The week in review

Biggest news of the week, Bogdan had a kidney stone.  He developed intense pain on Monday, finally went to the doctor on Tuesday, and after many tests, he was diagnosed with a 5mm kidney stone.  The doctors told him to let it pass naturally.  (by the way if it was bigger than 5mm, he could have had it "zapped")  Anyway, after a week long bout of pain and then no pain and then intense excruciating pain, he finally expelled the little bugger last night.  Of course, being the scientist, he measured it and it was larger than 5mm!  All's well that ends well.

Gabriel spent the day yesterday on the slopes, snowboarding with the class ski/snowboard club.  He had a blast, but said it was crowded.

Marian felt the luxury of not having to be up for anything in particular and roused herself out of bed yesterday at 1pm.

A week of sewing ahead of me, lots of costumes still to make.  Lots of organizing still to do.

Getting busy with Girl Scouts, organizing our big trip to Savannah in March.  Having to deal with many different tastes and personalities.  Thankfully, it's a short trip and we have it pretty well set already.  Visiting the birthplace of Girl Scouts and then doing a fun day at Tybee Island.

Bogdan and Gabriel may visit CA while me and the Girl Scouts are in GA.  Bogdan has a semi-business thing there and Gabriel would like to visit Stanford, UC-Berkeley and maybe Cal Tech.  This would be his only opportunity, so they are hoping to accomplish it.

All good things

Come to an end.

Anna returns tomorrow to ETSU and college schedule.  She is not looking forward to the 8:15am class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but knows she must do it.

Gabriel's wisdom teeth surgery was worse than he imagined, but was overall normal.  He is mostly back to eating real food and also back to work.

Now that the Bijou is over, well, Marian is of course, still singing, just not with a microphone on stage.  Mr. Moreno, the producer of all the high school productions, says "Marian's days of hiding in the costume area are over once she is in high school!"

Marian's birthday is Tuesday and will be 12!  Hard to believe.

Bijou Awards

 These were the finalists for the Rising Star category.

 Marian is on the far left and the girl in the center, Sydni, was the one who won in this category.

These are all the finalists (mostly high schoolers) in the singing and acting categories.

Back to normal life

Always sad when we put away our Christmas decorations.  Until next year, at least.  The tree did tremendously, only starting to lose needles in the past day.  There was a LOT of vacuuming to be done afterward.

Anna is recuperating well, and will be off her medication today, only taking Tylenol from now on.  She is looking forward to eating a real burger soon.  Shakes are only so good, she says.

Hard to believe that Girl Scout Cookie Season is upon us starting next week.  My troop has a goal to travel to Savannah, GA and we will hopefully be able to sell enough cookies to do that.  There are 3 new flavors this year, 2 that are gluten free and one that is healthy.  We are selling 2 of the new flavors, so it will be interesting to see if they sell or not?!

Gabriel is liking his new job, as a host at a nice restaurant in town.  He wears all black to work, and says he wants to save up to start a CD at his bank.

Marian is a week away from her big singing competition at the Bijou!

Anna's wisdom teeth

Are out!  She did well in surgery and is resting on the couch.  She will be sore for the weekend and probably swell up by Monday (chipmunk cheeks).  She is looking forward to ice cream and shakes :)

Bica leaves tomorrow after a nice visit and Bogdan will drive her to the airport with Marian.  The kids start school on Monday, but Anna has another couple weeks.  Bogdan also is back to work on Monday after (shocking everyone) actually taking 2 whole weeks off of work.

Costumes are underway and sewing has begun.  The play will open in a little more than 2 months, hard to believe now!

Happy New Year

Time for New Beginnings
By Taylor Addison

This is a time for reflection as well as celebration.
As you look back on the past year and all that has taken place in your life,
Remember each experience for the good that has come of it
and the knowledge you have gained.
Remember the efforts you have made and the goals you have reached.
Remember the love you shared and the happiness you have brought.
Remember the laughter, the joy, the hard work, and the tears.
And as you reflect on the past year, also be thinking of the new one to come.
Because most importantly, this is a time of new beginnings and the celebration of life.