Kids

Corey came back this afternoon from his adventure. He had a great time, learned much and can't wait to begin Medical school. One good thing that he learned is that he wants to work in a Trauma ER. He said he'll save the "office thing" for when he wants to slow down!
As parent's- it's a wonderful feeling when your children are happy with their chosen career. I was reminded by Chris that Rich used to tell the boy's: "if you love what you do, you'll never have to work a day in your life."
I'm so happy they listened.

Strawberry Torte

I don't know about you but we have an abundant amount of Strawberries here in DC. So I thought I would share this recipe with you. Keep in mind that you can use other fresh fruit when making this torte.
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3-4 pints of strawberries
3 teaspoons cornstarch
1 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
3 drops of red food coloring {optional}
     Wash and hull strawberries, place in bowl and sprinkle with 1/2 cup sugar. Set aside.
Beat eggs, 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla for ten minutes. Mix flour, cornstarch and baking powder; fold into egg mixture. Spread mixture into a greased and floured 12 in fruit tart pan. Bake in preheated oven 350 for 20 minutes.
Take out of oven and turn upside down on cake platter, remove pan and let cool for 1 hour.
    Starting in the middle arrange strawberries to cover torte.
Heat  cup water and 1/3 cup sugar to a boil. Make a paste with 1 cup of water and 3 teaspoons cornstarch, add to boiling water stirring constantly until thickened. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat- add food coloring. Spoon over strawberries making sure all fruit is covered.
Refrigerate 1 hour; Garnish with whipped cream and serve. 

Mikey "Post-Surgery

I wanted to start with a picture of Mikey in the back yard playing, it was a nice day and Rich was out there taking some photo's.
Mikey's surgery went fine. They removed the pin from his knee and took out a few bladder stones. It took 3 1/2 hours including cleaning his teeth.."no-cavities and a healthy mouth" We were able to see him in recovery, they had him under a heating blanket and he looked so tiny and vulnerable. After running home for dinner and a few words with Corey {before he left for Baltimore} we went back to check on him. He has an IV and a catheter; they are keeping him on some good pain medication- because he's pretty "snowed".

P

Poor little guy....we'll be able to bring him home tomorrow afternoon.

Mikey

A beautiful day here in DC, we're in for frost tonight and I heard New England is in for some snow! I guess instead of being almost May it should be October. Tomorrow Mikey will go in for surgery, they will remove the pin from his knee and take out a few bladder stones. "poor baby" For those of you that have/love an animal I don't need to explain how they become one of your children. Mikey is now 9 and if he had one...would be on passport number four. My friend's like to joke about how he has seen more of the world than they have. He's resting well tonight-- I'm the mess!

The Day After

A pretty uneventful day and after yesterday it was welcomed. My son Craig called me this morning to ask if my door was locked! "nice to know he's looking out for me- even from Ca."
Corey got word this morning that he will be "shadowing" a very prestigious Nero-Surgeon this week. On Thursday he will be observing the Dr's. Office and all that it entails to run a practice, and on Friday he will be scrubbing-in to observe brain surgeries. Of course he's very excited and I'm willing to bet that he won't get much sleep those two days. He will be staying with his Aunt Robin and her family in Baltimore. The Dr lives nearby and it was Robin who set this all up!! I'm willing to bet that she is his "Favorite Aunt of all time"! Now I have told Corey to take pictures, so hopefully on Saturday I'll be able to tell you his story and post pictures of his adventure. Dr.Naff is a very impressive Surgeon and you can read about him by clicking on the following:
 http://chesapeakeneurosurgery.com/doctor.php?idx=9

A lot to talk about

What a day! While sitting in the living room with Corey's friend Phillip, "we were waiting for Corey to get home" and Rich was down in his office; The front door opened and I thought it was Corey. In walked this MAN in his shirt, jeans and robe!!! I yelled for Rich to come, {his reply} "just a minute" {ya, don't think so babe} To which I quickly said... Rich, get your ass up here NOW! By then the man had walked into the kitchen, opened the freezer, grabbed an ice-cream, went into the living room-sat on the couch and began eating it. He never said a word; Rich was asking him questions but he didn't respond to anything. Meanwhile I'm on the phone with 911 asking them to send the Police. Boy did they ever....five cars! It took them a bit to get here; by the time they did this man had eaten four Ice cream bars, went up-stairs into Corey's room and into the guest room and took Phillip's water. Rich had followed him all over the house!! He had no ID and was not responding to the Police either. When they went to take him out instead of going out the door, he went down the stairs. The Police tried to bring him up but he wouldn't have it, so they ended up taking him out through the patio. Before help arrived Phillip had taken his picture with his cell phone "just in case he left before they got here" SO...below you will see the man getting into the freezer...

Now any one who has been to my home {where ever it may be} you know that we have a very warm, inviting atmosphere.  Perhaps I should work on this! AND will be keeping my doors locked at all times. Still feel a bit shaken, but very grateful that GOD is always with me.

What to do

I have an opportunity to volunteer to go and Teach English for two weeks in Kabale Uganda. I would be going to a rural school badly in need of resources. "no electricity or running water", and holding only the bare bones-.. they do have a chalk board and bench like desks that students squeeze into. Many of the children attend for the one meal a day that is served to them. We would also be conducting the first ever reading challenge.
Now, the only reason I'm having a tough time deciding to go or not/ is because Rich and I will be arriving in Switzerland on or around June 17th. We will be in a Hotel and I have no idea how long it will take us to find housing. The expense of the trip to Uganda is significant and I'm not sure if this is the right time. Well, at least I have four more day's to make a decision!

Strange

This morning while cleaning the kitchen, I noticed a SUV pull-up and park in front of the house. The driver "male" turned off the engine, reclined his seat and appeared to sleep. Rich arrived home early and as soon as he pulled into the driveway the SUV left. If he shows up again tomorrow I think I'll phone the Police "just to come check him out"; it's a bit creepy!
The moving company called yesterday to set a time for pack-out.....again. So with that done we await out new flight information. Perhaps with volcano problems we should take the QE-2! "just an idea" But a nice one.

Comfort

After hearing of our extended stay in DC, Rich and I were desprate for something comfortable to sit on. "The furniture in this house is much to be desired" Anyway- yesterday we were on Base and was thinking about renting a couple of chairs; but the rental place had closed. So, alright- we'll look somewhere else. This area has a lot of rental departments. Meanwhile I wanted to look in the Home and Garden center- I know I can't buy anything- but I love to look! On the way into the store Rich said: now, we're not going to buy a recliner! "Fine!"
After shopping around we made our way to the back of the store, there in a beautiful row sat about a dozen recliners. Rich couldn't resist and just had to sit in one and "try" it out. One test led to another and "see where this is going?" Yup, Papa Bear found one that was just-right! However keeping to his word we DID-NOT buy a recliner.............
      { we bought two }

Just funny

As I was driving home from shopping the other day, I seemed to have the luck of hitting every Red-Light in town~at one of the stops I noticed the car in front of me was one my son Craig would have been having fits about! A brand-new shiny Lamborghini. It was a very warm day and the driver had the top down-in my Santa'Fe I was able to look down into this car and notice that it had every bell and whistle- and then some. The driver was a more mature "gentleman"-nicely put together. but as I gazed down at his license plate...I burst out laughing, I couldn't stop! Having seen me the man made gestures that he wanted to take me for a drink, while shacking my head-lifted my left hand and pointed at my "wedding ring" He pouted,shrugged,winked and drove off. Oh yes..his license plate read:
" NO-PRENUP" Some people are just too funny!!!

Last night

Rich and I went to the National Theatre last night to see " Fiddler on the Roof " I've always loved the story, and I must say seeing it with a live orchestra was amazing! The set's were wonderful and non-other than Harvey Fierstein played "Tevye"....he was remarkable; as were the rest of the cast. If you get the opportunity to attend, I highly recommend it! This show is sure to please even the {non-Theatre group}
 

Finely

Rich found out today that we will be leaving for Bern in June. I'm grateful for the extra time to prepare- whenever I rush to pack I always forget things or wish I had sent this or that. I like the idea of being better prepared. We'll also be here for Corey's Graduation! 
Rich is taking me somewhere special tomorrow evening; you'll have to check back and find out where...

Whoops!

Wow, I hadn't noticed how long it's been since I've written on here!! Unfortunately we still have no-word on our departure date- but I have been doing my homework! I think I know why people are eager to leave Bern!! Trust me, you will NOT find the following in the guide books.
Bern deals with drug use in a "different" way than most countries. Their attitude is: it's a medical problem, not a legal issue. So in order to stop people from "shooting-up" in the public bathrooms they use blue lights. {unable to see veins under blue lights} They also have vending machines located through out the city containing sterile needles with a syringe. And of course it wouldn't be complete without large medal locked boxes for "used sharps". Also people who "smoke pot" in the park are left alone, the Police have more important thing's to do. Now...I in no-way condone this type of behavior,and I'm pretty sure I'll be able to avoid these areas. Thank goodness in my circle of friends this has never been an issue! However when/if I run across these things- I'll have to take pictures and post them for you to see! Life is different everywhere.

Another day..

Another nice day here in DC. I was able to accomplish quit a bit and tomorrow my plan is to "do" our bedroom closets, I must admit I'm looking forward to that task being done! 
Tomorrow is also "bath day" for Mikey, and he needs it! He always seems to find the dirtiest place in the yard to play- such a little boy! I"ll try to remember to post a picture of him tomorrow. 
My cousin Lois is learning the quick step in her dance class, I'm so glad she likes it. It's one of my favorites too; humm...perhaps we should try out for DWTS. I can promise that I'd be way better than Kate! Now that would be worth watching...LOL
I spoke about the "chocolate train" today, I"m excited to get to Switzerland and have a home again. Although I still don't know when that will be. In the meantime I'll continue to get thing's ready, try not to do too much shopping and enjoy the days.

DC

What a beautiful day this was, I even had to turn on the AC this afternoon! As strange as it may seem, I was able to enjoy the day without "thinking" about all the thing's to do for our move. I'm enjoying the idea of not knowing when we are moving; I find it a bit exciting!
I was able to speak with Chris today and he is absolutely LOVING his job! I'm so excited for him- not everyone is lucky enough to have their "dream job" and I'm so happy he has found his. Craig and Corey continue with their studies so they can achieve their Dream.
Here in DC we continue to enjoy all that the area has to offer, Rich will run in the Cherry Blossom Marathon on Saturday and this evening we purchased tickets for "Fiddler on the Roof" on stage at the National Theatre. Rich has never seen the show so I think-"hope" he'll enjoy it.

Fond Memories

I trust everyone enjoied a wonderful Easter Sunday, I think you were able to experience beautiful weather wherever you found yourself this year.
As Rich and I were "prepairing" for our {tenative} move, we were talking about when the boys were little. "so many wonderful special memories" I'm so happy and blessed to have had the life we've had together and continue to look forward to all of our tomorrows.
Now I received an e-mail from my Aunt and Uncle yesterday inquiring what church we would be attending this year; that simple request brought back a memory from Ft.Drum NY. Rich was B BTRY Commander and the Unit had just Welcomed a new Chaplin. Rich wanted us to go on base that Easter Sunday to show our support for the Unit-- so after the usual routine of getting everyone ready for service, off we went. Well being relatively new ourselves, we didn't have an address and several churches were in place all around the base. After driving around for awhile...{did I mention that I have one of those husbands that wont ask directions?} Imagine my surprise when WE ended-up "LATE"at a Southern Baptist Service whose "special guest speaker" was a Jewish Rabi!! Since we sat up front, it would have been very rude and in poor taste to get-up and leave however it did not refrain me from giving my husband "special little looks" throughout the service. Good times!!  In closing, I hope you all had a wonderful day that will turn into fond memories.

Just in case

Wow, what a beautiful day we had. The weekend looks just as promising, however in the event we hear about our early departure- Rich and I will spend most of our weekend preparing for our move and pack-out. I'll be sure to take pictures so you can experience all of this with us. I've decided to use the Dining room for our unaccompanied shipment; so everything being sent to Bern will be placed in there. As for the 120 volt appliances and "little things" purchased' Corey will go through and take what he wants, the rest will either be tossed or sent to family or friends who would enjoy it. Some of you have asked me why I don't take the appliances and use them with a transformer....easy: "I blow them up!" Every-time! But it's alright because I have a full line of 220 already in our storage that will be delivered from Belgium as soon as we find a "home". Don't forget we were living in Germany "before" Rich took the test for the State Department, so my entire house was set-up with European volt appliances. It's going to be nice to have my kitchen back again. The only thing we'll have to buy is a new washer/dryer, I sold our other set before we left. Better get some rest and sleep; tomorrow is going to be the beginning of a fun weekend!

Sometimes things aren't so funny

Today was April Fools Day, last night I was talking with Rich about my Blog and he came up with the idea of saying we had to go back to Israel. So I thought up a believable story and posted it. What I wasn't prepared for were the reactions... I knew that there would be "some" initial {oh-no} reactions, but didn't think it would become a world crumbling story for someone close. So to you my Dear one; I'm sorry. If I for one minute thought you would be so devastated I would have never posted it. Now in my defense...it was Richard's idea!
I hope everyone had a wonderful day, the weather here in DC turned out to be warm and sunny and the weekend looks like it's going to be the same. I wonder if I'll have to turn on the AC?!