Living the Life of Riley: November 2010

2010 was an uneventful year, for the most part. There is a level of comfort in things staying the same.

Mike has had several projects going this year. He found a car on Craigs List; worked on it until it was road worthy & gave it to Cheryl. She found herself a new job, then a new boyfriend. Mike also bought himself a truck & it is close to being ready to inspect & license. Currently, he is working on a Dodge Neon for one of Sandy's sisters, who lives in PA. He's planning a road trip there after the first of the year. Renovations on the Jacksonville house continue, Mike has most of the drywall up in the master bedroom, closet & scrapbook room as well as a new window in the master bedroom. Olivia spent a week with us, in July. We took her & Missy down for a few days. One has to love the honesty of a 3yr old---Olivia walked through the door and stated: 'This house is ugly!' You know what, she is right--with all the construction & materials all over, it is ugly! We went to the beach & it was so much fun watching her play in the sand & in the water. Olivia seems to have no fear, no matter how many times she was knocked over by the waves, she didn't want to leave the ocean! Olivia is definitly Grandpa's girl & was so excited to fly from California to North Carolina for her visit.

Missy is enjoying 10th grade, in no small part due to her participation in Jr ROTC & their drill team. She takes pride in her uniform & no one's shoes shine like hers. Missy works hard to earn rank & has been promoted 3 times. She was promoted to Senior Airman Nov 20. Missy is anticipating turning 16 in Feb & Mike is even allowing her to take driver's ed & get her permit.

Mike & Sandy celebrated their 4th anniversary at a Bed & Breakfast in West Jefferson NC. The house was built in the 1800s & each room has a fireplace (changed to electric) & a 2 person claw foot tub. The innkeeper, Doc, was a delightful man & cooked scrumptious breakfasts. It was a nice couple days away & Sandy even gave up antiquing to stay & see cheese being made at the Ashe County Cheese Factory.

The one big change this year is that Sandy is no longer employed. Time will tell whether she gets her job back. We are confident that God's plan is perfect, if His plan is for her to do something different, He will open those doors. In the meantime, she's finding her inner Betty Crocker & Martha Stewart, catching up on her scrapbooking & card making & has started volunteering at a local soup kitchen on Mondays. Truth be told, she's enjoying being at home every day & suspects that Mike & Missy do too.