Okay. I'm back. But this blog will only send you to youtube to view the video of Kevin coming off the airplane. I hope you have a good laugh. It should be self explanatory, but I promise, you will want to watch it a couple of times. At least part of it. You can just keep rewinding to the best part. You'll see! Kevin.....stinker.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WodhUCJA8wM

Sorry - I'm just popping by to say there won't be a post for a few more days still. I've been busy with a few projects these past few days. Blogs to follow about them! Kevin comes home tomorrow at noon! He speaks Sunday at 1:30pm. If you can come we'd love to see you! Meet and greet on Sunday evening from 7'ish'.

Family Hockey

In a previous post you might remember the hockey nets I help make for Jason. Well, we finally got a chance to play with him last night. For FHE we invited the Gardner clan and used their church building (the perfect size and flooring). I took my camera thinking that I would sit out if there were enough players - and there probably was - but I was having tons of fun. I'm sore today, but it was so worth it. Just as a thought, I had everyone put on our Canada shirts that I made for Jason's mission homecoming (which reminds me, I need to get some done for Kevin). ( A picture will be coming of those too). Anyway, we all met at the church and Jason had worn his shirt too! Too funny. So, it was mostly a DeWitt/Gardner game. Jeff was our goalie first, then Doug and then me. Yes, they scored alot on me. Carolyn was the other goalie after Mark and Shawn had had their turns. Here's the only picture we got: This was taken after all of the Gardners had taken off. Sorry about that. The only non-member family guy in the photo is Fletcher Carpenter. He is a good friend of Jason's.
Side note: Goalie leg pads are hard to move in.

Chair of Kevin

I've taken on a project I'm not sure I'll finish in time. Several years ago.....and I'm talking when Kevin was back in high school, so at least 4 - possibly 5 years, he went dumpster diving and found a pretty neat chair. The shape of the chair was great and sturdy but the material was gross so we cleaned it with our carpet cleaning machine and of course we teased him a lot. When Kevin left on his mission the chair got moved out to the garage and then out to the workshop. That is nearly the ghostyard of unused furniture, some of the unused pieces have been 'donated' to the bonfires held out in the desert. Saturday I cleaned my craft room and used Dougs new Christmas gift - a shopvac vacuum - which is very powerful to clean the craft room floor. When we went to hang it out in his workshop I saw how lonely the chair looked and decided to try and cover it before Kevin comes home. Um......10 days. (okay, only 8 days now, but when I started it, it was 10 days)I finished the cushion part in one day but the rest is going VERY SLOWLY! I thought it would be a simple cover job, but no, it is stapled every where, and not just one staple here and there, many, many, many staples. I'm hoping once I get the gross material off and the new pieces cut, it will be an easy put back together job. I forgot to take a before picture of the whole chair, but here are some 'during' pictures.

In taking off the back and underside pieces I discovered poop. I would have guessed mouse, being that it lived in the garage for a while, but the size suggests gerbil. The old owners pet possibly? Gross. I was thinking of just covering up certain pieces of the old material with a slip cover new piece. Not any more, mind you, it's all coming off. Bummer. I've had to take very detailed pictures so when I do the refinishing I can review the pictures in the steps of how I got it off. I think I have nearly 30 pictures of my step by step process. Say a special pray for me.

This week at Allan's school, they are having Spirit Week. Each day of the week is a different theme and the kids are supposed to dress accordingly. Monday was Hawaiian Day. Being that I, the mom, wasn't here, he forgot to dress up. Tuesday we worked really hard and ended up with this: It was Super-Hero Day. Hmm... Mom's jammy top, Doug's speedo suit (a white-elephant gift if I recall), and a cape for the grandkids to play with. Reminds me of Kevin totally.

(Kevin, a few years ago). Super-Hero Day at Mesa High.

When I went to drive Allan to school, we pulled in the usual drop off spot and we couldn't find ANYONE in ANY kind of outfit. We decided to pull into the next parking lot and look at kids there - NOTHING. So, we drove around the back of the school checking things out - NOT A HAT, T-SHIRT, CAPE - NOTHING! We ended up by the bus drop off area and again, NADA! Allan, getting a little worried asked me to call the school from my cell phone and be sure it was today - I did and the lady at the front desk had to put me on hold and go ask someone else! WHAT?! Apparently she didn't dress up. But, in a minute she was back and said, "Yes, today is Hero Day". Well, we ended up dropping Allan off right where we started at and here he is walking up to the school. He looks a little nervous, doesn't he?

Crusin' with the Brothers.... 1/7/11

January 7th-10th: Destination - Ensenada, Mexico. Departing from the DeWitt home, Doug DeWitt home, we, Doug & Becky, Alan & Linda, Brad & Brenda, all traveled together in the suburban. We left around 6am and headed to Long Beach, California where we were to start our cruise. We arrived a few minutes before we were able to 'embark' on the boat so we finished watching the movie, 'Despicable Me', in the parking lot of the port. When it's over, we unload our bags and head for the boat.

First timers, Brad and Brenda, totally excited. At least Brenda showed some excitement. Okay - here's some excitement by Brad. By Saturday morning we had docked in Ensenada and of course had to go shopping. It's quite a little walk downtown so we loaded up Brad in a wheelchair and out we headed. Doug and Linda in front of our boat. Alan pushing Brad. Now if you look real close I wasn't necessarily taking it of the guys, but it was of the advertisement statue next to them. Take a close look at it - the product it is advertising is Viagra. It might have even been Super-Strength Viagra, I can't remember. It was one of the funny things of the trip. Here's another funny one. I couldn't quite figure out what it meant, but maybe its was just for luring in the American tourists. We didn't get lured. But funny, none the less.Brad found a spiffy neato hat (which we really do like) and then Doug thought he needed one too. Luckily he didn't buy this one.

We tried this pose several times....finally we decided to try something different....this one with the timer on my camera....We liked this one best.

While waiting to 'disembark' we hung out at the buffet place (where else would we want to be ?) and played 'Fizzle' many, many, many times. I think everyone won a few games. As usual, I found some hearts. The first one I found at a gas station on the way to California. Brad was a witness.

The second one was as we were waiting on the gangway 'disembarking' - way down on this big boulder I could see this rust colored heart. Now the first photo was as close as my camera could go (you can imagine how far away this rock was, and the second photo has been trimmed and cropped by my computer program.

Believe me - it's huge.

Hockey Nets - check. (get it? check)

As you can see - the two missing puzzle pieces have been found. (Check older blog). They were next to a box of 'non-given' presents that were at the foot of my bed. I buy toys or books when I find them for a pretty good price and then save them for Christmas or birthdays. I just hadn't taken them back out in the garage since my wrapping days of Christmas were over and so the little kids must have taken the pieces from the puzzle room into my bedroom and when I went to vacuum - there they were. Did I say the word vacuum? Yep! I have a new vacuum. The DeWitt home has had miserable luck with vacuum cleaners. We had a Hoover - broke, and a Bissell - smelled like it was going broke and so we are now trying a Eureka. We'll see how long it lasts in our home.

Tuesday was Shannon's birthday and she got to go out to Panda Express - her favorite! and then we all went to the movie ' Tangled' - Disney's latest. It was pretty cute. In the parking lot, on a curb next to my car, there it was.........

So I'm not sure I've posted about this yet, but my son Jason is going gung-ho into street hockey. He has some orange/yellow team vests, several hockey sticks (I think he told me 16), pads for the goalie guy and everything you can think of that you might need. (He will be using paintball masks for the goalie). Anyway, he needed hockey nets. He looked into buying them but we, yes I was included in the decision, decided to make them. A few PVC pipes, netting - how hard can it be? Jason did an exceptional job in making the frame: adding galvanized pipes in the lower part of the frame for stability, carefully gluing each piece and then wrapping them in foam insulation. I guess that's because the player might run into them alot. Here they are in the workshop. It is sitting on a door so the PVC glue didn't drip on the floor. Thank you Jason, for thinking of Dad's shop floors.

Now it was my turn. I knew sewing through 4 layers of thick canvas, netting material and also a velcro strip was going to be a challenge on my old Singer. Thus, (looking back again in our Christmas blog) Doug bought me a new sewing machine. A Viking. 1/2 horse power compared to my 1/4 Singer. It zipped right though everything. I LOVED IT!!!! The construction took some time because I didn't have a pattern and after each sewing, I would have to fit it back on the frame to see where to cut and add and sew the next part. After a few days it was FIN-ISHED!

We are now ready for the first game. Who knows, Jason might have a game planned behind our back, but for right now the game is set for January 17th. Monday Night Indoor Hockey. Picture this.... ARE YOU READY TO RUMBLE? Tape the football game and come and watch or even participate. I'll probably be photographer/historian of this prodigious event.

pro·di·gious/prəˈdijəs/Adjective
1. Remarkably or impressively great in extent, size, or degree.
2. Unnatural or abnormal

I wonder what someone wants for his birthday in July?

January 4, 2011. So do you say that two-thousand-eleven or twenty-eleven? I can’t figure out which way sounds right or coolest. Twenty-eleven certainly is quicker. But every time I go to say it, it comes out two-thousand-eleven. Not that I’m saying it that much, but it’s only been 4 days and I know I’ve said it at least 4 times already.

Today is Shannon's birthday. My #7 child is turning 15. Crazy I know. Another driver (insurance is a killer) in a few months.

That was the start of my blog yesterday. I had other pressing matters that needed my attention and now that they are done I am able to concentrate on this. I think I started my blog one year ago on January 4th! My bicycling adventures, I'm sure, were something you looked forward to each day. For a while I posted every day. Some were good, some were boring, but I hope you had a little bit of fun reading them.

Our New Year's card will be heading your way today. I need to stamp them and lick the envelopes closed, but they are done. Probably next year you should be anticipating our 'Holiday card' around Valentine's Day. We are now gearing up for Elder Kevin's return. In 21 days he will step off the plane and into the hugs of us all. (Okay - not any of you single girls out there). Alot has happened while he was gone. For one thing, he got a new Brother-In-Law, Jonathan: Here he is on the left, helping us break the law. Here they are at the Dole Pineapple Plantation:Pineapple ice cream. My vote is still out on it.

And here he is loving our daughter Jill.

And each of these kids have grown two years. I will have to post 'before & after' pictures in a few weeks. I will thank all of you who read this and say a 'happy anniversary' to the life of blogging. My bike riding will resume soon.