Chasing Miss Daisy

Yesterday our youngest daughter, Nancy, asked if we could dog-sit their basset hound, Daisy Mae for a week.  "Sure, when?....."Tomorrow? ..."dahhhhh OK"   This has been a summer of dog sitting.  Granddaughter Jennifer called in July to ask if we could take care of her little highland terrier, Oakley, then two days later came daughter Christine's call from Chicago,  "Mom, can you watch Cloe and Bella when we go to Denver?"......."sure"  Cloe is a cocker-poo and Bella is Shitz Tzu.  

So, Oakley, Cloe and Bella were here at the same time.  The girls got along great...once in a while Cloe, the oldest would get a little peeved with the two younger dogs..."I'm too old to play "chase around the yard!!!!".   Their food dishes had to be in different areas...Cloe eats like a horse and, if she can, she will eat whatever the other dogs left in their dishes.

We're not used to little dogs and these pint-sized girls would follow me around like three little white shadows.  If I took a step backward, I'd almost step on one of them!  Things went very well except at bedtime...Oakley was used to being kenneled at night, but not the other two.  They are Christine's babies....so, Ken and I had two bed partners.  Ken finally gave up and slept in another room...which actually caused me to have a week of peaceful sleep....Ken snores.

Daisy Mae is a sweetheart but has not been around Ken and I.  We'd see her when we'd go over to Nancy's house, but she doesn't know us well.  Nancy brought her over about 7:15 AM on her way to work...she and family were leaving that afternoon for a vacation in Minnesota before our granddaughter Rebecca went back to school.   

We put Daisy Mae in the back yard and I settled into a deck chair to enjoy the beautiful cool morning, have a cup of tea and watch the birds devouring the seeds in the bird feeder.  All of a sudden I realized that I couldn't see Daisy Mae then caught a glimpse of her tail as she slipped through the back gate.  Yikes, she hadn't been in our care for 15 minutes and I've lost her already.

I started calling "Daisy, Daisy, come're girl"...she just kept going, slowly but with determination.  So out of the yard I went, house slippers, nightgown and all.  I caught up with her two houses away as she started up the neighbor's front steps. Since I didn't have her leash I had to grab her collar and try to get her back to our yard.  She is about 15" at the shoulder and weighs about 20+ lbs so I didn't try to pick her up...I don't think I could have anyway.  And, I couldn't bend over and hold her by the collar while I shuffled her back home...I get a backache even thinking about it.  Bassets are difficult to pick up....their bodies are long and stocky, very unbalanced.  So I grabbed her by the collar, lifted up her chest and front legs and  walked her home on her hind legs....it was uncomfortable for both of us, but  thank goodness, she was agreeable to doing it.

Luckily the neighbors weren't looking out their windows or driving down the street on their way to work....they would have seen a 74 year old grandmother in a nightgown and fuzzy slippers trying to get an extremely heavy and uncooperative  basset hound back to the yard.  Her  little jaunt must have  tired her out because she spent the rest of the morning curled up on our front room chair...which by the way was NEVER allowed when we had dogs.  Guess it's that ole grandma thing, grandkids and pets get by with a lot more than they used to.

Since I haven't heard from anyone.....or been pointed out at the grocery store followed by hysterical laughter, I think I pulled it off!!!!!! 

Movie and TV Stars...who is still kickin'

Jane Russell

Andy Griffith

Back in the “good ole days” movie stars faces were as familiar to the general public as were their neighbors across the street.  I can’t say the same for the TV and movie stars now.   If Justin, J Lo, Miley or Taylor came knocking on my door I wouldn’t have a clue who they were.  Some really nice looking, beautiful, handsome teenagers, but to me, nameless.

Carroll O'connor

Most of the actors and actress that I’m familiar with are OLD…80’s, 90’s and even a 100 or two thrown in.  But, they were STARS….many of these beloved stars who have passed on, and those who are still going strong. So, who is still kickin' ?  

Their photos are here….http://www.foxnews.com/slideshow/entertainment/2012/07/30/more-thennow-special-whos-kickin-carol-burnett/#slide=1#ixzz22FSHRe2Q

Barbara Billingsley

Mudpies and flowers

Our grandson Andrew is an active little guy and loves getting outside and playing in the yard. Yesterday the sun was out and the day was beautiful, so we were planting flowers in the garden and taking photos of the proposed garden layout... Drew was having a great time digging in his sandbox. He's 18 months old and thinks everything he picks up can be eaten. Just wish he'd be more selective.

I looked over at him and he was laying on his tummy next to the garden hose. He had dripped water onto the patio, mixed in a little dirt and was stretched out licking the dirt off the concrete...yummmmmm.

Luckily I had the camera with me because it was a "kodak moment:" I yelled, in my strictest grandma voice..."Andrew! stop that" He looked up, grinned at me and took another lick. Then leisurely got up, gave me his usual "smilin' Jack" smile and babbled something like.."hi grandma, whats the problem?"

Since he was mud from head to toe, we stripped him then and there and into the house we went, straight into the bathtub....one of his favorite places to be.


Back I was a young mother and our children were babies, I
would have been a lot more upset with having a muddy little boy to deal with in the middle of my busy day but as a grandma, its just FUN!

Online Buyer.....Big Crumbs Will Save You Money!

Do you love to buy items online...are a cyber shopper....look for the items that you can't find in your hometown....and want to get cash back from your purchases?

You can do all of this by joining Big Crumbs.  You pay nothing, will get an account and never be bothered by them FOR ANYTHING.

You'll Get Cash Back On What You Already Buy and Cash Back from Your Referrals
 
By using BigCrumbs you will receive cash back at over 2000 top stores. Buy health items from Puritans Pride, pet items from Petco, catalogue goodies from LDS Commodities?   They're all in there. Click on the alphabetical listing of retailers .... with over 2000 online places to shop, (only a few are shown here), you'll find many of your favorites.

If you already buy online from stores like A Pea in the Pod, Tractor Supply, Buy Costumes, CafePress, Kohls, Holabird Sports, why not get a little money back on your purchases??

Put BigCrumbs on your desktop and start shopping. Click on the alphabetical referral links to visit your favorite stores, then shop as usual. Say your child's soccar/baseball/tennis team wants new matching outfits.  You buy them online at a store listed on Big Crumbs.  The store offers a 10% discount.....guess who gets credited. 

That's it. Your purchases will credit to your BigCrumbs account at the retailers' listed cash-back rates.  The really great thing about Big Crumbs is that you will get credited for any purchases by friends that you've referred.

Join me as one of my referrals! http://home.bigcrumbs.com/JeansJeans
Look for the Blue Banner with the orange Join Now

Its FREE and all you do is watch the dollars flow into your Paypal account...( you do have to have a Paypal account)

Omaha, NE's Henry Doorly Zoo Railroad

In 1963, the Zoo Railroad was one of the first major attractions added to the newly renovated Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska. As part of its centennial celebration, the Omaha-based Union Pacific decided to sponsor the construction of a train ride at the zoo. The zoo’s railroad initially had just over two miles of 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge track (roughly half the width of standard mainline railroad tracks) in the form of a twisted oval with a connecting track through the middle. Two wyes (Y-shaped track arrangements enabling the train to reverse direction) were constructed at the intersections of the connecting track and the main oval. The track was laid using rail from the Union Pacific’s Encampment branch in Wyoming. 

Due to the hilly terrain of the zoo’s riverside location, grades of up to 6% (for most railroads 2% is considered steep) were required and some of the curves were well under 150 feet in radius. Track crews from the Union Pacific were brought in to lay the track, and operation commenced on July 22, 1968 under the supervision of UP Roadmaster Robert Kovar.

The Omaha Zoo Railroad was initially themed after the UP’s First Transcontinental Railroad route for which Omaha was the eastern terminus. Passengers boarded at the “Omaha Train Depot” located in Dairy World  and rode to “Promontory Junction” at the south end of the zoo’s lagoon, where they had the option of disembarking at the small depot and catching a later train back to the starting point, the Omaha Train Depot. The ride also featured a slow climb up the 6% grade of “Sherman Hill”, named for the Union Pacific’s own grade over the Continental Divide in Wyoming.
Engine Number 119 is one of the two Henry Doorly Zoo’s locomotives and regularly hauls a train of four open-air coaches. 

This engine is known for its colorful paint scheme, polished brass, and sweet-sounding Nathan six chime whistle. It was custom built for the zoo in 1968. Its builder was Crown Metal Products of Wyano, Pennsylvania, a company that built replica steam trains for amusement parks and zoos all over the country. The steam locomotive was painted and decorated to resemble Union Pacific’s No. 119, the famous locomotive used in the laying of the real “Golden Spike” marking the transcontinental line’s completion, and the four coaches were given names significant to the UP’s history.

#119 is a 4-4-0 type steam locomotive, meaning that it has four pilot wheels to help guide it through curves, 4 large driving wheels, and no trailing wheels. This type of locomotive was prevalent on American railroads from 1850 to about 1880, thus earning it the nickname “American standard”.
During the 1970s the Omaha Zoo Railroad saw a large increase in attendance, especially on the weekends.  A search was begun for a second train. A small tank locomotive of Austrian Heritage named “Riva” was found in Romania and its owner, the Plasser and Theurer Company was willing to donate it to the zoo.
“Riva”, number 395-104, was acquired in 1974. It is an 0-6-2 tank locomotive meaning that it carries its fuel oil and water in tanks on the locomotive rather than in a separate tender. It has six relatively small driving wheels and large cylinders, making it extremely powerful for its size and is also known for its European-style high-pitched whistle. A two wheel trailing truck supports the firebox and cab. Generating tractive effort of 10,600 pounds it has almost twice the pulling power of #119, and typically operates with a train consisting of six open-air coaches and a caboose.”Riva” began its long career in 1890 when its was turned out by the Krauss Works of Linz, Austria.

The locomotive was restored in the UP’s shops and entered service at the zoo in 1976, together with two extra cars that were purchased to augment the original four. A major multi-year overhaul took place in the early 1990s and another in 2000-2002. During the winter and spring of 2005, the water tanks were replaced and the air tanks (added in 1976) were moved to a concealed location, returning the engine to a more historically correct appearance.

Today the trains circle the park in a clockwise direction, covering roughly 1.8 miles and taking 20–25 minutes on each circuit.

Dry Eyes

For years I've been bothered with dry eyes....eyes constantly water and look red.  (I am sooooo tired of people asking me if I had been crying or if I had Pink Eye) I faithfully use eye drops which, no matter how many promises they make, do not make the whites of my eyes look like those of the models in eye commercials.  Seems I have a never ending case of Blepharitis, an irritation of the eyelids. It has a variety of causes, ranging from allergies and infection to irritation as well as skin cancer. It is the most common eye disease.  He ruled out skin cancer so the possibilities are an allergy (we live in Nebraska, the home of ragweed, free blowing dust and Golden Rod) and a mild infection....cause unknown.

He prescribed Tobradex, a prescription eye drop, and an OTC eye drop Suystane Ultra.  Plus, each morning I hold a wet, warm washcloth to my eyes and keep it there for a few minutes.  Then wash my eyes with baby shampoo. I put a few drops of shampoo in my hand, add warm water and wash the upper and lower lids.  It does not burn!!!  I seldom wear makeup at home, so I do the "washing of the eyes" several times a day.

It really seems to help and the warm washcloth is reducing the thickening of the eyelids, which I didn't know I had.

Foreign Language Translation

What would you do if you received notification that you were left a sum of money or property in a foreign country.  You speak and understand English, but this property is in Germany…you haven’t a clue what some of the documents you were sent are or what you should do with them since a good many of them were in German.  Your attorney also doesn’t have a clue what some of the papers say….he doesn’t speak German and certainly can’t translate it.  Online “German to English” translations are not reliable….and hit and miss translations are not what you need.  Where can you find a certified translation service?

Or, what if you were considering doing business with a small company in Denmark or Norway.  They can provide the custom, handmade items that you need to build or repair your company’s stainless steel widgets.  The company’s owners and legal department may speak or write in English, but Danish and Norwegian are their native languages. It’s possible that any legal papers sent to you will require certified translations.   You need to contact a company or service that specializes in translations of commercial documents. A company that specializes in business translations and whose translations are recognized by officials in whatever country you want to do business in.

As a Grandmother of Seven, I Know This to be a Fact!

                That's what I keep telling my grandchildren....and they admit it's true!!!

To my children

 

I've made mistakes being a Mom, more than I'd like to admit. I am not perfect at all. But I'll always be there for you, to hear you, to cheer for you, to laugh or cry with you, to protect you with my life and tell you things you don't want to hear.  

I will love you even at those times when you don't love me. No matter how old you get, no one will ever love you more than I do, because I am and always will be your Mom.

Tennis keeps me YOUNG!

First of all, let me introduce myself. I'm Jean aka JeaneBee, a 74 year old retiree who loves tennis and plays 3 times a week at the 3.5 (used to be 4.0) level. I live in Omaha, Nebraska, smack dab in the middle of the great Midwest where we spend half our tennis life playing in the heat and/or wind, and the other half playing on indoor courts to get out of the snow….indoors is a great place to play, no wind, no sun and no low flying birds!
Years ago, when I was young and foolish, I used to snicker at senior players, watching them put on their knee braces, elastic arm bands, sun visors and after having a swig of water went ditzing around on the court, talking, laughing and having a good ole time, then going out for coffee afterwards. Then, somehow, much to my dismay, I turned into one!

I realize that although we’re not as fast on the court and our ground strokes aren’t as hard as they used to be, we’re out there hitting the ball with the same love for the game that we always had. And yes, we do a little giggling and talking between games (SOME of us even like to sit down---bringing our own chairs if seating isn't available on the court!!)

 I took up tennis as physical therapy after having a stroke at age 29…. it was termed a self-induced stroke but a stroke nevertheless. My husband I were “finishing” our basement and my job for the day was putting plaster on the ceiling and making swirls in it with a sponge. It looked pretty good and I was at it for most of the afternoon. My husband found me unconscious, blood streaming down my chin from a bitten lip and limp as a dish rag. He called the rescue squad and I spent two weeks in a stupor, getting punctured from stem to stern. The final diagnosis was stroke, but cerebral hemorrhage and epilepsy were running a close second and third.

I was a healthy 29 year old, preparing for my 10 year high school class reunion. I rode horseback, took gymnastics for years, played softball and was an all-around tomboy growing up and kept at it after marriage. I wasn’t a couch potato, overweight or a smoker, and neither my doctors nor myself could understand why I had a stoke…shouldn’t have happened. Years later, while reading the health section of Better Homes and Gardens magazine, I found out why it did.

Having my head tilted backward and looking up for hours while putting plaster on the ceiling had caused pressure on the back of my neck…reducing the blood flow to my brain….wham, bam, thank you ma’m.... and.....hello stroke.

Physical therapy after my stroke was practically non-existant. This was 1968 and physical therapy wasn't as common as it is now. A friend suggested that I take tennis lessons to improve my eye-hand coordination.....so my physical therapy consisted of learning to hit the ball against the YWCA wall and playing on a hardwood floor. Gradually I got better and better. I had good reflexes thanks to years of gymnastics (helps a lot when you take a fall while running after a tennis ball…you learn to “tuck and roll” gracefully and not sprawl all over the court) and my tennis improved.

Fortunately the stroke caused very little residual damage to my body and general health. I occasionally have trouble with speech, sometimes the words just aren't there and I need to "search" for the word I want......I almost have to visualize it and can then say it (many people think that my sometimes halting conversation is because I want to emphasize a point.....WRONG) Also, my short term memory comes and goes….my doubles partners know that when I ask “what’s the score?” I'm serious, its gone, I’ve forgotten it. Even if I’m serving, the memory is gone and I have to rely on my partners. Guess that tells you why I seldom play really competitive singles!

Now onto our senior tennis. My teammates are great! We are all over 65, actually most of us are in our 70's, grandmothers many times over and play in a Super Seniors league…its not a “hit and giggle” league.. we are as intense and play as hard as we ever did.. We all play on other leagues with players who are younger than our own children. And we do our share of winning, I might add.

Its been said that you are only as old as you feel – and we are a pretty frisky bunch. Most of us have played with and against each other in tournaments for years. We're familiar with each other's families, children and grandchildren. We care when one of us is hurt, sick or has a family member who is hurt or sick. We keep them in our prayers.

In April, 2007, our team, the SOMOS SOMOS represented Missouri Valley at the Senior Nationals Championships in Charleston, South Carolina. WOW, is the Family Circle stadium a beautiful sports facility. We met some great ladies and hope to see them next year.

We didn't win, but fought a good fight. And, we looked great in our bright pink and black tennis clothes. Did I mention that when our group travels, the first place we look for is the nearest grocery for snacks and various drinks (soda, bottled water and WINE....we have a couple of players who really "whine" if they don't have wine with their snacks!) and the second place is shopping malls or any place where the best bargains in tennis clothes will be. We left a LOT of money at the Family Circle pro shop!

Our Super Senior team played in Oklahoma City in September again we didn’t win our Division of the tournament , (hmmmmm, I'm really getting tired of saying that! ) but did win the talent contest! I wrote the song, and the team sang….we were lucky that the judges liked the words since our singing was awful!

Bookstore

Contribution by Saul Martin

I have always had a love for books. It probably started when I was born because my parents have read to me every day since I was born. I studied English in college and read so many books in my four years that I thought my eyes would pop out of my head. After college, I decided that I would like to use my love of books and open a bookstore. I found the perfect rental space for it and was approved for a loan to get things going. I set up small business xo so I would have phone and internet, then I began purchasing books for my store. I have been pretty successful with my store and have now had it open for three years. I am thinking about expanding the store or even opening another store in the same city. I like the feel of my small bookstore. I have met so many customers who feel the same way. There is just something romantic and magical about books and I am so happy that I have been able to use my love for books to help others experience what I do when I open a book.

Term Life or Whole Life....what to do, what to do....

My daughter and son-in-law have been searching for the Best Family Life Insurance plan that they can afford.  It’s amazing how many life insurance companies are so similar in what they offer, but their prices can very from a cheap life insurance policy (if they are too cheap, be sure to read the contract from top to bottom focusing on the fine print), to those that would cause a family to scrape to make the monthly assessment. 

Lea and Jay have two children….a teenager and a 5 year old.  Jay needs a good family insurance plan.  His company offers among other things, Term Life Insurance and Whole Life Insurance.  He examined the benefits of Term life insurance which, like it sounds, has a term limit which he can set. In other words, he would have this coverage for only a certain amount of time say 25 years…this type of insurance is cheaper and many people prefer it.   But this isn’t for him.   The whole life plan was the one that he is considering. The whole life type of insurance will cover him for the rest of his life.

Since Jay is unsure of what kind of insurance he should get, he will talk with his company’s benefits people and then get insurance quotes from whichever insurance company they recommend.    

Grrrrrr Gonna Toss that Dishwasher!!!!!

Something was wrong with my dishwasher....my drinking glasses were coming out cloudy, the silverware and flatware had some sort of gunky coating and my aluminum pie tins turned nearly black. I blamed the glasses and silverware on my dishwasher, it is getting older and maybe wasn't doing it's job. But couldn't blame the aluminum pie tin problem on the dishwasher. And, I did not have this problem previously.    

I scanned the internet for "dishwasher problems" and guess what.....its my dishwasher detergent. I had used Cascade, Finish and Kirkland for years, both in the powder form and the newer gel. My glasses were sparkling clear, the pie tins stayed their shiny aluminum color and silverware had no spots or gunk. But last week I ran out of detergent so I bought a huge box of Cascade at Costco.....when I started using it, my troubles began.

The silverware and dishes came out of the dishwasher coated with a whitish film almost scale. I can scratch it off my clear Pyrex bowls with my fingernail. The glasses were so murky and foggy that I was ashamed to have my kids see them much less drink from them. I thought that the dishwasher's rinse cycle was not working or that the sprayer arms had been caught on something and couldn't rotate. Luckily, I had not called the appliance repairman, but that was going to be my next step.

More research on the "murky, scaly and not clean dishes" gave me my answer...... laws banning phosphorus in soaps by July 1, 2010 had been enacted. The Soap and Detergent Association, a trade organization that represents North American manufacturers of cleaning products, stated that they would be phosphorus free by that deadline.

Obviously phosphorus is the cleaning agent in dishwasher detergent that cleaned and made the dishes clean and sparkling....and its now gone. Don't believe the hype that Cascade is putting out....your dishes will not come out sparkling clean and totally food free with the new product.

I have tried several ways to get my glasses sparkly and silverware gunk free and the only way I have been able to do it was to re-run the dishwasher rinse cycle with a cup of vinegar The vinegar seems to cut through the foggy gunk. Its not perfect, but at least I'm not looking at murky drinking glasses (they are still foggy but not as bad as before) and funny stuff on the silverware (am undecided about that)

Want to read some user comments....... http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf98723206.tip.html

And, I took the big box of Cascade back to Costco for a full refund.

I believe that we should find ways to protect the environment, but manufacturers must be able to come up with something better than this.

My Act of Kindness

Winter is cold in Nebraska and today was typical – 4 degrees above zero at 11 am. The tail end of a sleet storm had hit Sunday night and the streets were covered with both snow and ice. It was windy, cold and spitting snow.

The best place to be was at home. But, here we were, attending the funeral of an old and loved friend.

As we were leaving the church, preparing for the long drive to the cemetery, I felt a tug on my arm. An old gentleman who had been sitting in front of us in church was standing there with his car keys in his hand. He said “would you please go to the parking lot and bring my car to the door….I’m afraid that my wife will slip on the ice.”

Now mind you, I did not know this man and he didn’t know me, but here he was giving me the keys to his car. I took the keys, asked where he had parked and what kind of car it was…”white”…”Ok, but what model” “it’s a van”….

Because the departed was a dear friend, we had been asked to ride to church in the mortuary’s limo. The other occupants, her daughter and son-in-law, were starting to leave the church so I didn’t have time to quiz him about his van. I planned to push the horn button until a white van answered.

I told my husband to wait in the limo and I would find the van. The funeral was not large. Many of the older family members and friends did not attend due to the weather.

To make a long story short, I found the van, (using the honking horn as my guide) and drove it to the church door. The elderly gentleman and his wife were waiting for me. They did not go to the cemetery nor to the luncheon following the ceremony so to this day I don't know who they were and I have never seen them again.

Although this wasn’t an outstanding act of kindness, in my heart I felt that I had done something very good.

Formal Cruise Photo

(1)  John and Jennifer....Son in law and granddaughter
(2)  Jennifer and Austin....grandchildren
(3)  Lisa and John....daughter and son in law
(4)  Interior of cruise ship
(5)  Ken and Jean


What a great time we had!

Andrew's Four Letter Word!

Andrew is nearly 3 ½ years old and is now going to daycare which is both a good thing and a bad thing. It’s good because he is learning to play with children his own age and not rely on Grandma and Grandpa to cater to his every wish. But, it’s turned into a bad thing because he has been exposed to and caught every germ the daycare has floating around. Everyone says “well, he has to build an immunity to those childhood illnesses”....trust me, thats not a particularly welcome comment.

First colds, sore throats, sinus infections and now he will have surgery to place tubes in his ears to relieve fluid which has accumulated behind his ear drums. Do his grandparents feel guilty that he was in the dreaded daycare and not safe at home with us…..yes we do.

This morning I read an article by Sarah Warren a contributor to Momaha.com in Omaha, NE. She writes about a four letter word that Andrew has learned (from where?) and uses regularly. How embarrassing when he’s with a group of mothers with their sweet children. But, Sarah reminds us that children have their own “Rules of Engagement”. And, this is one of Andrew's favorites!

1. If I like it, it’s MINE
2. If it’s in my hand, it’s MINE
3. If I can take it from you, it’s MINE
4. If I had it a little while ago, it’s MINE
5. If it’s mine it must NEVER appear to be yours in any way
6. If I’m doing or building something, all the pieces are MINE
7. If it looks just like mine, it’s MINE
8. If I saw it first it’s MINE
9. If you are playing with something and you put it down, it automatically becomes MINE
10. If it’s broken, it’s YOURS

Sound familiar?

Horses---my first love

Back when I was a pre-teen, horses were the love of my life. Now that I'm a grandmother, I have passed that love onto our youngest granddaughter. "Becca" is 14 and loves to ride....luckily we have friends with horses! Our friends also have 3 goats......playing with the goats is fun, but nothing compared to playing with the horses.

H-e-l-l-o Cleaning guys....we need help!

Ken decided that before summer returned, the back deck needed to be “power cleaned”….what a mess! We rented a power washer and he started power washing the deck…evidentally he had the thing turned on full force because he nearly wiped off a layer of paint. It just peeled off...goodbye last year’s paint job. He had planned to power wash the house also, but after the fiasco with the back deck, decided that maybe (MAYBE!!) a professional company would do better.

We called a local cleaning company and said we needed someone with experience in power washing a deck. We didn’t need to worry, they had the guys who can do the job. Della said they would send someone out the next day. And they were here with power washing unit in hand.

We have used this company several times but never for power washing. Last summer we used the carpet cleaning service and they did an awesome job. We have two big dogs, Kwinnie and Kuper, a couple of happy-go-lucky Keeshounds Both are housebroken and we have no qualms about leaving them in the house while we were at work. Unfortunately, we had grilled out and put the steak bones into the kitchen trash can instead of putting them in the outside trash bin.   

 That afternoon both dogs were in 7^th heaven….they got into the trash, drug the night’s leftovers into the living room and proceeded to have a picnic there and then.  ( Notice Kuper's smile....he was one happy little guy) Since we NEVER feed them table scraps….their tummies were not accustomed to fat and grease…which was evident when we returned home. Need I say more!!!

Rebecca, Andrew and Jenny

Our youngest grandson, Andrew Michael turned 4 on Monday.....where has the time gone!  We had his birthday party at our cabin on the Platte River.  Andrew enjoys the cabin so much.  There is a fishing pond, playground, meadow where he can fly kites and enjoy the fireworks on July 4th.  Occasionally he will see the wild turkeys and deer that come out of  the surrounding woods.

He loves his sister Rebecca and cousin Jennifer and just beams when Jenny's brother Austin, a gangly teenager, plays ball with him.

Riverview Park aka The Henry Doorly Zoo

We live in Omaha, Nebraska, home of the Henry Doorly Zoo, a wonderful place to lose yourself for hours. I grew up a block away from the zoo and consider it one of my old 'stomping' grounds. Prior to becoming the world renown zoo that it is now, it was called Riverview Park. In 1898 Riverview Park was part of the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition. The next time you watch the original WIZARD OF OZ with Judy Garland, look at the hot air balloon Dorothy is going to use to return to Kansas....it says STATE FAIR Omaha!

Anyway we, the neighborhood kids, would play softball where the antelopes now roam, make dams in the stream that wanders through the park, ending in a big lagoon where we would ice skate in winter. Things have changed a lot in those 60 years...but is it still a wonderful place for kids.

We took our almost 4 year old grandson to the park on Friday....we wanted to see the new Madagascar exhibit and show Andrew the baby animals.....he has been to the zoo many times in his young life and thoroughly enjoys walking the paths in the Lied Jungle, seeing the monkeys high in the tree tops and hearing their screeching calls. We were there from 10 Am to 3 Pm and had a great time......Andrew ran, climbed and splashed his way through everything he could find.

But, by 3 o'clock, he was ready to have a drink of water and settle back in his car seat for the ride home. We are so fortunate to have our grandchildren in Omaha where we can call their parents at a moment's notice and say "Hey, we'd like to take Andrew, Rebecca, Jenny, Austin, Mason, Connor or Hayden to the zoo with us for the day"