Almost here

Diane and family are on their way; they are probably somewhere south of OKC :)

I let my stake borrow my Christmas tree for the nativity and I wasn't home to pick it up. I have asked around for anyone who might know of its whereabouts and so far no luck in locating it. I think that they must have thought that it was going to be donated and put it in the storage. I haven't seen where the trees are stored at but I hear it is in a classroom at a building in Colleyville and that it is stuffed full. So it looks like we are not going to have a tree this year :( 

I think that this will be a first. I asked Wayne about picking up a live tree but he is so allergic to trees that he didn't like that idea...oh well.

Julie, Caleb, and Jennica will be here on Friday :) YEAH...everyone will be home for the holidays!!

White family

Julie got family pictures taken this month...it was a first for her. Here are a few good ones:

  

Back Home

Wayne drove up to Arkansas Sunday morning after working 12 hours on Saturday. He took a short nap in the afternoon. The plan was to wait until Monday morning to drive home but after looking at the weather report we decided to leave as soon as Rusty got in. That was at 8pm. So we chatted for a few minutes with Rusty, I looked at his incision and asked him a few questions, then we took off. We told them that we were going to stop in Oklahoma to spend the night. Wayne drove to Eufaula and then let me take it over after filling up with gas. I drove the rest of the way in, arriving just before 2am. It was an uneventful trip...we were able to stay ahead of the storm...not the cold...just the storm. When I called to Arkansas yesterday mom said that there was a sheet of ice and she is really glad we left when we did...so am I.

Now I am busy, busy, busy. I have five purses to finish. I got them cut out yesterday and started ironing and sewing. I need to have them done by tomorrow so they can be mailed out. The house is in dire need of a thorough cleaning...after all I have kids and grandkids coming for the holidays. I still am trying to track down my Christmas tree which was not given back to us. I have a message in but I will have to try calling again it looks like. When I get it I need to put it up and decorate it. I did get my Christmas letter written but I need to mail them and cards out. And I am still going through the mail that was received while I was gone and catching up on bills and balancing the checkbook and going through the recordings of my shows and too many more to remember. Wish me luck...our first set of grandkids arrive either Sunday or Monday (I can't wait)

:)

In Arkansas

I am in Arkansas at my in-laws home right now. Luckily we have this tiny Eee PC so I can use the internet (they have high speed although not FIOS) to keep up with what is going on in the world. My brother-in-law had surgery on his neck to remove a large spot of melanoma. He had outpatient surgery on Monday morning. The surgery went well. They removed the cancer with 1 cm margins and took some lymph nodes to check them for metastasis.

The YM and YW just showed up to sing a few Christmas carols to us...so nice...back to the story.

Last evening he came down with the stomach flu although he appears to feel slightly better tonight. Anyway, they decided to put a drain in his neck so I am caring for that (with his help). The good news is that his pathology report came back CLEAR with LYMPH NODES NEGATIVE...woo hoo!!

So right now we are staying close to home until he is feeling better. I will probably be here until Tuesday or Wednesday.

Last weekend I was in Wichita. The boys best friend got married. That was an experience. The wedding was at 5pm. At 4pm Michael (he shaved off his goatee...yeah) was in the shower. When he got out at around 4:10 or 4:15 he started looking for his clothes to wear to the wedding. I didn't remember seeing the garment bag in the trunk but I went back out to check and sure enough they had left it in Michael's closet. It was either wear jeans and a T-shirt to the wedding or make a "quick" trip to Wal-Mart to pick up pants and a white shirt. We got to Wal-Mart at 4:30 and back to Diane's house at 4:50 and to the wedding at 5:10...amazing when I look back at it. Daniel showered while Michael and I shopped. The wedding was nice but we were too late to get a seat so I hung out with Stephanie at the back...but that was ok. The boys talked with Josh McKnight a lot and we got to congratulate Ryan and Emerald. I got to speak with a lot of my friends from Wichita that were there. It was a good trip and really nice to see Ty and Diane and the grandkids.

Time Flies

We spent last week  in Arkansas at Wayne's moms house. It was good and quiet but kinda boring (don't tell her that :)) The boys spent the week at home and I felt kinda guilty that they didn't get a Thanksgiving dinner BUT they didn't even mention it when we returned home so I guess they didn't care all that much. I missed my computer (even though they have one out in the family room AND we brought our little "eee PC") because I felt like if I spent as much time online as I usually do then 'mom' would think I was ignoring her. It is fun going to her house but I come home always thinking that my house is not nearly clean enough and that I don't put nearly enough thought into my cooking. It usually doesn't take me long to get over it though.

I have been pretty much running non stop since I got home. It took me the rest of Sunday (we just missed getting home in time for church so we skipped) catching up on the mail, e-mail, and mainly bills. Yesterday I went to our stake center to set up my Christmas tree and iron tablecloths. Our stake puts on a nativity display every year and it is this weekend. I have helped most the years I have lived here to set up but have never went. I am going to be gone this weekend so once again I am going to miss it. I hear that it is a really good one and that A LOT of people, members and non-members alike, attend every year. So far what I have seen it is amazing. So if you live in the Fort Worth area it is at the Colleyville stake center Friday night, Saturday, and Sunday. 

Today I had an opthomologist appointment. He says I am completely healed and that my left eye meets surgery requirements so any time I am ready to have it done to schedule the surgery. I think I probably will have it done in January or February. After that I went to work on my bedroom and closet (guilty about cleanliness...haven't gotten over mom's house yet :)) It took awhile but I got it done. I feel so much better now that it is clean. Also today, my friend Sarah, cut my hair. It looks so much better. I also gave her the bags for the nursing covers that I have sewn and she gave me a piece of fabric for making a pocket on a nursing cover...I got that finished. Our newest covers are pink with brown dots...they are SOOOO cute. We have made some of them one layer instead of two for something different. We also sold another one (it was zebra print with blue satin) and got paid for it!!

Tomorrow I am going to go help tie a quilt for a humanitarian project. That should be fun. We also have tithing settlement in the evening but Wayne will already be in bed so that one I am doing alone.

Thursday I have enrichment meeting in the evening. Sometime before I leave I would like to fit in some more Christmas shopping. I am almost done but not quite. I also need to get a gift for the wedding. I would also like to start decorating the house for Christmas.

Friday I am planning on going to the cannery in the morning. Then we will leave to drive up to Kansas for Emerald and Ryan's wedding which is Saturday. Friday evening we will play "Pepper" with Kelly and her family and Steph and whoever else wants to go over to Diane's house. On Sunday I need to get back to Arkansas to Wayne's moms house. I think the boys will probably have to drop me off but there might be another way if it works out...we shall see. On Monday Rusty has surgery on his melanoma. He has a very large spot on his neck and the surgeon is taking that off plus a few lymph nodes to have them tested to see if it has spread. If anyone needs prayers, he does. He is Wayne's brother. I will stay that whole week in Arkansas to help out as needed. If all goes well then Wayne will come pick me up the following weekend.

Sometime I also need to write our Christmas letter and maybe print it out so that I can address them and mail them out in Arkansas but that might have to wait until I return as I already have  a lot on my plate this week.