Wonder in the Winterland

Dreary as the days are this winter there's always fun to be found outdoors at a small cost. Bundle the kids up & get out there. Make snow angels, a family of snow people or forts for the ambitious.

Sleds are cheap now, garbage bags work or get the old one out. Many city parks, neighborhood drain basins or schools have hills adequate for weekend adventures. No snow, try ice skating. Many places offer free/discount coupons. Check the DI or friends/family for their cache of skates, snowshoes or skiis. All are welcome to borrow my ice skates (size 7 women or 1 youth). I have both men's (11) & women's (9) cross country ski & snowshoes (one size fits all).

Years ago I got a four piece set of penguin dishes (dinner plates, bowls, cups etc) for Christmas. The salad plates were especially cute with the cold weather cupids doing antics. I get them out every winter to enjoy. Four wasn't enough for entertaining & none in the stores to increase my collection. I found these four matching plates at the DI last year & was excited to have enough for guests. There is wonder in the winterland when we look for it.

Doug-A Pancreas & A Prayer

Many of you may have heard that Doug Burton had his kidney & pancreas transplant on Tuesday, January 12th. Things were looking good as the new kidneys stepped up by doing their job. Unfortunately on Saturday, they began working less & less. This caused great concern for the family & doctors. A meeting was called.

A second surgery this week, discovered a tiny hole in the pancreas incision causing a leak. The kidneys were surrounded in 2 1/2 liters of liquid, the root of the problem. No wonder they slowed down. A drain was inserted & now Doug is doing much better with the kidneys plugging full speed ahead.

Food was out of the question for five days while the pancreas healed. When he had morsel of graham cracker on Sunday, sickness & nausea reigned. Hopefully, on Thursday when they try food again things go better. Imagine not being able to eat for ten days. IV's can't be fun.

Continue to pray for Doug to improve as his body gets stronger & healthier. No date set for his release, but will keep you posted.

Plaid Granddads

In a night on the town, the younger generation had to sit while the old men stood their ground.
One thing they had in common, the elders wore plaid & the others plain we found.
After eating, playing games & staying until midnight, all were homeward bound.
On New Year's Day many claimed they slept very, very sound.

Crane's Post Christmas & New Year's Party

We made it to the 2010 New Year!! Some of us did. See the pictures of the fun we had while eating, playing games, chatting, chasing kids, shooting hoops and more. 'Crane Basket' with chickens, cows, horses, sheep & geese, was a hoot & is now the designated family game.

It was Julie's idea to combine our after Christmas party & New Years celebration.
I wasn't sure the over fifty crowd to stay up that late. Martell a young forty something wanted to crash about 9pm, but we kept him awake til the sky lit up with fireworks.

Thanks to all those that helped plan, set up, decorate, do games, clean up & so much more. A Special thanks to Elaine for spearheading the entire production.