Mike is home after being gone for almost three weeks! He had come home for 3 days for New Years and then left again to practice fishing. He finished third at the FLW Stren Event at Lake Shasta, netting $12,500 for the finish. Not a bad way to start off the New Year! I went up to see him on Friday the 12th as did his dad and step-mom, Carol. They actually came up on Saturday to see his final day as he was leading going into the final day. You can see all the articles and updates here. Mike will be home for almost two weeks before taking off to Lake Havasu for the FLW National Guard Series that starts January 31. He can only pre-fish for four days prior, hence his not leaving so early. Thank goodness he’s home for a while as his honey-do list is growing by the day!!

I’m still off work recovering from our miscarriage and my D&C. I doing pretty good for the most part but wanted to take the time to fully recover before jumping back into the swing of things. With Mike’s season in full gear, I need to be at the top of my game in holding down the fort. I’ll be returning on January 22 and working full time. My work has been so supportive and helpful.

Hi guys! John here (Mary’s brother). With Mary up in Shasta with Mike, I figured I would update their site in their absence. Mike leaped into the the lead today with a 12-pound-6-ounce weigh-in. This means he made the cut and will be fishing in the finals tomorrow.

You can check out the video from today’s weigh-in below:

This past weekend my brother, Michael and his wife Gaile came to visit me with my niece Keira. They arrived on Saturday evening which we spent hanging out and playing 80’s Trivial Pursuit. That was a lot harder than anyone of us expected … so much for believing the commercials! On Sunday, we drove up to Redding to visit with Mike who had been gone since the prior Tuesday. He was fishing the WON Bass Pro-Am at Lake Shasta, so Michael and Gaile had the opportunity to see how the weigh-in and awards ceremony commenced. Mike missed a check by three places, which is a bummer. He is still up there preparing for the FLW Stren Series which commences on Wednesday the 10th. On Monday, Michael, Gaile, Keira and I (Mary) went to see the Sundial Bridge in Redding, the Shasta Lake Dam and Mount Shasta. It was a lot of fun with many great sites. I’ll post pictures once they send them to me. My birthday was low-key yet nice with the family visiting. Mike had missed his birthday as he was in Shasta on that day but we celebrated when he returned with the annual fried catfish and hush-puppy meal he loves so much.

On Tuesday I had my D&C to take care of my miscarriage. Michael and Gaile were great in taking care of me (and my house!) I feel blessed that it went well and was fairly uneventful. While I rested and hung out with Keira, Michael proceeded to take care of some things on my Honey-Do list such as replacing outlets, putting up a new light in the back-yard and fixing my bath tub. Gaile cleaned up the house for me so that I wouldn’t have to worry much about it. Mike and I appreciate all that they’ve done for us.

Mike will be returning either Friday or Saturday as it depends on how he does in the tournament. For those that like to follow his progress, check out the FLW Website.

So here we are on January 1st of 2007 with a new website layout and a much easier way for me to update. This is again in thanks to my little brother, John, who graciously put this together for us. He also designed Mike’s fishing site so be sure to check that out.Since my last post, much has happened. Mike quit working for his dad and fished full time starting in April. He did pretty good this year, even without any major boat wins. He spent the summer losing weight, getting in shape, working hard on starting a pressure washing business and nailing some sponsors. He has been doing very well in the sponsor category, getting more confident with each presentation. Check out his site for more information on who he managed to sign up with.

May brought us a new addition, a puppy! Our good friends got a Trigg-Walker Hound and Mike fell hard for the little gal. So we brought Dixie home on Memorial Day when she was only 7 weeks old. She’s much larger now but still a sweetheart!

In June we went to Las Vegas to celerate Ryan’s 21st birthday. We had a blast with family and each other. We took in a few shows, including The Blue Man Group and KA (a cirque du soleil production) We really like Vegas and will be there again in February for Mike’s Tournament at Lake Mead.

Also in June I went to my 10 year high school reunion. It was such a blast, I had so much fun catching up with old friends and aquaintences. Mike decided not to attend his this time.

In August, my niece was born to my brother Michael and his wife Gaile. She is so adorable and so much fun. Mike and I went to meet her and see the family a few weeks after she was born. We went on quite a world-wind trip that included the Zoo and Wild Animal Park. Keira and her parents held up quite well given her newborn status.

In November I lost one of my favorite uncles, Steve “Jaime” Jaimeson to a very short battle with lung cancer. He was not a smoker so it was even more devastating. Our family convened in Minnesota to support my aunt and her family. It was amazing the amount of people Jaime had touched over his short life. His wake and funeral was nothing like I had ever seen …. hundreds of people came to pay their respect to a great, fun person.

Thanksgiving found us excited about a pregnancy. Family and friends were so excited for us as were we. Unfortunately in January, the ultrasound revealed that the baby never developed in the sac thus revealing an empty sac (called a Blighted Ovum.) Upon further research, we found out that this is a very common form of miscarriage. So we’ll keep on trucking ….

I think that’s enough for now but I’ll be back sooner this time!