Maxima

We had a nice day last Thursday.  We both were off work and we started out the day with coffee from Sati Coffee.  It is very European tasting.  We were running late so we got a scone which is presently forbidden so I thought it would be twice as delicious.  Blips got a cinnamon chip scone.  It was doey and not flakey.  bummer  I had a chocolate chip cherry scone.  That also was doey and not flakey.  I did not even finish mine. 

We then headed for our annual meeting with our great financial advisor.  After discussing American politics we got around to rebalancing our portfolio.  It is nice to trust our financial planner.  As I tell him, I would trust him with my children.  What a testamonial

Next we headed for downtown Minneapolis for our eye appointment.  We have just enough time to eat at our favorite Indian restaurant.  It has been completely remodeled and is now called Bombay Bistro.  It has both  Northern (hotter spice) and Southern(milder spice) food.  mmmmmmmmmmm and we end it with rice pudding. 

We have a wonderful eye doctor and we even pay to park.  You know how I hate to pay to park.  We talk alot about grandchildren since he has a new granddaughter about the same age as Jarne.  As we head home for the day, I think that retirement won’t be bad at all.  We have so much fun together that it will be rather nice to spend our days together.  I think we will be ok with retirement when it finally gets here.

I had to beg to get permission to put this mornings birthday pictures on my blog.  Yes, blips had a birthday today.  We started the day with pancakes,  even Mona got some.  Then we went to Caribou for coffee.  Blips coffee was free……mmmmmm large mocha.  Next was Chinese buffet but we were so full from the coffee that we only had one plate.  That’s ok, we are both losing weight.  Yes, the scale is finally budging for me.

I don’t think Mona has been allowed in bed with us for years.  She sometimes sneaks in bed when we are gone if I don’t hook the baby gate at the bedroom door.  So, here she is waking up Blips on his birthday.  She thinks she has to sit on the pillow.

Well, all I have to say about this birthday is that 58 is the new 38

The best part of the whole day was the phone calls from K and M.  That made it a perfect day. 

Mona has been a bit lost since I am now gone many hours of the day.  She is used to me being her daily pal and long walks in the afternoon or snuggling on the couch in the sunshine while I read a book.  Here she is with her blankies in the sunshine spot.  That green thing is her squeekie.  It sounds like a mouse and she thinks it is her friend.  She takes it with her around the house.

Now when I leave I cover her with a blanket to keep her warm.  When I come home, she sometimes is still in the same spot nice and toasty warm.  Here she is our cutie girl just poking her head up when I got home from work.  She still has her sleepy eyes

A couple local guys, Dave and Nick, invented a new bike.  It’s called ……..ta da…… drum roll please……..The Big Dummy.  They ride bikes all year round and found a couple things difficult.    1–transporting large cargo like from Home Depot  2–stability in the winter  3–multiple loads like kids and groceries at the same time.  So, they made a long heavier looking frame that has extra room for saddle bags, big fat tires and storage compartments.  They sold out all 90 of the first ones in four hours.  There is now a backload of customers.  

It looks Dutch to me.  All that is missing here is the Dutch attitude…..ride down the middle of the street at a speed to your liking.  Never mind that you are blocking traffic for a caravan behind you.  Of course, here in Minnesota that would be called suicide attempt.

Sam, maybe you want to rename your bike….the little smartie  

Sometimes my big brother gets bright ideas.  I won’t describe most of them but his latest was a great idea.  He thought that he and his two younger siblings should get together on even months.  It took me a while to understand the concept because I thought he meant all months with an even number of days in it.  No….he meant the 2nd, 4th, 6th months….like that.  Ok, I get the concept.  He said as we get older and our families expand, then we spend alot of time with them but not with our original family members.  He said he would organize the first get together(2nd month) and we met at the chinese buffet in Hutchinson, Mn.  Of course, he told me one buffet and David pulled up to a ‘closed on Sundays’ buffet.  hehehehehehe  Thank goodness for cell phones so we all ended up at the same buffet. 

So, the bright idea was for Gary, me and David and our spouses to get together on even months.  Anyone else in the family available can also come.  Here is our first sibling gathering.  David and his wife Doreen are in the back row with Asha(tho only other available person).  Gary is in the stripes next to his wife Orleen.  And on the left are the famous Blips and Maxima.  It was really alot of fun.  Now it is my turn to organize the next one in the 4th month.  Let’s see if I can make sure to tell everyone the SAME restaurant.

We were listening to the news the other day and heard that Minnesota is first in golf courses.  Yah, kinda wacko but they said Minnesota has the most golf courses per capita in the United States.  That is one golf course for each 40,000 people.  That sounds a little crowded to me.  Good thing I don’t golf.  In fact, I have openly mocked golf since I was a kid.  No need to stop now.

 For our anniversary I was able to sneak a card and some cashews into Blips luggage without him knowing.  He found it when he got to the hotel in Washington.   I am usually the one who can surprise him.  BUT, for Valentines day, he did surprise me.  There was a card on the table when I got up.  And hiding beneath it was a box of chocolates, my favorite.  ohhhhhhh he did surprise me and they were gone in 2 hours. (it was a small box)

Then, we had talked about going to the Led Zeppelin concert the end of March.  It is *not exactly* Led Zeppelin but the Minnesota Orchestra playing the music of Led Zeppelin.  So, I got tickets for Valentines day.  It is at a theatre in Minneapolis.  You know how I hate to go to Mpls.  I am a St Paul girl.  Last time I went to Mpls was for Phantom of the Opera two years ago.  But this concert we are very excited about.  And we have great seats.  So, I think I did surprise him also.

….and she’s buying a stairway to heaven

yes, naked sushi is coming to Minnesota.  The Temple Restaurant in Minneapolis is starting naked sushi next month.  Anything look delicious to you????  I hope they have brown rice …….white rice is too high a glycemic index

       euuwwwwwww

ohhhhhhhhhh I have not blogged in such a long time that I don’t think anyone is still reading this.  I am not sure I even remember how to post a blog.  Or do I blog a blog? hmmmm

This is what I have been up to since November 18th.

We welcomed Miles on Nov 23rd.  He is our great nephew.  I think he likes peace and quiet (see his hand over his ear).  He has a full head of white blonde hair and is adoreable.

Celebrate Thanksgiving.

Celebrate Christmas: bake and send cookies, decorate the house, buy all the presents, undecorate the house including taking down the outside lights except for the red/white/blue tree.  We light that on Friday nights so the neighbors coming home know it is the weekend.

We welcomed our first grandson on Januari 7th.  His name is Jarne.  Here is the whole family including our oldest granddaughter, Jonna.  Now M and G-J have *the king’s wish*, a boy and a girl.  We are very very happy for them.  I just want to reach in there and hug our grandchildren.  I love them sooooo much!

Blips was in Seattle for four days over our 7th anniversary, so I went out to Chinese Buffet by myself.  Our wedding reception was shared with family at a Chinese Restaurant, so I was remembering how long and short ago that day was.  It seems like we just got married.  Mona got my fortune cookie when I got home. 

We celebrated our middle grandchilds birthday.  Nancy is two now and looking more and more like a sweet little girl instead of a toddler.  K tells us that we are referred to as Opa and Amerika.  We know who Opa is so I must be Amerika.   That is soooo cute!

We went organic now that we have a Trader Joe’s in Woodbury.  After multiple young relatives and friends have been diagnosed with cancer, it is just something that is important to us.  That means we rarely eat out anymore since it probably is not organic.(Chinese buffet is excluded from this rule)  So, more shopping and cooking and cleaning up at home.

We go to the YMCA for fitness exercises 5-6 times a week.  This takes up most of our evenings.  Blips has lost 20 pounds and I have found 10 of them.  ?????  I know, don’t ask!  It just makes me want to scream.

I have been looking for a job and today I got hired.  Actually, I got hired by two places this week.  One is just 3-5 hours a week starting this spring, so I will do both jobs.  I am hopeing to eventually settle on a schedule of working Tue, Wed, and Thursdays with one day for community errands and one day to get things done around the house.  We are used to me being available at anytime to do whatever is needed.  I hope things go smoothly.   I start Friday with orientation. 

Mom tells me it was early on a Friday morining that I was born.  Six days later we both came home from the hospital and it was a Thursday also known as Thanksgiving Day.  So, that is the true story of Thanksgiving Day and my birthday.

I have my hair back to light golden brown and it had grown out enough that I could have a great haircut.  So, here I am with my new outfit and we decided to take off for a few days and celebrate my birthday.  I know…….I don’t really look my age

The Y is really working out.  All I can say is Y-M-C-A (you supply the music here)

When I was born I was so surprised I didn’t talk for a year and a half. ~ Gracie Allen
You can only be young once. But you can always be immature. ~ Dave Barry

I really like to pass out candy on Halloween and count the kids.  Tonight we had 57.  That is a normal number in the last few years.  But in the 90’s it was normal to have 175-200.  I miss a lot of kids…..a steady stream of kids at the door.  I love the costumes.  This year there were quite a few characters from the Harry Potter series.  My favorite was a little clown about 2 years old.  I could not get my camera to work.  But I did get a picture of this 50’s teenager with the pink poodle skirt.  She must be ‘going steady’ since she has the letter jacket on.  Her brother was all in white.  I am not sure who he was.

Mona went wacko the first few door bell rings.  Then she relaxed some and took advantage and sniffed all the kids as they reached for the candy.  There were two doggie costumes…..one a mutt and the other a dalmation.  No bully behavior from Mona for the dogs   How do you like my favorite Halloween trick?  I remove the screen and the storm window so I can give out the candy without opening the door.  Mona hangs out the window (to get the best sniffs) so I put towels on the window ledge.  We had a great night.  BTW, those are Dutch klompen hanging by the front door.

I went to visit my mom last week.  I was gone from Monday to late Friday night.  When I got home, Mona was my constant sidekick.  She followed me everywhere.  Here she is on her Denver Bronco’s blanket.  She is not a fan….it was just $1 at a garage sale and it is a really nice blanket.  If you sit at my computer and look down from my right elbow, that is Mona’s cave.  She is a very tired girl.

Here is my mom in an outfit that made me thirsty for kool-aid.  I have no idea what she is looking at up there but …..Mom, what is up with that purse?

Her knee is working pretty good.  No cane, no limping, and she even drives.  However, I was driving Miss Helen all week. 

You all know that Blips joined the YMCA with a family membership.  Since Mona is not allowed…..that leaves me as the intended target of the ‘family’ membership.  I started going just to support Blips because he was so determined to get fit again.  Not wanting to waste my time, I have developed a passion for the designed workouts also.  First there was about $200 in workout clothes.  You think you can wear just an old t-shirt but…noooooooo, it has to breathe.(quoting Blips here)  Then yesterday I caught a blip(pun intended) on the TV about MRSA, the superbug that does not respond to antibiotics. 

BUT…here is what is creeping me out.  MRSA used to be just in hospitals.  It now has moved to schools and locker rooms AND gym equipment.  GYM EQUIPMENT, you mean like all the machines people are sweating on at the Y???  The machines I use 6 times a week!  (Maxima shivers) The TV said it kills more people in the USA each year than the AIDS virus.  The Center for Disease Control said, 19,000 died in the US in 2005 from this virus.  Now I am super creeped out.  I am going to the gym today BEFORE all those sweaty guys drip on the machines.  It makes me feel just a little bit better.  And maybe I have to get out my dirty looks or start handing some of these guys the bottle of cleaner and a towel.  There is a bottle of sanitary stuff that you are supposed to spray on the equipment and wipe it with a paper towel as you leave a machine.  And I can hear it flying out of my mouth already…..”hey, you dripped all over that, wipe it down!”  Maybe it would be a good idea to bring Mona along for enforcement.  One look from a pit bull is much more effective than a dirty look from me.

and then I start thinking about the bottle.  You have to pick up the bottle to bring it to the machine to spray.  Yah, the same bottle the sweaty guys pick up to clean their sweat off the machine.  ohhhh geeezzzz, creepy feeling in my stomach returns.

Last week there was a picture in the local paper of a bride trashing her wedding gown.  Yup, it is supposed to show committment to the new husband….she won’t be needing it ever again.  Well, my first thought was….nobody ever wears the same wedding gown twice anyway so this is really weird.  She was in her gown with jewelry and all……laying on a mucky old log in a swampy lake.  Yewwww, I could even smell the green slime just looking at it.  And yes, her wedding gown was sinking/floating in the green mess as she stretched out over the fallen tree.

My only thought was……what the heck is the matter with people?

It is supposed to be a new trend on the east and west coasts.  They (whomever “they” are) say it is expected to be catching on in the midwest and be really hot soon.  Wanting to add some pictures so you could see what I mean, I went looking and found some great picutres in every kind of setting although the beach is the most popular.  Railroad tracks, dumps, running in the rain, bathtubs…….it has a competitive feel to it. 

I looked thoroughly at these brides.  They have all their teeth and are usually wearing shoes.  But, I am surprised to say…….that I actually got to like it.  Remember in the movie Harold and Maude when Maude took off the very special ring that Harold gave her and threw it in the ocean?  She said, “Now I will always know where it is”.  This wedding dress trashing has that feel to it.  Trash it, now you no longer have to pay $100 to clean it, seal it, store it and always hope it does not get yellow.  Now, you always know where it is…..in the trash.

If I was a trend setter, I think I would have the new husband swallow his ring to show committment.  That way he never forgets to wear it.

Sunday:

It is our final day in the Netherlands and we make it a family day. Lots of laughter and talking in Dutch and Jonna surprised us once again with: “Oh my gosh”

Here are pictures of Opa and Grammy with Jonna and Nancy.

With 31 Euro worth of spices and foods, we head for America.

Doei