.

Satur-day Night.

2012-01-28T20:36:00.001-08:00

I think that we are going to dig

going to church on Saturday night,

especially if it is followed by

yummy, yummy treats like this

one!! We are excited that we

could try church tonight! We

have been wanting to go on

Saturday nights for a long time,

but with the house project . . .

it has truly been impossible.

I think that we are really

going to love it!! It will be so fun

to have Sundays to regroup write

my dissertation, make quilts,

bake, stay in our jammies . . .

The possibilities are endless!!

Family Fun Friday.

2012-01-27T16:59:00.001-08:00

Give me F-r-i-d-a-y!! Friday just happens to be

one of my very favorite days of the week

for about a bazillion reasons. The highlight

just happens to be Family Fun Friday! We

really try to gather as a family and

pop good old fashioned popcorn, have

fun food, watch a flick or two and

cozy up on the couches TOGETHER!!

Electronic devices are limited . . .

I.love.it.

On tap for tonight:

*Puss in Boots

*A King of Queens Marathon

*Yummy popcorn with spicy

jalapeno seasoning

*A late night Taco Bell run

Oh, yeah!!

Home D.

2012-01-26T21:47:00.001-08:00

Darn straight . . . We do have a

special parking space at our local

Home Depot!!

We really do love the guys who have

helped us over and over and over

and over and over and over again at

Home Depot.

Seriously, the guys have been totally

wonderful, helpful, and kind during

our building project. They have also

been super great to our crew and have

been really concerned about our Dad.

We love, love, love, love our #1 cashier.

We see her usually two to three times

EACH day . . .

We loved baking the cookies for the

guys and so thankful for all of their

help during our course of construction.

Luke and Mike created this little tradition

of getting Mentos every time that they

go to Home Depot. I think that they

will recognize a little loss of revenue on

the candy aisle once our project is

completely done.

Words for Wednesday.

2012-01-25T06:33:00.001-08:00

Have you prayed about it as

much as you have talked

about it?

Just sayin'!

The C of O.

2012-01-24T21:11:00.000-08:00

Okeedokee . . . We are approaching the

ever anticipated finish line. There are

essential items that must be completed,

in no particular order they are:

*dishwasher, hooked up ready to roll

*kitchen island in place and ON

*kitchen sink and faucet

*stairway handrails

*range vent in and ON

*a little more grading with the

tractor

*front door in and ON

*locks in place

Good news, water is running and

the toilets are flushing . . . Folks, we

are seriously days away from the

b.i.g. C of O. You will hear shouts

from the mountaintops when that

day occurs, hopefully this week,

probably next week . . .

While I sit and babysit, I mean

supervise the workers, I have been

extremely productive on what will

forevermore be referred to as "The

Big D", can I hear a drum roll please

for page 67, yes 67 . . . That means that

I have almost three chapters completed out

of five . . . Could it be possible that I will

finish "The Big D" before we complete the

house . . . Probably not, you see chapters

4 and 5 will be written AFTER I complete

my research which will take place over

the next six or seven months!!!

Meanwhile, my crew is doing great!

The boys have started back to school,

PTL!!! College classes resumed today

and we could not be happier!! I love

productivity!!! Mike continues to

gain strength while undergoing

aggressive chemotherapy regimens!!

Lemon cake cravings . . . not a problem!

Mike got super ambitious and whipped

up a yum, yum, yummy lemon cake . . .

The crew can always tell when Dad bakes

a cake, it has a THIN layer of frosting

as opposed to the THICK and GOOEY

"goop" that is lathered all over the

cakes that I bake!!

Here's to the C of O, "The Big D", and

lemon cakes baked by Dad!!!

Ahhhhh!

2012-01-23T20:25:00.000-08:00

The Granite God and Goddess have worn

us out!!! They have been at the project

the past three days until the wee hours . . .

The boys have been incredible to keep

me company, but honestly, 12-13

hours up there is quite a feat to accomplish

THREE days in a row!!

Positively, I sat in the back seat of the car,

I mean my office, and was able to get

47, yes 47, pages of my dissertation

proposal written today . . . A huge

accomplishment!!! I am so excited!!!

It snowed 6" up in Somersett and Luke

and I were content to work on our

studies and watch the huge flakes

tumble down . . .

One thing for certain, I will sleep as

tight as a little bed bug tonight!!!

Sneak Peak!

2012-01-22T20:08:00.000-08:00

Quilt top! Quilt top! In my spare

time, I whipped up this brand

spankin' new quilt top!! I cannot

wait to put the backing and

binding on it!! I have plans for

a cool design for machine

quilting it!!!

Happy Sunday!!

Action.

2012-01-21T20:46:00.001-08:00

Order of the day?!? Granite countertops!

The weather was FRIGID and the guys

kept the garage doors and house doors

open tonight as they were running

EVERYWHERE working on granite slabs

and plopping them in their spots!!

The granite turned out better than

I ever imagined . . . Each of them look great!

It seems like so long ago when we picked

them out! I am thrilled that they look

so be-a-u-tiful!!

I just had to "sneak" a sink in one of the

bathrooms for a quick peak . . .

This piece is for the cooktop . . .

Woot! Woot! for long kitchen counters!

The slabs will get back splashes, polished,

and sealed tomorrow . . .

As mentioned, the home stretch is looking

pretty.darn.great!

We Heart Faith.

2012-01-20T19:17:00.000-08:00

Oh, how we love, love, love Faith! She

is Dr. MacIntosh's oncology nurse. She

is funny, sweet, lovable, smart,

reassuring, kind, gentle, and most

of all encouraging. Faith calls just to

see how we are doing. Says just the

right thing at the right time. Takes ALL

of the time in the world for our office

visits. Calls back within moments of

leaving a message. Faith is a wonderful

nurse and truly has met her calling. We

are so thankful that Dr. Hummer found

Dr. MacIntosh and Faith. They are

wonderful doctors and we know that

we could not be in better hands. We

are already praying for our PET/CT Scan

that will take place on March 7. Until that

time we are working hard to build up to

the levels of chemotherapy treatment that

we need to be taking. Monthly blood levels

are wonderful . . . I love knowing what is

going on at all moments!! (Does that

surprise anyone!!)

The Home Stretch.

2012-01-19T21:04:00.001-08:00

After nearly a year of literally blood, sweat, and

tears, the house project is truly in the final

stages. We will be obtaining our Certificate

of Occupancy next week. After that there will

be a long pick-up list of items that must be

done, but it will be a huge relief to have the

C of O. During the next five days, the

elves must:

*finish the electrical

*install the countertops

*set the sinks

*put on a front door that is to code

*install a vent for the cooktop

*install the appliances

I am certain that it will be a photo

finish, but we are excited and

anticipating that the inspector will

be pleased as punch and issue the

necessary documents. There will

still be plenty to do over the next

several weeks, but we are excited

just the same!!!

Update on Dads.

2012-01-18T20:04:00.000-08:00

We are excited that our Dad has been

done with radiation for nearly two

weeks!!! We have had recent blood work

and have an appointment with our

oncologist on Friday morning to discuss

the results and to monitor the current

levels of the chemotherapy. Mike

looks great and is working hard to

build up to larger doses of chemotherapy.

It is great to have him home all of the

time and we are looking forward to

being settled and rejuvenated!! We

were scheduled to have a PET/CT

Scan this week, but it has been

rescheduled for the beginning of March.

After having radiation, the doctors

advised waiting at least two months

for the scan as they can read a "false

positive" due to the areas that were

radiated. If there is one thing that I

do not like, it is most definitely,

"false positives"!! We continue to pray

and thank the Lord that Mike is doing

so well and pray that the medications

will not make him as sick and tired in

the coming weeks. We are super positive

and thankful for our many, many blessings!!

My Two Helpers.

2012-01-17T17:23:00.001-08:00

Julio and Felipe are brothers! They have

been work, work, working on our house

and are the BESTEST workers EVER.

I love them and have grown super fond

of their work ethic and their commitment

to a looooooong project. We truly have

become friends! They laugh at my

jokes, teach me Spanish, and laugh

at my Spanglish. One of the highlights

of our house project is these two . . .

I am impressed and thankful that I have

had the chance to meet and work with

them!! I will miss them. The house

project, no so much!!

Gimme a "D".

2012-01-16T21:35:00.001-08:00

Reading takes place during eating, showering,

praying, laundry, driving and sleeping. I am busily

preparing my dissertation proposal. The

literature review portion of the proposal must

be at least a million pages long. Needless to say,

there aren't many spare moments. I am learning

much about those amazing transformational

leaders in turnaround schools. Goodness,

I guess that it why that call it a dissertation,

there is a TON of information to discern for

certain and I will be busy gathering my own

as soon as my proposal and Scientific Merit

Review form is accepted along with the

Institutional Review Board application.

When house building is done and my

dissertation is complete . . . What is a

girl to do with herself??

Happy Sunday!

2012-01-15T16:16:00.000-08:00

Chocolate chips are a HUGE part of

our family Sundays! You can always

tell when it is Sunday, the chocolate

chips, butter, flour, sugar, eggs and

all other yummy ingredients to make

chocolate chippers come out!! Sometimes

we just eat the dough right out of the

bowl and forget out baking the

cookies . . .

Happy.family.Sundays.

I.heart.them.

Latest Faves.

2012-01-14T21:46:00.001-08:00

With spring just around the corner, who wouldn't

love a pair of these babies?!?

Getting excited for "all things new house", I am

loving one of the latest Moda fabric collections

"Circa 1934". I so love retro fabrics and have

been waiting to see these in person. I RAN

into the fabric store with the car running to

take a peak at these today . . . Wouldn't this

fabric make a dreamy quilt for the great room?!?

Pioneer Woman cookbooks are my all time

favorite cookbooks . . . My family loves

everything that comes out of her amazing

cookbooks. She has a new one out and I

am excited that I have a birthday that is

just around the corner . . .

The Old Home Stretch.

2012-01-13T21:22:00.001-08:00

Yes indeedy, ladies and gentlemen, we

will indeed be ready for inspection

and obtain our Certificate of Occupancy

in the very near future. In fact, we are

praying that that monumental event

will happen sometime within the

very next week.

Punch List:

*hot water heaters

*water in the house

*kitchen island

*kitchen appliances installed

*exterior doors installed

*stair railing in place

After that, we will, of course

have a list a mile of long of other

must dos, but we are excited that

we are getting close to ending the

house project. I, for one, have

about a bazillion other things to do

and will be grateful when the house

is all done. Here is to an exciting

week to wrapping up a very

long and intense project!!!

My Survivor Man.

2012-01-12T18:37:00.000-08:00

Luke is bound and determined to develop

the best survivor skills EVER!! He spent

his CHRISTmas cash from Grandy on

survival books, gadgets, and necessities

for surviving in ANY situation. For the

past three days, he has immersed himself

in all of the literature on the subject and

can tell you how to survive in any situation

from a plane crash to being abandoned in the

wilderness. He has so much energy and

zest for knowledge, it is fun to watch him

and support his endeavors. He truly researches

and documents all that he is interested in.

As for now, we are in the Daniel Boone/Explorer

stage . . . It is great fun and one of the things that

I love the very most about my Luke.

Happy Hump Day!

2012-01-11T21:08:00.001-08:00

Holy Cow! Keep in mind, that moments before

delivering this baby, they hauled away a 40-yard

dumpster TWICE this size!!

Hump Day Tietjen Style included:

*filling the 20-yard dumpster, COMPLETELY!

*staining doors

*running to Home Depot FIVE times

*eating Nacho Cheese Doritos

*hauling metal roofing that had blown

down the gully clear across the street

*making Chicken Parmesan for dinner

*working on my dissertation

*cleaning kids' closets to try and

weed out some of our "stuff"

*eating "hot balls"

*homeschool fun

*cleaning the garage over at

the new house

*oogling at the new wall faucets

*laundry

*working on my dissertation

*snuggling with my peeps when it

was all OVER!!

Hump.Day.gotta.love.it.

Action.

2012-01-10T17:32:00.003-08:00

One of my main men was on deck to

help me with the staining project today!

We have sanded, sanded, stained, and

stained way more than ordinary folks

should have to in an entire lifetime.

Cabinet boxes are arriving . . .

I so love the color of the stain and

they compliment the floors so beautifully!

Ignore the tromped on floors, but adore

those be-a-utiful cabinet boxes.

I can hardly wait to see the doors and

drawers . . . Everyday is a surprise.

Yes, these are windowsills that have

been sanded and stained . . . Holy

Smoke!! What was I thinking when I

envisioned this "mountain style home"?!?

Morning Drive.

2012-01-09T18:50:00.000-08:00

One of my very favorite parts of my

early morning drive to the house

project is the view of the river all

the way up Fourth Street. The Truckee

River is so pretty and the trees change

with each season. It is fun to watch

floaters in the summer and ice

skate down the river in the winter.

There has not been any rain or

snow this winter and so the river

is low, which is a great thing for

inexperienced floaters such as our

crew. We are excited to make raft

trips down the river this summer.

There are some really pretty homes

along this river! Some of Sam's friends

live at this point of the river and float

their way down to the movie theaters

about five or six miles away. They put

their tubes outside of the theater and

float home after the flick.

Happy Sunday!

2012-01-08T21:24:00.000-08:00

Eeek! Remember when the house

project looked like this? Scary!

This week's goals:

1. Begin dissertation courses.

2. Back to homeschooling and

routine.

3. Look through new Pottery

Barn catalog.

4. Plumbing fixtures in house.

5. Appliances in house.

6. Finish cabinets.

7. Countertops.

8. Trash hauled away.

9. Baseboards caulked.

10. Electrical guys.

11. Sidewalks and front

porch poured.

12. Concrete stained.

13. Exterior doors put on . . .

14. Snuggle with crew.

15. Pray lots.

16. Read Bible more.

17. Contact dissertation mentor.

18. Mike's blood work.

19. Help Mike manage meds.

20. Smell the roses . . .

The list continues, but is slowly

becoming much more manageable!

Praying that you had a wonderful

family Sunday and are ready to

tackle the brand spankin' new week.

Tietjen Family Fun Night.

2012-01-07T18:06:00.001-08:00

Lock down . . . as the Tietjen boys refer

to it is "Tietjen Family Fun Night" in my

book. One weekend night each week, I plan

ahead a night for each family member to

stay home together.

Tonight was such a night . . . We ordered

Chinese and watched "Real Steel".

I love, love, love it when my crew is

all together. We truly have fun together

and consider it a blessing to slow down

for one night and enjoy each other's

company.

We found a new Chinese restaurant

just around the corner and were

excited to try it out . . .

. . . that is all of us except one family

member . . .

Ready.Set.Go.

2012-01-06T21:05:00.001-08:00

My pencils are sharpened. I have a

bazillion things to do, but I am excited

to officially begin the dissertation

process. Here is to nearly a year of

hard work and dedication to be completed

before CHRISTmas 2012 with a huge

big red bow on top.

My dissertation focuses on the

extraordinary qualities and traits

of turnaround school principals primarily

at the elementary school level. I am

interested to study this dynamic group

of leaders and excited to learn how they

work closely with families, educators,

and the community to transform a

failing school setting into a successful

learning community.

Action.

2012-01-05T06:32:00.001-08:00

Finishing touches, you say?!?

I do declare that we just may finish that

house on Mountain Spirit Court one

day in the very near future. The insulation

was blown into the attic today . . . Wow!

How I detest spending oodles of cash

on such nonsense as insulation . . .

Who can see it anyhow?!?

Columns done. Check. Stucco complete.

Check. Now the front porch and sidewalk

will be cut in and poured.

Cabinets or cupboards, as those of us

who are old school say, have began to

trickle in. These are by no means

finished . . . They still need to be sanded

and stained!!!

Yes indeedy, this home is now

receiving some of the very important

final touches. If this awesome weather

of 65* keeps up, the workers may form

a mutiny and head for Lake Tahoe to

catch some rays. (I cannot say that I

would blame them one little bit.)

New Work Table.

2012-01-04T15:55:00.001-08:00

Grandy had a vision and I was too excited

all night long to get the ball rolling. We

had several doors that we will not be

using!! This provided the perfect vehicle

for my brand new table to write my

dissertation.

It was a be-a-utiful 64* in Reno . . .

THE perfect day to create a brand

new table top!!

Preparing to begin my dissertation, I

am excited to create a motivating space.

My favorite Bible verse . . .

Love, love, love it!!!

I cannot wait to add the skirt boards

and legs . . . Away.we.go.

Dry Erase Board. Check!

2012-01-03T20:38:00.001-08:00

Every dissertation writer has a dry

erase board as the focal point of the

writing space. In order to conform to

tradition, I was lucky enough to score

one from Tim. Tomorrow marks the

day of the first conference call for my

two dissertation courses that begin

next week . . .

During the dissertation process, I am

excited to write many goals and

aspirations on my brand spankin' new

dry erase board. There are 16 milestones

that must be accomplished in order to

complete my dissertation.

My pencils are sharpened and I am

excited to get going!!

Tim Cooks Dinner.

2012-01-02T21:27:00.001-08:00

Tim has been watching these amazing

cooking videos.

Tonight he debuted his cooking skills

with rice pilaf, french bread, and roasted

garlic. It was so fun watching and helping

him cook.

He will be my savior in the kitchen

during the next couple of weeks

as I work diligently to put the

finishing touches on the house.

He will really have to amp it up

as I begin my dissertation next

week!!!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T17:09:00.000-08:00

With a great big hallelujah, I gladly welcome

2012! We are excited to embrace what the

Lord has in store for our little crew this year!

2011 was certainly a life-changing year

for our family! Personally, I have several

goals and aspirations for myself and

cannot wait to meet them head on!!

#1 Finish our home.

#2 Begin my dissertation courses

on January 9, 2012 with a December 2012

graduation.

#3 Take great care of my husband and

family both physically and emotionally.

#4 Reach out to others in our new

neighborhood and cultivate new

friendships.

#5 WORRY much LESS and PRAY

much HARDER.

#6 Be the kind of daughter,

granddaughter, wife, and mother that

Jesus would desire.

#7 Take more time to smell the

roses!!!

2012. Bring.it.

Happy, Happy 2012!

2011-12-31T18:30:00.001-08:00

We celebrated New Year's Eve in total

Tietjen style beginning with chocolate.

Tim gave me Martha's latest cookie

cookbook for CHRISTmas and I am

bound and determined to bake each

and every one, sampling many as I go along.

We also celebrated by having yummy

Mexican food and hugging our worn-out

Dad. We are so grateful that we are able

to be there to support him and

thankful for our little family and the

contributions that each brings to our

crew!!!

After our little celebration, each

of the boys had plans of their own

and were delivered or made their

way to their festivities. Truly,

I am thankful that they have made

friends and are happy campers.

Ringing in 2012 just couldn't have been

celebrated better.

MRSA.

2011-12-30T20:16:00.000-08:00

Holy.Smoke! Mike's immune system has been

compromised with the chemotherapy and

radiation treatments . . . Hence, we had a bout

with MRSA. Goodness! Praise the Lord that

we were able to go to the oncologist's office

who quickly communicated with an infectious

disease specialist who immediately sent us to the

hospital. The oncologist's office took STAT

blood work and gave us the results to take

to the hospital.

The oncologists office called the hospital and told

them that we were on our way. When we arrived

the docs were prepared and gladly gave Mike two

HUGE antibiotic shots and sent us home to rest

with a ton of oral antibiotics. Let me tell you,

if there is one thing that docs do not want in the

hospital, it is patients with MRSA. They are only

too glad to treat you FASTER than IMMEDIATELY

and send you packin'. We have to watch this

beast closely to avoid being admitted. We are

so glad that our dad is home, home, home

and we can rest and play together.

PRAISES:

*We are DONE with radiation treatments.

*We are all cuddling and cozy at home

*Mike has long-term disability.

*Mike has lost a grand total of 58 pounds.

(Not that this is a fun way to lose weight,

but he looks great!!!)

Action.

2011-12-29T18:58:00.000-08:00

Yes indeedy, there is action at the Mountain Spirit

Court project. Although the guys have been

tromping on the newly finished hickory floors,

they do look amazing. The knotty alder baseboards

are being laid up, down, and all around.

Love.these.floors.

Each of these stairs were handmade

out of hickory lumber . . .

. . . gotta love 'em.

Stone on the columns, you ask?!? Walah!!!

Beautimous!!!

This home is most definitely taking on the

much anticipated mountain cabin style that

we envisioned.

In order to accomplish such a feat, TONS and TONS

of trash is generated.

I filled up this baby by myself . . . Holy Smoke!!!

The final grade has been established and tractors

are ripping back and forth in order to ensure

that everything drains away from the house.

Stone to match the back columns . . . This will

be on the front columns in the shake of a lambs

tail. These guys are blazing fast, especially when

they turn on their Spanish vibes with their truck

doors open.

The final push is in the full swing . . .

Stuck on CHRISTmas.

2011-12-28T21:10:00.001-08:00

I am still stuck on thinking about how wonderful

our CHRISTmas celebration was. The boys had

so much fun giving each other a bazillion ties.

Tim and Sam are the go-to experts for fashion

in our house! It was a blast to watch them

exchange gifts this year.

CHRISTmas seems like a million years ago as

we have been consumed with Mike's treatment

and getting the house done. We are praying that

we will be reaching the finish line on the house

super soon and are excited to move on to

other ventures.

We have taken down are tree and have

officially closed the books on CHRISTmas

2011, I am excited to have many memories

of a wonderful time together! I am grateful

for friends and family and for the support

that they provide to our family, THAT is

THE greatest gift of all.

This is the Stuff . . .

2011-12-27T21:42:00.000-08:00

We are on the countdown of

our final FOUR days of radiation

treatments and we can hardly

wait for it to be over, over, over!!!

We are so praying that once these

treatments are over, the chemotherapy

will not be so difficult to endure

by itself. Thinking about this and

many other goings on, I so love

the song that Francesca Battistelli

sings, "This is the Stuff".

This is the stuff that drives me crazy

This is the stuff that's getting to lately

In the middle of my little mess

I forget how big I'm blessed

This is the stuff that gets under my skin

But I gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing

It might not be what I would choose

But this is the stuff You use

45 in a 35

Sirens and fines while I running behind

This is the stuff that drives me crazy

This is the stuff that's getting to me lately

In the middle of my little mess

I forget how big I'm blessed

This is the stuff that gets under my skin

But I gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing

It might not be what I would choose

But this is the stuff You use

So break me of my impatience

Conquer my frustrations

I've got a new appreciation

It's not the end of the world

This is the stuff that drives me crazy

This is the stuff

Someone save me

In the middle of my little mess

I forget How big I'm blessed

This is the stuff that gets under my skin

And I've gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing

It might not be what I would choose

But this is the stuff You use

THIS IS THE STUFF YOU USE!!

Favorite Peeps.

2011-12-26T18:55:00.000-08:00

CHRISTmas means celebrating with

your people and how I love, love, love

my peeps! It was so great to see Grandy

and Bobby!! We are grateful that they

were able to come to be with us for

Jesus' and Tim's birthday celebrations.

We are one blessed crew to have

such awesome people in our lives.

I sure do not like the fact that miles

separate us, but am thankful that

we talk a bazillion times a day and

get together as often as we do.

It is always a great time when we

are together and we pick up right

where we left off!!

Missing you already!!!

Happy 25th Birthday Tim!!

2011-12-25T23:14:00.000-08:00

Happy, Happy Birthday to one of my

very favorite people on this planet!!

Our Tim turned the big 2-5 on the 25th

and we simply cannot believe it!?! Could

someone please tell me where in the

world these 25 years have gone?!?

We are so grateful for Tim and thankful

that he was able to celebrate his

birthday with US this year, as he has

been out of the country for the

past two years working on cruise

ships!! It was so much fun to celebrate

CHRISTmas and his birthday with him!!

Tim adds so much to our family! He

certainly keeps us on our toes and

truly wants the best for each of us. There

is NEVER a dull moment when he is

here and we are thankful that we are

lucky enough to be his family.

It was grrrrreat having such a fun

crowd to celebrate the big occasion with!

We are one blessed bunch and thankful

that we were able to celebrate yet

another milestone in our special

Tim's life.

Congrats, Tim and happy, happy

birthday! Here's to another

wonderful year for a very, very

special person!!!

Merry, Merry CHRISTmas!

2011-12-24T21:49:00.001-08:00

Merry, Merry CHRISTmas!!

Luke decided that he was going to open

presents from the BIGGEST to the smallest

this year!! He has only been planning this

since July!!!

. . . cool Ray Bans . . . I can hardly wait for

it to get light out tomorrow morning!!!

Ties, ties, and more ties!! The boys have

been excited about ties, blazers, and

dress shirts this year!!!

Grampa had so much fun opening

his CHRISTmas gifts . . . a 2 pound

box of See's candy is one of his standard

and treasured gifts!!!

. . . I think that the boys "hit the nail on

the head" with this find!!! Grampa is always

coooold and the boys were excited to give him

this hat for him to wear up to the house and

when he rides in the golf cart!!!

Bobby opens one of his treasures . . .

Shoes, shoes, shoes!! Sam's little piggies

will not be wanting for them as he

received golf shoes, dress shoes, and

sneakers!!!

Yep!! Zach was the lucky recipient of

a hat like Grampa's!!

The boys were so excited to give Mike

their handpicked gifts this year . . . They

were bursting at the seams the past

couple of days just waiting to give him

the gifts that they had chosen for him.

Oh, yeah!! Tim knew JUST the right

gift for our resident photog!!

My sweet Tim always adds so much fun

and joy to the festivities!!!

New Toms for Mom!!

Mr. CHRISTmas himself.

Kindle Fires were "the" gift this year.

Grandy is excited for the boys to hook

her up with her new Kindle Fire.

Since popcorn is my main staple . . . Everyone

knew that this would be a hit!!!

Much more than presents and wrapping

paper, I am so thankful for the gift of

salvation and for the many, many blessings

that I have in my little family. I am so grateful

that we are close to Grampa, Grandy, and Bobby

and thankful that they are such a wonderful

support for our family. I truly thankful for

my husband and boys and so blessed that

they love me unconditionally, when NOONE

else would. I love, love, love this time of

year and the reminders of just how blessed

I truly am to have such a wonderful family

and crew!!!

Merry.Merry.CHRISTmas!

'Twas the Night Before Christmas . . .

2011-12-23T20:54:00.001-08:00

CHRISTmas Sugar Cooking Baking Night

is one of our most favoritist nights of

the year, regardless if I had spent the

entire day loading the dumpster with

metal roofing and rubbish and

staining 200 baseboards . . .

We were excited to engage in yet another

fun night of CHRISTmas activities!!!

Luke thought that the "yellow" food

coloring looked like "red" . . .

Baking CHRISTmas cookies with my

favorite peeps just has to be one of

my favorite activities!!! It does not

matter how old these guys get, they

are amazingly fun to be around . . .

and obligue me in all of my CHRISTmas

endeavors, even if they have been

CHRISTmased to death!!!

I love, love, love my family and feel

so blessed to have them . . .

You guessed, it! We are off to

watch "It's A Wonderful Life" . . .

and YES, it is truly a wonderful

life!!!

CHRISTmas blessings!!!

Radiation Exhaustion.

2011-12-22T21:42:00.000-08:00

Holy Smoke!! Radiation and chemotherapy

certainly kick the spunk out of someone.

Our Dad has been sleeping, sleeping,

sleeping and still exhausted beyond

belief. We are so praying that when our

radiation treatments are over that he

will be able to have a wee bit more energy.

We are thankful that we have the BEST

doctors and are receiving the BEST

treatment options available. Our family

was truly unprepared for the toll that

these treatments have on a person.

We are so excited that Grandy and

Bobby are coming to celebrate

CHRISTmas with us!! We are praying

that our Dad will be able to keep his

peepers open for at least some of the

festivities.

We are grateful for modern medicine

and truly thankful that we have been

able to have the best treatments

available. It is just a wee bit difficult

to watch someone you love so

dearly endure such harsh treatments.

Wood . . .

2011-12-21T20:37:00.000-08:00

The hickory staircase for our new

house was handmade and turned

out absolutely b.e.a.u.t.i.f.u.l.

The process to make the steps took

FOUR WEEKS!!!! Here they are in their

little "drying room", ready to be installed

in just a few short days.

Alder baseboards . . .

Sam, Luke, and I put the first coat of

sealer on all TWO HUNDRED of them

last weekend.

1,975 linear feet ready to be

installed within the next

two weeks!!!

Action.

2011-12-20T23:23:00.001-08:00

2485 Mountain Spirit Court was most

definitely the place to be to see

ACTION today . . .

Home Depot was busy delivering insulation

which they will be installing within the

next couple of days!!

Concrete trucks where bustling up

and down the street delivering concrete

for our new drive way.

The guys where in the boom truck

busily finishing up the metal roof!

Guys where getting ready to install

the stone on the fireplace . . . Don'tcha

just love, love, love that mantel!!!

Guys worked EIGHT hours on

our new driveway!

I love, love, love progress . . .

Monday Madness.

2011-12-19T22:07:00.001-08:00

Whew! Today was certainly a Monday in

my neck of the woods, I:

*babysat the house project

*worked on medical bills

*crossed off more of Santa's list

*successfully changed Mike's nausea

medicine to something that prayerfully

WORKS

*went to Wal-Mart THREE times

*laundry, laundry, laundry

*ordered and received a

boomtruck for work on the house

*helped guys design mantel for

house

*made yummy dinner

*managed to eat dinner with

our family and sit down to

discuss our day

*watched "Home Alone 1"

(It just wouldn't be CHRISTmas

around here without it . . .)

*snuggled with husband and boys

*took Tylenol for a pounding headache

*crawled up the stairs

*excited to cozy up with dreams

of sugar plums . . .

CHRISTmas Light Night.

2011-12-18T19:29:00.001-08:00

Tonight was our annual "Pile into the

car CHRISTmas light night"!! Hidden Valley

Country Club, an older part of town with

beautiful homes and trees always has

amazing lights.

Gramps, the kids, and I loaded into the

truck in pursuit of CHRISTmas lights.

We were not disappointed by all of the

work on the part of the homeowners of

these amazing homes!

We missed our Dad! He was too sick

from treatments to come on the ride

this year . . . We will show them next year!!!

I love, love, love CHRISTmas lights and

this is definitely one of my very favorite

nights of our holiday season.

Some of the homeowners must spend

weeks preparing their homes for the

amazing display of lights and music.

Be-a-uuuutiful!!

Some of the homes were awarded prizes

from their Homeowner's Association.

. . . I am already so excited for next

year's "CHRISTmas Light Night"!!!

Favorite Ornaments.

2011-12-17T21:06:00.001-08:00

Our most favorite ornament is the FIRST

one that Mike and I purchased the first

year that we were married . . . 1984! All of

the boys love this ornament and cherish it

as one of their faves when we are decorating

our CHRISTmas tree.

Zach made this angel when he was five!!

This beauty boasts a ton of conversation

every single year also. I still picture

him when he gave me this ornament

that he made in Sunday School. Could

someone please tell me where in the

world those seventeen years went?!?

Snowmen and jingle bells . . . How could

you go wrong?

The boys so love that Tim made this

when he was four years old . . .

We love big glittery CHRISTmas balls

too. Let's face it, we love ALL things

CHRISTmas and are getting so excited

for the countdown. Luke can hardly stand

it and is anxiously awaiting the BIG day.

We are so excited for GRANDY and BOBBY

to arrive on CHRISTmas Eve and for the

festivities to begin.

Our New Best Friend.

2011-12-16T07:22:00.000-08:00

Yes indeedy, COMPAZINE is our

new very bestest friend!! These

little babies REALLY help with the

icky nausea feelings that occur during

chemotherapy. We are thrilled, thrilled,

thrilled that these have helped our Dad

with those crummy feelings. He still has

such symptoms, but thanks to Compazine,

those side effects have diminished greatly.

One of the side effects of Compazine is

drowsiness. Well, he already has that

one in a BIG way, but at least he doesn't

feel quite so "crappy". We are loving it that

we can cozy up with our Dad and love him

when he is laying down or sitting on the

couch. We are thankful for this medicine

and have been praying for such little

miracles along this journey.

. . . hopefully, our Dad will be

back to activities like this . . .

Wrappin'.

2011-12-15T21:01:00.001-08:00

Tim melts my heart! Last night he asked me

if I would help him wrap a few of his

amazing CHRISTmas gifts that he had

purchased for others in our family. As a

lover of wrapping, I was only to excited

to be his assistant. I did not realize all

of the fun that he and I would have tucked

away all by ourselves for a couple of hours.

It seems as though there is always so much

going on! Tim and I are busy and truly

pass in the night many times. I must say

that I really had a great time with him

as we laughed and talked about many

things during our little wrapping session.

This also made me realize what a great

young man Tim has grown to be. I am so proud

of his goals, dreams, and aspirations and

get goosebumps listening to him discuss

his future plans. I am so thrilled that he

is home earning his master's and that we

have this opportunity as a family. Time

passes much to quickly and I am so

thankful that we have him home again

at this special time in all of our lives.

Happy, Happiest Birthday!

2011-12-14T06:18:00.001-08:00

Happy, happy, happy birthday to

one of my most favoritist people in

on the entire planet!!

My mom is p.e.r.f.e.c.t.

I am so grateful and thankful for her!

She is a wonderful person! We are all

so excited that today is her very special

day and excited for a wonderful

birthday celebration when she and Bobby

are here for CHRISTmas!! (It is always

so much better to celebrate in person!!)

There are so many, many reasons that

we love, love, love this special lady

so, so much!!

Have fun celebrating! You SO deserve it!

Stayin' Strong!!

2011-12-13T18:32:00.001-08:00

That's our Dad for sure!

Even though he is facing some

difficult times in this battle, he

is uplifted by:

*cinnamon hard candy

*notes from friends and family

*calls from those who are concerned

*snuggling on the couch with family

*7-Up

*hugs!

*days counted down until radiation

is over, over, over

*laughing and loud house full

of active boys

We are sure getting excited for

Grandy and Bobby's visit for

CHRISTmas and looking forward

to fun family times!! We are so

excited to see what God does in this

situation and cannot wait to

share the good news with others!!

I Passed.

2011-12-12T06:45:00.001-08:00

Yip, yip, yipeeee!! My professor informed me

that I passed my comprehensive examinations!!

That is a great CHRISTmas present. Now it

is onward and upward as I begin the

dissertation phase of my doctoral program

beginning January 16, 2012. It is going to

be a busy year working to complete my

dissertation. I am so thankful to the Lord

and my family for all of their support

during this laborious process and for

their love and patience as we anxiously

awaited the results!!

Doctoral students in this phase of

their program are now termed:

ABD, which means "All But

Dissertation".

Pretty Paper . . .

2011-12-11T00:39:00.001-08:00

Celebrating CHRISTmas certainly has

been fun this year. The boys have

spearheaded much of the gift-giving and

are excited about the treasures that

they have been collecting. Traditionally,

I keep all of the gifts stockpiled in my

room until they are all wrapped, labeled,

and adorned with bows. This year,

the boys have been so excited that they

have been wrapping presents . . .

beautifully, might I add and putting

them under the tree as they wrap them.

I have been doing the same thing

and it really is fun to watch the tree

blossom with gifts and listen to the

boys' excitement as they add gifts

for others and gifts appear for them.

New traditions. I love 'em!

Saturday, December 10, 2011 Nutcracker

2011-12-11T00:35:00.001-08:00

Tonight the boys and all mean all the boys,

Mike included, bit the bullet and watched

"The Nutcracker" with me. They know

how much I love it and they were willing

to endure it as part of our CHRISTmas

festivities for the evening. "The

Nutcracker" is one of my very favorite

rituals of the season and I usually

watch it by myself. It sure was fun

to pop popcorn and watch it with my

boys.

Christmas Fun With My Boys!

2011-12-09T20:55:00.001-08:00

One of my most favorite nights of the

year . . . CHRISTmas shopping with

all four of my boys. Truly, we have not

really done much at night for months

as we are usually tucked away with Mike

as he does not feel up to hitting the

streets much these days.

Tonight was an exception, however, as

the boys as I ventured out to the mall,

Best Buy, DSW, and Target. Woot! Woot!

What night doesn't start out great with

cheesecake?!?

Oh, yeah!! We bought Cinnabons for

our CHRISTmas movie night after

shopping.

Who doesn't love, love, love Target

for CHRISTmas wrapping supplies . . .

. . . and CHRISTmas vibes?

Let me tell you how very blessed

I feel that I have this crew!! They

are amazing, wonderful and

all.mine.!! Lucky, lucky me.

Busy, Busy, Busy.

2011-12-08T18:48:00.000-08:00

I have NEVER seen someone as busy

as Luke! He can occupy himself for

hours and hours and hours. He is always

concocting a plan and spends hours

dreaming up stuff to build and make.

The scrap pile of lumber at the

house was just killing him . . .

A fort was the order for the day.

Luke spent tons of time and had

lots of fun building his fort out

of all of the possible building materials

a twelve-year-old boy could dream of.

I so love, love, love how creative

Luke is! He is determined to become

an engineer . . . I can see it already.

Jazzy.

2011-12-07T21:48:00.001-08:00

Tonight we attended Tim's Jazz Ensemble

Concert. We had so much fun watching him

play. It was great to see and hear many

of the guys play that we have known since

Tim started going to UNR.

More than that, however, I could not

stop staring at my oldest boy, watching

in amazement how he has grown up

so quickly right before my very eyes.

Tim always keeps my on my toes and

is my inspiration for many things in

this life. He always pushes me to do

better and is the wind beneath my wings.

He never doubts that I can accomplish

my dreams and goals. Tim is like a

whirlwind!! The rest of our family

watches as he accomplishes so much in

such a short amount of time.

Tim is opinionated, caring, and trusting

all rolled into one fun ball of energy.

He makes us laugh all of the time . . .

belly laugh . . . out loud. He can be

frustrating, yet truly compassionate

at the same time. We love our Tim

so, so much and it is great to have

him here!! We are so proud of him

and are grateful that he is accomplishing

all that he has set out to do.

Jazz.concerts.I.love.'em.

Waiting . . .

2011-12-06T21:07:00.000-08:00

Waiting and patience: Two of

my strong suits!!! My comp

exams were due last Friday and

I turned them in on Thursday

evening. I am on pins and needles

waiting for the results of my exams!!

"They" say that no one passes them

the first time. If that is the case, when

the are returned, I will have one week

to rewrite what is was not acceptable.

I am praying that the results come

by the end of this week . . .

The Elves.

2011-12-05T20:09:00.001-08:00

Our boys are having THE most fun

this year picking out special trinkets

and gifts for our family. It has been

so fun to watch them choose just the

"perfect" gift that will individually

suit each and every person. They are

finding perfect little tokens for each

other and are so excited about it!!

I always love little children at CHRISTmas,

but am beginning to see just how

much fun older kids can be at this

time of year. I am so thankful that

they love each other so much and want

to please each other with a fun

little gift for CHRISTmas!!!

Heatin' Up . . .

2011-12-04T21:29:00.000-08:00

It's true . . . The gas lines are

in and the meter is going to be

set this week. The furnaces have

arrived and the little mechanical

elves are going to be running

around our house hooking up the

vents and thermostats. We are

getting really excited about the

heat . . . Sometimes it is colder

inside our house than outside.

Brrrrrr.

Halls are Decked.

2011-12-03T06:53:00.001-08:00

Jingle bells and lights and snowmen!

Oh, my!

We had a good old fashioned

CHRISTmas tree decorating

party last night!! It is so fun to

get out all of the old ornaments

that the boys have made over the

years. Luke loves the first ornament

that Mike and I bought in 1984 when

we were first married . . . He thinks that

it is an antique!!!

Stockings awaiting Santa's arrival and

Bobby and Grandy on December 24.

Love, love, love my CHRISTmas banner

that I made last season. Yep, our

rental home now looks cozy and

CHRISTmasy!!! The countdown

now begins!!!

Today's Action.

2011-12-02T21:49:00.001-08:00

The weather was lovely today while

we were working on the house project.

The guys were leveling the ground

for the concrete to the patio.

The corrugated metal is now in place.

I spent my day working on the top part

of these columns with a wire brush

attached to a drill motor to raise the

woodgrain and then I began staining them.

Stone will go on the bottom of the columns.

Treatment Update.

2011-12-01T22:19:00.000-08:00

Mike is certainly one of THE strongest

and kindest people that I know. It is

so very difficult to watch him suffer

through treatment. Chemotherapy is

VERY difficult and combined with

radiation, it is a double whammy. Mike

takes chemo each and everyday and is

not yet up to the doses that he will need

to be. He also goes to radiation each day

and will continue to do so for four more

weeks. He is weak and tired

combined with nausea and upset

stomach. Mike tries hard to keep much

of this to himself, so that the boys will

not worry, but it is difficult to watch

him suffer through these treatments as

he has always been such a strong man

and hard worker. We are excited to see

what God does through all of this and

are glad that we have the love and

support of our wonderful friends

and family. It is great that so many keep

in touch with him during the day and I

know that this helps distract him quite

a bit. We are thankful that we have such

a wonderful support system, modern

medicine, and wonderful doctors.

Let the Sanding Begin . . .

2011-11-30T18:29:00.000-08:00

Craig's List . . . gotta love it!! I found

this baby for practically *free*! I am so

excited about my new farm table.

We took the seats out and I am

on the hunt for awesome fabric

to recover the seat cushions.

Just look at these cool drawers . . .

and the hand painting.

Can you visualize this awesome

refinished table in my new

office/sewing room/school room?!?

We are going to find the perfect stain

to match the green that then add a

glaze and seal it . . .

Projects, I love 'em.

Action.

2011-11-29T19:39:00.002-08:00

While my Luke studies hard, hard, hard

at the construction site . . .

The guys took advantage of the good

weather and began the laborious

process of putting up the corrugated

metal in the "white spots" today!!!

It was almost hot out as we

watched the guys work today!!

We know that we are preparing

for some colder weather at the

end of the week, so we took full

advantage of the gorgeous weather.

Luke and I are taking advantage of

learning Spanish during the day

and letting it soak in during the night!

. . . can't wait to show the final results . . .

Thinkin'.

2011-11-28T18:42:00.001-08:00

Wow! I have been doing waaaaay too much of

this lately. I am putting the finishing touches

on my comprehensive examinations in order

to turn them in bright and early Thursday

morning. I am soooo excited that they

are done and cannot believe that my next

step will be to begin my dissertation in

January!! Pretty.exciting.

Happy Sunday!

2011-11-27T19:22:00.001-08:00

We are putting the finishing touches on

our leftovers and remembering our fun

family weekend. The boys are already

thinking about all that they must accomplish

during the last 2 1/2 weeks of school before

CHRISTmas break!! Mike and I are ready

to get the ball rolling again at the house

tomorrow morning after everyone had

the looong weekend off!!

Hope that your end of the weekend

Sunday was great!!

Bestest Mom.

2011-11-26T22:29:00.001-08:00

It is a fact, I have the very best

Mom on the entire planet. We

share everything and are the

bestest of friends. I am so grateful

that she is my Mom. We had a

wonderful girl's holiday weekend that

included staying at the Red Rock Hotel,

laughing, eating, shopping, movies, and

staying up talking into the wee hours.

I miss, miss, miss her already and

cannot wait until she and Bobby come

for CHRISTmas!! We are especially

excited to have them move to

Reno for good! We cannot wait!!!

I don't know how I was so

blessed when God came to handing

out moms, but He certainly gave

me the best.

Thanks Mom for a fun-filled

weekend and for all of the

wonderful times and memories

that we have shared!!

I.love.you.

Buckle Up.

2011-11-25T21:22:00.001-08:00

Black Friday is most definitely one

of my most favorite days of the year!

Black Friday, in our book, is the day

that the girls hit the streets for the

deals and steals. Traditionally, my

mom and I have always spent this

"holiday" together . . . and today was

no exception. I flew into Las Vegas

early this afternoon and we hit the

Fashion Show Mall looking for

deals. I was in desperate need of

new jeans and BUCKLE is the place

for jeans!!!

After purchasing some awesome

un-Mom jeans, we were excited

to return to the Red Rock Hotel

and go to Cabo with Diane,

Joyce, and Cathy! Talk about fun!

I love those ladies dearly and feel

blessed to have them as dear friends.

Happy Black Friday . . . we will still

be celebrating tomorrow with

Black Saturday!!!

Happy, Happy Thanksgiving.

2011-11-24T23:29:00.000-08:00

We started, middled, and ended our

day with yumminess all the way around!

To begin we made the most delicious

loaf of homemade cinnamon raisin

bread EVER!!! I love my family and

am so grateful that they are such

wonderful and willing helpers!

We had a family over for THANKSgiving

today and my crew worked all

morning and afternoon to help

me make certain that everything

was just.so. And it was, our THANKSgiving

meal was wonderful, the company was

great, and our family evening afterwards

of THREE movies was so, so, so much

fun!!! I am so THANKful for them and

GRATEful that they are mine.mine.mine.

Happiest THANKSgiving!!

Preparations Begin . . .

2011-11-23T21:09:00.000-08:00

Oh, yeah! Today just happens to be

one of my most "favoritist" days of

the ENTIRE year . . . I love, love, love

the day before THANKSgiving!! My crew

and I had so much fun getting our

preparations under way . . . we

chopped, diced, pureed, baked, and

laughed all the while!! It is really

fun having all of the guys in the

kitchen!! They are the awesomest!!!

Things we are excited for

during the THANKSgiving holiday:

*School break!

*No radiation!!!!

*No doctor's appointments!!

*Housebuilding resumes on

Friday!!

*Black Friday and fun Saturday

in Las Vegas with Grandy!!!

*Fun movies on the couch

with our quilts and pillows!

*Watching the Wizard of Oz

after our THANKSgiving dinner!

*Homemade whipped cream!

*Leftovers!

Yep! We are one blessed family and

are so excited to celebrate together!!

The Rock.

2011-11-22T18:38:00.001-08:00

It's heeeeere . . .

Our be-a-u-tiful natural stone for our

columns, fireplaces, and hearth.

Our new hearth . . .

Quartz for our columns . . .

This natural stone will be transformed

onto our fireplace . . .

Our crew is getting so, so excited!!

We cannot wait until we get to

call 2485 Mountain Spirit Court

h-o-m-e!!!

This Week's Blessings!

2011-11-21T19:17:00.000-08:00

Tons of blessings . . .

*Happy boys!

*More progress on our home!

*Snow on the mountains.

*Thinking about pecan rolls.

*Making pecan rolls.

*Boys loving life.

*Mike being home!

*Putting the finishing touches

on my comprehensive exams!

*Grampa doing great!

*Mom tons better!

*Kids loving school and

putting the finishing touches

on the last of their projects

for the semester.

*Cold weather, dark early!

*Boxes, boxes, boxes . . .

means moving, moving, moving!

*Late nights with Lucy!

Happy Sunday!

2011-11-20T21:59:00.001-08:00

It is definitely fall here in Reno! Celebrating

Sunday we had a great cozy family day!

I spent much of it proofreading my

comps that must be submitted by

December 2. Mike and Tim watched

football. Sam gave us a slide show of

his photography. Luke worked on

Legos. Zach was busy on schoolwork.

Grampa likes to watch his sports and

the kids made his day by whipping

him up one of his favorite sandwiches

topped with a big slice of onion.

One of my new favorite things to

do is bring huge pillows and a

puffy sleeping bag down to the

couch to be cozy with my peeps!

It was a great Sunday . . . my very

favorite kind.

These kind of days help us to

prepare for the busy, busy

week ahead.

Cozy Sundays . . . I love 'em.

Turkey Talk.

2011-11-19T19:26:00.001-08:00

With SO much going on lately, we

had our annual "Turkey Talk"

today!! Everyone chimes in as to

their must-have at the Thanksgiving

table. Here are some of our go-to

Turkey Day items:

*pecan rolls - an overwhelming

family favorite. The tradition of

baking these rolls was lovingly started

by our Gram many, many years ago.

They are made from scratch upside

down in muffin tins in yummy

gooeyness of pecans, brown sugar,

and butter.

*turkey vs. ham - Sam is a "ham" man.

Mike and Tim are definitely turkey

lovers. Zach and Luke could go

either way. Grampa loves the dark meat.

Last year I tried a tofukey . . .

will not be repeating that little

experiment this year.

*mashed potatoes - a favorite of the

ENTIRE crew, with the exception of

my youngest . . . he has never liked

anything potato related and has

tried over and over and over again.

*mashed sweet potatoes - Grampa's

must have for our feast.

*cranberries - my favorite! Why?!?

*side dishes - always tossed around.

This year we are thinking homemade

mac and cheese.

*desserts - Sam is gunning for

cheesecake. Mike is dying for a

pumpkin pie with homemade

whipped cream. Luke, Zach, and

I could go for some yummy apple

pie related dish. Grampa is a

die-hard pumpkin pie fan. He

likes mincemeat also and I could

lean that way too.

While visions of way too much food

dance in my head, Sam, my practical

advisor says that this year we should

hit the streets for Thanksgiving and

cook in our new house next year!?!

Update.

2011-11-18T22:02:00.001-08:00

Our Dad continues to get stronger

every single day. We are so grateful

that he has such excellent doctors

and nurses who are taking great care

of him. Both the Mayo Clinic and

the University of Michigan keep in

touch to check on his progress.

*Radiation treatments began this

week and Mike is tolerating them

well.

*We are still on the light doses

of Mitotane, a chemotherapy

drug prescribed for adrenal gland

cancer patients.

*Another blessing: Our radiation

oncologist located a wonderful

medical oncologist here in

Reno. There are not very many

doctors in the entire United

States that have experience

with adrenal gland cancer

and the treatments. This doctor

is amazing and willing to work

closely with the University of

Michigan doctors to coordinate

Mike's treatment.

*We are so grateful and thankful

for all of our many, many blessings

and grateful that we have such

wonderful professionals working

to make certain that Mike is

getting the best possible treatment!

Field Trip.

2011-11-17T20:00:00.001-08:00

Carson City was our destination today . . .

Luke and I hit the streets in search of

stone for our new house!!!

Love, love, love this be-a-uuutiful

natural quartz . . . This is going to go

on the outside of our home on our

house and on our columns!!

I seriously WOULD NOT make it without

my partner!! Luke helps me do EVERYTHING!!!

I was thankful for his help today as we

were slepping it all over the stone yard

looking for just the perfect stone!!

Bingo!! We found the pieces for our

hearth!!!

Yes!! Today was a success and indeed

worth the cold windy trip to

Carson City!!

**Day 1 of radiation treatments for

my Mike today!! We are going to

the medical oncologist here in Reno

next week and the surgeon the

end of the month to determine

exactly when they will be taking

out 3/4 of his pancreas. We also

learned some interesting news today!

Mike has a RARE inherited condition:

Lynch Syndrome. It is a hereditary

syndrome that is linked to cancer!

He is positive and doing great!

His chemo treatments will begin

to increase slowly over the next

several weeks!

Hearty Breakfast.

2011-11-16T09:18:00.001-08:00

My Zach is quite the little breakfast cook!

He loves to get up in the morning and

make a HUGE breakfast. While I do

not ascribe to this theory myself, it sure

does put a smile on his face for the

rest of the day. One of Zach's favorite

meals to cook is biscuits and gravy. Just

looking at all of that food is enough to

well . . . Anyhow, my guy loves, loves, loves

this breakfast and shares this in common

with his Dad. Zach even likes to make

the biscuits from scratch!!!

Here's a shout out for good ole fashioned

homemade hearty breakfasts!!

Tatoos!?!

2011-11-15T08:49:00.003-08:00

Woohoo! Mike got tatooed?!? Yep, it is

true!! This morning Mike reported to

Dr. Hummer, our radiation oncologist's

office bright and early for his TATOOS!

These are the markings that the radiologist

will use to make certain to line him up

correctly during his seven weeks of

radiation on the adrenal gland cancer

surgery bed. The surgery bed is the

site where the cancer actually occurred

and this will be the focus of the radiation.

Mike swears that he will never get "real"

tatoos! He said that the needles really

did hurt! After all of the poking and

prodding he has had over the last couple

of months, it really must hurt! I was

thinking that me might come home with

a heart, a cross, or an eagle . . .

Big, Big Congratulations!

2011-11-14T22:02:00.000-08:00

A big, big congratulations to one

of our very most favorite people!

Our family is so excited that

Sarah married the man of her

dreams this weekend.

Sam was able to attend the wedding

and was the photographer.

I had almost hourly reports from

everyone who attended the

wedding and they said that it

was THE best wedding celebration

EVER.

A big congratulations from us

and tons of blessings!!!

We are so excited for Sarah

and Dave!!

Two Down.

2011-11-13T20:34:00.000-08:00

Seriously! I have been staring at all of this

way to long; but the good news is that

TWO of my THREE comprehensive exam

questions are done, finished, complete!

I plan to have question three done by

Friday and then let them all "rest" for

a few days while I prepare our

THANKSgiving feast. After our big

holiday, I will pull up all of my work,

proofread and edit it for final submittal

on December 2.

We.are.getting.there!

We've Got Spark!

2011-11-12T20:48:00.001-08:00

Pretty darn exciting . . . We can now

turn on the lights in our new home!!!

I have been waiting and waiting to hang

up our exciting new lights in our new

FARM KITCHEN!!!!

. . . catch the drift!?!

I cannot wait to unveil these fun lights!!

They have been waiting in the box

for months!!!

The laying of the hickory wood

floors is moving speedily along!!!

Keep in mind that they still

need to be sanded THREE times

and then two cotas of sealer!!!

We love, love, love them and

cannot wait on more moment!!!

10 Little Secrets . . .

2011-11-11T19:47:00.001-08:00

10 things that I betcha don't know about me:

1. I eat TONS of tootsie pops in bed and

throw the wrappers all around. One morning

Luke found two tootsie pop sticks glued to

the back of my pajamas.

2. I heart Bag Balm.

3. I can digest a HUGE bottle of Tabasco

sauce within a month.

4. Eggbeaters are my favorite meal.

5. I have written with the same pen

in my day planner every single day

for SIX YEARS . . .

6. I like to wrap up like an enchilada

in the covers at night.

7. I cannot go to sleep without the

television on.

8. Hot rock massages are my favorite.

9. I wear boy pants!

10. I still like to take a peek at the

boys when they are sleeping!

Say Cheese!

2011-11-10T18:52:00.000-08:00

Our resident photog is getting

ready to fly the friendly skies to

take photographs at Sarah's

wedding in Destin, Florida.

What a lucky guy to be able to

travel to such a fun place for the

long weekend! He is such a wonderful

photographer and hard worker, I am

certain that everyone is going to be

pleased with his work.

We already miss, miss, miss him

around here. With comps, Mike,

housebuilding, and a bazillion other

things going on, the rest of us were

not able to go. I am grateful that

Sam is the photographer so that I

will have first dibs on seeing all

of the wonderful pictures of the

big day.

Proud of my Sam! Have a

great trip!!

Crash!

2011-11-09T13:37:00.001-08:00

Today was most definitely one

of those BIG DAYS that occurs

in the life of a SIXTEEN year old . . .

Yep! Bright an early, we headed over

to the DMV for Sam's Driver's Test!!!

Truly, Sam is perhaps the BEST

driver in our family and I had every

confidence that he would pass his

test with flying colors!!

As we were completing the paperwork,

we were looking over the examiners

and praying that we would get one

that would be great for Sam! There

is something about the DMV that is

intimidating anyhow, let alone having

to take a driving test . . .

Yeah . . . He passed, of course!!!

While Sam was completing his paperwork,

I was on the phone with our insurance

company adding yet another driver to

the Tietjen policy!!! I swear that they

should send us a big huge basket of

yummy goodies every CHRISTmas,

but they choose to accept my payment

as a reward instead!!!

. . . waiting in line for "the" picture!!

A big congratulations to you Sam!!

We are proud of you!!! Be super careful!!

How Much Wood . . .

2011-11-08T17:53:00.001-08:00

Yesssireee! California Hardwood

Producers delivered AGAIN today!!!

The guys have almost completed

the entire upstairs and were in

desperate need of MORE wood . . .

So, these guys just jumped into their

truck and headed on over to Reno

from Auburn, Cali and were happy,

happy, happy to deliver the rest

of the wood that we had purchased

nearly six months ago!!!

Keep in mind that this is the second

load that we have received!!!

Tomorrow will be an exciting day

as the guys begin laying the floors

downstairs . . .

One Down.

2011-11-07T18:13:00.000-08:00

Oh yeah! I am having a little celebration

over here!! Today I completed one of

three of my comprehensive examination

questions!! That is a big hallelujah! And

hip, hip hooray!!! Now it is time to get

back to reality and the grindstone and

crank out TWO more questions!!

Sunday Fun.

2011-11-06T21:58:00.000-08:00

You MUST know that Sunday is my

favoritist day of the entire week!

Today was no exception! I was super

thrilled that today was the very first day

that we were "on regular time". I think

that I must be one of the only people on

the planet that loves this time. I love it

when all of my people are in the house,

snug and cozy when it gets dark out

so early.

We all went to the house early this

morning. I was still dressed in my

pajamas. We went to get the electricians

lined out with the light fixture placement.

Grampa and the boys came for the

weekly tour! The guys are working on

getting our furnaces and air conditioners

this week. Even though we have rented

a heater, it gets a little nippy in our new

home.

Writing my comprehensive exam took up

a LARGE portion of the day, as it will the

next several weeks. I am thrilled that I

accomplished what I had set out to

achieve by the end of the day.

The boys and I got cozy and watched

"Dream House". Movies like these are

just a wee bit "too much" for Mike! We

waited until he was in bed and were

excited to be scared and thrilled.

Happy, happy Sunday!

Sam's "New" Car.

2011-11-05T05:57:00.000-07:00

What a difference tons of hard work and

a coat of paint makes!! Zach, Sam, and

Luke reported for duty at YESCO bright

and early this morning with Sam's car

and new car parts in hand. Prepared to

tackle the laborious job of prepping the

car, the boys were excited!!

TEN hours later, these guys realized just

how much work such a project is!! What

could not be disputed, however, was the

TERRIFIC results!! Sam's car looks amazing!

We are so excited for him!! He has taken

such great care of this car and we were

grateful that Mike's friend, Frank had

the time to do the deed!!!

They're Here!

2011-11-04T19:41:00.000-07:00

Holy, holy smoke! My comprehensive

examination questions for my PhD

program arrived this morning. Let's

see, should I:

*build a house

*manage Mike's health care

*homeschool

*pack

*move

*get ready for the holidays

*help the boys with all of

their "goins on"

*coordinate workers

*prepare the rental house

for the owners

*write my comps . . .

Yep, I have tons of plates in the

air at the moment and will be

a.b.s.o.l.u.t.e.l.y thrilled when

this merry-go-round is OVER!

The Action.

2011-11-03T20:18:00.001-07:00

California Hardwoods delivered HALF of

the wood for our house . . .

Today was a SUPER exciting day

as the guys started laying the

gorgeous hickory flooring. We were

all SOOO excited.

When they cut the wood, it made the

entire house smell like cedar. We watched

them almost all day long as they got started

upstairs . . . in the BEST room in the entire

house: my office.

Yep, yep, yep! We are one excited crew!

We cannot wait to mooove on in and

enjoy these amazing new floors.

Keep in mind that the floors are not

sanded or finished yet . . . awesome

pics of that will come in the next

several weeks as the floors are finished!

Happy Hump Day!

2011-11-02T21:53:00.001-07:00

Happy, happy Hump Day! Here is a

little view from the back of our house

in the wee early hours of the morning.

(Keep in mind that these white

"triangles" will be filled in with

corrugated brown metal next week!)

Simple things that I am grateful for

on this Hump Day:

*Mike getting stronger EVERY day!

*Healthy, happy kids.

*A great family.

*Guacamole.

*Cherry limeaid.

*A car that works.

*Fun friends.

*The smell of wood being cut.

*Fresh paint.

*Roofers that are moving faster.

*Great homeschooling experiences.

*My "new" extension cord.

Today's Action.

2011-11-01T19:38:00.000-07:00

I so love, love, love the sunsets

at our new home!!!

This was the scissor lift that the guys used

to put the stucco color coat on this weekend.

Francisco is my tile hero. He is so

nice, neat, and does amazing work. He

shows up every morning at the same time,

hangs up his coat, and gets to work

creating amazing showers.

Woot! Woot! for the brand spankin'

new garage doors . . . These make

me think that we are getting closer

by the moment!!!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T18:51:00.001-07:00

Happy, happy Halloween!!!

There is SO MUCH activity at our

new house, along with tons of

"goins" on, that we really must

stay at the project 13+ hours a day!!!

In the spirit of Halloween, Mike and Luke

carved the BIGGEST pumpkin EVER while

we were babysitting the workers!!!!

What matters most is that Luke had

a TON of fun and carved the

BEST jack-o-lantern EVER!!!

A big thumbs up for a fun day and

to one more day closer that this

house project will be complete!!!

Hallow's Eve.

2011-10-30T20:41:00.001-07:00

Pop! Pop! Pop!

As CRAZY as it has been around here

lately . . . 13+ hours per day at our

new house, Michigan, new docs,

new meds, chemotherapy, you

NAME it . . .

It simply would not be Halloween

without Gram's ever-famous popcorn

balls . . .

I stumbled through the doors and

cooked up the lovely ingredients of

honey, brown sugar, and butter to

make our "favoritist" Halloween treat!!

Love, love, lovin' our Halloween

traditions and count, count, countin'

the days until we move into our

new digs . . .

Action.

2011-10-29T21:22:00.001-07:00

Moving right along . . . our color coat

on our stucco is getting there!!!

. . . it even sparkles in the sunlight!!!

We have a bazillion of these buckets

sitting EVERYWHERE around our

house!! The stucco guys use them as

they are applying the color coat!!

Ou roofers are soooo cute and are

doing a mighty great job on our

brand spakin' new metal roof . . .

10 days and counting . . . They will

be d.o.n.e.

Ta da!!! Pottery Barn Linen White . . .

Gotta love it.

Almost Here . . .

2011-10-28T22:42:00.001-07:00

Luke and I have been sneaking into our

secret Trick or Treat stash . . . One of

our favorite things about the home that

we are renting is that we are in a

neighborhood that has TONS of

Trick or Treaters. Our new home is

located way on top of a winding road

with only four other homes up there!

Trick or Treaters will not be making

the treck up there. So we will enjoy

handing out candy to our cute

little neighbors once again this year!

While I am not really into witches at

Halloween, don't you just think that

she has the cuuuuuutest face!?! She

makes me laugh when I look at her!

Personally, I cannot believe that

Halloween is only a few days away.

Where oh where did this year go?

Must Read.

2011-10-27T18:34:00.001-07:00

Another big bonus for our recent

jaunt across the country: I read "The Help".

As a PhD student, I never have time

to read for pleasure. Next week I

receive my comprehensive exam

questions, so I took full advantage of

the airtime and read this wonderful

story. Now that I have read the

book, I am dying to see the movie.

The boys are having a stroke

knowing that I will convince them

to go with me!!

If you are looking for a great read,

take the time to experience "The

Help".

Godtime.

2011-10-26T18:12:00.000-07:00

Amazed, but not surprised!! That is

how Mike and I reacted at 9:00a.m. EST

this morning when the doctors at the

University of Michigan Hospital, who,

just twenty-four short hours before

told us that Mike was in Stage IV with

high levels of reoccurrence of Adrenal

Cortical Cancer, reported that his

PET/CT Scan showed NO EVIDENCE

OF CANCER . . . GONE . . . CLEAN . . .

UNDETECTABLE!!! Say what?!?

God's mercy is truly amazing and His

healing powers are not to be

underestimated!!! God ALWAYS

answers prayers, sometimes not in

ways that we would like, but He answers

them nonetheless. So . . .

Mike will now begin oral chemotherapy

for three years AT HOME, taking 10

Mitotane pills per day. He will also have a large

portion of his pancreas removed shortly, in

Reno in order to take out the tumors that

are on the pancreas. We will then have

a six or seven week stint of radiation

to the adrenal gland cancer surgery site.

That is easy-peasy for the Tietjen Crew

and one that we gladly welcome.

We are ever so thankful and grateful for

all of the wonderful prayers and thoughts

on behalf of so many wonderful friends

and family members!!! God is truly amazing

and we give Him all of the glory for this

miracle in Mike's healing!!!

Praising the Lord for an answer to prayer!!!

Hammertime.

2011-10-25T18:12:00.001-07:00

Mike and I are in Ann Arbor, Michigan at the

University of Michigan Cancer Care

Center. He and I feel blessed beyond

measure to have the opportunity to

come to such a wonderful place where

they specialize in such strange animals

as adrenal gland cancer.

Even though I would not wish this

disease on anyone, we most certainly

see God's handiwork in every step

of this journey. We are so thankful

to have friends near the hospital that

have been so very gracious to let us

stay with them, allow us to drive their

car, and are praying for us every

moment during this adventure.

Wouldn't you LOVE for your name to

be Dr. Hammer?!? You would if

you were this man! He is truly, truly

amazing! We are thrilled beyond

belief that we have the opportunity

to come all the way to Michigan to

have the chance to be able to have

the opportunity to beat this adrenal

cancer!

Endorsement.

2011-10-24T06:49:00.001-07:00

The moment my transcripts came, I was

so excited that I jumped into the car

and drove to the Department of

Education in Carson City in order to submit

the necessary paperwork to obtain my

Administrative License.

I am now officially licensed to become

a school principal!!! While I have no

immediate plans to apply for the

position, as I still have tons of

homeschooling with my Luke,

must write my comps, and then

begin my dissertation; it was exciting

to know that I have completed this

milestone.

It is pretty exciting to know that I

have achieved one of my life goals

in obtaining administrative

licensure and am just as excited

aboutthe rest of my doctoral journey!!

Cabinet Knobs.

2011-10-23T08:33:00.001-07:00

Ta da!! They are heeeere!!! I have been

eagerly awaiting my VINTAGE WATER VALVES

that will soon be transformed into cabinet

knobs and pulls!!!

Can you see it now!?! Are you catching

the vision?!? Mike, Luke, and I worked

on the cabinet knob and pull project while

Mike was in the Mayo Clinic. He now

swears that he was on morphine when

he allowed me to order them. I can

testify that these will be one of the

many highlights and conversation

pieces of our brand-spankin' new

home!!

Gettin' excited! I can hear those

moving trucks coming now!!!

A-C-T-I-O-N.

2011-10-22T16:21:00.001-07:00

2485 Mountain Spirit Court most

definitely has ACTION!!! We are

so excited!! We are getting a roof . . .

a metal roof to be exact and we can

hardly wait to see the finish product.

We have grown rather attached to the

black paper, but are excited about

the new roof none the less!!

Color . . . color . . . color!! No more

grey for the Tietjen Crew!!!

It was so fun watching the guys mix

up the color coat!!!!! These have been

in the garage for MONTHS just waiting

for the BIG day!!!

Did I hear someone say that

it would be amazing to have

shelving and closets . . .

You got it!!!

The texture went on the walls

yesterday and painting will

begin bright and early MONDAY

morning!!!!!

I must confess that I love, love, love

it when men are there working

with noisy power tools!! I love progress!!!

The paint has been delivered to the

correct rooms eagerly awaiting

application on the walls!!!

I have spent MANY, MANY, MANY

hours pushing these puppies around

the new digs.

It will be a HUGE blessing to have this

stuff out of our great room and kitchen!!!

In case you thought that there was a

magic fairy that disposed of all of the

GARBAGE generated by the house

building process . . . This pile is

NOTHING!!!! We have spent many,

many, many days opening, bagging,

lifting, and disposing of trash!!!!

. . . 50 new bags of trash that was

generated over two days . . . nothing!!!!

Gone Fishin'.

2011-10-21T15:45:00.000-07:00

Luke has been counting the hours, minutes,

and seconds until today as he and Mike

have been planning to go fishing all

week long!!!

Mike has TONS and TONS and

TONS of patience and had so much

fun watching Luke fish at

Marilyn's Pond.

It was THE perfect day for fishing!!!

I seriously do not know who had more

fun, Luke actually fishing or Mike

watching him fish.

Father and son day outings:

can't beat 'em.

Yeehaw!!! Luke was so stoked!!! He caught

a fish!!!! Life.is.good.