Wednesday July 26, 2006

Butterflies 

 I love this time of year when our butterfly bush is in full bloom and filled with butterflies.

Cousins’ Week

Each summer, our oldest son Jeff and his wife Chris take a three-day vacation and leave their children with us.  They usually stay in the area – antiquing, going to yard sales, eating out, etc. – then go home each night.

Jeff and Chris’ five children

We usually invite Jere and Kristen’s children as well.  They call it cousin’s week!

While Gloria waited for her cousins, she asked for something to do.  I suggested that she dress the naked teddy bears, dog, and cat.

The Office

A new printer

Equipment is still being repaired and I am getting acquainted with new items as a result of the storm damage on July 2. 

Along with that we purchased a new color laser printer – which was in our plans before the storm.  It feels like nothing is normal in my office.  A technician installed the new printer yesterday, and gave a final tweaking to some of the new computer software and equipment.  (I think that stuff is finally working correctly.)

After the technician left late yesterday afternoon, I printed one hundred newsletters with the new printer, and one with the old printer.  I knew the new one was going to be faster, and because the old one takes so long to warm up, the one hundred were finished about the same time the old one finished one!

A service man also came to adjust the gas on our new stove.  The flames were much too high.  (It hadn’t been changed from natural gas to propane.)  That is also working OK today.

A third technician came to work on the Pitney Bowes envelope printer which has been giving him lots of problems.  Each time he fixes something and turns it on, it blows a fuse.  Finally a back ordered item arrived, which he thought would fix it.  When he plugged it in, the machine smoked!  He groaned and said, “My suggestion is that you get a new one.”  We probably should have done that in the first place!

Today Pitney Bowes brought a loaner so I can get some newsletters mailed.

Wow!  I like it too.  It is twice as fast as the old one – and much quieter.

Jenna helped fold newsletters, then this evening she and Jana stuffed some envelopes.

After supper I got the whole crew to pose.

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My favorite picture of the day was of Jared trying to bring two balls up the patio steps.