Fiedler Life

Spring Break In The Dells

2009-04-11T18:36:00.024-05:00

With Spring Break approaching, I decided a few weeks ago that we needed a little get away. It would have been nice to spend a week on a beach somewhere, but that wasn't in the budget this year. So after some internet searching we decided to venture north to the Wisconsin Dells to an indoor waterpark. We had never been to the Dells, but had heard lots about it from friends - so I found a good deal at the Kalahari - "one of the largest indoor waterparks in the country".

http://www.kalahariresorts.com/wi/

On Saturday afternoon we left with friends from church, Rich and April and their son, Jordan - and drove to Madison, WI. We decided to spend the night there so that we could hit the waterpark early on Sunday. We stayed at a Homewood Suites. (pause for commercial break) If you are ever travelling, you should try these hotels. It is becoming one of my favorites. You get a suite with a pull-out couch, full kitchen, breakfast (and dinner on weeknights) for the price of most regular rooms in say a Hampton Inn or Fairfield. We have stayed at several throughout the country and haven't been disappointed yet. OK back to your regularly scheduled blog...

After we checked in we went to dinner at another of our favorite places "Cheeseburger In Paradise". Awesome food, fun drinks, and Jimmy Buffet music. It's a fun place and if you ever go to one of these, you have to try the Chocolate Nachos for dessert - they are amazing!

Chocolate Nachos - Chocolate and flour tortillas fried, sweetened and covered with chocolate sauce, strawberries and colored sprinkles. Served with Blue Bell® strawberry and vanilla ice cream for dipping."

So here's a little side note: Before we left, I wasn't feeling too great and felt like my diverticulitis was maybe flaring up. Right now, I'm a little panicky with every ache and pain for fear I'll end up in the hospital again. I called my Dr. on Sat. morning and he gave me a prescription for an antibiotic. At the restaurant, I had one of their oh-so-delicious rum runners, but it is made with fresh raspberries, which have lots of seeds (something apparently I have to really be careful bout eating). So after dinner, I was feeling even worse and spent the evening in the room while
Mike, the boys, and our friends went swimming. I guess my rum runner days are over!! :{

Sunday we woke up to about 3 inches of snow - where is the SPRING in Spring Break ??!! We headed for the Dells,. We quickly got out of the snow - although the weather never got much warmer.

Another side note: I'm finding out more and more, that I've become very sensitive to medicine. As we were driving I started to have a reaction to the antibiotic the dr. had prescribed, even though it's one I have had before. ARGHH!! So, our first order of business was to find a Walgreens to get some benedryl (luckily I didn't have to take it because I would have slept the rest of the day and the itching stopped on it's own)

We got to the hotel and were just amazed at the size of the place. It's literally like it's own city. It reminded me of the hotels in Vegas that just go on forever. Except this totally caters to kids - so of course, our boys were in heaven. The waterpark has numerous slides, climbing areas, a wave pool and surf pool, a huge lazy river, water basketball, hot tubs, etc.. etc... It was really too big, because it was hard to keep track of the kids. In addition, there is an indoor amusement park with go karts, climbing wall, ferris wheel, ropes course, laser tag, etc.. etc.. and tons and tons of video games where you can win those wonderful tickets to redeem for prizes. Our package included a day in the amusement park with unlimited rides. Of course, we also spent quite a bit of $$ on the video games.

Here's Mike and Collin in the wave pool.

After swimming for several hours, we checked into our rooms, changed and headed for dinner. One of the restaurants was advertising their prime-rib buffet. At first we were thinking it would be kind of like an Old Country Buffet - but it was way better, with a wonderful selection of food: prime rib, sirloin, salmon, etc. etc. The food was great, plus there was an amazing dessert buffet. The advertised price that we had seen was $21.99 for adults, $4.99 for kids - we thought this was a little high, but given it's at a resort and the quality was really good we figured we'd go for it. When we got the bill, we found the week day price was only $16.99 - a very good deal. So after stuffing themselves with pounds of meat and awesome desserts, Mike and Rich were nearly in tears to learn the bill was $10 less than they had expected. They were happy guys!!

My boss and his family also joined us at the hotel on Sunday evening. They have 2 girls, so it made for more friends for Andrew and Collin to play with. So, they all went back to the pool for more swimming, while Collin and I headed for bed.

The next day we did the amusement park.

Collin especially loved the go-karts with mommy driving. He kept yelling - "I love this ride!"

He also loved the ferris wheel, but that was strictly
a daddy and Collin ride - mommy doesn't do heights!

Andrew is now tall enough to drive his own go-kart by himself. He thought he was pretty cool stuff. I was a little nervous.

Andrew and Emma (my boss' daughter) were the only ones brave enough to tackle the ropes course. It had 3 levels of ropes that went about 4 -5 stories high. I think Andrew was petrified through most of it, but he kept on going. I was really proud of him - it was high and scary and there is no way I would have ever done something like that!

The Laser Tag was probably our favorite. I'd never done a laser tag course and there is something pretty thrilling about sneaking around rocks and shooting at unsuspecting people. Collin never quite got the sneaking part. He mostly just stood out in the middle and shot at anyone who ran past...but he loved it!

After a full day there, we headed for dinner at - that's right - the buffet. Then Andrew and I both sang in the Kalahari Idol competition. You know if there's karaoke - I'm there. They had a kids and adult competition...unfortunately neither of us won, but it was a fun time. Andrew is pretty good at working the audience, showing off his dance moves and playing harmonica on the microphone. I don't know where he gets that flair for showbiz!!?!? We did get two free large pizzas for paricipating and of course, the adoring cheers from our fans (all 9 of them)!

Afterward, Collin and I went to the room to relax. Andrew and Mike, ever the energizer bunnies, closed the park down at midnight! They are party animals!

Tuesday we spent the morning swimming - until Collin closed down the waterslide! Don't want to go into too much detail, but we were "that family"!! A proud parent moment!! After that incident, we decided it was time to leave (before we were asked to). While Mike and the boys ate pizza, I ran over to the outlet mall across the street for a little retail therapy. Unfortunately, I didn't really find any great deals. I thought there was a recession going on??

So, we headed for home. All in all it was a fun, exhausting trip - but one we would definitely do again!

Celebrate We Did!

2009-03-29T22:03:00.009-05:00

My neighbor and good friends', son, had his 5th Birthday Party yesterday. He is really into Star Wars so they asked me to bake a Yoda cake. I spent several hours on it and I think it turned out pretty darn good (even if I do say so myself).

Then, I decided at the last minute that Yoda had to have a light saber, so I threw some twinkies together and frosted them.. They were a big hit with the kids - guess I could have saved baking the cake and just done the whole thing in Twinkies.

In the evening, we all got together and had a wonderful steak dinner and Karaoked until the wee hours of the am. A Fun Time It Was!!

How not to spend the weekend!

2009-03-23T20:24:00.002-05:00

Well, as some of you know, I spent last weekend in the hospital with diverticulitis. For those soooo inclined to know, it's a severe intestinal infection that comes with lots of pain and can possibly lead to colon perforation, etc.. etc...

I hadn't felt well all week, but just passed it off as a stomach bug. On Friday, I went with some friends to the Hearts at Home Conference. This was the first year I actually got signed up and (almost) attended. After dinner, I felt really, really bad and as we were shopping around the vendor area, quickly realized I needed to head home. I called my sister, Pam, and she came to Bloomington to pick me up. My sweet friend, Amy, sat with me in the lobby until she got there. You know how when you really don't feel well everything is very annoying? - that was me! I hope I wasn't too snippy with Amy (she wasn't annoying me, but it seemed every other person was).

Anyway, Pam took one look at me and said "you need to go the hospital". So we headed to Peoria to OSF ER where I spent several hours in pain, going through tests, shaking from the chills, etc... Finally, at 2:00 am, they concluded that it was diverticulitis. About 4 am they decided to admit me to a room. I was thinking I'd be out the next morning after some heavy drugs, but no, my dr. came in and said, "I think we will keep you until Monday or Tuesday"?!?! And he was hoping they wouldn't have to operate!! YIKES!!

I was just slightly perturbed - at this point the morphine pump was working good and I was feeling no pain. Thankfully the antibiotics worked and surgery wasn't necessary and I came home on Tuesday. I just need to take it easy for awhile and watch my diet - FIBER, FIBER, FIBER!

It's been an eventful week, but it was such a blessing to have tons of calls, visitors, meals, cards, flowers, etc. from family and friends. Not to mention the help with the boys and the work my wonderful husband did around the house. Thanks to everyone!

I actually felt better yesterday than I think I've felt in months. So maybe this has been part of my ill feelings lately. Unfortunately, this afternoon I starting breaking out in hives. Probably a reaction to meds - so I will call the dr tomorrow to see what I should do?!? I continue to be a medical mystery - but all in all I am so very BLESSED!!

Have a great week!

Happy New Year

2009-02-18T22:18:00.011-06:00

Hi all...

Well I'm just a tad bit behind on my blog. Bad Blogger, Bad Blogger :(

Facebook is just keeping me too busy. That and all of the other demands on my time - I counted the other day and since Christmas we have had 7 parties at our house.

So here's a brief update on our madcap social life the past couple of months.

After Christmas we spent New Years with friends and got to have a wonderful, but too short, visit with the Wilkes on their way back to France. We really miss having them here. I'm sure if you've read Heatharlyne's blog, you've gotten way more interesting info than I can give about their trip...so, I'll just leave it at that.

Andrew turned 9 January 11. He had a party for 8 of his friends. My goodness what madness 9 -9 year olds can create. He had a Wii party and we went to my office at Young Life where they played foosball, ping pong, and Wii on the big screen TV. Then a couple of days later we celebrated with family at our house.

On January 23 Collin turned 6 - I can't believe my baby is that old. He had a Curious George party with several of his friends from church, school and the neighborhood. He had the best time. He turned 6 on Friday, but his party wasn't until Saturday and he kept insisting that he wasn't going to be 6 until he blew out his candles on his cake. As soon as he blew them out I asked him how old he was and he said, "I'm 6!" On Sunday, we celebrated with the grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc...

We also had a Super Bowl party and a get-together for Mike's Men's group. So that's all 7!

In other news:

Those of you who follow my FB status know that my dryer died a few weeks ago. My husband - God bless him - never makes quick decisions on these types of purchases. We have to research Consumer Reports, look at various models, etc. etc.. As we were contemplating what to get we decided we should also put a new floor in the laundry room because the vinyl flooring that was originally laid was coming up. So I bought a newer type of vinyl tile that looks and feels like ceramic. It's called duraceramic. And it was super easy to put down. Just cut with a utility knife, peel and stick. I bought the kind that can be grouted, which took longer than I expected. But I'm really happy with the final result.

We decided on a washer/dryer that can be stacked to give us more room in our tiny laundry room. So far it's great - although I still need to find a way to put in a counter top for folding that won't take up too much room. Hard to believe laundry can be so exciting...I feel just like Kelly Ripa!!

We are very thankful that Mike still has his job at Caterpillar and we continue to pray for those families who are sturggling with finances and job loss.

That's the latest for the Fiedler family. Have a good week!!

Good Times!

2008-12-28T20:43:00.003-06:00

This is has been a really nice week in the Fiedler home. Very low-key. Lots of family time (not always a good thing, but in this case it was)...and just a lot of fun with the boys. Christmas was a great day. The boys got up around 7:30 and we held them off from opening their presents until 9:00 when Grandma and Papa got up and Aunt Pam came over and we'd all had a least one cup of coffee.

They really liked everything they got and Andrew was thrilled that Mom and Dad came through with the Nintendo DS that he had "always wanted". We thought it would be somewhat of an extra-special gift because of his arm surgery and the potential for alot of pain, etc...As it turned out he has done very well and had little-to-no pain. Not that he hasn't tried to play the dramatic "I've just had people cutting into my arm" role from time to time, but that one we've got figured out. We are very thankful that he has come through this so well and pray that God continues to heal his arm. There is a 50/50 chance of this procedure fixing the problem and if not, then the next step is much more invasive.

Collin has been really funny lately. He lost his front tooth the day after Christmas which has left a giant gaping hole in his mouth and causes him to slurp alot. While his vocabulary has increased dramatically over the last year, he still struggles with some words....which makes some of his speech down-right funny. For example: a picture of the president-elect came on TV the other night and Collin asks "Is that Taco Bama?" Also, one of his newest favorite movies is "Come to Panda" aka Kung Fu Panda. He has a bit of an obsession right now with Curious George. He received 2 stuffed Georges for Christmas which brings his total CG count to 4. He insists on bringing them with him everywhere. Today, he put one on the check-out lane at the store and the clerk tried to scan it and then asks..."is this yours?"

I commented to Mike the other night how enjoyable this Christmas break has been. Last year it seemed we were at our wits end with the boys fighting and Collin's behavior and learning difficulties. Not to say that all is "merry and bright" all the time here, but as the boys get older and we see them maturing and making better choices and truly enjoying each other, we know we are truly blessed. Now...if we can just remember that the next time one of them punches the other one!?!?

We Wish You A Merry Christmas

2008-12-23T22:02:00.002-06:00

Wow...what a bad blogger I am... I haven't posted since right after Halloween. My apologies to those who check this blog on a daily basis. Helllooo anyone there???

We have had a busy month. Since I began working at Young Life it seems some things (like blogs) tend to fall by the wayside. But, I really like my job. It's a great group of people and I like the work. Plus, the hours so far have been very flexible...like when Andrew was throwing up at school and I had to work from home...or when they had a substitute bus driver who didn't know to drop Collin at the neighbor's house and took him back to school because no one was home. We are adjusting to Mommy being gone part of the day, but there are still a few hiccups.
Overall it has been a good transition. Mike even did all of the laundry last week - what a guy!!!

We had my family Christmas this past weekend which was very nice to spend time with my sisters and nieces and nephews. They are all growing up sooo fast and becoming mature young adults.

This morning Andrew had surgery on his arm. He had a cyst removed from his bone and had bone marrow from his hip mixed with bone from a bone bank injected into his arm. It went very smoothly and he seems to be doing pretty well. He has only complained of the pain a few times and we've yet to give him any pain medication. Tomorrow may be a different story, but for now I am thanking God for bringing him through it safe and sound. A funny side story: when he found out that he was getting bone from a bone bank he said: "So...they get bone from a bank? Whose bone is it?" I said, "Someone donated it." He said..."Are they dead?" I replied..."yes" and he got the strangest look on his face.

Tomorrow (Christmas Eve) and Christmas Day will be pretty low-key at our house. I hope you all enjoy the holiday. Stay safe in this nasty weather and remember that Jesus is why we all gather together. I pray you can take time to worship him in the midst of your celebrating with family and friends.

Blessings to you all.
Robin

Pumpkins, Super Heros, and Kung Fu Andrew

2008-11-04T18:12:00.007-06:00

This year I decided to try my hand at carving a pumpkin with something other than triangle eyes and a toothy grin. After seeing the creations that some of you have posted on line, I decided I could do it, too...how hard could it be??? HA! Well, Collin picked a relatively easy bat pattern (he calls it Batman). Andrew, of course, decided on a more challenging, Darth Vader. All in all, I think they turned out OK, but boy was my hand sore the next day. Can you get carpel tunnel from pumpkin carving?

The boys had a great time trick or treating. The wonderful warm weather made it even nicer...no hurrying from house to house to keep from freezing. I could definitely live in a warmer climate. No problem! Collin had an especially fun time this year trick or treating with his 2 neighborhood friends, Noah and Elijah. They were so cute running up to the houses and yelling "trick or treat" before anyone even came to the door!

Collin kept saying "cheese" as Mike was taking his picture....can you see his smile??

You wouldn't want to meet Kung Fu Andrew in a dark alley!

Andrew, Noah, and Collin are prepared to battle evil, fight crime,

and get some candy!

Life, Death, and Doors in Heaven

2008-11-03T21:28:00.002-06:00

For some reason the subject of death came up at our house the other night. Andrew felt the need to inform Collin that "when you die, you don't come back to life". To which Collin replied, "I know!"

Then I added, "but you can go to Heaven".

To which Collin replied, "but you can't come back, there's not 2 doors. There's only 1!"

What's the scripture..."wide is the path, but narrow is the door????"

Look Mom, No Training Wheels!

2008-11-03T21:21:00.002-06:00

Last week Collin decided he was going to ride a bike without training wheels. Mike had helped him a little over the summer trying to balance, but he was pretty scared, so we didn't push it. But, just like everything with Collin...when he decides it's the right time...it's the right time. He just took off down the sidewalk!! We are so proud of him. As most of you know he's had a lot of delays and this is a pretty big deal that he reached this milestone in a somewhat normal time frame. And with the warm weather he's had plenty of time to practice and now is riding like a pro. He's had a few falls, but just like Collin, it doesn't phase him a bit. He just gets up and picks up his bike and gets right back on. His perseverance is a lesson we should all learn!

We are pleased to inform you....

2008-10-29T16:47:00.002-05:00

Scott called today and offered me the Young Life job. YEA!! I'm really excited. I think God has just worked this out in a pretty amazing way and it will be great to be in ministry and get paid for it! I talked to my neighbor and she is more than willing to let Collin get off the bus at her house on Mon. & Wed.- another big answer to prayer and then on Friday, I'll just pick him up at school. I have a couple leads for summer child care...so things are falling into place!

I start on Monday! Keep me in your prayers!!

So Tell Me About Your Strengths and Weaknesses

2008-10-23T10:11:00.002-05:00

Well I'm going this afternoon for my job interview for the Young Life job! It's been over 10 years since I've had a job interview - WOW - I'm actually kind of nervous! Anyway...if you think about it say a prayer for me at 2:00 pm. I'm sure it will be fine. Scott said they should have a decision by next week. I think I have some ideas for working out childcare issues.

Andrew is kind of upset that I might be going back to work. He's worried about what the summer will be like and that I won't be able to help out at school as much. This kind of makes me sad, but I understand his concerns. In his 8 1/2 years of life, I've pretty much been available to him 24/7 - so it's probably a little scary for him.

I'll keep you all posted about the outcome!!

Idol Thoughts!

2008-10-18T09:13:00.000-05:00

Ok some of you will find this amusing and some will think it's weird. But as many of you know, I'm a BIG American Idol fan. My sis and I went to 2 AI concerts this summer - actually she went to 3. The last one we went to in KC (home of David Cook) we were 5th row center....David Cook actually looked right at us many times. Plus, his brother, Andrew, and his Mom were 2 rows in front of us and we talked to them, got our pics taken with them, etc... Also, met his girlfriend, Kimberly Caldwell (season 2 finalist).

At the Chicago show we got to meet some of the Idols. (It was raining outside...hence the lovely hair on Michael Johns and I)

Like I said we are FANS!!

Anyway, the other night I was putting Collin to bed and laid down with him for a little while. As he was falling asleep he started singing, "Da-vid Co-ok, Da-vid Co-ok, Cookie, Cookie". I was trying to not crack up because I didn't want him to wake up. But how funny (or disturbing some may say) is that?!? Yes, I have Cookified my 5 year old!

Just an update because I know you check this everyday!!

2008-10-17T15:58:00.000-05:00

Hi folks,

Well, here's the latest on the job scene. Scott sent me the job description and I sent him my resume and told him I was interested in pursuing the position. I did ask what the pay was - (major job hunting no-no, but why waste every one's time if it isn't financially feasible). Pay is OK...I knew it wouldn't be like $100k/year so I'm cool with what they are paying. Next week I'll go in and meet with Scott and the associate director and see what happens from there. So...by November 1st I could be gainfully employed for the first time in 9 years....YIKES!!

I really appreciate all of the advice everyone has been giving me. I do feel like this is a God thing and probably the right thing at the right time. When I thought about it I was like....What other jobs are there in Washington, working 3 days a week only during school hours, decent pay, and in a ministry that I really support???? HMMMM. There will be some details to work out with childcare for the summers and days off school (thanks Jessica and Christy for the advice on that), but Scott said summers are very flexible. So, we'll see. Now that I'm all psyched and ready to do this, if I don't get the job I'm gonna be bummed.

In other news....

Stacy Wagner and her kids (friends from church who moved away this summer) are coming for the weekend. Her kids have a 4 day weekend and my kids are super excited to see their friends. Andrew said last night that he wasn't going to think about Brooks at all today during school so that the day would go faster - and he hoped that wouldn't hurt Brooks' feelings. It will be good to spend some time with them. And it was extra incentive to get my house cleaned.

Hope you all have a great weekend!! For those of you out-of-staters it's going to be a nice fall weekend - sunny tomorrow with a little chill. We are going to build a fire in the fire pit and have s'mores. Should be fun!

R.

To Work or Not To Work

2008-10-13T11:49:00.000-05:00

Since both boys are in school now, I've had thoughts about getting a .....JOB!! Just part time of course, and I want to work only while the boys are at school and not every day. It's a pretty scary thought because I really like my free time and getting the house clean, going grocery shopping, helping at school, etc... But it would be nice to have some extra income since we are planning a big trip to Germany and France for next summer.
.
On Sunday at church we saw our old neighbors the Seynemeiers. They were visting RCC for the 2nd time and we are so hoping they will decide to start attending there. Anyway...Scott is the area director for Young Life and he mentioned that he needed a new office administrator. My ears perked up and I asked what were the hours?? M, W, F: 9 - 3. Well...that pretty much fits into my schedule, plus his office is in Washington just a couple blocks from school. I told him I would call this week to talk about it more. So, now I need to make a decision!!

It would be a nice job. Scott is a super great guy, and he said the hours are flexible if I have things that come up. Plus, and this is a biggie, I would actually be working in a ministry that is very worthwhile. If you don't know what Young Life is....www.younglife.org. Of course, it doesn't necessarily mean he will hire me if I decide to apply...but...

So, friends, give me your thoughts on this new opportunity in my life!! I welcome any and all opinions!

Welcome To Fiedler Life

2008-10-13T11:22:00.000-05:00

Hi all,

Well..I know how much everyone wants to hear about all of the exciting things that are happening in our life here in Washington, Illinois, so I decided to jump on the blog bandwagon! This way you can all live vicariously through us - Ha!! Now, this will in no way come close to the delightful cultural reading of my friend, Heatharlyne's blog in France...or even the snow-packed mountain escapades of Christy in Wyoming, but it's allI've got - so enjoy!!