Going Back to Omaha

The drive back to Omaha from my Dad's wasn't too bad. The weather was cloudy and at times, raining. But the temperature was in the 60's which made it comfortable. No air conditioning needed. After I got through Bismarck and began my trek eastward, the wind began to blow out of the south. Figures! Now the battle between vehicle and Mother Nature would be on. This is maybe my biggest pet peeve when it comes to road trips; having the wind whip against the side of your car and making it very cumbersome to steer! It gets to be exhausting just trying to keep the car on the straight and narrow.

OK, move forward several hours. Now I've arrived in Fargo after a gas stop between Bismarck and my current locale. I needed to fill up once again. I could see the clouds building to the south-exactly where I would be going! The western horizon wasn't looking very friendly either, I might add.

Once I was back on the interstate, the wind was getting stronger and the sky darker. I know I was in SD somewhere but I'm not exactly sure where. However, as I was driving I could just see the actually rain and wind blowing right across the road ahead of me! The wind seemed to be coming from the west and south at the same time! The other cars in my lane were disappearing as if they were entering the abyss. Mother Nature was swallowing them up into the thunderstorm that was moving through. I managed to snap a picture but I'm not so sure it does justice to what I was seeing! (click the photo for closer view )

Interstate 29 heading south through the rain storm.

Fast forward several more hours. It was almost 9 PM as I was nearing Omaha. I was wondering in the back of my mind what I would find at home when I walked in the door. My cats were left there alone but one of my friends had checked on them for me to make sure all was well. Worriment set in as I turned the key in the door and walked into my living room. The first place my eyes always go to is the fireplace mantle. One of my cats, Trouble, always has a knack for getting up on things that I think would be too hard for him to bother with. Not this time! He had used my TV to launch himself up onto the mantle of the fireplace and proceeded to knock over a very thick glass vase that had glass marbles inside holding some silk floral! Somehow, it missed the TV below and crashed onto the carpeted floor. There were shards of glass all over behind the TV and little nick's in the stand of the TV from the glass. And the marbles from inside? All over the floor! The photo below will give you some idea of where it was. (click photo to see the vase clearer.)

Here is an early photo from when I first moved into my house. There wasn't any furniture yet but the vase is on the right of the mantle. You can see for yourself what it used to look like. Except I had it on the opposite end at the time that Trouble knocked it down! The TV sits off to the left of the mantle. There was virtually no space for him to even jump to so I have no idea what he thought he was doing!!!

I also had several other frames of family photos next to the vase, which he managed to bump down as well. Now I need 2 new frames because the glass in them got broken! And don't forget about replacing the vase too! I was so mad.....he came close to being hauled to the humane society! He has single-handedly destroyed many of my things! But I kept my calm long enough to get my camera and document the evidence! You can't see the glass very well unless you click on the picture but it's all there!

After this all occurred, he decided it would be fun to eat some of the greenery. Then when it didn't set well in his stomach it all came back up in 6 different areas in my basement, on the carpeting! I'll spare you the details!

Welcome home to ME!!!!!

Weekend Visitors

While I was in ND at Dad's, we had the chance to see a few other people other than Dad and Beverly. Sunday night, my Aunt Penny (Dad's sister) and Dennis and Julie (Beverly's son/daughter-in-law) came over to eat supper with us. Beverly cooked a big meal consisting of scalloped potatoes, ham, sweet potatoes, scalloped corn, and salads. I had brought some rhubarb along with me from Omaha and Susan helped me bake an apple/rhubarb dessert that I had never tried before. The whole meal was delicious!
After gorging ourselves, we sat around the kitchen table, which is a tradition in it's own making, and visited. Why we don't retire to the comfort of the furniture in the living room, I've yet to figure out!
The girls played a game of Concentration with Julie during the visiting.

Bandy gets in on the conversation on Kevin's lap...

Here is Julie pampering Bandy

The Concentration game is getting serious! Hillary, Julie, Abigail all wishing it was there turn when they see the next selection the other players make!

Julie and Dennis

Aunt Penny with Hillary

It's always fun to get home to ND and enjoy the calmness of the country. Not to mention seeing extended family!

Long Drive, Short Trip

I ended up having a four day weekend over the Memorial Day holiday. So I decided a few days prior that it would be fun to drive to ND and see my Dad and Beverly. My brother Kevin and his family were planning on being there as well. I hadn't been there since last November.

After rising fairly early at 5AM, I put my travel items into my Escape. I had yet to water all my flowers before leaving for 4 days. I had high hopes that it would be enough until my return on Monday night. While tending to the flowers directly in front of my house, I caught a whiff of the Korean Lilac that sits at the end of my porch to the west. I knew it was blooming but today the wonderful scent from the blooms seemed to be at its peak. I wondered over to look at them and they were beautiful! So I got my camera from my purse and snapped a couple of pictures because I knew they wouldn't look like this next week! The plants in my less-than-a-year-old landscaping have flourished this spring. And the Korean Lilac was gorgeous!

My Korean Lilac on Memorial Day weekend....sooo fragrant with pale purple flowers!

Hoping that I hadn't forgotten to do anything before leaving home, I climbed into my ride for the next 12 hours (give or take) and headed for the gas station. I left Omaha around 7:30. It was a nice day for a drive and I hoped the wind wouldn't kick up it's heals to make it a longer exhausting trip. I found road construction within the first 1/2 hour of my drive....the first of many areas along the way.
One such area was in ND where the speed limit was reduced to 45 MPH. It happened to be over the bridge by the Garrison Dam. I was able to take pictures of the very blue water. It was pretty!

Driving over the water by Garrison Dam in ND

Near Garrison Dam

I arrived at my Dad's farm at 8PM. When I drove into the yard, Dad was in his Bobcat mowing the grass. He came in after I got there. Bandy, Dad and Beverly's dog, was barking inside when she saw me drive up. She saw me through the patio door windows and made sure the whole world heard her!

We stayed up fairly late visiting before heading off to bed.

The next day, around noon, my brother's family arrived from Dickinson, ND. They had stopped at the floral shop in Tioga to pick up an arrangement that my sister Cathy, in Oregon, had ordered for our Mom's grave. We all take turns each year supplying the flowers for Memorial Day and this year it was Cathy's.

After eating some lunch, we drove to the cemetery to decorate her grave and visit other graves of relatives and friends. (click the photo to see the pretty details up close)

Others had been there before us and left their own flowers in her memory. Thank you to whomever you are!

Surprisingly, the mosquitoes were enjoying our visit as we strolled through the grounds. Even with the wind blowing, they were in full force in search of a bite!

Flowers from Dad and my siblings and I.

Visiting my Mom's grave.

The flowers from my siblings and I.

The grass had been trimmed up and looked nice as we walked around. We visited the graves of our grandparents and extended family members that rest there. Beautiful flowers, trinkets and landscape lights adorn many plots. Very serene and yet bittersweet at the same time.

Helping Hands

After getting home from the cemetery, Kevin and Suzanna began preparing the supper they had planned out before getting to Dad's. Each week, Kevin and one of the girls work on the meal to fit into the category of Scandinavian Saturday. Read below the excerpt from Kevin's blog....
this is what they created for all of us to enjoy!
***Suzanna and I made supper for Scandinavian Saturday! It was interesting to do so in somebody else's kitchen, but Beverly told me where to find things, and it all turned out well. Appetizer: shrimp and crab salad -- rye/caraway crackers and garden herb crackers -- dill pickles; Main Course: Swedish meatballs in gravy -- steamed baby potatoes in butter and fresh dill -- creamed peas with fried onions and bacon; Dessert: angel food cake -- homemade whipped cream -- homemade fruit sauce of strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries simmered in the juice of a lemon with sugar and cardommom added.

Kevin and Suzanna preparing our meal.

So while they were working on supper, the other girls were practicing their piano lessons and I was trying to help Beverly out with a little cleaning.

Abigail practicing her lessons

Beverly received flowers from Kevin's family for a late Mother's Day gift...she loves purple!

Dad received this bird feeder as an early Father's Day gift from Kevin's family.

After we were done eating, the girls wanted to walk up the road to my Uncle Shine's house. It's only 1/2 a mile and it was very nice outside! After cleaning up the kitchen and putting away the food, Kevin, Susan and I decided to do the same thing. We walked up the road as well with Bandy in tow. We saw Shine's wife Janet but Shine himself was working. It was good to walk after eating so much food! Dee-liscious!

Later, we ate yet again! Beverly made some Schwan's Smores'. The eating never stops!

All Squared Off....

Remember this? Ok, I have now had a carpet man come to my house to finish up the raw edge next to the tile that has just been installed. It now has a square corner instead of the curved edge. I love it! It's such a different look after having it the other way all this time. See for yourself........

Flowers Galore....Part Deux!

I thought the flower planting was done.

I noticed a few days ago while watering all my plants that a couple of marigolds were withering and turning brown. Alas, they didn't survive. So today I stopped at Menard's to pick up more flowers. There were so many pretty ones that I had a very hard time not buying only the selections that I knew I needed. One 6 pack of marigolds and one 6 pack of begonias.
I took out the two dead plants and replanted 2 new ones. Then the rest of them went into a pot that I set next to the sidewalk.
I also planted the begonias into a pot and placed it on the deck behind the house where they will be protected from the hot sun.
My total on flowers is now up to 107! Well, minus the two dead ones....105 I guess. Oh, I did notice that one of the glad bulbs has popped through the ground. I'm not entirely sure why there is only 1 out of 8 coming through the soil. Hopefully our predicted hot days will turn the others around and I'll find them doing just as well!

Marigolds

Begonias

Telling you that I'm finished may end up not being true if the other glad bulbs don't grow. Then I'll be forced to buy other flowers to put in the place of them! That would be utterly awful!

Look Before You Step!

After I moved into my house, I decided that I wanted to have some of the floors done in tile. It's taken me this long to get to this project but if you recall, I've had some other little issues that took precedence! Let me jog your memories. Does the word tornado mean anything to you or help you to recall all the other little projects that I had to tend to?

Well, one little room at a time, I plan on replacing the vinyl floors with ceramic tile. The first one to be done is right inside the front door of my house. The entry way floor.

Here (click a picture in the link to view the floor a little closer) is the best way to show you what it looked like....with the cats of course! You can see that it's just vinyl flooring.

I happen to have a connection to someone that installs tile. My ex-husband! So I had him do this work for me. He brought his youngest son Ryan over and it took maybe 1/2 an hour, tops. The area isn't very large as you can see in the photos below. A few days later the grout was put in. The pictures make it look more brown than it really is. But it has lots of greens and beige in it along with brown tones. The grout is a dark brown color. The greens blend nicely with the furniture in the living room and ties it altogether. It sure does dress up the entryway! The cats love laying on it...maybe to cool off their big bellies!

The tile and spacers still in place....no grout.

The finished floor....with the grout!

Another angle....Yoda in on this photo!

Now I just have to have a carpet guy come over to finish the raw edge of carpeting around the tile. Right now it's just laying loosely over the tile. They will need to put a carpet something-or-other over the edge. Possibly an edge strip?

Next time you visit....look before you step! and check out the tile floor.

College Graduation 2009

Yesterday was a big day for one of my friends. Susan Mortensen, 39, completed courses and earned a Bachelors in Business with a minor in Marketing. Right now it's just an Associates in Arts in a Business Transfer program. (she's not sure if she stated it correctly but you get the idea....hopefully!) She attended Metropolitan Community College.
The ceremony was during the day but last night there was an open house/party at her house in honor of the occasion. True to form, there was a ton of food to munch on and of course a main meal consisting of salads, fried chicken and of course a cake! Coolers full of wine, beer, pop and Kool-Aid were also available to wet the palate. Susan is always the over-achiever when it comes to feeding people! Pretty much reminds me of the ways of my own Mother, making SO much food! But I have a feeling that a good dent was made in all of it!

Her oldest daughter was in charge of getting a cake. Unbeknownst to Susan, a picture from her senior year was put on it!

Part of the large group that attended. Some had already gone by this time. And others were arriving after it was taken.

Trisa, Susan, Tammy, Me

I think it would be very difficult to return to school after being out of school for so many years. I'm proud of her accomplishment! I know that she plans on taking more classes. Good luck Susan!

Flowers Galore!

The weather on Wednesday this past week was so nice that I had to take advantage of it and do some yard work. But not mowing if that's what you're thinking. My yard work was in the form of planting flowers! (A few weeks ago, I planted 8 gladiolus bulbs. I'm not so sure that they are even growing. However, I had left room around them for other plants.)

There is a lot of sunlight in the front of my house now that there isn't a tree to shade the area. So I am able to have some of my favorite plants that thrive in the heat of the day.

After work I stopped at Home Depot to check out their selection of flowers. I admittedly was surprised by the lack of choices. I did pick up alot of moss roses (this picture is of my flowers from last year!) and pansy's. I also picked up a Geranium and a Sweet William plant that were both pretty well established. I also found a few Marigolds and Petunias. All total I think it was 75 total plants.

I got them home and proceeded to put them into planters and my new landscaped areas that were prepped last summer. Once they were all in, I still had a little bit of space left in the ground and a few empty planters.

The next day I stopped at Shopko. They always have such a large display of gardening supplies and tons of flowers to choose from. It takes up most of the parking lot with all the tents and temporary shelves that are needed for all the flowers. There, I found just what I was wanting! Snapdragons! I believe they are a close first to my favorite, the moss roses. I also bought more moss roses and marigolds. One can never have too many moss roses. They are so pretty and have very bright blooms. After planting all these, my new total was 95!

I took pictures of everything I planted so that I have something to compare later in the summer once they have had a fair chance to grow!

Moss Roses

Snapdragons, Moss Roses, Snapdragons

Petunias

Petunias

Moss Roses...this area should be covered when they mature!

A little of everything by the front door. The back row against the wall is where the gladiolus bulbs are supposed to be growing! ???

The Geranium hanging and the Sweet William in the planter that my aunt and uncle, Adeline and Duane gave me!

All the pansies on the deck behind the house. They love shade!

Next time I take pictures of all these flowers, I hope that all the planters are overflowing with blooms. And the area in front by the front door will hopefully be covered with plants and the soil won't show! Cross your flower blooms!

Just Like Home

The time of year is here once again to enjoy home grown goodies, fresh jams and jellies, pretty flowers and anything else that is home made. The Omaha Farmers Market started yesterday and continues throughout the summer on Saturday mornings and Wednesday evenings through October. It's set up down town in the Old Market.

I was able to attend along with my friend Trisa and her son, Gavin. We stopped along the way and picked up her Mom, Judy. The weather was perfect, 64* with no wind. The sun was shining and warming everything it touched. It was a very welcome feeling after having a week straight of on-again, off-again rain and cloudy days. Just as we suspected, there were minimal parking spots left to choose from and the market was pretty busy with shoppers. It's a day for pet owners to bring their dogs along for the ride and let them walk through the market with them. Of course, we gave a pat to any dog that was willing to stand still long enough to accept it. They were all busy sniffing the ground for droppings of food samples that people left behind and quickly lapping them up before the next pooch could find it!

As for myself, after shopping through all the little booths, I picked out a miniature blueberry pie for sampling at home with ice cream. I also found some delicious kettle corn and a couple jars of jelly from a local vendor called "It's All About Bees!". The flavors I chose were chokecherry and apple butter with honey. I'm especially anxious to try the chokecherry. My own Mom used to make homemade chokecherry jelly and syrup from the berries that we all used to pick as a family. We would use empty Schwan's ice cream pails that had been strung with twine to hold our berries. (good thinking Dad!) The twine allowed us to hang the pails around our necks in order to utilize both hands for optimum berry selections! So whenever I see chokecherry jelly from an event such as this, I don't pass up the chance to try it and make my own comparisons to Mom's. It's never as good as hers, obviously!

It was fun to get back out to the Farmers Market. I am reminded of the Flea Market that used to take place back home in McGregor, ND. (does it still happen?) Same principle but a lot more people and booths and home grown garden-variety foods to pick from here in Omaha. Is that stating the obvious? If you're not familiar with McGregor, then I guess not. It's a very small dot on the map of ND in the northwest corner of the state. Population....umm....maybe 30? Give or take a few.
But it was always fun to attend and eat lunch in the church basement. There was always a silent auction and a bake sale. That was the best part! We saw people that we knew from many surrounding counties! They came from miles and miles away for this small town event. And sometimes there would be a farm auction happening that day or the next that we would go to as well. You would have to live on a farm or in a small community to fully understand the "hugeness" that always came with these types of happenings.
So getting to take part in any farmers market always seems "just like home" to me.

Another Star in Town!

Omaha had the honor of hosting a filming crew this week. And what better place to film than the airport! And guess what.....I work at the airport. And guess what else....I got to see some of the filming. Along with my co-workers, we made a few walks through the terminal during our breaks just so we could see him!
The best part of all of this you ask? The star of the movie is George Clooney! Some may be familiar with his aunt, singer Rosemary Clooney. George has been in such films as O Brother Where Art Thou, Ocean's 11 and The Perfect Storm. He has also starred in the TV show ER. Here is a site you can check out to see all the other movies he has made so famous.
Eppley Airport was astir once people got wind of the fact that he was in the building! The passengers that were around to check in for their flights quickly caught on. It wasn't hard to notice due to all the crew and cameras and HUGE spotlights, etc., that were placed in their respectable positions for each take.
His new movie is called Up in the Air. Other stars in the movie include Jason Bateman, Sam Elliott and Anna Kendrick. I believe it's due out in November or sometime near that. I had known that he was coming to the airport so I had my camera on the ready. However, the crew that was working with him wasn't allowing any picture taking of any kind. They would literally take your phone or camera--whichever you were using to get a quick photo! So, I didn't try to get one of my own. The pictures I have here are courtesy of one of my co-workers whom was sneaky enough to get some shots in between the filming. They didn't want flashes going off during the shoots. Also, they have certain filming rights that would be violated if others took pictures.....blah, blah, blah!

After they filmed at the airport that day, the next day was spent downtown in the Old Market.
The news stations got a few shots of George through a window of one of the buildings they were filming in. George was nice enough to wave to all the people that had gathered outside to get a glimpse of the movie star.

George Clooney on a break from filming.

It was exciting to have such a handsome man/celebrity in our midst. Seeing him up close in person was even better! My friends were a little jealous! Too bad I wasn't able to get an autograph.......maybe next time!