Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh, My!

O.k., so the title of this post is cliche but it sort of fits and appears to stretch the limits of my creativity today. I find it nearly impossible to believe that November has arrived and the anniversary of moving into this house looms in four short weeks! Even in retirement, life zooms along full-speed ahead (another cliche, I know) and suddenly . . .my daughter is 30 years old!

The weekend of October 23-25 we celebrated Meg's 30th. Josh planned an "extravaganza" complete with surprise 'day with her friends' on Sunday, October 25. Meg was truly shocked when the planned 'outing' for the day proved to be with gals from her Simplot days and included lunch at Ruby Tuesday's, a few quarters into the slots at nearby Ft. Hall casino and some shopping.

Later that evening, we toasted her last day of the 20's decade with dinner and a menu Josh developed including grilled shrimp appetizers, steaks on the grill, twice-baked potatoes, fresh asparagus and homemade (a collaborative effort between Josh and Linda) key-lime cheesecake.

The highlight of the evening, however, was the unveiling of Josh's gift to Meghan. . . something he'd been researching and working on (clandestinely in our basement) for over a month. Apparently, Meg loves pinball, so Josh bought Meg a "FUNHOUSE" collectable, full-size pinball machine. He's refurbished it so it looks nearly brand new, upgraded lots and cleaned it up. What an amazing idea and gift! Meg's face showed the classic "wow and am I ever taken by surprise look" when she saw it!

Earlier in the day, Glenn and Miles carved our pumpkin for Halloween. In our store of family photos, we have a cute snapshot of Meghan (age 12 months) standing with Glenn in her diaper, carving the pumpkin. Glenn wanted to recreate this pose with Miles, so my boys carved the squash that day.

It was a wee bit early to create the Halloween character, but sadly for all of us left behind, Glenn drove off early Monday morning, October 26 for a five-week trip back to the midwest. Because our hunting property has yet to sell, we felt it best that Glenn continue taking advantage of the hunting opportunities there, plus, we didn't feel comfortable leaving it unattended during Michigan's ever popular rifle season. Our luck would have two trespassers shoot each other and sue us! So, at 4:50 a.m. on our daughter's 30th birthday he drove off . . .

. . .however, I'll be reconnecting with him on Friday, November 20 when I fly from Salt Lake City to Detroit. It will be a whirlwind trip for me, taking in the UM vs OSU game Saturday (after the last two Wolverine games that could be depressing), then a visit with Glenn's family, one day in Reese, and on to IL on Tuesday, November 24. We'll spend the Thanksgiving holiday with Brenda and family and start the trek west on Saturday, November 29. That allows three days for a two-day trip, but we plan for a bad-weather day. Also, arriving in Inkom Sunday, November 30 will allow one day to visit with Josh's folks.

I spent part of Halloween Day entertaining. Eight women, as well as Meghan, from the neighborhood spent a part of their Saturday morning having breakfast with me. I'd invited them as a way to say "thanks for welcoming me to your neighborhood." It was delightful to sit and chat and get to know them all a bit better. As an added bonus, none of them had ever heard of or prepared "omelets in a bag" so that was a fun thing to share.

Later, the Jurgens invited me to trick-or-treating in old town Pocatello . . . really fun to see all the kids in their many and varied costumes. Of course, a real treat to be with Miles our resident lion for his first trick-or-treat adventure!

Later, Meg made homemade pizza. Josh and I cleaned up the kitchen while she bathed Miles. I came home around eight o'clock, watched a bit of t.v. (for the first time since Glenn left!) and hit the sack.

Of course, with Glenn back in the midwest, Miles and I are getting a good bit of one-on-one time. Tuesdays we take in Book Babies at Marshall Library in Pocatello. This last week they celebrated Halloween, so Miles attended in his lion costume. We then spent some time browsing the dollar store before heading home.

Miles and I are getting along just fine . . . although when asked where Grandpa is, Miles holds his hands palms up, and sort of shrugs his shoulders, points at our door and says "Bye-bye." Really sad when you're standing there next to him. . .

This week we began integrating arts and crafts into his experiences. Above, Miles learns all about fingerpaints which he really enjoyed. He enjoyed painting with them, and putting his blue fingers on his nose and tasting (the non-toxic) primary colors. We also made a Halloween card for his folks!

Grandma has also 'graduated' Miles for his suppertime with me. I strap a plastic booster chair purchased at Goodwill for $1.99 (as well as one phone book) to a bar stool. He and I eat dinner side-by-side at the kitchen island. I even give him a placemat and napkin. Then, while I clean up, he gets a bit of cookie and milk for dessert. After, we're off to bathtime and his jammies. By that point, we have only 15-30 minutes to wait for his mom and dad, so we read books.

It's a bit of a long day, but the afternoon routine keeps his interest until Meg and Josh arrive. In his card I wrote "thank you for visiting me while Grandpa is gone" and it's true, having the little guy around does make it less lonely on the top of my hill!

In other tidbits about the last two weeks:

*Meghan reported this week she's getting a raise and peformance bonus

*Josh interviewed within Agrium for another position, a step up, but the outcome has not yet been announced

*A total of ten mule deer have wandered through our lot (at least 10 that I saw) since Glenn left. He reports I've seen more deer in our yard than he's seen hunting so far!
*Long time friend (we met in kindergarten!) Mary Jo (Krick) Weessies called to say she is planning a visit to Idaho in 2010 and I'm excited to have her here

*Although the weather here has been moderate, we did have snow Friday morning 10/30, but it's gone at this elevation. However, looking out our east window toward the mountains a dusting of snow remains near the tops

And, as regards life zooming past, I can't believe Glenn's been gone seven days already. I've got two countdowns marked on my calendar; 20 days until I see him again at Detroit Metro and 29 until he returns to his pal, Miles. Right now, it seems like forever, but I know that suddenly, I'll be packing frantically . . . !