My Treat

“…whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”
                                                                     – Matthew 25:40

Your eyes are not playing a Halloween trick on you. Yes, my car indicates it is only 31 degrees outside. And yes, I am having ice cream.

You know how I hate being cold. So you know it's for a good cause.

Today our local Dairy Queen had a fundraiser for the Helping Hands Gospel Mission – a relatively new effort whose primary concern is homelessness in Wood County. The organization is a Christ-centered non-profit that works with clients to achieve independence and self-sufficiency in their lives.

Due to the chilly weather and the fact that most people are either trick-or-treating or handing out candy, I don't know if they had a successful fundraiser or not. I sure hope so. Sadly it is a needed service in our community.

Just the other day when I was running errands on my day off, I stopped in at church to drop off some books. I was chatting with the church secretary who informed me that just that morning when she got to work, a homeless woman was camped out on our front door step, huddled under our rubber welcome mat for warmth. It was chilly during the night. Probably like the 31 degrees we are experiencing right now.

Can you imagine? I can't really.

But hearing it first hand, I don't doubt the story of one indicates the sad story of many.

We are blessed that God has given the Helping Hands Gospel Mission a passion for helping people – like the woman at church – who find themselves in difficult situations, whether they are jobless, homeless or going through a rough time. They are committed to doing what it takes and working with clients as long as necessary to get them on their feet. They believe in second chances.

Do you?

I admire their mission and am not sure I personally could do much to get involved. But I certainly can eat ice cream for a good cause.

If you know someone who needs that second chance, have them call 715-451-5262. If you can donate time or money to their efforts, visit their website at http://www.helpinghandsgospelmission.org/

Everyone deserves a treat.

Bread Crumbs and Brain Power

Started a new chapter in my career today, reporting for duty at 8 a.m. at Sentry Insurance in Stevens Point.

It's a 28-minute commute but I'll time for 30 minutes. OK, 40 minutes.

Today was filled with lots of info (my brain is full), lunch with my boss (my tummy is full), lots of introductions (my brain is full), and a tour all over the place in the crazy 8-story layout. My brain is really full! Hard to tell from the file photo above, but there are 4 levels above ground and 4 below – including covered parking for the worker bees. Will love that this winter!

The company employs 4,000 or so with the bulk in central Wisconsin. I do know about 10 people who work there and will see 4 on a regular basis since they work in the Marketing Department, too. So that eased the transition considerably.

And to clarify, I will not be writing insurance policies. I'll be writing marketing and communications masterpieces. And my job title is Ninja, not just "communications writer," but that's all I am allowed to say about that.

The rest of the week will be lots of learning the ropes.

Probably will pack bread crumbs for tomorrow. Not for lunch, but to leave a trail from my car to my desk!

Friendly and Not-So-Friendly Ghosts

Other than the potential to stockpile Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, I am not that big a fan of Halloween. I just don't like scary things.

At all.

Still, for some fun today, my friend Cindy and I took pictures of "Flat Casper" (for lack of a better name) at various "haunts" as part of a scavenger hunt. Thankfully, the only marginally scary photo requirement was a cemetery. The black cat, corn stocks and spider could all be fake if we wanted them to be.

The prize is a return to that haunted cafe for an evening of serious connections with the dead. Our team name was Witch-Consin Rapids Ghoul-Friends. I'll let you know how we do.

I extended my Halloween fun later when I attended an event in town called Halloween Aid. This was the 9th annual Halloween Aid Fright for Life but my first time going, mainly to see our friends' daughter dance.

All proceeds of this year's event are going to Aleah Applebee, who was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy-Type 1. SMA-1 is a neuromuscular disorder that prohibits the muscles from working like they should. Aleah has never sat down, stood, walked, or even talked. Because breathing and eating require muscles, Aleah uses a ventilator and feeding tube. Most children with SMA-1 do not live past the age of two, but at the age of six Aleah has blown past that boundary and continues to show that true strength does not require muscles.

The turnout was phenomenal. In fact the line was so long that I feared I wouldn't make it in in time to see the performance of Thriller.  But then I saw my friend and former co-worker Carmen (my Pentatonix pal) with her daughters and niece, so I sorta butted in line with them. 

I did get to see Elyse and the zombies dance to Thriller. That was scary good. 

But then the real fright came.

Do not ask me how the girls convinced Carmen and I to go in the Haunted Corn Maze. Did I mention I hate SCARY? I thought this might be the last picture of us alive!

Spoiler alert: I survived or I wouldn't be blogging.

Still, it was scary. Very scary for me. Girls thought so-so. Carmen and I thought very well-done and I screamed enough for the 5 of us. I may or may not have wet my pants. Apparently, my body naturally hates having dead bodies grab me and psycho doctors eat eyeballs right in front of us. Eww.

Gotta admit it was a fun evening for a last-minute, non-planned plan.

Now the only scary thing left is starting a new job tomorrow. Should be a breeze comparatively.

Meet-ing Place

When it's 40 degrees and the attire for the day is tank tops and shorts, we really could have done without the wind. Show some mercy, Mother Nature!

Yup, today was the state cross country meet. It's convenient that it is only 5 minutes from our house. But first I had to drive 10 minutes away to catch a shuttle since there is no parking for the fan base at The Ridges Golf Course.

The Assumption boys didn't have to run until 2:35 p.m. when Division 3 would take off. But I had looked at the boys and girls qualifiers this morning and realized my friend Laura's daughter qualified for the Division 2 race. So I texted my old Marinette reporter buddy to see if she was coming to town. Sure enough, she and her hubby were on their way to cheer on the Random Lake-Ozaukee team.

There probably were like 10,000 people there. Not really exaggerating. But we found each other! And I was able to take some good photos of Molly running. That was cool (well, cold actually) and it was really nice to see them again.

Most kids were smart and layered up a bit for the run. Personally, I had my thick snowshoeing socks on, plus long underwear, a few layers on top, my Royal scarf I made and a warm hat. Still it was b-r-r-r.

The boys had an exciting race. I don't know if anyone posted their best time ever but they sure fought hard through the very crowded field of fast runners. As a team, they finished 10th. I hope they feel good about it.

Came home and it took me awhile to warm up. We had a little neighborhood Halloween gathering of sorts – thankfully inside a heated garage. No need for a bonfire tonight. Just wouldn't be warm enough!

Thanks to an idea from hubby, I brought a funky treat that I call the "Night of the Neighborhood Dead" taco dip. Personalized grave stones using an "edible" marker.

Got us all on there. And it tasted pretty good, too. Have never done a layered taco dip before. I should write down what I did before I forget. I also need to find some other uses for the special marker as long as I have it.

Don't think anyone will want a cemetery scene as part of their holiday treats.

Guys and Ghoul-Friends

Pretty much spent the last day of my mini-sabbatical relaxing and having fun with a witch hunt here and ghost busting there.

Since there wasn't school today, my friend Cindy (who works over at Grant Elementary) took me to lunch in Plover to celebrate my upcoming new job. We went to the Cottage Cafe, which is haunted. Not just on Halloween but every day (and night) of the year. I'm not a fan of scary but the daylight made me brave.

While we waited for our first course – Pumpkin Pie Lattes – we toured the upstairs. Gotta say I was freaking freaked. Didn't hear or see anything, but the anticipation caused enough anxiety.

Did we experience any paranormal activity? Sort of. Here we are smiling away with our lattes and...
 

...Then we realized some ghost had tipped Cindy's cup and she was spilling! I am sure as grown women we wouldn't do that on our own. Even if the cup was filled to the brim.

I mean look at this broom! Standing on its own! Freaky stuff there. Tasty lunch, though. And great company, of course.

Did a little bit of work this afternoon and then hubby and I met up with our friend Gregg (one of Jim's high school classmates) for dinner at Jennings before the three of us headed over to the Hotel Mead to hear our friend Kat (another classmate) sing in her Almost Famous Band.

A mini Assumption class of '81 reunion of sorts! She is a sweetheart and can rock your socks off! It was nice to see her, Gregg, and a few other friends in attendance. A good crowd that surprisingly made us feel young. Apparently, Friday nights are considered the "early bird special" of the weekend or something.

We youngsters were all heading home by 10:30 p.m. Wild and crazy times.

Hopefully I'll just dream about rock and roll, not ghosts and ghouls.

A Woman of Wonder

In case you Wonder what this Woman was up to today, it wasn't much. I realize I am running out of time for my magical "free week" to get things done. It doesn't mean the motivation is flowing as freely as the minutes.

I found the following to describe today perfectly...

So kinda wearing a cape like Wonder Woman. Just not up to fighting crime or kicking my To Do List off the charts. Still, I did get some cleaning and organizing done, a little shopping done, and oh, got my 10,000 steps in. So that's something.

I also acknowledge that when I don't feel like cleaning or anything resembling "work," I find excuses to do fun projects, like design work. I made the following good luck message for our boys cross country team, which competes at state (right here in Wisconsin Rapids) on Saturday.

Looking at this photo from sectionals last week, it is hard to believe it could potentially snow here between now and the starting gun at 2:35 p.m. Most is predicted Up North. But still, there will be a chill in the air.

At least for tomorrow, that will keep me indoors most of the day as I Wonder what this Woman can accomplish!

Scoping Things Out

If you know me and my squeamish nature, you know I am probably not the logical person to accompany someone into surgery. However, when you are between jobs and available and have a vehicle, it becomes logical.

Today, I drove my nephew Tony down to UW Hospital in Madison for knee surgery. We left town at 10 a.m. so we could be there by noon – 2 hours before the scheduled procedure. He has been having pain in his knees and they were going in via the arthroscopic route to "clean out" the area and take some tissue to be biopsied.

He was all set to go in his purple gown, which had a vent to pump in hot air for warmth – oh yeah, I need one of those – and white compression socks, which resembled ladies' panty hose. So I left him in the capable hands of the cute nurses and went for a walk.

They have an amazing walking trail around the outskirts of campus, which I discovered last time. I was just getting close to my 10,000 steps when Tony called me and said he hadn't gone in yet! So they were a bit behind.

So I grabbed a pumpkin spice latte from the coffee shop, opened a book and read for an hour. I was kept apprised of his progress through a pager.

That was slick! Very much appreciated by surgical guests everywhere, I am sure.

When he was done, the doctor talked to me since Tony was still coming out of recovery. The doctor was so kind to show me no less than 30 photos of the procedure. They have a little camera that travels right into the knee with the other instruments. I feigned interest and tried to concentrate on what he was saying while not looking at the pictures. No fainting on my watch!

We had a smooth ride home and thankfully didn't have to use the "puke bucket" I brought with "just in case" he didn't react well to the anesthesia. Tony was fine though, and was even able to sort of walk on his left leg later.

Drove home this evening so he could start his recovery. I was glad to concentrate on not hitting any deer. That put those lovely snapshots out of my head.

Tuesday or Winds-Day

It seems strange that the World Series players and fans are dealing with extreme heat and meanwhile, in central Wisconsin, we have a wind advisory AND a windchill! I don't even like typing that word.

If we could bottle up some of that California heat and ship it our way, that would be awesome. For now, I guess we'll just use the furnace.

At least the chill kept me indoors today and somewhat on task. I did finally get my closet organized and slightly de-cluttered. One bag for charity anyway. I started on my "oh my god" room (aka office) and hubby is pretty sure that will take me the rest of the week. I saw that as an excuse to relax a bit and take my time.

Didn't want to go outside but my boyfriend made me! Ha. He was a good sport even though we were walking against the 25-45 mph wind and his hair was flowing like Fabio. Buddy is definitely super model material!

Thanks to his energy, I did get my 10,000 steps today. And saved enough "work" on my to do list to last another day... or two or three.

And I don't know about you, but I got some killer gas mileage on my broom today!

Winning on Winds-Day.

The Girl Who Baked the Hornet's Nest

No, I didn't actually read the REAL book, but when I hear "Hornet's Nest" in the title, I always think of my cake! I think some other people may as well.

Since I have a few days off this week, I made a point to get over to Iola to see my old workplace and former, former co-workers. Naturally I couldn't go empty-handed.

Magic Blue Pan Missions... bringing smiles one piece of Hornet's Nest Cake at a time!

It was fun to surprise the gang. Pretty much made my rounds through the building and got to chat with more than a dozen old friends. Well worth the trip. And I even came home with a few pieces of cake so hubby knows I love him, too!

Other than that, it was a quiet day. Got a freelance project done this afternoon just in time to go to kickboxing. Talk about old stomping grounds. Haven't been back there in ages, either. Now that my back seems to be "back in order" I going to ease back into it. We'll see how I feel tomorrow. I kept it very low key, though.

Tonight, hubby had to bowl for someone so I just plunked down on the recliner and watched The Voice. Tomorrow is a work day. Around home anyway.

I won't be kicking a hornet's nest, but I better kick it in gear and get some cleaning, de-cluttering, organizing done.

Waterproof

Was not thrilled to wake up to rain this morning. I had plans for a senior photo shoot around noon. If it didn't work today, we'd have to wait until the young man didn't have school this coming Friday.

Without generalizing too much, had it been a girl, I think she would have called it off and waited a few days. But guys, well, they probably aren't wearing any clothes that need to go in the "delicates" cycle and probably (but not necessarily) have less product in their hair. In essence, they are waterproof.

What I learned today... Boys don't mind senior photo shoots in the rain because:

1. They tend to go quickly. 
2. There's a good chance Mom will let them wear a hat!

Right on both counts.

After church, Curtis and his parents met me at the museum for a few photos of him in his Boy Scout (Eagle Scout) uniform, then onto the great outdoors at a historic site by Nekoosa that is sometimes used for reenactments.

Yup, it sprinkled the whole time. Yup, we got done in record time. And yup, he got to wear a hat for awhile! He was a great sport about it and such a natural outdoors! And I personally loved not having to deal with the sun and wicked shadows.

A few of my favorites from today...

 

Gives a whole new meaning to "photo shoot." C'mon, I couldn't resist that one!

No photographers or subject were harmed in this process. Although my shoes were dirty and my hair was flat. Got home in time for a Vikings victory so it all balanced out.

In MY world anyway.

To Have and To Hold

For some 15 years, our nephew Colin's main love has been car racing. That changed a few years ago when he found something new to love. Her name is Amy and after today, she is now our new niece and has a new last name – Reffner.

What a gorgeous fall day for a wedding. Actually, we all got a scare around 11 a.m. when there was a freak thunder and lightning storm in Wisconsin Rapids. Thankfully short-lived and the sun and warmth returned.

Colin and Amy were married in St. Stephen's Catholic Church in Stevens Point.

 A beautiful church inside and out. I should have taken more pictures!

Carter was an usher so he got to wear a tux. Colors were Reffner Blue and Sunflower Yellow. Very pretty.

The guys goofing around before the wedding.

The groomsmen and ushers all got socks from the groom for the special purpose of this photo. Ha.

A very fun wedding party!

Jim, his sister Sherry (mother of the groom) and their parents.

As long as we're dressed up, you might as well snap our picture!

 College Boy cleans up pretty good!

The bride and groom with Grandpa and Grandma Reffner.

And with Grandpa and Grandma Austin.

These two are made for each other!

Do you see how they're often mistaken for brothers?

Godfather Uncle Jimmy and Colin.

Ahhh... the cousins!! Don't ask me how the baby became the tallest. Unless he's on tippy toes? I'm not sure.

Can't remember the last time we had our family of 5 together. This picture means more to hubby and me than anything else all day.

The brothers three: Casey, Carter, Clay.

Goofing around with Grandma and Grandpa Austin.

A tall drink of water... I seriously should have worn heels!

Parents of the groom showing some love!

It really was a super fun day. Now it is after midnight and we are still full from the delicious dinner at The Ridges and my feet might be hurting just a bit from dancing like a kid.

But you know what they say at weddings and every day: Live (including dancing), Love, Laugh.