Happy New Year!

Unlike a lot of people, I don't make New Year's resolutions. I've tried in the past, but extra pressure is not my thing.

The beginning of my year is in September. I am still stuck on school schedule. I make my plans for what I want to get accomplished and then do my best to Plan-Do-Review.

The past few winters have been long and sometimes depressing. Due to the weather, there is little work at work. This year I planned my winter and decided to work on my crafts business and to write. Creating this blog has given me a place to put everything in one spot, and in the process I've been learning how to do a bit of web design.

I have everything lined out ... toys, blankets and things to make; plus pages and pages of areas on the blog to be filled in. Except now I am worn out, and all my big plans feel overwhelming. I think I'm meloncholy. I don't even have the gumption to take down the Christmas ornaments or package up and freeze all the food I've cooked. Everywhere I look, there is so much to do. Even learning how to use my new camera seems like too much. Probably its just because I have a cold and worked too hard on Christmas.

I'm the one putting the pressure on myself to produce ... good, better, best -- never let it rest, until the good is better and the better's best! The ironic thing is that I laid out these projects to last all winter and now am trying to make myself do them all at once.

Still, I think it is best to do some resting today and maybe just read a good book. That way I'm still getting something done, but it isn't work. Read, while we watch parades and football and wonder why we don't get FOX news anymore. I'll miss Greta, but I won't miss Sean.

Happy New Year's Day 2009 -- may this be the best year of your life!

*** It is 3:30 PST and there is a new post by Robin, Gracyn's mom, on the Caring Bridge website. The surgery went well, but it has been determined that Gracyn will need a heart transplant. To see how your prayers are joined with others from around the world for this precious little girl, click on this link: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/gracyndenbesten

It is pretty amazing how the internet has been used to make a huge prayer chain for Gracyn.

This is a special prayer request for Angi and Tim's 9-year-old niece Gracyn. She has a blood clot in her heart and is very, very ill. She is scheduled for open heart surgery today.

Please keep her and her family in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you!

There is a website set up for her at:

http://www.caringbridge.org/

View the guestbook of: gracyndenbesten

Christmas 2008 -

Part Three:

We woke up to this beauty and about 12" of new snow.

We had Christmas dinner at Grandma Darlene's. Sammi did most of the cooking and it was a wonderful dinner. Thank you! Nikki, Sammi and Larry enjoy their meal.

Logan, Maykala, Grandma Darlene and Wyatt

enjoy watching Jenny show off.

Grandma Darlene, Wyatt and Jenny



Logan, Grandma Darlene and Wyatt




These two were the biggest hams there!

Logan, Maykala, Jenny, Grandma Darlene and Wyatt again.

Attending but not shown: Jimmy, Cary, Nigel and me.

It's easy to make a comment ... you don't have to sign in or have an account.

Just click on the anonymous choice and start writing, and then type in your name at the end of your post.

Thank you!

Cary Gives Grandma

Another Dog:

Cary is the giver of dogs for Grandma Pearl. First, he brought home a little puppy for her about 10 years ago. She named him Matthew, and she loved him with her whole heart. Grandma fed him steaks and he loved and protected her well. Last year, he was put to rest, and she misses her friend very much.

Then along came Shadow, a wonderful girl who's owner had died. Mitch, John and Cary thought that Shadow would be a good dog for Grandma. And, she was. Grandma couldn't believe that Shadow did not know what a steak was, but Shadow is a quick study and figured out that they were good. About a month ago, Grandma Pearl moved in with Grandma Darlene and Shadow went to live with Larry. She is very happy running around with her new friend, Hazel.

For Christmas, Cary got Grandma Pearl a new dog. It barks and whines when you pet it's little head, and Grandma sure gets a kick out of it. Merry Christmas, Grandma!

Grandma, Cary and the new little stuffed puppy.

Matthew

(Sorry, I don't have a picture of Shadow!)

On the nature of gifts ...

Last year for Christmas, Cary got me a shotgun. It is a beautiful, woman's 20 gauge, Duck's Unlimited gun. However, I was appalled and ungrateful. I am usually very polite about any gift given to me, but I don't even know how to shoot a gun, and we are not hunters. When we got home last year from Grandma Darlene's I started crying. Cary said, well, you can shoot ducks with it. That made it even worse. Nigel calmed me down and told me about the benefits and how easy shotguns were to use and reminded me that if a cougar came after the dogs then I would be glad to have it around. That made sense to me, and as I tried to analyze my rude reaction to the gift, I realized that the gun made me scared and I was really reacting to my fear. I still haven't used it yet, but I am glad that I have it and I do appreciate how nice it is.

Well, this year, I did not feel fear or rude when I opened my gift from Cary. As you can see by my face, I felt JOY! When I opened the memory card, I realized what I was getting ... the fancy camera that I really wanted .... oh, my gosh ... well, a picture is worth a thousand words:

Thank you Best Friend Husband Cary,

I love you very, very much!

Christmas Eve 2008 -

Part Two

After we were done at our house, we went next door to Cary's mom's house. The girls and I helped Darlene get the food on the table. We all visited, ate, and then opened our gifts. It was a really fun Christmas.

Casey, Kristin and Nigel

Crowd Scene Cleaning Up

Todd, Troy, Larry and Beverly

Jimmy and Christian

Me busy handing out gifts.

Casey

Todd and Troy

Troy

Casey, Holli, Megan, Maykayla, Jason and Isaiah

Casey and Kari

Ethan with his new mohawk.

Ethan

Cary, Kristin and Nigel

Tess and Troy

Beverly

Isaiah, Casey, Kristin, Kari and Nigel

Treavor, Jason, Jeffery, Brittany

Brittany, Megan and Grandma Pearl

Brian and Shelly

Maykayla and Logan

Christian

Cary, Larry and Darlene

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve 2008 -

Part One

Kari, Casey, Kristin and Nigel braved the snow and the mountain pass to make it over for Christmas. They got here around 3:00 and we visited and opened our gifts to each other and the ones from my parents. It was so much fun to have my kids together with us.

Thank-you!

On Christmas Eve afternoon, Mike came over with a wonderful gift that everybody at work chipped in to give us ... an electric roaster with all of the fancy gadgets ... to cook prime rib and much, much more! We really appreciate all of you.

Merry Christmas 2008!

With Love,

Kathy and Cary

There is a new post under the Outreach section featuring Jody, Kristin and Ethan and their upcoming medical mission trip to Guatemala. Keep checking in there, as I will be following their journey on this blog.

Kathy

Hi,

I have five new posts under The Hedricks, in the Pioneer Research/Gen. link.

Have a great day!

Kathy

Saturday Errands with my
Best Friend Husband:

It snowed 7" yesterday and rumors have it that we can get up to 12" more during the next few days. We decided that we'd better get to town and do our errands while the getting was good. Cary prepares the car for our trip. (FYI, this car is a really good car for the snow, if you are looking around. It is a Chevy Equinox. You can probably get a good deal on Chevy's right now, with all of the issues surronding THE BIG THREE.) We left home at 8:18 a.m. and the temperature was 21*.

Here is a picture of one of my favorite trees residing in our yard. When I moved in to this house in 2004, it was about a foot tall. Now it is 10 feet! When I happen to spot it, I always think of the song that was popular when I was in 3rd grade called Honey (See the Tree, How Big it's Grown ... about the lady who died and when the guy who was singing the song planted the tree, and it was just a twig .... remember?)

Bye, bye house.


First we stopped by work to check the

messages and to take a look around.

Yep, the cememt silo is still standing,

watching over the joint.

The trucks are parked safely side by side.

The back road. The snow was up to the bumper of my car, but, no problem for this car! Our neighbor Bill called and I told Cary to tell him, no way, we were not going to pour any concrete for him today. He laughed at the joke, because he knows better than to pour concrete in this weather.

The car needs gas. We stop at Gordy's to fill up.

Lots of trucks were stopped at Gordy's too.

We went to eat at Gordy's Restaurant.

Cary patiently waits for me

to finish taking his picture.

Cary and Gordy discuss business and catch up. I just watch Cary. I admire his cute backside.

We both ate chicken-fried steak with eggs over medium, home fries, sourdough toast and water. For those who have not noticed, we are clones. It is easier when your best friend is your clone....and if he is your husband, even better.

While we were eating, we visited with a couple of truck drivers that were on their way from Southern California to Seattle (driver#1) and Grandview, WA (driver #2). They had had a hell of a time. The Grapevine was closed for 14 hours, the weather has been horrible, they both had broken windshields due to other people's chains flying off, and they had lost chains themselves. One talked to his wife and to dispatch, the other talked to his sweet sister in New York. I blatenly eavesdropped. I'm glad for them, that cell phones were invented. They were really friendly nice men, and we wished them a safe trip. The one with the sweet sister (driver #2) wished us a safe trip too.

Snow plowing tip learned from waitress #2: If you have a pick-up and a pair of bed springs, tie a rope on either end, and clear your driveway with the contraption. Her husband did that yesterday with amazing results.

As we leave, I call and ask Cary's Mom if she and Grandma need anything from town. She gives me a list, but it is short because I put her on the spot. I tell her she can call me back if she thinks of more . In a little bit, she does.

After breakfast, we stopped by the post office. I got a Christmas Card from the bank! Everybody signed their names. We got one for work too, and I let Cary open it. That is the kind of best friend wife that I am. My Dad and Jill got a card from Arkansas. I said to myself, I said: "I am going to write or call that relative sometime after I figure out the geneology questions that I need to ask." And I will do just that.

Next we went to Bi-Mart. I love Bi-Mart. It is from the valley. Like me. When I first moved here, I had to drive to Bend to Walmart and fight the maddness. But not anymore. Cary and I stocked up on food and sundries. Our checker was MarIanne. We visited with her and asked upon her brother and parents. They are all doing well. Sometimes living in a small town is really neat. We also waved to our friend Neal who was plowing the parking lot in his tricked out backhoe.

After Bi-Mart, we drive to Shop Smart. It used to be Ray's, and is still owned by Ray's. There is a new Ray's in town, but old habits die hard (and Shop Smart is a bit cheaper), so this is the store that I go to most often.

Cary stays outside and smokes. There is some action in the parking lot while I am inside the store .... the sheriff shows up and blocks in a yellow car with a handicapped sign. Nobody was arrested.

I talked to Tamara, the checker lady and our neighbor. I told her that I had some things for her girls. She gave me a big smile and said thank you. Prior to that, I thanked the butchers for the great prime rib they made up for us last weekend. They said, well, bring us a sandwich. I said, no, I wasn't come back to town because of this new storm on the way and it has been in the fridge for a week. I said, maybe next time. Next Christmas when we cook prime rib again.

On the way home, we stopped by the leased property and checked on everything. Cary unlocks the gate.

We are headed towards our trailer. It is a security trailer right now, but it is really our camping trailer. Our Komfort. We love it. Here is a close-up:

Pictures of what we are securing.

Another view.

Cary locks up the service truck.

I wrap up the generator

gently in the picnic tablecloth.

We picked up Grandma's mail, and delivered the shopping goods to Cary's Mom and Grandma. This is me standing in front of the Grandmas' House.

Then we went home and unloaded the car. We are done with our errands! It is 10:30 a.m., the temp is 27* and we did good.