Pictures of Rachel

I finally remembered to take pictures of Rachel as she was getting ready for bed. I promptly went up and caught her reading as she brushed her teeth. I then gave her the option of changing clothes and she also wanted her hair up as that is how she generally wears it these days.




We aren't paying for school pictures this year for Rachel and had some people asking for an updated photo of Rachel so I took some last night after only a week of trying to remember. I suppose that isn't entirely true as I did take some at the swim meet on Saturday but they all came out blurry and all you can see if fuzzy swimmers so I'm not counting those.

Diane

Transitions

Fall may not officially arrive until Monday, but the trees are changing and dropping leaves here. We haven't had a freeze in town yet (for which I am grateful as I still have lots of green tomatoes on the vine).

It was four weeks ago today that as a family we drove down to Morris, MN to drop our oldest off at college. He checked into the dorm on Sunday morning and we drove home short one member of the family. It felt unreal then and still kind of feels unreal.

I pray for both children and my husband daily and I still do. The prayers for Stephen may be a little vaguer than before but not much. I pray for peace, perseverance and the ability to deal with whatever comes his way. While I don't know the days of big tests or particular times he is stressed the prayers remain the same.

And fall has traditionally been such a busy time in this family that having one fewer doesn't seem to matter. I think that might be that Jeff is busier than ever. He is doing some freelance work for the local paper, writing sports stories and being the techie for the online radio that covers local games. Yesterday he went to Ashland WI and back for a football game.

I am more involved this year with the girls swim booster club and am coordinating the concession stand. But that hasn't meant a whole lot more work, just being organized. I am doing more programs at the library this fall and that might be adding to the busyness.

So how has live changed with one kid in college, not much on the surface. And underneath, I'm still dealing with the changes, so I'll have to remark again in the future, but overall we're doing well with the change and excited to have launched the first kid out into the world, even if it is a halfway launch to college.
Diane

September Saturday

It is Saturday and I think it could be what will become the new routine for Saturdays around here, at least during the fall. Jeff provided the technology expertise for bronco radio last night during the Falls/Virginia football game and then went to the radio station for a shift this morning until noon. I got up and helped Rachel get to the school by nine for a varsity girls swimming invitational in Bemidji.

I worked around the house and enjoyed the quiet. I'm still hoping Stephen will call tonight. Jeff has been in email touch with him and thought he was sounding homesick. But he did share that he had auditioned for the improv troupe at UMM. He thought it had gone well and was hopeful.

Our weather is definitely fallish with temperatures in the low 60s and showers. I am beginning to slowly get a few ripe tomatoes and this week managed to get one decent zucchini and made two loaves of lemon zucchini bread. I have also had a good crop of cucumbers this year and made 4 jars of pickles so far.

Rachel is swimming well if not more than she thought this year. They have a new coach and a small team. She is about the only girl who swims distance and is regularly swimming the 500. She is also being asked to swim the 200 and often the 50 in the medley relay and the 100 in the 4X100 relay. So she swims the first and last race of the meet and then two in the middle.

Enjoy your fall and let us know what is happening with you.
Diane

First Week without Stephen around

We have all survived our first week with Stephen away at college. Jeff, Diane and Rachel spent almost an hour on "Skype" with Stephen. Skype is an online phone service that allows you to talk via computers for free (or at least without additional charges beyond our monthly Internet connectivity charges). He was in the process of doing laundry for the first time and talked about his first three days of classes. It sounds like he is staying busy and doing well.

He is looking at auditioning for the improv club at school. He had hoped to join the fencing club, but that folded last year. So he is looking at some other options and is considering the improvisation club but you have to audition to join so he doesn't know at this point if that will work.

A beautiful weekend here but it doesn't feel as hot as the thermometer says, I think the back of summer is broken, but it was a pretty weak back this year. I think we only had one day officially above 90 all summer and not very many in the 80s. My tomatoes are definitely pretty green still, so I'm hoping we still have a few more weeks before we freeze. I may cover the plants with black plastic bags if it is threatening a freeze.

Take care.
Diane

Stephen has flown the nest

Today, we dropped our oldest off at college in Morris Minnesota. There was a fair amount of excitement and a lot of unknown. We are all entering a new phase of life and aren't really sure what we should be feeling. We drove down yesterday and checked him into the dorm about 8:30 this morning. We spent some time together including a tour of the new biomass gasification plant and wind turbine. We were able to meet his roommate and his family before leaving him there as we drove the six hours home. We did stop at a roadside stand on the way home and picked up some fresh sweet corn.

I think the changes won't really impact me until Stephen isn't here for big events in our lives, things like the first day of school, his birthday.

Hopefully we can keep this blog updated better this next year as we document the changes in family life.

Diane

Stephen's at College

Well, we have a kid in college.

Diane, Rachel and I are fresh back from Morris (about a six hour drive) having successfully deposited Stephen in his dorm room at UMM. It was a very interesting day. Timeless, in a sense. I had the strong feeling much of the day that this is one of those moments you just don’t live through twice. Yes, we’ll be dropping Rachel off at school soon (hopefully not too soo. There is this performing arts high school in the Cities, but I don’t want to think about that just yet) but Stephen is our first born. Leaving your first born at college is just one of those things; like getting married or actually having the kid.

The day went about as well as it could. We got a fitful night’s sleep in the Prairie Inn, then got down to campus right around 8:30am. A crew of upper classmen was on hand to haul stuff into Stephen’s room (a tradition at UMM). They were surprised at how little he had, and very impressed by the Xbox and the fencing foil. Stephen is in room 18 of Pine Hall. It’s a pretty standard dorm room, in the basement just like his Mom’s dorm room had been.

We took a ‘Green Tour’ of the college’s biomass heating plant and its wind turbine. They do a fair amount of practical energy research at this school, and are planning to be energy self-sufficient and off the power grid by 2010. Then it was back for lunch and a return to the dorm room where Stephen finally met his roommate, a nice kid from Granite Falls, MN named Andrew. Andrew’s whole family was in the room as well, so we had a chance to chat with them a bit. When they decided to head off to the Student Center and see about Andrew’s mailbox, we took it as our cue to make, ‘The Big Departure.’

Stephen walked with us out to the car, and he looked ready. There had been some nerves earlier in the day, but those had passed, and he was laughing, and joking. He was – well, ready.

Jury’s still out on Mom and Dad.

WOW! Check it Out!

Check out the trailer that Rachel posted on her movie site and on YouTube! It is worth watching. I haven't been all that involved in the production as I have been at work while they have been shooting but have heard about the work at the end of each day. Here is a taste of what is to come.

http://webpages.charter.net/jeffreyamn/freedombird/Welcome.html

A proud mom.
Diane