Monday, February 20, 2006

I'm Baaaacccckkkkk!!!!!!! (Still alive, I am..I am)

President’s Weekend: FRESH AIR!!!

WOW……no dust, no insulation fibers, no drywall dust, no stacked furniture!!!! Yeah…..we headed Friday morning for Monroe City, MO…..the home of the 1st Lady’s mother. Much of Friday was devoted to looking for new furniture in various stores in STL. Still haven’t come to a compromise on color and style of sofas…..hmmmm, wonder if we ever will OR will I have lose all input and the 1st Lady will get her choice???!! I even seem to be losing on the choice of color of the paint AND the color of the new carpeting!! Hmmm…..

We picked up Rachel Friday evening after dinner at a new café for us. We found ourselves in the Chesterfield Valley shopping mall by late afternoon and so we didn’t eat at our original dining destination….Red Lobster….but instead, we went to a new place out there called “Mimi’s Café”. Supposedly a French place….but it seemed to be accenting the French Quarter in N.Orleans……many choices of food…perhaps tooooo many with no specific type of cuisine or signature items. I ordered a pasta dish with chicken, artichoke hearts, and sun dried tomatoes in an asiago cheese sauce. It seemed a bit on the dry side…..not dripping in sauce, in fact….there didn’t seem to be any sauce in the pasta bowl. The wine….. from open stock….was not fresh; the bread was nice and warm and very tasty; the salad was not good at all. Served with a balsamic vingerette dressing, it was just head lettuce and a few shreds of carrots. Sooo, not a place I would care to dine at again.

Arrived in Monroe City around 11:30pm….and it was only 6 degrees when we arrived. The wind was howling and many snow flurries pasted themselves against our faces as we unloaded the car. Rachel had slept the entire trip and so needed assistance in getting to the house, and by the time I unloaded the car, I was about frozen!!! Not used to cold temps like this…….the coldest we have experienced all winter.

Much to our surprise, Jeremy had driven over from Evansville, IN and was already there. Soooo, it was good to have a weekend with him. An hour later, Dr. Jeni and daughters arrived, and so…….this old grandpa put on his coat and gloves and once again unloaded her car and the two sleeping granddaughters.

Saturday…….Most of the day was devoted to preparing dinner, eating as a family for a change…..and then I was off to Hannibal, Palmyra, and Quincy, IL. Spend the afternoon looking for furniture…..AGAIN!!! No luck……..found a couple of great sofas….but not the color the 1st Lady likes.

Sunday……a slow start to the day……the three granddaughters played and enjoyed all of us being together. Dinner was served….and then Dr. Jeni, along with Meghan, Ava, and Rachel left for the Moser Estate. I spent the afternoon doing some kitchen planning, and watching a new DVD which I ordered on RVing in Mexico. Can’t wait to head south of the border next winter!!!

The rest of the day was devoted to the Olympics………I always enjoy all of the events in the Winter games. Yes….I do enjoy the figure skating and the ice dancing!!! I love the way the skaters/dancers can interpret the music by the way they skate through their routines……much like a marching band interprets the music on the field!

Monday…….

WOW…..shopped till we dropped today. What were we looking for???? Carpeting, floor ceramic tiles, bedroom set, sofa for our tv/entertainment room……and other items from the new rooms.

After HOURS of going from one store to another……and with a quick mid-afternoon “lunch”, we finally found a sofa that we could compromise on!!! CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT????!!! Perhaps it was just survival of the one who could keep shopping for a sofa?? Anyway…….I “gave in” to the style of the sofa and she “gave in” to the color of the sofa. She went for comfort and function over modern/contemporary aesthetics/style……and I got the color that I wanted: red! Now…..for the carpet and room color…..will I win???? Hmmmmm…..stay tuned for the news when it breaks. (I want a med-dark gray carpet with light gray walls and red accents/artwork for a modern sleek look……..time will tell!)

Sooo, we arrived home shortly after 8pm tonight. The guys doing the mudding and taping of the new drywall rooms must have put in some hours today…..it seems about done, however…..I AM seeing it by flashlight as the electricity is not yet on in the rooms.

I see that my blog has been “not read” by many, many readers…….my site meter has counted many of you who attempted to read my daily ramblings. Others have emailed to see if I am ill, dead, or have disappeared into cyberspace. Sorry to say…..I AM alive and back on my little lappie. I will try to get some pics posted tomorrow of the grandchildren who were with us this weekend……and of the remodeling progress.

TO THE VINAIs who are wintering in Thailand: I REALLY enjoyed your pictures that your emailed me of your trip to Cambodia and Ankor Wat!!!!!!!!!! I sooooo want to get over there to see it with my own eyes before the politics changes there or some other disaster strikes those wonderful, ancient temples!!!!!!! Be glad you were there this weekend as here in Missouri the weather was simply frigid!!!!!! Below zero and this was soooo difficult to take after our relative warm weather this winter.

Soooo, much to do this evening…..way behind with things here. As usual…….

Life IS Great…….and I hope it is for all of you, also!!!

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