Great weekend

I guess it is about time that I start blogging again. Had a great weekend--Kari & Charlie came out & we went to Paneras for lunch.Then we came back here & they cleaned my house.Great job. Then Mark, neighbor next to Denny was over & raked all the leaves that were in the yard. Wasn't that nice of him? He was the one who shoveled my driveway last year after Pudge went to Az. Kari brought out sone homemade wild rice &chicken soup that she had made. It was really ,really good. We are going to have Thanksgiving at Kari's house this year. It is too much for me to tackle without Pat here to help.
I have to go to eye Dr. today. Iwas there 2 weeks ago for routine check & the pressure in my rt. eye was high so he wants to check it again today.The left eye was fine.
Kari also put all my pix that are on the computer on a disc. After that is done I delete them from computer.I have a lot of pictures!! But the discs are sure a lot better than all the big old albums.
Our weather has been really great for Nov.It can stay this way for a whole lot longer!!

More about Ottawa

Another memory of Ottawa-We had to go to a little post office to get our mail.It had been agrocery store also butno groceries when we lived there.The train would throw out a mail bag as it roared thru Ottawa & the station master would take it to the post office. Outgoing mail was put in a bag then attached to an ironpost& as the train went by a man in the mail car had a long rod that he would grab the mail bag off the pole.My friend & I would go to the little depot to watch this & to see if the guy ever missed the bag. He never did when we were there. Then we would go to the P.O. to wait for the mail to be sorted & get our mail if we had any.
On Nov.11th 1940 my friend,Lorayne & I went to the P.O. about 11:30 to get the mail--It had been sunny in the AM but it started to snow about that time. It was about 12:30 when the mail came in & the snow was really coming down.We had a hard time walking home as the wind was blowing & it was snowing really hard! I was glad to get home.That was one of the worst blizzards in Minn. Many people were caught out in it & died.Trains & cars could not get thru the big drifts. We did not have electricity & were lucky that way as all electricity was out all over. Our neighbor borrowed lanterns from us so he could milk his cows.We had a battery powered radio so we could hear all the news about the blizzard-which was not goodnews!!

Ottawa

Donna wrote that the Kiewatt reunion was to be in the littlet0wn of Ottawa that is halfway between LeSueur & St. Peter. My folks moved ther when I was in high school.They lived on the old Kiewatt place. It had a barn &pigpen & chicken coop & outdoor toilet--No running water or electricity.My parents had 2or 3 cows & some pigs & chickens. there was a pasture & a small cornfield.The place was wired for electricity but they could not afford it so we had kerosene lamps & lanterns.
I did not want to change schools so it was decided that I could stay with Dorothy & Art in St Peter during the week & come home on weekends.The train ran thru Ottawa so I was able to ride it from St.Peter to Ottawa On Fri Eve & return on Sun at noon.The ride cost one dime!!!The conductors got to know me & were very friendly. Ginny went to school in Ottawa & the school is still standing but is very run down & is not used for anything.The old Kiewatt place is all gone --bought up by the white sand quarry which is a big enterprise in Ottawa. They ship white sand all over the country.

BIRTHDAY!!!

What a weekend! We really celebrated the birthdays--Fri Mary Beth, Denny & Pat were here for lunch.Mary made a really good pasta salad. Then on Sat neices & nephews were here(13) total & everybody brought something to eat so we had a great lunch.Ethan & Relia were the little ones & they really got along well.They sat on the little chairs that I have in my living room & pretended to have a tea party-Relia poured in little cups from the little teapot. & then they would pretend to drink --Then she would ask Ethan "Do you want some more?" & he would say yes.We took scads of pix of them!!- Then on Sun the family came for dinner(16) counting Denny.The only thing I fixed was a ham .Lots of good food & company over the weekend.And I do not feel any older!!
Mary Beth & Barb H. are going to the casino in Hinckley on Thurs.We have been there since last fall.
Diane made the neatest picture for me--It is pix of sisters & she had old pix of me Dorothy & Ginny.One was the 3 of us by the old Quonset hut that Ginny & Allan lived w hen he was going to college in Mpls.Can't see much of it but I know that is it. You can see the corrigated side(sp?).
I really want to thank everybody for making my 85th birhtday so special.





























1

This is March??!! It is a great one! At least Pat & Pudge won't be coming home to snow & ice! Bryan called yesterday & is coming out to get his boat this weekend--he is getting fishing fever with this nice weather. Diane-the manhunt had to be scary-Did they think he was hiding in the woods by your place?
Got the bill for the overnight stay in hospital --It was $9344--Quite an expensive hotel!! One baby aspirin was $5.46.Isn't that awful?? Thank goodness my hospitalization pays for all of it. I have'nt gotten the bill yet for the rescue squad. I will probably be shocked when I see that!
A big tree across the street by the creek fell down yesterday. It hit the shed on the house across the creek from me. The tree was really rotten.Denny went over to check it out. I heard it fall but Denny saw it go down.

Followup

I went to the Dr. on Mon for followup after hospital & everything is OK . The yeast infection is cleared up --My blood sugar is running a little high but Dr. gave me a med to get it more regulated & he assured me that it would not make it to low.I have been watching what I eat which I was very careless about before. Denny just came over to see some pix of his little niece who just had a 1st birthday party & the mom sent some pix .He has been coming over every morning to check on me. I guess I scared him pretty bad!!
















































7 he assured me it woul

Hospital

I guess most of you know that I was in the hospital Wed &Thurs because of low blood sugar.On Tues I was feeling dizzy & sweaty before I ate breakfast but after I ate I felt OK. Same thing before lunch & supper & also I had some tingling in my cheek. Denny was over in the evening & I told him about it . He did ask if maybeit had something to do with blood sugar but like a dummy I did not test it .SO in the morning Denny thot he should check on me before he went to his job.He woke me up & I could not talk -words very slurry & I had no strength-could barely move! Denny called 911 & the paramedics asked Denny if I was a diabetic & he said yes --They took my blood sugar & it was 50-They gave me glucose & within 5 min I could talk & answer their questions. Took me to the hospital in ambulance where they did a CTscan,Xrays of chest & an EKG.Next day the Dr, said all tests were normal. Isn't that good news? The probable reason for low blood sugar was I was on an antibiotic for ayeast infection & The antibiotic increased the diabetic meds. My meds are changed some now & I go to my DR on Mon for followup. Needless to say I am testing blood sugar 4x day.Now it has been a little high so maybe new med isn't working so well. That was sure a scare for me & everyone else!!
Kari & fam went to Az yesterday for a week. Jeff came out today & vacuumed & cleaned the kitchen-Did a good job too.
I came home on Thurs aft. Denny has been over Fri & SAt Am about 8:15 to check on me !!

Arizon

My six weeks in Az sure went by fast! The weather was chilly most of the time&rainy. I had to buy some sweat shirts & long sleeved blouses as I only had summer clothes there.Had sent them down with Pat & pudge so I did not have to bother with baggage on the plane.. We went to some estate sales--Pat was looking for furniture & to a big flea market.Went to a casino once but I did not like their 5cent machines( I play the 1cent or 2cent ones here)We went to Bingo one night at the community center. I do not care for that1Also they had a Minn night there-a good chicken dinner--Pat had Tshirts for us that had Minn on them-Mostly hockey shirts. Every morning the mourning doves would be cooing-there were lots of them. Even tho it was cool it was better than Minn --no snow or ice & green grass outside. It was fun watching the golfers right out the back.
Janet & Linda were here this past weekend We went to a concert at St Andrews church which was great.On Sun we went to Como Park to see the flowers which were beautiful. I had not been out there since Hans & Rachels wedding. The snow is melting fast which is great but we will probably get at least one Mar snow storm but we know it will not last long.

Christmas

After Christmas

Had a great Christmas --Everyone was here except Shannon who spent it with her Mom & Grandma. It was her 35th birthday also.Had a good time with our get together with the nieces & got some really good cookies with the cookie exchange!!I sent my clothes for Az with Pat & pudge so all I have to take when I go is a carry on.I am going on the 18th of Jan & return on Mar 1st.Now I am going to try to post some pix. Not to good at this yet!! Could not figure ho w to do the pix yet Will keep trying!!

Pretty table by Martha Stewart (Pat Soderberg) Zoie- Pat's Little neighbor girl. She loves Pat & wants to go with her all the time She is four & is such a good girl. She ate a little bit with us & then had to go home for her dinner at 6pm

Matt & Amber- his fiancee

news about cruise

Got back from the cruise late Sun. night-11:30pm---I was really tired as I had gotten up at 7am-Had a little nap at the airport & on the plane.The cruise was really great BUT I had forgotten how hot it gets in the Carribbean & with the humidity it was really bad for me. We only got off the ship 3 x .We went to San Juan,Puerto Rico,St. Thomas USVI,Antigua,TortolaBVI & Nassau,Bahamas. We went to a beautiful beach in St Thomas but I did not go in the water-to hard to walk in the sand but a nice breeze so it was good.We shopped in Antigua& I got a couple of bright flowered shirts. Then we took a tour in Tortola up the mountains with wonderful views. But the hairpin turns were a little much!!Then we took a city tour ro Nassau & that was the longest two hours of my life!!It was HOT& Humid & the tour cab was not air conditioned & the tour was boring.I was so glad to get out of there.My clothes were just wet from sweat.The food was great & the shows were really good-we went to the stage show every night after dinner.& there was a casino that we stopped at every day!!And we met some really nice people. It is raining & dreary out today-I am about to take a nap as soon as I get done with this letter.

news from Willernie

I Haven't blogged for awhile but when every day is the about the same &no news it is hard to think of something to write about.I always read everyones blogs every day & now facebook.It is so much more fun to read than to write!!
I did write an email about taking a cruise in Oct. This will be my 5th one--I really like those cruises!! Two have beento the Carribean(Western &Eastern) Panama Canal & Alaska. This one is also a Carribean but different ports of call.Nassau,Bahamas-& british Virgin Islands,St Thomas USVI & Puerto Rico.
Wed. I am going to Battle Lake MN-Not far from Fergus Falls -to Maxine & Alan Johnson's house for our yearly get together with Eleanor & Maxine.Alan is on oxygen & can't drive a long ways so we are going to their house. MaryBeth is going with me as I would not drive that far by myself. I do not drive very far any more--to grocery store,bank, & mall which is about 5or 6 miles from me. I can tell that my reflexes are not what they used to be!!
I have not sewed anything for a long time but now I am going to make two blouses for the cruise.one black & one print. I was looking at pix of the other cruises & noticed that I was wearing the same dressup blouse on 3 of them so decided it was time to make a new one!!.
Yesterday was cool & rainy so I made a big kettle of vegetable soup.It really hit the spot.
Oct 3rd we (Donna Janet Pat Diane & Dave ) are going to Scandia Mn.for a Swedish folk dress show.Scandia is a little north of Stillwater& was settled by Swedes.They have a museum there & several buildings(log) showing how the pioneers lived. This is also the area that the series of books--The Immigrants #1 & then 3 more but I can't remember the names of the others But they were really good books.Have any of you read them?They are fiction but really tell about the hardships of the pioneers.

Trevor

This is a pix of Trevor taken last week. I don't know where these kids get their height from!!Trevor will be 16 in Nov.& he is already 6 ft. tall!!

He is going to St. Thomas Academy this fall. He got a scholarship-He is really good at baseball as a pitcher. The school has started practicing for football already & he has gone to three practices--He was here today & was walking very stiff as he is sore from the practice!!

Duluth & company

I went to Duluth Sun. & Mon. to see Matt.This is a pix of him in his room.Hre lives in a house with 2 other guys & 2 girls. He is not far from the lake & has a great view from his window. They have 3 cats &2 dogs but the guy with the dogs was not there-he is on vacation--I saw 1 cat.It was on Matts bed when we came in.Met his girl friend also but she had to work at 5pm on Sun. We went to that restaurant ( an Italian one)for supper.It is right on the main street of Duluth. Then Matt had to work onMon.We went there for lunch before heading home .It is a Mexican restaurant--Matt is a cook there. The pix is him making our tacos.

Last weekend my brother-in- law Gene Bushard from Montana was here. He is 81 yrs old & still drives all over but his son drives the truck --They sell mufflers all over Mont & part of N. Dak. Gene just drives the car.

This year is the 60th year for Willernie as a city-they are not planning any big thing --just announcing it on the water bill.

concert at Como

Pat & I went to a concert at Como Park last night--It was Sweet Adeline choruses from around the state. Janet was there with part of her chorus(most were on vacation) but they sang at the end> There were over 200 on the stage singing & it was VERY impressive.Ijust watched it on YouTube. I could see Janet but I knew where she was standing otherwise I do not thinkI could have found her. Denny took me & his neighbors out to eat Mon. We went to the Roman Market which is here in Willernie where the laundromat used to be. He did this because of helping him with putting up a retaining wall between their houses & me because he parked his house trailer in my back driveway while the workmen were at his house.They have good food & big portions. We have had really good weather --but we still need rain.

Beet Greens!

Diane posted some great pictures of our weekend & Donna did a good job of telling what we did so that leaves me nothing to tell about except that it was a great weekend--The weather was just perfect!!And Sarah got good pic of their visit to Willernie--I just love looking at all the pictures.Relia is so cute --she says lots of words now,She liked the ants that Pat had on the table &Pat gave her some to take home.Last year at this time we were all getting ready for the Alaskan cruise--we had Relias 1st birthday party on the ship.
Yesterday I had Mary Beth over for lunch & cooked up some beet greens for her.SHE LIKED THEM! We had buffalo burgers also & an Irish dish called colcannan which is boiled cabbage & mashed potatoes mixed together.She liked that too.I really like it.The recipe calls for bacon bits too but I like it without.
Ginny ,what happened to the nursing home in Lake Crystal-it is not there by the cemetary. Did they move it?
Denny isn't done with his house yet-has to get the carpeting in but the builder is all done so he really isn't living in the new addition yet. He has washer & dryer & bathroom upstairs that he uses.

More pixat wedding

This is Gabby passing out Choc.chip cookies!

This is Shawn Barry watching the kids at the ceremony THe blond ones are Dans & the two other girls are Sineads. They were all very good!& cute!

pix of wedding

Cutting the cake -Sinead & Dan--PattyWagon in backPat driving-She decorated it for the bride & groom

mary beth ,liz, gemma at church for Sineads wedding