Life!!!!!!!!!!

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave
with the intention of arriving safely
in an attractive and well preserved body,
But rather to skid in sideways,
chocolate in one hand,
caramel in the other,
body thoroughly used up,
totally worn out and screaming
'WOO HOO what a ride!'"

Right now my life is very much going that way!!!! Three weeks ago Dru's came home for furlough, we have been very much enjoying having them around and getting to know Jube. Gabe and Jenny and Gwen got in on Saturday, Gwen has grown SO much since she was two weeks old!!! ;), and we had the whole family together again.

It had been a year. I still wonder how in the world Mom can go for so long at time without seeing her family, its been about 6 or 7 years since her whole family was together!

The next Wednesday we all headed out to go camping. Camping was allot different this year than other years, partly because there were two babies with and partly because it was a different camp sight than we are used to and partly because we had the camper along. It definitely was not what the Grabers generally call camping, but it was a LOT of fun. We started out on a walk around the lake one day and most of us chickened out half way around because the skeeters were so bad and headed out to the road to go back. Mom and Dad and Lance and Amy were a little braver and headed on around the lake. We discovered afterwards that we all walked about the same distance but those of use who took the road did not have to fight the mosquitoes.Friday Lance and I headed out to go get showers and collect a few more things. We followed a different rout home down a long dirt road miles of it with out houses, but there were plenty of pot holes, did you know that if you hit one of those things going about 40 the back of Lance's truck will do this cute little wiggly, jig thingy? Fishtailing I believe its called. We got home and my brave and mighty brother dug out his 22 and tried to shoot rabbits while I inspected window screens trying to figure out how to get into the house because we had forgotten to ask Dad for the key. I ended up going through one of the basement windows which would only open halfways, stepping onto one of the plumbing pipes that was half way down the wall inside, twisting around so that I could fit through the window without scraping myself to death and finally landing on the floor... Afterwards as we were climbing back into the truck to head out to camp again Lance asked me "wasn't the door locked or what?"!!!!! So I explained to him how I got in. :)

Funny thing is, when we got home the next day he and Gabe were both busy, while I climbed in the window again!

Sunday we had everyone over for a cookout and volleyball, I was busy trotting back and forth in between the pavilion and here. 

The next week was full of cleaning jobs and getting ready for Melinda and Austin's wedding and a trip to Colorado afterwards. I cleaned at for Gladys Friday then headed over to the church to help Abbey with decorating the arch. After running to Zellers twice (and the grocery store once to fetch more roses because my dear pregnant sister inlaw and the bride to be were put in charge of placing the groomsmen boutonnières in the fridge, which were found quite a few hours later, frozen solid).

I ended up going to the rehearsal, it was rather fun sitting and watching, and remembering our three rehearsals in the last couple of years.  After the rehearsal Gill and I ended up going to town, did you know that walmart is a little emptier in the middle of the night?

Got up the next morning and after having to find a different black and white outfit because I had not had time to try on the one I thought would work, Abbey, Amy and I headed over to the church with Dru and Lisl to finish some of the decor up. 

The wedding was lovely, very Melindaish :) 

The next Wednesday Dot and Anna took Charity and I over the Minneapolis airport. And we missed our flight by five minutes. After standing there wondering what in the world to do for a few minutes the lady who was helping us told us that she could get one of us one the two o'clock flight for sure ( it was about 9:45) and put the other on standby. So Charity to the seat and checked her bags in... It turned out that her second check in was only a dollar so with missing our flight she actually saved around 20 dollars because she had been planing to hand me one of her check ins since I was only doing a carry on.  I told Charity on the way to finding a place to wait, 

"We  have four hours to pray I get on that flight", and Dot got a prayer chain started. At one we went through security and waited by our gate for another hour. 

People started boarding and I stood beside the line still hoping and praying that I could some how get on, streams of people were boarding, and a few of them told me to "go ahead", "no, go ahead, I'm on standby". You have no idea how that sounds after having hoped and prayed about a trip for a month already (I'd thought that I might not be able to go because of chicken pox, and I'd lost my ticket once). Finally when there where only three or four people ahead of me, and three others who were on standby had gotten seats I went up and asked if there was an open seat. 

"Um... Let me check... Yup, seat number 20E is open" He answered in a bored tone.  How could you be bored!!!!!!!! I was about going hysterical!!!! I was the last person to bored that plane and I think I got the last seat on the plane. As I walked in  Charity gave me a thumbs up and another lady who I had told I was on stand by congratulated me. Charity told me later that that was when she started crying. I'd been crying inside all morning and had almost started bawling a few times but I knew if I got started I'd never stop so I did not let myself.  

Had a good flight, I sat in-between a man who looked like he was about 85, who asked me to shut his cell phone off for him because he could not figure out how, and a pregnant lady who's Indian husband was flying for the first time. "Good, so I'm not the only one on here going...", and he made a shuddery scared sound, when he found out that it was my first time flying.  

After walking what seemed like miles to find Charity's luggage and  the car we headed to "Hannah's House", the three NHM house have names, Hannah's house, Polly's house, and Central.  Charity is at Hannah's house.  

The next day I got to know the other girls in the house some and the little boys they are taking care of. Charity and I talked and cried for a couple hours  out in storage which is about the only place around a person can talk with out being interrupted.  It's funny how friends can talk no matter where they are, sitting on the orange carpet in a storage room with row's of totes on either side, in the babies changing room, on top of a hogback mountain, in a little western shop on main street, in a thrift store, and in the loft of a little coffee shop called Coyotes while sipping our smoothies.  All in all I had a very wonderful time with Chari! :) 

While we were at the western store Charity discovered a cologne that both she and I thought smelled really really good. All the way home and for the rest of the day she would sniff it and sigh... She told me that I'm not allowed to write what she said tho! :)  

Sunday night we got to bed at about 11:00 and after  being awake for half an hour I finally dropped off, only to wake up  two and a half hours later to Charity's phone making annoying alarm noises. So we got up and headed out to the airport in Denver. Did you know that following the signs for "Terminal Drop Offs", does not get you to the right place? We did get there though and about two hours early... We did NOT want to miss that flight!... and  I went in and checked in, after having a panic attack when they told me the plane was over booked and that I'd have to see if I could get a seat number at my gate, I went and and found my gate (got a seat number too, landed in first class even!) and dug out my journal, apparently I looked kinda funny cuz the man sitting at the end of the row looked at me like I had purple hair or something, and then after a little while moved! Which was fine with me :)  

When I got off the plane and called Charity she told me that she had "had a little accident".  She said that she was okay but her voice still sound scared, I could not hear her so I told her that I'd call her back as soon as I got in the truck. Next to me there was a couple who were arguing over a pack of cigarettes and their little girl, she looked like she was Brad's age or so was jumping up and down in between them. "Mom, stop... Mom listen to me, stop it, stop it!!!".

I stood there crying for a little bit then mom called and told me what had happened, Charity had glanced down at a stop light and bumped into another car, she was fine but the van was a little messed up.

While I was on the phone with her Lance walked up, there is nothing quite so wonderful as looking up and seeing your brother standing there after a horrid half an hour! People like me really should try to get more than two and half hours of sleep!!!! On the way home Lance listened while I told him all about my trip and told me that whenever I was ready he would take me wherever I wanted to go for breakfast/lunch. Brothers are AMAZING!!!! :)                                       

I cant quite believe that that was only last Monday, life has dropped right back into "normal" for me. I'm learning more and more that "normal is a setting on the dryer" like Mom always says.      

Yesterday I cleaned Gladys house for her then we headed down stairs to empty out a room she said she had not cleaned in 25 years, you could tell it too! There was an old iron bedstead in there that I took half an hour, a scrub brush, and the garden hose and got mostly clean. She said that she wants rid of it and I'm still trying to figure out where I could store the thing, I really, really like it. Its one of those things that a person could paint black, or white and then sponge blue over it, or dark red, or.... You get the picture.                                                                                                    

Today I finally had a day at home to do nothing but the weekend cleaning and sit around... Wonderful!!!! Now you all know all about my last month or so. God bless the next one!!!!                                                                                                                                   Frank 

Quote of the day:

Me during and argument with Amy over who is better at sewing: "I sewed the jumper you have on!" (she likes it). 

 Amy: "Yes, and the sleeves are falling off"!  

P.S. Charity reminded me that we shopping in Rice Lake with Kara and Danae Borntrager. Charity only stalled the car once (she had just learned how to drive stick) and there was only one bad hail storm... Okay, hail storm... We were standing in a thrift store getting ready to head out when hail started poring out of the sky, started out "nickel size" and in a few minutes it was closer to quarters size! The rain created a river alongside the road that I saw two by four floating sweetly along in. And as we stood in a circle watching it, a gush of water came down from the ceiling right in the middle of us, like somebody had turned a faucet  on upstairs. After it stopped we went out to inspect Danae's car, it is now rather speckled with dents. The tree's all shed a bunch of leaves too. Before we headed out shopping we went to Culvers for lunch, took a couple pictures that I would put on here but they wont go on in the right place. We went to the mall after the hailstorm and looked through the toy shop and the fashion store, tried on hats and sunglasses... I actually have a picture of Danae in a lovely outfit ;) But like I said, they wont go on right. By four or so we headed back to our car which was parked at walmart. It was not nearly as bespeckled as Danae's car but you could still tell that there was a storm. And now I think this long post is really actually finished!!! TTFN!!!