2 Wheels Pictures

Ditch those training wheels, Gabrielle!

That's right, Gabrielle is now 2-wheeling! Last weekend she learned to ride without the safety net. It was a smooth learning process in the safety department, but the courage department needed a little work. Our cheers were punctuated with screams of fear from Gabrielle. She also cried a little bit. All this took place after she had learned to ride, and as she was riding. Perhaps all those years of injury (concussion, broken collar bone, head wound, stitched hand, etc.) did more damage to her psyche than her body. Regardless, we are proud of her! To celebrate this milestone, Daddy rode with Gabrielle and Emily to Dairy Queen to get an ice cream. Since Greg's bike has two flat tires, he rode my bike and I drove in the car!

Roxy

Well, we finally wore Greg down enough and got a dog. She is a 5-year-old Shepherd/Chow mix that we adopted from a co-worker's MIL who was moving. She settled into life at the Potter household very quickly, but the cats still are not used to her. For the most part, she leaves them alone, but they hiss and growl whenever she walks into the room. Lucky (aka Buddy) stands his ground, and has even swatted at her when she gets too close. Purrmo on the other hand has banished himself to the garage since Roxy's arrival. He sleeps in the sleeping bags on top of the camper, which works during the colder winters. I don't know what he will do during the summer to keep cool. When Purrmo does venture in the house, he bolts every time he sees Roxy. She believes this is a game, and chases him! Hopefully, they will all learn to get along soon. The girls love having a dog, and are pretty good about cleaning up the doggy land mines in the backyard and feeding her (although they do have to be reminded several times before completing those tasks!)

Our Holiday Dance!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Day 10 and 11

Hi Greg:
Sorry to have missed yesterday's post, but you didn't miss much. We were driven to the airport by Kelly and Derek. Brenden had school. After that there was a six-hour flight back to AZ and you weren't there to greet us. That was pretty much our Wednesday. The only out-of-the-ordinary thing was the behavior of the girls on the flight from Chicago to Phoenix. Granted it was almost four hours, but they were pretty aggravating. Why are they always so well behaved on the way to CT, but never on the way home? The kitties were very happy to have us back, and I loved sleeping with my pillow again. You know I can't sleep well without it, although my mom did buy a new pillow for me and it was a pretty good substitute! I would have slept even better if you were home.

Today the girls were so excited to spend the day at Miss Karen's house so they could play with Emma and Owen. Work was pretty good. Evan, Marv and Dale were in AZ so they were the guest judges of the annual chili cookoff. Sorry you had to miss it. I had a nice chat with Evan, and then went to the chiropractor for a much-needed adjustment. After the plane ride yesterday I was in a lot of pain. It's much better now, but I could use a neck rub when you get back. I'll trade you for a back scratch! Tonight I went scrapbooking at the Vineyard Church, and the girls had fun playing with all of the kids there. We're getting close to your return home, and we can't wait. We're praying that you are reaching people for God, and being spiritually renewed yourself. I can't wait to hear all about your trip.......

LL Shrimati

Day 9 Nepal

You posted a message today! Yeah, I love hearing from you. This is the longest stretch of time we haven't talked in the 19 years we have been together. Well, except for that one time.....but I won't get into that! Today we stayed at home so the girls could make Grandma their personal playmate. They carved pumpkins, which I doubt will last until Halloween, but I was outnumbered. We made baked apples and they played with Stephanie from next door. We had dinner at Friendly's and then came home and watched Dancing with the Stars together. It was nice not to have to watch it alone! My parents are leaving first thing tomorrow for a funeral in New York so Kelly and the boys will take us to the airport. You know how I like to squeeze every last second out of a visit so it will be hard to see them go before we have to leave. Even after 13 years, I am still not used to saying goodbye to my parents. The girls are even worse than I am........coming home to an empty house will not be any fun either, but we know you are doing God's work and we're very proud of you! Until tomorrow.......

LL

Day 8 of Nepal Trip

Hello LL:
Today was a relaxing day. We spent the morning a my parent's house playing games with the girls (Parcheesi takes forever to finish). We then went to the orchard to pick apples and pumpkins, which we brought to Kelly and the boys. Derek was in considerable pain and could hardly walk, so our day at the pumpkin patch together had to be scratched. We spent the afternoon with them, and all had dinner together when Michael and his kids came over. It was so hard to see Derek hurting, but the kids had fun being together. I showed Kelly your blog, and have been checking for new posts. I am still waiting for one.....I am praying that you have been enjoying your trip a little more since you had the picnic and time to witness to those boys. I pray they accepted Christ.

LL, Your Shrimati