It's a house!

Well, we've found a house and we're closing on December 21!!!!! It's a cute little place and we're so excited about it. The whole house hunting experience was rather amusing. We really thought we were going to move down here and find a brand new, beautiful, perfect house in the right school district for less than 150K...we were WRONG! Jeni, my sis-in-law, was ABSOLUTELY RIGHT when she said that the pictures can fool you. The realtor would send us these listings in our email and we'd look at the pictures and say, "Oh, that house is PERFECT" And then we'd get there and it would be a DUMP! So needless to say, it took us a little while to find a house. But we found it and it's just right. It certainly needs a little work. We're starting with the bathrooms. We originally thought we'd start with the kitchen until we went back to the house and realized that all of the glazing the seller had put on the bath and tiles was chipping off. That seems like something MIles would enjoy eating, however it also seems like something that would be highly toxic. So we're still deciding if we want to reglaze the tubs and then re-tile, or if it would be better just to put a shell over the whole unit. Any advice would be great. After the bathrooms we'll get to the kitchen where we're going to have the existing cabinets sanded and repainted. Also, we'll be knocking through the wall of the existing pantry (which is PUNY) and extending it into the space currently being occupied by the wet bar. We'll be so sad to see the wet bar go, of course. It's such a classy addition to any living room, and you know how we like to keep our beer and peach schnapps handy... But really, did these things ever get used? Even in the 70's? Honestly, I feel like we need to put a black light in there and wear leisure suits just to be in the same room with it. So anyway, that will be a rather fun project. Chase is looking forward to all of the demolition.
The other exciting news is that we're pregnant... Okay, not really. But we did get living room furniture after FIVE LONG YEARS of sitting on old DI (deseret industries for those of you who are not in-the-know) couches. My special thanks goes out to Carl and Kendra who recommended Ashley Furniture Store when we visited them last time...Guys, we didn't forget and you were right! They have great deals! We're very excited about our two couches, loveseat, ottoman and side tables. Plus we got new area rugs. I'm beside myself at the moment.
As for the boys...they're really enjoying being around so much family. Miles is loved on every minute of the day, especially by his Uncle Garrett and Uncle Eric. Cameron gets spoiled rotton by Nana and Grandpa and has really enjoyed their collection of movies. Well, he's really enjoyed their copies of Spiderman 1 & 2. And I love the back yard with the 6 foot privacy fence. I can literally just throw Cameron outside and let him pretend to be Spiderman all day! Lastly, we're really enjoying the weather. It's fabulous. I know I won't be saying that in July, but for right now I'm loving it.
Anyway, I just wanted to bring you all up to speed. We'll post pictures eventually...

So some of you are probably wondering where we've gone! We're in Texas! And what a crazy, crazy ride it's been. I'll spare you the drama and tedium, but basically we decided to get here BEFORE December in hopes that the apartment complex would find someone to take over our lease. We made the final decision to move TWO DAYS before we actually did it. Literally. All week we hummed and hawed because we didn't know what to do and I finally had enough and made an executive decision. We felt good about it and went ahead with our plans. So on Saturday the 18th we packed up the truck and headed south. By Sunday we were here without any real incident. I say without real incident because it wasn't incident-free! Sunday morning as we were leaving our skanky motel Chase locked his keys in the truck and we had to call a locksmith. A cool 25 minutes and $65 later we were on our way. Now, for those of you who know of our previous trips to Texas, you know this isn't really that serious. Afterall, no cars were totalled or tires blown up or moving trucks breaking down. So it's all good.
The REAL drama came the following Friday right after Turkey day when Chase tried to fly back to Chicago. He was scheduled to take the Financial section of the CPA on Saturday morning. I dropped him off at Love Field in Dallas at around 6:15 pm. We kissed, we hugged and he told me he would call when he arrived. His plane was scheduled for a 7:15 departure. WELL at 7:45 the phone rang and I could hear my father-in-law talking to Chase. I thought nothing of it because what plane actually leaves on time the day after a major holiday? So I listened to dad's half of the conversation and became increasingly alarmed as I heard things like "They're holding you where?" and "So where are they taking you?" Turns out Chase had been arrested while going through security and he was on his way downtown to be booked. NO KIDDING! I guess Chase had thrown a knife into his backpack at some point during the move and had completely forgotten it was there. It just happened to be big enough to be considered a "prohibitive weapon" which is also a Class C Felony. So they cuffed him and hauled him away and he spent the next 7 hours sitting in a holding cell with a bunch of druggies and one guy charged with manslaughter. It was awful. Mostly for him, but for me too! Thinking of him down there was terrible! So we were so relieved when my father-in-law posted his bond and got him out of the clinker. So now Chase is trying to find someone to represent him on a pro-bono basis and we're trying to figure out how much it will all cost. It's been a huge bummer to say the least.
As for house hunting...that's been a real treat. We've seen some total dumps and some really nice places. We're trying to find something in the middle. We've actually found a house that we like a lot and we're considering putting an offer in on it. It's older and needs some work in the kitchen, bathrooms and backyard - mostly cosmetic stuff. But it's got good space and a good layout. It's small'ish, but it's a good size for a starter home. Once we figure out how much the legal fees will set us back we'll decide whether or not to put a bid in.
Stay tuned and we'll keep you posted...

"Don't smoke when you get big, kid!" This is the advice we got when we arrived at the park this afternoon. Not exactly what we were expecting. We showed up at the park which was crawling with kids because it was SO NICE today. Anyway, as we're walking onto the playground Cameron notices a guy walking on the path who is hooked up to oxygen and is pulling the tank behind him. I tried to just divert Cameron's attention, because he really lacks tact at the moment. Of course, there's nothing as interesting as stuff with wheels, so Cameron was drawn like a moth to a flame. I think he thought it was some great new toy that he should have, too. So he's standing there, mouth agape, pointing. I knew the guy saw him so I tried to hustle him onto the playground before he said...oh, no, too late..."MOMMY, LOOK!!!!!" The guy was cool and gave him a big smile and said, "Don't smoke when you get big, kid!" Nicely handled by the guy with the tubes. I just laughed and smiled at him and then realized it was the saddest thing in the world. So I'm passing along that advice to all of you. Just in case you forgot. Don't smoke.

Okay, I have the Sunday blahs. We are all SICK...AGAIN! I HATE BEING SICK. If you have not read any prior posts about us being sick (you don't have to look far - we're sick all the time), then let me just say that being sick ranks right up there with having a baby without any sort of painkillers. I hate it THAT MUCH. And that's without having other people to take care of. Chase learned this lesson about a week after we got married when I ended up with a sweet "bladder infection." I cried, I moaned, I groaned. I laid on the couch waiting for death to take me at any blessed moment. And that is my preferred method of getting through an illness. So you can imagine that when I'm sick the last thing I want to deal with is my kids being sick. So this morning I decided that I would stay home with the boys. They're both really gross and I've got a killer sore throat. Then I told Chase he'd better tell the missionaries we can't feed them tonight. His response was "Oh, no. We can still do it! I'll do everything." I tried telling him that I just didn't feel like it. After all, it's hard to remain in a stupor on the sofa when you've got eight eyes boring holes in you and asking for referrals. SO I've dragged myself into the shower and I'm just trying to conjure up the energy (and desire) to go blow-dry my hair and put on makeup. Yuck. On top of that we are up to our eyeballs in boxes. The house is completely pulled apart and we're half in and half out of boxes. I hate that, too. Hmmm...I hate a lot of stuff today. I guess I'm just bitter that my day (which started out by watching the Bears and Steelers games and knitting a hot-pink scarf) has reached the point where I've got to be productive. Argh. Anybody got any Calgon?

Just for those of you who are wondering and waiting for pictures of my babes, I don't have any. I know, it's awful. I just don't have a digi camera right now. We're getting one for the house hunt, so I'll get the boys in their costumes at that point...
Thanks for wondering, Sara!

As we approach Halloween evening, the night of trick-or-treating, I am coming to a shameful realization...Cameron and Miles are not just my sons on Halloween, they're my patsies. My stool-pigeons, my decoy, my cover. Whatever you want to call it, I use my sons to get me some yummy candy. Up until this point I think it was subconscious. I really WANTED to drag Cameron out all night, freezing his tush off and pulling at the "feathers" I had sewn on him (2005), or the anchor tattoo Chase had drawn on his arm (2004). I really LOVED the idea of watching him go door-to-door and thrust his little open bag up into the air, looking expectant. It was CUTE to hear him learn to say "trick-or-treat", which sounded more like TickTeat. But as we count down the days the thought of all of those glorious mounds of candy piled on my living room floor after a dutiful night trudging down the streets makes me giddy. I LOVE candy. Perhaps it has something to do with my up-bringing or maybe it's encoded in my DNA; I don't know. All I know is that when I see people stringing up orange lights on their trees or sticking skeletons in their front windows I positively drool at the thought of the forthcoming bounty.
So am I ashamed, you ask? No. I have also recently come to realize that I'm not the only parent who feels this way. The more I think about it, the more I realize MY parents were probably known to dip their hands into our confectionary coffers. Think about it. Halloween night usually went like this: You run out of the house with some sort of paint on your face and a great thrift-store dress (or fatigues) that your mom found. In your right hand is a flash-light and in your left hand is a pillow case. No plastic pumpkin for you, no, you plan on striking it rich tonight. For the next FOUR HOURS you cover (and re-cover in many instances) the streets located within a 5 miles radius of your house before returning home exhausted. You and your siblings or friends proceed to dump out your goodies and start categorizing the candy. Then you start trading. But before long mom comes in and tells you that you can have one more piece and then it's time to hand it over and go to bed. No, you're not allowed to take your candy into your room because then you'll just spend all night eating it and getting cavities. So, as a trusting young child you hand over the candy and head for bed. Now here's what you didn't know...it's at this point in the evening that mom feels VERY rewarded for having borne children. She and dad rifle through the bulging bags like homeless people at the dumpster behind Olive Garden. They laugh, they giggle, they pour the candy on the floor and lay down to make candy angels in it...Yeah, I can see your wheels turning. You know I'm right.

We call him Raccoon Rawlins! Miles has taken up a new sport...trash can hunting. He has always loved to eat paper and paper products and we try to keep it far from his reach. However, since he started crawling he has learned that one place to find paper is in the garbage can next to our desk! So if we leave the room when he's on the floor he takes the opportunity and races for the waste basket and before we can run back in the room he has rifled through it to find a discarded credit card offer or some other such thing. We usually find him with half an envelope hanging out of his mouth and a big grin on his face. What a rascal!!! Too bad we still don't have a digital camera or we'd have a picture posted. It's the funniest thing!
This weekend we have been trying to be productive. We spent the day yesterday cleaning. Well, I was cleaning and cooking like a fiend and Chase had to work 2 hours away in Indiana. We fed all four missionaries and that was so much fun. We have a great couple of elders in our ward. AND we got our loan approval taken care of! Now we just have to go find a house! We're so excited!!! Now we're just counting the days until we leave!

89. Just keep that number in your head for a moment. Okay, so those of you who have been to our apartment know that it stays quite warm through the whole year. I don't know if it's because we're on the second floor or because it's insulated too much or because we're actually living directly above hell. One way or the other, it's hot. So we look forward to cool weather so that we can open the windows and patio door and get some fresh air. So tonight Chase and I are sitting here on the couch reading - well I was reading US magazine and Chase was reading it over my shoulder, which, as a Kilgore, I cannot abide so I gave him his own copy. Anyway, we began to realize that it was hot as blazes. Seriously, hot as an actual blaze on an actual fire. So I put my hand by the vent to see if the heat was on. It wasn't just warm, it was hot. So I check out the thermostat. 89 degrees. And our thermostat usually reads a bit lower than it actually is, so I'm guessing our apartment is somewhere in the 90's as we speak. Clearly this is the work of Cameron T. Rawlins. Thanks, Cam.

So I'm thinking maybe it's just Mondays. For those of you who didn't see Sara's post about Cameron's lack of pee-control last week in Iowa, just know that it was a long, messy Monday. And here we are again, one week later. I feel like it's that camp song, you know "Second verse, same as the first but a little bit louder and a little bit worse." Seriously! He was louder and WORSE! Cameron's day was complete with two "accidents" (and I only call them that to give him the benefit of the doubt - they're really LAXIDENTS, as in the kid is just way to lazy and lax to get up and go to the bathroom) and an episode of really bad aim. I guess it's a little like a waterhose and when you turn that spigot on you better have control of it or who knows what will end up getting wet. SO anyway, I thought it was just him, but maybe it's just Mondays. Maybe this is what I have to look forward to every Monday from now until, well, maybe forever. NOT COOL, CAM!

I just felt like putting up some fun pics of the family. First there's Cameron looking like a thug. He loves to put his hands in his pockets. I haven't got a clue where he came up with that idea but I hope he keeps doing it. SO FUNNY.
Second you'll see the ladies of my family. You ladies are fabulous. From the left: My cute mom holding my equally cute nephew Ty, big sis Chrysta holding neice Gaby, 'lil sis Cathryn standing behind neice Lydia, sis-in-law Kathryn, neice Taylor next to the bride Alyssa my sis, on the other side of the bride is sis-in-law Christy (mom of Ty) and Sara (Mom of Gaby, Lydia and Taylor). So many hot mamas!





Next there's the pic of my bro Scott and his family Christy, baby Ty and Zach. I like this pic because of Scott's uniform. I'm seriously considering telling Chase to sign up for the Navy.
















The last picture is of Halloween 2005 in Iowa with my bro Jerry and his family. Cameron was big bird. I SLAVED over this outfit and needless to say, my talents lie elsewhere. This year I bought costumes from the Disney store...

Miles is crawling! He's been working on it for the past month and this week I just knew he was going to do it before Daddy got home from training. Sure enough this morning I was opening the mail and looked down just in time to see him crawl about 2 feet to get a toy! I can't believe it! He'll be 7 months on Monday. He's got two teeth and he's crawling. I feel like he's losing his baby-ness too fast! I'm so proud, though. What a smart little monkey! Now if I could just get him to sleep through the night. Sara, since I know you're wondering, he was up three times last night. Midnight, 3:15 and 5:30 and then he was up for the day at 7:20...I've GOT to get him on a better schedule. He's just SO STUBBORN! If we could cut out the 3 am feeding that would really be ideal...
In other news, for those of you who did not get the email, WE'RE MOVING! Long story short, we originally planned on moving next September and Chase just happened to see a bunch of people from the Dallas office on Monday. They convinced him that he should come ASAP. We talked about it and prayed about it and by Wednesday the deal was done. Now we just have to get packed up here and find a house when we get there. 11 weeks feels like a long time until I realize how much packing I have to do by that time. Oh, man. My head is totally spinning. We're so excited, though! We'll either live in Carrollton or Allen. Carrollton is more central and it would be a better fit for Chase's job since he has to travel in all directions. I'm more interested in Allen, though, because house prices are lower, houses are newer and I think there are more young families. We'll just have to wait and see what shakes out! Yay for Dallas!

More pics of the boys and their cheek-sucking ways. SO cute! On Monday Owen got dressed first and when he came downstairs I had to laugh because he was wearing the same outfit that I was going to put on Miles! So here are the pictures...Enjoy!

We're here in Iowa while Chase is training this week. I hate staying home by myself in our sweet apartment complex. Actually I hate just walking through the parking lot of my apartment complex, so that should give you an idea of how I would feel staying by myself. Anyway, everytime Chase goes out of town we come to Iowa and we love it here. The kids are having so much fun playing together. Miles and Owen are great friends. They sit together and grab each other's faces. Usually Owen ends up falling over, at which point he starts to "steam roll" Miles. He scoots until his head is up against Miles and then he keeps pushing until he has rolled over Miles. Then Miles sucks Owen's cheeks or hands or other appendages. It's all very sweet and very slimy. Nothing like love, right?
Anyway, I got some pictures from the funeral from my sister, Sara, and I had to post them. My earlier post talked about my crazy grandma going down the slide in her swim hat and goggles. Now you can see it for yourself. Everyone needs a crazy grandma for a little comic relief, right? The other pictures are of the kids in Galena. Miles and Owen had the cushiest ride around town in my double jogging stroller. They looked pretty happy. Once Sara gives them to me I'll post pictures from this week in Iowa - including some cheek sucking pictures.

Here are more!

This is just the first of many pics to come. We got our family pictures taken today. So cute. The boys were pretty good. Cameron insisted on having his Lightning McQueen race car in his hand. Oh well. There was a cute shot of the boys together, too. I'll post more after I get some lunch in me. Yum.

Birthday party! Here are pictures from Cameron's birthday party three weeks ago. It was a double birthday party with Charlie who is the kid next to him. They're best friends! It was a really fun time!

Today was the happiest day of Cameron's life! The local fire station had an open house and we spent a couple of hours there this morning. We started out by putting on a miniature-size fireman costume complete with boots and suspenders! Then we got to look at several different fire and special rescue trucks. Very cool. They even let the kids get up into the big engine right after it got back from a call. Then they had a fire extinguisher demonstration. I got to use the fire extinguisher and put out the fire. That was a cool experience. The absolute highlight of the whole day was when the Life Flight helicopter arrived. It came overhead and circled a few times and then landed about 50 yards away from us! Cameron couldn't even believe it! We got to go inside it. The hardest part was getting Cameron OUT of it.
Chase was also having a very good time. At one point I was about to go inside one of the fire trucks with Cameron, leaving Chase outside holding Miles. I looked back and noticed he was frantically trying to get inside, too, while pushing the stroller and holding all of the bags. I really don't care much about fire trucks so I volunteered to stay outside with our stuff, much to Chase's relief. He was happy to get a chance to go inside. How cute is that? We will post pictures as soon as we get them!

I forgot that I needed to post these pictures of the wedding in Salt Lake (thanks for sending them, Jeni...one day we'll get a new camera). This was just about a week and a half ago. Enjoy.

Mo' Money, Mo' Problems...
Okay, so we just got power back today! Monday night there was a crazy storm here! Chase and I were watching it out the window and all of the sudden our power went out. We didn't think much of it. We just waited a few minutes for it to come back on so we could finish "Barefoot in the Park." Anyway, that didn't happen so we decided to light some candles and play Scrabble. I kicked his butt...again. When it still didn't come on by bedtime we just figured we'd have it by morning. Not so. To make a long story short, we went 58 hours with no electricity and no hot water. That's WAY too long when you've got two little kids!!!!! Yesterday I finally decided to suck it up and go to my friends house to take a long hot shower. Chase had to take icy cold showers every morning. He said it reminded him of Russia. You know it's bad when your $900/month apartment could remind him of post-communist Russia...Anyway, we were delighted this morning at 5:30 when it finally kicked on. Then we were mad that the lights were all blazing!
Anyway, I thought this was a funny shirt that I found for Cameron. Yeah, that's Tupac.

It's a tooth! Miles had a tooth come through today! It was his bottom-middle-right tooth if that makes sense to anyone. We're really excited! I wrote it in his baby book. He also had bananas for the first time today! Yay!
Conference was awesome. At least the parts that I heard. I love having kids, but it's SO HARD to listen to conference! Oh well. Thank goodness that you can just look up the talks on LDS.org.

Oh, correction: I meant to say Jerry and Sara and the girls and OWEN! Oops.
Last thing: I forgot to mention a seriously cute/funny moment from the wedding reception. For those of you who don't know, Miles loves the song "The Wheels on the Bus." It will calm and quiet him in an instant. So anyway, at the very end of the reception we were all waiting outside to send off the bride and groom. Miles had had it and was starting to cry while Uncle Garrett was holding him. So he started singing the song. At the same time he started he was surrounded by all of Chase's brothers and friends, etc. and there was an entire male choir singing "The Wheels on the Bus" in four-part harmony. It was as though they had practiced. It was straight out of Three Men and a Baby. SO FUNNY! Miles just sat there in a trance the whole time, just loving it and soaking it all in. Garrett, Brian, John, Corbin, B-Tek, etc. Thank you. It was awesome.

WOW! We feel like world travelers. Seriously, in the last five days we have logged over 3000 miles of travel with two small children in tow. Thank goodness for all of the family in all locations who were willing to help entertain/hold/tolerate the boys! We're really thankful that we were able to make it to Grandpa's funeral and then to Eric and Kathleen's wedding. We were able to see extended families on both sides. Weddings and funerals bring people out of the woodwork that you would never see otherwise! It's great! Grandpa's funeral was a beautiful service. Lots of people were able to share their memories of him and his work in preserving the history of the river and the area.
In Galena we were able to see, among others, the Mike Kilgore family (including Paul and his wife and daughter; Chris and his girlfriend; Maureen, who sang an amazing occapella rendition of "Old Man River"; Suzy, who now goes by Susan; and Justine); Joyce, Brian, Kelly and Robby (who now goes by ROB); Chas and his "harem"; Grandma Marilyn, who was sporting a very interesting red/gray hairdo; Jerry and Sara and the girls; and Alyssa and Bird who made the amazing 15 hour drive as well. We all stayed at the same hotel in Galena and all of the kids had fun at the pool and waterslide. In fact, a lot of the ADULTS had fun at the waterslide, too. Including Grandma Marilyn. Seriously, she would go down the slide (in her swim cap and goggles) and come up sputtering and coughing every time. We all thought she was going to drown! And then she'd have Jerry haul her out of the water and then she'd go up the stairs and do it all again. I think Sara got some pretty hilarious pictures of the whole thing. Anyway, the whole event was a great opportunity to see family.
The wedding in Utah was a whirlwind! We flew out Monday night and were back 48 hours later. Kathleen is a doll and Eric got pretty lucky! Chase gave her a pretty good interrogation when we got there and she handled it well. She seemed really comfortable with everyone right from the start. She'll fit in well with the family. Anyway, the sealer said such beautiful things about the ceremony itself and we were all a little teary-eyed. Eric made it through, but afterward in the receiving line seemed to lose it just a little bit when he saw his brothers. We're very grateful that we could be there. The rest of the day was filled with a luncheon and the reception and lots of pictures. Cameron took his turn on the dance floor early and by 9:30 was asleep on daddy's lap. All in all a very good day. On the return flight we sat on the same row as a guy who REALLY liked picking his nose. No, I mean, REALLY REALLY liked it. SO GROSS.
Anyway, we all got a good sleep last night. It's so good to be home.

Hmmm...time to play catch up on the week past. Okay, Cam's birthday party was FABULOUS! We didn't get any RSVP's and really thought no one was going to come but everyone did. So there were lots of kids and lots of hotdogs and balloons and a great Costco cake (vanilla cheesecake filling, yum). It was really just a perfect day. A little windy, but who cares about wind?! The funniest part was watching the little kids try to hit the pinata. SO FUNNY. They would all come up and just barely tap it with the stick. Finally we just let the Bishop's older kid go to town and bust up the thing. The kids were so excited to see all of the candy and cars inside. It was a "Cars" movie themed party so my girlfriend put little matchbox cars in the pinata. Such a good idea. Too bad we don't have a digital camera right now or we'd have pictures to post. Oh well, with Cam out of diapers almost full time we have even more money to save!
Let's see, what else. Oh, I'm sick. The boys are still recovering, too. This has been a 2 week illness! ARGH! Poor Chase has had to put up with my whining over the fact that I can't breathe. I hate being sick with a fiery passion. There's nothing worse, in my book. I moan, I groan, I lay around as though I'm going to die. And seriously, I am so miserable that I think death would be a nice release. I hate not being able to breathe through my nose. Hate. It.
On Tuesday my grandfather passed away. It was a blessing because he didn't really suffer for too long and he was able to die as he wished - without any heroic measures. He didn't even want an IV! We will be attending the funeral tomorrow in Elizabeth, IL which is close to East Dubuque, IL where my parents both grew up. He was quite an amazing man. Here's an article that was published in the local paper the day after his death.

Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Radio legend Kilgore dies
KDTH broadcaster reported news and delighted audiences for 4 decades



One of the most distinctive voices to grace local airwaves was silenced Tuesday with the death of Gordon Kilgore. He was 81.
Kilgore died Tuesday at Dubuque Nursing and Rehabilitation Center from complications involving a brain tumor, said his wife, Helen.
Kilgore began his illustrious radio broadcast career in 1951, when he started doing play-by-play sports announcing at KDTH. Three years later, he was doing newscasts. In 1956, his penchant for seeking out and reporting solid local news earned him a promotion to news director at the Dubuque station.
Kilgore made his mark with his reporting on the 1965 Mississippi River floods in the Dubuque area. Decades before 24-hour news coverage was the norm, Kilgore received permission to broadcast live coverage of the flood around the clock for weeks. For his efforts, the city named a one-block street along Dubuque's floodwall after him.
"If it had been anyplace else in the city, it wouldn't have meant a thing," Kilgore said in a 2001 interview.
He retired from KDTH in 1993, ironically on
the day with the highest river level since the 1965 flood.
John Hafkemeyer worked as general manager at KDTH for many years when Kilgore was news director.
"(Kilgore's) experienced perspective was critical to maintaining our service to the community," said Hafkemeyer, who hopes to follow his friend's "uncompromising example" of how to live life to the fullest.
Hafkemeyer was reminded of Kilgore's contagious enthusiasm when he visited him last week.
"I went there to cheer him up, but when I left, he had cheered me up," he said.
Kilgore, a self-taught journalist, said accuracy was paramount. John White feels Kilgore fulfilled that goal.
"(Kilgore) reported it like it was. He was an objective reporter and the best public relations man I ever had," said White, a former city engineer who considered himself one of Kilgore's good friend.
Not just on the air, but in front of audiences both local and national, Kilgore enthralled folks with his tales of life in the Mississippi River Valley.
"He had an unwavering love of people, history and the Mississippi River. As a historian extraordinaire, he helped Dubuque define itself," said Jerry Enzler, executive director of the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium.
Kilgore was a longtime member of the Dubuque County Historical Society and served as president of the board of the National Rivers Hall of Fame. Enzler said he received the first "Treasures of Dubuque Award" from the Historical Society.
Kilgore's natural storytelling skills "captured our imaginations, conjured up truths, morals and principles, and held out hope for the future," said Teri Goodmann, the museum's development director. "Gordon was magical, yet firmly grounded in real life experiences. He loved to laugh, celebrate and make people smile."
Kilgore took every opportunity to tell tales, true or tall, about his beloved river valley. In 1993, he performed "Ticket to Dubuque," with Lou Fautsch at the Grand Opera House. Until recently, he taped segments that were broadcast three times per week on KDTH, called "From the River Bank."
"(Kilgore) was a great guy who knew Dubuque history better than anyone. He was Mr. Dubuque, and the city is going to miss him big time," said Fautsch, a local folklorist and retired teacher. "Everyone loved Gordie."
Kilgore married Helen, his second wife, in 1991. They lived in Elizabeth, Ill., and their extended family includes seven children, 27 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren.
Funeral services for Kilgore are pending at the Law-Jones Funeral Home in Savanna.
Copyright 2006 Telegraph Herald. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Sorry, I would have posted a link, but you have to have an account to get onto the site...So anyway, we're sad. He will be missed. But we're happy that we can celebrate his life and honor him.

Lastly, and this will seem so trite after writing about my gramps, but it's big news in the Rawlins household. CAMERON HAS LEARNED TO PEE STANDING UP! Yay! This is awesome because it makes it easier to take him out and have him use the potty at the store (or wherever). It's great! Plus, now he can pee on the side of the road if necessary! No need to have accidents in the car!

Wow, if anyone read this far you are a SAINT!

It works! It really works! Cameron is using the potty all day! He doesn't do as well when we go out, but that's what Pull-ups were invented for, right? So he passed his 3rd birthday on Tuesday, so I'm considering Cameron as one of the 25% of boys who are actually using the potty by the time they turn three. The other 75% can eat our dust! I'm SO GLAD to have him out of diapers. Having two in diapers was getting expensive, and as you all know Chase, we don't "Do" expensive. He-he...
Saturday is Cameron's birthday party. We are having a double birthday party with Charlie Basilius who turns three on the 25th. He's Cameron's best friend, and his mom is my best friend. Charlie's dad is a lawyer and is too busy to have a best friend, otherwise he and Chase could be best friends and it would round out the whole group.
Anyway, in sad news...the boys are sick...AGAIN! Argh! I have no idea where it came from, though I DID have a strange premonition of it on Sunday. I thought, "Wouldn't it just be terrible if Cameron was sick for his birthday party?" Sure enough, two days later he woke up sniffling and sneezing! Let's just pray that it passes quickly!
Oh, and I just took these pictures of Cameron passed out on the living room floor. He was playing one minute and then I looked down and noticed that he was OUT! How funny! And you'll notice that he's wearing Superman boxer-briefs (daddy took him on a special underwear buying trip and came home with those). Cameron likes to refer to them as his "underwear pants." Isn't it funny the things they say?!

Well, I feel like I'm in the land of the naked! I have heard from other mommies that the Naked Method is the best, easiest and fastest way to potty-train, so that's what we're doing! Cameron is learning quickly. Of course the minute we put a pull-up on him (or underwear for that matter) he seems to forget everything he's learned...I'll write more later.

Cameron is currently spending time on the potty choo-choo train. He hears us talking about "potty training" him and he thinks it's an actual train that he will be taking. So everytime he sits on the potty he insists that he's on the potty choo-choo train. It's funny...
SO this weekend has been lots of fun and very restful. I love holiday weekends. We kicked off the weekend with some take-out from a Chinese place we've been wanting to try. We've heard it described as the "best take-out in the South 'burbs." It was okay. For such a big city you'd think people would have more refined tastes. I guess that's the midwest for you. We also watched a movie called "An Unfinished Life"with Robert Redford, Morgan Freeman and J. Lo. It was pretty good, too. Yesterday we got lots of deep cleaning done, and Chase studied for the CPA for a couple of hours before playing basketball with his work buddies. He came home sunburnt and totally spent, so he tried to sleep. Cameron had other ideas because he spent all of Chase's "naptime" climbing all over the bed and all over daddy.
Today we spent the morning at Church and then we ALL got naps this afternoon. That's a miracle! Cameron doesn't take naps everyday anymore, so it's a real treat when he does. It was SO nice to sleep for a couple of hours on a Sunday afternoon. After dinner we read some excerpts from Jesus the Christ (Cameron didn't even pretend to listen), and sat around the piano singing Primary songs. So much fun! I love how easy it is to teach gospel principles with the primary songs. Cameron is catching on to the songs and getting better at singing them.
Tomorrow we are going to just hang out! Chase will have to study in the morning, but it will be nice to all go to the park together, or maybe hit the beach. We've got to soak up this beautiful weather while we've got it. In a couple of months we'll be in the dead of another Chicago winter and dreaming of the sun... Meanwhile, we're trying to decide just how many more of these Chicago winters we're going to endure. Dallas is calling our name...

I just read the most interesting quote and it has really gotten me thinking. It's from Blaise Pascal, who is most famous as a mathemetician. Anyway, here it is:

“There is a God shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God, the Creator, made known through Jesus” - Blaise Pascal

I think of how many people in this world are trying to fill that void with things...big houses, fast cars, boats and trips around the world. These are great things to have and there's nothing wrong with that, but it just hit me that those things will never be able to fill that space except the Spirit of the Lord. Also, this quote reminded me how we are created by our Heavenly Father, and we have an intrinsic need for the gospel. It is like home for our spirits. Without it we are always missing something. We are always craving a way to fill our hearts. It just reminded me how thankful I am for the gospel and for my testimony.

If you're wondering, the answer is yes. If you dump a bunch of anti-bacterial hand lotion all over a walnut side table it will indeed leave a giant mark. Isn't it wonderful the things we learn by having children? Here are some other things I have come to know thanks to my resident magician, Cameron. My VCR comfortably holds at least 12 AA batteries, OR 8 wooden puzzle pieces. Said VCR can also hold a ton of DVDs. However, the VCR doesn't play the DVDs, much to Cameron's displeasure. I've also learned that the library is rather forgiving of ripped pages in their books, however they tend to frown on breaking DVDs in half (which I've also learned is more likely to happen when it's very cold outside); my toilet can handle a LOT of toilet paper without overflowing; a Cubs hat, when held out the window of a car moving approximately 45 mph, will never be seen again; if you take a 3 year-old to the Nauvoo pageant, be prepared to listen to him yell about "God's Tampon" due to his inability to correctly pronounce the word TEMPLE; a potty-training child will never fail to talk about his "poopies" during the quietest moment of Sacrament meeting; if you say a bad word (like "crap" for instance) once, expect to hear it repeated dozens of times while standing in line at the grocery store. Likewise, if you try to shush the child saying that bad word it will only result in the word being said at decibels normally only heard at rock concerts.
These are just a few of the moments I have been enjoying lately...Lucky me.
Anyway, we're all recovering from our illnesses now. Cameron has been going stir-crazy and is looking forward to seeing his friend Ki-ki today. Her mom, Joanna, is my visiting teaching companion. Yes, we're getting it done on the 29th...Oh well. Next month I swear we'll get it done by the 15th.
Chase had a couple of short days last week and is hoping for a day off on Friday. We'll see... Well, off to feed Miles. He's been very greedy these days. I think it's a growth spurt!

Well, what better time to sit down and really work on this blog than when the boys are sick and docile?! I feel like we're living in a leper colony. We can't go out because we're all in different stages of contagiousness. We've just spent the last couple of days laying around (see picture), watching movies like Madagascar, Wallace and Gromit (or Woose and Gromt as Cam calls it), and Star Wars. Miles was the first one to get sick and it always makes me so sad when my babies are sick! They just can't do anything to help themselves feel better. So sad. Cameron got sick quickly thereafter. He's more aggravating when he's sick because he refuses to blow his nose and wants ME to wipe it every 30 seconds. It's hard to keep up with. But both boys have just been SO pathetic. It's cute and sad all at the same time. Chase and I camped out on the living room floor last night so both boys could have their own room and hopefully get more sleep that way. Too bad it didn't happen like that... I was up with them once an hour for the entire night. Once I would get one of them to sleep the other one would wake up. Needless to say my eyes are VERY heavy this morning. And Chase, funny little boy that he is, rolled over this morning and said "How many times did you have to get up last night?" He sleeps SO HARD he never even heard them once. Amazing. Anyway, we think we're coming down with this cold, too. Just in time for a glamorous weekend of red noses and tissues. Yay.


Oh, and I just wanted to point out that in that first picture you can see Cameron massaging Miles' head with his toes. Miles doesn't mind at all. How funny is that? Oh, and just FYI, I'm using our computer camera for these shots because we're still waiting on a new digital camera. Soon, I hope...

Hmmmmm.....blogging. Rhymes with clogging, which is not something I do, so I've been somewhat skeptical of this whole trend. I've been inspired by Jeni and Brian, though, and I now think it's a fabulous idea. What a wonderful way to keep my family and friends in-the-know on all of the things that are happening in the windy city! We'll have to replace our digital camera soon so that we can post all of the newest pictures of Miles and Cameron. Yay for blogs!