Happy Holidays

To Family and Friends,

Sorry I have not blogged for a month. Happy Holidays to everyone.

Many changes in the Cran, Thirouin, Strole household:

1. A hole in the wall between the kitchen and living room as a pass through and increase the size and look of a great room.

2. The gazebo for my Cal spa hot tub is almost done. We still have the cross boards to put up on top.

3. The kitchen is being remodeled to reflect the beginning of the 1900's. We have found an antique pie safe to use as a pantry.

4. Tiffany is currently holding awesome grades in school and still a big part of Student Senate with plans of joining the volleyball team next year at Columbine High School. Tiffany has not yet mastered using only 450 minutes a month on her first cell phone purchased on November 2ND. She used up 1300 minutes in the first 20 days!!!!! OH MY GOD :(

5. I am still employed and spending 5 nights a week at Wal-Mart(Wally world) Stocking groceries so that all of you can still eat (as long as people EAT, I will be employed)

6. Bob is doing wonderful as always staying busy with work, projects and putting up with Tiffany and I on a daily basis :)

7. To my son Tyler: If you are reading this I want you to know how much I love you and miss you everyday. Please call me sometime:) Love Mom

Talk to you soon
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Love Cindy

P.S. Libby says Hello from her new dog bed:)

To Tyler and Tiffany with love from Mom Forever:

Spider Bites, First Savings Account and Bandit

Hey family and friends,

Spider bites:
Earlier this week Bob was bitten by a single spider several times on his chest resulting in multiple blisters. The doctor prescribed medication with hopes of killing the poison. (very scary if you don't like spiders)

First Savings Account:
Tyler received his paycheck yesterday and I drove him to the bank to start a savings account with one hundred dollars. He was so excited that he printed his name on the social security card instead of signing his name:)

Bandit:
Rest in peace to Bob's best friend, who was loved very much. Bandit passed away this morning at 10:30am. Bandit was Bob's son and best friend for 14 years. Bandit will be remembered for his love of balls, toys, swimming pool, eating the fence in the backyard, the taste of Coors Light, his love for pizza crust and his friends and family extended across the United States (The Cran Family and Murphy Family including: Colorado, Florida and Texas). Bandit is now resting peacefully in heaven with all of our past loved and cherished pets.

*(please no phone calls for a couple of weeks as we are all grieving his loss)

Love
Cindy

Homecoming, Weight loss, Promotion, Child Support

Hey everyone,

Tyler went to his first homecoming dance last Saturday at Columbine High School.

Tyler worked at King Soopers until 8:15pm then rode his bicycle wearing his suit and tie to go dancing with his date, who is a senior. I showed up at the high school at 11:00pm with the truck to pick up Tyler and his bicycle only to hear him say that he had the "TIME OF HIS LIFE" Tyler said that at the dance the kids circled around him while he was dancing yelling the words "GO KUSH", whatever a kush is? Tyler also said that he had blisters on his fingers from snapping so hard and for so long.

Tiffany is proud to announce that she has lost a total of 25 pounds since moving back in with me. Tiffany went from 185 to 160 pounds!!!!! From a size 14 to a size 11 now. Tiffany has joined the Student Senate at Ken Caryl Middle School with achieving grades of all A's and B's!!!!!

Last Monday night I took a test at Wal Mart that I believe was called Leadership Assessment Skills. I passed with a Competitive score. I was interviewed for a Department Manager position for paper and chemicals department, only to find out that I would only make .10 cents more an hour?? (FOR MORE RESPONSIBILITY) The hours as department manager would have been 7am to 4pm Monday through Friday, but I declined due to family obligations during the daytime :)

I have decided to stay with Night Receiving and possibly go back to stocking Frozen foods for .20 cents more an hour.

OH, guess what child support in being modified to? $817.00 a month!!!! :) Due to Kevin Strole earning $22.00 an hour and me earning $10.20 an hour!!!! I also pay for medical and dental insurance for Tyler and Tiffany. Kevin has no visitation with the kids since they have no interest and fear for their life over there. I have court with Kevin on October 30th at Jefferson County Courthouse at 9am.

Hope everyone has a safe and fun weekend. Take care of you :)

Love Cindy, Tyler and Tiffany

Teen Jobs,Weight Loss, Trailers and Wal-Mart

Tyler got the job at King Soopers on Coal Mine and Pierce. His first day was September 1, 2007. Tyler pushes buggies and sacks groceries. Tyler had orientation today at the store on Kipling and Belleview. Tyler received his first payckeck on Friday and you will never guess what he spent the money on? You guessed it! FOOD :) Tyler went to his friends house and bought the whole family pizza for dinner. He owed Bob twenty dollars to pay for his cable tv in his bedroom.

Tiffany is doing excellent with her weight loss. She has lost a total of twenty pounds since July 9th by eating healthy and walking Libby every night after dinner. Tiffany has lots of friends, new and old at Ken Caryl Middle School. Tiffany is looking forward to getting a job to earn her own money. Tiffany is at Grandma Linda's this weekend (SCARY) with her friend Kaitlyn.

Trailers: Guess who bought another trailer to work on? You guessed right, Bob :) He bought a car hauler that is 6.9 feet wide and 16 feet long for $800.00 (awesome deal) for when Ron's truck breaks down we can help him get it home to work on:) Ha,ha,ha (Love you sissy) This trailer will be number 7 bought since Bob and I have been together.

I am doing well at Wal-Mart making my lousy $10.80 an hour pulling pallets of grocery out of the trailer every night weighing up to 3,000 pounds each. I received my license for the electric pallet jack, the walkie stacker and the propane forklift. Graveyard shift is tough, but works with having teenagers in the house. My hours are 8:45 pm to 5:15 am. My sleep schedule is from 7am to 3pm if anyone chooses to call and chat with me.

The crew I work with range from a Pastor of a church down to a homeless lady that lives at the Good Samaritan house in downtown Denver (riding the bus for two hours just to work) I did donate jeans and blue shirts for her and a lamp for by her cott. We have another guy that is homeless and lives in his truck in the parking lot at the store because he cannot afford an apartment? Several of our employees rent apartments at the Dakota Ridge with the discount is $850 a month for a two bedroom. What is wrong with society today that you can't make enough money and have to live in the Wal-Mart parking lot? The store manager Keith makes $180,000.00 a year and us little people are barely making it financially?????

Love to all and I will talk with you soon.
Love Cindy

Long Summer and School starts soon :)

Hello Friends and Family,

Sorry I have not blogged since June.
This summer has been long and eventful for Tyler, Tiffany and I.

Tyler has pretty much spent the summer: SLEEPING, filling dirt into the koi fish pond in June for building our new water feature, spending weekends at his friend Zach's or Grandma Linda's and camping with us above Central City at Columbine Campground riding his new Polaris 400 atv. Tyler has decided not to get a drivers license and ride his bicycle everywhere he wants to go. I did take Tyler to motor vehicle to get a Colorado State I.D. for finding a job to earn money for his wants and needs. Tyler went on a camping trip with his friend Zach's family and enjoyed canoeing and kayaking at Twin Lakes this month. Tyler will start his sophomore year this month at Columbine High School taking electives of cooking and business classes.

Tiffany moved back in with us on July 9th permanently until she turns 18 years old. This decision was hers due to she wants to be healthy, lose weight, be happy and not be bored anymore since she gained 35 pounds in one year since living with her dad. Tiffany will start her 8th grade year at Ken Caryl Middle School this month with electives of cooking, sewing and gym (physical education). Tiffany was blessed with a baby gerbil that was born in Jacksonville, Florida and flew here on a United Airlines Flight piloted by John Murphy (Bob's brother in law). The gerbil is named Megan. The hamster that lives with Kevin will be coming here this weekend named Daisy. The house will be busting at the seams with pets.

Bob purchased a Cal Spa hot tub on July 7th that is well used every morning when I get off work from Wal Mart. We have been on several camping trips this summer with the Fleetwood Angler camper. The bed is very comfortable and being out of the rain is extremely awesome and dry. (We had camp fires all summer with no restrictions) Lots of rain up above Central City this year to the point of using white trash bags for parkas and rain gear for the kids. After a camping trip in the rain, the cleanup is very time consuming between setting up the tents and canopies in the backyard to dry, enormous amount of laundry, mud in the camper ( no matter how hard you try to keep it out), washing the exterior of the truck, camper, ATV's, trailer and of course showering for ourselves.

We all wear safety gear consisting of helmets, gloves, goggles, long sleeve denim jackets and boots when riding ATV'S...............Our last camping trip on July 31st we (4 atv's with 6 people and Terry Fritz in hie Jeep behind us) were heading back down the trail to camp and Tiffany was riding on the back of my Polaris 500. I have never drove in the mud before and I love getting dirty. WE CRASHED, rolling the atv to the left with the two right tires in the air. Our two left tires slipped into the culvert with the mud. Tiffany was not injured just scared, screaming and crying. Terry Fritz had to lift the 700 pound machine off of me, so that I could get out from under it. The first question that Terry asked was if anything was broken (I thought he meant the ATV, not me) I answered "I don't think so?) I sprained my left hand, bruised my knee from the handle bars and sore shoulder from pulling off the throttle. My first and last crash of the season thanks to my great instructor and love of my life, Bob:)

The kids start back to school on August 22nd. Hope everyone had an awesome summer and you are looking forward to the kids going back to school later this month. I will blog soon. Take care of you.

Love Cindy

The End of 9th Grade

Tyler has accomplished and completed 9th grade with pride. During the fall sports season, Tyler was on the cross country team. The final grades for his academics are one A, four B's and two C's on his report card. This first weekend of summer vacation he has chosen to stay the weekend with Grandma Linda, Great Grandma Dorothy and Great Grandpa Burt. Tyler will be taking the written exam for his driving permit on his 16th birthday next month. Tyler does not want a drivers license yet, so he is riding his bicycle everywhere he goes. Tyler has an interest in applying for his first job next month, possibly at King Soopers pushing buggies? Not sure yet. Take care everyone and I will post later.

Love Cindy