Sophie's Birthday Fun

I promised that I would post some pictures of the grandkids. Here are a few for you to look at.

I call this picture "the birthday princess". I took the picture at Chuck E. Cheese before all the kids got there. After that, the princess was too excited to stand still.

Here's a picture of the birthday princess with her mommy. This is a rarity because Jackie is usually taking the pictures. I had the honors this time.

Here is the Birthday Princess as she tries to wack the moles. She was pretty good at it! She was disappointed that she didn't get any tickets for doing such a good job.

Here is little brother at Chuck E. Cheese playing one of the games. He loved putting the tokens, which he called money, in the slots.

For days before the party, he talked about sitting in the 'monster truck'. When he sat in it and the ride actually began, he wasn't so excited. As the day went on, he learned to love it.

When he tried to shoot baskets in the hoop, Holden wasn't very good at it. Here he is with his daddy and big sister, Sophie.

And, finally, here is the birthday cake with four beautiful princesses on it.

Time to meet people

This morning I was reading a local newspaper we got in the mail last week. There was an article about happenings at our local library. Lo and behold, a knitting group meets on Fridays from 12 to 2! I decided right then that I was going to go to it. I thought it would be a great way to get to meet some people and learn how to knit better. I arrived a little after 12 and was disappointed to see that no one was there. I started browsing in the used book section where I found a book for Jackie on how to handle sibling rivalry.

Another lady was in the used book room and we started talking. She was there for the knitting group, too! We went into the meeting room together and started moving the tables together. Her name is Virginia, she's a widow, and she is quite a knitter! She has knitted afghans, scarves, skirts, sweaters, hats, clogs, stuffed animals, purses, and more. Virginia was a very friendly person and she introduced me to the other ladies as they came in. All of them were very nice. A couple of the ladies were sharing knitting books with all of us. They also helped me learn some different basic knitting stitches.

After knitting time was over, I went back to the used book room and found 3 more books to buy. I talked to the volunteers that were processing books. They told me that volunteering at the library was a wonderful way to meet new people. So, when I got my library card at the main desk, I also got information on volunteering. I'm seriously considering doing it. I'm trying to get George to volunteer somewhere, too.

The next time I post something, it will be with pictures of the kids!

The Big Move

We said our final farewell to our house of 22 years on Saturday, July 7th by departing at approximately 5:30 AM. We made the drive to Austin in about 15 hours with help from KK, my nephew Aaron's wife. She drove my car; George and I shared the drive in his car. We kept the two cars together the whole way down. KK and I had fun with the walkie talkies. Even Bradley (who will be 4 years old tomorrow) got into the fun of the walkie talkies. George and I pulled into the driveway of our new house between 8:30 and 9:00 PM. Jackie came over a few minutes later to greet us.

Our furniture arrived on Wednesday, July 11th. It took the movers about 5 hours to unload. We had boxes everywhere, and most of them were in the correct rooms. We've spent time everyday on unpacking and organizing. Jackie has been a really big help. She has come over with the kids almost everyday. Without her help, we wouldn't have gotten this far. The house is now liveable with just a few boxes in some rooms. The garage still needs major work. There are boxes of tools and teaching materials everywhere in there! George has been working very hard on getting it organized. He has been overwhelmed by it, but he's tackling it anyway.

Sophie and Holden love to play here. Holden talks to me on the phone and says things like "Grammy, I come to your house to play?" Of course I tell him yes! Sometimes he says "Grammy, you come to my house next." Of course I do that, too! I LOVE being around them! Well, most of the time. When they get tired and crabby, it's not as fun. Sophie keeps talking about having a "sleepover" here at my house. Last night we were going to have one, but she didn't understand that her daddy wouldn't be here. She opted to go home.

Dwayne, our son-in-law, has been wonderful about helping us with our technology. He's gotten all the TV's wired up for DISH network, DVD's, etc. He also was the one that was instrumental in getting my Internet access. It would have taken me longer to do all of those things.

George and I are taking a little break tonight. We are going out for dinner to a nearby restaurant then coming home to watch a movie. We have a gift certificate for the restaurant thanks to my colleagues in the MAP office. Thanks Carolyn, PJ, Eric, Bernadette, and Mary!! I'll let you know how the dinner goes.