Day After Thanksgiving Sales

Anyone go shopping the day after Thanksgiving? Ken and I decided we weren't going but then I told him that Michaels had Cricut cartridges on sale for $30 each. That's such a good deal that he decided we should make that shopping trek and see what they had. It was a good shopping day and not too many long lines. We don't like shopping where we have to wait very long. Happy Thanksgiving to all.

We Have Snow

We woke up this morning to 2 inches of snow on everything. But not just snow...a layer of ice underneath that beautiful white layer of snow. It's just the beginning.

Computer Problems

My hard drive in my computer had a mind of it's own. It started making funny noises and I just thought it was the power supply so I ignored it. Much to my surprise, one day I turned my computer on and it decided it was not going to boot up for me any more. I now have a new hard drive which is very nice but now I get to go through the process of trying to remember what programs I had on my computer and reinstall all of them (one at a time). I love my computer when it works but I'm not looking forward to all the reinstallations.

Fall Colors

Saturday we wandered around searching for the glorious colors that seem to be all over Wisconsin this time of year. I'm attaching a few photos of the changing colors and another bike trail we discovered. The bike trails here are old rail beds that have had the rails removed and limestone layed down on the trail. This one runs right alongside the regular highway. It was not very colorful but we had fun riding the trail.

A New Granddaughter

Kemery Swensen was born Monday, September 22, 2008. She weighed in at 6 lbs. 13 oz. and is 19-1/2 inches long. Congratulations to Chari and Brian and of course the other three siblings (Hillary, Carter and Whitney). Photos can be seen on Little Details blog.

Washington DC

Ken and I went to Washinton DC to checkout our nations capital and see the sites. The weather was absolutely wonderful and we had a great time. It took us a while to learn how to used the metro ticket machines so we could actually get onto the metro and by the end of the week we even figured out how to transfer to a different line.

The first day we got off the metro and walked about 5 blocks then turned around and went back to the metro station to ask directions. We were headed the right direction already but we just need to walk a few more blocks. Later we found out there was a metro stop very close to the monuments we walked to. Oh well, it was good exercise.

I put together a slide show of some sites we were able to visit. We visited a lot more places than the photos in the slide show but we weren't allowed to take pictures everywhere so here's a sample. Enjoy.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

New Calling

So, I just read Chari's blog and want her to know I'm glad it's her (Gospel Doctrine Teacher) and not me. Chari will be released from the nursery and she will do a great job even if it's without the smarties and crayons.

I was just released today from the nursery and sustained as the Compansionate Service Leader. So tonight I asked the Relief Society President what that really means and I learned more about the calling than I ever knew existed. There's alot more to some callings than I ever expected. I hope I will have the compasion I need and the wisdom to know how to be a successful Compasionate Service Leader.

Remembering Woody

Fourteen years ago we got a puppy and called him Woody. Actually, Cindy got him as a birthday present for her 14th birthday. Cindy moved away after high school and couldn't take Woody with her so he became our dog (Ken and Ann's). Fourteen years ago we fought to save his life and at 9 weeks old he had his first $1,000 surgery. He would have more operations later in his life. He was the tiniest, cutest little puppy and we all fell 'head over heels' in love with him. He was part of our lives and we loved watching him play and learn new tricks to entertain us. Woody would do almost anything for a treat. He finally learned to jump through a hoop, dance, jump, roll-over, and play dead. He entertained us all with his gumball machine which he learned how to use as a puppy. It meant more treats everytime he pushed the handle down.

Now 14 years and 3 months later, Woody has gone to doggie heaven where he can play with all the little children there and see his mom and siblings. Woody will be missed by all of us but we'll always keep his wonderful memories in our hearts.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

22 + 19 =

Two great bike rides in sunny, warm (well actually hot) Wisconsin. We headed for the Great River State Trail on Saturday and rode about 22 miles (round trip) through small cities, prairie lands and adjacent to the Mississippi River. The trails are abandoned railbeds that have been turned into great biking, hiking and walking trails. Some are used for snowmobiling in the winter time.

On Monday we went north again and rode the Elroy-Sparta trail to the first tunnel. We had to have flashlights and walk our bikes through the 1/4 mile tunnel. We saw cranes (birds), farm houses, small cities, and beautiful scenery on the trail. Next time we plan to start at another location and ride to the other two tunnels on the trail.







































Any suggestions on how to make a bike seat more cushy for riding long distances would be greatly appreciated.

Fun with Grandkids

I spent a few days with some of the grandkids in Utah. We had dinner together, enjoyed a family reunion with great people, good food and fun games. We played on the swingset at Chari and Brian's. These are the only photos I took the whole time.

I went to Education Week at BYU with my friends and attended some wonderful, informative and interesting classes for four days. It was a great week.

Thanks to all who let me crash at their house and those who would have let me stay if I'd had more time.

Happy Utah Holiday

Happy 24th of July. We just spent three days playing on the boat at Yellowstone Lake State Park in Wisconsin. Our Ward celebrates for three days by camping and boating.

We were very busy as every boat owner is when there's a large group of people who what the learn to ski, cliff jump, ride the wave cutter and the tubes or just take a ride around the lake in the boat. The first night we put the boat in the water and watched a beautiful sunset and listened to great music. (Of course the cameras were still in the car.) We had a great time and the boat survived it's first trip out. We definitely need to get it out a lot more.

Woody Turns 14 today

Woody turned 14 years old today (in human years). In dog years he's now 98 years old. Here's a video of his little ice cream party. Schwans sells Ice Cream for dogs called Dog Zerts. We put a candle in his ice cream but he almost burned his head trying to get to the dessert. I guess he's not to old to enjoy a good treat.

Video - Finally

So, thanks to the great workings of MAC computers and the super expertise of Chad I think we finally have video of Dad's Birthday gift opening.

Crazy Legs

There's a race in Madison, Wisconsin called Crazy Legs. Money received supports the Wisconsin Badgers and this is the second year we participated in the 2 mile walk. There were over 20,000 people registered to run and walk in this event. Last year the sun was shining and we were very warm. This year we were bundled up in hooded jackets and it was very windy and cold.



Stadium filling up with Runners and Walkers.

Backyard Turkeys

These wild turkeys were eating our grass that was exposed through the snow in our backyard.

Pinewood Derby

Some of the cool cars that were raced.

Here are some photos of the lastest Pinewood Derby for the adults in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. Ken won his first two races (better than last year where he lost in the first round) and then didn't compete as well in the next two.

Amazing Change

Today we drove up to Amish Country looking for, of course, bakery goods (yum) and other food items. Those of you that have had the opportunity to visit Amish Country know the trip well. We got tasty, fresh out of the cooker donuts and a few other baked goods. Then we ventured on to Mishler's Country Store for a few grocery items. On the way we noticed the Lilac Wood Shop was opened for business. What a thrill that was. We've missed them.

About a year and a half ago the Lilac Wood Shop burned to the ground. They have rebuilt a larger, nicer building and opened again in January. We browsed the store and found some new items. but mostly the same things they had before. We didn't find the big wooden spoons though. We walked around the shop and you'll never guess what we found right in the middle of the store. A modern, very nice, clean bathroom with a flush toilet. We were very surprised by that change but no more outhouse if ya gotta go.

Ken's 60th Birthday

Just arrived. Ken's 60th Birthday and the Wii. Check out the video clip of the grand opening.

Well, I've been trying for several days to get the video to work but the file is just too large and I can't find a program that will read it to let me edit the file. Sorry, no video but the Wii was a big hit. We've played it a couple of time and my arm was very sore after playing baseball. We have a lot to learn about the game but it's fun. The youth are very excited to have a meeting here on Sunday evening so they can play the Wii.

Why Do We Live In Wisconsin?

Oh Yeah! For a pay check.

Today Church was cancelled for the third (really fourth) time today. Our roads are a solid sheet of ice. Last week the roads were icy and the wind was blowing deep drifts of snow across the road so we went home right after Sacrament Meeting. Church was cancelled on Sunday in December due to the amount of snowfall received overnight and Stake Conference was cancelled in December due to the snowfall.
We have broken the 1979 record snow amount already. We have already gotten more than 80 inches and more is on the way. Our mail boxes are almost buried and we can't see around the snow mounds at the ends of our driveways. We're running out of places to throw the snow. Who know where we'll be able to put this next snowfall that is supposed to hit us today.

I guess we'll just stay inside where it's toasty warm.

Learning To Post Video

Just learning how to post a video. Thanks to my personal trainer Cindy.

This is video from the Chinese New Year Celebration in SLC of the Lion Dance.

Visiting Utah

We headed to Chicago for our flight to Salt Lake City on Wednesday, January 30th. Of course our original flight was cancelled so we ended up on a much later flight thus arriving in SLC much later than was our plan.

Thursday we went skiing at Alta and had beautiful weather for almost half the day. Then it started snowing and got very difficult to see the ski slopes. I went back to the lodge and read my book (New Moon by Stephanie Meyer) and Ken and Carl made a few more runs on the ski slopes. Ken finally came in and Carl made a few more runs on a few more slopes before calling it quits. Even with the snow it was great to be in the mountains again.

Friday we got our hair done thanks to Christi and her willingness to put up with us. Then we went to President Hinckley's viewing at the Conference Center. We parked our car and took Trax into town. It only took us about 15 minutes to get downtown on Trax and we didn't have to pay for parking (or try to find parking). Then we ordered pizza for dinner and played games with the family.

Saturday Hillary Swensen was baptized by her dad and we all went to Chari and Brian's for a great lunch. We're so proud of your Hillary for your decision to be baptized. In the afternoon we went looking at houses with a realtor but didn't find anything we just had to have. I guess the time isn't right for moving back to Utah but we keep looking. One day we'll find the right place and it will be the right time. Later that night we went to the Chinese New Year celebration at Carl and Tracy's church. We had great food and wonderful entertainment.

We arrived back in Chicago on Tuesday, February 5th and the weather was fine. As we go closer to home (driving) it began snowing and the roads started getting very icy. We drove home at 40 mph for approximately 3 hours. What a long ride.

Today it is snowing and we are supposed to get about 10 inches of snow. The wind is blowing so hard that snow is drifting in huge piles on the driveway. What a welcome home. But Woody is very glad to have us back.

Woody's Sick Again

Woody has an ear infection and fluid on his lungs. He now gets to have ear drops once a day and a diuretic twice a day. He spends a lot of time going to the bathroom and we spend a lot of time letting him out. He was coughing a lot but the medicine seems to be helping. It's very hard to watch him getting older and slowing down. I suppose 13-1/2 years is pretty good and so far he's still going strong enough.

New Year's Celebration

New Year's Eve was very quiet here. We stayed up until midnight and watched the ball drop, shared a New Years kiss and toasted the New Year with white grape juice.

It's very cold here in Wisconsin. Last night we were at -3 degrees. With the wind chill it was even colder. Today the wind is blowing but we should be warming up to the 40s by the weekend.

Hope you all had a Happy New Year and made great new years resolutions.