Retirement Party

Even though it's been 6 years since I retired, I still have some friends who continue to hang on and sweat the 9 to 5 job.

But finally one of the longest employed retired. I started working with this group of people when I started with KCP&L back in 1997. Some have already retired and some were new to the group but this is the biggest bunch we could find. We had lunch to celebrate Alan's retirement after 45 years and reminisce about old times.

Father's Day

Father's Day has now become another one of those holidays that sort of just passes by.

But then I remembered I have a member of my family who's a father. And what a great father he is.

Even though Jamie had to work on Father's Day, he took time to play on the playground outside the fire station with Violet and Lincoln. Happy Father's Day, Jamie. I couldn't have asked for a better role model for my grandkids.

Arrowhead 5K Walk/Run

I can finally say I've walked in a 5K race. Three of my friends from high school and I foolishly agreed to sign up for this walk. The Arrowhead 5K is a night race that took us through the parking lots around Kauffman and Arrowhead Stadium, through the Arrowhead concourse and Hall of Honor and finished under the lights on the field at Arrowhead.

For those that might not know, 5K is a little over 3 miles. The first mile went rather well. During the second mile, I was trying to get my friends to cut through one of the parking lots. I was out voted. The last mile had us climbing the ramp up through Arrowhead Stadium. I was pretty excited when I passed a lady with a cane. That's not funny, but I had to restrain myself from stealing her cane before I fell over. Thank goodness it was a cloudy evening or the extreme heat would have killed me way before the end of the race.

I finally reached the finish line only to find out they had run out of water. Are you kidding me? Then they hung this medal around my neck that must have weighed another 5 pounds. Top it off with only one exit from the field, up a flight of stairs. I cut to the front of the line with hecklers continually telling me there was a line. Fighting exhaustion and probably dehydration I would have fought with anyone standing in my way up those stairs.

Would I do it again? Probably. It was actually fun and a good time with friends. I didn't come in first or finish last. I was actually in the middle of the pack and finished in less than an hour. Yay!!!!!!!!

Pool Day with Violet

I haven't seen Violet and Lincoln for almost a month, so I decided to take Violet to the pool (Lincoln was a little sick so he couldn't go).

I had this ring float that Violet was dying to try. She tried and tried to sit in the ring but just couldn't do it - it kept sinking. I finally figured out you had to blow up the outside ring. Duh! Once I got all the water out of it and huffed and puffed to blow it up, Violet would push it from the side of the pool and jump in. I was going to get in the water with her, but the water was freezing and the wind was blowing. I only like it when it's hot. Violet was so excited to have a day just with me. That always makes me feel good. Now I feel guilty I don't spend more time with her.

Homemade Lemonade

Every activity to keep kids entertained doesn't always cost a lot of money.

Just buy a bag of lemons and have the kids made fresh lemonade. Squeezing the juice by hand is hard. That's why I have a juicer but I don't make lemonade.

Then add water, sugar and stir. Violet said it tasted great! 

Happy Birthday, Karen!

Instead of it being "coupon Friday", today was "coupon 'Happy Birthday Karen' Friday". Karen finally got her own day to celebrate her birthday.

Teresa and I took her to Harrah's. I used my free money coupons from Harrah's to play the Buffalos. Karen and I made a nice little profit off that game. Happy Birthday, Karen. One more year until retirement.

Happy Birthday, Michael!

It's hard for the words to come out of my mouth but Michael just turned 36!!!!

What happened to that little boy who played t-ball, mastered Atari, learned to drive and graduated high school?

He's now a married man with a successful career. Time flies by so fast. Happy Birthday, Michael!

Faithful Royal's Fans

Even though the Royal's aren't playing their best ball, Michael and Ashley continue to be their biggest fans.

I believe these 2 would go to every game if their hectic work and school schedules would allow it.

Like Father, Like Son

Lincoln's getting an early start on his training to become a firefighter.

This little guy is such a mimic. Anything Melissa, Jamie or Violet do, he can copy. It may take him a few times but eventually he'll master it.

A Much Needed Vacation with an Unwanted Ending

It's been quite a while since I've been on vacation and I was itching to get away. I decided to take my time driving to Florida hitting my favorite casinos in Tunica, Biloxi and Tampa. After a quick lunch with Sam in Vero Beach, I headed to Fort Lauderdale to pick up Sonia for our cruise out of Miami to the US Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands and Nassau in the Bahamas.

I've been on several cruises but this one seemed to have too many rules, too many restrictions, and too many people. Plus most of the entertainment starts around 10:00 at night. Don't even think about sitting around the pool. There is one pool about the size of my living room. We did find a deck without a pool that had a "cave like" water feature, but the temperatures were soaring into the 90's and there wasn't any type of breeze. 

I still enjoy port shopping but most of the excursions involve some sort of water activity and I'm not much for swimming in a lagoon with water creatures. Maybe next time, I'll try an all inclusive resort.

When we got back to Miami, we headed back up the coast to Vero Beach. Our stay at the Driftwood Resort was the best part of the vacation. We had a nice room with a front porch for the evening. 

During the day, we rented chairs and an umbrella and spent the day just sitting on the beach. Then our journey back to Kansas City began. It's so much easier driving such a long distance with another person. Taking a nap in the back seat makes the time fly by.

But never think that when you get home, you'll be able to relax and comfortably sleep in your own bed. Little did I know that while I was gone, my toilet had been leaking. Who would think that a small leak could cause so much damage. Jamie came by to pull the carpet out of my master bedroom closet and mop up the standing water.

Early the next morning, ServPro arrived with fans and dehumidifiers to dry out carpet, walls and floors. The damage was isolated to my master bath, master closet and part of my living area downstairs and the bedroom closet. At least ServPro could assess there was no mold. There's the silver lining!

After 4 days of drying out the house, ServPro finally removed all the fans and dehumidifiers that put out more heat that a flaming bon fire. Little did I know that my air conditioner was also on the down slide. Even after the removal of all the drying equipment, my thermostat continued to rise. My bad luck continued when the service man from the HVAC dealer told me the unit needed freon. Not the good freon, but the government restricted "bad for the environment" type of freon that cost $80/pound. My unit needed 13 pounds.

So back into the wallet to buy a new HVAC unit. Some nights I just stand on the front porch and look at my new heat pump. It's so pretty. Now on to putting the rest of my house back in order. Contractors are starting in 2 weeks. I don't think my OCD can take too much more!