Friday, June 27, 2008

Goodbye...Hello!

First off, we said goodbye yesterday to our houseguest, Kevin Sagers. I told Laura I liked him so much because: He is just so sweet, handsome, loves Uncle Danny’s cooking, puts his dishes in the sink, loves his girlfriend and sends her awesome flowers, was valedictorian in a class of OVER 900 students, giggles like a little kid when he watches “Wipeout”, has a 40” vertical approach jump and a nasty-*ss kill shot, and adores Hayley because she reminds him of his own little sister. THAT is why I love our new friend. And then he went and wrote the sweetest and most eloquent little note in the guestbook up in the Liebel B&B. Big sigh. Hi Kevin! Have a great week off at home! We'll miss you and really do hope you'll come back next year! Moving on...this is Molly. She is our kitty. At the moment, she is a little miffed at me (explanation to follow) and will not look at the camera. Fine. I think this is kind of pretty anyway! She's looking out Dan's office window and for the record, that hydrangea...yeah. It looks fake. I found it in the Safeway floral dept. back in March. It came in the prettiest pink ceramic pot. With the most gorgeous puffs of burgundy and green. It hasn't lost a single petal, but better yet, it has a bunch of new growth on the stems. I guess I need to move it to a bigger pot, but I just love it on my little table on the front porch! Molly loves it, too! Okay...enough. Now I just sound like a crazy cat lady. Here is our Abby. She is tired (explanation to follow.) When I look at this photo, all I can think of is this little mole that we found in the back forest. Dead. His little flipper diggers looked like Abby's arms. Yes, I called them arms. Dan and I don't agree on this term. He says they are legs. Potayto...potahto. So, why are my furry babies so tired (and in Molly's case, irritable?) Because....HELLO SUMMER!!! Our pup needs a bath, so I decided to give her a good brushing first. She tends to get juuuust a wee bit excited when she gets brushed. Hence, the need to lie down and rest. Little did I know I'd end up with piles of undercoat. And Molly escaped my clutches before I could finish, so I know there is more fuzz to be dealt with. All in good time, kitty! As promised...here is a photo of the Day 7 bruising. I know, ugliness. The good doctor was right! However, I am ecstatic to report that I'm able to walk in the boot (fondly referred to as "Herman Munster") without the crutches! You cannot imagine my glee to be able to carry things while getting from Point A to Point B. Hey people, little victories! Finally, our very best wishes to Jenny and Jeremy! Our niece is getting married tomorrow down in California! While we can't be there in person to share your special day, know that we'll be thinking of you and we'll have a Washington toast to your happiness. Much love to you both!

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

We love volleyball...and breakfast!

First of all, thanks to everyone for coming over last night ~ Kryger, Rooney, Adam, Kevin, Sam, Kerry and Alexa! What a fun evening! This was the scene on the lawn last night. After an awesome dinner of carne asade tacos, beans and rice (cooked by our own Top Chef Dano!) the coaches and players adjourned to the front lawn for a friendly game of three-on-three. We won't get into scores here, ahem, but let's just say the girls were awed by the jumping ability of the visiting coaches, Adam and Kevin. The boys have some serious hops! (Click on the photo to read my silly captions...) I will no doubt get grief for posting this shot, but that is our girl, serving up a jumping floater. Or is it a floating jumper? She and Kevin worked on that during lunch yesterday. After chowing down on sandwiches, of course. Here is Adam, doing his thang. These boys perform some rather nasty kills. Our girls weren't quite sure what to do with those bullets! And no, that is not an optical illusion...he really does jump that high! Abby had her own ideas about what kind of ball was going to be played! And finally, there seems to be some sort of contest to see which visiting coach is served the best breakfast. Behold, Dano's Wednesday offering for Kevin. (Yes, those are Red Vines. No, they are not for breakfast!) And yes, the plates were completely empty after Kevin was done! I don't have Day 6 photos of the ankle. Frankly, I'm too lazy to undo the six velcro straps, plus the inner bootie velcro. I'll share colorful Day 7 photos tomorrow! I can say that it is feeling much better and the boot is a huge help, even if it does feel like I have a sack of cement strapped to my foot! Have a great day!

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

What's Goin' On...

First of all, a big welcome to our houseguest. This is Kevin. He's the sweetest guy from BYU, here for the volleyball camp at Hayley's high school. Kevin plays volleyball for BYU (he's a 6'3" outside hitter) but more important, he's super smart and seriously the nicest guy! And he likes Dan's cooking! Tonight, we're having both visiting coaches, the high school coaches, and a few of Hayley's volleyball buddies over for carne asada with all the fixin's. And those evil apple dumplings, too! Meanwhile, while this is NOT my x-ray, I drew a black line in to show my fracture. It is kind of uncommon, called a Tibial Plafond fracture. I'm in a very unfashionable black boot that weighs a ton, but I chose that over a cast, based solely on being able to take a bath or shower without waterproofing my entire leg! The doctor says I'm in it for 4 to 6 weeks, but I should feel much better, even being able to stand slightly on it in only two weeks. Woohoo! The doctor also warned me that my ankle will soon turn a much more vibrant color than it is now. This side is swollen still because he thinks the ligaments and tendons are not at all happy. So, here is Day 5: The inside view (which is actually closer to the break): So, thank you for all the good wishes for speedy recovery! My ankle thanks you. My sore biceps thank you. And my palms thank you. Crutches are no fun, but they allow some mobility, so I'll stop complaining! Have a great rest of the week!

Friday, June 20, 2008

My Lovely New View

Things I learned last night:

1. Don't play frisbee in flip flops. On grass that has any moisture on it. Ever.

2. Sometimes, the student X-ray tech is smarter than the real X-ray tech.

3. Homemade pizza tastes amazing at 11:30 pm after a trip to the ER.

4. Ibuprofen does a fine job, until it wears off at 3:00 am.

5. When you don't think you have time for a broken ankle, and all that entails, you will make time for that broken ankle.

Sigh. I have a non-displaced posterior malleolar fracture. Have to go in for more x-rays on Monday to clarify if it is the tibia or the fibula, because the whole enchilada hurts and they couldn't quite tell which bone since there was overlapping on the x-ray. Meanwhile, I have to keep it propped up on four pillows (for maximum comfort...three doesn't cut it!) and veg. I must say though, that it doesn't hurt as much as I expected (as long as I don't apply any pressure to it and keep it still.) So, my man-servant Danny and his two assistants are keeping me comfy. And while I knew it all along, I have to shout out, "I have the best family in the whole world!"

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Happy Father's Day!

Where would we be without our daddies? Happy Father's Day to my Daddy! We hope all the fathers in our lives out there have a great day today! With lots of love from us Liebel's =)

Monday, June 9, 2008

Sinful Monday

Okay, so I love http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/ . She's a good, fun read, takes great photos and maybe best of all, she shares really yummy recipes. We got hooked on her Apple Dumplings and frankly, Danny has been known to get a little sad (i.e. grumpy?) when we don't have these available for dessert. I whipped up a batch this morning to welcome him home from his weekend away at a golf tournament and thought I'd share with you! Now, don't judge. They are full of butter, sugar and fat. There. You've been warned.
I only make a half recipe of what is on PW's website because as much as we love them, we really don't need a full pan of these taunting us from the kitchen counter (even though they contain apples and I therefore deem them "healthy!") Ha...yeahhhh.
Hmmm...I can't bake them until this loaf of yummy banana goodness is done. Sure smells good.....
I'm too impatient to wait until they're done to take a final photo. You'll just have to make them yourself to see! Here is the direct link to the recipe: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/02/apple_dumplings/ (You're welcome!)
Meanwhile, this is tonight's dinner. Dano's famous Bacon Guacamole BBQ Cheeseburgers and homemade fries. Anyone want to join us??? Dinner is at 7:00...

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Let's Hear It For Liebs!!!

A big CONGRATULATIONS to our nephew Andrew Liebel! The MLB Draft started today and the Liebel family got some awesome news: Andrew was picked by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 3rd Round as the 95th overall pick! GO LIEBS!!! (Obviously, we PNW Liebel's were hoping the Mariners would pick him, but what-EVER!) "We gotta play 'em one day at a time. I'm just happy to be here. Hope I can help the ballclub." "I just want to give it my best shot, and the good Lord willing, things will work out." "A good friend of mine used to say, 'This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains.' Think about that for a while." (The preceding quotes were taken from an interview with Andrew James "Nuke LaLoosh" Lee-Bull Durham.) Heh heh. Congratulations Andrew ~ We are so proud of you! Much love from all of us up here in Washington!

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

What's Not to Love???

I think so many people were a little puzzled why we would want to leave sunny Southern California and move to Seattle. Where it rains. Every day. All day. Rain. RAAAAIIIINNNNN!!
Welllll, it does rain here. But certainly not every day and not all day. But, today it is raining a soft, gentle rain. It's the perfect day for a cup of coffee and baking brownies for later. A perfect day to sit in my crafty space by the window and make something. I really do love to take in how lush and green everything is up here. So, while it does rain, that rain makes everything grow so beautifully. The photo above is SOTC (straight out of the camera.) I added the frame, but nothing else. That is my pot of poppies with one bloom and the rest are ready to pop. Next to it are one of two pots of double petunias. They're fairly new, but I expect them to cascade over the edge. I hope you all don't get bored reading about my obsession with plants and flowers. (Just wait until I share my newfound obsession with cows and baby buffalo...then you'll think I've really lost it!) I just can't help myself...I love it here!

Sunday, June 1, 2008

14 Years Ago Today...

A little baby boy was born! Brian Thomas Liebel came into our lives on 6-1-04 @ 6:03 pm, weighing a whopping 9 lbs. 9 oz. I'd post a newborn picture of our little man, but those photos are up in the bonus room, along with five very sleepy teenage boys who were up most of the night playing laser tag, eating pizza, chips and root beer floats, playing hide and seek in the woods and playing Xbox and Guitar Hero. I don't want to bother them, though Abby is lying right smack in the middle of the heap of boys, hoping to find a stray chip somewhere! This is about as close as I can get to our dude with the camera these days! Happy Birthday Brian...we love you!