new things!!

i got the job!! woohoo!!

i was offered the job today at the salary i requested and actually start on friday!! this company has some employee benefits that are practically unheard of in today's business arena. medical and dental coverage start on day 1! and the employee pays nothing. that's right, no payroll deductions to cover the medical premiums! that's an instant raise for us right there!

did i mention 28 days of vacation! and 3 days of VTO. that's volunteer time off, as in volunteering to help a needy organization. i'm VERY interested in that one. you can bet i'll be taking those each year.

i haven't had a non-consulting gig since schwab. that's been a while.

so i'm really excited about it. my first "paid" job in over 4 months! yikes.

sunday

yesterday we loaded up the van and headed out to our first camping trip of the year. christopher has been chomping at the bit to get out again. and this time he wanted to take his dirtbike.

he has his own camping box that has his whistle, sleeping bag, pillow, thermarest, etc. in it. if he's coming along, we just throw in the extra box. of course this time we had to throw tiger (his ttr50 dirtbike) and gear bag in to the van as well.

we got to our spot and promptly started setting up camp. while we were setting up, christopher was busy gathering wood. he already knows what's important when you set up camp. a redesign of the existing fire ring was also an activity. so we ate dinner and sat around the campfire talking, looking at the stars and looking for shooting stars. chris was the first to hit the hay. he'd had a busy day and once his little head hit the pillow, i didn't hear another peep out of him until morning.

we awoke to the most beautiful sunrise! i'm sure it was presented at that very moment for our appreciative eyes. so we spent a few moments appreciating it. . .then, chris decided he wanted to ride his dirtbike. but he was too cold. so i fixed him a cup of hot chocolate to warm his insides and put another layer of clothes on him. it wasn't too long before he was ready.

and God bless his grandpa's heart, he got on his klr and followed the little guy up and down the road. chris didn't fall while riding at all. i saw part of his route and it was pretty rocky for the unstable little ttr50 wheels.

this afternoon i spent much time cleaning the camping stuff, reorganizing and restocking. i'd gotten pretty lax about doing that when we got home. last night we ate in shifts because we only had one fork and one spoon. :-) it was an adventure and no one complained.

but i learned my lesson. there were items that we've hauled each and every camping trip and never once pulled out of the box. those are now out of the equation. i added a few but mostly replenished items we had used and never replaced.

it will be better next time, and things will be cleaner.

i pray this week is a good one. i've got a date to help a friend that is physically challenged. i'm going to clean her oven, shampoo her carpet, open a bottle for her. she's such a sweet person.

so that's it for now.

Thursday

unfortunately my interview didn't go as well as i would have liked. so i'm a bit bummed about that.

but today is a new day, and my life isn't a job, so i slept in. that was my token depression.

i got up yesterday and made a batch of whole wheat, multi-grain bread. i knew that a friend of ours hadn't been working the last couple of weeks and would probably be cheered a bit by a couple of loaves. i was right, that made me feel better.

i'm still on my quest for sofas/chairs/loveseats for the orphanage. i've gotten 3 so far and they are all in great condition. i'm happy about that. i've seen a couple more in craigslist that i'd like to go look at, but i have to wait for my reimbursement to come back so i have more cash to work with.

so that's it for now, nothing on my agenda today except maybe a little dirtbike exploring. it will have to be on my dakar as my dirtbike is not plated.

the day in review

took christopher to the dirt track today. he just loves riding the track. he was out last night in the desert down the street. he's a maniac and holds the throttle wide open most of the time. we're working on using the brake. . .yikes!!!

by the time we got home, i felt as though i had been run over by a semi-truck. the only thing i did is follow him around the track on my bike. our rule became that once he fell twice, it was time to take a break. we only got one break and by the second set of two falls, we hit the pits, loaded up and came home. he was on the track for 2 hours and 20 minutes. that's a lot of laps for a little guy. . .and an old grandma!!

so i hit the bed for a nap while he watched some television. then it was up to town to pick up a sofa for the orphanage. it is a cream color leather sofa. quite filthy, but that's the way i like them. cheap price and a little elbow grease and it cleans up quite nicely.

i only need 18 more. . .sigh. i have been very fortunate, as a friend of mine donated some money to help me in my quest. that means i can hit craigslist and try to whittle the prices down.

my dear husband doesn't even try to dissuade me anymore, he knows it's something that simply must be done. he helps me get the stuff together, seat removed from the van and takes off to town with me. christopher went too.

so progress is being made.

i'm pulling together blankets and sheets for a halfway house in mesa. many of the girls are released from prison to the house with only the clothes on their backs. i've been baking bread, collecting bedding and personal hygiene items to help in their initial release.

the needs are endless, and it starts to snowball. it's just hard to say no or ignore a need when i am blessed with so much.

catch up

so many things have been going on lately i feel guilty for not updating the site, but here goes. . .

my precious grandson, christopher, has been diagnosed with a form of austism called asperger's syndrome. at first i refused to believe that this darling boy had a problem, until i opened my mind and really took a look at how he interacts. he has classic symptoms of this syndrome which include difficulties in social interaction. he does hold long, extensive, one-sided conversations and could care less if you are listening or not. just to name one major symptom. i always thought it was just an active imagination.

so we have some work to do, some guiding and instructing.

and,

i have a couple of interviews pending. things are starting to break loose after 4 months of unemployment. finally.

i'm working to help furnish the new orphanage building in navojoa, mexico. they are due to move in in April of this year. i'm looking for some 15-20 sofas/couches and also looking for a way to transport them all down to the facility.

all while looking for a job, sometimes things get to be challenging, to say the least.

busy days

and i don't know really what has been keeping me so busy. lot's of running around for this and that, i guess.

i'm happy to report that we settled with farmers insurance for the accident that totaled our bmw. we received the settlement check on monday and bought our new-to-us car on wednesday. she's already licensed and ready to go! here's a picture of our most recent german:


my husband has excellent taste in vehicles and i'm the beneficiary of that taste. lucky me!

that's the latest, now i'm out to the garage to drain some oil so i can ride my dakar!!

basket of puppies

as i was reflecting on my weekend, a basket of puppies is what most adequately describes it, i think.

we hosted 4 ADRA volunteers this weekend. they are a group of young people (19-25) that volunteer at the orphanage that we have been helping recently. they are a spirited bunch, willing to try almost anything. it makes sense though, these young people all come from germany and are working in mexico. that means at least 3 languages, german, spanish and english. wow! i envy them.

after i picked them up at 10 a.m. on friday and fed them, i asked them what they wanted to do while they were here. SHOPPING! was the answer. no problem. we dropped their stuff off at the house and i took them to the chandler mall. i told them i'd pick them up after they called me.

saturday we went to church where they sang a beautiful song for the congregation. saturday night it was back shopping at the mall.

sunday w took them down to the end of the block and got them each on my dirtbike. not a single one of them fell and two of them were quite good! here's a link to some of the pictures:

http://picasaweb.google.com/ywr969/OnAnySunday?authkey=93RjyeowUeA

anne has some natural talent. now remember, she's only ridden a scooter that did not have any gears. the other one riding the wheelies is w:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1wgCn9dpm0


trying to get them rounded up and all going in one direction was like a basket of puppies. always one, or two of them going off in a different direction when everyone was ready to do something.

when i dropped them off at the bus terminal, i said they were welcome back, i meant it.

ah, a lovable bunch and the house is too quiet without them.