Happy Birthday Roni

Well, a few weeks ago Roni's BF called me to ask if we wanted to join them for a surprise birthday weekend in KC for Roni. How sweet was that of Scott?!? I really, REALLY wanted to go, but Damon's baseball coaches got in their only tournament that same weekend (you would think since I'm married to one of those coaches I would have some input, not). Anyway, so I was trying not to call Roni for fear I would ruin the surprise....well, I kept so quiet I didn't even wish her a happy birthday. Yep, that's me, friend of the year! Ugh. So, sorry Roni....HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I will make it up to you with a cold beer, cheese curds or something on a stick here! Until then, a few pics....Love ya girl!

Baseball Tournament #1

A few pics from the weekend....

Damon up to bat on Friday against the CR Angels.

Damon playing center field.
Damon and Clayton

We had our first baseball tournament with this team. They boys started out like rock stars and played the CR Angels. Both teams played hard, unfortunately we lost 5-4. But the coaches and parents on the other team had great sportsmanship, so we were hoping for a rematch at the end of the tournament. No such luck, Saturday the boys didn't play well at all and lost both games. It was disappointing to say the least, they looked so sharp on Friday, so to lose that spunk was frustrating for all...including assistant coach Peterson. Damon was in tears by the time we got in the van, he didn't bat well and blamed most of the loss on himself....I told him it takes an entire team to play that badly (it was U-G-L-Y). Sunday they redeemed themselves, too bad it was too little too late to get into the championship. The boys played their hearts out and ended the tournament on a high note. Grandma Trish, although tired from coming off mids, got up early for the 8:00 a.m. game...and boy was she glad she did. Terry has moved Damon to the outfield, he hates it, but honestly he's smart out there and you know if a ball is hit his way, well, he catches it. Outfield has become a lot more lively this last year, the boys are getting bigger, faster, stronger and it shows. Anyway, back to proud grandma....a tough catch was hit to Damon in center field, no worries....he made a SUH-WEET catch and with the help of the short stop (the coaches son) giving him a heads up on the runner, "One, one, one!!" Clayton yelled. Damon squared and came up firing. He threw the kid out at first with a throw that even Terry was impressed with...I don't think the first baseman had to move an inch. It was awesome and I yelled like those annoying moms do. That was one highlight of Sunday's game, but Damon hit the ball well and he fielded well...it was a great way to end the weekend.

Damon and My Parents

Damon had a pretty good birthday, they won their baseball game, we ate at Fuddruckers and E spent the night. He got a loose fitting UA shirt and shorts, money, a baseball that is suppose to measure speed and I net to chip in to. We're talking about having a few kids spend the night in a few weeks for more of a birthday party....we'll see....

My mom is the best. She scrubbed my bathroom and my kitchen floor. Although not impossible one-handed it's not the easiest trying to keep stitches dry while scrubbing floors on your hands and knees. She scrubbed floors, cheered at Damon's baseball game (sometimes a little loud and embarrassing!), shopped with me, talked Damon into Fuddruckers because she knows he loves it, cheered at another baseball game, chipped golf balls with Damon in to his new gift, played with the dog, and lost her sunglasses. My mom packs more into a single day than anyone I know, young or old. She's the hardest working person I know and she's been that way her whole life. Although we had our moments while I was growing up (I had a snotty early teen years, I know that's hard to believe), I admire her, respect her and love her very much. 

My dad, what can I say...I've always been a daddy's girl. I watch him at Damon's game be supportive and he loves being there. He likes to get right in your face (in Damon's case right behind home plate as he was pitching) and look directly at you as if he's trying to send you a message: "I believe in you, but if you make a bad throw I love you anyway and the next one will be better." He's always been my rock, my support, my cheering section and I love that he's now in Damon's corner. He's always the one to talk, not yell; to reason, not argue; to encourage, not scoff. I hope I can be half the parent to Damon, as he was to me. I love my dad.

My biggest regret this weekend, I some how didn't get a picture of Damon and his Grandpa together. And I didn't get one of he, grandma and grandpa...I've been slacking in my camera duties!

Lucky Number Thirteen

Damon turns 13 tomorrow and I can't hardly believe it. I have mixed emotions about: proud of him for being a pretty good kid, amazed at how far we've come since 1995, shocked and sad at how fast the last 13 years have gone, excited to see what new adventures and experiences he will have in the future. Happy 13th Birthday Damon, we love you very much. 

As for the cake : Hy-Vee white cake, white frosting. Damon also requested Special K bars, so that's my homemade contribution. Cakes, especially the decorating, are not my specialty...although I would love to take a cake decorating class sometime.

Damon has a baseball game on his birthday, but after that Damon, Grandpa Stahl, Ethan and Terry will all be golfing a quick 9 holes. I'm going to send the camera with them. Then we'll go out to eat, Damon's choice. If I had to make a guess we'll end up at Fuddruckers. Not my favorite, but also not my birthday. That's the beauty of birthdays...it's your day!

Happy Flag Day everyone!

New Supplier - Rosanna

I have a new supplier at work. Loving their stuff. Check it out here.

H20

MC has water! You can't drink it or wash your dishes with it, but apparently it's ok to shower with. Seems gross, but I guess it's better than nothing. My Uncle Dale in Iowa City doesn't have water either and so far the sand bags are keeping the water away from his house. Crossing my fingers that the water levels start to go down!

Mason City and Bracing for MORE Rain

Mom just called, she was so excited I thought they turned the water back on in Mason City...no such luck. But friends of theirs have rental property in Clear Lake so they were headed over to shower. Mom said it will feel like a little piece of heaven. She said she may ask if she can go back tomorrow to wash a few clothes. If not, they'll bring them here on Saturday if their golf tournament is cancelled.

Downtown Des Moines is bracing for flooding stemming from Saylorville. I'm hoping the levees in DM hold up. We weren't in Des Moines in 1993 and I have no desire to go through what those people went through back then. We got a couple cases of water and some Gatorade, we needed it anyway, but thought it wouldn't hurt to go tonight. It's not enough to last, but Terry heard a rumor that the water may be shut off. It will be raining for the next couple of days, we're praying for a dry basement and as little flooding as possible. 

I talked to AnnMarie tonight, she said their basement flooded....for those of you that don't know, they live in Aplington. They had some roof damage that caused that to leak during the tornado that touched down outside of A-P, they were lucky considering the devastation a lot of their friends suffered in Parkersburg. Anyway, seems like they can't catch a break either. 

My Uncle lives in Iowa City, his 2 kids and their kids left for Iowa City today...his townhouse is probably going to be flooded and they told him to move his belongings to higher ground. Stupid finger....I can't go help anyone with my finger in the shape it's in, not only is it still tender, but everyone is afraid it would get infected with dirty flood water. I feel helpless.

At somepoint I'll get my camera back out and post some pictures...my finger feels better everyday. I get stitches out Tuesday...sure hope it feels a lot better by then!

Lastly, anyone have any fab ideas for a small birthday party for Damon (I know it's Saturday, but we have baseball so we probably won't have anything for a couple weeks anyway). Something unique that won't break the bank? He won't be getting a huge teen bash as I had hoped (see previous posts regarding school), but my friend Stacey said I can't take away the whole birthday. She said take away something else, scale back, but don't make that his punishment, she said I will want him to have fond memories of his birthdays some day. Hmmm, she's probably right, but I wonder if Damon can go live with them for 9 months during 8th grade???

G'night.

Shopping and Sump Pumps

We were out shopping for shorts for the boys when we got a call from Grandpa Stahl. The levy broke in Mason City and their old neighborhood was flooded. Mom met an old neighbor that lived at the top of the hill near our old house to give them their sump pump, the water hadn't quite reached the house, but water was seeping in through the basement. Then dad went down and tried to help out all the other neighbors, but most houses had 2-3 FEET of water UPSTAIRS! Not much you can do at that point. Anyway, when he got home, their sump pump area was starting to fill up with water and the little back up pump couldn't keep up....no pumps to be found in Mason City! Dad called us and we stopped at The Home Depot, called Ace, True Value and finally over heard someone say the hardware store in Grimes had one.....hmmm, call the Fritz Family fast! Not sure why calling 411 (like the previous 4 other numbers) didn't seem like a better idea, but calling Heather seemed logical....she never answers --she screens her calls! ;)--, call Guthrey he always has his phone. They were just pulling in to town and Guthrey said he'd stop and pick one up if they had it. Well, during that time, Terry told me just to call directly to see if they would hold it, as Terry was talking Guthrey was walking in the building(....thanks for stopping guys!) Picked up the sump pump, no hoses or connectors...so, off to the hardware store in Johnston, we called there and they had one hose left, really we needed two, but dad was going to have to make one work. Made some other pieces work, the hardware stores are out of everything sump pump related, but getting it in tomorrow (duh too late). Off to Mason City. Met Dad and Uncle Dick in Boondocks, made the drop and off they went. Mason City is under curfew and the water has been shut off. Mom is having a fit because she works in the morning, can't shower, can't clean, and can't do laundry.

Nelsons are leaving for Germany tomorrow, but since they can't shower in the morning they are leaving for their son's house tonight. Can't wait until they get back and we can see pictures! They'll have an amazing trip!

That's all tonight, my finger is throbbing.

Happy Birthday Terry

Tomorrow is Terry's birthday. He's golfing in a tournament in Perry with his Uncle Tim....he golfs in it every year unless we're in Aruba or Las Vegas....ok, every year except the last two. Because he'll be gone all day tomorrow (and I'm guessing all night), we celebrated his birthday tonight with DQ ice cream cake and F-I-N-A-L-L-Y his gift...a LCD tv. I earned some points through work and he's been saving for a while, so we took a trip out to Best Buy and I finally gave in. They had to order it, so his new "baby" will be delivered on Wednesday. He's giddy, yup I said giddy. 

Digit Update and Sandals

Hey, it looks way better than I thought it would! When you see part of your finger flapping off to the side and blood dripping down your arm, you make sure it's there, wrap it with a rag and don't look again. Today the doctor wanted to see my finger because it was still throbbing. As he was taking off the bandages he said, "If it's black, that's bad." Really, shouldn't he keep that to himself? I mean, I'm already freaking out just a little and then he says that! It looks gross, but he seemed to think it looked fine. I'm just ready to be healed....I'm tired of keeping it dry, typing with one hand and the throbbing. Walk around for 4 days with your hand held up higher than your heart, so annoying. I know there are many people worse off than I am and I am truly thankful I still have my digit. But, dude, it's annoying.

My mom got me these cute sandals, she felt bad about my finger...probably because my dad, Terry and Damon all said at different times that I "pulled a Grandma Jerry." Let's just say my mom has seen her fair share of stitches, should have gotten stitches, blood and so on over the course of her life. I think she bought the sandals knowing she must have passed on the "Jerry Gene" to me. Gotta love her, my mom has a lot of other great qualities - she's thoughtful, she's loyal to family and friends, she's a clean freak (could have used a little more of this one), and she's always been very driven. I like to think I have some of her good qualities as well. Love ya mom!

FINGER vs. HEDGE TRIMMER

Hedge trimmer = 1.  Finger = 0. Dr. Bergman called it a near partial amputation. I call it dumb.

Hurts like hell. It took off a chunk of bone too and sliced my fingernail in half. I quit looking after I figured out it was still partially attached and I didn't have to go look for it. Damon took great care of me and asked each time I got up in the middle of the night if I was ok. Terry was in Alta at a wedding reception. He offered to quit drinking and come home, but it's not like he could really do anything for me at that point so I told him to stay and have fun.

My parents came down today to watch Damon's game. My mom teared up when she saw me. She felt so bad. Her and dad went to the mall after Damon's game (I didn't do either) and she bought me a pair of sandals to make me feel better, so sweet. 

Well, I'm typing with one hand and it's annoying. I'll have Terry take a picture next Tuesday when the bandages come off. Not looking forward to that as it really hurts right now and I can't imagine anyone touching it.