Weekend in Emmetsburg

I had the chance to get home this past weekend. It was so cold all you could do is look out at the cat. And watch all those new pickups run up and down the road in search of deer.

It was great to see Mom and Dad and Joe and Terry. Also had dinner with Bill in Omaha last Thursday night.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and New Year 2008.

If the Neary Boys Worked for Santa

Don't send a lame Starring You! eCard. Try JibJab Sendables!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Here's a picture of the newly shoveled snow next to our driveway. It snowed all day long and every school district in the area was closed except Madison. How I long for the days in a school district with rural routes! The sad thing is even Milwaukee closed schools today and they for sure do not have country kids! What's the snow like for everybody else?

Benefit for Mike Mundus

Hi
I thought I'd give everyone the update on the benefit they had last night for Mike (Joe's friend who was in the accident this summer). In one night, they raised over $36,000! That's awesome...especially since this was the 2nd benefit. The first one was in West Bend this summer and that raised $10,000. Not included in the $36,000 was all the cost to redoing Mike's house...they moved walls, doorways, put in handicapped accessible bathroom, a ramp, etc... and all those materials and labor were donated...so when you put the $36,000 plus the $10,000 plus remodeling a house, you have a pretty amazing gift to Mike and his family.
Joe was really happy with the turnout...over 405 people signed in (and some people like myself didn't sign in) so the total number was probably 450 or more. Mark Neary donated a 3 nights in Vegas plus 2 tickets to Cirque du Soleil,which brought in $450. The other highest item going was 2 roundtrip tickets to Brazil, plus lodging. That was a $3500 item...
Tonight Joe and a couple of the other guys who helped head this up, told Mike and Lisa what they had raised last night. Needless to say, Mike was overwhelmed and couldn't thank them enough.

Floyd of Rosedale

The Washington Post must read the Neary News. They picked up on Terry's post and included the following in this morning's paper.

Saturday, November 17, 2007; Page E14
Awarded to the winner of the annual Iowa- Minnesota college football game since 1935
Size:15 1/2 inches high, 21 inches long, 98.3 pounds.


History: The rivalry had been increasingly ugly, charged with bitterness, threats and even racial tension leading up to the 1935 game in Iowa City. Minnesota Gov. Floyd Olson feared mayhem. Hoping to lighten the mood, Olson, with much fanfare, bet Iowa Gov. Clyde Herring a prize hog that Minnesota would win. Herring went along, even mocking the scrawniness of Minnesota swine. The game went on without controversy, Minnesota won and Herring personally delivered a champion Hampshire from Rosedale Farms (dubbed Floyd after Olson) to the Minnesota statehouse. Olson commissioned a trophy in Floyd's likeness, made of bronze by St. Paul artist Charles Brioschi, to symbolize sportsmanship. The pig died of cholera in 1936 and was buried in a Minnesota field almost exactly halfway between the two schools.
Does the winner keep it? Just until the next year. The series is 39-32-2 in Minnesota's favor after Iowa won on Saturday.

Floyd home where he belongs

HI everyone

Just thought I'd add our pictures to the Neary blog. We went to the Iowa-Minnesota game last weekend. The first half was good, the second half was like the first half normally is...crummy! At least we won. We also went to the basketball game the night before....that was fun too, until a really big guy (as in extremely chubby, putting it nicely) sat in the chair next to me, and half of him came over on me, including through that little cubby hole spot in the side of the chair. It wasn't pretty....it's not like he couldn't have moved down...there were empty seats...even his own kid wouldn't sit right next to him. How do I attract these people? AGH! At least at the football game, I didn't have to deck any Minnesota football fans for telling me to sit down...that's what almost happened at the Metrodome...they're not used to standing when they get touchdowns, like us great Hawk fans! (Sorry Dave...just stating the facts. :) )

Anyway...you can't see Floyd (of Rosedale) in the picture very well, but he's there, believe me. The real Floyd was a pig that lived right by Fort Dodge, in fact, the farm was one of our bus stops...so I have a personal connection to that pig. :)

Go Hawks! See ya next week at the farm.

Hi from Ames

Wow, those pictures from Carroll are great!! Smart and good-looking! You do the Neary name proud. I hope mom has copies for all of us at Thanksgiving.
I talked to Pat tonight and Bob got home on Monday. They still don't know why Bob keeps having these stomach pain attacks. But she said he was fine now. Keep them both in your prayers.
Pat said she did go play bridge yesterday, so he must have felt ok to let her go!!!
We're looking forward to seeing everyone on Saturday (after Thanksgiving). I've purchased 6 photo boxes for the 5 boys and Margaret and also bought photo albums so we can work on restoring those after the Thanksgiving meal-if you want to.
Bill, we got the memo about the sweet potatoes, so Jim will be bringing those instead of Margaret. I hope that puts your mind to rest!!!!
Oh, by the way- if anyone gives Bob or Pat a knick-knack for Christmas, Terry, Bill, Margaret and Chris will shoot you. Just giving you fair warning!!
I hope Michelle is doing well. I think of you often and hope you're feeling ok.
Well, better close. See everyone soon. Chris

More Neary News (Thanksgiving Brag Letter)

Hello Neary News Subscribers, I've gotten to the point in my life where I have too many vacation days (Bob, Is that possible?) So this week I'm taking four vacation days to rake leaves & do other wonderful household chores. While I have my morning coffee I thought I'd give you a little update on the Carroll Neary kids (2007 school pics above). The 1st quarter of the 2007-2008 school year ended and the 3 report cards had 29 A's and 1 B. (Tyler says Honors Biology "Sucks"). Not sure where that comes from but Mary & I are Proud of them. Now the bad news..... This month all 3 kids are getting braces. How the hell did that happen? Should make for a pretty photo over the holidays. Well that's enough for now.

Happy Fall Ya'll

Hello everyone...I think we have skipped fall down south. Seems like it went from 90 to 40 in about six hours. Oh well, that's how it goes. We are all doing well. Work is the same, still loving day shift. It is a lot more work but the trade off is feeling "normal." The kids are great...never a dull moment. Mason has started calling me "babe," which I think he picked up from his dad. We are in the throes and woes of potty training. He's doing ok but by the end of the day, I'm pooped :0) Maddie is really growing up fast. She may be walking by Thanksgiving weekend. I think she will skip crawling altogether. Matt is good...working and golfing a little. We hope to see everyone at Thanksgiving. Sounds like a Neary-good time.

Love you all,

Melissa, Matt, Mason and Maddie

The Final Season

Hi All. This is Cole's last weekend as a Carroll Cougar. Next year will be 7th grade football at school. He has played 4 years of youth football with the last game sheduled for this Sunday at 11:00 am in Valley Stadium in West Des Moines. They finished 4 & 1 this year and missed being the wild card team in a 4 team playoff by 1 point. They are the 5th seed in a 24 team league and will play the 6th seed team to end the year. In their 4 wins they out scored their opponents

116 - 0. They lost to the other Carroll team 12 -19. Cole played mostly at tightend or wide receiver and linebacker. He was backup quaterback and got to play about 4 qtrs at QB. It's been fun! The pictures are from team photo day and a game last Sunday on a miserable rainy day played on a muddy field. Sorry we'll miss the cleaning party at the farm. We are heading to Des Moines Sat afternoon to cheer on the other Carroll teams playing Sat night. All's well with everyone else. I'll post another family update soon.

More than just beer

Dave and I went on our first winery tour in Wisconsin yesterday. I was sceptical of grapes grown in the midwest but the location was chosen in the late 1800s by a German immigrant and grapes have grown there ever since. So, here's another fun thing you can do when you come to visit! http://www.wollersheim.com/index.html

Thanks for all of the updates. I can't wait until Thanksgiving Saturday!

Puppet Artistry

Hi all. Hope everyone has survived the summer and not having too much mental anguish over all those things you had planned to do but didn't.

I can't get the lawn mower to start, so I'm on the computer instead. We are all fine here. Looking forward to football and cooler weather. Mike started his new job with the law firm this week and Michelle is doing well. Bob III is very busy with a big case he is managing.

I'm taking two weeks off at the end of the month (9/24-10/5). Wasn't sure when I could get off, so had not made any plans. We're working on that.

A friend sent me this hand puppetry video that you might enjoy. Take Care.

Bob

Family Get Togethers

Hey All,

Eliza and I were wondering when Thanksgiving and Christmas are going to be celebrated by the Neary's? I'm thinking Neary Thanksgiving is on Saturday and Christmas will be Christmas day???

Anyone who can fill us in, please do!

Shannon and Eliza

Hello from Okinawa!

Hey everyone,

Sorry Eric and I have not been in touch. Congrats to Shannon and Eliza and to Mike and Michelle! I'm so happy for all of you. My news is that I have a 4th grade teaching position, so I am employed again:) I also am keeping my wine-tasting job...remember, I give the wine tastings, I don't just drink all of the wine myself.

About one month ago, a Category 5 typhoon, Man-yi, passed directly over Okinawa, and Eric and I have some video footage. It was pretty intense. This video was before the worst of it. I believe it was when the winds were sustained around 100 miles/hour.

If you want it....you can have it...all you got to do...

Finish the lyrics.

Anyway... Updates, Updates, Updates....
Here's a few dates: September 27th, 2008 or October 4th, 2008 and September 26th, 2009 or October 3rd, 2009.

Those would be potential wedding dates. We're planning the wedding to be in the Des Moines area and possibly outside. Obviously more details to follow.

Other than that, work has been going ok. I was on day shift all this week which was somewhat of a relief. I didn't accomplish much, just learned how my first shift counterparts ran their ships.

Eliza started her job at Orchard Place (a youth shelter home for emotionally and behaviorally challenged kids) two weeks ago and is working overnight hours. Guess she really likes me, huh! She's getting used to the hours and really enjoys helping the kids get ready for school. Otherwise, all is well in our neck of the woods.

We're thinking of you all and can't wait for the next Neary congregation.

Love you all,
Shannon and Eliza

First Day of Class

Hey Family!
Here is my update!! I just had my first day of class at UNI. I'm taking Humanities, Old Testament and Other Hebrew Scripture, Africa, Physics I and Microbiology. I just got back from Physics and am kind of nervous about this semester. My professor is Chinese and has a very thick accent as well as a lisp. He's terribly hard to understand and I was struggling tonight to keep up. I'm hoping I get used to it after a couple weeks but we'll see... I'll keep you posted. Other than that things are pretty great. It's been fun seeing all my friends and hearing about their summers. I had several friends spend the summer in other countries doing missions work so it's been fun to look at all their pictures and hear their stories. I have no idea how to say this without sounding corny but I have a boyfriend now! His name is Alex and he's an accounting major here at UNI. He's amazing and you guys will absolutely love him! Yay! : D Anyways, I'm off to watch High School Musical 2 with my girl friends (No, I am not ashamed to admit that) so that's all for now. I'm excited to hear everyone else's updates! Get typing!!!!!
Love you all!

Updates

Is anyone out there? I hope to hear from ALL of you ASAP!

Here is the link to Mike Mundus' Caring Bridge website: http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=mikemundus

Good news from Madison: I am officially a school counselor at Akira Toki Middle School in the Madison School District. It is a urban school of a little over 600 6, 7, & 8th graders. The kids start the day after Labor Day but I've already started getting my office ready, registering kids, etc. I'm the only counselor but I will work closely with a social worker and school psychologist.

Again, is there anyone out there? Please post or I will hold Grandma's cookies hostage at the next family event!

Bad 4 wheeler accident by the farm

I just wanted everyone to include Mike Mundus in their prayers. He was hurt pretty bad Sunday night...he wasn't found until Monday morning. (Mike lives just west and north of the farm...hunts with Joe and is a really good friend of Joe's.) Joe got a call early Monday morning saying Mike was missing---he had been on his 4wheeler Sunday night and hadn't come home...Joe went in the jeep and a couple of guys got their 4 wheelers out, but they couldn't find him...so they called someone with a plane...the plane spotted him right away. He was just about 25 yds. upstream from the pasture fence line. He had crossed the river and was trying to go up a bank to get to the farm's pasture (he had been at another neighbor's house, and had decided before he went home that he'd go and look at where the 'cabin' is going to be built---the log cabin that Joe and all these guys are going to build)...well the way the grasses were growing along the embankment, it looked more like a gradual incline, but it was just a straight up and down 6' embankment. The 4 wheeler didn't make it up the embankment, and it fell back on him and pinned him on the ground. He laid there for 12 hrs....his wife had been looking that night when she noticed he wasn't back yet. They have a tent site on a sandbar, and they go there quie a bit, so she thought he might have just stayed there, but he normally didn't do that on a Sunday night when he'd have to work the next day...and he wouldn't normally do that by himself either... regardless...he laid there a long time. Joe and 2 other guys got to him as soon as the guy in the plane told them where to go. Joe said when he started looking for him, he didn't keep going the direction of where Mike was, because there were no new tracks that direction, so he didn't think he'd be there...well, Mike came from the other side, so Joe wouldn't have seen the tracks....Anyway.....A life flight came from Mason City and landed on the sandbar near where Mike was at. Mike had his vertebrae crushed and as of right now, he's paralyzed from chest down. He also hurt his neck, but the spinal cord was not severed. He has use of his arms...they were not under the 4 wheeler....he couldn't reach a cell phone in his pocket to call when he got hurt... The doctors say there is a slim chance he could regain feeling, but more likely he'll be paralyzed. Joe went to Mason City yesterday and saw him, and Mike seems determined to do all he can do to try and regain whatever he can. He'll be going to Des Moines next week to be assessed and then to start the rehab process.Mike's an independent bricklayer, so this will definitely affect his life in many ways. So, it'd be great if you could include Mike in your prayers...he sure needs a bunch of them. We'll keep you updated...

We're good to go in Madison

So, Dave and I are in our new townhouse. We have our first GARAGE which we are super excited about but no car to put in it b/c one is getting new brakes and my parents are driving the other to us tonight.

Bob, thanks for sharing the news about the hearing....very cool!

Dave's family and all of our friends are safe and accounted for in Minneapolis. We were so shocked when we heard the news. That is the way I commuted to work every day when we taught at that charter school near downtown back in 04-05. The news really hit us when we realized if we had still been lving there, we easily could have been on our way to the Twins game. The Metrodome is right past the bridge if you haven't seen all of the pictures. It really makes you appreciate life even more.

Well, back to the unpacking. I miss you all!

Amy (& Dave)

Summer in DC

Yesterday I had the pleasure to be the lead VA witness at a hearing on health care in New Orleans and was on a panel with Mayor Ray Nagin and others. Quite a time. For those insomniacs out there, the url for the video is:

http://energycommerce.house.gov/cmte_mtgs/110-oi-hrg.080107.KatrinaPart2.shtml

My statement starts at the 1:04:37 mark and the questioning begins at the 2:18 mark.

Not surprisingly, Mr. Mayor got most of the attention.

Hope all is well with everyone.

Nothing but good news!

Wow! The Neary News is the best news site on the web. Nothing but good news. Congratulations Shannon & Eliza and Michael & Michelle. What an exciting time for all of you. It's hard to come up with a new post. How do you top all this good news. Cole thinks we have exciting news. They just announced that Roger "The Rocket" Clemens is pitching Monday in the Yankees - Royals game in KC and we have tickets. (Remember, he's 11). OK, our news doesn't make the top 2 but next week we might post a photo of a Royals fan in the fetal position. Looking forward to more good "Neary News"

Don

Breaking News

Michelle and I are excited to announce the newest East Coast addition to the Neary clan. The little one is scheduled to arrive on January 28th. We will keep you posted as details develop.

Congratulations Shannon and Eliza -- Nothing like a Neary wedding to bring everyone together.

Love,

Michael and Michelle

Post of the Month

Hey Shannon!

Your announcement sure beat Amy's bio-boy story as post of the month.

Congratulations to you and Eliza from all of us in the east.

Bob

Congratulations Shannon and Eliza

Eliza, you are an awesome addition to the Neary family. Congratulations!!
Keep us up on the details. Love, chrisandjim

Is it ok to add another Neary?

Hey all,

This is a horrible way to do this, but it reaches the most people so... Eliza and I are engaged!!!

It happened last Tuesday. We were getting ready to go to the fireworks near the capitol and she asked if I thought she should wear her glasses and I asked her if she'd be willing to wear something for me (Corny, I know). She asked me 'what?' I pulled out the ring-she said YES-and we went to a pretty good fireworks show. ;)

We've sworn off pictures for awhile because Eliza had her wisdom teeth pulled Friday, but I'll put some (with the ring) up as soon as we take them.

Not a lot of other news...at least nothing that can top what I've already said...

Love you all and can't wait to see you soon,
Shannon

Have no fear

In case any of you are concerned with the state of the world today, have no fear, SUPER JOE IS HERE! Fighting bio-terrorism one county at a time:)

I came home for a little bit while Laura is still here. I was at the farm again today and Grandma just happened to make potato salad for lunch. Its a hard life.

We'll be moving in a few weeks. You're all welcome to come experience Madison any time you want. Prayers for a new job for me are welcome and appreciated. I'll keep you posted. Bill, how is your new position? Melissa, congrats on the day shift! Whoo hooo! Can't wait to hear more from ALL of you!

Amy

Nearys Rock!!!!

This is the best group of cousins a girl could ask for. How weird is it that this many people like each other and actually get along?? It must be the milk and cookies...or possibly the gravy!!!! We had a great time with everyone. Just didn't last long enough. Mason is still talking about the cows and going fishing. He really had fun!! We love you all and hope to see you at Thanksgiving!!

Love, Matt, Melissa, Mason and Maddie

ps...I'm finally going to day shift!!!!

Nearyness

Hey Family ~
Just wanted to let you guys know how blessed I feel to be a part of such a great family. This past weekend was amazing and I'll never forget it. I love you all so so so much!

Pictures

I just sent you all Bobby's pictures. They are amazing...mine were okay but these are great! Keep them coming, guys.

Thanks for the memories. I think it was the best family reunion ever imagined:)

Amy

We're almost there!

Well, I had quite the weekend helping my mom and dad get more of the farm ready. My wages came in the form of potato salad with my lunch and a roast on Sunday. Yeah, I thought it was a good deal, too!

We thought a reminder should be sent out to all those who like to take a dip in a pool that there is a pool at the Wild Rose Hotel so bring your suit! Bill, speedos are no longer allowed, just so you know:) ha ha

On a side note, I passed my national counseling exam so now I'm a Nationally Certified Counselor (NCC)! Whoo hooo! What a relief. My dad takes his big certification test August 1st so we'll have to send him well wishes and brain waves that day. Then this family will be all certified out and ready for a study break.

See you Friday!

I think I'm gonna make it :)

Well, I am finally feeling better and eating again. I had my first chocolate chip cookie and milk, in 10 days and it tasted good! You know you're on the mend, when you want cookies!
This weekend, Amy is coming home and Joe, Amy and I are going to do some more cleaning and painting. We'll have most of the downstairs done...and maybe when things settle down again, I'll try tackling the upstairs...but that can wait for now.
Joe took Pat to her appointment today in Mason City and everything was fine. That's always good to know.
We've changed the menu on Saturday to hot turkey sandwiches and ham sandwiches (along with all the salads, baked beans, chips, veggie/fruit trays and cake), instead of the grilling action. I bought turkeys today, which are thawing in our downstairs fridge, and the middle of next week, I'll cook them and have them ready to go for sandwiches. It will be much easier on Saturday, then grilling all of that food. I told Joe my idea to switch to that and he must have been happy as he let out a big long sigh, and just said, "Thank you!!!!!" I think he was contemplating hours at the grill otherwise. :) This will just be more fun instead of having people stand and cook at a grill. I hope this meets with everyone's approval...I've never really seen any Nearys complain about anything to do with food...other than if someone ate the last piece of pie that everyone had their eye on. :)
Patti Baker called tonight and says hi and wishes she could come up next week, but they will be on vacation at the lakes up north.

New couch for the farm

Today, Chris and I went to Peterson's Furniture in town and Matt Furniture in Spencer and looked at couches (and bought one). I talked to Pat ahead of time and said we were all going in together and getting them a new couch for their anniversary. I thought I had better say something, because I wanted to ask if she still wanted the motion couch, a particular color, etc... After she said something like, "Oh, you all are doing too much....but I know we really need a couch....bless your souls..." or something to that effect! She said she really would like the 'motion' type couch...and laughed and said because she sits at that one end of the couch alot and she knew she'd use it. :) She said she no preference on color, other than something that didn't show dirt. :) She was perfectly fine with having us pick it out...didn't have a desire to go look herself. So with that in mind, we had a couple of nice ones to choose from...they were both a dark khaki color. We chose the microfiber one that looks like suede. The sales clerk said it's sturdier than the fabric type material, and that spills wipe up easily, and doesn't puncture easy either. They knew it was a gift, and said they would put a gigantic big red bow wrapped on the couch. :) They'll deliver it (for free) on Monday morning and take the other one away (for free). I was a little short on $$$, so we may need to throw a little more in for that and for other costs during the weekend. I think you'll like the couch, and it will definitely have room for the pile of cousins that it usually holds over the holidays. :) The living room with the new paint and super duper cleaning by Chris, Margaret and Joe looks great....and you'd never guess how much room there is in that front porch now (where the pies and candy are kept at Christmas). It looks great. Joe is planning on doing some additional painting in the kitchen and other places, and hopefully I'll be feeling better in a couple of days (have had some 'food borne illness' for 8 days---today was the first food I've eaten that has stayed where it's supposed to!) and I will be doing some more cleaning and washing windows, etc. I planned on helping Margaret and Chris but I was out of commission, so to say. I'm probably the only person who would be disappointed that I couldn't go out and clean... must be a cleaning gene in me, because I was looking forward to it...
One other thing....the article and picture (about the anniversary) were in the E'burg paper today. I took the picture of Bob, Pat,the 5 boys and Margaret in front of the hay bails and had that resized to 4 x6...but the paper enlarged it bigger than that. I thought they might make it smaller, but they made it bigger. It looks really nice and the article is just as I wrote it...which I was glad they didn't change that. One person already saw it, and was working down the road, and so he drove his tractor to the farm, just to say that he saw it in the paper and he just wanted to wish them Happy Anniversary. I know they'll get lots of cards and I think they'll really enjoy them when they come.
See everyone NEXT week! YEA!!!!!!!! How'd we get such a great family anyway?! How many people do you know that are so excited and anxious to spend time together?! Way to go Nearys!

L.A Freak show

Public Enemy # 1-She must be stopped!! Glad it's their tax money. Mr Bill

College Football's Worst Uniforms on Sports Illustrated

8. Iowa State <--check out the link to see the picture!

Summer Update!

Hey Family!
One month of summer is already over! Crazy! I just started my golf class today. We were there about 7 minutes and the instructor dismissed us. It sounds like it's going to be pretty easy. The only way you can miss points in the class is if you miss more than 4 classes (there are only 16 total) or if you make the instructor mad. We get to golf at least 9 holes every class period. It's pretty sweet!! I have acclimated to apartment living very quickly. I did laundry today and actually enjoyed it! I didn't have to haul my 6 weeks worth of laundry down four flights of stairs and didn't have to worry about people stealing all my clothes or that I'd have all my clothes turn brown (which happened surprisingly often last year). I love having my bed on the ground and having a bathroom with a door. My two roomates are pretty laid back and extremely wonderful. We are having a blast! On Saturday Dad, Mom and I got to go to the Iowa Speedway to an ARCA race. It was pretty amazing. We took the RV with us and just watched from our site. Dad picked the veteran favorite and he won; I picked the young rookie and he got third; mom picked the purple car and he got 5th. So we did pretty good overall. : D

Bill - I'm sooooo proud of you! What a stud. I can't imagine how hard it's been for you. You're doing great - Keep it up! Love you!!

I can't wait to see everyone in a few weeks!! Hope everyone is enjoying their summers! Love you guys!

-Megg

We're finally done moving

Hi everyone, We finished the fourth move of the month yesterday as we got Emily settled into her new home in DesMoines. Her new address is: 609 Linnwill Place, DesMoines, Iowa 50265.
She lives about 4 blocks from Valley Junction, so we headed over there for lunch on Saturday and found all kinds of sports bars, pubs, ice cream shops, etc. She is really enjoying her CNA class and is already a pro at taking vitals. She has impressed some of her teachers with her knowledge but she quickly told them that her dad told her about blood pressure, etc. She is using Jim's stethescope from med school and the kids think it's so "retro" looking!!!!! She seems very happy with all her choices ... so of course that makes us happy!
Megan is moved in and working hard at school-taking golf-for her Personal Wellness class. She said that someone has warned her to start out really bad because the only way you get an A is by improving- so she's gonna do everything wrong the first few weeks. We do have to go over sometime this week and put her headboard on, hang her quilt on the wall and hang the drapes that I have to get made tonight. The great thing about all this is that come August, we don't have to move anyone. Yeh!!! (Megan's new address is: 1118 W 20th Street, Cedar Falls, 50613)
Congratulations to Bill on quitting smoking. Think of all that money you're saving!! We'll keep you in our thoughts!
Terry, Margaret and I are going to spend some time at the farm on June 10, 11, 12 doing some cleaning and perhaps clearing some things out of the house to make room for all the people at the party. If anyone feels compelled to join us, let us know. Everyone is welcome!!!
We're all very excited about seeing everyone. Take care, chrisandjim

New Job and Neary Wknd

Hey all,

It's official, we have internet. This last week was horrible! Anyways, my first week at Pella (as a "real" employee) is complete. I'm already dreading the transition to second shift, but that's still 3 weeks away. I go to Story City all of next week for a continuous improvement team which is a good way to actually understand what it takes to stay ahead of the competition. It also sounds like I'll be "making" doors once the training program is complete.

But back to the important stuff, it appears Eliza and I may make it up early enough Friday night to enjoy some Hickory Park. I'd say it's around 80% for sure that I'll be done working at noon in Pella (it's the last day of training and I find out for sure where I'll be working). If that's the case, we'll be there ready to eat!!!

Right now, I've got to get back to laundry and clean up. Eliza says hi and if anyone's around D.M. next weekend and wants to check out the old guys playing golf, I've got an extra ticket to the Principal Charity Classic. I know someone that can get a couple more if needed.

Take care everyone.

B'days, Football & Baseball

Good Morning, Happy Birthday this weekend to Bob & Joe. For some reason I never remember which one is the 2nd & which is the 3rd. (B'day Alzheimers I think). We'll celebrate on the 22nd.
Wondering if anyone is considering going to Chicago on Labor Day weekend to watch the Hawkeyes game at Soldier Field? We're looking into it. Do you Bears fans know of a good place near Soldier Field to stay? Let me know.
If anyone is in Johston this afternoon, stop by the Johnston Little League complex. Cole has games at 1:00 & 5:00. It's almost as exciting as the Yankees this year.
See you soon

Major League Baseball fans

So, I thought I would share this with you all. As some of you know, I am becoming more and more of a Twins fan. With that comes a distain for White Sox catcher (and former Twins player) AJ Pierzynski. Those of you who know him, may enjoy part of an editorial from the Star Tribune by Jim Souhan. This weekend AJ seemed to attempt to step on our firstbaseman's foot a few times which is just one of his jerk-face tactics...:) I enjoyed booing him several times on Sunday and Monday when we were at the game! So, here's the intro of the editorial:

"Of all the people who have encountered AJ Pierzynski's viral strain of gamesmenship, only Michael Barrett got it right. Swing first, ask questions later....[Barret, the Cubs catcher, punched him for no real reason last May]....Barret thus instituted the Pierzynski Rule, which should be adopted by every major league team - hit him when you get the chance and figure out later whether you were seeking revenge for past insults or making a downpayment on future grievances. If AJ doesn't deserve a punch today, he'll earn it in the future."

Hmm, who else can we use the Pierzynski Rule with?!

Is anyone out there?

Hey Everybody. Another month has passed and I was wondering if you guys moved to a new blog and didn't tell me. Maybe after the experience Don and his asteroid went thru everyone was in shock and couldn't comment. Well I helped Shannon move to Altoona on Memorial Day week-end and things went pretty good.We even managed to catch a Iowa Cubs game Saturday nite. As of Friday it will be 14 days since I have had a cigarette. It sure has been stressful on I-80. I have a very large bag of candy to keep me company. Once I get home I'm OK. Only gained 2 lbs .so far. See you all in 22 days-Mr Bill

New Address

Hey everyone,
One more week of freedom until the real world beckons (Of course, that means in 9 days I'll get paid too). Anyways, here's the new address and if anyone wants to go to Prarie Meadows, we're right down the street.

1002 Adventureland Dr. Apt. 117
Altoona, IA 50009

See you all in a month!!!

Kidney Stone or Asteroid?

Good News! The asteroid was blown up and the remaining pieces passed with only minimal damage. On Wednesday my surgical team shown below found the asteroid somewhere near Uranus or Myanus or somewhere down there. Time was limited but with little regard to their own safety they took steps to blow up the asteroid into a bazillion pieces. The 2nd photo below shows them shortly before the blast. While the the mission was a success, team leader Harry Stamper (3rd photo) gave his life to ease my pain. The fourth picture was the largest remaining piece of the asteroid that passed on Wednesday evening and is now on display at the surgical center also shown below. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. Cards and gifts are welcome but not necessary.

Update on June

Hello - I wanted to update everyone on what is going on in June. We are set for June 22-24. On Friday the 22nd, we will have food catered in from Hickory Park in Ames. For those of you not familiar with HP - it is WONDERFUL BBQ. We will also be celebrating June birthdays and graduations in the family. Bill will be providing beverages, but if you want a certain drink, please make sure you bring it. We will also have fruits and veggie trays and cake for desert.

For Saturday the 23rd, we will be grilling hamburgers, brats and hot dogs for noon lunch. There will be fruit, vegetables, chips and dips also, along with cake. I have asked a few of you to provide salads for this day as well. Bill will have additional beverages, but once again, please bring your own if you have a particular drink (or if you just want an abundance for yourself). We will have an open house style party for most of the afternoon. The invites out to other family members asked that they come around the noon hour so that we do not have to grill all day. I am looking into getting a tent for the front yard in case of rain or hot temperatures. I am not sure of the cost, but may need to ask for a little money from each of you to cover this. Saturday night is open and I am sure mom and dad will want peace and quite, so we can all head to the casino to donate to the future of Palo Alto county. You know Rodman got funding for a park last time the casino gave, maybe next time because of us, they can have a shelter too!! Ha Ha(by the way, Rodman I believe has 10 residents) Joe check that out for us...

Sunday for those of you that can stick around for lunch. We will be ordering pizza and chicken. I know Tyler will be very happy with this decision!!

I am sure there are a lot of details I have left out. So let the questions begin. Oh - don't forget to send your money to Terry for the gift by the end of May. If you need to, send a message to my work email - leonard.maggie@principal.com as I read that a lot more than my home email.

Take care to all - Margaret

Check this out!

Hey everyone!
The girls sent me this for Mother's Day! I thought it was adorable and hilarious and thought I would share it with all of you!! Click on the flowers on the left to hear what kids think they say; click on the flowers on the right to hear what mom's actually hear. : D Enjoy!

http://www.hallmark.com/ECardWeb/ECV.jsp?a=4960212421592M198273608Y&product_id=

Visit to Emmetsburg

I had a chance to sneak into Emmetsburg this weekend. It was a good time and I told Mom that it probably was the first time since 1966 that I was there on Mother's Day. A prep session for June.

Graduation day at USD

We now officially have a school counselor in the Neary family! Amy received her MA in School Counseling this morning in Vermillion, SD. We celebrated back in Sioux Falls after graduation. From the time she was about 10 years old, I told her she'd be a good counselor...she was always trying to keep peace in the neighborhood with all the kids....guess she was just practicing for 15 years later. :)

Now, onto the University of Wisconsin where Dave will receive his doctorate in a short 5 years!

Hail to the Nurses

This is National Nurses Week.

All the best to the Nurses in the family -- Melissa and Michelle. Any others?

Congrats

Just wanted to say congratulations to Shannon and Emily! Two more college graduates added to the family:)

We have survived!!

We have survived !!!! We moved the entire contents of a dorm room on Friday and an apartment on Saturday back home. My house now looks like a bomb went off inside of it. Megan's stuff (minus the dead cat) is now in the living room and foyer and garage and Emily's stuff is on the stairs, in her bedroom and in a storage unit on the west side of Ames. (We really have become the Joe's of the family, at least for awhile). It will probably remain like this until Megan moves back to Cedar Falls on the 16th of May into her apartment. Emily is dutifully rewashing all her dishes in my dishwasher before she bequeaths them to Megan for her apartment. Emily has no idea when she'll be moving to DesMoines. It depends on when her roommate takes possession of a house she (with her dad's help) is going to purchase and then rent out to Emily and 2 other girls. She starts her classes on May 29th, so may be commuting to DesMoines each day until the house is ready to move into. Jim never knew how talented he was- he is mover, truck driver, computer assembler, desk taker aparter (!), drape taker downer, cable-TV rerouter, etc., etc. One of Megan's roommates asked her earlier if her dad knew how to use any tools and Megan replied, "My dad can fix anything!". Kind of like the Burger King commercials of years ago, "My dad is 10 1/2 feet tall!" I hope you had a good day yesterday, Shannon, at graduation. Somehow we escaped the rain. Please send us your new address. Until next time...... chrisandjim

Shannon's warning ticket

Bob, He was actually stopped by the Fashion Police,but only received a warning. Mr Bill

Update on "Forest"

Just to let you know that "Forest" ---as Megan named the calf (him or her--not sure what it is?)-- has been a good calf and has not run away again. Thank goodness!! We don't need missing baby calves!!
I did think Bill's name for the calf was pretty appropriate ("Lunch")... but somehow thinking about eating that calf in another year and a half or two, seems kind of 'sick'....right now it seems too cute to eat! I will admit though, that the steak I ate tonight was sooooooo good....no chance of this girl becoming a vegan!

VA Inspection

Bob, the Sioux Falls VA is in good shape. I was in a wing that was built about 5 years ago so maybe you approved it or something cool like that:) I took some high school students to serve lunch to some vets. It was a really good time even though many of the guys were in pretty bad shape. They seemed to light up with the "young kids" there. Plus, one of the old guys hit on me the entire time.....just doing my part for those who served our country! Now I just need a job to pay me to teach kids about service learning....Amy Olson, the guidance counselor extraordinaire!

Megg, your picture is disgusting but amazing at the same time. How do you do it?
Shannon, your picture was just awesome.....I mean dispicable!

Hi From Bethesda

Hello Everyone,

We are all well here. We have finally gotten past some of the cold rainy weather and are into spring. Today was a beautiful day with temps in the 80's and sunshine. Lots to do but I didn't do too much this weekend. I spent most of this past week in northern California. Went to seven places in three days including Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Sacramento and San Francisco. Was not in San Fran long enough to enjoy much, but did stay at a nice hotel in Fisherman's Warf and walked around in the evening and saw some of the sights. For those of you who remember, we had a huge Tulip Poplar tree in the back yard and we had it taken down. These pics show how much of a project it was. I know if you guys were here we would have done it ourselves.

Looking forward to this June.

Lunch

Megg has a good idea for a name for the Prodigal calf. Forest can be used for 15 mos. and then I vote we rename the calf LUNCH!! Mr Bill

Here is the first known pic of Shannon in a Sheriffs patrol car. I'm sure proud!Mr Bill

Picture Request...

Hey, can someone either email or just post the St. Pat's picture with me in the police car? It's facebook-worthy.

There's goes my 3 minute break... back to studying...

Is It Too Late To Join In?

Hi All, I finally found my way to The Neary News. Same old story here in Carroll. Kids are running our life. I didn't say ruining. Tonight Morgan is having a girl/boy party at our house, 13 kids. Tyler is in a Kuemper golf meet and Cole is at a friends. Tomorrow, Cole has soccer, Morgan has dance competition in DM and Tyler starts a new job at the country club (Not the Pro). Sunday Morgan still in DM, Cole in Ankeny to play two baseball games and Tyler probably taking advantage of good weather and playing golf all day. So you know who gets to drive them all over, D & M Taxi Co. We estimate that it is about a 60 mile a day job, if we don't leave town. The crazy thing is "I think we enjoy it."
I just looked at the Neary News tonight. I haven't read them all yet but it's a great way to keep up on everyone. Thanks Amy. And Megan, That picture of you and the dead cat. That's Nasty. We are looking forward to seeing everyone in June and we would be interested in going in on a present for Mom & Dad. Keep us posted. How about we bring the B'day Cakes and Home made Ice Cream for the Friday B'day party. I think everyone liked that at grandpa's party. Terry or Margaret, let me know if you have other plans for the b'day cake.
One last thing, Joe, Cole & I will send you $10 if you put it away for a rainy day. Wait we have had enough of those already. Go Ahead, Let It Ride! Don

The Prodigal Calf

Joe's had a fun last few days...one of the new calves (a 3 day old calf ) ran out into the field and it wouldn't come back up to the farm where the mother was...when he'd try to get it, it would just take off running in some other direction. One time he thought he had it (he snuck up on it when it was sleeping!) and it jumped through his hands, through his legs, and headed south...as in way south...across the road and into the field by the river. He looked and looked for it... even took the mother down to that field in the stock trailer and let it bawl awhile, so maybe the calf would hear it and come back. No luck. The next day was rainy and cold and windy, so we thought for sure the calf would not survive. This had been 48 hrs. that the calf had been running around by itself. He still kept looking for it, though. Then last night a neighbor south of the farm, called and asked if Joe was missing a calf. He said it was in his farmyard, but he couldn't catch it because he got "winded". He said the last he knew, the calf was headed toward some pine trees. So this morning Joe thought he'd head down there right away and see if he could find it or at least track it. Well, when he got to the farm, lo and behold, there was the calf in the cattle lot with it's mother. :) Amy thinks because this calf was so persistent and smart to get back all by itself, we should keep it forever (as in not eat it eventually!) and name it. So, anyone with name suggestions, should let Joe know. :) I'm sure he'd like to give the calf a really special name.... haha...I think he's already called it a few choice names. :)

PS.

Here is a picture of me and my cat!
My lab partner and I started off
calling her Effer, but when we
disected the stomach we found
absolutely nothing inside, so we
changed her name to Mary-Kate. : D

Hey Fam!
So I thought I'd avoid some studying and write a post! I absolutely love this thing. I check it all the time. We are kind of in a posting slump right now, so get writing!! Tomorrow is my last day of classes!!! I don't get to enjoy that though because I have finals next week and two of them are going to be AWFUL!! I got my first final out of the way today. We had our Anatomy lab practical final and had to identify all of the organs, veins and arteries in cats that we have been disecting for about a month. Monday I have my Organic Chem. II final, and Tuesday is my Anatomy lecture final. After that it's super super easy! But until then, I'll be a big ball of stress. I'm really excited to be done with Organic Chemistry forever! Other than that, things are good. I'm super ready to move out of the dorms! Between moving out of the dorms and moving into the apartment we have about 11 days. For three of them The Jim's will be in Chicago and the rest I will be homeless in Cedar Falls! My two roomates and I are really excited about it actually. We have found a place to sleep for every night and are just going to have a kind of progressive sleepover. It will be an adventure! : D Anyways, I hope everyone is doing well!! Love you all so so much!!
~Megg

Hello - I hope everyone is still reading our Neary News - I wanted to touch base again about the Neary get together in June. I would like to find out who will be able to be at the farm for dinner on Friday night. We are planning the dinner and need a good idea of the number. I think most of us will be there, but want to be sure. Please either add a comment to this post or email me at leofam4@peoplepc.com. While you are at it, please let me know if you will be able to stay for lunch on Sunday. If anyone wants more details, let me know and I will give you a call.

Take care - stay safe
Margaret

Trip to London

So try this.

Go into Google and ask for directions from Washington DC to London.

Read closely

Bob

It is official!

Dave and I are officially moving to Madison, WI! We are here looking for a place to live and sampling some of the nation's best beer:) Although I am still a Hawkeye, I might have to cheer for the Badgers once in awhile because they gave Dave a great deal to come here. I am looking for jobs as a school counselor, teacher, or anything I can possibly make my resume look qualified for! I take the National Counselor Exam next Saturday and if I pass I will be a Nationally Certified Counselor and that should open up some doors as well. Can't wait to see you all at the farm in June!

I guess I can join too...

Hey everyone, thought I'd drop you all a line and update a little contact info.

Everything in Ames is going well as Eliza and I wind down our college careers. She'll be finishing up in August with degrees in Journalism/Mass Communication and Psych. Right now she's working with the Principal Charity Classic (formerly known as the Allianz Championship) in Ticketing and Advertising/Public Relations. So if anyone wants to buy tickets to see the old guys like Tom Kite, let me know.

I will be done with my B.S. in Management in 3 weeks and after Memorial Day I'll start with Pella Window and Doors as a Dept. Manager. Second shift doesn't sound very exciting but it'll pay the bills I suppose.

I won't lose my iastate email until December, but I will be moving my contacts over to my Gmail account which is shannon.neary@gmail.com.

Good idea on this, btw. Hope to see you all in June.
Shannon

Anniversary gift idea

At St. Pat's weekend, Margaret and I were talking and we were wondering what you would think about going in together and buying a new couch for Bob and Pat. Margaret doesn't think Pat would mind if we picked out the couch...(our other option would be to give them a gift card to Petersen's Furniture). Amy and I looked at couches at Petersen's Furniture in town and they have Lazy-boys that have the 'motion' like their couch now has, where each end reclines. Those couches were between $900 and $1000. I could also look at Matt furniture in Spencer...they usually have sales on Lazy-boys the month of June for Father's Day. What do you think? If we get a couch, do you want it to be from the 'kids' or should it be from whoever wants to go in on it? Let me know your thoughts on that. I realize that if some or any of the grandkids went in on the gift, it might just be a small amount....it makes no difference to Joe or me how we do the gift... if you have some other idea, let us know.

We're planning on Megan and Emily staying here if they want, along with Amy & Dave and Laura. Shannon---if you and /or Eliza want to stay here, you can stay too. The rest of you are welcome to stay, but you'd only have floor space left to sleep on!

We're really looking forward to the weekend and being at the farm with everyone. :) It should be a lot of fun!

Hello from Waverly

OK - So I think I have this down, I decided if Bill can do this - I should be able to - just kidding.

The boys are good - Payton is in preschool and we have found is very artistic and a perfectionist. He has his own "framed" art hanging in his room. He is very proud of what he does. And yes, the picture that Terry posted is foreshadowing his future, I am just warning everyone now. Brady is in first grade and all loves baseball, football and video games.

There will be much more to come on the plans for this summer. Just to give an overview - For everyone who is there on Friday June 22nd there will be a birthday party for all the June birthdays - with food, cake and party favors. On Saturday we will be holding an open house style party for Bob & Pat's 60th wedding anniversary and Pat's 80th birthday. Then on Sunday for anyone who can stay for lunch - well we are just having Pizza!! Now, I am sure Pat will make something, but warning everyone now that we are not allowing her to cook the 22nd, 23rd or 24th -so anyone who wants gravy from the Gravy Queen will need to be in Emmetsburg on a different day. We will also be putting their picture in the paper for a card shower, as the only people invited to the house will be family.

If anyone has questions, please feel free to contact me or use the blog to provide ideas. Oh and one final note - there will be a family trip scheduled to the Wild Rose. Our tour guide will be Farmer Joe Neary. He will be instructing us on how to HIT IT BIG at the Wild Rose!!!

Take Care

Bethesda Update

Well, this is a pretty cool idea and thanks to Amy for getting it going. I must admit it is a bit depressing to review Megan's countdown of days to her next few exciting events. My countdown seems to work on months.

Hope you all had a nice Easter and are looking forward to the spring. We are freezing our butts off here. If Don Imus hadn't warmed up the society, we could all have expired.

Mike and Michelle had us all over for Easter dinner. Joyce, Bob and I along with the Bezos family and many friends. It was a great time.

Things are busy at the VA and I have been traveling quite a bit this year. We've got about $5 billion worth of construction in either design or construction so lots of interest in what we are doing. Much of my travel has been in the southeast but am going to California in a couple of weeks.

We are all looking forward to a summer visit. It should be a great time.

More to follow.

Bob

Paradise

Hey Megg-I'm with you on the weather. Pretty short spring and summer. Let's just call it another Beautiful Day in Paradise[Iowa]. Cya later-Mr Bill

Hey Family!

Hope everyone is enjoying this wonderful Iowa weather! I woke up my roomate this morning when I screamed after catching a glimpse of the snowyness outside! I'm in the thick of scheduling classes for the fall and all the Bio majors are freaking out. We have limited spaces in labs next semester because the university is completely re-doing our labs. I register tomorrow and ALL of my classes have been full for days. Yay me. I'm not sure how it's going to work out, but it will. Maybe I'll start another minor or something...I don't know. But other than that things are so great! We are done with classes in 20 days and I move into my first apartment in 36 days! I'll be living with my two best girlfriends in an apt. about 2 blocks off campus. We've gone a little overboard with the internet shopping...we already have our futon cover, sofa cover, matching bolsters and pillows for each, a shower curtain, 3 piece rug set for the bathroom, lots of fun glassware and picture frames...we have packages coming every day! : D Anyways, just wanted to let you guys know how much I love you all and can't wait to see you again!!!

Aunt Margaret is coming!!

I just had two wrong email addresses for her.....but don't fret she is on her way to blogging soon! I see she made a comment - maybe she is up an running - but she should be a "contributer" soon.

Gravy Queen strikes again

Just had to share with you all how good the turkey gravy was on Sat. night. :) There were only 6 of us (including gr. and grandpa) to enjoy it. I did my best to eat enough for everyone else. And, we were treated to the chocolate/vanilla pudding pie dessert with real whipcream. Dave thought it should be renamed "miracle pie".
We might not have all the fancy restaurants you have in the 'big city'...aka Blair, Ames, Russellville, but we have Grandma Neary's gravy. :)

My first blog experience

Hi Neary family, we are officially part of the Neary family blog. Wow!
We went to DesMoines and bought furniture for Megan's bedroom for her first apartment. She'll move out of the dorms on the 4th of May and into her apartment on the 16th of May and starts summer school on May 15th, so she'll have to stay with friends for a night.
Emily graduates on May 5th in Business and has decided she does not like it, so she is going to go to Nursing school at Mercy College in DesMoines. She's going to get her BSN so it should take 3 years in the accelerated program. (She's already met a lot of requirements with her Business degree). So she's moving to DesMoines in June. We've become the Joe Neary"s!!!!!!
Hope you all have a blessed Easter. Chris

Hey Champ

Hey Everybody-Great idea! Joe did you get my envelope? The Easter bunny is going to freeze his little fuzzys off. cya all later-Mr Bill

Hello...we had a great time in Iowa. Grandpa Bill is the best and The Gravy Queen did not dissapoint.

Love to all,

The Brady Bunch

Matt, Melissa, Mason and Maddie

Show me the money!

Reminder #1: Send $5 to Uncle Joe on the Farm ASAP.

Wild Rose Casino is calling.

Whose Child Is This......

Look carefully at the picture - whose naughty child is this?

Happy Easter

Time to color those eggs! We're going to Fort Dodge on Sunday...but we'll get in one meal at the farm on Saturday night. :) Everyone have a great weekend.

Bringing Neary Back

Since some of us are already in withdrawal from Neary Madness, I created this blog for us to keep in touch. So, we can give this a try. Post as you may. Share as you see fit. Remember, this is public space so don't put anything on here you don't want the world to see, plus we're not that kind of family!