Happy Memorial Day. We're T -3 for Janet's departure day, and she feels ready to go home NOW! I am back in Syracuse with Dave and the animals, and I'll be heading back to work tomorrow. I won't be posting to the blog as much, but I just want to say thank you to all the people who have offered to grab the baton and run with it. It is so great to know that even though I can't be right next to my mom now, someone else who loves her will be. Meal preparers, house helpers, out-of-town visitors, respite providers--I feel like you are all part of our extended family. Thank you for your selflessness and generosity, and let us know if we can ever return the favor.
Oh, and please, drive carefully.
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Hello Hansens,
So glad to hear that you are traveling back home on Thursday. That is great news!
Weather here was beautiful for Memorial Day. Our kids insisted on going to the pool every day and swam in ice cold water. Needless to say, there were very few adults in the pool. We also went to a Memorial Service for a soldier in our area who died in Iraq. It was very touching and they dedicated a community party in his name.
Cassidy has a field trip this week at school to see "The Princess and the Pea." I tried to be the chaperone but was not picked. Katie has a tap dancing recital on Sat. We have not done dancing yet so I don't know what to expect. I'm just hoping for not running off the stage . . . .I signed Kevin up for a soccer camp this summer. He loves soccer and kicks his ball around the yard all the time.
Jake's birthday is Sat. Kevin went with me to pick out some "party supplies" so it is not surprising that Jake will be having a soccer party. I think he will be a good sport about that!
This Friday is Field Day at the girls' school. Kevin and I will go to check out a few events. Other than that, not too much going on.
We wish you safe travels back to California. You are always in our thoughts and prayers.
Love, Leanne, Jake, and kids
Our Memorial Day was spent putting rooms back together in the house. I could not believe how much stuff, detritus, treasures, memorabilia, odds, ends, and just plain crap I had accumulated in my office alone. It took me at least an hour once I got to the recycling center to unload, and I am sure the garbage men got a hernia this morning lifting the two trash cans. But I feel so virtuous and uncluttered.
We are remodeling and refurbishing the entire house. The substantive changes are in the living room, dining room and my office. Since we removed the wall-to-wall carpet and put in wooden laminate floors, we are going with a Native American decor, solid earth-colored uphostery and Navajo-design rugs.
I am so thrilled you are going to be back in your own home, Janet. Being in a hospital environment may help physically but mentally its sterility and institutionality is draining. You need your own stuff and clutter around you.
I will be caling that newspaper today. They never answered my e-mail so I will deal with them face to face or , I guess voice to voice. Jill also gave me the name of another paper that I will call a well. My friend, Barbara Holland, is something of an expert on cats and she said once they have been domesticated, they will find a way to stay that way. Meaning, Rita has probably found a home where she has her creature comforts. Regardless, I want to do something to try and reunite her with you guys.
I love you all so much!
Hi Hansens,
Here's a funny tidbit for Janet to help her while away the hours until she can get home. My twins, Joanna and Phoebe, turned 20 in March, and their little sister Elizabeth planned this elaborate surprise party that included having two friends invite them to dinner in the middle of old town Fullerton near their college. As they were coming out of the restaurant, Elizabeth and more friends descended, tied their hands together, put pillow cases over their heads and shoved them into the backseat of a car filled with balloons. Joanna figured it was just Lizzy's hijinks and went along with it. Phoebe started fighting her captors on a really crowded street, and the cops came along. The friends were warned, and Phoebe got into the car on her own without the pillow case on her head. They were whisked around in a roundabout way to make it feel like they were going on a long way away and eventually went up to the top level of the parking garage at Fullerton where another friend had a birthday cake on the tailgate of her car. The wind picked up, and they couldn't get the candles lit in time, so campus security came and chased them away. They wound up in the city park across the street eating cake and playing with sparklers and talking until the wee hours of the morning when the city police came to check up on them to see if they were drinking. When the officer had ascertained that there was no alcohol or drugs and was given a piece of the remnant of the birthday cake, they were given another 20 minutes to finish up their festivities. Of course, they didn't tell me anything til after the fact.
Well, Elizabeth's 19th birthday is tomorrow. I went downstairs to the bathroom this morning and had to dislodge Joanna who is dying her hair blue for some reason, and she can't tell me because she doesn't want Elizabeth to find out. I would think the blue hair would be a give away, but we all say that Joanna lives in "Joannaland" where the normal rules of nature do not apply, so maybe Elizabeth will not find the blue hair remarkable. So now you can try to see if you can imagine what will happen tomorrow on Elizabeth's birthday... Hopefully, they aren't trying to escalate to getting taken to jail as part of the surprise.
Love, Teresa Liu
Yay for T-3, and now it's T-2 and soon to be T-1. I'll be sending all my love and good wishes with Janet and Brian as you make your way back home. May all be well, and the transition as smooth as possible.
And Amy, thanks to you for your many messages through the blog. I'm glad you're safely home too, and I hope your transition back to work will go well. Hope you can get some breathers too here and there, as you've had a pretty intense time. I will look forward to helping out sometime this summer in Roseville, and I think your parents have two of the greatest daughters ever.
Take care, Carolyn
I finally got the acting editor of the Challis Messenger. She was on Memorial0Day deadlines (our crunch comes prior to the holiday) so she couldn't really talk but she did tell me a Tod Adams, reporter would be giving me a call. I am getting the phone numbers lined up if he follows through with a story. I am not giving up on Rita yet. I called the other newspaper and they said they had minimal coverage in Challis and suggested I call the Challis Messenger. So - I am on the right track. Keep your fingers crossed and rest up for the trip home, Janet.
Love
e
I finally got the acting editor of the Challis Messenger. She was on Memorial0Day deadlines (our crunch comes prior to the holiday) so she couldn't really talk but she did tell me a Tod Adams, reporter would be giving me a call. I am getting the phone numbers lined up if he follows through with a story. I am not giving up on Rita yet. I called the other newspaper and they said they had minimal coverage in Challis and suggested I call the Challis Messenger. So - I am on the right track. Keep your fingers crossed and rest up for the trip home, Janet.
Love
e
I have got to edit my postings more carefully. Way too many typos.
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