Keeping Busy

...because Mom is back in the hospital. This time to treat pulmonary edema, at least that's what my dad is telling me. I have called Mom a couple of times and she sounds strong, but she is the classic silent sufferer. So, prayers are welcome!

Since I'm a basket case again with worry, I've managed to finish Christmas shopping, wrapping, and mailing. Danny keeps asking what I got him and my standard answer is a cigar case. Man, he will be surprised!

Yesterday, Danny and Marisa fixed the fence and put up the outside Christmas lights. We are expecting another snow storm tonight, so I'm glad they got it done.

CRASH! BANG! POW!

Came home yesterday to find a police card on the door that said "please call about the fence". My first thought: "Damn it, what did Tony do now?" (I know, poor kid!)

Then, I noticed another card that said, "I am the Dad of J** P** that slid into your fence. I would love you to call me so I can get our fence fixed or even fix it for you with his help. PLEASE CALL. Thank you, M***"

I honestly didn't notice anything wrong with the fence until I turned the corner and...

Apparently, this 16-year-old boy was driving down the street and slid into the fence. It was icy and snowy earlier in the day and he lost control of the car. He was honest enough to call his dad who met him at the crash site. They called the police. The police did not ticket him, however, according to the dad, "lectured him to no end". As a result, the kid and his dad are fixing our fence. Danny and I both called the dad to make sure the boy was okay and to arrange for restitution. The dad stated several times how he appreciated our understanding and kindness.

I didn't tell the dad this, but 1) we have a teenager almost at driving age, 2) our school had recently lost a teen to a driving accident so we have that on our minds, 3) nothing beats good, hard manual labor for a teenager doing restitution, and 4) KARMA...what goes around comes around.

Fotos

One of the best things about Thanksgiving is that we celebrate Marisa's birthday.

And, the "Fab 4" cousins get to hang out and chill.

And, they get to party at Main Event.

But, the sad part is leaving...especially with road conditions such as these through New Mexico.

Or, these through Colorado Springs.

Or, when the dog just can't take it anymore in the car with her humans.

It's only been a week and we miss our Texas family already! We also got to visit our little cousins, Ben and Nora, but those pictures turned out orange. Don't know how that happened. We're staying in Colorado for Christmas, but come Spring Break, we're on the road again.

Supper's Ready

It's so cold here today! So, we're having chili and homemade bread for supper.

In case you haven't noticed, I have no Thanksgiving pictures yet. Here's why: Marisa took 227 photos and her battery died as she was uploading. Danny is charging the battery now. Maybe in a couple more days I'll get some of those wacky kids' mugs up.

This weekend Danny and I are doing a marathon Christmas shopping trip. We've already finished the extended family's gifts, so this marathon is strictly for our kids. We haven't decided on a volunteer activity yet, but there are plenty to chose from. I'll start planning our Christmas menu soon. We are having company after all, so I'll keep them all well fed.

The Aftermath

Hi ya'll! (Sorry, had to do that...my kids said I sound "hick-y" when I come back from Texas.) Anyway, we had a great time with our families. And, of course, I have no photos yet. Marisa got a really nice camera ("the Ashon Kutcher" as she calls it). So, all pictures will be from the view of my 15-year-old-texting-is-boring-now daughter. That is, once we figure out how to get the pics off the camera without accidently uploading everything to Youtube.

We were able to spend time with both sides of the family. Once again, Marisa and Tony spent time with their cousins, Parker and Jaron. When they get together...brains leave and the havoc begins. More on that when the picutres come to fruition and you can "see" what I'm talking about.

It took us 17 hours to drive home. We ran into a blizzard in New Mexico and icy road conditions that had us to a crawl on I-25 in Colorado Springs for the 4 extra hours. Needless to say, I was a basket case when we got home. But, today, I get to pay bills, do laundry, go shopping for food, and go to the dentist.

So, bye for now! Marisa and I will work on those pictures for ya'll. Sorry...