The Evacuation!

Hi everyone!
Well, the contractors were here yesterday and have ordered the new rafters!! Next week after Lin and Peter leave we will start shopping for shingles, flooring, counter tops, sinks, garbage disposals, sky light, light fixtures etc!! Woohoo I cannot wait! This original kitcken is 30 years old and needs a facelift and its going to get one! It will be a mess but ohhh sooo worth it in the end! This will take up most of our summer but we are prepared. We will have to live out of our camper for a period of time when the roof comes but no biggie...I LOVE my little mobile cottage! We are fine. Olivia and Nathan are starting spring soccor...Logan is holding out for basketball again. They are doing great in school and seem happy. Life is good! Have to go now to do a mattress exchange. New one we bought has weak sides so we are upgrading. Need a good bed for our guests.
I love you all,
Rose

Little Man Tate

Well I've talked enough about his brothers, now its his turn. Tate has his first hockey game today. He is now an atom and has his own team, he is soooooo excited. He has only skated about four times, but is doing quite well. We tried to put him in learn to skate, he hated it. He wanted his own team like his brothers and wanted to play hockey so we threw him to the wolves, covered him from head to toe in gear, gave him a stick and a puck and away he went. He can stay up, skate pretty fast, but doesnt know how to stop yet and ......falls alot. ha. He will learn quickly though, as he really is doing well already, for the short time he has been skating. He skates out of Saginaw, so we cover the tri city area as Devin skates out of Bay City and Reese out of Midland. I will let you know how he does, I plan on taping it, as I have video of when the older boys first started when they were five and six. Will let everyone know how it goes. Love you all and love hearing about you on this website.

Hi All,

Peter and I are off tomorrow for the rainy weather of the Pacific Northwest. We will be there until Tuesday when we head to Michigan for even colder weather. Burrrrrrrrrrr, will summer ever get here? Keep the updates coming, I love this. No boast is to big or small. We all want to know all the great stuff going on in everyones life, right? I have all these great pictures I took of Finny last week but I don't know how to put them on this blog. Anyone out there willing to walk me through it, PLLLLEASE! I haven't heard from Erik so I have no news about him at the moment but will let everyone know the minute he passes his tests. Love to all, Linda

Blogger-Bragger

I'm not much of a blogger or a bragger, let alone a blogger-bragger, but I thought I'd give ya'all some exciting scoop while I have a minute to be out here.

You all know that my job is as a Marketing Communications Manager for a software company. That software company produces simulation and modeling software for the oil & gas and chemicals industries. I won't bore you to tears with the intricate details. The holding company a $3Billion business, and I work for a brand of the holding company that is about $100Million. Kind of like GM owns Hummer or Chevy. Same type of scenario. Different industry.

Anyway, part of my job responsibility is advertising. We have a dedicated agency that does our ads, but I've been one of the stubborn ones who (after much resistance) poo-poo'd the system (mostly because it's a waste of $$ when I know how to do graphic design anyway) and broke away from the rest of the Marketing Managers to do my own thing, while (of course) following design policies. :)

I've now done 2 ads on my own. One of which just recently won an award in a chemicals magazine! This magazine just happens to be the largest in our industry and distributes to over 65,000 readers worldwide. An independent survey was done on the January issue for readership analysis: Ad effectiveness, recall seeing/reading. My design placed within the top 10% of 50 ads in the survey. I know you probably don't understand the full context of its meaning, but my ad beat out much bigger competitor companies, like Honeywell, Intergraph, and Siemens - who historically use dedicated agencies for their ad programs.

In doing this myself, I saved the company a quick $20,000! Think I'll ever see a bonus check? No. That's just big business. Right Ing?? BUT, I have gotten lots of very nice praise from our Exec. VPs, front-page write-up in our corporate newspaper, etc. And it's review season, so the timing is PERFECT! Another reason this is so significant within our company is that the chemicals market is historically smaller for us than oil & gas, and it's an area we're really trying to ramp up. So to know our potential market is watching us this closely is a very good thing. Sales is very happy. :)

Long story short... This is obviously very good for my resume... :)
Love you guys!

So Lin finally got on....

Yayeeeee!! Go Linda, go Linda!! You got on!! Good for you...now we can keep better track of eachother from now on. I am sitting here today with a snowstorm blowing outside! I spent several hours snuggled in my studio working on the Military art piece honoring Dad. Also began putting together an art piece for mom...takes much planning...lots of time. I am using an old robe, nightgown, lace curtains, photos etc for hers....things that represent her/her life/her loves. When I get the two done I will photo them and post them on the blog for you to see. Noone sees them before that...sorry! I love my little studio!
Christy told me to tell everyone she cannot participate on this blog as she has absolutly no time. Between classes, homework, study, kids, dogs, a husband, a house, a job she just cannot take on another thing. She says she will have more time next year when she graduates. She loves you all and wishes you well. I do too and hope you are all happy. I love you!
Now, I would like to share a lovely poem with my sisters;
by Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Already I have shed the leaves of youth,
Stripped by the wind of time down to the truth
Of winter branches. Linear and alone
I stand, a lens for lives beyond
my own,
A frame through which anothers fire may blow,
A harp on which another's passions blow.
The patterns of my boughs,
an open chart
Spread on the sky, to others
may impart
Its leafless mysteries that once
I prized,
Before bare roots and
branches equalized;
Tendrils that tap the rain
or twigs the sun
Are all the same, shadow and
substance one.
Now that my vulnerable leaves
are cast aside,
There's nothing left to shield,
nothing to hide.
Blow through me, Life, pared down
at last to bone,
So fragile and so fearless
have I grown!

Devins picture

OK, I forgot to put a check in the small box at the bottom. Here goes one more time.

Devin's MVP award

Thought I would experiment by adding a picture of Devin's MVP award. Wanted to see if I could get it to work. Love you all and Lin, Im so happy you can now get on.