yes, you CAN teach an old dog new tricks...

Although I fought it for a LONG time, Laura set up a facebook page for me awhile back. I resisted and refused at first, but curiosity got the best of me and soon I was checking it out more often than I'd like to admit. It is rather amusing, but I always feel guilty when I'm on it...as if my girls will feel they've lost their privacy. They've assured me that isn't so. Tonight I decided it's worth it after all...no guilt. I found my sweet niece, Alivia, and she seemed happy to hear from me. Knowing Alivia, that's not an act. She's one of the sweetest young women I know! So thanks, Laura, for teaching me a thing or two that I didn't think I'd need to know. I'm actually kind or enjoying this!

Summer Heat Firecamp

Last summer Bethany had the amazing opportunity to attend Summer Heat Firecamp thru the Colorado Springs Fire Department. This summer, she gets to be one of their teen volunteers. (She's really excited about helping out but NOT having to wear the heavy gear in the blistering heat!) Meanwhile, she was asked to go with a couple of the female firefighters to visit area high schools to talk about the program and generate interest among teenage girls. It's really great to see how she "comes alive" when she talks about all she learned and experienced at camp. Unless she has a much needed growth spurt, she'll probably never be a firefighter. But she's learning that there are other opportunities for her out there if she's interested. Rachael, a gorgeous firefighter she knows, suggested with her small size she'd be perfect as a paramedic on the life flight helicopter. While she has many years before she has to choose a career path, it's great to see people take the time to mentor young women her age.

slam dunked!

After losing the weekend due to being sick, it seems like both Laura and Ian have been slam dunked with one thing after another. They were both run down after not eating or sleeping well, so that didn't help much. Ian had a slight bug but thankfully was over it quickly. They've had tests, projects, and homework galore...one thing after another with barely a chance to catch their breath. I ache for them. The semester is rapidly coming to a close and it's definitely crunch time. I just want to yell at Satan to leave them alone!!! But instead I'll step up the prayers and accept that's all I can do for now. It's enough. God has control of their situations as He always does, thankfully. But if anyone else feels like adding their prayers for Laura and Ian, I know they'd be appreciated!

the festivities begin...

It seems like Amy has been counting down the days till graduation for a long time, and suddenly it's right around the corner! Today was the first of many end of the year festivities for the class of 2009...the senior breakfast and capping ceremony. This is the time when each senior chooses an individual to "cap them" as words are read that the senior wrote about that person and why they were chosen. My guess is that some of the seniors have never told the person (usually a parent) how they feel about them before. Those are the parents who have teary eyes. And when the senior tells of a parent being deployed and usually missing such events, there are tears in the audience. My tears today were for the daughter who thanked her dad (who was in uniform) for being there today since he would be in Afghanistan when she graduated, and she asked him to be safe. But my proudest moment was seeing my Amy with that cap on her head as her kind words were read. Next up is the 3.75 dessert for the graduating seniors who maintained a 3.75 or above all thru high school. After that are end of the year academic awards and then graduation!!! By the way, Amy's comment today was "why couldn't they just give us our diplomas today and be done with it?" After sitting for 4 hours, I wonder the same thing!

A hard lesson to learn...

Normally I do really well with Laura being away at school, but today it's been especially hard. Remember that "snow globe" blizzard we had yesterday? Evidently it was even worse in Golden. On Laura's last trip home she brought most of her winter clothes, boots, extra blankets, etc. So yesterday she trudged to class in tennis shoes thru slushy water and stayed in soaking wet shoes & clothes for hours on campus. By last night she was chilled thru and thru, and today has been especially rough. I'm thankful that Ian is close by and is taking such good care of her. We offered to come up, but he assured us there isn't really anything we could do that isn't already being done. This is when it's hard to be a mom...when my girl needs hot soup and aspirin and a warm hug. I guess we'll all learn a lesson from this...that winter isn't really over in Colorado until closer to May and that warm clothes need to stay in the closet in Golden and not the one in the Springs. Most of all, next year I'll send along a heating pad and an extra blanket! For now, a huge thank you to Ian, my hero!

going public...

Since Laura has gone public on her blog, I decided I might as well do the same. Laura and Ian have a very special relationship and we've enjoyed seeing their friendship grow. Everything they do is centered on Christ's will for their lives. It's beautiful to see and wonderful to be around. Their joy is contagious! And even I have to admit I've never seen Laura as happy as she is with Ian. My prayer is that they'll continue to be obedient to God and His plans for their lives...whatever the outcome. For now I'm enjoying watching their love unfold as they share their hearts with one another. And yes, our family adores Ian!

All good things must come to an end...

My cousin has flown back to Indiana, Brian is in LA, Laura and Ian are on their way back to school, and Amy and Bethany have school tomorrow. It's been a good week, but now reality kicks in. This week I guess I'll be taking Bethany to school at 6:30 since Brian isn't here and he's usually the one who drops her off on his way to work. No sleeping in for me. My coach has turned back into a pumpkin!

the ultimate experience

My cousin, Barbie, leaves tomorrow morning and I'm so sad that she has to go. We've had such fun together! In 2 weeks she turns 50, and 5 months to the day later I'll do the same. To celebrate, Mom & Dad took us to lunch at The Broadmoor. Barbie had never been there and it was fun to see it thru her eyes. It really is spectacular. Mom told us to not look at the prices but to order anything we wanted, so we did. We ended up being "cheap dates" (relatively speaking) since we both had soup and salad. For dessert the Seniors shared creme brulee, Barbie had a berries & cream concoction, and I had vanilla ice cream. (Don't laugh...I love vanilla ice cream!) The creme brulee ended up becoming a 4-way dessert since it was so large, and Barbie's eyes glazed over as she commented that it tasted like Heaven! What fun! Afterward we walked around and enjoyed feeling like royalty for a little while. Thanks, Mom & Dad, for such a treat. How about we do it again when I REALLY turn 50?!!

What I failed to mention...

In my previous blog I forgot to mention that the reason Barbie is so excited about all things pink is that she's going to be a grandmother in August of a beautiful baby girl! (And what a beautiful, wonderful grandma she'll be, too!)

reminiscing...

Barbie, Dad, Mom and I have been laughing this week as we recall memories from years past. Since I never had sisters, Barbie was the next best thing. She and I used to meet at our Nanny & Grandpapa's house for a week every summer to get away from those pesky brothers. She ended up with 2 sons and of course I had 3 girls. So I cracked up today when she said, "but I've never changed a girls diaper" and "how do you keep little girls from falling in when they go to the potty?" What a hoot! She's so excited about buying pink, girly things. Just my luck I'll end up with grandsons someday and then it will be my turn to be clueless. And then she can have a laugh on me!

Whirlwind!

Laura said I don't update my blog much anymore, and she's probably right. Brian started a new job last month and things have been a whirlwind ever since! He's still working at the same location here in the Springs, but now he'll be traveling about 2 weeks out of every month. It seems like I'm constantly packing him up, unpacking, doing laundry, etc in addition to the "normal" activities around here. I made 2 trips to Denver last week in 3 days and was so grateful they were both on sunny days (sandwiched in between the blizzards we had.) I've been trying for a month to get Amy set up again with her pain mgmt Dr, but the office where he'll be working part-time locally isn't ready yet to make appointments. Evidently there are still details to work out. So while I'm sorry I've neglected the blog lately, it isn't like I've been sitting around watching soap operas and eating bon bons! There are days I'm on the go from the minute my feet hit the floor until I finally get a chance to sit down at night, exhausted. I only wish there were more tangible things to show for my busy-ness! This week I'm going to relax a bit. My wonderful cousin, Barbie, is flying in this afternoon for a few days. I haven't seen her in several years, but we always mange to pick right up where we left off. It's going to be a blast, and I plan to enjoy every minute of it! On top of that, Laura and Ian will probably be here for the night on Friday, so that's something to look forward to as well. Life is very, very busy, but yes, it's also quite good!

Happy Birthday, John!

Happy birthday to my brother, John! I hope he gets to celebrate in style with those he loves close by. He's on the left in this picture taken in November with two of my other siblings, Tom & Joe. The best looking Puterbaugh kids aren't in the picture :) No offense, John.

more California fun...

a kid in a candy store!

This week has been a wild and crazy ride for Amy. She's having the time of her life in California! Brian is there on business and since she's a soon to be graduate on spring break, he took her along. Believe it or not, she'd never flown, so the fun began almost immediately! She loved running on the moving sidewalk thru the Denver airport...she spent hours looking out the window on the airplane...and she was thrilled to land in San Diego early enough in the day to go to the beach. With Brian gone for hours each day the potential was there for her to get lonely really fast, but thanks to my sweet sister-in-law, Gina, she's been busy doing the touristy things for hours each day! Honestly, it's a good thing Gina has the energy of a teenager...they've been all over the place! The daily recaps are priceless, the pictures are amazing, and I know Amy will come home with lots of awesome stories to tell. Being the creative genius that she is, I can't wait to see how it pours out of her!