Posts filed under 'Family'

Happy 35th Birthday…

Happy birthday to you!!!
Happy birthday to you!!!
Happy birthday dear Michelle!!!
Happy birthday to you!!!

Anne, Michael & Morgan

Add comment October 5th, 2005 Posted by: Ash

Life, The Universe & Everything…

A LOT has happened in the 4 months since the last announcement…

We moved from Dover, NH to Kittery, ME at the beginning of June. That was loads of fun… NOT! The Saturday we were supposed to move it was raining like there was no tomorrow. The moving guys showed up midmorning and almost immediately begged us to postpone the move until Sunday; we relented and let them go. They failed to show on Sunday, and we were not happy campers about that at all. We were finally able to talk to someone (after leaving many answering machine messages) in authority on Monday, and they had been under the impression that it had been us that begged off moving on Saturday, when it had actually been his guys that did. *sigh* Well, after explaining everything we were promised that at 12:30 pm the movers would show up. Well, 12:30 came and went, and it wasn’t until 2:30 pm that they finally showed up. Thankfully, the move went quickly after that, and they were finished by 5:30. After they left we surveyed the wall to wall boxes, and then had to move a ton of them to set both of the beds up. Needless to say, that was the only thing that really got taken care of that day. It’s amazing how tired you can get watching other people work.

We immediately started to enjoy our new fenced-in back yard… I put up my 2 wind chimes, new squirrel-proof 3 tube seed bird feeder, old suet bird feeder, 3 squirrel feeders (My stepfather makes them), bought lawn chairs and put in 2 flower beds soon after we moved in. It took a while for the birds to fully discover the seed feeder, but the Starlings found the suet feeder quickly. It turned out that I had put the suet feeder out during the time the 1st batch of Starling babies were leaving the nest. It was amusing watching them all fight over a chance at the suet; though sometimes they got waaay too noisy about it. Overall, we were extremely lucky to have moved in when we did.

I finally got my own washer & dryer!!! The washer, a Kenmore, is a high efficiency front loader. Though it was pricier than a top loader it uses a lot less water & soap, and in the end it will more than pay for itself. The dryer, a Kenmore too, has 4 heat settings, and a timed or automatic drying cycle. They are stackable with each other, and that’s just what I did with them. It saved a lot of space! It’s been so nice having them that I cannot think of doing without them now. I’ve been well & truly spoiled…

On July 13th Pookey turned 36 years old. For his birthday he received a Handspring Visor Deluxe (PDA) from Morgan & I. Pookey has been having lots of fun with it.

Morgan got a new swing set for no special reason other than it marked down, at Walmart, from $80 to $50. I knew we’d better get one quickly or they’d be gone, so we went to get one the next day. Pookey and my step-father, Richard, put it together. They did a great job, and Morgan has really enjoyed it this summer.

In early August Pookey, along with about half the company, was laid off at Net To Net Technology. *sigh* It wasn’t something that anyone had expected to happen, and everyone was taken by surprise. Pookey really loved the work he did at Net to Net, and enjoyed the people he worked with. It was really sad time in our household, but thankfully Pookey’s severance package was decent, so we didn’t have to worry about money. Pookey took a week off to recuperate from the layoff, then started his job search.

Pookey searched and searched, then searched some more… And at the end of his search he found a job as a Senior Change Analyst with Flextronics Enclosure Systems. The salary offer, benefits, relocation package and the people he would work with were great; the only problem was that the job was located in Dallas, Texas. We carefully weighed all the pros & cons, and in the end the money won out. Hey! So sue us; it’s almost twice what Pookey was making at Net To Net!!

So we are MOVING TO TEXAS!!! We’ll be moving to Plano (Just to the NNE of Dallas), or somewhere in the vicinity. Pookey looked at places for us to live today (10/5), and hopefully we’ll get the place he thinks we’ll be happy in. We are thankfully working with a relocation company. I couldn’t imagine having to do all the has to be done myself. The mere thought of it gives me a headache.

Pookey left for Texas last Sunday (9/30), and I miss him a lot. This is just the 3rd time in our entire relationship we’ve ever been separated. *sigh* The moving company will be coming on Thursday (10/11) to pack the whole house up & the next day they’ll load the truck and be on their way. I won’t be leaving for Texas until the following Monday (10/15), and I’ll be bringing Morgan & the cats along with me. The 15th promises to be loads of fun… NOT!! Hopefully I’ll survive the experience. Wish me luck!!

Moving to Texas makes me feel excited, yet sad at the same time. I’ve always lived in Central New England (Southern Maine & the New Hampshire seacoast) my whole life… Texas seems like it’s a million miles away. Plus, the fact that we will be HUNDREDS of miles a way from the coast makes me melancholy. I’ll be missing a lot of family & friends as well. Thank the Gods for email & telephones!! My long distance phone bill will never be as low as it usually is again. Oh well! Maybe I should buy some stock in AT&T. We’re also planning to come back to New England every year, during late June or early July, for a vacation.

All our mediaone.net web/email addresses will soon go bye bye. So, use our yahoo.com or theshaffers.org email addresses from now on, and www.theshaffers.org for our web address…

So Remember…

• ash@theshaffers.org
• michael@theshaffers.org
• morgan@theshaffers.org
• all@theshaffers.org

We got a new computer in late September!! It’s a 733 mhz Apple Power Mac G4 with 896 megs of RAM, 40 gig hard drive, CD W/R, ethernet, 56 K modem…. It came already loaded with Mac OS 9.2 & X. We also splurged on a 19″ Sony monitor and some computer speakers. We’re very happy with it.

Well… I have to stop now, as my fingers are getting hoarse! Take care, be well, and remember you are never fully dressed until you wear a smile.

Add comment October 5th, 2001 Posted by: Ash

The 2000 Winter Holiday…

Hello again! I got all of my holiday cards done & in the mail, then came down with the flu the next (12/19) day. *sneeze, cough, wheeze, sniffle* If it hadn’t been for that screwed up batch of flu vaccine I would have been vaccinated early in December and probably never have even gotten the flu, or have had a lot milder version of it. So, I’ve been sick for 10+ days now, and am slowly, but surely, getting better. *sigh* Remember to get a flu shot if you haven’t gotten one already!

Thankfully Pookey was able to stay home the rest of the week to take care of Morgan. It was all I could do to look after myself, and caring for a toddler when I’m sick is definitely not my idea of a good time. No way Jose! It will be nice when Morgan can just go to Pookey’s company’s daycare when I’m sick. That way Pookey could use his sick time solely for his illnesses, and not for mine too… What a concept!

Pookey & Morgan weren’t completely unscathed by the flu, but thankfully they got a lot milder version. Pookey actually got his flu shot on the day I came down with the flu. Pookey started feeling under the weather earlier this week, but not enough to keep him home from work. Thank the Gods for Vicks DayQuil!!

On 12/11/00 I had an appointment with my gynecologist/infertility Doctor. In addition to all the fun stuff that happens during a yearly exam, we discussed my options for trying to conceive another child. She said that she’d like me to be on the Glucophage for 6 months before actively trying anything. So, in April Pookey & I have an appointment, and we’re going to see what we have to do to get me pregnant again. Hopefully we won’t have to do any injectable medications this time… *knock on wood*

On the Winter Solstice (12/21/00) we received a large holiday package from Pookey’s family in Texas. It contained a whole bunch of wonderful presents for us all. ! It really brightened our day, especially since I was so sick we weren’t going to do anything special for the Solstice. Morgan instantly loved the wooden blocks his Uncle Martin made for him, as well as the handmade crib quilt that Grandad Shaffer made. Pookey & I really enjoyed the platter of homemade mini cakes & the box of Godiva chocolates. Yummy!!

My Mom & Stepfather came over the day after Christmas, since we were unable to attend Christmas day festivities at their home, with presents for us all. Morgan made out like a bandit… His favorite gift seems to be his Little Tikes table & chairs set. He sits at it every chance he gets. I just now have to find a permanent place to put it!

Well, that’s all for now. *sneeze, cough, wheeze, sniffle* Take care, be well, and remember to never eat any of the yellow snow!!

Add comment December 30th, 2000 Posted by: Ash