Busy Schedule

What a busy time it has been lately! This week seemed more packed then most. Wednesday night was Open House at Vista. It was well done. The theme for the evening was Renassanse. Hope and the Vista band opened the evening. They sounded very good.
Thursday evening was Open House at Jackson Heights. It started off with a hot dog dinner sponsored by PTA. The remainder of the evening was spent in Grace's class and with teachers coming to Tina and I to say good-bye. When began getting involved at Jackson Heights I prayed that God would use us there. On Thursday night the Glenda (the Office Secretary) came up and gave us hugs. She then told us that we were a "God Send" to the school and thanked us for all we have done. I thought back on that prayer that began 8 years ago. He did use us there and will continue to until we move. I have grateful to be used.
Friday evening it was early to bed. On Saturday and Sunday I was parking gate director for the Nitro Nationals Drag Boat races here in Red Bluff. Both days I had to be there by 5:00 Am with parking starting at 6:00. The spectator gates opened at 7:00. Tehama County Search and Rescue parked the cars and we collected money. I came home on Saturday and fell asleep.
Sunday afternoon we were done at 3:30 Pm. It felt good to go home. It was 90+ degrees both days. I came home and mowed the lawn. I think I will eventually have to get a new mower. Our old one is barely hanging on. After the mowing I set up the sprinklers and came inside to take a cool shower. I fell asleep last night with the water still running. Tina woke up at 3:00 Am and shut it off.
Today has been spent getting up late and going to Tina's parents. Her aunt and uncle were up from Stockton so they had a barbeque. The girls and I went over. Tina hurt her back on Friday and has been down all weekend. It feels good to have the Boat Drags behind us. That will probably be the last time I will do that. I had a good crew and he laughed quite abit.


Weather today was great. I barbequed hot dogs for dinner (twice). The dog ate the first batch and a few pieces of tri-tip after I set them on the counter. I was not happy. We have had a couple people interested in our house. As our agent says "it only takes one". Tina has finished school and the girls have two more weeks left. I hope it doesn't take all summer.

-Norm

PTA Appreciation

Last Monday evening was the final JHPTA meeting of the year. I had taken Hope to audition in L.A. so I wasn't able to make the meeting. When we arrived home, there were a number of gifts and boxes on the living room floor. Hope asked "What are these boxes"? Tina said JHPTA suprised us with a moving/appreciation party and gift cards. She said it was a nice time. I read the comments and couldn't help but think about the changes and improvement that have been made by a small group of parents. I remember my first meeting, we met in a kitchen and there were five about of us there. About 45 minutes into the meeting someone finally acknowledged me and asked me who I was. Later on as President, I vowed to not let this happen to anyone else and make these meetings more family friendly. Board Meetings were held at Burger King so the kids could play while we met. We led this group for four years and helped make the school a better place. Playground equipment, a marquee sign, enclosed bulleting board, reflection arts program, addressing school safety issues just to name a few things. Our children's lives were enriched through our involvement. It feels good to be noticed and appreciated. While I was at the school the other day, Grace and I went to the playground. We climbed on the equipment but what I enjoyed the most was my ride on the swings. This was something we thought kids should have. Through a matching grant from WalMart we accomplished this goal as well. The ride sure felt good.
Weather today: 85 degrees and beautiful. I love this time of year because you never know what your going to get. This weekend looks to be clear and in the lower 80's. I see a scooter ride shaping up for later on today.

-Norm

Los Angeles In A Whirlwind

Earlier this week Hope, Grace and I went to Hollywood. Hope recieved a casting call to audition for the new American Girl movie. We left home at 3:30 Am on Monday and arrived in Hollywood at about 11:30. Once there we went to an information table in front of the American Girl store. We had about 3 hours before they would start taking the J-Q group. The lady said we should get in line about 1:30. We went to lunch and got in line to wait at about 1:15. The line was already about 2 blocks long with the A-I group. At about 230 they by and seperated out the two groups. They started taking girls from our line at about 3:20. It seemed to go pretty quick after that. The audition part took about 10 minutes, then we had to wait until 8:00 pm to hear whether Hope will have a call back. We decided to stay in the area until 9:00. We went to Beverly Center, the largest mall I think I've ever been to. About 8:45 we still hadn't got a call. We were all very disappointed. At this time, we decided it was time to head home. I drove for about 2 hours until we reached a rest area and parked. Next thing I knew it was 7:30 Am and we were being awaken by a Rest Area worker emptying a trash can near our car. It was a long ride home, thankfully Hope was in better spirits.
On the way home I was thinking about dreams. We really do not have any control over what our children's dreams are. We bring them into the world and they are our dreams. As they grow they also develop dreams of their own. We assist them with acheiving those dreams. This is a little of what I did this weekend. I got to be the dad helping my child get a little closer to her dream. I guess that is one of my dreams as well.

Weather today: I rode the motorcycle yesterday and today with just a sweatshirt. It has been great weather! Not to cool and not to hot. Beautiful.........

-Norm

Big Work News

I returned to work today. Before I had even climbed out of the car this morning, I had a group of clients greeting me and welcoming me back to work. There were hugs all around! Once inside I caught up on all the behavioral issues, production status, and how all my staff were doing. I Following that it was up to the front office to let them know I was back. I went into the Manager's office and she said she wanted to let me know she had gotten the Director's position. I am very excited for her. She will be in charge of the entire County Department of Social Services. It is the largest department and the most employees in the County. That is a huge responsibility. I wish her well. I was asked by a few people if I would be applying? A huge no! It would take me away from the clients I serve each day. Besides, we are making plans to head to Knoxville. Our plans are bigger than here.
Tina went and got the air conditioner on her car fixed today. She is gone to school this evening so I haven't heard how things went with that. Well, that's all the news for now.

Weather today: Very, very, very windy. Chilly and some sprinkles.

-Norm

Sick At Home

On Sunday morning while listening to the pastor I started feeling sick. It was not because of the message but because I was catching a cold. I came home from church and have taken it easy ever since. I did not go to work yesterday or today. While at home I have been doing alot of sleeping and watching DIY Network and HGTV. I really like these two networks. With our house up for sale, it is giving me some ideas about what to look for in Tennessee.
Well, Tina took her car in the other day to have the air conditioner serviced. For $120.00 she had the freon topped off and it was working fine until Saturday. We had to go to Chico and it was about 85 degrees. It was then we learned the A/C had stopped working. I came home early on Friday to sign some payroll papers for the Round Up Association. They told me at that time I could expect a check on Monday or Tuesday. I checked yesterday and it was not ready. Today Tina took the car into Bob's and they told her it would be $200.00 to fix the A/C. Wow! About 1:30 today I received the call that a check was ready. Tina went a picked it up and when she came back, the check was twice as much as we expected. We have enough to pay for the A/C. God has provided! We will also be able to buy our Disneyland tickets! I am also feeling better but still coughing occasionally.
Weather today: It rained quite abit today and we'll be having thunderstorms for the next few days. I think I will be driving the car for the rest of the week.

-Norm