Friday Night Fun

Beth texted me Thursday night and asked if Jack and I were interested in some time with Abbie and Nina. Of course!!! We made plans for the girls to get dropped off at our house around 5 on Friday evening. Jack was in Des Moines on business and was due to get in around 7. I offered to take the girls to McDonald's for dinner, but they wanted to hang out and play (Abbie: "Does McDonald's deliver?"). I cannot believe how grown up they are getting! Abbie is 5 1/2 and Nina is 3 and they play so nicely together. We had a blast playing with the ipad, taking a bath, doing arts and crafts Jack drove through McD's on his way home and picked up some Happy Meals for the girls and got some Whole Foods carry out for us and we had a lovely dinner at the dining room table. Arne and Beth visited for a while when they came for the girls and all in all it was a very delightful evening.

Jack helping Nina with her shoes and socks

"I'm thinking of..."

Yesterday, April 28th was yet another death anniversary in our family. Are you getting sick of  reading about these things on my blog???
 It was 15 years ago yesterday that my dad died after a 2 1/2 year battle with colon cancer with metastases (SP?) to the liver.  He had a tremendous quality of life after he received his diagnosis. My dad was all about the fact that he had lived a long and happy life. Dad would never let anyone say, "This could be your last (insert holiday or occasion here)". Let's just enjoy today. That was his attitude about his situation. He worked until a month before he died and in fact was in San Francisco when he figured out that he was in the final stages.Amazing.
Dad died on a Monday morning. We, meaning my siblings Sue, Jenny, Tom and his wife Ann, had spent most of the weekend with him in his hospital room at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. I know that he knew we were there, even though by Friday night he was deep in a coma. It was such a profound time, my first encounter with losing someone I loved dearly. There were many tears that weekend, but also laughs and incredible bonding with my siblings (not that we needed it). One of my favorite memories was a conversation between Sue and me. We were alone with my dad when we had this hushed exchange:
Sue: "I am thinking of cutting off a little bit of Dad's air"
me: "What???"
Sue: "Why? Do you think that is weird?"
me: "I think it is illegal!!!"
Sue: "Seriously? You think it's illegal to cut off a little bit of his hair? I'd like to have that, like a relic of a saint"
me: "Oh my gosh!!! I thought you said air! I thought you were thinking of cutting off some of his air, not hair!"
We laughed so hard, and now even 15 years later, it still makes me chuckle!
I am so darn thankful for my most amazing and loving father. His positive influence in my life is still felt today.
I love you, Dad!

Practicum students rock

I was lucky to supervise a really good Practicum student these past 12 weeks. Lissa is finishing her first year of graduate school in speech pathology and was with me Monday and Wednesday mornings. Lissa was great. She had worked as a speech assistant in the public schools for a couple of years (instead of going straight from undergrad to grad school), so she had some pratical work experience going for her. Lissa brought some fun new activities to us and it was renewing for me to watch her enthusiasm for the kids and the job. Today was her last day. We are going to miss her! This is a picture of Lissa and Ellyn with a bouquet of flower pens that Lissa made for us since we could never find a pen when we wanted one!

Chillin'

So what have I accomplished this weekend?
1. Went to see Dr. Larry, my favorite dentist and had my permanent bridge installed.
Hmmmm. Let me think.
Well,we did spend a fun evening at the home of Brad and Deanna on Friday. It was so light hearted, even when we discussed topics like concealed carry.
Other than that, it was pretty much just chilling this weekend. I guess it's ok to spend time recharging the batteries. That's what I keep telling myself!

Sweet moment

When I walked out the door this morning to head to work, I saw the sweetest thing. There was a monarch butterfly resting on my freshly sprouted peony bush. My mom loved the symbolism of butterflies...metamorphosis, as it relates to death and new life. And she loved peonies. Last spring, one of my students gave me a small peony plant which our guy Jimmy planted for me. And now it's spring and the peony is coming up gangbusters. Makes me feel hopeful for all things through these beautiful miracles that God allows to happen around me everyday.

Happy birthday, Christy!

Today is the birthday of my dear, sweet friend, Christy. I couldn't ask for a more loyal, thoughtful, empathetic and fun friend. Love her to pieces.
Last night, her husband, Steve, hosted a dinner for 7 other couples at a restaurant in a nearby town. We learned a few bar tricks from Kevin and gave a series of toasts to our birthday girl. It was a great night!

A screen shot is worth a thousand words

Here is a screen shot from earlier tonight. Jack was returning from a trip to Minnesota and texted me to let me know his flight was delayed (which of course I knew because I have the Flight Tracker app on my phone). This shot says a lot about us.