It's been awhile since we posted anything and I'm sorry. Things are really, really busy here right now. Both kids are home from camp and had fun playing with our nephew Patrick from Tennessee. Patrick flew home on Saturday so the kids are really bummed out. Jacob also just found out that his best friend is moving away in 2 weeks and he is really having a hard time with it.
Our cat "Stinky Pete" is trying to teach our puppy how to hunt. I say puppy, but you have to remember that he weighs at least 80 lbs. She has twice now brought him a live mouse to chase and when he cannot keep track of it and it runs away.... she catches it for him again. It is really funny to watch this huge dog run it circles trying to keep his eyes on this tiny little mouse and all the while the spotted cat is sitting there watching and punting the mouse back into play. I am going to try to catch it on video so that we can send it in to America's Funniest Home Videos. This would probably be more funny than me ripping my jeans from top to bottom on the car door, but maybe not. That was pretty funny ( at least it was a couple of weeks after it happened.)
The biggest news in our lives is that Jessalyn came down with Lymes disease. She brought home a tick under her arm from camp. We have been watching it and sure enough one morning she broke out in this huge "bullseye" rash. A quick trip to the Dr. and she is now on enough antibiotics to cure a horse. She is feeling better already.
We are really starting to work on Cranfest now. Our hope is to have everything ready to go as much as possible to keep the last minute details down to a few. I have met with an electrician to have him rewire our agriculture building. Lots of work and of course I had to take Will with me, because he was speaking a foreign language "electrical". I think we know what we want so now I have to tell the rest of the board.
It has really been a strange feeling working on this year's Cranfest and next year's Cranfest at the same time. Since next year is the salute to the military we are having special displays including the Moving Vietnam Wall, which we had to order 7 years in advance. We are working on many other such exhibits and you have to order them all in advance too, which makes it really confusing some times on what year you are working on. BUT I LOVE IT!!!!!
My Mom and Dad are in Rockford for Mom's class reunion. I hope they have a good time. It made me think a little about my classmates and wonder what they are all doing. I cannot believe it has been almost 25 years since I left in the middle of my Senior year and went to college. It was the right thing for me to do, but I would not recommend it for everyone. I missed out on lots of things my senior year while going to college and then went back and graduated from High School. Looking back it was very strange but I'm glad that I did it.
The weather here is horribly hot, but we have the hope of better things to come starting Tuesday night. Today the heat index is supposed to be around 110. Yuck. This is one of the reasons that we left Florida. My lungs do not do well in this high humidity. We hardly ever have weather like this here, so it is very strange. I guess the corn likes it though. We finally got some rain and now the heat is helping the field corn to recover and grow. I'm glad. To me it is one of the saddest looking things there is to have dried up corn in the fields.
Well, I need to get busy and get to church. Jacob is going to stay home with Jessa. She does not feel up to coming. I think the antibiotic bothers her as much or more than the disease.
God bless.
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Monday, July 24, 2006
Notes from Iola 2006...And beyond!
Wow what a month! With all that we have had going on I could sleep right through the next one! Of course that isn't going to happen (whimper). I knew I owed you some pictures from the Parents being here but I just didn't take that many. Even when we went to the car show at Iola Wisconsin I only took a handful. In retrospect I can't figure out why but that is the way it turned out. Those pics I did take you will see below.
It has been real busy around here and still is. Sadly, it's going to get worse before it gets better. After all CranFest is coming...
As soon as my parents left I started putting in overtime at work. The money should be nice, but it doesn't leave much time or energy for getting anything done around here. I'm back to making theses postings at 4:30 in the morning. It's the only time I've got at the moment so I apologize that there hasn't been more, more often.
There is a lot more I would love to say but again the time has caught me and I have to leave for work. Enjoy the Pics! (such as they are) and may the Peace and Joy of the Lord be upon you always!
Will.
It has been real busy around here and still is. Sadly, it's going to get worse before it gets better. After all CranFest is coming...
As soon as my parents left I started putting in overtime at work. The money should be nice, but it doesn't leave much time or energy for getting anything done around here. I'm back to making theses postings at 4:30 in the morning. It's the only time I've got at the moment so I apologize that there hasn't been more, more often.
There is a lot more I would love to say but again the time has caught me and I have to leave for work. Enjoy the Pics! (such as they are) and may the Peace and Joy of the Lord be upon you always!
Will.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Things are strange this week!
Our parents from Florida left on Saturday. They were only here two weeks, but we enjoyed having them so much that we really are missing them now. Our cat "Petes" is going through withdrawals too. We had a great time with them and wish they could have stayed longer.
Then Sunday I took the kids over to Riverside Bible Camp for the week. I pray that they are having a blast. Like typical kids as soon as we were there they were hungry. Thankfully, I had taken along a picnic and so I could feed the bottom-less pits. As soon as they were done they let me know I could leave. For the first time, my son was "too cool" for a hug from Mom. He really is growing and changing.
I have spent the week working on stuff that needed to get done a long time ago, but I never had time. If it were not for the help of the 8 month old, huge, big footed clutzy "puppy", I probably could have done lots more. He is SUCH a help. Right now he has a yeast infection in his ear and I have to wash it out with this junk. He of course hates it and that means I have to fight with him on the floor. Suddenly he is all legs and it feels like he has 10 of them.
Tomorrow is our 16th anniversary. Of course Will has to work, so we are going out today. We are going to go and see the "Pirates". Of course it was almost 17 years ago that he told me that "he had no time to place and no space for a woman in his life"....to which I replied "who wants you?" I don't think that we ever could have imagined where we would be today back then. I still love him more today than I did then.
I started working full fledge on Cranfest as of this week. We are at 70 days and counting. I don't know why I love it so much. We have tried to analyze it over and over. All we can come up with is that I (we) love it because we get a chance to make SO MANY people happy. Imagine making a difference in over 100,000 people's lives. Of course add in the chance for me to use my brain for something besides homework and housework and I'm happy. I also enjoy the fact that we keep it a family festival and are very, very careful about what is offered. There is no pornography, no drinking (only in a beer tent way off the beaten path and even it's contained), there is no "gross" music, no lewd tshirts, no merchandise that is unacceptable. We make sure that a person can bring their children and they will not see things that they shouldn't. I like that. Our children see too much in their young lives already we try to keep them from seeing it at our fest.
Will works 6 out of 7 days this week. Poor man. I'm trying to spoil him when he gets home.
Mom and Dad just got home last night from Tennessee. I hope they had a great time with my brother and his family. I pick up the kids Friday and then Jacob goes back for a second weekof camp on Sunday again. Two more family reunions the next weekend. Camping at Green Lake in the beginning of August and then it's time to get ready for school. Summer sure goes by quickly.
Well time for housework......life must go on.
God Bless.
Then Sunday I took the kids over to Riverside Bible Camp for the week. I pray that they are having a blast. Like typical kids as soon as we were there they were hungry. Thankfully, I had taken along a picnic and so I could feed the bottom-less pits. As soon as they were done they let me know I could leave. For the first time, my son was "too cool" for a hug from Mom. He really is growing and changing.
I have spent the week working on stuff that needed to get done a long time ago, but I never had time. If it were not for the help of the 8 month old, huge, big footed clutzy "puppy", I probably could have done lots more. He is SUCH a help. Right now he has a yeast infection in his ear and I have to wash it out with this junk. He of course hates it and that means I have to fight with him on the floor. Suddenly he is all legs and it feels like he has 10 of them.
Tomorrow is our 16th anniversary. Of course Will has to work, so we are going out today. We are going to go and see the "Pirates". Of course it was almost 17 years ago that he told me that "he had no time to place and no space for a woman in his life"....to which I replied "who wants you?" I don't think that we ever could have imagined where we would be today back then. I still love him more today than I did then.
I started working full fledge on Cranfest as of this week. We are at 70 days and counting. I don't know why I love it so much. We have tried to analyze it over and over. All we can come up with is that I (we) love it because we get a chance to make SO MANY people happy. Imagine making a difference in over 100,000 people's lives. Of course add in the chance for me to use my brain for something besides homework and housework and I'm happy. I also enjoy the fact that we keep it a family festival and are very, very careful about what is offered. There is no pornography, no drinking (only in a beer tent way off the beaten path and even it's contained), there is no "gross" music, no lewd tshirts, no merchandise that is unacceptable. We make sure that a person can bring their children and they will not see things that they shouldn't. I like that. Our children see too much in their young lives already we try to keep them from seeing it at our fest.
Will works 6 out of 7 days this week. Poor man. I'm trying to spoil him when he gets home.
Mom and Dad just got home last night from Tennessee. I hope they had a great time with my brother and his family. I pick up the kids Friday and then Jacob goes back for a second weekof camp on Sunday again. Two more family reunions the next weekend. Camping at Green Lake in the beginning of August and then it's time to get ready for school. Summer sure goes by quickly.
Well time for housework......life must go on.
God Bless.
Sunday, July 02, 2006
We all gathered
We had the Oakes Family Gathering a week ago today. It was a wonderful time for all (I think).
It started on Saturday night with a bunch of people showing up here for a get together. It started to rain so we didn't sit around a camp fire, but there was plenty of food and plenty of fun. I decided it would be much easier for the people that came in from out of town, if I supplied the food with a little help from my family. We had pulled pork sandwiches, beef sandwiches, my Mom's potato salad, my Aunt Carrie's waldorf salad, Gramma Rose's corn casserole, baked beans and fresh strawberry pie. You know one thing that we can do in this family is eat and talk. We really had a good time.
Then on Sunday morning we had special music at our church at 9:00 am., then a gospel sing at Livingstones Fellowship at 10:00 and then pot luck at the log building after. Lots and lots of great food! There were pretty close to 50 of us and when we sang the "Doxology" in those accustics it was awesome! What a beautiful sound.
We all sat around eating and then watched a power point presentation that I put together about our family history. Then a slide show of family photos from the past. It was a good time. I think that we will do that again, but just in a different format.
Some of the Oakes family are still around, so we enjoy the visiting back and forth.
Will's parents arrived a week ago this last Friday and we have been having a great time with them too. Last Sunday was Betty's birthday, so we all sang to her and gave her flowers and balloons. I think she was suprised.
This week is fireworks, more family get togethers, the Iola Car Show and then the kids leave for Bible camp.
Hope you all have a blessed week.
dea
It started on Saturday night with a bunch of people showing up here for a get together. It started to rain so we didn't sit around a camp fire, but there was plenty of food and plenty of fun. I decided it would be much easier for the people that came in from out of town, if I supplied the food with a little help from my family. We had pulled pork sandwiches, beef sandwiches, my Mom's potato salad, my Aunt Carrie's waldorf salad, Gramma Rose's corn casserole, baked beans and fresh strawberry pie. You know one thing that we can do in this family is eat and talk. We really had a good time.
Then on Sunday morning we had special music at our church at 9:00 am., then a gospel sing at Livingstones Fellowship at 10:00 and then pot luck at the log building after. Lots and lots of great food! There were pretty close to 50 of us and when we sang the "Doxology" in those accustics it was awesome! What a beautiful sound.
We all sat around eating and then watched a power point presentation that I put together about our family history. Then a slide show of family photos from the past. It was a good time. I think that we will do that again, but just in a different format.
Some of the Oakes family are still around, so we enjoy the visiting back and forth.
Will's parents arrived a week ago this last Friday and we have been having a great time with them too. Last Sunday was Betty's birthday, so we all sang to her and gave her flowers and balloons. I think she was suprised.
This week is fireworks, more family get togethers, the Iola Car Show and then the kids leave for Bible camp.
Hope you all have a blessed week.
dea
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