Happenings

I haven't updated much, because to be honest, not a lot happens around here. Lee goes to work, I write and work, Steph goes to school and work and does her social stuff, and Claire gets bigger and learns more every day. Pretty dull. So, lack of writing is a GOOD thing, that means nothing's going on! Right?

We visited my dad this past weekend for a belated Christmas. He lives about 120 miles east of us in Minnesota. It's always nice to visit him. We had a nice dinner at the restaurant we usually go to. They sent us back with so much food I couldn't stop at Wal-Mart Supercenter on the way home like originally planned because there was no room in the car for anymore stuff!

Lee is adjusting to his new job. He got stitches about three weeks ago now, 9 of them in his head. He was unloading a container and a piece of lumber with nails hit the rail, bounced off and nailed him (no pun intended) in the forehead. This was on a Thursday, he went to work Friday, and the stitches were removed the following Tuesday. I haven't noticed a scar, so they must have done a good job with the stitches.

Last Friday he was on the verge of quitting. The other guys that work there are in their 20s and 30s and he had been talked to earlier in the week saying he was a little slow. I told him to give it time. It's a bad time of year, weather, cold, Christmas with a lot of waste (he works sanitation, hauling garbage for anyone that doesn't know). He just felt like he couldn't keep up with the younger guys. Well, he called his boss (it was the supervisor not the boss that talked to him about being slow) and the boss said he wasn't giving himself enough of a chance. So, he stuck with it. This week his supervisor told him he was doing better. He said to me yesterday that he wished he had my ability to look at things calmly, rationally. He gets so stressed out easily, and worries that Claire is going to be that way, too. He's just not too happy, and wishes he could find something else. He will eventually I'm sure.

Stephanie got a small part in the high school's play. The school put on their Christmas all-choir concert in December, which was very nice. A lot of these kids have been going to school with Stephanie since we moved here in 5th grade. So, I've watched them go from being a rather cringe worthy choir to sounding most delightful and finding the hour passes too quickly! Stephanie has indicated this may be her last year of choir. She has too many classes she wants to take planning for college - she wants to go into business/marketing/advertising, put her drawing to work for her.

Claire is doing great. She's like a sponge, soaking so much up and just spitting it back out. It seems like every hour she's saying something new. She's got the alphabet down pat, now she's trying to sing the song. She can count to 14, know there's more to go to get to 20 she just can't get them out right. She loves to recite the family: Mommy, Daddy, Stephy, Kitty, Birds, Grampa, Gramma, Anna, Jerry, Bret, Carol, Sean, Max, Luke, Stacey. She never includes herself though!

Speaking of Bret, Carol, Sean, Max & Luke - that's my brother, his wife and their three boys (the oldest just turned 4 in December). They've had a bit of excitement the past few weeks. My brother went to the hospital with staph infection, which it seems he got from the newest boy, Luke. They think Luke contracted it while in the hospital (he was born in Sept.). Carol had brought Luke to the doctor for a boil on his chin and the doctor said babies don't get boils. So, all 5 of them went in for testing on Saturday. While Bret was in the hospital for staph, Carol had to go to the ER to get an ingrown toenail removed. Max, the middle boy who will be 3 at the end of Feb., has a double infection. And I just found out today that Carol had to go back to the hospital because her toe got infected! Sean, the oldest boy, seems to be the only healthy one ::knocks on wood::

It sure makes me glad we're all healthy here!

That's about it for today. Steph & I are getting excited about the Super Bowl. Claire loves to watch Inside the NFL on HBO with me. She sees the helmets and says "football". Hee! I'm such a bad influence.

Go Bears!