LOVE THAT PROFILE

Kirby, I love your profile, I didn't remember that you were such a big guy !!
Are you sure you are telling the truth??

WOW, it looks like you guys down there are in line for a big storm. Hope it
doesnt get to bad.

Norma Jean

KEVIN WAS RIGHT ALL THE TIME

The many times I listened to kevin recite the story of the little girls grandparents retiring and spending the winter in the south and the things they did are true....if you go to the pool in the late morning you will see a lot of old ladys bobing up and down with hats on,,they do have a wreck room,but it does not look like a wreck to me and they dont know how to cook because they bring food there and share it....the only thing thats not here is a little old man in a little building letting people in and out....you were right on kevin.........bennie

Update on Adam

Adam went back to the doctor today. The doctor said that his knee is healing slowly but surely, but it will be at least another 5 to 6 weeks until he may get to go back to work. If the kids don't drive him crazy before then. The doctor did switch him to a knee brace that will keep his knee in place, but give him a little more mobility. On top of it he will be starting physical therapy. He is still unable to drive so that means I get to be his Chauffer and listen to all of his comments about my driving.

Chloe and Madalyn are in good health. Since we changed Madalyn's diet it looks as if her sleep apnea is getting a little better day by day. Chloe has been extra rotten lately, her excuse is that she is just helping out. Last week she tried to change Madalyns poopy diaper and it ended up all over, then this week she put soap in Madalyns hair and then dumped a glass of water of her head (Madalyn took it well for it being cold water). It seems to be becoming a weekly mystery of what Chloe will come up with next.

Well, hopefully it will start warming up and we won't get that much snow during this up and coming winter storm.

Thankful for electricity!

After the crazy weather last night, I realize that I am very thankful for electricity! I came home to a dark (and I mean dark, it's pitch black out here in the middle of no where!) house Tuesday night. I'm assuming it was the high winds that knocked the power out. I decided to just go to bed, and prayed that the power would come back on before it got too cold in the house, and froze the pipes. I went upstairs to bed and cuddled up with Tank (the dog). The wind was so loud, there was no way I was going to fall asleep! So, I slept on the couch downstairs with the dog, and the wind howling outside. Thankfully, when I woke up, the power was on and the furnace was running...whew! Even better, Brian called me to make sure all was ok at home. He had heard about our crazy weather and wanted to check up on me, so I got to tell him the story...and had a nice way to start my day.
cya, Missy

Greetings from Island Lake

Hello everyone:

I finally figured out how to do this.

It is so much fun to hear all of the news from Indiana and the extended Sink Family.

Hope that Doyle is doing and feeling better, glad that he is home.

It is still cold here. It was -25 here this a.m. and stayed at -15 all day. Takes alot of wood to keep warm. During the night the wind chill was -45 in the area. Alot of the schools were delayed for two hours. Sounds like you are having it cold there too in Indy.

I will write more later.

Norma Jean

Doyle going home

T. Doyle is probably at home as I write this. Since the catheterization showed no changes, his heart doctor booted him out of the hospital. Carol took him home (or is in the process of doing so at this moment) and she is going to spend the night with him.

Had a few storms here tonight, but not too bad... high wind, though, and still blowing. The radar shows a cold front as almost a solid line from Grand Rapids to Indy... green on the east side, blue and pink on the west. Low of 9 tonight, high tomorrow (Wednesday) to be 20-ish.

More later,
Grumpy

BABY, it's warm outside!

I just got home from work and it's 50 degrees this afternoon. Awesome. Too bad it will fall overnight to 8 degrees w/ 2-4" of snow and high winds. Is there a new law in Indiana that states that the colder it gets the windier it gets also? The funny thing is that I just talked to Jan, who is in Phoenix, and it's around 60 there.
Something tells me it won't drop into single digits there tonight. Oh well I will enjoy this while it lasts. We Hoosiers may all be sick next week with such drastic changes.
Sunday I was able to go to the circus with Camden and Claire. Camden got up Sunday not feeling well but by circus time he was feeling o.k. He really enjoyed the tigers and couldn't sit still the entire time they performed.
Claire enjoyed the music and danced and clapped until she got too tired to enjoy being awake. It was fun to watch them, WOW grandkids are fun.
See you later, throw another log on the fire.
Kevin

UPDATE ON T D BOWMAN

Mary just got off phone with carol and said the doctor did a heart catherization and reported that their was no change in the heart from a year ago....not sure what is causing the pain.....may run some more test,,not sure of the next step...bennie

For Doyle

I am sorry to hear that you are in for another tune-up. We are thinking of you and love you very very much. you are a trooper, Doyle and we are rootin' for ya! I wish I could be your nurse. I'd spoil you rotten, just rotten. Someone keep us posted, please. Love, Sara

BABY, it's cold outside!

Bennie...I threw some hugs and kisses out the door this morning for you...at the rate the wind is traveling at, they'll be on your cheeks in just a day or two...just in time to warm things up again for ya! Yesterday in Bemidji I think it was 40 and this am i think it was near -37 windchill in fargo, at least. Figure that temp difference in only 14 hours. Ish. You wonder why minnesotans are always so nice and happy when you see them?!...it's because they are just plain happy it's not -40 below! And when it is -40 below, we are just plain giddy about the fact that you can exist in those extremes! Nothin' like a little arctic blast to make you appreciate the finer things in life...like warm toes, long underwear, heat that is reliable, and engine block heaters that never let you down. God bless you all! keep warm-Sara

Back singing again

have been going to robs church and started singing in the choir,.,,.they have two services and the choir sings in both..so you start a 8:30 and get done at 12:00 with sunday school in the middle..they have about 100 in the choir, its really neat to be in such a large group...they tape the service and you can get it on the internet at calvarybaptist.org when the page comes up click on sermons then watch music ...who know you may get a look at this rather handsome unemployed shore patrolman...the tapes run a week later so this sunday is my first one on tape....WANT TO THANK SARA, NORMA J AND TAMIE AND THE GANG UP NORTH,,,, got up this morning and it was 49 checked at home it was 46 thanks you guys for sending it down here.,......

weather

Weather here in Indiana is warm, too. supposed to be 48 tomorrow, with t-storms. Getting colder though, low of 14 predicted for Tuesday night. Highs in the 20s rest of the week.

T.Doyle is in the hospital again

Doyle Bowman's ticker went fritzo again, so he's back in the hospital. They want to do another heart catheterization , but can't do it til his blood thinners clear out (basically, his blood is at 5W20, but they want it back at 10W30 before any procedures). He's resting comfortably, and have no fears. The ol' goat is too ornery to kick off yet. I think he and Len have some kind of bet about who will outlive the other. They're both so stubborn they'll live forever. Can't you just see them two sitting on a dock at Valhalla 20 years from now, still trading the same old Oly and Lena jokes?

Update from the North

We're having a heatwave...really! things are melting all around us, but cold is on the way again soon. I hear we'll be back in the icebox by tomorrow. Dad (Len) turned 87 two weekends ago. Sometimes I think he might outlive me! He never changes, it seems. Steve G's finger got crushed and broken by isaac's powerful wood toss the other day. Stevie was embarassed in the ER because mommy accompanied him in the ER room and big sissie, tamie followed shortly. I am sure the nurses were giggling at that big strappin man with women hovering over him. Steve said Isaac felt really bad about it of course, but then later was able to say "that's for teasing me so much and making me cry when i was little." Gotta watch out for those quiet ones, i guess! So, Bennie...you're in luck...time for the Christmas bonus...we need someone to come up and put up the rest of the wood for the furnaces. I can see Steve try to do it with a gimpy finger. You be must sick of the warm weather anyway in FL...it's time you come up here in the winter and check out the ice fishing! We promise not to throw you in the spearing hole. Not right away, anyhow. Miss you all-Sara

Job opening at Valhalla

I'll gladly take the job at Valhalla, with the following conditions. I get summers off, I get all the beer I can drink, and $50K a year. If that's suitable, I'm your man! Bennie can fill in for me during the summer months.

Tom

Update on Jim Bowman

Just got off the phone with Jim and he is doing well. Had 3 vertebrates fused together in his neck. Well have to take it easy for a while but should recover soon

Jim's Surgery

I just heard that Jim Bowman is having surgery today, everyone keep him in your prayers. If anyone hears how it goes, please let us know.

RESORT JOB OPENING! JOB OPENING! (NJ's idea, Sara's embellishment) Valhalla Resort looking for a few good men to patrol the beach, manage the crowds (of mosquitos), hand out ridiculous made-up tickets, and other duties including cleaning up of the beach, checking stringers for illegal numbers of fish. must cut your own firewood and deliver it to your own site - Not guaranteed to burn right. Must not harrass customers beyond their point of tolerating you. Must provide own siren this year, or a foghorn-your choice. We will furnish you with a dented Chevy S-10 decked out fully with dust from the past 15 years, old wrenches, a bedliner made of tin cans and a broken toilet seat. Oh yes, it's protected by 27 rusty mouse traps with stale peanut butter on them. Idiotic hat required at all times-decorations of your choice. You must never ask for anything or complain about problems in your cabin or we will dock your pay by $50 at the end of each week such complaints are received. Since we are providing you with such a fine vehicle, you will be able to provide this service to us for purely volunteer status. A lifetime of fond memories and several laugh-until-you-cry episodes. If you are old, we wil not throw you into the lake anymore as soon as you arrive on the premises. We miss you Bennie! ( and all you indiana folks!)

Nice to see more joining in the blog

I find that this is the first thing i check on in the moring to see whats happening or going on in the sink family...just a neat way to stay in touch with everyone even the frozen nuts in the north..hope in time most everyone will be in the blog......

Anyone else?

I am so excited to see activity on the blog! I have been checking daily and to see you all joining and chatting is so fun! Now I need your help. I had email addresses for some people, but nowhere near close to everyone's. I personally have to send an invitation for someone to join the blog. SO...if you know someone's address in the family, please post it here or email it to me so that I can invite them. Besides the people you see as contributors, I have already invited Tom R, Carol R, Chris S, Austin S, Adam S, Rosie W, Richard S, Caleb S, JD W, Kent S, Kim N, Jenny K, Norma Jean G, Stephen G, Amy W, Brian B and Lois Ann S. Thanks for your help!!

Hi everybody!

A big thank you to Stephanie for getting this Sink blog going....I have been wanting us to do this for years!! That said, i'll probably forget to check it out for weeks at a time... Love to you all from the frozen chozen. -20 or so again this morning when we got up...the sun is shining though, and continues to come closer to the northern hemisphere, bringing with it the most wonderful summer in the world... at Island Lake of course...! Steve and I spent last weekend at a water park/motel in the middle of nowhere (Ottertail, MN) with our PT Dept. employees. We went down the slides and learned that every morning someone has to put on sweatpants and go down the body slide (the one that you don't use a tube) to make sure that all the ice has been washed away. Serious!! I guess at night they shut off the water so they have to get it up and running again in the morning. And it's plenty warm to go down then. Actually, when we first got there on Sunday, it was so cold that the body slide was closed til the afternoon. We must be idiots, living here in the winter! Well, it does make you worthy to enjoy the lovely summers i guess! (I'm not so sure that people who go to Florida for more than a week or two in the winter deserve to have a lovely summer....what say you?!!)
Love to all (including those lucky snowbirds and the resident Floridians!)
tamie

Basketball Champions

Kyle's team won the 8th grade Tournament Championship for Norwell Middle School...
He is looking forward to Football season already, He is also going to be on the track team and probably play baseball again this summer.

Kyle and Brenna put together a last minute team and entered a dodgeball tournament at the Boys and Girls Club in Bluffton...They actually won the thing!!!...it was funny to watch as the team had 2 8th graders and 4 6th graders and they kicked a lot of older teams.

Cabin Fever

Hey everyone! Cabin fever is definately setting in here. The day after surgery and I had already read every Sports Illustrated and Bass Fishing magazine in the house. Thanks boys!! I'm not sure if it's the meds or if I'm just this bored, but I have even wished for a snow day. Keep me posted on anything happening at church that I should know of.

Adam's Injury

Hey everybody. For those who don't know Adam injured his knee at work a week and a half ago. We found out that he actually tore his tendons that hold his knee in place. He is currently off work until at least January 30 when he goes back to the doctor to see if they are healing correctly or if they need to do an MRI. In the meantime, I feel like I actually have three kids instead of just two.

Chloe and Madalyn are well except for the occasional cold and cough that goes around. For those who don't know Chloe recently got seven inches cut off her hair. A major thing for a girl who says that girls shouldn't get there haircut.

That is all that is going on here.

Br-r-r-!

Whoever thought it was a good idea to settle in NW Minnesota had to have arrived here in the summer. Waking up to -18 below zero this am is not my idea of warm. At least it's not windy today. It's a good thing we don't have too many of these cold snaps. Otherwise, I might have to move down to Indiana where it is warmer! I do like our nice cover of snow all winter and having fun in that. Not so much ice and slush like you have? Well, I am a little jealous of you people who are in Florida, soaking up the rays. Last weekend in Bemidji, MN they held the annual Br-r-rmidji Polar Days. A whole lot of crazy antics go on, the highlight of it all is people jumping into Lake Bemidji in their swimsuits or other outlandish outfits. It is almost always the coldest weekend of the year. I believe it was -26 below zero that morning, and they did it around noon. the water was 34 degrees when they pulled out the ice blocks for the jumping hole. They golf on the lake and they decorate the "golf course" with discarded christmas trees. Broomball tournament is next...it's hockey for poor people...you wear your warm boots and winterwear, take a broom and cut off all the bristles down to the stitching, tape it up with silver duct tape and there you have a hockey stick. (you can actually buy a fancy brrom ball stick at the sporting goods store if you have the extra cash, but they are much too fancy and it detracts away from the idiocy of it all.) You use a heavy duty ball that usually is flattened shortly after the game begins. This is a highly-esteemed tournament in Bemidji, where there are all businesses form teams and behave like they are competeing for the stanley cup. Of course then there are snowmobile races and dog sled races and you can also catch our Curling team, who so often participate in the Olympics. So, we have fun amidst our frigid weather. Next we look forward to guessing which fishouse will fall through the ice in the spring because they put them so close to the open part where the river runs through. idiots! Next time I'll tell you all about the area of the lake that turns into a parking lot for the college students-i'm not kidding. -Sara

First week in Florida

well alast i find that we have been forced to wearing shorts and keeping the window open,..is there any end to this to this misery.....will try to keep going with courage but its very hard...bennie

Our Christmas

If you can believe it, we're still not quite done celebrating Christmas! Carl's brother is driving up today because he and his family weren't able to come up at Christmas. So we are celebrating this weekend!
I thought I would share some of our holiday pictures...


Camden was so excited to bundle up and play in the snow but then was a little afraid of the snowman his grandparents made for him!


Here is Grant all dressed up for church!


Here are both of my handsome boys posing for me, they have to get so tired of me always trying to get pictures of them! It is so hard to get a good picture with two kids so I was thrilled to get them both looking at me for this one!


And lastly, here is a picture of our private concert by Tami and Elijah when the visited, they play so great - the kids absolutely LOVED it!!

Hope you all had a great Christmas season!
Stephanie

BIRTHDAY IN SINK FAMILY

i think today is cindy w birthday,,,,happy birthday from florida

Technology Challenged

I've been trying for most of the last hour to find a way to resond to,. or create a new entry to this blog. I hope this is working. I'm not the most computer friendly guy, but I thought to myself "If Bennie can figure this thing out, so can I". First let me say a HUGE "Thank You" to Bennie for heeding my advise on traveling to Florida during the week. Thank You for not being that retired couple in the big motorhome doing 45 mph in the passing lane on a weekend when the rest of us just want to get somewhere. I hope your weather is good and that you enjoy your retirement while I freeze up north. That's about it for my test run at this blog thing. Join us and tell us what you and your families are up to.Talk to you all soon.

Spread the News!

Where is everybody? I invited everyone I had email addresses for to join the blog, over 30 people. I don't know if people just don't check their email regularly or if they just haven't signed up yet. If you talk to a family member tell them about it. I may have to invite them again! C'mon Sink's! If you need help figuring it out email me and I can help you!

MADE IT TO FLORIDA

We are in lake city,fl have about 200 miles to go should make largo by noon bennie

I think i know how this works!!!!!!

forgot to include my cell number is case their might be a need to get in touch...260-466-8786

Heading South

If everything goes ok, we plan to leave for florida Monday taking a couple days to get their...i dont know if we can get everything in the rv that someone thinks we have to have but im trying..bennie

Christmas Families 2007

Dear Sink Family,
We did it! Together we were able to give two families a wonderful Christmas! After all the money was collected, we had over $1000!
Paula first asked both families to give us a wish list of things that the kids wanted or needed. She also asked the parents to give a list for themselves so that we could give them Christmas presents as well. Then, because of the large response, we (Paula & Stephanie) went through the lists and were able to add some of our own ideas to them. We also thought it would be nice if instead of wrapping the gifts, that we allow the parents to wrap their own kid’s gifts, so that they felt they were contributing. Once it was time to go shopping, we were so excited! The whole time we just kept thinking about how much this was going to mean to them!
We had initially told you that there were two families, but we want to tell you a little about them and let you know exactly what it is you bought for them.

Family #1: Single Mom with two boys, ages 2 & 5
Mom was living paycheck to paycheck when she lost her job in August. She recently found a job, but is struggling just to catch up. Here is what we were able to get them: (* means they specifically asked for the item)

Mom
* Postage Stamps
* Gasoline GC -$50
* Fire Extinguisher
* Plastic Hangers
* James Medical GC -$50
(work uniform store)
Kroger GC - $100
AEP (Electric) Payment - $100
Avon Gift Basket
Wrapping Paper
Tissue Paper
Gift Tags
Tape
Disposable Camera

Boy - Age 5
* Hooded Sweatshirt
* Jeans
3 Long Sleeve T-shirts
* Snow Gloves
* Winter Coat
Sled
Nerf Basketball Hoop
* 35mm Film
* Legos
Moon Sand
* Leap Pad Game
* Bob Evans GC - $5

Boy - Age 2
* Bruce Whatley Book
Sweatshrit
2 Long Sleeve T-shirts
Dress Shirt
* Sweatpants
Sled
Nerf Basketball Hoop
Lite Brite
* Legos
View Finder
* Bob Evans GC - $5

Family #2 Mom & Dad with one boy, age 11
Mom was laid off work all summer and found a job in September. Just a few weeks after starting her job, her husband was also laid off. They are trying hard to make ends meet, but were worried about having extra money for Christmas. Here is what we were able to get them: (again, the * means that they specifically asked for the item)

Mom & Dad
* Pots & Pans
Pizza Hut GC - $20
Applebee's GC - $20
McDonald's GC - $20
Kroger GC - $100
Nipsco (Gas) GC - $100
Money for gift for spouse - $50
Money for gift for spouse - $50
Avon Gift Basket for Mom
Wrapping Paper
Tissue Paper
Gift Tags
Tape
Disposable Camera

Boy - Age 11
* Jeans
* Camo Pants
* Sweatshirt
* Snow Boots
T-shirt
Long Sleeve Shirt
* Neo-Shifters
* Lego Skeleton Tower
* Model Car Kit

We hope that you are all happy with the gifts we gave them and how we chose to distribute the money. Again, we wanted both the children and the parents to have a wonderful Christmas.
As a family, we want to make this the first of many Christmases that we can be a blessing to others. We had so much fun organizing this, and would love to do it again next year, but at the same time, we want to open this up to anyone else who would want to organize it next year. It is a lot of work, but well worth it. Keep an eye out for a family you know that we can reach out to next Christmas.
Thank you so much for your help!

Give it a try?

I have been trying to think of an easy (& FREE) way for our family to keep up with each other. We are all busy with our personal lives and sometimes it is hard to keep up with our extended family, especially those that don't like near to us. I have never used this website, but a friend has and highly recommended it. I thought we could give it a try and see how it works for us. I have emailed everyone that I personally have email addresses for and asked them to be a contributor to the page. Please forward this to web address to anyone that you don't see as a contributor and let them know about our website. I then have to have someone's email address before I can invite them to be a contributor, so send those to me too.

You can post as often as you would like to and add pictures as well. Tell us about your kids, your Christmas, your interests, your hard day, anything! Add this link to your favorites or keep the web address in a place that you will not lose it! We could really learn a lot about each other through this. Check back often and let me know what you think as we try this out.

Stephanie (Smith) Smedberg