Frosty's Demise!

We have had crazy weather here. Snow storm, rain, warm weather then a wind storm today. Frosty did not do too well under these conditions.

CHRISTMAS EVE 2008

Here is most of the family at Carol and Frank's house. We "had" a white Christmas. It is now raining on Christmas Eve! We will be eating pierogis for dinner and going to midnight mass. Here is my snow angel! Merry Christmas to you all.

December 17, 2008

We will have a white Christmas. It started snowing last night so Nick and I will be building a snowman. We are in West Seneca, New York. John and I went on a boat with the Fired Up Sisters, on Sunday to watch the parade of lights. My photos didn't come out to clear. But this one of the San Diego skyline with decorated boats looks cool.

December 9,2008

I realize it's been a long time for me to post two days in a row. I had to share this picture. John had an MRI on Sunday and needed to be very relaxed for the procedure. Well as you can see Zanex worked just fine. He slept for 20 hours! Now we await the results.

Sunday December 7,2008

What a great week. There were several celebrations of rebuilding and giving thanks. Friday was our Fired Up Sisters Christmas party so we finally have a group picture. Then on Saturday we had a Christmas event in Ramona. I've been gathering vintage decorations for the past month. It was well worth the effort when I witnessed several fire survivors find the items they once had. I too was the recipient of a found treasure. Two of my damaged angels now have new replacements, but I can't give up the old ones.

Thanksgiving 2008

We celebrated our Thanksgiving in San Francisco with family. John and I drove up on Wednesday. Our sons and daughter-in-law went to the desert camping. We also celebrated my in-laws 44th wedding anniversary. All in all a lot to be thankful for. On our drive north we passed through a recently fire devastated area. We saw families sifting through the ashes that were once their home. Our hearts ached for them. I can't wait to be putting building progress photos on this site.

November 24, 2008

Well, if I can't have a life size house I can have some of my Christmas village houses back. I've been searching for them on Ebay. I have found a few of the ones I had. I had been collecting them and all the accessories for over 30 years. I also located the felt kits to remake John and Sam's Christmas stockings. They were almost 20 years old. I was so happy to find them. I'll be making them while in Buffalo for Christmas. The house plan is still with the structural engineer. No update yet.

Nov. 17th 2008

Our floor plan is finally done. We are sending it to the engineer this week. Another one of my "Fired Up Sisters" had a frame signing party. It's good to see progress even if it's not ours. The puppy is Rupert, Sam and Justine's dog. He likes to sit in the truck and wait for them to come back when he is staying with us for the day.

November 10, 2008

We celebrated Sam's half birthday on Election Day. He's 21 1/2.

We're back to the drawing board. Our neighbor John helped us plot the house on the pad. It didn't fit well. We have to make changes to the patio and garage to make it fit right. Better now than later. Then off to the draftsman then engineering. It seems like forever. It has already rained quite a bit and we get the "lake effect" around the trailers. We need more pallets to walk on so we don't sink into the mud.

Halloween 2008

Aren't we a lovely bunch? We lost our wedding portrait in the house fire so we've created another one. First our family photo then our wedding party. We've got the 3 banditos as groomsmen and the 3 madonnas as bridesmaids. Of course the biker and catwoman as best man and maid of honor.

Oct. 25 A Daily Prayer

It's Saturday so there is no "Thought for the Day" sent to me as a devotion. But, there was an email from my friend Nancy Knight. It was a prayer, one I have said almost daily since I received it about a year ago. I want to share it with you if I haven't already. I have changed it a little to fit my needs. I too believe it is the little things, done well and with great love that make the difference in life.

Lord, thank you for blessing me with another day to serve you. May I have peace within, knowing I am exactly where I am meant to be. Keep me faithful no matter what this day brings. Help me to recognize your blessings and to use the gifts you have given to me. May I be content knowing I am your child and you are always there for me. Let your presence fill me with gladness, thankfulness and praise. I am excited to experience your power living the day you have planned for me. I love you Lord.

KEEP THE FAITH!

OCT. 21st 2008 1 Year Anniversary

October 21st is the day we lost our house in the Witch Creek firestorm. The flag planted on our home site came from the Healing Field. It will be an annual tradition to use the flag as a remembrance of our history here. I wonder where we'll be next Oct. 21st. We still need your prayers for all that lies ahead as we rebuild. God Bless All of You that helped us get through the past year. I trust there are many more blessings to come and I will share them all.

Healing Field October 20th 2008

It is Monday morning at 6:00am. Last year at this time we waited anxiously to hear if our home was still there. The actual anniversary is tomorrow Oct 21st. but the Monday is when we heard the news. The flags represent the homes destroyed in the Witch Creek Fire. There were over 1,100 flags. Today we will pick up the flag that represents our lost home. Tomorrow I will display it where our home was.

October 11, 2008 LIFE GOES ON!!!

NICK IS 19 1/2. We celebrated his half birthday at the Skyshow. We obviously LOOK for reasons to have a party. Not much happening on the homefront rebuild. The first engineering bid was over 9,000.00 YIKES. We may get the walls up but not be able to finish or furnish it.

Justine and Sam's Wedding 9-27-08

We had a wonderful week with our family. The wedding was perfect. Nick caught the garter so I guess we'll have another wedding to look forward to. All the guests are on their way home and we're back to our NEW normal.

Sept. 18th John's 60th Birthday

We sang Happy Birthday 3 times! I surprised John at the Chamber of Commerce Mixer. I took a cake earlier in the day and brought it out at the dinner. Over 100 people sang to him. Sam and Justine were at the motorhome when we got back. Then Nick showed up around 9:30 .

Our Homestead 9-17-08

As for me and my family we will serve the Lord. I can't fret about what we don't have. Here I am in front of my digs. I've been busy with church commitments, work and getting plans together. John spent the whole day cutting the nasty burned brush. We need to get it stacked along the road to have it chipped up by the Fire Safe Council.

SEPT. 15th 2008

We are making a pit barbecue in the middle of the compound. It is something we've wanted to do for years. We don't have to worry about setting the neighborhood on fire anymore. Today John and I put a few more courses of the fire bricks in the pit. The draftsman has the floor plan and is making the necessary changes to accommodate the cement exterior walls. We are a little anxious going ahead without a REAL budget. I have a feeling we will be working on the house for quite awhile. It will be nice to finally see building progress.

Saturday, Sept. 6, 2008

When Preston and I were out on our walk he led me to this baby puppy. It must be an abandoned newborn coyote. We carried it home and are caring for it as best we can.

Sept. 5, 2008 KEEPING THE FAITH!

God never fails to amaze me. When I'm starting to feel sorry for myself He lifts me up with great news. I felt compelled to look on Ebay for our Christmas stockings. Not only did I find a 20year old kit for John's, but I found a source for his oil for bio-diesel. Then today I was looking to replace Sam and Nick's favorite GI Joe guys and I came in contact with a collector that will help me find their favorites. I'm going to sleep with a big smile on my face. Much Love to all.

TIME TO CELEBRATE!

Labor Day was celebrated with friends and neighbors. They actually liked coming over to our campsite. The dinner out was the annual Virgo Birthday party. It's has been an annual event for over thirty years. John will turn the big 60 on September 18th. No info on the concrete walls yet, we wait.

August 29, 2008

We are VERY dull people. We are currently watching grass grow. The hydroseed is germinating and the hillside is coming to life. John is still investigating exterior wall construction so we can't move ahead until that decision is made. No news regarding John's health. The PSA level has not gone down and his urologist said the radiation probably didn't do anything. So we wait and wonder. I guess after a few more months of stability that would be better than seeing the PSA rise. For now the wedding is on the near horizon and we're excited about having a celebration.

August 16, 2008

So, I was emptying Preston's water dish when I came across these two guys/gals. John had just taken off for town and I was alone. Preston went nuts trying to protect me. I managed to get them both with a shovel before they got us. My hands were shaking for hours after that adrenaline rush. The green hill is from hydroseeding. John and Nick put in a watering system. We wait for growth!

August 10, 2008

We are still in the San Francisco Bay area. Today Stephanie made another gourmet meal for us to enjoy. Here we all are. Grandpa took a nosedive into concrete a few days ago. We had a great time visiting. We'll be driving home on Tuesday.

August 9, 2008

What a treat! Bob, Ginny and Ashley Potts treat us to a cooking lesson and a fabulous meal. We spent the evening learning about Thai food and feasting on some unique dishes. We haven't been to their house in over 20 years.

August 6, 2008

We are in a holding pattern looking into construction techniques. The latest is concrete exterior walls. The draftsman can't go ahead until we decide on a method. We are going to see a house near ours where the technique was used. Tomorrow we are taking a road trip up the coast. A small vacation before Nick starts school. We all need a break from the trailer compound. Of course John and I are taking things to work on but we won't be doing it 24/7. I started a bible study today in the book of James. In the first chapter it states we should be happy in our trials for we learn to endure and become stronger in our faith. I should be an olympiad of faith when I look back some day! Praise God.

July 30th 2008

Yesterday we followed the wiener mobile and got a picture. Kourtney was so fascinated by it. Here I am with Kourt and her sisters.
I'm meeting with the designer today to work on the front house elevations. We also have a well that is finally pumping water to the surface.

July 28th 2008 First Rebuild Finished

Before and after. Our neighbors, Steve and Julie Nyland have moved back to their home. Exactly 9 months after it was destroyed they are back. We are still in the blueprint phase but it is progressing. All is well on the trailer homefront.

July 19th Justine's Wedding Shower

We had a wonderful time at the shower today. Wedding time is coming soon. The first picture is me with Justine and her mom, Debbie. The second is Justine with two of her bridesmaids.

July 16th

Here's our current compound. It's not so bad. But I want my house back! One neighbor has moved back into their rebuilt home. The newest homes are coming back first. Almost in order of when they were originally finished. I'll get some pictures on my walk tomorrow. Blasting comes next for us. There are some huge boulders in the way of our progress. John's treatments are done for now. He has an MRI next Thursday. Now we need the PSA level to drop, showing a decrease in the cancer cells. Nick and I are helping out at vacation bible school this week.

July 14th 2008

A new day dawns. Here is our new sunrise view. Even though we are in a valley it's still beautiful up here.

We are counting down to John's final day of radiation tomorrow. The Lord has blessed him with incredible strength through the last two months.

I celebrated with a "Fired Up Sister" at her rebuilding party. We wrote blessings and encouragements on her new walls.

Our preliminary plans are done. If you'd like to see them email me. jstrizver@gmail.com