Picture Update

I finally got back to Olathe so I was able to upload some pictures of what's been going on. This was at my open house with the EMT's who came to do wellness checks. To the far left is my technician, Karen, and the far right is my cashier, Melissa. They are both great help.

My parents and sister surprised me with these pretty flowers and balloon. They received many compliments!

We've made some progress on the house. We finally got to a point where Tim could go home and rest and be with his family. All the walls and ceilings are finished with texture. Here you can see the difference from before and after.

And he's very talented on his stilts!!

One of the biggest changes has been the entry way:

They removed all the paneling, raised the ceilings and re-wired everything.

The area is now tall and open which will make a nice entrance into the house.

Another area which took a lot of time is the bathroom. Here is the before. Notice the sweet cow toilet -paper holder the previous tenants so graciously left!!

They gutted EVERYTHING!!!! We had to go without water for a couple days and it was miserable.

The men admiring the newly installed tub. I tried to talk them in to keeping the big pink one, but instead it's in the front yard. Devin says he's going to make a red-neck hot tub out of it by propping it up and putting our turkey fryer underneath it

They moved some walls, raised the ceiling, made storage, and replaced the vanity and mirror. There's still a little more to do, but here's where it's at now.

The next (and last) big project will be the kitchen. I can't wait! I've been without a sink or cupboards for weeks now! The guys have done a great job and they are exhausted! They are taking a much needed break for the holiday.

Each year Pamida has a Giving Tree which helps provide children with gifts their family cannot afford. The tree is covered with ornaments with the child's gender, age, and request and the customers choose one to buy for. The items are purchased and Pamida wraps them up and delivers them to the homes. Karen and I volunteered this past Tuesday night. Here's Santa loading our slay!

It was a great feeling helping out the community this way and making sure many had a Merry Christmas!

November News

The days, weeks, and months continue to fly by. I can't believe the New Year will be here in just a few weeks. Norton has been full of camo and orange with all the hunters in town. They have come from all over and have brought a lot of business to Pamida and Norton. Devin has a deer tag and has been out twice a day. He hopes to snag one by this weekend. I enjoyed the craft fair on opening weekend. I was surprised by all the nice things they had. I found myself some jewelry and a wall decoration. I did have to chuckle at a few things, though.......wreaths made out of camo and shot-gun shells. HAHA Can you say Redneck??

Since I began at Pamida my supervisor has been wanting me to have a open house to get to know the community and to let them know I am here. We finally set the date for November 23. The Norton Telegram put an ad in the paper announcing the event and had a short write-up and picture of myself. For the open house we invited the EMS up to do wellness checks such as: blood pressure, blood sugar, ekg's etc. They checked 50 people with 1 being severe enough to go to the hospital. We also had a drawing for prizes, free vitamins, cookies and coffee. I thought it turned out ok, although I was a little disappointed that none of the doctors, dentist, city officials, etc. did not come. It would have been nice to meet the some of the practitioners I fill scripts for.

And then the house......oh boy. Devin's friend, Tim, from Phoenix has been here since the middle of November. He's a jack of all trades and his work has been awesome. All of the rooms except the kitchen and bathroom have new walls and ceilings. He textured everything and it looks so good! They're working on the kitchen now which means I've had no sink or stove. We've had to eat out a few times, and I've done some cooking in my crock-pot and George Foreman grill in my bedroom. Yes, the bedroom. It's the only place that isn't covered with dust, insulation, or nails. My bath tub is now serving dual purpose as my kitchen sink. I never thought I would ever be doing dishes in the tub. The dogs aren't have much fun either. They have mud in their ears and they smell like dirt. Oh, and we have mice now too! It's been really annoying, but I know it's not going to last forever and it's part of the process. I'm so thankful that Tim is helping us out and was willing to be away from his family for this long. He even missed Thanksgiving. I made a big feast here for the 3 of us since we were unable to travel to our families for the day. The guys have been working so hard every day and are very tired and sore. I need to see if anyone in Norton gives massages. They sure deserve one!