March 2011 Trip to Florida – Day 1 (Sunday)

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Being on vacation on a Sunday is always a little challenging, but we made the best of it. We went to the Kissimmee Ward for their 9 am Sacrament Meeting. It was Fast & Testimony Meeting. I was a little worried that we wouldn’t know what anyone was talking about (since we don’t know the people), but it was actually quite a good meeting. They had the “regular” sort of people… the person who gets up every week, the person who talks about temple work, someone talking about youth, etc. The counselor in the bishopric who conducted started it off with a nice testimony, and the meeting continued from there.

When we got home, Lisa and the kids went swimming. I watched them for a bit, and then had a nap. I was exhausted. I don’t know if it was because of all of the driving I did, or what, but it sure felt good.

We had a nice dinner at home, and then after dinner headed over to a park in the neighbourhood. The kids played for a bit, and then we came home for popcorn and to read Geronimo Stilton together.

The kids went to bed, and then Lisa and I swam for a while. After getting dried off, we planned out a week a little more and then went to bed. We’ve got a busy week ahead!

Driving to Florida and Day 0

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The trip down could have been disastrous (the kids have never driven for more than 3 hours), but it wasn’t too bad. The first night we drove to Jeffersonville, OH, then the second day we drove to Macon, GA, and then on the 3rd day (Day 0) we arrived at the house in Kissimmee, FL. We arrived a little early, and so we went and got some groceries first. We then went to the house and swam.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

  • 3:35 Lisa, her parents, and the kids left home to pick me up at work
  • 3:56 picked me up and drove away
  • 4:03 got through customs at the Rainbow Bridge
  • 5:44 crossed the PA state line
  • 5:47-6:04 stopped at a McDonald’s for dinner
  • 8:09 left a rest area
  • 10:28 arrived at the hotel in Jeffersonville, OH

Lisa drove to pick me up, and then I drove the rest of the way

Christine had gotten sick the day we left, so she was pretty grumpy and groggy during the trip. At night I gave her a blessing. I laid my hands on her head, and started by saying “Christine Lisa Wing” and she opened her eyes a bit and said, “Yes?” šŸ™‚

Christine stayed in our room and the boys shared the second bed in Grandma and Grandpa’s room.

Friday, March 4, 2011

The continental breakfast at the hotel was quite good. We had bagels, cereal, juice, oatmeal, and waffles.

  • 8:00 on the road
  • 9?29 crossed the Kentucky border
  • 9:40 stopped at a rest stop
  • 12:40 got lunch at Wendy’s
  • 1:00 crossed the Tennessee border. We’ve noticed quite a few trees with blossoms, as well as some daffodils growing.
  • 1:09-2:00 hit a lane closure in the Tennessee mountains which delayed us almost an hour
  • 4:24 crossed the Georgia border
  • 7:30 arrived at the Macon hotel

Grandpa drove for a couple of hours in the morning, and a couple of hours in the evening. Lisa drive for a few hours in the morning. I drove the rest of the way.

Christine was feeling better (not 100%, but better), but Andrew was miserable. He just didn’t get enough sleep last night.

We had hoped to swim at the Macon hotel, but it was an outdoor pool and was closed for the season. It wasn’t opening until Monday. It was too cold to swim anyway.

The hotel was much, much nicer than the previous hotel.

Saturday, March 5, 2011 – Day 0

The continental breakfast in Macon was excellent. Along with the standard muffins, toast, cereal, etc, there were also biscuits, eggs, and sausage rounds. We ate well, and then got on our way.

  • 8:16 left hotel
  • 11:24 crossed the Florida border and stopped at a welcome centre. We each got an orange juice and grabbed lots of pamphlets of things to do
  • 1:04 stopped at a rest stop
  • 3:15 arrived in Kissimmee

We can’t believe the number of anti-abortion billboards around. There must have been one every couple of minutes along the Florida Turnpike. Strangely enough, during the whole trip there were also billboards for strip joints or “adult” stores at almost every major rest stop.

Of course we were looking for license plates. Here is what we have seen so far:

  • Alabama
  • Arkansas
  • California
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • Minnesota
  • Mississippi
  • Missouri
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New Mexico
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • Nova Scotia
  • Ontario
  • Pennsylvania
  • South Carolina
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Virginia
  • West Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • Wyoming
  • Oklahoma

Baby Fraley

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So, Julia and Ron are going to have their first baby this year and it was suggested that we all guess when he/she will come, whether it will be a he or she, and how much he/she will weigh (feel free to also include the length). Here are some details to help you with your guesses:

  • The due date is June 15
  • Julia is from a family ofĀ  2 boys and 4 girls
  • Ron is from a family of 2 boys
  • Julia’s side of the family hasĀ 4 nieces and 3 nephews
  • Ron’s side of the family has 2 nieces

Guesses so far (in order they were received):

  1. Andrea – June 17 – boy – 7 lbs
  2. Lisa – June 12 – boy – 8 lbs 2 oz – 20.5″
  3. Alisa – June 17 – girl – 8 lbs 4 oz
  4. Mom Wing – June 14 – girl – 7 lb 6 oz
  5. Brianna – June 16 – boy – 8 lbs 9 oz
  6. Jason – June 21 (summer solstice) – girl – 7 lbs 11 oz
  7. David (Julia’s uncle) – June 21 – girl – 7 lbs 2 oz
  8. Ron – May 30 – boy – 6 lbs 8 oz – 19″
  9. Graham – June 15 – boy – 7 lbs 8 oz – 20″
  10. Lillie – June 18 – girl –Ā  6 lbs 9 oz – 17 1/2″
  11. Andrew – on time (meansĀ on the due date)Ā – girl – medium size and weight (he held his hands apart like he was measuring a fish)
  12. Matthew – on time – boy – same size as Christine (8 lb 15 oz)
  13. Christine – on time – girl
  14. Jean Guthrie (Ron’s Mom) – girl – between 6/7 lbs
  15. Evy – June 14 – girl – 8 lbs 8 oz – 19″
  16. Norine Fraley (Ron’s Step-Mom) – June 20 – girl –Ā 7 lbs 1 oz – 19.5″
  17. Bill Guthrie (Ron’s Step-Dad) – according to Julia he is mean and thinks they are having twins that will weigh in at 9 lbs together šŸ™‚
  18. Dad Wing – June 22 – girl – 3600 g (7 lbs 15 oz) – 53 cm (20.87″)
  19. Noel (Julia’s cousin) – June 1 – girl – 8 lbs 4 oz
  20. Joey (Ron’s brother) – June 14 – girl – 8 lbs 2 oz

You can leave a comment below or email me directly. I’ll then update the posting with the guesses.

I guess the guessing boy/girl only counts before the ultrasound as they are hoping to find out what it is.

2010 Christmas Gift Exchange

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Last year, the drawing took place November 5, and today is Nov 6, so I’m only 1 day late…

The drawing of the names has been done, and the results are below. I believe that no one is buying for anyone that they’ve bought for in the last 5 years or more.

  • Alisa buys for Dad
  • Andrea buys for Julia
  • Brianna buys for Graham
  • Dad buys for Ron
  • Graham buys for Mom
  • Jason buys for Brianna
  • Julia buys for Lisa
  • Lisa buys for Alisa
  • Mom buys for Nanny
  • Nanny buys for Andrea
  • Ron buys for Jason

Note: Last year there was a mistake and it took us a few weeks to notice it. Please look it over and let me know if you see any problems.

Here are some guidelines:

  • We will continue with the $50 amount. There is no rule about spending exactly $50 to the penny, and no rule about whether it is $50 including tax or $50 plus tax. Just get something nice for the person that is close to $50.
  • Don’t get a gift card for the person (or give cash, or equivalent) unless that is what they specifically ask for
  • It would be good if people could provide a list (more than just a couple of items) to the person who is buying for them. That way the person receiving will be getting something they want, but if the list is long enough, they won’t know which it is.

We’ll be hosting the traditional Christmas Eve party at our house again. Nanny has also mentioned to us that she’ll have some games ready. We’re also open to discuss anything new you’d like to try/do that night when we’re together. We’ll send more details out as we get closer to December.

Poppy’s genealogy

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After Graham’s devastating news, I felt the need to post something upbeat. Jason was trying to describe how our family was organized, so he ended up drawing Poppy a chart. Note the most important thing that Poppy remembered (“Ron drives a plane, Daddy!”)

A sad time…

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Many years ago whenever Lisa wanted to do something boring, I would say to Andrea and Brianna, “I wish I were mini-putting”. They ended up getting me a custom made t-shirt with that phrase on it. You’ve seen it many, many times, I’m sure.

Unfortunately, the shirt just got too thin and started to rip around the letters. I had to throw it out šŸ™ Good-bye old friend!

On another sad note, last night Lisa and I watched the movie 2012 last night. If you haven’t seen it, DON”T!!! You’ll never get that two and a half hours back…

Our groundhog adventure

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So, you’ve heard about our raccoon adventure. How about our groundhogs? Our neighbour has a big concrete patio at the back of his house. Last year we had a groundhog living under it and we named him Willie.Ā  This spring there were 3 babies, and still only one adult. We assume that Willie was actually Wanda (and apparently was a floozy). Occasionally we would see all 4 of them out at the same time. Over the last week or more, we’ve only seen one of the smaller ones out.

Anyway, yesterday it came out, and I followed it to the front yard. It hid beside our air conditioner, so I had Matthew grab a net and after a bit of work I caught it. Dad and I took it across the canal and set it free. We’ll see if there are any left…

Matthew is beginning to think that I can catch anything. His friend told him they had a mouseĀ  and Matthew said that his dad could catch it šŸ™‚

Graduation

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It’s official! I am graduating from Wilfrid Laurier University on June 10th with a Bachelor of Arts in Honours North American Prehistoric Archaeology with a minor in Anthropology. I’m quite excited!

Our raccoon adventure

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Yesterday we had around 15 people over to help us with our yard. We shovelled dirt into our hole, we leveled the front yard, and we dug up weeds all over the place. The missionaries came over just after everyone had left and apologized for not making it over earlier, but they’d been at an appointment. We were talking with them outside when we saw a raccoon around our chimney. Let me fill you in on that a little more…

On Wednesday morning Lisa heard a noise coming from the fireplace. There were “chirps” and even some growling. It was apparent we had an animal with babies in our chimney, which we assumed were raccoons. Lisa called around to a few places, and it was going to be $300 or more to have someone come and remove them. When Dean first showed up, I asked him what he would suggest, and he said he’d had success with loud music.

So, back to the missionaries… I threw some rocks at the raccoon to scare it away so it wouldn’t go back down the chimney. Now the problem was how to get the babies out. We decided to “smoke ’em out” (as someone said). We got a fire going and not too long after, a baby raccoon fell down. Elder Hanks had some gloves on (and one of my t-shirts over his dress shirt) and grabbed it right away and took it outside. Another 10 minutes or so later another one fell down. We still heard some chirping, but the last one wasn’t coming out. Elder Hanks was using some different sticks/rods/hooks to try to get it out, but it just wouldn’t come. He eventually knocked it down and we got rid of it as well. I then covered the chimney and so we’re good now.

By the time Elder Hanks put the third raccoon outside, the other two were already gone, so we assume the mother took them. This morning, the last one was gone as well. As far as we know they were all alive when we left them in the ravine.

As Elder Hanks was leaving, he said with a big smile, “Is it wrong that this is the highlight of my mission?!” (he’s from the midwest and loves the outdoors and hunting).

Here is a picture of Elder Hanks with Andrew and the second raccoon.