Happy Birthday to...

Geordie

(6 years old)!

Heather

(older than 6)!

Grampie Tucker

(WAY older than 6)!

I love you guys & wish I could be there to celebrate!
Bisous!

Computer Update

Well, I still don't have a computer at home. My awesome dad sent me a new power cord (because mine died), and I was really excited to hook it all up. I hooked it up and it promptly died too. So, now I am suspicious that something in my computer is killing the cord. I need to get someone to look at it, but our hardware analyst is taking his vaction time for some R&R at home in South Africa so that he can work through the summer getting ready for September. Alas, I am still computer-less at home. Sorry if you've been waiting on me to reply to email. Hopefully it is fixable b/c I have been really stupid and not backed up my data - duh!

Miss you all!

feeling sick, getting better

Hey friends -

I have a huge praise! I have been sick since September when I caught that dumb bug drinking leben at my neighbors’ house. At the time the doctor diagnosed me with really bad food poisoning and gave me an antibiotic for that, which helped. She said at the time that it may be something more serious, but since that would require a really strong antibiotic she preferred to see if the first one would take care of the problem before running tests to see if I had picked up a parasite. Anyway, that first round of antibiotics helped tons and I was able to go back to work and a semblance of normal life. I'm not much of a complainer about pain so haven't really been talking about the fact that I've still been sick (plus didn't want to worry you all since you can't do anything from there). But I have been having very frequent bouts with diarrhea, nausea and a fever. I was really sick for 3 of the days my friend Kim was here (2 weeks ago), and then was sick again a couple of days last week, so I got to the point where I am ready to admit this isn't going away and I need to get it taken care of before I come home this summer. I went to the doctor on Friday and then to the lab to have some tests done. Turns out I have some type of amoeba (parasite?) and so I started a really strong round of antibiotics on Saturday. Sunday I was still feeling lousy with a fever & stomach problems, but yesterday I started feeling much better than I have felt in months! I didn't realize how lousy I was feeling. I take this stuff (Flagyl) for 7 days and then see if any symptoms re-occur. I may need two rounds of the stuff to kill off whatever has been growing inside me for the last 7 months! So please pray that this stuff keeps working & I can finally get completely back to normal health-wise.

THANKS!
Miss you guys!

Back from Break

Sorry for the lack of posting recently! Just before spring break (which was last week) my computer cord for my laptop decided to die. It was Murphy's law at work! If it had decided just a few days earlier to give up the ghost I could have ordered one & sent it to my friend who came for spring break, but NO it had to be difficult & die just the day before she arrived. SO, I have no computer at home right now, no access to my secure email & no way to upload spring break pictures :( But the way I look at it - it could be much worse. It could have been my hard-drive that decided to die & take all my pictures to the grave with it. I definitely am going to back up my pix when I get a new cord. I'm not sure when that will be - I'm trying to figure out if I can get one here, or if i need to have one shipped to friends in CA that are coming out the end of April.

So, with my wonderful, fabulouso, awesome, fantabulous best friend Kim who came to visit arrived a new Vonage box - whoohoo! I can't wait to set it up and have a US phone number again. But, that requires routing through my computer - aaahhh! So, after months of waiting, I'm still waiting! I'll let y'all (am I missing SC a little or what?) know when I get all the necessary equipment to work at the same time :)

Spring break was just what I needed - a dose of the most encouraging friend in the world, a few adventures (i went on a camel trek in the Saraha and slept in a nomadic tent!), time spent with friends, and a little pampering (yay for massages & pedicures!). I'll write more when I have pix to post!

OK - my ride is about to take off, gotta run!

Sunday Crepes

I'm not a morning person. In fact I HATE mornings (my sister can attest to the many battles we fought over how early was too early to turn on the light!). But it seems that some of my special-est (hm, I think I'm making up my own language here) memories are over breakfast. Like the breakfasts I had every once in a while in Wisconsin with Alicia, Colleen, Sarah and Kathleen when we'd sneak off campus early and find our favorite little breakfast cafe in Iron Mountain (the one we couldn't bear to tell anyone else about even though it was so good because we wanted our own little get-away from the normal campus crowds). Or the traditional before-dawn trip to the Island with Matt (cappucinos in hand, of course) to watch the sunrise before each of my trips back to Europe. Then we'd get back to my dad's and make waffles or raspberry pancakes and then sit in front of the fireplace until we too toasty to stand it. A couple of weeks ago, my awesome friend Mary came over before churchand we enjoyed delicious crepes (Quimita, note the Nutella - a great Ferrero product!) and big bowls of strong coffee with frothy milk, sprinkled with raw sugar and cinnamon.