our country.

Ice, Ice Baby...

Gotta love Nebraska in the winter...or so they keep trying to tell me. We are in the midst of an ice storm tonight. Possibly 1/4-1/2 inch of ice followed by 3-6 inches of new snow. That's on top of the 2 inches or so we got Tuesday. As you can see the windows are all iced over on the outside.


The roads are like an ice skating rink...I want a zamboni for Christmas!



Luckily it didn't begin to ice until about 5pm and most commuters arrived home before the roads got too bad.
So we are all in our flannel pants and warm and cozy inside, except Andrew, he and his buddies have no fear and are out celebrating their last day of finals.

Today was our 1st toy giveaway at work. When I arrived at work at 8:15 am ( a full 15 minutes early I might add) there were about 50 people waiting already. Even though we had specified the start time as 9:00am...So we started early and didn't stop until 5pm. We gave toys out for over 1000 children today. We have about that many tomorrow as well. So I am going to go put my feet up and call it a night. Maybe I will even say a little prayer that if it has to snow, let it be enough to keep us home in the morning for a couple of extra hours of pajama time!

Day 11

Moving right along. Drywall is done and about half of the tile was grouted today. We are very pleased with the progress. This morning I went to the "granite guy" and picked out the counter top. The "cabinet guy" came over yesterday morning and we discussed the vanity. It's beginning to look like a bathroom again.
We also had an electrician here to complete the lighting in the dining room. Last year we switched the living room with the dining room and put in a french door from the dining room to the family room. We had a chandelier put in the "new" dining room today and took out the old chandelier in the now living room and replaced it with a more suitable overhead light. Lots of people in the house, lots of dust and mess, but in the end it will all be worth it...

Home at last...

We made it home at about noon today. Rufus was glad to see us, or maybe he was just happy to see the truck. He just had to go for a ride. But after 26 hours of driving, all Bede could handel was a trip around the block.

It's starting to snow tonight, so we timed our trip well. Maybe it will snow enough to keep us all home tomorrow!

Weekend Drive

Bede and I are in the middle of a nice little weekend drive. We drove from Lincoln NE to Shreveport LA yesterday (Sat). We picked up Bede Jr's truck this morning and then headed north back to Lincoln. We are spending the night in Nevada, MO. Tomorrow we will get up bright and early and head out for home. Over 1500 miles all together. We drive through the entire length of Missouri and Arkansas and parts of 5 other states. 7 states in 2 1/2 days. We bought little walkie talkies to be able to contact each other as we are each driving a seperate car on the way home. We were at a stop light and I called Bede on the little radio and made a suggestion regarding his driving. Then I had to laugh and told him how great it was that I could tell him what to do even if we weren't in the same car! Back seat driving to the extreme...




We should be home by lunch time tomorrow.
Whatever happened to nice little relaxing weekends?

day 5

Didn't see any of the "guys" today. But when I got home from work, the wallpaper had all been taken off and there was more progress. Things keep moving along.

Day 4

Yesterday the tile was cut and layed out, and today it was set. It looks great. I think the shower floor has been tiled as well, but as you can see, the crime scene tape means we are not allowed in! It's coming along...
we are also, as I write ,hosting Bede's office Christmas party in our home. They are downstairs right now doing a gift exchange. I felt it would be appropriate for me to make a quiet exit and let them party on. So no stress, no pressure, just 20 people in my house as it is being torn apart, no problem!

Bathroom remodel day 1

The contractor was here bright and early, just as promised. He came, he saw, and he tore it all out. Lots of work done in one day. There is a little more demo in the shower that needs to be done, and the toilet will be taken out as well. Everything else is gone. I'm really pleased with the progress. I am angry at myself for not taking "before" pictures. I will have to be content with day by day progress photos.