Brass Doggies $7, Spanish Dictionary $1, Piece of Mind $.50,

We have survived the rummage sale. Hmmm…it was my first official and I learned some lessons. Lesson #1, do as little labeling as possible, #2-work in pairs, #3-you aren’t going to make what you hoped, #4-some things are hard to watch walk away but in the grand scheme of life-do you need it, #5-put an ad in the paper, #6-there are people out there that will amaze you! I am proud to say that I sold a lot of things…Janice’s roller skates, Jerry’s roller blades, an old bed frame, ‘the pool’, blinds, some clothes, VHS movies, knick knacks, and more…..it was amazing what we thought would go away quick and what actually did! I’m proud to say that I officially have my garage back! Hooray!

Other things worth mentioning….Dan has had that cooking spirit lately and I’m loving every minute. This week he made manicotti, ravioli, sloppy joes, and a Guinness roast. He wasn’t happy with how the roast turned out, so he’s going to try it again this Friday. I won’t complain! The only bad thing is that since he was prepping the feast he cut his finger really badly. The worst part is that it’s right on the tip making working not too much fun!

This week I was really busy at work, we haven’t filled the assistant staff position yet. I had a Partners Gathering, which is basically the organizations involved with community development sent representatives from communities and their organization to talk about leadership development, community vision, and mobilizing resources. We had 25 individuals come to this invite-only event and we were impressed with the caliber of conversation. Something like this had never been done, so we weren’t sure what to expect.
Because we brought our consultant from Nebraska up, we also took care of other actions/work that was happening in other communities. We made a trip up to Killdeer and we visited the Buckskin. I had a sirloin that wasn’t too bad! When I was in Lincoln, he took me to such wonderful places, it’s hard to compete with our limited resources.

Dan officially said good bye to Chris this week. It was hard to think do and we will be thinking about him, and others that we know that went with. Krista Glanville (Amy I’s sister) is another one that we hope will come home soon. She has a husband and little boy that she shouldn’t be apart from. The only positive thing about the situation is that it is Kosovo versus Iraq or Afghanistan.

TO end on a good note, we are extremely happy for my cousin Wes and Kristi, who have been together for-E-ver! They announced their engagement on Saturday night. I thought it was very timely and went shopping through the rummage sale remains! Good thing for them Jerry’s shoe-shine box was sold!

Good-byes Stink.

Another filled week, one of the big things that happened was that we packed and said good-bye to Aunt Janice. She and Jerry moved across state to West Fargo. We hated to say good bye for multiple reasons, it was great to have family close by, especially her, but also we hated to pack all of their things. They have sooooo much stuff! I threw out her picnic provisions and now she is fighting with me! I told her I’d make it up to her! Dan and I will miss them both terribly.

Another good bye that we hate to even think about is to Dan’s friend Chris. He is going with the Nat'l Guard to Kosovo. We visited Bismarck on Saturday to spend a little time with him and his fiancé, Rhianna. The meal with this friends were full of news—including Rhianna is pregnant and Corey, another best friend of Dan’s, has decided to join the National Guard. We are nervous and excited for all of them!

While we were in Bismarck, we also were able to spend a little time with both sides of family. We took in Alaina’s horse show…her favorite part—the speed events! She placed in each of the events that we were able to watch and my mom was also excited to tell me that she placed in Western Riding. I’m glad that Alaina continues to pursue and enjoy her horse passion. We went to Deb and Dan’s for supper and I think we could live there!! We had beer-battered fried fish, garlic-mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, and crème brulee! Amazing!! We were able to talk with Dan’s stepbrother and fiancé about their upcoming November wedding.

Another mentionable happening is that Dan just trained, tested, and was promoted to a Level 3. He is so excited because he has moved up quicker in Dish since he’s been back than some of his other co-workers! I’m so proud of him!

I was elected Dickinson YP president. I’m a little nervous about this position. I’m not sure if I’m ready to commit the time or be able to make a difference but I guess time will tell!

The Official Party!

We want to say THANK YOU!! We had a fabulous day with friends and family at our housewarming. It was great to share what we had done. Dan was in charge of grilling, and I was the professional tour giver! We had more food than we had friends—burgers, hot dogs, pasta salad, spinach dip, chocolate cake, watermelon, cucumbers, angel food cake(from Scratch), scotcheroos, chips, bean salsa, beans, raspberry whitecake, fresh fruit, cupcakes, cookies, and more!!

It was fun to show off some of the things we’ve done and what some of our plans were. We have other plans in mind but we’ll wait and see. It would be great to have the floors done and the appliances all the same color…but it will take time (and money!)

Everyone made the day extra special but special points go to my Mother who made the day so successful, she helped us clean, cook, meet and greet, and kept the party moving! Honorable mention goes to my sister, who took camera responsibilities!

We are gearing up for the big rummage sale and getting ready to say good bye to Aunt Jani and Jerry. Keep you posted!