Wedding & A Baby

I guess the Sisters of Charity have officially moved. It was sad. I called their number at the convent to see if they wanted to go out to lunch before they moved, and I got a disconnected recording. They have been at St Joseph's for 150 years. Now they are being dispersed because of finances and sent to help other places.
JR did a kick %$#@ job on the wedding this weekend. It was definitely not an easy task for him, but he MADE the wedding.
Al is feeling SO much better physically after the surgery. It's a slow recovery, but positive! Paul Bagley came over and spent the nite with her last Thursday. He is such a hoot and it was good to see him!
Leigh Barksdale (Al's childhood friend from across the street) had her baby last Thursday. Little Pierson came home yesterday. Will try to get photos up. I am really getting slow !
I'm planning a day of getting groceries and then cleaning up around the pool. Hoping to have a few friends over tomorrow for Memorial day for food and drink. Then a fire by the pool in the evening.
This will be a busy week. I am looking at houses and coming down to the wire on the selections. Ellen's dance review is this week. I want to go to Toano to take Glenn's robe back and visit with them. And yes, Sheila, I am bringing a rice maker!
We got word in NY from Uncle Mike that John's great Uncle Art passed away. He was 99 and getting ready to celebrate his 100th bday in September. He was John's mother's brother. A short, cute little Frenchman. Hmmmm, sounds like somebody I know!
Gotta run thru the carwash....LOTS of little birdies "doo-dood" on it when we were visiting the baby yesterday.
Gonna try to beat the church people to Walmart!

The Hummingbirds are Back!

Again, I hate to post without photos, but I am catching up as quickly as I can.
Allie had her surgery on the 14th....it's been a slow recouperation, but she is a trooper! She's been with us in Prince George several nites. Drew brought his WII down yesterday. I had never played one. We all scooted down to the pool and roasted hotdogs on the firepit. Boy are we really going to enjoy that this summer!
JR is doing a wedding this weekend, so it gave me an excuse to go to TOANO and borrow Glenn Plott's robe for the ceremony. I had lunch and visited a long time with Glenn & Sheila!
Had to go thru a carwash when I got back. On I64 I ran over a deer carcas and it was very "ugly" . I don't think I need to say anymore.
Jeffrey had a Donk's show on Saturday nite and then he drove to spend the nite with us here in PG. Todd, guitarist friend, from LIVEWIRE had brain surgery. It's a long story, but bottom line, Todd is going to be fine and we'll be seeing him performing with the band at WORKCAMP 2009.
Prayers please for Mikey McCutcheon's mom. She is ill again in Blairsville, PA.
This past Sunday was a Tabernacle Sunday and JR's sermon was so good. Then we had a workcamp board meeting at 2pm at the house. It was good to see Bob and Katrina!
I am up WAY TOO LATE! Tomorrow I meet with the janitorial staff at Colonial Heights Middle School and then on to look at three more houses! Workcamp is creeping up on me!

It's All Good

I have some photos, but I haven't loaded them on the computer yet! I'll slip one in a little later!
My life is filled with trips to the post office, Staples, and visiting lots of old houses with old people living in them. I am almost finished assessing houses for the workcampers for this summer. There are so many interesting people for the kids to spend time with.
John's sermons are getting better and better. We are able to copy them on CD now and it's fun to share them with people.
Mother's Day and Graduation at Hampden-Sydney was so nice. The campus was pristine, the weather perfect and we are so proud of Drew! He won numerous awards! It was good to spend time with the Murphys too. Al gave me Elizabeth Edward's new book RESILIANCE.....finished it in a few sittings.
The tshirts for camp arrived, so I have been delivering and mailing out bulk to all of the churches. Even had onesies made for the workcamp babies that are being born soon! I talked with the building inspections office in Colonial Heights today. Everything is all lined up!
The pool is looking good! I love looking down there. I put up the hummingbird feeders, but haven't seen the little guys yet!
Allie's surgery is tomorrow. We are praying for good results. It's been a long haul. Drew used a graduation gift card to buy a WII for them, so that's helped keep her mind off the upcoming operation.
Jeffrey is coming to spend Saturday nite with us after Donk's.
The squiggly things have stopped falling from the trees. We have SO MANY bunnies this year it's hard to get down the driveway sometimes!

Much To Do In May

May just seems to be adding and adding dates to remember! It's all good though.
Jeff's show at Donk's is tonight, but I think we are going to have to pass on this one. Wish we could just snap our fingers and be there!
Tomorrow is a Tabernacle Sunday with lunch at church. Love those ladies' cooking! Then JR meets with a couple that he is marrying on the 23rd at a park in Richmond.
Al's surgery has been moved to May 14th in Richmond with her pre-op done on the 7th.
Drew graduates from Hampden-Sydney on Mother's Day - the 10th.

The church is giving a baby shower for Amanda Pecht on Saturday the 16th. The Murphys are hosting a barbecue to celebrate Drew's graduation that evening.
Another Tabernacle Sunday on the 17th with a Workcamp Board Meeting to follow.
Walking thru Colonial Heights Middle School with the custodial service to final those details on the 20th.
Ellen Rose's dance review is on the 29th.
In between there are houses to assess and workcamp final plans to make! It's getting close!!!

My cousin, Michelle Eagle, called me . I haven't heard from her in years. It was good to be in touch.

We uncovered the pool and because we skimped on the cover, it let the sunlight thru and the algae grew. Now I am dealing with a green pool! The pollen is SO thick this year, but that will soon be over.

I really want to set a date this month to have lunch with the Sisters before they leave and go their separate ways in June! That's their photo above!

Rollercoaster!!

Our lives have been a true rollercoaster. There have been numerous trips to UVA and several trips to ERs because of Al's pain. The UVA Pain Management center was a true waste of time. Bottom line is that she is having lap surgery on Wednesday, April 29th at UVA. We are convinced now that all of this involves the bladder and she has had a MEAN bought with thrush because of sensitivity to certain antibiotics. I am not one to exagerate, but it has been really %$#@ for her.

I helped Alicia with a Mother/Daughter retreat out at Camp Keehukee the other night. It was fun to see all the little girls and reflect on times of bonfires, somores, and sing a longs!

Jeffrey just won the title of ROADEO Champion for school bus drivers for the City of Newport News. Now he goes on to the next level! Yep, he might win the state title this year!

Don't think we'll get to go to his show at DONK'S since Al's surgery is on Wednesday and the show is Saturday.

Much is happening and we'll have to play it by ear. Drew graduates on May 10th with a family barbecue the following weekend. John has a wedding to perform in Richmond the end of the month.

In WORKCAMP NEWS:

I have quite a few more houses to assess. Debra Bailey's husband Kurt, has kidney stones. Erica Balmer Hanchey sent me a photo of her pregnant at 24 weeks! The photo is of our new warehouse space for workcamp. It's the old boathouse on Willcox Lake! Yep, Bob D and Jerry G can fish in between runs!

Easter & Hope

Today is Easter. JR delivered an wonderful sermon, then communion. Then he jumped into our old bunny suit to help the little ones look for eggs. Al & Drew walked about two blocks from her apartment in Richmond and went to Grace & Holy Trinity Episcopal to their early service. Then, on to the Murphys for a big family Easter dinner. Al continues to push herself. I pray.

We head to UVA again this Friday to meet with an endocrinologist /surgeon. Then back again the following Monday. I truly believe all of this is going to be good. We are supposed to go to a baby shower for Leigh Barksdale the Sunday in between the visits, but I think we may just have to bow out of that one.

Jeffrey is gearing up for his big show at DONK's the first weekend in May. Looking forward to it and seeing the revitalized theater.

Workcamp is like a steamroller. Preparing, typing, etc. I go to finalize the tshirt order this week. There is a lot of shuffling going on so some churches may be pleasantly surprised with a few more slots for kids on their wait lists.

I must exhibit self discipline this week by going to the YMCA. Alicia & family are in NC with her parents.

John and I started the movie DOUBT yesterday and will finish it today.

Our dear friend ANITA CLARK passed away earlier this week from breast cancer. Billy, her husband, has been doing workshops for new workcampers ever since 1985 when we made our first trip to W VA. The family visitation was at Immanuel Baptist Church because of the expected crowd. She fought long and hard. We will keep Billy busy this summer.

Catching Up Again

This is the design for the tshirts this summer. I think it's really creative!
Allie has had a few good days and now having a few rough days. Back to UVA on April 17th & April 20th.
The pollen is killing us!
Found out that my cousin Tim is coming to visit the first week in JULY! Can't wait. He will be able to get a glimpse of the kaos of workcamp. His birthday is JULY 5th so we'll celebrate on the 4th!
Found a used elliptical on Craig's list and Bob S., Kent and I delivered it on Sunday afternoon. Whew it was a blister to get up a flight of stairs! Now if Al can just get well enough to use it.
Our Simba (14 yr old cat) never returned home last week. We miss her a lot. I imagine that she went off to an "elephant graveyard" somewhere. She was John's sidekick, so he misses her so much.
I wove crosses out of crown palms for this past Sunday. Drew and Al came to church and then we all ate together at church for the first Sunday of the month. JR's sermon was terrific. It was called the DIVINE BAILOUT.
I tallied the SMOKE DETECTOR BLITZ stats. We knocked on about 185 doors. About 100 folks let us in to change batteries, check batteries and we installed 40 + smoke detectors. # of lives saved = priceless
Scrambling to get my taxes together. I've been a bit distracted and now am hussling to meet with H&R Block on Wednesday. Yikes, that's tomorow!