Schools out! Schools out!!

Finally!! What's up with being in school until mid-June anyway!!!

Congrats!

My nephew's girlfriend was crowned Miss Teen Oklahoma over the weekend. I've actually only met her once since I live in Michigan and she obviously lives in Oklahoma but I'm proud nonetheless! You know how to pick 'em Ty!

And the winner is....

Kurtis!

Here are the FAQ's for the award Kurtis won:

1. What award did Kurtis win?

Well, let me answer that for you. Kurtis won a "Boss" Kettering Award.

2. What is a "Boss" Kettering Award?

I can answer that one too!!!

"Now in its 32nd year, the "Boss" Kettering Award is named for legendary Charles F. "Boss" Kettering, who organized General Motors Corporation's research and development efforts in 1920 and dedicated the company to 'intensive study of the problems ahead for the automotive industry.' Kettering was the first head of GM's Research Laboratories and the originator of more than 140 patents. (taken from my program-I can not lie)

3. What did Kurtis do to earn the award?

Kurtis won the award for his part in research and development on the hybrid vehicle regenerative braking team.

4. What does that mean?

Ask Kurtis.

5. What did he get?

One of the cars below. Just kidding. He got a beautiful trophy (see picture below) and a cash bonus.

6. Will Kurtis ever wear that suit again?

No. Never.

This was one of the fanciest dinners I have ever attended in my life and only my chef friend Zac Clegg would appreciate the fine foods we had. Stuffed Zuchinni Flowers!!! Did you know you could eat those!!!! Who would've thunked it!!! Anyway, GM knows how to throw a party.

Kurtis receiving his award from Jim Queen , Group Vice President Global Engineering

Kurtis and the rest of his team.

Abi's Recital

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

What a fun weekend...

Business Time

These are the comedians Kurtis and I saw Saturday night in Ann Arbor and everyone has been asking us where to find the link on youtube for "Business Time" so here ya go... ...this isn't really for kids! When it is over you can scroll through the others to see some of their other songs. My favorite is "Jenny". More family friendly.

Compliments of Mindy

The Spider Has Landed!

PHEWPH!!! That's a relief!!

Spider Watch 2008

Some people have blogs about their recent encounters with aliens, analysis on political elections, where they think Osama bin Laden is but people we are now talking a serious situation!!!

The spider did not make it to Oklahoma by May 1st. Not only making me lose what little hope I had for the US Postal Service but for human kind as we know it. Did I not say it HAD to be there by WEDNESDAY??????

It is Saturday and we have no spider. My neice I'm sure is crushed. I AM going to have to pay for therapy. And probably have to take her to Sonic for cheesy tots or Country Boy for a Potato Log everyday this summer because of the stupid USPS just to make it up to her.

You'd think it would be simple

But I can screw anything up.

A couple of weeks ago my beautifully sweet (really you should meet her to see how funny that is!) sister-in-law Leslie sends me an email. She explains that my precious (seriously, she's a doll) neice Megan has requested that Abi, Grant and Paige help her with her First Grade Project. She will mail me everything I need to do, all I have to do is mail it back to her by May 1st. Sounds simple doesn't it but knowing that I am organizationally challenged she wanted to make sure that I realized there was a deadline involved in getting the project back to Oklahoma.

So, it comes. It is this precious little spider handcrafted by said neice. I am to show the spider around town. Take some pictures and journal the adventures of Aranea the spider. No big deal. And we do everything and I am extremly proud of myself. Especially since during this time I am responsible for thousands of dollars worth of books and coordinating our school's spring book fair all the while showing Aranea around school. I close up the book fair, count up the cash from the book fair (over $10,000 in cash by the way!) box up the books we didn't sell and I am on my way. I get home that night to send Aranea, the journal and the pictures back to my niece in time for her big day in the first grade.

I sit down and start preparing:

Journal-"check"

Pictures"check"

Envelope-"check"

Aranea-....

Aranea-.....

"Paige, Do you have Megan's spider, Aranea?"

"No, you had it"

No, I gave it to you!"

No, I gave it to you!

Nuh-uh, I gave it to you!

The search was on!!! Two days of mail lost and I was behind on getting Aranea back to the first grade on time. I figure I must have left it at school.

So all weekend I am worried about this spider. We decide if we have to we will make another spider and tell Megan it had an extreme makeover while in Michigan. That won't scar her to bad right? I could pay for therapy if I have to. It could be ok.

I go into school this morning and the beautiful spider is sitting on my desk. I was so relieved. I quick grab the spider and rush over to the UPS store where I spent $9 to send it priority mail to guarantee Wednesday delivery so that she will have it on time!!

I tell the UPS guy, "this has to be in Oklahoma by Wednesday!" and he says, "ok, what is it?" and I said, "It is my neice's spider and it is very important that she has it by Wednesday!" He said, "it would be cheaper if it was there on Thursday." To which I replied, "Seriously, it has to be there on Wednesday! This is her first grade project and if she is the only one in the first grade who doesn't have her spider I will feel horrible. It has to be there on Wednesday I don't care what it costs!" Since when do THEY care how much I have to spend in THEIR store!!! This is a REAL emergency people!!!!

But as evidence that I really did plan ahead...the pictures on the back are dated April 26 so there is proof that I really was ready to send it many days ago! Does that count for anything? Probably not! But I tried!!

She Works Hard for the Money

And it's harder than it looks!

It's been 13 years since I've had a "real" job. This week I took on filling in for our library coordinator at school who is vacationing in Florida. How hard could it be? I'm already there volunteering several times a week doing the same job. This time I will just be getting paid.

It will be fun. After all, I enjoy serving others. I love being at school all day with my kids and I really love the kids school. It will be great!

It's three days in and I am beat. I am so tired! I swear I have walked 30 miles in that school this week. I have shelved and cataloged more books according to the Dewey Decimal System, made more copies, laminated and bound more books, kicked more kids off the computers, read to more Kindergartners, had more volunteers not show up, and even planned a school-wide Scholastic Book Fair yet more respect for working women everywhere than I EVER HAVE!!!

The difference is, when I am a volunteer I'm done when I am done. Now, I am like STUCK at school. But it is fun. It is a good tired. A satisfying tired. A tired I hope I get to have the next time our librarian goes on vacation. Next year.

Happy Easter!

When you think of Easter your obvious thoughts go to spring dresses and hats. Cute little bunnies and tulips in freshly cut grass. Warm air accompanied by the ever so slightest cool breeze just in time to cool you off after an outdoor Easter Egg Hunt. You think of a sunrise service at church where the sun hits the beautifully blooming lillies while singing hymns of praise to celebrate the resurrection of our Savior.

But this Easter...in Michigan...we had 6 inches of snow...

Mom walking on "our" lake.

Before the storm hit though we did manage to make it to a lovely tea at Tyme Well Spent our favorite Tea Room in Hartland. Even Grant had fun having a proper Victorian Tea.

Grandma Babe and Abi are making a direct violation by eating dessert prior to having finger sandwiches. Notice they haven't even been served their tea yet. Nana, Paige and Grant hadstepped away from the table and they went for it.

Who us?????

Grandpa Bus would say, "Well if that ain't a pair to draw to?"

I'm never in pictures on my blog so here I am with the girls.

Just in case you didn't believe Grant was really there.

In the ditch

I'm on the way back from Abi's voice lesson tonight and the icy road won. Yip. I hit the ditch. Stuck. Like, way stuck.

Kurtis is in Arizona so I called Amy Maiberger since I was still in her sub to see what one does when they are stuck in the ditch in MI. You certainly can't wait a couple of hours for the thaw like you do in Oklahoma. It has been below freezing since like October here!!

Amy, being the ever so thoughtful friend she is, volunteered her husband Matt to assist. Matt shows up a few minutes later with a snow shovel to attempt to dig us out. Nothing happens. He decides to push us out. Nothing happens. He gives up and decides we should call a tow truck. Bless sweet little Matt Maiberger's heart.

So, Amy calls me with a list of Howell area tow trucks. The grumpy man at the first place says he can be there in an hour. Great. An hour. But what else do you do.

I called Jayson for a phone number and he became the miracle worker. Have you hugged your insurance agent lately? I mean really hugged them? I called Jayson because he is my friend and I knew he could give me the number I needed. But, he went into "Jacki, you are my client. I am Agent Super Schoeb and I am here to help you!" mode. And help me he did. Within 10 minutes I was being towed out of the ditch but this huge truck facing the wrong way and tying up traffic on Amy's sub entrance.

And what's better!! The cost is covered by my insurance. Agent Super Schoeb ROCKS!!!

Anyway, we are now safe and sound in the Minney house and I am nice and warm in my favorite fuzzy jammies and socks ready to watch American Idol.

What a great group of friends I have!! Thanks guys!!!

And I have to say, I have said how rude and nasty MI people are (and as a whole I still agree) but today about 10 people stopped in that hour from the time we were stuck, Matt's attempt and Jayson's rescue to see if we needed help and although I would love to believe they were all from Oklahoma and that is why they were so nice, I really don't think they were. I think maybe, just maybe there are at least 10 nice Michigan people in the world too!

Remember your first concert?

Ok...well...it wasn't Abi's first "concert" but it was her first CONCERT!!! Like one she like HAD to go to or she would DIE!!! Think Rick Springfield, that was mine when I was in 9th grade and later I took my cousin to see New Kids on the Block (which was hers) and I was the college student chaperone. Abi and her friend Sydney had a blast and it was really a lot of fun for me too because I got to see her having so much fun. I'm not real sure why but my ears hurt today. I might be getting a little old!














Sydney and Abi in front of the Fox Theatre in Detroit.














OMG!!! IT'S THEM!!!!!!!!!














Aren't they like sooooo hot!!

Now, this I think is why my ears hurt. You will understand why I am including this video even though you can't see the girls very well.
As you can see, after the curtain dropped they were a little disappointed to find the background guitar, drummer and keyboardists there but then....in a cloud of smoke...

Oh to be 13 again!!!!!!

A Want to Start a New Trend

It's called "when someone dies you send the closest relative you know a gift".

Here's why.

When dad died a couple of weeks ago we got flowers...boy did we get flowers!!!!! Red ones, white ones, yellow ones...plants...orchids...whatever...we got flowers. When people die, I send flowers. Never thought to do anything else really. When people die...you send flowers. It's just what you do.

But I had never had anyone close to me die before so I never realized just how silly flowers are. I mean really. They are silly. But gifts...they are cool.

When news that my dad had passed away I got on a plane and headed to Oklahoma for the funeral. I went right away to my grandma's house where there was a chocolate fudge cake made by one of the neighbors for our family to enjoy. Just to cheer us up a bit. Later in the day, the flood of food began. Bar-b-Que, Mexican food, lasagna, sandwiches, fried pies, more chocolate cake, roast and more came to the house. It was amazing.

I gotta say that I never really understood that whole thing of bringing food when there is a death in the family but I get it now.

Anyway, I get home. I've been home from OK a few days and I check the mail. HELLO!! A gift for me and my husband. A gift card to a restaurant from my in-laws. And today, a gift card for little ol' me to Target (I LOVE TARGET!) for some retail therapy. Now, THAT is counsel right there ladies!!! OHH!!! And last night, my neighbors brought me dinner.

Now, I'm not trying to discourage anyone from sending flowers to a funeral to express condolences to the family if that is what you really want to do but I had to share that I had discovered about being on the receiving end. The flowers we received are dead and gone (no pun intended-oops!) but I am so thankful for the thoughtfulness of those that gave of themselves
in this creative way.

We Had Ourselves a Merry Little Christmas

The whole Minney family got in the fun with the Wii.









There were a couple of people getting a little too nosey with the presents at Nana's so precautions had to be taken.












I love my town!!! A look at downtown OKC.








Kurtis is excited to get a new sleeping bag for camping!











Grant really wanted Guitar Hero!

















Roger and Billie had a lot of damage from the ice storm. Most of the trees on their seven acres were damaged.


So, Roger got a 4-wheeler to help with the clean-up...or to play with...not sure which really.











Grandma Babe had a blast with the Wii.










Matti, Megan and Paige enjoy roasting marshmallows and making smores.














Nana and Paige taking a walk in Bricktown in downtown OKC. Notice the lack of teepees-you Michiganders!!!!





Those buildings have running water too!!!