2016 ....The year that could not be over fast enough...

Happy December 2016!  It’s time again to discuss some of the lighter moments of our year and share some news that is not super important but could be fun to learn if you are really bored or find us interesting for some reason.

·         Officially decided we will leave California…in a few years

·         Todd has embraced “extreme hiking.”  It’s walking fast up and down steep hills for 10-20 miles ... in one day.  Not as punishment. 

·         Kelly perfected a technique of hitting deer and not leaving a mark on the car (the savings will be used on Matthew’s resulting PTSD).

·         After working for a year at a Veterinary clinic, Julia has decided she wants to go to college to learn to be a nurse for humans.   

·         Allison reduced her activities to just cross country.  And track.  And hiking.  And falling down a lot.  And soon driving.  

·         Amanda is maybe changing majors to Forestry and Natural Resources with a Wildlife Biology Concentration.  Stay tuned…

·         In an effort to test the resilience of Catholics worldwide, Matthew now attends Saint Mary Magdalen Catholic School.

 

Amanda – College Sophomore (California Polytechnic University – San Luis Obispo)

Babysat a corn snake and found her spirit animal…and discovered that dad REALLY hates snakes.  Really really really hates them…so much.

Thinks it’s fun to run around a desert chasing reptiles …. and meet the friendly men and women of the US border patrol.

Managed to get placed in a dorm apartment with the only service cat on the campus.  Yes, you read that right, SERVICE CAT.  “Misty” J

Visited New Mexico.  She is the only one in the family who has been to New Mexico.  We are all jealous.

Receives frequent invites to dinner parties describing her as a “retired woman of means” that has us both concerned and intrigued.

 

Julia – High School Senior (Nurse “Hoolia” to her cat/dog/turtle/bird/bunny/guinea pig/snake/lizard patients)

After seeing numerous retirement communities promoting an “active retired lifestyle,” she decided a fortune could be made promoting a community for those looking for an INACTIVE lifestyle.   Could be combined with a Costco membership.  So many possibilities…

Literally the only kid in her classes without an iPhone.  They did a survey.  It was sad.

Believes that math can only be fun when taught by teachers with lightsabers.  Otherwise, it is a form of torture that should be banned.

Her alias/pseudonym is… “Judith Puddles.”

Will have 3 dogs when she is a successful adult: “Orc” the bulldog, “Phillip Steve” (a “derpy” dog), and “Mac” (a fluffy dog).              

 

Allison – High School Sophomore  (Princess Grumpy Pants)

Leaves iPhone sale ads strategically lying around (taped on steering wheel, as a bookmark, on pillows) as a subtle hint that she wants one.   

Has just started Driver’s Ed.  Be afraid.  Be very afraid.

Successfully didn’t injure herself in sports this year. Instead, she has started to fall getting out of the car when dropped off at school.

Would win any competitive sickness/injury/malady competition.    

Lives by the motto: “Life is short and running makes it seem longer.”

 

Matthew – Catholic Middle School 6^th Grader

Decided swimming was okay again … unless you make him do anything other than breaststroke.

Still cannot be convinced to eat a vegetable without almost executive-branch level kinds of negotiations

Learned that if you fall, bite through your lip, and require 20 stitches at the ER that it will get Julia out of bed before 9am on a Sunday.

Learned that when mom drives through Ashippen, Wisconsin deer are going to die.

Likes to conclude prayers with “The End.” 

 

Bucky – age 9 ½ - “Bumpasaurus”

Has embraced his “grumpy old man” dog status by occasionally gassing people out of a room.

Did absolutely nothing when a raccoon loudly knocked over and tried to drag away his dog food container outside.

Has added “any items reachable in the open garbage can” to his list of “foods that MUST be tried.”

Sneaks out when he can…and we only notice he’s missing when we leave and see a dog sitting in the front yard tilting his head in confusion. 

Enjoys drinking plant water.  As in water that has collected in a pot.  He has water in his bowl.  This is apparently not good eough…

 

Have a wonderful holiday season and a safe and happy 2017!

Todd, Kelly, Amanda, Julia, Allison, Matthew and Bucky

Memories of mom

I wanted to add the video that I created for my mom's funeral. I meant to do it quite awhile ago, but life happens and plans get sidetracked.  But, here it is. 

 

My next project will be to try and digitize some of the pictures from old photo albums to share. 

 

I'd like to think she'd have enjoyed seeing this video.  I think she could have had a much, much longer one had she made different choices in her life.  She wasn't always angry and bitter, but it seemed like that to those who didn't get the rare glimpses of her when she was just being herself.  I always wondered why she couldn't just be like that all the time.  She probably did, too. 

Sad news...

My mom passed away on June 27, 2016.  It seems odd to type that.  Below is her obituary. 

 

Mary Ellen Ball, 69, of Cave Creek, Arizona, passed away unexpectedly June 27th, 2016 at her home after a sudden illness.

Mary was born July 29th, 1946 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  She was a 1964 graduate of Holy Angels Academy.  In 1967, she married and over the next eleven years spent time in Colorado, California, and West Virginia before finally settling in Brookfield, Wisconsin in 1978.   She was the original “soccer mom,” running kids around to soccer, basketball, and softball games in a vintage 80’s station wagon.  Every summer, she grew vegetables in an extensive backyard garden and was especially successful with zucchini that she made into delicious bread.   After raising her kids as a stay-at-home mom, she returned to school to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in Education from Mount Mary College and spent several years teaching special-needs children.  She held many other jobs, but teaching was her true passion.  She loved animals and spending time with her family, friends, and especially her grandchildren.  She was an intelligent and strong-willed woman who we will remember for the happy times we shared with her.

Mary was preceded in death by her parents, Kathryn and Edward Hulick, and sister, Catherine Kettering. 

Mary is survived by three children:   Kelly (Todd) Linskey of Camarillo, CA; Kevin Ball of Pewaukee, WI; and Brian (Tarra) Ball of Germantown WI.   She is also survived by her seven beloved grandchildren:  Amanda, Julia, Allison, Matthew, Chase, Ella, and Alaina; brother, Tom (Mary) Hulick of Castleton on Hudson, NY; sister, Anne (Jack) Ross of Cave Creek, AZ and Cheyenne, WY; and numerous in-laws, nieces, nephews, and friends.

A memorial gathering will be held at the Funeral Home on Friday, July 22nd, 2016 from 11 AM until the time of memorial service at 1 PM.  Interment will follow the service at Calvary Cemetery, 5503 West Blue Mound Road, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53208. 

In lieu of flowers, donations in Mary’s name may be made to her favorite charitable organizations:  Catholic Charities (catholiccharitiesusa.org ),  the Huntington’s Disease Society of America (www.hdsawi.org), and the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (www.alzfdn.org ).

2015 … Brought to you by The Linskeys

·         Entering the 4^th year of a drought, we decided to remove some of our grass to conserve water.  Because of this, we are now expecting the strongest El Nino in recorded history. 

·         Todd started his new career as a Delta Air Lines pilot.  It’s like the military, but with flight attendants. 

·         Kelly found new and mostly not-exciting ways to work and not get paid.

·         Julia got her driver’s license.  So far, she has not sideswiped any dumpsters.

·         Allison decided to do cross country.  And basketball.  And track.  And band.  And maybe swimming.

·         Amanda graduated from high school and is now a full-fledged college student.  We know this because she sleeps past 8am.

·         Matthew finally got to see the Blue Angels.

Amanda - Freshman

Has learned that you can stay up until 2 am every day at college.  We’re waiting for her to learn that this is not a good idea.

Thinks dissecting anything is really cool.  (Don’t worry – it’s part of the curriculum – she’s not a serial killer or anything)

She and her roommates discovered they can easily entice weak-willed young men into letting them dress them up as women.

Still a huge Pokémon nerd. 

Julia – Junior

Is the only living teenager who had a driving instructor actually call her “grandma” when referring to her inability to accelerate.

Likes to make “Vroom, vroom!” sounds when driving.

Is trying to figure out how many AP classes she can take and still have time to get in her 12+ hours of sleep. 

Surrounds herself with half-filled containers of water, possibly in anticipation of a “Signs”-like invasion where only water will save us.

Allison – Freshman

Survived yet another year of not eating any fruit. 

May be the only kid in high school without an iPhone.  Except for her sister.

Had to demonstrate to kids in her class how to use a flip phone to text. 

Only had to use crutches once this year.  So far. 

Matthew – 6^th grade

Matthew is in middle school.  We’re not sure how this happened.

After years of begging, he FINALLY got a phone.  And almost never uses it. 

Is learning karate, but still hates to do any kind of exercise (his version of push-ups is banned by most gyms).

Has actually decided that Scrabble is sort of fun, especially if he accidentally misspells a word that is actually a word.

Bucky – age 8 ½ - “Bumpasaurus”

Has started to announce the arrival of any vehicle parking within 100 feet of our driveway by howling.

Has added all green vegetables to his list of “works of Satan.”

Likes to sleep on any plant in the garden that has any chance of successfully producing a vegetable (possibly related to the above fact).

Has added air mattress inflators and storage containers to his list of “things that must be barked at.” 

Have a wonderful holiday season and a safe and happy 2016!

Todd, Kelly, Amanda, Julia, Allison, Matthew and Bucky

Does anyone blog anymore?

I'm not sure if anyone blogs anymore.  I mainly do it as a vehicle to embarrass my kids (okay, maybe not intentionally, but hey they usually deserve it).  Hopefully I will post more stuff soon - too busy right now.  Funny, I remember thinking I was busy when the kids were little (bwahahahahahaha!)

It's Spring!!!

What's new?  So, Todd is flying the friendly skies with Delta Air Lines.  Mom is still crazy and volunteering too much.  Amanda is getting ready to graduate.  Julia is learning to drive (which is partly why mom is crazy).  Allison is planning to try to do 3 sports in high school (cross country, basketball, and swimming).  And, Matthew has begun his karate training. 

Bucky, the world's laziest dog, continues to not catch lizards. rats, or bunnies. 

Christmas 2014

2014 … Brought to you by The Linskeys

·         Overconfident in our success with gardening, we moved on to breeding things.  Unfortunately, we only succeeded in breeding termites and bunnies.    One destroyed the garden, the other ate our house. 

·         Bucky, the world’s laziest dog, had to have TWO more surgeries to fix his torn ACL.  He has now returned to pulling my shoulder out of joint while walking and drinking ditch water with reckless abandon.  

·         Todd began the wonderful interviewing process undertaken by many college graduates….twenty years after graduation.  Next time you get in trouble on a Delta Air Lines flight, be sure to ask if Todd is your pilot.

·         Helping Amanda slog through college applications has made the thought of teaching Julia to drive sound appealing.

·         When faced with repeated mandatory signatures, Todd decided our official titles are “Duke and Duchess Linskey.” 

·         Julia is now in Driver’s Education.  Julia, who gets lost a block away from the house and in grocery stores…

·         Amanda has proven to be a good driver…unless you are a large, stationary, neon green dumpster loitering on our street.  Then, she’s going to sideswipe you.  You’ve been warned.

 

Amanda – Soon-to-Graduate Senior – “Troll”

Has already adjusted her diet to reflect her future collegiate poverty by consuming copious amounts of ramen noodles.

Did not burst into flame when getting a makeover for her senior picture.

Refuses to wear anything but sweat pants and pajamas.  Also in preparation for college.

Has started getting used to the idea of roommates by letting the dog move in with her. He loves the arrangement.

Routinely screams at small children to stop running, but has a great excuse (she’s a lifeguard).

Will be studying biological sciences in Fall 2015 at California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo.  Go Mustangs!

Julia – Sophomore-about-to-drive – “Troll 2”

Thinks band is harder than sports.  Ask her to do a pushup or catch a ball to prove this.

Infected Matthew with her sass.

Still not trusted around fire.

Often asked if Amanda is her younger sister or twin, much to Amanda’s chagrin.

Things that will get her to move:  Food, SuperWhoLock, and sarcasm. 

Considered becoming a doctor, but now prefers medical examiner so she doesn’t have to worry about killing anyone.

Allison – Almost-a-Freshman – still “PGP” (Princess Grumpy Pants)

Is frequently mistaken for Amanda, much to Amanda’s chagrin since Amanda also gets mistaken for Allison.

Reinvented term “sports nerd” by balancing a French Horn, Clarinet, cross country bag, and basketball on her bike.

Survived another year of not eating fruit. 

Has the technological savvy of a 94 year old shut-in.

Frequently adjusts her crutches in anticipation of her next potential injury. 

Matthew – Almost in Middle School – “The Boy”

Believes that “trying new foods” only requires being within a 5 foot radius of the food and/or maybe smelling it.

Lobbying for the title of “Sassmaster Supreme.” 

Could live with only a deck of cards, his DS, chicken noodle soup, and his dog.

Learned it takes less than 4 minutes to melt chocolate chips in the microwave…and that chocolate can start on fire.

Successfully drove gymnastics and swim coaches insane.  He will now turn his attention to running coaches.

Bucky – age 7 ½ - “Bumpasaurus”

Disappointingly ineffective against the scourge of termites and bunnies plaguing the neighborhood.

Much like the wicked witch of the west, he is afraid of rain.  In his mind, for the same reason.

Thinks carrots are the work of Satan.

Did absolutely nothing when a 40 foot pine tree fell into our backyard during in a windstorm except rescue his ball.

Occasionally has to be physically dragged outside in order to get back to nature.

 

2015 Graduation Dates:  Amanda  (June 9^th), Matthew (June 10^th), Allison (June 11^th) – Graduation Party (June 13^th)

Have a wonderful holiday season and a safe and happy 2015!

Todd, Kelly, Amanda, Julia, Allison, Matthew and Bucky