Year ending report - 2008

Overview:

















January: Lots and lots of snow and ice. On January 16 we got another 4-5 inches.


February: More snow as of february 26 we had had 56 inches of snow this season!!



March: On the 27th of March we got another record setting snowfall of 4.4 inches for a total of 76.2 inches for this winter. The last record was set back in 1962!





April: Cedar Rapids "Kernels" had to cancel their opening game due to bad weather at the airport in Dallas.


May: Freedom Fest was cancelled due to weather, it was rescheduled for July 4, then rescheduled again for Labor day weekend.




June: More rain, the Cedar River crested on June 20 at 31.2 feet, that is 19.2 feet above flood stage. President George W. Bush landed on Airforce One at Cedar Rapids airport on June 20. He toured on foot and by helicopter the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City region.





July: Clean up, clean up. Everybody let's clean up!!

August: Two months after severe flooding left much of Cedar Rapids underwater, the cleanup process is slowly continuing.

September: Finally we move into our new place!
304 Troy Street SW, Cedar Rapids, Iowa



October: Sarah & Kyle were moving and we got to take the kids Trick-or-Treating! It was so much fun, Alexis was Dorothy and Jaxen was a Scarecrow (didn't like the straw so much). It made me feel young again.





November: Bekah decided she was moving in with us so she could organize and get her bags packed for the AIM trip. Since she was here at the house Ed and I took a minivacation to Branson, MO. It was beautiful and Andy Williams was spectecular. Then going to Des Moines for Thanksgiving! Yeah, food, food, food! Sarah's family hosted the event and a good time was had by all!


December: Adam arrived home December 5th from Germany! It is nice to have him back in the USA! With all the traditions of Christmas that we have observed in the past came a great feeling of finally getting things on track. It has been a Long hard year, by God has truly blessed us with all of our family and friends that have stood by us through wet and dry! Thank you for the great blessings that you have bestowed on us!

At home for Christmas

Christmas 2008


Well here it is Christmas the first year without all our old stuff. So when we were going through the stuff that was salvaged from the house we had very few of the familiar things that had made Christmas at our house truly ours. Sarah had asked about our old ceramic Christmas tree that we used to display for the holiday season. Aunt Doris had made it for me in the first years of our marriage. It had survived a lot of things over the years but in the cleaning out process of the house it did not cross my mind to look for it. So with that in mind I thought that Sarah would like to have one like it for herself, to help celebrate a little like we were used to. Ebay was not kind to me, I was outbid on a tree that looked like it was pretty much the same. So I gave up on that and decided I could get one made! LOL a week before Christmas! I did accomplish it but it was not the same. I then realized that it doesn't take a remade tree to bring the holiday to life, it takes family and friends.





With that in mind we went ot Des Moines to celebrate Christmas, we did change it up a little because I had to be on call at 3 p.m. on Christmas day. So we had our big Christmas meal on Christmas Eve. We had been invited to Sarah & Kyle's house for Christmas. Ed and I have always felt that kids need to be in their home for Christmas morning.





We opend our ususal "one" gift on Christmas Eve. Sometimes this tradition makes sleeping a little harder for the young ones. It is still a tradition that this "Kraft" family started a long time ago. We also start with empting the stockings first before the presents. That way you can keep track of the candy! LOL (and oranges)

Following through with all of our old traditions is a little difficult, with the loss of all the "old stuff". But the kids helped us through that this Christmas with some little things. Thought provoking Christmas ornaments! (A red toaster and a bird ). A gift of recipes that I had given to the girls a few years ago as a gift, for Christmas. Was presented to me with additional recipes from my sisters and some pictures in a great scrapbook! (lost in the mail for almost a month)

But God always knows what we will need for our lives to be complete and he prepares for that need. God has blessed us with the opportunity to raise four children, that are very precious to us. He gives us daily reminders that he is in control of our lives and will continue to work all things together for good. I am truly thankful for the family that I do have and the thoughtfulness that they present. God has richly blessed us with family and friends. The true meaning of Christmas.


Merry Christmas to all!

Marriage 1976 version

Our Wedding:

August 14, 1976

Castalia, Ohio

When Ed and I got married in 1976 we opted for a small wedding. We really wanted a super-small wedding just the minister and our witnesses. The pastor mentioned that the rest of the church would like to be a part of our special day too and we wouldn't have to do any of the work for the dinner. So with that in mind and money being a little scarce the decision was made to let them feel a part of the celebration. Barbra Shipley was a neighbor of Ed and she had also attended the church for many years. Her family was the reason that Ed even entered the doors of the church. Lucky for me!! :) She made our wedding cake for this special day, it had hand shaped roses and was just beautiful.

Well with my sister getting married earlier that year my parents weren't too keen in having two daughters married! Empty nest syndrome setting in!!

I know that feeling a little now. LOL

Well the church people and family helped out tremendously, all the food, decorations and gifts provided by them made for a great party. The gifts were for basic housekeeping, neither of us had any of even the basics to set up a household. With towels, sheets, dishes and a few dollars we were able to get off to a good start.

Even a little old lady that went to church with us lived in the same apartment complex gave us her 1950's couch and chair. Mom and dad let me have the bedroom set that I had used when I was growing up, It seemed that we we set for our new future together!

Home Sweet Home

When we bought the house approximately 4 years ago in October, we thought it was a great location, nice corner lot near the park and walking distance to the river. Most of the homes we looked at during the buying process would have also been flooded. But not from being close to the river as this house was. The house needed a little work, but with the price and me getting ready to finish school as a R.N. it would work out o.k.. When the paperwork for the house was completed we were told that the house was in the 100 year flood plane and that we would have to buy flood insurance. What the heck was a flood plane? The previous owner stated she did not have to have flood insurance. We did a little checking and found out the the flod insurance would add an additional $50 to the house payment per month. Now we were really cutting it close.

All went well with the purchace, some special financing! LOL!! Now I know why they call it special. Within the two years we did a lot of work on the yard and trying to undo some of the older persons creative plantings. The yard was looking good, old locust tree cut down, brush cleaned out new marigolds planted along the walk way. Really looking like a home to us. It had a beautiful flowering crab apple tree in the front yard. It looked the best around mothers' day, so that is where we took nice pictures at.

Our daughter got married in November just after we bought the house. It served as a great place to entertain the family. With a nice BBQ grill and a few lawn chairs we had a great fall. Christmas was also very special this house was quite a bit larger than the rental house we were in before.

Things were a bit tight with the house and trying to fix things up on the inside. We managed and weathered the first winter in the house and found out that the house needed a little more insulation. Any way it was still a great location! Close to work and just minutes from the interstate so I could get to school easily. We felt at really at home there, more than any place we had been in the past few years.

Finally a Home Sweet Home!

Happy "50th" Birthday to me!

The year is 2008 and a very different year, especially for my birthday! Usually there is cake and icecream, sometimes a party, it all depends where the family is at and what is convienent. This year we had an abundance of rain prior to my birthday, and the Cedar river was rising. The Wednesday before my birthday we were evacuated and moved in with Bekah in her two bedroom apartment, which was great some others were staying in shelters. Thursday morning (my birthday) we were leaving for Ohio for vacation with three kids and two grandkids. Ed and our son Adam tried for about an hour to get back to the house to see where the water was and see if anything else could be salvaged. When they got there the water was up to the garage windows. Adam attempted to get to the house through the river, his dad called him back and told him there was not anything in there that was worth risking getting hurt. We left for Ohio with two cars and had a great adventure there. We would watch the news occasionally and see that the river had flooded the whole Cedar Rapids downtown area. We were truly blessed as a city to escape the river without anyone being killed. I did get a birthday cake while we were in Ohio, my sister-in-law decided that I needed one. It was very good, although Aunt Barb and I got in a mini food fight (frostening on my face). When arriving back in Cedar Rapids we found out that our house was completely covered with water. So now for the starting over part! That will be the next post!