Christmas Pants ~ for Jen

Dear Jennifer,

Heard you were missing a bit of the Christmas back home.  Here’s a little dose of Christmas tradition…

 

And here’s a few pics from Trevor’s Christmas program.  If you can’t tell, he’s the one dressed as a shepherd.

There’s no Business like Snow Business

This was our first substantial snowfall of the season, December 5th, 2008. Isn’t it beautiful?

So, we dressed Comet for the Christmas pictures and let him have a go at navigating his way through the white fluffy stuff.

Of course, we continued to have snow every few days and for awhile, Trevor couldn’t get enough of it.  He was seen at all times of day going outside to practice his whip and enjoy getting snow piled on top of his head!

 

 AFTER LESS THAN THREE WEEKS AND OVER 35 INCHES LATER, IT’S STILL BEAUTIFUL BUT THE ROMANCE HAS WORN OFF.

Notice the narrow walkway…we just can’t keep up with the shoveling.

The Many Faces of Rob

You may remember my post in June showing Rob’s Canada overgrowth?  Well, it lasted a bit longer than was expected and morphed along the way. 

Check it out….

 

YMCA – The construction worker, I think?

 

The Owner and his dog often look alike!

 

Inspector Jacques Clouseau?   The Pink Panther actor…Peter Sellers

 

Gotten himmel!  Need I say more?

Skits gonna be a Hit!

Unfortunately, I have not had the opportunity to share this with Jennifer and Jason first but I am just too excited to keep it under wraps any longer!

But first, some background …  The first time Jason attended our church with us I believe it was Christmas Eve ( or maybe Easter?). Well anyway, our pastors performed a darling vignette complete with barking dogs and wandering sheep  (Pastor John was the dog; Pastor Sherrie, the sheep).  Jason was completely impressed by this performance, so much so that he often comments on all the performances he has seen thus far and wonders what he will see on his next visit to our church.  Well folks, everyone knows I can’t keep a secret and this one is too good to keep a lid on so I have a little surprise.   I guess my years of Sunday School teaching, youth chaperoning, and council service are really going to pay off.  The pastors have really gone out of their way to plan something special for my daughter’s (and Jason’s) wedding.  In appreciation for the scientific research they do, the pastors have put together one awesome wedding skit that is certain to touch a nerve with these two.  See below for some pictures I snapped at their dress rehearsal:

 

 

Pastor Sherrie performs as the often confused and perplexed assistant.

What recipe for marital success is Dr. Albert Von Horner-Iblerstein concocting?

 

I think the message here is “finding balance in your lives together”.  Or maybe simply the “Sink or Swim” theory…

 

Regardless, this is sure to be one awesome show on October 4th!

 Anybody else want to weigh in on the possible wedding sermon for Jennifer & Jason?

Hot Dog!

On June 29th our family joined our good friends, the Bergrens, for the Brainstorm – Epilepsy walk down at Milwaukee’s Lakefront. We arrived a little late so Rob dropped us off on the side of the road.  It’s a good thing because we were not sure if Barley could walk 3 miles after hearing about his “dead dog” antics when he is tired.  We had wonderful weather and chatted with friends after but mostly we just stayed out of the way with our dogs.

Setting a good pace; where's Comet?

Jen & Jason with three of Milwaukee's famous sons. Where's Polish?

Trevor in front of Klement's version of the wiener mobile.

The Perry (and Ross) contingent of the "Doin' it for Darcy" team.

 

In other exciting news, our puppy still does not like the water but that does not stop us from trying to get him interested!

 

This hot dog reluctantly cools off!

Comet hangs on for dear life as Lexi and Dayton splash around.

A rose is just a rose

Anybody who has knows me, knows I like to grow flowers in summer. Anyone who knows me better also knows I start more projects than I could possibly finish in a lifetime and often stop half way through.  That is why I am especially excited that I was able to actually grow flowers to bring inside the house.  Here are a few of my random bouquets from this summer:

My livin’ easy roses – only two stems!

Shasta Daisies, Coreopsis and some lime green flowers from an unknown perennial.

Dark red tiger lilies, lady ferns, and tahitian bridal veil.

Blue Hydrangeas in a mason jar!

(reminds me of grandma’s house)

And my wacky asymmetrical but brightly colored bunch of pink zinnias, yellow Stella D’Oro, delphinium (dark knight?), some pink flower I still can’t identify and part of the vines growing out of control in a planter  (I love the red stem).

Grad Parties ~ Round 3

This past weekend we celebrated the high school graduations of Rob and his cousin, Jessica (aka Smartie Pants) Patrone (featured below).

Which one’s the real and which one’s the cake?

Who’s the lady hiding in the middle?  That’s my mom and the graduates’ grandmother.  She made the cakes, colored to match, for the party and they were yummy!  It rained a little in the afternoon, forcing us indoors,  but my family still managed to keep talking non-stop through it all.  It must be just exhausting being around our family!  Anyhoo, thanks to all the family members who helped get these kids some supply money for their first year of “higher education”.  And no Rob and Jess, I am not referring to your level of consciousness!!  Spend wisely, Christmas is still 6 months away…

 

 

and Stat’s That!

Whew, my business statistics class is done. And yeah, my brain still works but apparently my processing speed and storage capacity is quite a byte less than the 20 year olds in the class as I was the second to last one finished with the exam!  I learned all sorts of new terms and symbols that I will never use again like:

Symbol                                   Statistics                                             Real Life

μ (“mu”)              the mean of a population parameter             What a cat says

α (alpha)                  the level of significance                            Dominant Dog

σ (sigma)                     standard deviation                             maker of faucets

Χ (chi)                     Chi square distribution                  Chinese for life energy

β (beta)                   symbol for Type II error                  defunct taping format

Σ (sumation)                     “sum of”                                             sideways “M”    

√                                    square root                               means “that’s done”

 

Isn’t it interesting that one X means “life energy” and XXX denotes moonshine (or porno),  and XOXO means kisses and hugs?

Sorry – There is just no way to be clever after a statistics class!

To fully understand why I even bother taking these classes, watch for upcoming excerpts on aging and the brain!

Comet-y and Tragedy

OK, corny title but it kinda fits.

Last week Trevor and I dogsat Ben, my sister & brother-in-law’s 10 yr old black Lab.  The poor old guy is on medication for arthritis and has all sorts of bumpy growths over his body but he still patiently waits near you for a pat on the head or a treat now and then.  Of course, Comet (Comedy is Robby’s new name for the dog and it fits because we look like fools trying to get him to come inside when he escapes!) wanted to play. All the time. Every second. Ben tolerated it, tried to hobble away when he was sick of it but the poor guy couldn’t move fast enough.  We finally had to tie Comet up outside to give Ben a break.  I am hoping that Comet will some day grow into the mild mannered dog that Ben is. Minus the giant dog tongue kisses and drool and really long paw nails!  Here are some pics of patient ol’ Ben:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry Mom, looks like my blog is all about dogs too!

Here are some pictures of Comet with Copper last weekend.  They were the Grad day’s entertainment…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s a dog’s life, isn’t it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Canine Dentistry!  

                                                                                                                  

 

 

 

 

 

 Twister Anyone?

Grad Parties ~ Round 2

 Last weekend we had a grad party for the three High School graduates on the Perry side of the family.  Look at how cute they are…

Would shoes be too much to ask?

 

Here’s some pics of them opening their goodies for college:

 

Rob is off to St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN

 

Catherine is headed for St. Thomas in Minneapolis, MN

 

Courtney is attending Drake University in Des Moines, IA

 

During the party we heard all about men’s week in Canada  (not ALL, they never tell ALL).  Rob is sporting his post Canada overgrowth and favorite Piranha shirt. (Trevor has one to match; isn’t that cute?)  What do you think? Should he keep the bristle, yes or no?

A new look for Rob?