Six Word Saturday

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Had to "borrow" my daughter's blog

which, conveniently, had a 6 word title.

What a difference a day makes

From one day to the next our weather went from near 80, suitable for playing in the leaves,

 in short sleeves and barefoot.....

to snow..... I love this picture of our little man with his little snowman.

It is predicted to be in the 60s over the next few days and near 70 early next week, so we have nothing to complain about. My thoughts and prayers are with those on the east coast of the United States who will be facing Hurricane Sandy. I pray for safety and shelter for those who are in it's path.

My "Grandmomiversary"

I'm pretty sure "Grandmomiversary" is not a proper word, but I used it a couple of years ago to describe the anniversary of the day I became a grandmother for the first time and today I am celebrating my 12th "Grandmomiversary". My oldest grandchild, Jared, turns 12 today and with six more grandchildren after him I still think being a grandmom is a pretty good thing. 

Jared

Jared and me, nearly 12 years ago

I said most of this about Jared last year and it is all true a year later.

He plays baseball, basketball and the guitar. He is a good student and has lots of friends. He is a pretty serious kid who is way too hard on himself when he can't do something perfectly.

He says he is not looking forward to "catching puberty". (I bet he and his friends have some pretty interesting conversations about that.)

He is a little "too cool" sometimes to participate in the shenanigans of his brother and older cousins, but he is always kind and protective and playful with the little kids.

Happy birthday Jared and thanks for being the first to call me Grandmom.

Friday Fragments

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It has been a pretty convoluted week for me. Thanks to Mrs. 4444 for the Friday Fragment opportunity to do a little catch-up here. After several days of packing in preparation for having the furniture moved out of four rooms for re-carpeting we left on Saturday for Las Vegas while the furniture moving and carpeting jobs were completed. We came home late Tuesday and have spent the last two days getting everything moved back in. The biggest job for me was getting the whole computer/internet/TV/phone stuff put back together. I now consider myself a tech genius because they all actually work. (OK, the Comcast guy had to come to get the phones working, but it turned out to be a problem with their equipment, so I still claim a minor tech genius title).

Vegas was, well, Vegas. We had a good time with friends and met some interesting people.

This Grinch was actually pretty friendly

The Joker was a little bit scary

These guys definitely know how to have a good time

I even got a little lucky....this was a $1000 jackpot

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A couple of weeks ago my 10 year old granddaughter, Hope, went through a rite of passage.....

Before

She got braces

After

Does it seem like kids are getting braces younger and younger these days?

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Our community is still grieving the abduction and murder of 10 year old Jessica Ridgeway. Her killer has not been caught so there is still the fear about knowing there is someone out there who is capable of such a horrible act. Along with the grief there has been an amazing amount of support for her family for their loss and activities in memory of Jessica.

Please keep her family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.

Heartache and Tears In Our Community

The news is not good regarding the little girl that was missing that I wrote about on Saturday. It was confirmed this afternoon that a body found on Wednesday in an open space area is the body of that 10 year old little girl, Jessica Ridgeway. The search for Jessica has now tragically become a search for a child killer. 

I didn't know Jessica or her family, but this tragedy is close enough to me and everyone in the communities in this area to feel very personal. I have a 10 year old granddaughter. She and my oldest grandsons, who are 9 and almost 12, go to school, play soccer, play football and baseball, and play with friends in the community from which Jessica was taken. One of Jessica's neighbors and classmates is on my granddaughter's soccer team. My grandchildren and all the children in this community are being faced with realities that children should not have to learn. Their parents are being faced with the fear and horror that there is someone in the community who did this.

I can only pray for peace for Jessica and comfort for her family and that her killer is found soon.

Don't Call Me, I'll Call You

I have been home a little more than usual this week and I am about ready to throw the phone out the window. Just today, I have answered the phone to recordings telling me that the FBI says there is a home break-in every 15 seconds, that pre-planning my funeral is the best way to show my love to my family, that my windows are for sure pieces of crap that need to be replaced and that my car windshield could be a danger to my life. Oh, and Rachel from card services has called me no less than three times to tell me I need to lower the rate on my credit card.

The reason I have been home is that I am "packing" in preparation to have the furniture moved out of our bedrooms and living room for re-carpeting. Believe me, it is a lot like moving so I have had to drop a box or crawl out from the floor of a closet to answer the phone, just to hear Rachel's recorded voice. Yes, I do have a portable phone, but it usually ends up hidden under something that is getting packed. And, yes I do know that there is no requirement to answer a ringing phone, but there is something about a phone ringing that just, well, calls to me and I am a hopeless phone answerer. On top of that, our hapless handyman, Robert, has been here all week replacing some light fixtures (he's not real fast) and every time the phone rings he yells "Jeanie, your phone is ringing", like I am deaf or something.

Apparently my registration on the Do Not Call list is expired. I guess I will have to call someone to check on that.

Missing 10 Year Old Girl

There is a search underway in our area for this little 10 year old girl, Jessica Ridgeway, who has been missing since Friday morning.

Photo from KUSA 9 News

She was last seen when she left home to meet friends to walk to school at 8:30 on Friday morning. She never met her friends and she didn't make it to school. 

Police, family and friends and members of the public continue to search the area where she went missing in temperatures that are 30 degrees below normal. It didn't get out of the 30s today and is expected to be in the low 20s tonight. It is supposed to start getting warmer tomorrow, but hopefully she will be found before then.

I have a 10 year old granddaughter. She played in a soccer tournament today. She was cold, but she was safe with her family and friends. I can fully imagine the horror and fear Jessica's family are going through.

Please say a prayer, light a candle, send out your best wishes that Jessica will soon be found safe and be able to return to her home and her family.

14 Things

I learned a long time ago that when Doc and I are going someplace together and he says he is ready to go that he isn't really ready to go. When Doc says he is ready to go he still has 14 things to do before he is really ready to go. He has to get some coffee, go to the bathroom, find his keys, check the phone for messages, comb his hair, change his shirt, write a novel, save the world.......I don't really know what all he does, but he always has to do 14 things before we can leave, after he says he is ready.

Our dog, Dodger, goes a lot of places with Doc and he is always eager to go. Until a while ago, when Doc would say "okay Dodger, let's go" Dodger would get all excited and stick by Doc, tail wagging, expecting to go out the door at any second. At about thing 8, his tail would stop wagging and he would give the doggy equivalent of a sigh and go find something else to do.....that is until he finally "got it". Now, the first time Doc says "okay Dodger, let's go", Dodger immediately goes to his bed which sits by the door to the garage and waits with one eye open for what he now knows will be an eventual exit.

Proving he his not such an old dog, Dodger has learned the trick of Doc's 14 Things.