LO Share Mis Titulos

Here's the link to go see Mis Titulos

Everybody's workin' for the Weekend...

Raise your hand if you remember that song?!  Ah, very good times.  You will be happy to know, it WAS the last load of mulch, but still did not get the entire area around the raised bed gardens completed.  I thinned and transplanted sedum, iris, hostas, lillies, and peonies as they were desperate for more space and it helped me populate the new areas.  I did run out of cardboard for weedstop, which is why I did not go back for more mulch.

However, I did get the back of the bed cleaned out and fetched a load for dad as a surprise.  The guys at Agro-Chem (I love them, they are all so wonderfully nice!) gave me a hard time for "forgetting" that I don't usually get the red.  Yes, I am there enough they know my face and what color I get.  It's almost embarrassing.  Until I had a conversation with one of the counter guys, and apparently he suffers from mulch addition too.  "Hello, my name is Michelle and I'm a mulch-aholic...".  So he told me a bit about his projects, and then I didn't feel so bad.

I was able to get over to dad's before him, so I did a bit of weed spraying (I know, not a big fan, but...) and then started unloading mulch.  He wanted to remove the bed from where he parks the cars because it keeps filling up with grass.  There are a few popular theories as to why this happens, but for the protection of the innocent, we won't go into that.  So I had surgically extracted several good specimens from the grass, and we transplanted over to by the back door/ramp area.  I'm just hoping the same thing doesn't happen there.  But maybe I can do a better job at staying on top of stuff now. So I started unloading the mulch, and we got almost the entire area covered with what I had.  And then we made plans to get another load next week to try and finish it off.  This was on Wednesday.

Needless to say, I was sore yesterday!  So Elizabeth worked on me good yesterday!  But wow, I think I could use more!  But, we have the test today, and our research paper presentation, and only 1 of us got to "go" yesterday, so it will be the flip today.  Now that we have learned all the charts, it's full body from this point on, so yea us!  And we found out yesterday the whole class has perfect attendance so far!  And we GOT OUR TABLES!!! I am so excited about that!

Today after school, Gadget and I are flying down to Gatlinburg for one last hoorah of the year.  We've not been to this fly-in/clinic before, so it should be fun, but there will be several of the other Hooligans there so that is cool.  And it will be a bit of night flying as we can't leave until after school.  I tried to switch, but with the paper due today, it didn't work out.  So I'll be meeting him at the Marion airport instead of my usual drive around the state and back.  I am really excited about it, it is going to be so much fun!  Just need to throw that stack of clothes in the suitcase and then I am gone!

As for the quiz, I think I'm going to totally rock it!  The boys have been running through the flashcards with me.  They've done such a wonderful job, it has made me laugh and learn all at the same time.  A mama couldn't ask for more; they are such amazing young men and I am so overwhelmingly blessed!

See you soon!

LO Share on BenzillaScrapping - Gramma

And here is the last one for the day... Gramma

August 2013 Flickr Upload

And here are my favorites, but as always, you can see the entire upload here...

New walkway to the front porch is finished.  All the rocks were found either on the property, or over at my dad's.  It's funny to see it, it looks so different this year, I have a lot of plants around it now.

I know it is dark, but it is starting to fill out.

 A different perspective of the walkway.

 Gilmore's Farm.  I love going anywhere with this man!

 And the Willy's.  Isn't he cute?!

 The boys took me to Five Guys.  It was good!

 Had a family cookout with Dad and my brother and nephew.

 My brother giving the message. I love how you can see the Spirit surrounding him.

 First day of school silliness.  How can you not love 'em?!?

 Another great one of us!

 HTG Service Manager's Summit in Omaha.  Learned SO much!

Up North for Labor Day.

More LO on BenzillaScrapping

And then there is the super-cute Paci Adventures Layout - go check it out!

LO Share on BenzillaScrapping

Be sure to go check out 1 + 2 = 3 Layout on the other site!

Crazy...

Ah, one of my favorite Patsy Cline songs... however, I'm feeling nervous & anxious kind of crazy.  Not love-stuck crazy!  Trying to get storm windows for the house, transplant flowers from the parental unit's homestead, get the last of the much put down. Oh, and my first big quiz and research paper due next week, another quiz the week after that, the week after that, yet another quiz AND my first practical.  Sheew!!  Time to breathe.  Good thing we talked about stress management yesterday in class.

However, totally excited about the storm windows, and the garden is looking FABULOUS and this WILL BE the last load of mulch.  May surprise dad by taking a load over to his house when I drop off the truck.

Super-stoked about the Special Olympics Fly-in Saturday at the Wabash Airport, the Nappanee Applefest, and the Michigan game flyover.  Should be a really fun weekend!

July 2013 Flickr Upload

As always, you can see the entire stream here... and here are some of my favorites, there were actually a lot so it was hard to choose!

 One of my favorite places to eat, it is in Plainwell, MI

018 trying to help 009 clean out the trash cabinet...

 Yearly demo derby visit.  So much fun!

He's so cute!  Every year, I have to twist his arm to go because 1 year, 4 years ago, he got sick.  But once he gets there, he has a ton of fun!

 The moonrise.  It was amazing!

Ummm yummy! Salted caramel lattes.

My favorite thing to eat.  Ever.

Right here waiting for you...

Ah, he was going to come down yesterday, but a bit of unexpected weather kept him north.  However, it is all breaking up now and he should be good to go soon.  It was also an unexpected visit, as I was going to go there and help him with "the list" but my tractor stopped working and I can't figure out why.  Makes me feel dumb.  But I hope he can get it so that I can get the hayfield (my yard) mowed.

He came down Tuesday to look at a house for me.  A beautiful old thing, I would love to have it.  But after talking, not sure I have the time or energy or money to give it the love it needs.  It made me extremely sad! Plus, no one has made an offer on mine either, so maybe it is just not the right time and I will keep looking.

School is going great, I love it, it is starting to get intense though.  In 2 weeks we have our quiz and a research paper due, and then 2 weeks after that, our practical!  YIKES!  I do need to start studying and practicing more than what I have been.

On the home front, I've been able to get some work addressed around the house, and just breathe for a bit.  I did get my substitute license, so now I need to figure out how to register so that I can start subbing periodically to make some extra income.

So many of my friends are dealing with cancers or illnesses, so I'd really appreciate extra prayers these days for them.  It breaks my heart that there is so much hurt in the world.  Wouldn't it be amazing if everyone tried to figure out how they could add some comfort to the world instead?

June 2013 Flickr Upload

As usual, you can see the entire stream here, and here are my faves:

 How can you not love a man who is willing to do this?!?!

 Tools, tools, everywhere!

 Letters from Home, a delightful vintage singing group we had the pleasure of meeting at a fly-in.  They are beautiful inside & out with amazing voices!

 My pilot for the weekend.  He is such a great guy!

 Debriefing after a sortie...

 Getting some guidance around the sign.  There was barely a few inches for the wings to clear.

 Stack 'em up, boys!

 The gang!

 And he made this closet for me upstairs when we moved the boys downstairs.  Isn't it amazing!  I love my new studio.

And we did the annual clean out the garage day.  It smells better and looks better!

Raindrops keep falling on my head..

Do you remember that little song?  I had a music box when I was younger that played it, always made me sad, I always wanted blue skies...

But now... well, it makes me smile, it reminds me that the rain nourishes and is a gift from God.  It washes away pain and grief so that we can feel refreshed.  And that is what I am starting to feel.

It has been just over a month since I left Intrasect and returned to school, and it has still been one of the best decisions of my life.  I absolutely love learning how to care and nurture others, and my goodness, it is harder than I ever thought, but I'm not backing down now. 

Don't get me wrong, still completely scared stiff on the whole I just gave up my paycheck part, and what about retirement part and so on, so prayers certainly are welcome.  But I have not been this less-stressed (is that the right phrase??!) since I can't remember when.  Maybe never.  I have the time to concentrate on my family, on my friends, my house, my life.  I am finally doing something because *I* want to do it.

The group of girls (and 1 guy) that are in my class are amazing!  They are so welcoming and accepting.  I have never felt that in the tech community outside of a couple of rare cases.  They are encouraging and loving.  They are the best classmates.  We have a lot of fun together, laugh at our foibles together, and help each other learn.  And there is so MUCH to learn, I had no idea.  I have been on the recipient side for many years, very regularly, so you think I'd have it all down just from that, but it's not quite the same.  It gives me a whole new respect for those hands that have worked on me over the years.

Anyway, we are about 1/2 way through all the charts (I think last week's was the mid-point).  On Week 10 (this is 5) we have our first practical where we do the complete routine and are critiqued by current therapists.  Ya, I'm nervous, but it's the best way to learn.  I wish we did something like that every week.  I love it when someone lets me know I'm not doing it quite right because I want to be as good as I possibly can.

So, it's off to school for me, hope you all have a Fantastic Friday!