Merry Christmas!

Well, you can see why I don't do scrapbooking... I can't even keep up with a blog! Sorry it's been so long since the last post. And I'm only doing this one now so that I get one more in before the New Year! We are off to Memphis to my parents', and then up to Illinois as Art is in his friend Kevin's wedding on Saturday. They are getting married in Iowa City. So we'll be making a big circle this year- hope it doesn't snow!

Here is our Christmas collage this year. As years pass, I get a little less particular about holiday decorations, etc. I used to make gingerbread from scratch, then assemble the pieces, and decorate for hours until it was perfect. Now I get the kit at Michael's (with my 40% coupon, of course) and the kids go to town. What you CAN'T see on this year's house is the back side - which is decorated with a game of icing hangman. I guess the kids got tired of decorating, and decided to play a game instead. Oh well. They had fun with a bag full of royal icing...

Vincent now decorates the tree himself. I put it up, and toss on a few strands of lights, and the rest is up to him. He has a ball, and I don't have to do it, and deal with my near OCDish way of making sure all ornaments face the right direction, are evenly spaced, and are placed according to size and color. So now we just turn the lights on and say "great tree, Vincent!"

We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas, and find your own way to simplify a bit! Please remember to keep Christ at the center of your CHRISTmas celebration!

A fond farewell to an old friend....

The neighbors are jumping for joy, but Art is still having a hard time accepting that his old blue car has gone on to a better place - the junkyard. The fact that it was 19 yrs old, (he got it BEFORE we were married!) and had well over 200,000 miles on it proved it was well loved and well used. Gina took several photos of it before it was towed away on a flatbed. I think we are the only ones left in America (well, maybe besides Paul and Christine) that actually drive a car until it just can't go another mile. We like to get our money's worth, that's all!

Wow! Harrison Ford looks GREAT for his age!

Forgive the red eyes- I corrected them once, but now they're red again! Apparently Indiana Jones has has some rough nights! Vincent LOVED cracking that whip, and I must have taken about 30 shots trying to get a decent one of him. He was making a grimace when he would crack the whip, and every picture but this one has a really goofy look. This one just has crazy eyes! :)

He loves action movies, and we didn't understand why he didn't want to see the new Indy movie at the theater. But as soon as it was out on video, we headed to the redbox to get it. After watching it with him at home, we figured it out - it is not as SCARY at home, because the lights are on, and there is other activity in the house. And it was a kind of scary movie at times!

Oh, and here is my commercial for Redbox - have you seen a big red box outside of McDonald's, Walmart, and many other places? This is the best deal ever. DVD's rent for ONE DOLLAR. And you can return them at ANY Redbox. So if you are traveling, pick one up on the way out of town, and drop it off at the McDonalds 300 miles away at your destination. Then get another one for your trip home. We love Redbox! (no, we do not get paid to say that!)

Indiana Jones and Penny Pingleton went Trick or Treating around Keith Drive! Being the thrifty mom, we waited until everything was on sale before purchasing anything. We found an Indiana Jones hat and whip set - missing the whip! Well, I couldn't get the sales clerk to give me more than 20% off (my reasoning was that 50% of the product was missing!) so we left the store with nothing but a $2.50 bag of raffia - which I braided into a pretty cool whip. We're pretty sure it was sturdier than the whip in the kit. A friend loaned us her son's "real" hat, and another friend loaned us a coat - so we were set! Gina decided to be Penny - her favorite character from our favorite movie, "Hairspray". A trip to the thrift store got a skirt and shirt for $2.50! So for $5 we had two homemade costumes. Art of course was the happiest of all...

Art, Vincent and I went to Library Park in Miamisburg - next door to Vincent's old school - to see the Moving Wall. It is a traveling model of the Vietnam Memorial Wall in D.C. The number of names of those killed in Vietnam is staggering. It was an awe-inspiring and prayer inspiring day. We met and talked with Matt Maupin's father. Matt is a local soldier who was MIA in Iraq for several years, and just this spring his remains were found and brought home. Vincent talked to a few other vets as well, and also did some rubbings of the names of local servicemen listed on the wall.

Bad perm, puffy sleeves - it HAS to be 1990!!

Yes, it's hard to believe, but Art and I are not newlyweds anymore! On Monday we celebrated our 18th Wedding Anniversary, and 27 years since our "first date". How is that possible?? Am I even 27 years OLD???

So some things change, and some things remain the same....

My bad perm, thankfully, has not lasted as long as our marriage! Puffy sleeves (think Deb in "Napoleon Dynamite" - "I like your sleeves." "Thanks, I made them myself.") are also gone. Gina told me the other night, "Mom, I don't mean to hurt your feelings, but those bridesmaids dresses were ugly."

What?? Are you kidding me? You mean those teal, lacy topped, satin bottomed tea-length dresses, with the giant bow on the butt, were not flattering? And of course, everyone could wear them again to another formal occasion, right?

And it wasn't just the ladies' hair that was big! The groomsmen all had LOTS more hair than they do now, and their eyeglasses were all huge!

I'm including a photo here that we thought was just so romantic when we got our album after the wedding. Even though we are a little older, a little heavier, and a little grayer (well, not me, but my hairdresser won't ever tattle!), Art and I are still together forever....happily ever after!

Meet Me in St. Louis...

Just back from a wonderful PC Director Retreat. It was great to get re-focused on my business, and re-energized about the trip to Paris! One of the best benefits of being with PC , as almost any consultant will tell you, is making friends that you would never have even met if you weren't in the business. This trip was as much a vacation as a business event! Dee Dee, my dear friend from Indiana, met me in Terre Haute, where we enjoyed lunch and some shopping before travelling the rest of the way to St. Louis together. Having a friend to chat with in the car made the time fly. Saturday night we were on our own, and Dee Dee, Jodi and I were excited that our friend Betty, a native St. Louisan, brought us to a terrific part of the city - the Central West Side, and we enjoyed walking the neighborhoods, people watching, and of course, DINNER!

I don't travel far without looking for a great place to eat! Betty recommended Duff's, and it was fabulous. The four of us spent a few hours just enjoying each others' company along with a delicious dinner. What a fun way to spend a Saturday night!

Ladies - if we ever get to meet in Dayton, I promise to find us another tasty spot to spend an evening! And I'll try not to monopolize the conversation, but I'm not making any promises...

Bye, Bye, Bruce!

This weekend is the AlterFest at Gina's high school. It is a huge, three day party on the school's grounds, with rides, bands, food, beer, blackjack (sounds like your typical Catholic fundraiser, right?). This year we had the Clydesdales there, too.
Art and I were scheduled to work the beer tent from 6-9pm on Saturday night, and we had a good time. It went by fast! Selling beer tickets is the place to be if you want to see your grownup friends and not get stuck hanging with the kiddos. I told Art that I wish I could sell PC products as fast!
Gina was assigned to wash tables in the dining tents - not very glamorous, but she was a good sport. Babysitting cost us $20 - and didn't include a babysitter! We pretty much turned Vincent loose with a pocketful of ride and game tickets. We didn't see him again until he ran out and came begging for money. Luckily, our shift was about over, so he sat in the back of the beer booth until we were done.
Vincent's highlight of the weekend was winning a goldfish. (in reality, it was a FEEDER fish). He named him Bruce (think Bruce the shark from Nemo fame), proclaimed him a "little cutie", and we let Bruce spend the night in Art's giant monogrammed mug from Christine. On Sunday morning, Art and Vincent brought home some fish food, and we fed Bruce breakfast. Upon returning from a day at the pool a few hours later, we sadly discovered that Bruce had passed.
Vincent and I headed to the bathroom, where we ceremoniously said a few words and watched Bruce circle the bowl a few times before going to his watery grave. I gave Vincent a hug, and asked if he would maybe like to get another fish from the store, maybe one that was a little bigger and would live longer. Vincent's reply was simply, "No, I don't want another fish. I don't think I can take any more sadness in my life." Hmm. Wish it were that easy to avoid the sad things in life.
Anyway, his grieving is over, as he and Art are off to the county fair today, and Gina is back to Alterfest for fun (not for working!). And I am having the best Labor Day yet - a quiet house, a good book waiting for me.

Sorry I don't have a photo to include, Bruce wasn't here long enough to get one! :)

They're Baacck! (To school, that is!) It's that time of year - the Sunday back to school ads outweigh the actual newspaper! Both kids are back in school. YAY! (that's me cheering, not them).

Gina is in high school this year, and started last week. She loves it, and has met some new people. The first football game was last Friday night, and it was a crushing defeat - fun for us, not so fun for the hosting team! I think Art is looking forward to having a high schooler - at least until the boys start calling. Hopefully we can hold off on that for a few more years!

Vincent is also back to being a small fish in a big pond. He moved up to the 4th-8th grade campus this year - and so far does not seem to mind being the "little kids" again. His favorite part of the day is still lunch, so not much has changed since 3rd grade.

As promised, here are the traditional photos of the kids standing on the porch. Both of them asked did I HAVE to do this every year, and I told them the truth- Yes I Do. It's nice as they are both on a schedule again, but extracurricular activities have not yet begun, and homework is still pretty limited. I wonder how long this bliss will last....Darn! I blinked! I think that was it.

Visiting all the Grandmas!

Last weekend we made a quick trip back to the Quad Cities - a VERY quick trip! I had a show on Thursday night - and Gina needed to be home for her High School orientation on Sunday afternoon, so... we left around 4am! The kids and I slept in the car while Art drove, and we arrived at the Leone's around 9:30am. My mom flew in to see Grandma Jo for the week, and she got there on Saturday afternoon. We figured we were in town for about 44 hours - and we hit quite a few favorite spots! We had Harris Pizza, Rudy's Tacos, Whitey's Ice Cream, and Anna treated Gina and I to a terrific breakfast at a little corner spot called Belmie's. Gina's chocolate chip pancake was as big as her plate! Anna also made a delicious dinner of pasta with pheasant.

Gina and I saw "Mamma Mia" - a little goofy but fun to sing along! Art and Vincent went fishing with Uncle Dino. This time Vincent broke his old record of 27 - and caught 34 fish! Of course, he had Art doing the baiting AND taking them off the hook, so Art didn't get as much "reeling in" time. Before they headed out, Vincent asked, "Hey, what happened to all the fish I caught LAST time? How come I never get to eat my fish?" So after their fishing they went to Uncle Dino's where he cleaned and cooked up some of the fish. That was Vincent's favorite meal of the weekend!

The kids and I went with Grandma Mary Jo to visit Great Grandma Jo - we took her for a ride to VanderVeer Park in Davenport. What a pretty place to sit for a while - lots of flowers and plants, a beautiful fountain, and plenty of people to watch. We stayed until dark when the fountain lights came on.

We spent the night at Grandma Mary Jo's hotel, and left at 530am to head back to Dayton! It was a very quick trip, but we saw lots of people.

Tomorrow is the big day...Gina heads to High School! I'll post some pictures of her at the front door- where we've taken "First Day of School" photos since she started Kindergarten.

Heading to the Roller Coast!

Day Three of our Tour of Ohio brought us to Put-In-Bay by ferry. The preferred mode of travel on this small island is golf cart - which was very entertaining for the kids. I think Art had a pretty good time of it, too! We spent a few hours checking out the sites around the island, and finished the day with a tasty seafood dinner. Art and I enjoyed some walleye and perch fresh from Lake Erie; Gina of course opted for chicken fingers, which we're pretty sure did NOT come from Lake Erie; and Vincent of course chose lobster. That kid has a sixth sense about him, and ESP means Extra Substantially Priced! He has the most expensive taste for a kid his age - lobster, crab legs, shrimp cocktail...he had better get a good job soon or we won't be able to feed him.

After a big meal, we headed to our hotel in lovely Sandusky, Ohio - to rest up before our big day at the Roller Coast - Cedar Point Amusement Park! We figured we had to hold this day to the end, as it gave us some leverage all week long (if you don't behave, you're not going to Cedar Point!) Gina has a paralyzing fear of heights, but did very well on "ground level" rides and even mustered up some courage to try a few roller coasters. Vincent found the Mine Shaft Roller Coaster to be just the right amount of thrill, and so rode it repeatedly.

Art and I even got to enjoy some of the BIG rides, as Gina took charge of Vincent while we waited in longer lines. Our best ride was the first of the day - Top Speed Dragster - this was an unbelievably FAST ride, and took all of 17 seconds before coming to a stop. And after the thrill, we agreed it was well worth the hour wait. We also came to the very uncomfortable conclusion that we are now too old for the wooden coasters, which was a sad fact to face. The feeling that we had lost a few internal organs along the track, though, was enough to convince us that steel coasters are best for us "old folks".

Hope you enjoy these photos, sorry I have not figured out how to caption underneath the pictures!

Touring Ohio - Day Two!

Our next stop was Cleveland and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame! What a neat place to spend a day - we saw everything from pencil drawings done by Jimi Hendrix as a young kid to the spiral notebook in which Billy Joel wrote the lyrics to "We Didn't Start the Fire". You'll likely be seeing a photo from here in a Christmas card later this year! Vincent is really into "optical illusion" photos, if that is even what you can call it. Here he is, "touching" the top of the R&R Hall of Fame pyramid!

After a day of Rock and Roll, we headed to Little Italy for an authentic dinner. We all enjoyed the food, the gelato and cannoli, and just people watching. Frank, Jan, Alyssa and Dominic were on this trip with us , and after dinner Art, Frank, Alyssa and Dominic headed to an Indians game. and Jan and the kids and I headed back to the hotel for some swimming and relaxing. Alyssa is heading back to Illinois State as a sophomore, and Dominic is a sophomore at Rock Island High School. We think Gina and Alyssa look a lot alike - you can judge for yourself!

Tour of Ohio - Day One!

Our tour of the sites in our own "backyard" started in Canton - home of the Football Hall of Fame. Unlike the Griswolds' search for the largest ball of twine, this site was NOT four hours off the beaten path, but rather right on the side of the interstate. At first look, you think you've been punk'd, as the building does not look nearly as big as it does on TV, and parking is simply a grassy area next to the interstate!

Once inside, though, you find yourself immersed in football history - and we soaked it all up, especially everything about the Chicago Bears. Here's an interesting tidbit: the Chicago Bears has more players in the Hall of Fame than any other team. Hmm! We also found George Blanda, and the kids were excited to learn that he is a cousin on Grandma Leone's side of the family. (so says Art, anyway!)

As with any great museum design, to exit the building you must wind through the gift shop. We spent a good hour just looking for deals for the kids ( and Art!). I graciously declined offers of Hall of Fame ball caps and Hall of Fame shot glasses.

Here we are anxiously anticipating the excitement awaiting us inside!

Keeping up with the Joneses (aka the Ohrbergs!)

Not to be outdone by my younger brothers (actually, by my creative sisters-in-law), I've joined the bandwagon - of blogging, that is! Christine assures me that she'll help me figure out how to do this, so for now I'm excited that I've gotten this far all by myself. Of course, there are no pictures here yet...so we'll see how far I get without calling for help!

Check back soon for the exciting details of our One Tank Trip vacation last week, as we toured our own Buckeye State - Ohio!