m e a d o w l a r k

1. It is not a good idea to put dishwashing soap in the jet dry container of the dishwasher.

2. It is possible for a dishwasher to create as many suds as a t.v. sitcom would lead you to believe they can.

3. The fact that your children are no longer toddlers does not mean that they are incapable of doing really dumb things.

4. The world really does revolve around a 15 year old girl…oh no wait…that is not something I learned, just something that someone tried to convince me of.

5. The fact that you completed law school and passed the bar does not automatically mean that you are all that smart.

6. A teenager can decide that they are bored with the mall and need to go to downtown Minneapolis to go shopping…even when the mall in question is the biggest one in the United States!

7. While I in no way shape or form feel that I need a drink at the end of a stressful week…I do enjoy one!

8. My house is way to small and I really really really want a bigger one!

9. Tanning makes me feel better when it starts to get cold and gloomy in Minnesota.

10. I love my life!

Blogging is an interesting new concept in life. How strange it is that we write these little dissertations and post them on the internet for the world to see. Somehow it’s as if we think someone out there may care what we have to say! Maybe they do and maybe they don’t but somehow we feel a sense of accomplishment by just putting it out there.

Of course this particular blog site was started as a means of our family to keep in touch while spread around the country. I don’t know if anyone besides the Pedley’s and mom even read it…but in any case we continue to post.

I find that my mind has become a blogging mind. I am writing a blog in my head all the time! How weird is that. I started to notice it around my birthday. The fact that I was turning 40 this year seemed oh so monumental in my life. I had a whole blog written in my head about the number 40…40 great things about live, 40 not so great, a U2 song by the name 40, etc…not sure why I never bothered to actually write it. Turning forty was rather sucky actually! I have never been one to fret about the number of my birthday but this one got to me…spent a lot of time in negative places in my head over it. I was in court the day of my birthday and my client flat out refused to believe that I was 40 years old…this should have made me feel better and probably would have if it had not been my client with traumatic brain injury!!   When I was considering my “40″ blog I had noticed that gas prices had falled about 40 cents a gallon in recent history, now a mere 6 weeks later gas prices have fallen a whole $2.00 a gallon!! My goodness, I never thought we would see $1.99 again! My oil refining husband assures me that it will not stay this low so enjoy it while it lasts! We were wishing we could stock up!

Shortly after my birthday Chuck and I headed to Washington DC. This was my first time to this amazing city. I was awe struck at how much there is to see and do there, at the history and relevance to our nation. Just about everything there made me cry for one reason or another and made me incredibly proud to be an American. I had a great blog written in my head about it, and even pitures to post…but it seems so long ago now…

 Our Nation’s Capitol

 Richard W. Peterson - Chuck’s Uncle on the Vietnam Memorial

I went to see John McCain at a town hall meeting. That was a cool experience. I pretty much hate politics so I have never been to anything like that but I literrally had nothing to do that night and the whole family was busy with other things so I decided to check it out. I have to admit that I was impressed with him after seeing him in person, the same would probably be true of Obama if I saw him in person too so it probably doesn’t mean much, but I really enjoyed the event. So soon after my patriotic trip to DC I think it made me feel more like an American or something.

 Likely the Presidential Runner up….unless the media has it screwed up….

We have had an incredibly beautiful fall here in Minnesota. Beautiful weahter and amazing colors. (as evidenced by Elaine’s photography)! It still makes me nervous that winter is coming and still makes me want to flee to California…but it has been one of our better Autumn’s. I think I had a great “mind-blog” written about that too…but I can’t even remember what it was.

So anyway my point being that if you could all hear the blogs going on in my head you would be so amazed and what an intelligent, thoughtfull and witty person I am! It’s too bad that I don’t seem to have the time or actual writing talent to actually get on here and share it with all of you! Maybe I’ll work on that.

Well I am happily home in Minnesota. The word and thought of home have been heavily on my mind lately. Probably because home is a little jumbled in my mind. Whenever I am headed to Napa for a visit I certainly tell people I am “going home”. I cannot help but cry a little bit everytime a plane I am on touches down anywhere in California, something inside of me just sighs deeply and says “I am home again.” Certainly if I am in California without the rest of the family I soon get homesick for Minnesota…or rather for the family. And even when the family is with me we are always ready to go home when we leave California. Does that mean that “home” is Minnesota? Or does it mean that “home” is the house we live in.

Although most of us will say that we are going “home” when we are headed towards the place where we dwell. Is that simply where we keep our stuff? Or where we sleep most nights? The place where we bought the food in the refridgerator? Many of us may live in places that are not really much of a home to us. To many of us home is where we grew up, but many of us moved around a lot as children, do those people not have a clear sense of home? Or does it go back to where we dwell?

I love my house (I just wish it was about 1000 square feet bigger), it is a place of beauty, a place of love, a place of chaos, it is home…even if it is plunked down in the fridgid state of Minnesota. And yet a part of me will always feel a bit like a fish out of water in the midwest. I have lived in Minnesota for 9 years, I lived in California for 25 years, if I end up in Minnesota for another 16 years will this become home? Is it a matter of where I have spent the majority of my life? I spent two weeks sleeping in my old bedroom in Napa. I have arguably slept more nights in that room than in any other in my life, and yet now I continually have a hard time sleeping while there.

Minnesota….I actually love that too, believe it or not. Of course I have carved out a life here that includes family, friends, career. Minnesota is a great place to live. There is much to do and much beauty to see. The weather will ever be a challenge for me, but realistically the weather effects the lives of pretty much everyone living in this great country to a pretty serious degree with the exception of those living in the vast state of California. I happen to be one of those people who think that change is a good thing…the weather certainly changes around here! You could say it’s Bi-Polar…huge mood swings!

Certainly at this juncture in my life home is where my family is, my family of Chuck, Travis, Elaine and Onjya and to a degree Manny and Daisy-the wonderdog and princess cat. But I miss family in California dearly and always have a sense of being away from home in being away from them. Of course many of you are now spread around the country too. Near and dear to my heart are family and friends in Oregon, Tennessee, Arizona, and Wisconsin. None of those places are home to me but they hold people in them that I dearly wish I was closer to.

Just some thoughts I have been having…thought I would share. Kind of random I know. I think I am having a mid-life crisis and getting all contemplative….40 is only a few days away you know! Yikes.

Hope you all all “home” and happy. Where is home to you??

~Renee

Well I drove down the mountain road today for what I am sure will be the last time for a while. While it is a blessing to be here, a blessing to serve, a blessing to be with my family…I will not miss driving up and down that mountain road each day! It makes me realize that I generally drive around town and to and from work without really thinking much about it. You have to contantly be awake and aware while driving that road.

 Shari is improving greatly. Tomorrow their housekeeper will be there for 4 hours cleaning but Shari will be alone the rest of the time. We are hoping it goes ok. I worked today on letting her do things for herself, she really can do most things, there are just a few things that are difficult. Adjusting the ice packs on her back is difficult and unfortunately not something that can wait until Fred gets home. After tomorrow Fred has a 3 day weekend which gives her a lot of recovery time. What will happen for next week remains to be seen. She sees the neurologist next Friday and will hopefully have more information then about recovery time.

It has been incredibly hot here. The temp outside at Berryessa today was 109!!! Now that’s hot! Made me oh so thankful for the air conditioning that I normally am not very fond of! Now I am back down at mom’s and while it is not quite that hot now at 8pm, there is no air conditioning in this house and it is HOT! Especially upstairs. I will be hitting the pool when I am done posting this!

As I said I am blessed to have been able to be here but I am very anxious to get home. I miss my family terribly and I am ready for the routine of my life. Mom had CNN on a few minutes ago and they were showing St. Paul and talking about the Republican convention next week…I almost cried as I said “oh, it’s home!”

Chuck, Travis, Elaine, and Onjya thank you so much for working so hard at keeping things running while mom-less. Thank you for being so willing to send me away! And for being so supportive of what I had to do even though it is so far away from all of you. I cannot wait to see you Saturday.

Aunt Shari sends a great big thank you to all of you also!

Love to all….Renee

Hello everyone, just wanted to update all of you on Shari and life up here at Berryessa. Shari is doing remarkably well for all she has been through. Her injuries are quite serious, it seems she broke just about everything from the waist up. Of most concern is her broken back and neck. She can lay in bed and lay back in a chair without her brace on but otherwise has to have the brace on. She is obviously in a lot of pain and still on pain medication on a regular basis. Her attitude is very good, she is working hard on being a good patient! It could be so easy to just be plain grumpy but you can see that she is working on not letting that happen. She is very grateful for the help given and for the encouragement of others.

 I have to ditto what mom said, cards, letter, phone calls are a wonderful thing! She will be laid up for a very long time and I am sure that frustration and depression will set in.

Leila and I are up here during the day now, as Fred has gone back to work. We are driving up and down the mountain each day to get out of the house a bit for ourselves and to give Fred and Shari a break from feeling like their lives are completely invaded. It is an awful drive! I cannot believe that people voluntarily make the choice to have to comute that every day! Makes me grateful for my boring little suburban neighborhood! Leila will go home this weekend. I am still not sure how long I am staying. Shari goes back to the doctor on Wednesday and hopefully we will know more then about what care is required and for how long. 

Mom has sprained her ankle and is convalescing herself. It will make it difficult for her to be the only on available to care for Shari. We will see what happens. I am sure it will all work out fine.

Keep Shari in your prayers, there is a long road ahead. Pray for the careg\ivers around her, it is a task we are thrilled to be able to do, but also a challenge. Pray for Leila and Renee’s families as we are gone from them. Pray for Chuck with those three teenagers! Pray for those three teenagers without mom!!

Also I have been hearing about how many of you actually come to this website by hearing about  how many people found out about Shari’s accident by reading it here…so leave us comments so we know you are there!

Welcome to the Pedley’s renewed commitment to blog…we’ll see how long it lasts!

We are having some wonderful Minnesota summer weather and I just got home from a little 12 mile bike ride around the neighborhood. I think most people in Minnesota will say that fall is there favorite season, it seems to be when we have some of the nicest weather. But I will always be a summer girl, I just can’t help it, I love the sun! I will probably look like I am 90 by the time I am 60 years old but what fun I am having now! I go for days on end without the top being up on my car…now that’s a happy time of year for me.

Travis started a new job today at the subway right near our house (as oppsed to his job at the subway 8 miles away). He took a pay cut to switch but with the cost of gas what it is he makes up the difference by work only being 3 blocks away. He is just a titch under 6 feet tall and I cannot believe how fast it is going!

Elaine turned 15 two weeks ago. She is beautiful and loves the summer sun just as much as her mom! She has been working on staying in shape for Track and is proud of her new found running talents! She is also set to be the next design star of the house and is redecorating the downstairs bathroom…I do have veto power on all decisions! She redid her own room this last winter and it is really beautiful.

Onjya is having a very active summer and is probably browner than she has ever been from all the running around the neighborhood all day long. Right now she is rearranging her bedroom and basically emptied it out and started all over!It is refreshing to have someone around the house who still asks like a kid enjoying a summer day!

Chuck and I are great even if we don’t get enough time alone! Our tandem rides this year have been very few, but we truly cherish those that we get.

I hope to figure out pictures soon….