August Tales

Dear All,

Well here we are in September one of my favorite months of the year! I always loved September in Australia because it was the start of Spring and it always bought with it, the promise of warmer days ahead. Here in America, I love it for different reasons. Here it brings relief from the hot days of summer. We can turn off the air chillers, open the windows and sit outside in the evenings without being attacked and carried off by mosquitoes (although they have been scarce this year). September is also the month of anniversaries - Kelly and Nate's, and Paul's and mine. This year it will also bring us our first grandson!!!!!!!!!!!!

Kelly is now due is two weeks. We are hoping he stays put until his due date of the 23rd. Kelly is in unison with us as she wants the time to be better organized at work. Nate however, has an agenda of his own. On a daily basis he talks to him and tells him to come out and meet daddy! We admit that we are bursting with excitement, however, depositions in our court case are set to continue this coming week, and we are legally bound to be here. Apart from the obvious discomfort of being 38 weeks pregnant and the inevitable swelling in her leg, Kelly is doing very well and is progressing normally.

Depositions did start a few weeks ago when Paul was questioned from 9am to 5pm with just a short break for lunch. However, the opposing attorney says he has several more hours of questioning to go before he even starts with me! I find it a daunting prospect, but I also can't wait to have it all over and done with. I can't imagine how I would be able to focus if Kelly was to go into labor and give birth while they were taking place!

The attorneys will be doing the depositions at our house once again. It is roughly a half way point for both of them and far more convenient and easier for Paul.

Erin has started her course at Nursing College and seems to be enjoying it so far. She says it is very full on and the work demanding. She has about a 40minute commute from her apartment, but luckily, she has met others and is car pooling with them. Erin was also bridesmaid for her friend Tabitha who was married a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately, we were not able to make it, but we were told it was a beautiful wedding.

Lauren has been successful in finding full time employment. She is working in an administrative role in a forensic lab. Naturally, she would prefer to be in the lab, but she is hoping that if a position opens up in the lab in the future, she may be able to get a transfer. Meanwhile, she too says the work is demanding, but she is enjoying it. At this point, she likes the people she is working with and as it is out of the public eye, she is able to dress casually, which saves money on office attire.

Damien too is well and seems to have plenty of work to keep him busy. I am encouraging him to think about a visit over here before too long and am hoping the lure of a nephew will do the trick! He admits to missing Australia, so it is difficult to find the time and money to visit us and have a trip back to Oz as well.

Mack (our dog), managed to get himself "skunked". It seems he chased a skunk into the woods and was sprayed full on in the face. He got it in the eyes, nose and mouth. You could smell it all over the neighbourhood. He started to drag his face over the concrete. The smell is the most disgusting smell you can imagine. Skunks are so pretty to look at too!

Anyway, we caught him and bathed him immediately to no avail!!!! Julie and Chris came to the rescue with tins and tins of tomato juice. We rubbed the tomato juice all over him and let it sit for 15 minutes then rinsed him off! He was confined to the basement for the night and next morning the entire basement stunk as well! We aired the basement and called the vet who advised us to bath him in a mixture of dawn dish washing liquid and hydrogen peroxide. We did this and then Julie and Paul rinsed him off in the lake!

After this, you could still smell it on his head if you got close enough, but it was decidedly better! We went boating a couple of times and when we do Mack likes to swim. Every time he got wet the smell was dreadful! Poor dog also developed a bad case of the itches. We put him on antihistamines, which did nothing. As he was crying and scratching himself raw, we took him to the vet and she put him on steroids. He is still on them, as she said it takes around 30 days for the skunk oil to get out of his skin! I am telling you, if it happens again, I will be on the next plane to Oz and will only return when it is out of his system!

Most Americans have smelt a skunk in their time, either by sniffing the air after one has sprayed or by driving past or over a dead one, but for Aussies, it is hard to imagine and lets hope you never have to smell it!!!!

Paul is doing well. Home Nursing and Home Physiotherapy discharged him last week! There were a great bunch of people and were very helpful. We intend to go out to dinner with one of the nurses and her husband in the not too distant future. Sheree and John have been to visit a couple of times (socially), and we have a lot of fun together.

We had a huge barn sale last weekend. It took weeks to get prepared, as we had soooooooo much stuff stored in the barn and I had to go though so many boxes. Bobby Bennett (Paul's mate), came up/down?? from Chicago to help get the boxes off the pallets and set up tables. He returned the week of the sale, along with Sid (cousin). I doubt I could have done it without their help.

We sold a bit of stuff prior to the sale to neighbours and friends and the sale started very slowly on the Thursday and continued on the Friday and Saturday! I begun to despair that all the work and preparation was for nought! Sid did carpark duties and directed people to parking. At the end of the first day he said we could make a lot more money giving house tours as everyone was more interested in the house. We had the house barricaded!!! He also said he was charging for parking and making a lot of money. (not true).

Donna and Dan (friends), came over to help on Thursday and again on Saturday, along with Julie and Chris, so we actually had a lot of fun.

We did have some colorful characters come to the sale. Firstly, there was parrot man and his bare-footed wife. He came with a large, tame, macaw parrot on his shoulder and she walked bare-footed over our stony driveway!!! One of the customers had a bird phobia , so she came and sat behind me whilst parrot man and barefooted babe shopped.

Next came breakfast boy! It was an adult male in his 50's who turned up with a tray on which he had a ceramic bowl filled with cereal and milk, and a plate with muffins on it. He took the tray with him, and proceeded to eat his breakfast whilst he shopped!!! He was very eccentric, but bought a lot of stuff, so we suffered him gladly!!!

Then we had antique lady. She is a lovely lady, knowledgeable in antiques who gave me a lot of advice in exchange for a sale preview and a big discount. She came the night before the sale, but when the sale began, she came back with her daughter and granddaughter and then came back again with her grandson. Each time she came, she bought something else, so I awaited her visits with eager anticipation.

We also had "liver man". He was lovely and was a horrible shade of yellow. He is awaiting a liver transplant. We had an American Indian who suffers from the effects of Agent Orange in Vietnam and a legless man! They were all very nice and stayed to chat and tell their very interesting stories. It was almost worthwhile, just to meet the local characters.

The sale was due to finish on Saturday at 1 and just as we were closing, people started to come in! It turns out we sold as more after the sale officially ended on the Sat. and Sunday!!!

Unfortunately, on the Sunday morning, people kept coming up our driveway and when we asked what they wanted, they said they were just bringing people back to look at the house! I thought they were very rude. However, when I went to the barn to begin packing up stuff to donate to charity, people came down and we sold a lot more. We sold over $3,000, gave away a lot and still have enough to call in a charity truck. At least we will eventually have a tidy barn!!!

Well folks, thats it for the month of August!

Lots of love to all,

Paul and Kathy

July Community Email

Dear All,

Okay, so I know it is August, but July disappeared in the blink of an eye and I just didn't get around to writing!

I love July in America - firstly, it is slap, bang in the middle of summer, plus, it is very festive because of 4th July. Independence Day celebrations start long before the 4th and continue on way past.

There are many holiday makers who come to stay in various rental properties on the lake, and they bring with them lots and lots of fireworks. Naturally, we take advantage of the free displays and sit out on the deck of an evening with a glass of wine and munchies and wait to be entertained. We are not often disappointed.

On the 4th, we went to a barbeque at a neighbours place, where we enjoyed great food and got to meet a lot of new people, all of whom proved to be a lot of fun. Our Lake Association also holds a decorated boat competition and the various boats parade around the lake for all to see. This year we didn't join in, as we were far to busy to be organised in time - but we have vowed to be better organised next year. Believe it or not, we confess to coming home late afternoon for a "Nana Nap" to recharge the batteries and returned again at dark in time to view the various displays around the lake. It was an awesome display, leaving us feeling like 'bobble heads' as we twisted and turned and oohed and aahed in every direction.

On the 7th we headed off to Chicago early in the morning to visit with Paul's cousin Murphy and his wife Millie. After our visit we went to Paul's annual family picnic. They have been holding a picnic each year for the past 18 years! It is held in a forest preserve and once again Paul's cousin Sid, his wife Mary and their adult children organised the event. They have lots of games for the children and the adults and the day is never long enough to catch up with everyone.

This year, our friends John and Vickie and their children popped in also to catch up with us. Another friend Rochelle also met us there and late in the afternoon we headed back to Michigan with Rochelle following us as she was coming to visit for a few days. When we arrived home around 8pm, after having left at 6 am, we joined our next door neighbours at the tail end of their annual family picnic.

Larry and Jan are great neighbours and it was good to meet their extended family. It was a shame the dates clashed as it would have been great to share the entire day with them.

On the Sunday, another friend Frank came to stay and we enjoyed a leisurely boat ride, good food (once again), and a lot of laughs.

Monday morning, Frank and Paul took off on ATV and in the car to do "boys stuff" and returned in time to enjoy a grill out before Frank headed off back to Chicago.

Once he left, Paul complained of feeling tired (as were we all) and he took himself off for an afternoon snooze. Rochelle and I laid low also for awhile, but Paul slept on and when I went to wake him in time to shower and change as Rochelle was taking us out to dinner, he complained of feeling unwell.

I slipped into my "nursie" role, took his temperature and checked him and called the doctor who said to get him to ER. Our little trip to ER lasted 8 days, as Paul had a urinary tract infection which in turn led to Sepsis.

Prior to discharge, Paul had a Pic inserted and on discharge, we had to go to the infusion centre each morning. They set him up with antiobiotics which were pumped into his system over a 24 hour period via the pic. He was discharged on the Monday and then had the Pic removed the following Saturday much to our relief. He was given the all clear and we were finally able to sleep in!!

Paul is improving steadily, but still has home nursing and therapists visits here at home. It really knocked the wind out of his sails as he suffered muscle breakdown. Paul has more lives than a cat and once again, he beat the odds!! He is one brave, determined man.

Unfortunately with Paul's sudden illness, I was unable to fly to Atlanta for Kelly's Baby Shower. I was sorry to miss it as Kelly said it was fantastic. She was overwhelmed with the trouble her girlfriends went too and with the generosity of the gifts. I have put some pictures on the blog under Kelly's Baby Shower if anyone wants to look.

Nate's colleagues also put on a baby shower for them last week and once again, they were both blown away with everyone's generosity!

Erin was accepted into nursing school and begins her course on the 27th of this month. She was up recently for a visit with her boyfriend Chris and is hoping to come back next weekend before she begins her course. She will be 22 on the 22nd of this month!

She is currently in New Orleans enjoying a four day stay. Chris had to go on business, so he bought an extra ticket and took her along. She seems to be enjoying it immensely, but alas she has had a stomach upset. She drank water out of the tap - not advisable in New Orleans I would think. Although a lot of the city is up and running, she said there is still a lot of buildings boarded up and many signs of devastation. She said although it is a fun place, it is a very sad place as well. It seems there are many poor people there who should be receiving help and they are being neglected - it is just not right.

Kelly's pregnancy is still progressing well and I am busting with excitement. It is just under 7 weeks to go and I can't wait. Doctor says everything appears to be normal and he is no longer breech - he had the good sense to turn around. Given that he moves continuously, who knows which way he will end up!!!

All is well in England with Damien and Lauren. Lauren is still desperately trying to find employment other than bar work, but as yet, she has had no success. Her lack of work experience here in the States is working against her.

The photo above is obviously Paul and his buddy Mack (our Aussie Shepherd). Mack loves to ride on the boat and one evening we had our friends John and Alex, along with Alex's mum Krista over for dinner and a boat ride. Krista took the photo and emailed it to us.

At the end of July we went to Dave and Sandi's for a pig roast. It was unbelievable! They have around 20 acres and each year they hold a special family and friends weekend. Many family members bring trailers(caravans) and tents and camp on the property for the weekend. They put up marquees and tables and chairs etc. and on the Saturday night roast a pig. I was so sorry I didn't take my camera. I was awestruck when I saw the pig. It was a huge, huge black pig laying spread-eagled on a big kettle grill. It still had its head (open eyes), and its legs and its skin etc. A friend took photos for me, but he hasnt emailled them onto me yet!

All the guests bring their own drinks and a plate of food to share. It was a gourmet feast and it too was followed by a great fireworks display!! Once again, we got to catch up with friends and to meet a lot of new people. By gosh I love country living!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

August was just about fully booked up - Sr. Sandi's Golden Jubilee on the 5th. We were sorry to miss it and believe it was a great day with around 370 guests!! On the 11th, John and Vickie are hosting an Open House (house warming for the Aussies), and on the 17th, Tabatha and Chad (friends of Erin and us), are getting married and Erin is a bridesmaid. Unfortunately, with Paul's health, we decided to stay in Michigan and allow him ample time to recover.

Paul and I are taking legal action against our General Contractor and on the 15 and 16 August, the opposing attornies are coming to our house to take our depositions. I am dreading it, but it must be done, as this guy is a crook and must be stopped.

Well folks, as usual, I have rambled quite a bit, so will finish up for now.

Love to everyone - Paul and Kathy.

PS - Richard and Christine - your trip sounds wonderful - perhaps you could set up a blog and share some photos.

Maureen - some photos of the various birthday parties and new house are in order!

David and Ali - we are in Michigan and Kelly is in Atlanta. Try and fit us in when you come to Utah - we would love to see you both.

Paul and Dot - you would be blown away at the bird life we can view from our chairs on the back deck. Various woodpeckers, blue jays, red winged blackbirds, American gold finch, tufted titmouse, various gosbecks, bald eagles, hawks and many more. My favourite is the humming birds. They are so tiny - only 2 to 3 inches, and they are constantly sipping from the humming bird feeders during the course of the day!

Heather - great to get your newsy email - hope this one covers me.

Tom and Eileen - perhaps when both Paul and Eileen are recovered we could meet at Blue Chip Casion for a catch up and a meal????????

Donna - hope you are doing okay - we think of you often.

Karin - am glad to hear you are on the road to recovery at last.

Frank - I will get you that other web site later today.

Lou - Make sure you show this email to Dennis for me!

Sheryl - was great to chat the other night.

Kelly's Baby Shower

Kelly's girlfriends - Joanne, Kim, Lisa and Heather recently put on a great baby shower for her.

Joanne & Kim (two of the hostesses) put finishing touches to the DIAPER CAKE!

Lisa (another hostess) presents the finished cake! (Note the Aussie flags)

Joanne, Kim & Heather (another hostess)

The gathering of friends for the opening of the gifts.

A very cute bib!!!!!!!!!!! (read it, if you can)

Lisa watches on as Kelly explores a pretty baby box.

A good story?

Maybe a game of charades!!

A sarcastic comment? Not my girl!

Kelly with her much loved mother-in-law Cherie (back) and sisters-in-law Mandy (left) and Jessica on the right.

The in-laws concentrating very hard on a game of something!
Look - they're not cheating either!

Glad to see one side of the family is clean!

The girls put the finishing touches to the Diaper Cake!

Our Winter Wonderland

The pine trees at the entrance to our drive way.

Some hungry deer, feeding at our corn feeder.

We view this from our kitchen window.

Paul & Bobby out snowmobiling!

View over the frozen lake from the back deck.

View from the front door, looking towards the barn

Paul returning from snowmobiling!

Christmas - 2006

At left - Paul with his Bears coffee mug!

Me handing out the stockings.

Please realise the camera adds around 50 lbs!!!

View from the living room looking up to the loft

Thanksgiving 2006

This picture of Lauren was taken at Thanksgiving.

You can see she was reluctant and obviously being disrespectful to her lovely mother!!!

I am sure she was anxious to get stuck into the dishes and I was holding her up!

Erin, Kelly, then Lauren

- smiling on instruction from Kelly - "come on

girls - let's get it over and done with. You know

she won't give up til she gets us.

GET A ROOM!

Sherie & Doug (Nate's parents).

The Host and Hostess with the mostest!!!! A wonderful meal - great company - equisite decor and great memories.

Monthly Newsletter

Dear All,

Here we almost at the end of June (just 6 months til Christmas)!!!! This will be a shortie as there is little in the way of interesting news.

Paul and I did go to Atlanta, leaving here on a Wednesday and returning the following Tuesday. We took our time on the drive there and stopped frequently. I thought it would be good for Paul to have some breaks from driving while I checked out some outlet malls! He was lucky that there wasn't much room in the car. It was well stacked with paint (surplus from construction), cases, and nicknacks for the nursery etc. Paul actually let me drive for a few hours on the way. Mind you, he kept a vigilant eye on me. I am not sure if he was worried for his safety or his precious car!!! I guess it is a man thing, but they tend to think women cannot drive big cars (it is an excursion). I have to say, I would not swap my jeep for it under any circumstances.

We stayed overnight somewhere in Kentucky or Tennessee and arrived early afternoon the Thursday. Nate was out of town on business, so we had dinner at a lovely restaurant with Kelly. Kelly had Friday off work, so we dragged Paul around to baby stores checking out baby furniture. On the Saturday, Nate and Paul painted the nursery while we baby shopped again. Unfortunately, the time went all too quickly and we set off for home early Monday morning. We wanted to get out of the city before morning rush hour. We had a great trip home, little traffic, and glorious weather. Paul actually let me take the wheel for about 5 hours and he slept!!! If he hadn't started to snore a little, I would have thought he was dead. It is much easier to drive without him watching me as I don't have to keep an eye on my speed. I always try and get behind a red car that is speeding and just do a little bit less than them. I figure they will get pulled over before me!!! We did intend to stop again for the night, but as Paul was refreshed from his sleep when I got tired, he took over and we went straight thru. I am now know as the 'diseal duchess"!

Paul's friend Bob Bennett babysat the dog and the house whilst we were away which was great. We didn't have to worry about Mack fretting and Bob watered the plants etc. He did admit, that he was unnerved on a few occasions by house noises! Although Bob spoils Mack, he did seems to miss us - I got a nice wag of his tail, after which he almost knocked me over to get to Paul - he went crazy for Paul, almost jumping on his knee!

Erin is currently in London visiting with Damien and Lauren and judging by the short and infrequent communications we have had, she is having a wonderful time and she loves London. Tonight they were meeting up with Kerryn and Michael and Owen for dinner.

Lauren's boyfriend Mike went over to visit for a week and left only a few days before Erin arrived and she also had the opportunity to catch up with a few Aussie friends who were passing through (Courtney, Sam and Danielle). I guess she will feel a bit lonely when Erin leaves tomorrow.

Kelly is doing well and her pregnancy is progressing normally. She has 13 weeks to go, so obviously her pregnancy is obvious now.

We had a great evening here before we went to Atlanta. We decided it was time to catch up with neighbours, so we had them over for a barbeque. We had about 18 people and we had a really great night - we really have a great bunch of neighbours.

Seems I have been slow to finish this, as Erin is now back in the States. It is Thursday here and tomorrow she is driving up with Chris (boyfriend), and I guess I will get all the news and gossip then. They did have dinner one night with Belinda and Matt and Kerryn and Michael another evening. Owen, unfortunately slept through the evening and the girls did not get to play with the cousin, much to their disappointment.

Paul finally got to go fishing at the weekend. He went with my girlfriend Julie on Sunday morning. They did try and persuade me to join them, but unsuccessfully. I told them I was busy - I would be looking at the back of my eyelids, which was far preferrable to put worms on hooks!!! I got up, read the paper, sipped coffee and ignored cell calls asking me did I want them to dock and pick me up!!! They did manage to catch a few blue gills and bass, which Paul filleted and then we dined on them for supper. It was very tasty, and if I don't have my fish served to me in a restaurant, then Julie and Paul can fish for me any day.

It is my intent to go fishing with them in the future - as long as I have a good book and they fillet them out of my sight - it could be quite enjoyable.

It was great to finally hear from Maureen - I felt like an orphan with my two sisters moving house at the same time!!!! I know I have four brothers - but honestly guys, the communication from you all is sadly lacking!!!! Your kids are fantastic Paul - I have now had emails from David and Kerryn and in the past Leigh and Glenn - I bet you never get one from my kids! lol

Love to everyone - I hope to have lots of pictures on this blog before too long!!

PS - Lucky, Nancy and the gang - you guys are welcome here any time!

David - thanks for your great email - I will write back one day. lol

Kerryn and Mike - hope you enjoy your trip back to Oz. I bet you can't wait to introduce Owen to everyone.

Karin - hope you are recovering well and feel better than you have in a long time.

Sr. Lucille and Lyn - hope you guys are also feeling better each day.

Maureen, Michael - Lou & Tom - congratulations on your new homes. Send lots of pics.

John - has Venky arrived yet?

Heather - your turn to write - forwards do not count!

Barb and Danny - this counts as a reply, because I have no other news!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wilko - I would love to hear some news about my old colleagues.

Richard & Chris - I will write soon. Chris you were right, I have heard nothing from Richard in months! Thank you for your newsy email - we think of you guys often and know what a hard road you all have.

John & Vickie - as far as I know we are free 11th August, so we will be there for your Open House.

Looking forward to seeing you all at the family picnic - Cheers