Sandi and Niece Erika
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
The Kids Leave America
We knew this day would come. And we even knew it would be tough. Unfortunately, I think I underestimated how tough it would be. As "ready" as I was for them to go home, it was sooo sad seeing them walk down the jetway.
We headed out the door of our house in Ottawa around 5:15am. The wonderful hour plus drive to the airport was pretty quiet. Whether we were all still sleepy or just sad thinking about what was to come... We arrived at the airport, got Adriana and her all three of her suitcases checked in and sat and waited. (terminal C) About 40 minutes before her flight was scheduled to leave, we said our good-byes and sent her through security. For those of you not familiar with Kansas City International Airport, the passenger waiting area is only separated by glass from the non-ticketed area. So, we were able to stand there and wave her off as she walked down the jetway to board her plane.
We had several hours until Emiel was scheduled to leave but opted to go ahead and get him and his luggage checked in. (terminal A) Good thing...we found out that his original flight was going to be delayed by three hours. They wound up putting him on a flight that left about 20 minutes later and routed him through Chicago instead of Washington. He would have a three hour lay-over in Chicago but he would have a direct flight from Chicago to Amsterdam putting him in Holland around 9:15am their time.
With a couple of hours left to wait for Emiel's departure time, we headed out to find some breakfast. Ended up at Cracker Barrel. MmmmMmmmMmmm After breakfast, we drove a little further to a new shopping area out north called Zona Rosa. Spent an hour or so in Barnes & Noble then just walked around a bit. Headed back to the airport to see if we could manage to say good-bye to Michael and Carolin who were heading back to Germany. (terminal C) We did get to see Michael for a few minutes before having the get back to the terminal Emiel was departing from.
We had a little time to spare when we arrived back at terminal A. So, we just sat around and visited with some other people from the organization. Finally, it was time to send Emiel through security. We gave our hugs and said our good-byes and through the gate he went. It was about that time I lost it. Couldn't hold it back any longer. I'm sure Matthew would tell you I bawled like a baby (keeping my back to Emiel as much as possible so he couldn't see). We stood there until it was time for him to board his plane. Waved our final good-bye and off he went.
Adriana called us around 7:30pm to let us know she had made it back to Mexico safe and sound. Her family was soooo glad to have her home. Threw her a HUGE party with family and friends, a mariachi band and food galore. Sounds like she was having a great time.
Wednesday, June 8, 2005
We finally heard from Emiel. He called my cell phone around 4:00pm this afternoon. His three hour layover in Chicago turned into a six and a half hour layover. Apparently, there was an issue with the airplane. After three hours of working on it, they were finally released for take-off only to find out that they somehow managed to forget to fuel the jet. OH MY GOSH!!! Think I would have been asking to be let off! After all that, his actual flight was uneventful. Says he slept most of the nine hours before landing in Amsterdam four hours later than planned.
Well, guess that's about it...unless there is something Matthew wants to add. We have informed EVERYONE at EF (exchange organization we host through) that we will be taking the next 2-3 years off. No students, no arrival home...nothing!! We are going to focus on getting the airplane done and get some things done around the house. After that?? FLY, FLY, FLY!!!
We headed out the door of our house in Ottawa around 5:15am. The wonderful hour plus drive to the airport was pretty quiet. Whether we were all still sleepy or just sad thinking about what was to come... We arrived at the airport, got Adriana and her all three of her suitcases checked in and sat and waited. (terminal C) About 40 minutes before her flight was scheduled to leave, we said our good-byes and sent her through security. For those of you not familiar with Kansas City International Airport, the passenger waiting area is only separated by glass from the non-ticketed area. So, we were able to stand there and wave her off as she walked down the jetway to board her plane.
We had several hours until Emiel was scheduled to leave but opted to go ahead and get him and his luggage checked in. (terminal A) Good thing...we found out that his original flight was going to be delayed by three hours. They wound up putting him on a flight that left about 20 minutes later and routed him through Chicago instead of Washington. He would have a three hour lay-over in Chicago but he would have a direct flight from Chicago to Amsterdam putting him in Holland around 9:15am their time.
With a couple of hours left to wait for Emiel's departure time, we headed out to find some breakfast. Ended up at Cracker Barrel. MmmmMmmmMmmm After breakfast, we drove a little further to a new shopping area out north called Zona Rosa. Spent an hour or so in Barnes & Noble then just walked around a bit. Headed back to the airport to see if we could manage to say good-bye to Michael and Carolin who were heading back to Germany. (terminal C) We did get to see Michael for a few minutes before having the get back to the terminal Emiel was departing from.
We had a little time to spare when we arrived back at terminal A. So, we just sat around and visited with some other people from the organization. Finally, it was time to send Emiel through security. We gave our hugs and said our good-byes and through the gate he went. It was about that time I lost it. Couldn't hold it back any longer. I'm sure Matthew would tell you I bawled like a baby (keeping my back to Emiel as much as possible so he couldn't see). We stood there until it was time for him to board his plane. Waved our final good-bye and off he went.
Adriana called us around 7:30pm to let us know she had made it back to Mexico safe and sound. Her family was soooo glad to have her home. Threw her a HUGE party with family and friends, a mariachi band and food galore. Sounds like she was having a great time.
Wednesday, June 8, 2005
We finally heard from Emiel. He called my cell phone around 4:00pm this afternoon. His three hour layover in Chicago turned into a six and a half hour layover. Apparently, there was an issue with the airplane. After three hours of working on it, they were finally released for take-off only to find out that they somehow managed to forget to fuel the jet. OH MY GOSH!!! Think I would have been asking to be let off! After all that, his actual flight was uneventful. Says he slept most of the nine hours before landing in Amsterdam four hours later than planned.
Well, guess that's about it...unless there is something Matthew wants to add. We have informed EVERYONE at EF (exchange organization we host through) that we will be taking the next 2-3 years off. No students, no arrival home...nothing!! We are going to focus on getting the airplane done and get some things done around the house. After that?? FLY, FLY, FLY!!!
Friday, April 15, 2005
Some recent pictures
Just some miscellaneous pictures Emiel has taken:
One morning I just grabbed a fishing pole and walked down to the pond before we went out for breakfast. I landed about 5 of these in just a couple of minutes!
Can you guess what this is? (Our trip to the Kansas Cosmosphere).
(It is an SR-71 blackbird.)
We don't see this very often! Emiel and Adrianna in Washington DC.
Sandi picked up a couple of guys in DC.
One morning I just grabbed a fishing pole and walked down to the pond before we went out for breakfast. I landed about 5 of these in just a couple of minutes!
Can you guess what this is? (Our trip to the Kansas Cosmosphere).
(It is an SR-71 blackbird.)
We don't see this very often! Emiel and Adrianna in Washington DC.
Sandi picked up a couple of guys in DC.
Friday, September 03, 2004
Monday, August 02, 2004
New House Pictures
I have been documenting the progress on the house for a scrapbook I've been working on. Matthew and I thought we'd share some of these pictures with you. These were taken a few weeks ago after all the painting and after we moved in. So, furniture is in place and boxes are all unpacked. I do not have any pictures of the completed office as it is a mess. It is the only room left that has boxes to be unpacked. We have ALOT of books and are in disagreement with where to put up bookshelves. There is a large closet in the room and I would like to put shelves up in there and use it as a mini-library. Matthew, on the other hand, would like to put shelves up in the office itself. At this rate, who knows how soon the office will be unpacked and put together.
Matthew is coming along rather well on the airplane. I am getting very excited seeing it put together. Can't wait to fly, fly, fly!!!
Mowing hasn't decreased at all. We have had an unseasonably wet summer so far and it sounds like that's not going to change. We're supposed to have a fairly wet August also. Which means mowing all summer!!
Our exchange student arrived on Saturday (July 31st) along with my parents and an aunt and uncle from Illinois. Our students name is Emiel (pronounced like "a mule") Verholt and he is from Holland. He is about 6' 3" which makes him the tallest student we've hosted. We haven't really had much time to spend with him as we picked him up from the airport at 2:00pm and immediately went to a birthday party for my Gramma. But, he sure got to meet alot of my family. And I come from a LARGE family. :-) He seems like a very nice young man and I'm sure we will enjoy having him.
East side of the house...been working on flower beds
Northeast corner of the house
The Hearth room (or informal dining area) from dining room
The living room (standing in the hearth room) facing south
Living room again looking into the hearth room facing north
Dining room standing in the kitchen facing east-southeast
Dining room from the sun porch facing north towards
the kitchen
Sun porch from the dining room facing south
Sun porch from southeast corner facing west
Master bedroom from living room facing west
Master bathroom from bedroom facing south
Master bathroom facing east
Bedroom upstairs that Emiel will be staying in
Bedroom upstairs for guests
Matthew is coming along rather well on the airplane. I am getting very excited seeing it put together. Can't wait to fly, fly, fly!!!
Mowing hasn't decreased at all. We have had an unseasonably wet summer so far and it sounds like that's not going to change. We're supposed to have a fairly wet August also. Which means mowing all summer!!
Our exchange student arrived on Saturday (July 31st) along with my parents and an aunt and uncle from Illinois. Our students name is Emiel (pronounced like "a mule") Verholt and he is from Holland. He is about 6' 3" which makes him the tallest student we've hosted. We haven't really had much time to spend with him as we picked him up from the airport at 2:00pm and immediately went to a birthday party for my Gramma. But, he sure got to meet alot of my family. And I come from a LARGE family. :-) He seems like a very nice young man and I'm sure we will enjoy having him.
East side of the house...been working on flower beds
Northeast corner of the house
The Hearth room (or informal dining area) from dining room
The living room (standing in the hearth room) facing south
Living room again looking into the hearth room facing north
Dining room standing in the kitchen facing east-southeast
Dining room from the sun porch facing north towards
the kitchen
Sun porch from the dining room facing south
Sun porch from southeast corner facing west
Master bedroom from living room facing west
Master bathroom from bedroom facing south
Master bathroom facing east
Bedroom upstairs that Emiel will be staying in
Bedroom upstairs for guests
Monday, July 12, 2004
Another Busy Weekend
WHEW....another 2 weeks come and gone in the blink of an eye. Seems like there's ALWAYS something to be done around the house or in the yard. Spent most of the weekend before the 4th mowing, mowing and mowing. Same thing this weekend. Only difference was Matthew (instead of working his tush off on the airplane) worked his rear off trimming up trees and running around the yard with the weed eater. A VERY hot weekend and we spent most of it out in the yard. However, it's looking great!!
Matthew has made several comments recently about the size of the yard and how it just doesn't seem like the acreage adds up. Sure enough, we had the opportunity to chat with a couple of the locals and discovered there is another acre that belongs to us on the South side. Hmmm....imagine that. Guess the running joke was that we kept widening our mowing area and they figured eventually, we'd get to where we were actually mowing our ENTIRE yard!!! Too funny. And, more work :)
We also found out last night that our new septic system that was installed in March or April is failing. Seems one of the laterals is leaking and we have some "water" seeping up. Not good. Hopefully, the people who installed it will come fix it since it's only 2-3 months old. We'll see how that goes.
I've been trying to send Matthew airplane building vibes...I was gone out of town most of the week last week and thought he would really kick some butt on the airplane. Imagine my surprise to find out he barely touched the airplane. Not good!!! So, we ALL need to send Matthew the airplane building vibes so we can FLY, FLY, FLY!!!!
Matthew has made several comments recently about the size of the yard and how it just doesn't seem like the acreage adds up. Sure enough, we had the opportunity to chat with a couple of the locals and discovered there is another acre that belongs to us on the South side. Hmmm....imagine that. Guess the running joke was that we kept widening our mowing area and they figured eventually, we'd get to where we were actually mowing our ENTIRE yard!!! Too funny. And, more work :)
We also found out last night that our new septic system that was installed in March or April is failing. Seems one of the laterals is leaking and we have some "water" seeping up. Not good. Hopefully, the people who installed it will come fix it since it's only 2-3 months old. We'll see how that goes.
I've been trying to send Matthew airplane building vibes...I was gone out of town most of the week last week and thought he would really kick some butt on the airplane. Imagine my surprise to find out he barely touched the airplane. Not good!!! So, we ALL need to send Matthew the airplane building vibes so we can FLY, FLY, FLY!!!!
Friday, June 18, 2004
Settling in... new lawn mower
The girls are gone, things are quiet, we are getting settled in. Sandi has most everything unpacked but still a few boxes running around with things we rarely use in them. Oddly enough, we lack closet space for coats.
Our riding lawnmower keeled over this week. It was on old John Deere Model 70. We bought if from Sandi's dad a couple of years ago. It's pretty old and served us well. I think the motor gave out on it. I may pull the motor and put in a new some day. Since we just bought the house and I'm trying to build an airplane, we didn't want to spring for a new John Deere. A quick trip to Home Depot and we returned with a $800 Yard Machines riding mower.
So far it seems to run well... with 4 acres to mow, it gets a workout. Mowing is almost an all day affair. With all the rain we've been getting we have to mow once a week. Sandi loves to mow, so it really isn't a 'chore'.
Our riding lawnmower keeled over this week. It was on old John Deere Model 70. We bought if from Sandi's dad a couple of years ago. It's pretty old and served us well. I think the motor gave out on it. I may pull the motor and put in a new some day. Since we just bought the house and I'm trying to build an airplane, we didn't want to spring for a new John Deere. A quick trip to Home Depot and we returned with a $800 Yard Machines riding mower.
So far it seems to run well... with 4 acres to mow, it gets a workout. Mowing is almost an all day affair. With all the rain we've been getting we have to mow once a week. Sandi loves to mow, so it really isn't a 'chore'.
Thursday, June 10, 2004
Tuesday, June 01, 2004
Done Moving!?
It was Memorial weekend and we didn't get to relax much. Made many trips to the old house to finish moving what was left and to clean up a bit. There are a couple things left that we may go grab but I think we are DONE!
Now it's time to finish unpacking. It will be nice when we are done-done so I can get back to work on the plane.
Now it's time to finish unpacking. It will be nice when we are done-done so I can get back to work on the plane.
Monday, May 24, 2004
Moved In!
On Friday, May 21st, we officially moved to the new house!
When people ask how the move went.. I start by saying "Wellll....", which is a good indicator that it didn't go perfectly.. which it didn't. The movers showed up 45 min to an hour and a half late (Depending on how you look at it)... and the truck was too small. Sandi told them over and over that we needed a big truck. We were expecting a semi-trailer but got a 27ft moving truck. Of course they would be happy to come back on Sunday and help us move... NOT! No choice but to start loading. The loading guys were great.
We probably got 90% of our stuff loaded. All of the big stuff was loaded, most of the small boxes. Really it's the basement stuff that didn't get loaded, some of which really wasn't even packed but there were a couple of large items that would have been nice to get on the truck.
2.5 hours to load, an hour drive, an hour lunch and another 2.5 hours to unload and we were moved in! Boxes everywhere!
Larry, Kevin and Don did a great job loading/unloading, as well as Sandi, Yuri and Jenny. We all helped load and unload. I don't think anything was actually broken during the move.... oh yea.. a lightbulb in a lamp.
We did discover that we now have a tripped breaker that won't reset. We had a wire run for the electric stove, I don't know if they did something when running that wire or not. So the electricians are coming back out tomorrow to find out the trouble.
When people ask how the move went.. I start by saying "Wellll....", which is a good indicator that it didn't go perfectly.. which it didn't. The movers showed up 45 min to an hour and a half late (Depending on how you look at it)... and the truck was too small. Sandi told them over and over that we needed a big truck. We were expecting a semi-trailer but got a 27ft moving truck. Of course they would be happy to come back on Sunday and help us move... NOT! No choice but to start loading. The loading guys were great.
We probably got 90% of our stuff loaded. All of the big stuff was loaded, most of the small boxes. Really it's the basement stuff that didn't get loaded, some of which really wasn't even packed but there were a couple of large items that would have been nice to get on the truck.
2.5 hours to load, an hour drive, an hour lunch and another 2.5 hours to unload and we were moved in! Boxes everywhere!
Larry, Kevin and Don did a great job loading/unloading, as well as Sandi, Yuri and Jenny. We all helped load and unload. I don't think anything was actually broken during the move.... oh yea.. a lightbulb in a lamp.
We did discover that we now have a tripped breaker that won't reset. We had a wire run for the electric stove, I don't know if they did something when running that wire or not. So the electricians are coming back out tomorrow to find out the trouble.
Monday, May 10, 2004
Another weekend gone
Spent the weeekend again at the new house. Jenny and Yuri finished painting the office and the living room. Sandi mowed the yard and did some weed-eating and I'm sure did some stuff in the house, I just don't remember what.
I worked on the shop most of the weekend. I cut out a hole in the east wall of the shop and framed it in for the door. We bought a pre-hung door at an auction of couple of weeks ago for $22. Great deal. Slid right in, nailed it in place. I also installed some flourescent lighting on one side. I had 3 commercial light units I just rested on the trusses for now. I need to find 3 more to finish it off and make it look right. I hinged the one window in the shop to allow for some airflow. I have another small window to install as well. I dismantled the existing workbench since it was old, greasy and pretty beat up. There is some fencing that was taken down in the front yard made of treated 2x6's that will be pefect for some new workbenches. I am still trying to figure out the best way to insulate the shop. The studs aren't spaced evenly, which makes it a bit of a challenge. I looked at using the expandable polystyrene foam to spray on but it would cost about $800. I HAVE to insulate before winter, otherwise I'll never be able to work.
I still have some honey-do items to take care of. The kitchen sink still needs some work and I need to get the office light installed.
I worked on the shop most of the weekend. I cut out a hole in the east wall of the shop and framed it in for the door. We bought a pre-hung door at an auction of couple of weeks ago for $22. Great deal. Slid right in, nailed it in place. I also installed some flourescent lighting on one side. I had 3 commercial light units I just rested on the trusses for now. I need to find 3 more to finish it off and make it look right. I hinged the one window in the shop to allow for some airflow. I have another small window to install as well. I dismantled the existing workbench since it was old, greasy and pretty beat up. There is some fencing that was taken down in the front yard made of treated 2x6's that will be pefect for some new workbenches. I am still trying to figure out the best way to insulate the shop. The studs aren't spaced evenly, which makes it a bit of a challenge. I looked at using the expandable polystyrene foam to spray on but it would cost about $800. I HAVE to insulate before winter, otherwise I'll never be able to work.
I still have some honey-do items to take care of. The kitchen sink still needs some work and I need to get the office light installed.
Monday, May 03, 2004
Closed and our first weekend.
We closed!! On Wednesday, April 28th, 2004, we signed 2 large stacks of paper and officially became home-owners!
We decided to spend the weekend at the house getting some painting done. Sandi drove out Friday morning and started taping all the walls. I picked up the girls after work and headed out. Turned out to be a be indoor camping adventure. No furniture or anything so we just crashed on the floor.
It started raining Friday night and I noticed water was over-running the gutters. I grabbed a ladder and umbrella to investigate. The gutters we FULL of tree debris. I spent the next hour in the pouring rain cleaning out the gutters as best I could.
Next I turned on the heat since it was getting chilly and noticed the furnace was blowing after a couple of minutes. A trip to the basement and I discovered that the furnance wasn't lighting. Great... going to be a cold night. I futzed with it a bit trying to get it to fire off but no luck. I think the thermocouple has gone bad.
Now it's Saturday.... I installed a new light in the 'hearth room' and the 'dining room'.
Then I started tacklilng the installation of a new kitchen sink faucet. The sink is a deep version and reaching up to take out the old faucet was a challenge. Then I discovered that the sink wasn't even attached! It was just resting in the hole. They put new countertops in and apparently forgot to reattach the sink. This worked out OK, as I just pulled the sink out and took off the old faucet, put in the new one. Upon putting the sink back in and hooking everything back up, the garbage disposal was leaking and the drain on the left side was leaking. Uggh. Took off the garbage disposal, re-caulked the sink drain itself and hooked it back up. Seems to be fixed. I couldn't get the leak fixed on the other side, so I moved on before I got too frustrated.
Sunday.... we slept upstairs last night since I got too cold downstairs. The upstairs has a seperate furnace, so it was warm. Slept a bit better but sleeping on the floor isn't fun.
Today I took down some old rail fencing outside. Climbed up on the roof and cleaned out one of the gutters I couldn't get too Friday night. My mom called and said they were coming out to help. The headache I started the day out with progressvily got worse.. to the point where I couldn't function anymore... first migraine I've had in a long time. It was bad enough to make me nauseaus (and ultimately a little sick). After mom came, she ran into town and got some Exedrin Migraine. I took two of those and took a long nap. They worked.
In the meantime, Gary (mom's husband) had hooked the the sink back up and had found a hole in the pipe that was probably causing the leak.
We decided to spend the weekend at the house getting some painting done. Sandi drove out Friday morning and started taping all the walls. I picked up the girls after work and headed out. Turned out to be a be indoor camping adventure. No furniture or anything so we just crashed on the floor.
It started raining Friday night and I noticed water was over-running the gutters. I grabbed a ladder and umbrella to investigate. The gutters we FULL of tree debris. I spent the next hour in the pouring rain cleaning out the gutters as best I could.
Next I turned on the heat since it was getting chilly and noticed the furnace was blowing after a couple of minutes. A trip to the basement and I discovered that the furnance wasn't lighting. Great... going to be a cold night. I futzed with it a bit trying to get it to fire off but no luck. I think the thermocouple has gone bad.
Now it's Saturday.... I installed a new light in the 'hearth room' and the 'dining room'.
Then I started tacklilng the installation of a new kitchen sink faucet. The sink is a deep version and reaching up to take out the old faucet was a challenge. Then I discovered that the sink wasn't even attached! It was just resting in the hole. They put new countertops in and apparently forgot to reattach the sink. This worked out OK, as I just pulled the sink out and took off the old faucet, put in the new one. Upon putting the sink back in and hooking everything back up, the garbage disposal was leaking and the drain on the left side was leaking. Uggh. Took off the garbage disposal, re-caulked the sink drain itself and hooked it back up. Seems to be fixed. I couldn't get the leak fixed on the other side, so I moved on before I got too frustrated.
Sunday.... we slept upstairs last night since I got too cold downstairs. The upstairs has a seperate furnace, so it was warm. Slept a bit better but sleeping on the floor isn't fun.
Today I took down some old rail fencing outside. Climbed up on the roof and cleaned out one of the gutters I couldn't get too Friday night. My mom called and said they were coming out to help. The headache I started the day out with progressvily got worse.. to the point where I couldn't function anymore... first migraine I've had in a long time. It was bad enough to make me nauseaus (and ultimately a little sick). After mom came, she ran into town and got some Exedrin Migraine. I took two of those and took a long nap. They worked.
In the meantime, Gary (mom's husband) had hooked the the sink back up and had found a hole in the pipe that was probably causing the leak.
Saturday, April 03, 2004
Saturday, January 31, 2004
Here are some pictures of our new house....
Front of house (East side)
another angle
Garage (North side)
Back of house (West)
Little stone garden building
Workshop... my new airplane factory building!
Master Bedroom
Master Bathroom
Office or Bedroom
Living Room
Dining Room
Dining Room... another view
Upstairs bathroom
Sunroom
Sunroom... another view
Looking down the stairs
Upstairs bedroom #2
Sitting room
Upstairs bedroom #3
Front of house (East side)
another angle
Garage (North side)
Back of house (West)
Little stone garden building
Workshop... my new airplane factory building!
Master Bedroom
Master Bathroom
Office or Bedroom
Living Room
Dining Room
Dining Room... another view
Upstairs bathroom
Sunroom
Sunroom... another view
Looking down the stairs
Upstairs bedroom #2
Sitting room
Upstairs bedroom #3
