~~October 2016~~Sew, it was the greatest Stitch Experience ever!~~Final Update 3/19/2017!

[DMGeurts]

So, I completely flaked out and missed the "big day" Tuesday!! I logged into FB after school and thought, AAARRGHHH!! Oh, well, I'll just have to wait til September and hope my brain is fully functioning by then! I would certainly blame it on the THREE HOUR commute I had to school because of all the snow. I work only about 16 miles from home--left at 6:10 a.m. (20 minutes early leaving myself plenty of time because of the snow) and didn't arrive at school until 9:10 a.m. It. Was. Miserable.

So, anyway......

A bike in a tree?!! is hilarious!

We're just plugging along here, trying to get to Friday! We have a family wedding tomorrow (St. Patrick's Day!!!) with all of Rob's cousins from out of state, too. Can't wait to celebrate and have some fun. I've been working entirely too much lately and it's report card time again, so doing 35 five page report cards with comments (not to mention the 35 parent-teacher conferences that go along with them) has been stressful to say the least!

Happy Thursday, D!!

Hahaha!!! I've been sitting here for 5 minutes, scratchin' my head trying to figure out what was the "big day" on Tuesday. Got it now. Hahahaha!

OMG!!! A 3 hour commute for a 16 mile trip!!! Yikes!!!! That is insanity! Glad you made it safely though!

Yes - the bike is still there! I am thinking it may be a permanent fixture? LOL

I saw all of the wedding pictures you posted (or were tagged in) on FB... It was a beautiful wedding and it looks like everyone had a marvelous time!

I hope you have a great weekend too!

A bike in a tree beats the Cleveland Indians flag I found in my front yard yesterday. I think the flag blew off someone's flag pole during the winter storm we had Tuesday and Wednesday. I have no idea whose because none of my neighbors had one.
It doesn't seem possible that Victoria is old enough to go to Europe for the summer by herself. It seems like it was yesterday that she was a little girl. At least she'll be with family.
There's not much going on here, I did find out that they're getting rid of my position in wireless. It's not a surprize because we almost never do contracts and I work mostly in electronics anyway. It'll just be official in May. I could go somewhere else in the store if I wanted but I don't.
Liz

Hahaha - yah, and because of the angle of our house - and the trees between us and them, we never would have seen it. Hilarious just the same though!

I know - right? It's crazy to think she is driving and growing up so fast - she is my baby after all!

Bummer about your position - but it sounds like you'll still stay in electronics?

Unfortunately I wasn't able to book the house in Florida. It is rented annually now by an older couple from mid Jan-Feb. I wanted to rent it for Feb. We may rent it the first 2 weeks of March and try another house for the last 2 weeks of Feb. It works out better in case my daughter's family could come during spring break. For now I've decided to wait. My husband really hates to move, but I think it would be worth it. We've only rented 2 houses with really warm pools, and the other one now has a new owner and higher prices.

We once saw a trampoline in a tree by my daughter's house after a big storm. It was surprising how high up it was. I'm sure the bike was a prank, but you have to wonder how they got it up there.

I plan to get out shopping today for my son's birthday. I have some Kohl's cash burning a hole in my pocket. He always puts Twins shirts on his list so I'm hoping to find one. My sons have partial season tickets (20 games). We're going to opening day and I'm hoping it won't be too cold. We are sitting on the sunny side, providing it's sunny that day.

It looks like it's going to be a pretty nice day to get out. I hope you enjoy the weekend.

What a bummer that the house is rented for that time frame already... I would think that moving though during your trip wouldn't be too terrible... At least you'd be saving the best house for last.

Yes - it's pretty common to see trampolines all over after a storm. I am sure the bike is a prank... LOL

I hope you were able to find a gift for your son for his birthday... You know that Josh's grandfather was the artist who originally came up with and drew Minnie and Paul, right? Personally - we have a lot of Twins stuff, though - every time we see Minnie and Paul items, we have to have them. LOL Enjoy the opening game! What is the date for that?

I haven't been out much - well, I've been out, but house to car, car to house type stuff. I hope you enjoy your weekend too!

Not a clue how they made this happen - It's very high up there! It's funny just the same. LOL


so i was thinking along the lines of this:

Hahahaha!!! That is likely exactly how it happened!

Will Victoria's trip be as long as Allison's trip was?

Allison was there for 10 weeks... It's looking like Victoria will be there for 8 weeks. We can't send her any earlier due to her graduation ceremony and her grad party the week before - and she has to come home a bit earlier than Allison did, because Thomas starts school this year!!! Hard to believe!!! She will still have a fair amount of time there... She is currently saving $$ like crazy for her trip.

**********************************************************************************************************

Not much has been going on...

Dad was sent to the ER on Thursday for low oxygen... It was in the 80% range. I was waiting for the call that they were admitting him before I left the house... I had been in communication with the nurses all day... Finally, I was tired of waiting for the call, so V and I were loading up the car to leave. Just as we were pulling out - the hospital called to tell me they were sending him home.... They upped his oxygen and he was doing much better. V and I decided to stay home - as it was getting late on Thursday, and go up right away on Friday morning.

Friday - we drove there early... As expected, dad was fine... Just a bit ornery, as he had spent the day previous in the hospital - according to him - "for no reason"... So, he was a bit sassy with me all day, as I am the one who pushed him to go. Sigh. I tried to explain to him that I live too far away to just make a trip - I have to depend on the opinion of the staff at his assisted living home... If they say he needs to be looked at further - I kinda have to go with that. I just shrugged it off and ignored his commentary about the situation for the remainder of the day...

We took him out for lunch at a local restaurant... As always, the food was good. We even won $10 off of our meal for a St. Patty's day promotion they were running... So, they look our picture and posted it on their FB page. It was a nice surprise!

Victoria and I came home that evening, and she went to work.

Yesterday - I ran to town, I had to go to the bank and also a quick trip to Target... I was good though and only purchased what I had on my list. Then I was lazy for the rest of the day.

My cousin posted a picture on FB the other day - it was of the farm we grew up on back in the 60s... I started exploring this website and I found a picture of our house from the 80s - which isn't that long ago... However, it did give us more of a time line for which owner covered up the front door and put in the replacement window with duct tape. As it turns out - we thought it happened in the 70s... The door was still there when this photo was taken in 1986... It's fun to see what our house used to look like, even though this isn't that long ago. This is the oldest picture - that I know of - that exists of this house! It was built in 1890. After all of the work we have done on it - it hardly even looks like the same house!

And for the fun of it - because I have them accessible... Here is a photo of the horrific "cover-up" we found under our siding when we went to do our huge window and siding project back in 2008... This was really a terrible find for us, as we were shocked that someone could just 'cover up' a door and two windows - and NEVER reinforce the structure... they literally CUT OFF THE STUDS and threw a window in there - didn't even nail it in or put in a header to support it - they used DUCT TAPE! It still burns me to this day... Josh had to rebuild the entire front wall of the house! Even more frustrating - we PAID for TWO different inspections before we purchased this house - and it passed both times!

Here is our "before and after" - What the house looked like when we purchased it in 2006, and what it looks like now - for the most part...

OK - sorry for the house tangent... Don't get me wrong... After 10s of thousands we've dumped into this house, new roof, new steel siding and new windows - all of which we cash flowed ourselves, no credit was used for these projects - I really do love this house a lot!

Today... I will be doing my menu planning and grocery shopping list for Friday!

This coming week is a HUGE debt pay off week for us... First off - I am stalking V's airfare like crazy.... We finally have enough saved to purchase that. Sadly - the prices have gone up, so I am stalking for any thing reasonable now. We will also be paying off one of our personal loans and a very large chunk of a credit card. Our next few pay days will include some overtime and also an "extra" pay check in there - the the amount of debt we will be paying off will be quite large. We are very excited to be done with so much!

Eating and working out has been going well... As some of you may have read - I gave up grains for Lent... I've been doing really well with this... Not perfect - as I should be - but really good, so I'll take it. Hopefully God is as understanding as I am? I've also been doing a couple of other things, which seem to be helping me and keeping me on track. I am looking forward to a bit nicer weather, so I can get back out to walking/running again this year.

That's about all... I am all set for my final update of this TR - which I plan to do shortly here... And then I am done.

Wishing you all an awesome remainder of your weekend - prayers and pixie dust to all!

D~

 

[DMGeurts]

Final thoughts...

Where do I even start? How do I define a trip - a moment in a lifetime - where my little girl is still my little girl... Yet she is on the edge of experiencing life on her own. How do I put that into words?

We started planning these graduation trips several years ago... Back then - I am not sure any of us ever thought they would happen... It was a dream and so far away...

Before I knew it - it was time to either fish or cut bait... And we decided to fish... Doing a trip for one girl, meant that I was obligated to do it for both... Financially - that was tough!

Planning is a lot of the trip excitement for us, and this trip was no different. Victoria was so excited to finally have her turn - she was very much into the planning and decision making of the trip... She has always been my "Disney lover" - so, she had very solid opinions about what she wanted to do and see on her trip!

These last few moments with Victoria have been some of the best yet. She is growing up and beginning to make her life plans... I am so excited for her and what the future holds. To have this time with her - and capture these last memories - well, I just recommend it to everyone. These memories were built over a life time... Our relationship didn't just happen... And over the last year, it seems, our relationship has really evolved into something very special and unique! After all - V is my "baby"... It's so hard to watch her grow and become independent - yet it's so gratifying too!

In the end, I am left with a girl that I am so very proud of... She is absolutely unique down to the very essence of who she is... She isn't afraid to speak her mind, or show her emotions... She has the ability to be true to herself and her beliefs... This takes much more confidence and determination than many people possess. This is a quality that I greatly admire about her (though as her mom, I also hope that it doesn't get her in too much trouble throughout her life... )

For me, to have this one on one time with Victoria in Disney World, was such a bittersweet time... Not only was it time for just her and I - but she is my baby and my last one... I am not sure when life will allow us to go back and experience the magic that solidified the relationship with both of my girls... So, not only was this trip bittersweet, but emotional too. Regardless, I am so very thankful to have had this time with her! I am so excited to see where her winding path takes her in life, and I am so very proud of her!

Thank you for following us on this journey... I love sharing our trips here and I love that so many people enjoy reading about them.

I guess - this is where I bow out and say goodbye... For now, this appears to be the "end of an era"... With out any trips on the horizon - I do not know when it would be appropriate for me to start another PTR... Know that, until the time comes where I have an excuse to write again... My heart will always be here with my Dis friends... Thank you for sharing these years with us. I love you all and cherish your friendships.

As always... Much love, Prayers and Pixie Dust to you all!

D~​

 

[Terkina]

I'm so sad to see this trip report coming to an end and no new PTR started It has been so fun getting to know you through your reports here on the DIS and it was really fun meeting you at MOA 1 1\2 years ago.

I'm so sorry to hear about your dad. I'm glad to hear he is fine now.
It can't be easy being so far away from him.

How fun that you found an old photo of your house.

Crossing my fingers that you will find airfares for V's trip that aren't too expensive.

 

[heatherwith3]

Awwww I'm so sad to see your report come to an end! I am like you, I know a trip is in our future, but I have no real idea what the dates will be, so no pre trip report for me either. I hope you'll be able to start one soon, though. I've enjoyed hearing about your healthy living and seeing all the great pictures!

 

[andera42]

Sad to see the trip report end, but what a blessing to have these memories with your girls. Uggggh about the airfare. I was waiting for cheaper airfare for my 17 yo son's trip this summer, and it just increased. Crossing my fingers it drops again. I also need to buy airfare for Orlando in October but I'm not sure the best/cheapest time to do that. Thankfully I have enough reward points for 3 tickets if I can find the right price. Thanks for all your updates. You have been such a positive influence to me over the past few months.

 

[Clio]

It's so sad seeing your trip report coming to an end. I'll miss 'talking' to you.
I remember me last trip with my daughter before she got married. It was so much fun as we have similar touring styles at Disney. We both like to get up early. Her husband likes to take his time. That's not bad, but I'm used to moving faster and doing more.
Is V. going to college in the Fall? Eight weeks is still a nice long visit with family. It's hard to believe that Thomas is starting school already.
To answer your question, yes I'll still be in electronics. Right now, they schedule me 2 or 3 days in wireless and the rest in electronics. In May, it'll be all electronics.
How cool that you found those old pictures of your house. I do have wonder what the person that cover up the window and door was thinking. It's a wonder the whole wall didn't collapse.
Have a good day.
Liz

 

[gopherdame]

I love the pictures of Victoria through the years. I also liked the house pictures. I know I've seen some before but I don't remember the window with the duct tape. I have heard many stories about things that are found after inspections. It's kind of scary and you are really lucky to have Josh.

Sorry to hear you won't be chatting with us anymore. I will hope that you can go again and that way we can continue to watch you and your girls take trips together. It would be interesting to hear how you paid off all your debts too. Keep up the good work.

I decided to rent that house for 2 weeks in March. I talked my husband into moving and told him maybe they won't be able to rent that year and we could still get it. I liked what you said about saving the best house for last. And since it will be spring break and busy, if my daughter's family can't come we will just relax and swim our last week.

Glad your dad is ok. My dad took a trip to the hospital while we were in Florida. He fell and his friend couldn't get him up. But they checked him out and sent him home. He is 87 and does pretty well most of the time.

Thank you for all your trip reports and I hope to see another one in the future.
Robyn

 

[dnllmz]

I really enjoyed reading your trip report & all of the old pictures. Thanks for sharing your family memories with us.

 

[Wood Nymph]

I have truly enjoyed following your trip reports. You are really good at writing interesting posts. I'm sure that you are not finished taking trips to Disney with your girls. They loved them, too.

Give us a heads up if and when you start another trip report. I look forward to reading them again.

 

[Llobal]

Oh sad!! I've been tired lately so I haven't replied a lot but I love getting to read everyday. Will definitely have to chat on Facebook occasionally. I'll hate not knowing how things are going with the girls. You will definitely have to let us know when you start a PTR so we can come back together.

 

[cheerupem0kidx0x]

I love your sewing room! And the senior trip idea is so awesome, I thought about doing the same with my kids! Excited to read your trip report.

 

[ljcrochet]

I hope you can get cheap airfare for v's summer trip.
I can't believe how high air fare has been. We looked at a quick family trip during girls spring break but airfare was $500 a person. Then dh has a business trip to Houston over my birthday. I priced out airfare to join him, it was so high. We could do a family weekend getaway for a lot less. I'm just waiting on girls spring sport schedule to plan something.
Sydney want some to switch her basketball team. Going tonight for second round of tryouts for a new team. No clue how she can fit 2 practice plus 5 weekend tournaments in along with soccer.

 

[Born 2B a Princess]

The picture of the bike in the tree made me laugh! So funny! I'm glad your Dad is doing ok, and like you, I would err on the side of caution when it comes to health! That's the most important thing.

Congratulations on paying off more debt! You are so awesome! I hope you don't stop writing because I need your encouragement and your example -- truly, I do.

V will have a wonderful trip. Such an exciting time for her.

I have truly loved following along with your PTRs and TRs and am sad to see this one end. Please don't sign off completely!

Hugs!!!!!

 

[Chicago Mo]

Too sad to comment,
Just know i love you and your family!

 

[kittylady1972]

Aww...so sad to see you "go" for now. Looking forward to that day when you have another trip planned. Feel free to stalk along on mine...I just finished one "surprise" last minute trip with my one and only daughter about 2 weeks ago, and we have at least 2 more upcoming trips...maybe even 4 more coming up. We'll see how that goes.

So exciting to hear about you paying down your debt, something we also need to focus on but sometimes it's so tough. Just when we make some traction, it seems some other big expense hits though. I'm sure we aren't alone in those struggles.

Love reading along and hope to see you again here soon!

 

[OregonMomToWDW]

We have been looking for months now for cheaper airfare for Marissa's return flight. Unfortunately, there are 2 weeks in August that are extreme travel weeks for Japan and we ended up paying over $1,200 for a one-way ticket home.

I am sad to see the trip report come to an end. Something I looked forward to reading to start my mornings.

 

[missjackiemcg]

No, don't go!!!

Guess I'll have to start checking in with you FB since you're the only one I know who cares about my eating and exercising woes!

Thanks so much for sharing all your beautiful memories here and your wonderful family. I have loved reading along and getting to know you all!!!

 

[Texan]

I hope you know you really turned on my waterworks D; not on your beautiful tribute to your amazing "baby"; but the end of your TR. I will miss visiting you each day via the boards. You made some incredible life memories; and V will have this trip in her heart always. Kudos to you for making this happen. Take a bow.

So glad your Dad is being watched over at his assisted living facility and he is doing okay.

Way to go on the budget! That means putting some aside for another trip Hope you can find cheaper airfare for V, sign up for all airfare alerts you can find. Some are more diligent than others. And continued no grains! I will follow on your healthy living.

I will have to rely on FB and email now! Love ya Dorine; always hugs, always prayers.

 

[KathyM2]

I loved your TR and the pics of your "baby" It is so special that you got to do this with each of your girls. I have done one on one trips with my kids and they are so special and I hope that as they get older I will be able to do more of these types of things. Way to go on the healthy eating and no grains...that would be really hard.

I have to laugh about the bike in the tree - did you ever find out how it got there? (pardon me if I missed it somewhere in this TR lol)

 

[tatar63]

You MUST start a PTR! We all enjoy reading your daily life updates....
I need to hear about Victoria's last few months in high school, graduation & her trip abroad! And of course Allison's next steps in life also! And everything else you keep us up on

Thank you for all the great threads you have written, they have brightened my day for years now

Still watching for updates, I just haven't been posting
Monica