Class of '98

Baby Mehringer

2010-06-02T08:17:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody! Just wanted to introduce everyone to our newest addition:
Eliana Rae. Born May 21st. She was 7 lbs. 10 oz. 21 1/2" long.
Love Ya!!
Corin

Chelsea turns 3

2009-08-23T21:59:00.001-07:00

Chelsea turned 3 years old on August 12, 2009.
She absolutely loves Barbie and a big bouncy ball. Not sure the house can take the bouncy ball but the rain has made it almost impossible to play outside without coming in so muddy.

Chelsea here is trying to be a big girl. She knew that she had everyone's attention. Got to love her for that.

We had 2 parties. Everyone had a great time and enjoyed ice cream and cake. Don't mind Marcus in this picture, he likes to where noisy shoes, just happens to be high-heeled dress up shoes. I am not sure that is a good thing for him to wear but he really just likes to hear them on the hard floors.

Hear Chelsea has just blown out 2 of the 3 candles, both the ones on the end. Marcus thought she needed some back up to get the last one.

Dora the Explorer. We love to sing and dance, so anything with lots of singing and dancing around is a plus.

Got a little Dora to go house. Yay!!

Not real interested in the cards, because we got new shoes.

She is such a big girl.

All in all both parties were a success. Everyone got full of cake and ice cream. Chelsea enjoyed her new pajamas and all of her new clothes, including her 3 new pairs of shoes. You know a girl can never have too many shoes. I will keep things posted as they come along.

Meet The Newest Member...

2009-07-13T06:19:00.000-07:00

We would like to formally introduce you to:

Dakota James Conner
June 29, 2009 @ 5:03 pm
7 lbs. 12-1/2 ozs.
20" long

Proud new parents are: James and Amy (Orr) Conner

Marcus' 1st Birthday

2009-04-06T21:34:00.000-07:00

Well here goes the second blog. Let's see if this works. My baby boy turned 1 already. I procrastinated long enough, I guess I thought if I didn't acknowledge the fact it would just go away. Anyway we planned to have his birthday party on his actual birthday. Since Cameron has just recently started to get back in touch with his father and family, we chose to have them over for his birthday party. I was so nervous, I am not a very good host, but I think it went well. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, including Marcus.

This child was fully dressed. It never fails, when we are at Grandpa and Grandma's house, we have to take some off because it is warm there. His Aunt April decorated all the balloons.

He was loving his balloons. This picture was taken before he popped one. He didn't want much to do with them after he popped it in his hands. He was such a busy body. And there was people everywhere so he wasn't sure which way to go. However, he is very comfortable at Grandpa and Grandma's house so he knows where he doesn't usually get to go and that is where he headed. Marcus being the first grandson that my father has got a tractor. Funny thing is his favorite hat is Grandpa's John Deere, but mommy love Massey Ferguson.

The last two pictures above are the start of his own personal birthday cake and then the aftermath of the cake. I knew he would dig in so I removed his clothes and then gave him a bath afterwards. He was so mad at me when I took what was left of the cake away. He was so funny, as you can see from the pictures, he had two forks, one in each hand. Enjoy!

Class Poem

2009-03-11T04:54:00.000-07:00

Occasionally, when I'm bored and have the time, I write poetry. I normally don't ever show them to anyone, but I did share this one with Andrea, and she said that I should post it on here, so here it is. It was written shortly after we got together for the five-year class reunion.

Memories of the Class of '98

It finally arrived the first day of school,
Riding the big bus we thought we were cool.
We found our classrooms and met our teachers,
Day after day they revealed our best features.

Many of us started by making a friend,
Knowing one day we would be parted in the end.
A single friendship turned into so much more,
Than a childhood bond with a childlike core.

Year by year we continued the pace,
Inching even closer to completing the race.
Together we were strong, we faced many fears,
Friendships were tried throughout many years.

We stood together through thick and thin,
Testing the bonds built way back when.
We paired together and attended the prom,
Through everything we remained cool and calm.

Through graduation we stood as a class,
Hoping and wishing for the time to pass.
When it was over we said our goodbyes,
Separately leaving to begin our own lives.

Reunions will come many times through the years,
There will be laughter and there will be tears.
From each other we have something to gain,
Learning to build our own fortune and fame.

Thinking again of reuniting with friends,
Fighting is over we will make amends.
Something let said to the class of ninety-eight,
Thanks for the times you were absolutely great.

Written by: Amy (Orr) Conner

Amy (Orr) Conner

2009-03-09T17:06:00.000-07:00

This is our most recent photo.

Well, let me start by saying, hello to all my former fellow classmates! I'm going to give this blogging thing a shot, but while reading, please keep in mind that I'm new to this whole thing. That being said, here we go.

For starters, I didn't waste any time. Exactly three days after our high school graduation I moved back to Southeast Kansas, the same area that I had originally came from when we moved to Missouri in the middle of my second grade year. In June of 1998, I enrolled at Fort Scott Community College, the local two-year college. At that time I began a summer work-study position in the college counseling office, and also worked part-time in the college cafeteria.

In August of 1998, I continued to work both jobs, and started my college courses. This continued for over a year, at which time I also began working part-time at a local convenience store, and was eventually promoted up to store manager. During all this, I came to the decision that I had too much going on, so I decided to keep my manager job, and dropped my college courses and work-study positions. I decided in 2000, that I would go back to college and finish my Associate's Degree, but by then I was supposedly making too much money, and no longer qualified for financial aid. Therefore, I never completed my degree, I'm one semester shy of obtaining my Associate's Degree, but I don't regret my decision, as I'm doing exactly what I always planned on doing anyway, thanks to my two years in the Graphic Arts & Printing program at the Kirksville Area Technical Center that I took my Junior & Senior year of high school.

In April of 2000, I was hired on at Ward/Kraft, Inc., a local family owned commercial printing company. I started out in their proofing department, but within two years I had been promoted to a full-time graphic artist. I love my job, it is exactly what I had always planned on doing, and I can't imagine doing anything else.

During my time at Fort Scott Community College, I met James Conner, the man I would eventually end up marrying. In June of 1998, we started out as good friends that had a lot of the same classes, and by January of 2000, we had gradually eased into dating. We eventually married on October 12, 2002. Everyone who knows me knows that I hate dressing up for any reason, therefore, we had a very casual wedding that consisted of immediate family only, and everyone wore jeans. Probably not what most people would picture as a wedding, but it suited us to perfection.

In March of 2004, we bought a house together. It is a four-bedroom manufactured home that sets on five acres. Its location moved us from being inside the Fort Scott city limits to a town by the name of Redfield. It is in the country, approximately thirteen miles from where we work. Our house tends to be the summer hangout for most of my surrounding family as we have an above ground swimming pool that is really nice during those hot summer months.

Like another classmate, we have tried for over seven years to start a family, and have never had any success. However, during a trying time in our lives (namely my seventeen year old sister's automobile accident in October, that happened outside of Lancaster), I gave up worrying about why it wasn't happening for us, obviously, I was needed for other things at that time. To my ultimate surprise, we learned about the middle of November that we were finally expecting. My mother never had any trouble with her pregnancies, so dumb me I figured I wouldn't have much trouble either. Boy was I wrong! Almost from the beginning, our troubles began: bleeding/spotting (about ten weeks worth), Rh factor issues, placenta previa, and morning sickness (boy would I like to meet the idiot that coined that term) that lasted up to the start of the fifth month, that's just what I know about to date, so hopefully, that is all the trouble we'll have. So lucky me, I got to go to the doctor every two weeks until just this last month, where I finally got on a four-five week schedule. As of the moment, we are currently twenty-two weeks along. We are due on July 13, 2009. We found out last month that we are having a little boy, and we have decided to name him Dakota James. Anyone that is interested in following our changes/progress may do so by checking out the baby's page at: www.babyhomepages.net/babyconner

That is pretty much it for me. We live a pretty dull and boring life. I try to get back up that way at least a couple times a year, just to catch up with people I haven't seen in a while and visit with my family. If I happen to see you, I'll be sure to say hello. Until next time, I sincerely wish you all the best!

Meet Miss Emma Francis

2009-03-04T14:55:00.000-08:00

Kristie let me post this, b/c she's not so sure about the whole blogging world!

Meet Miss Emma Marie Francis!

Born January 15th, 2009

5 pounds 9 ounces

18 1/2 inches long

11:21 a.m.

Isn't she sweet?

New Momma and Daddy, Kristie (Bushnell) and Todd Francis!

Updates for Everyone

2009-03-02T15:56:00.000-08:00

Ok here goes my blogging! I started working at the Bloomfield Care Center immediately following graduation. I got married to Cameron Miller in June of 1999. We bought our first house in January 2000, here in Lancaster. It was a very small house and we soon decided that it was too small for us. We sold it and bought an even smaller trailer house, with the intentions of moving a double wide home into its place. Before we got that accomplished, the opportunity for us to buy my Grandpa's home came up and we jumped at the chance. We bought that house in May 2003. The house had alot of sentimental value to me, but was starting to need alot of major attention. We sold that home in June 2008 and are currently renting a trailer home in Lancaster.

On August 12 2006, we were blessed with a beautiful healthy baby girl. We named her Chelsea Marie. She weighed in at 6 lbs 4 oz and was 18 1/2 inches long, with a full head of black hair. Chelsea was a very good baby, sleeping through the night (6 hours) at birth. She gave me lots of scares during my pregnancy, but everything turned out perfect. Today she is a very healthy vocal 2 year old-must get that from her daddy. HaHa. On her first birthday we got a very special surprise.

On April 4 2008 we were blessed with a second child, a handsome healthy baby boy. We named him Marcus Dean. He weighed in at 6 lbs 13 oz and was 18 1/2 inches long. All though it took us 7 years to get our daughter, it didn't take long for our son. He was the surprise I was telling you about earlier. He was also born with a full head of black hair. A very good baby, sleeping 4 hours at night, he was a much bigger eater than his sister. I had contractions the last 6 weeks of my pregnancy with him, and made many trips to Columbia thinking he was ready to come out. Today he is a very healthy 11 month old, with a very short temper. HaHa.

Currently I am working at Excel in Ottumwa, Iowa. I have been there for 5 years now. Cameron works construction (laying water and sewer lines) and travels a great deal of the time. This June we will be celebrating our 10th Anniversary. We currently reside in Lancaster, with no intentions of moving away from here. We are looking to buy some land to build a new home on, soon I hope. I guess that about sums up my life after high school. Will post at a later date.

Happy New Year....

2009-01-01T11:35:00.000-08:00

2009 is here! Can you believe it? I know this year will mean the big 3-0...for some of us. Not me of course! I'm just turning 29:) Hope you all had a great Christmas, a safe New Year, and remember to enjoy the little things!

Love, The Fredericks...Vance, Andrea, Colby, and Emma!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-24T07:23:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

Hoping everyone a merry & happy holiday!!!

Crystal (Miller) Bridgeman

Merry Christmas from the Mehringers

2008-12-04T08:02:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!

Hillary (Newland) Hopkins

2008-10-14T11:23:00.000-07:00

So I have to admit, this is the first entry ever in any blog for me, so please take that in to consideration while you read. Here goes the story of me:

After high school graduation I moved to Kansas City and went to school at UMKC's medical school. It was a pretty tough transition for me, with lots of trips home at first. During med school, I took about 8 months off, and worked at a church in the city and did a medical mission trip to Cameroon, Africa.

This is a picture of some of the kids I took care of in Africa at Banso Baptist Hospital.

Both were great experiences - especially working at the church, because that's where I met my husband. We met in 2002, got married in August 2004, and moved into a rental house in a fun neighborhood in Kansas City, MO (Brookside) where we still live.

Mitch started dental school at the end of the month after we got married, so we have basically spent the first four years of marriage in school/residency. I graduated from medical school in May of 2005, and started family medicine residency in July of 2005. Mitch and I both finally graduated this past summer. We went on an amazing trip to Canada for graduation, and here are a couple pictures from that vacation, as well as a picture of Mitch and Grace at his graduation and the three of us at my graduation.

We don't have any children together yet, but Mitch has a daughter (Grace-- see above), so I have a beautiful, intelligent, 6 year old step daughter. She is such a blast, and we have enjoyed watching her play tee ball and soccer for the first time this year. We also have 2 dogs: a black lab named Rilee and a yellow lab named Harper. They are very sweet, but a little on the hyper side. Here are pictures of Grace horseback riding at Dad's and playing tee ball last summer.

I, being a glutton for punishment, have decided to do another residency. This year, Mitch and I are working in Kansas City (as a real dentist and doctor...finally!), but will be moving to New Hampshire in June 2009 for my dermatology residency. It will be three years, so anyone who wants to come do a little "leaf peeping" in the fall is welcome to come visit! I was there last weekend, and it really is beautiful. Grace will be here in KC, so we'll be back to visit and will be moving back as soon as we can.

Unfortunately, my camera is not very good (as evidenced by my disposable at the reunion), so I don't have a lot of pictures that I can post right now, but I'll try to update them. Who knows, I may be hooked on this blogging thing! It was great to see everyone at the reunion, and I hope to read updates from all of you too!

Corin (Lancaster) Mehringer

2008-09-25T13:07:00.000-07:00

You may remember me here: (Sorry Andrea I didn't have one by myself)

After graduation I went to Truman State University. After three years with no major I finally picked Communication Disorders.

In the Spring of 2001 I went to visit Sara (Slaughter) Smith on spring break in Virginia Beach. While there I met Stephen Mehringer.

He was stationed on the same ship as Sara's husband Marc.
In October 2002 were married.He was deployed shortly after and I stayed in Kirksville to finish my degree.

I graduated in Dec. of 2002. It took me five years and I ended up with a degree I had no intention of using, but I did it I suppose that's the important part.

Once Steve got back from his deployment we moved to Bremerton, Washington for the Navy. We loved living in the Pacific Northwest. It was very senic and it never gets to hot or to cold there. Sara and her husband were stationed not to far away from us, so it was nice to have someone from home close by.
The beach on the West Coast is a totaly different experience then on the East Coast.

I like the West Coast better.

This picture is from my first camping trip ever. I'm not a camper but I have to admit this scenery helped.

Here we are at Marc and Sara's Halloween party. Sara is so good at hosting parties (as you may remember). One of the things I miss the most about living there is being able to go to there house for parties or just to play cards.

Steve got out of the Navy in the Spring of 2006. We wanted to move within driving distance of both our families, so we started looking for jobs closer to home. We were both lucky enough to get jobs in Kirksville before we left Washington. We weren't really planning on being this close to home but things just seemed to fall into place. So In February we left and took our time moving back, snaking through California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas ... I can't even remember, we hit a lot of states, I know that. The great thing about the Navy is they pack all of your stuff and move it for you door to door, which is awsome.

This is from Valley of the Giants in California.

So now Steve is a System Administrator for the Bank of Kirksville and I am the Office Manager for SunBrite Laundry. We recently bought a house West of Kirksville on Hwy 6 and we love it. And in July of 2007 we had our handsome baby boy Levi Jacob. (I swear when I named him I didn't know that was the name of Nick's little boy.)

I almost forgot our other child. Winnie Cooper our Deuchson/Jack Russell mix. She is cute but not nearly as well behaved as Levi. But she is his best friend so what can we do. Levi chases her everywhere and laughs at everything she does.

So here we are. I hope it wasn't to many pictures. They are my favorite part of over people's blog so I wanted to have lots. I'll update you with any exciting changes. But I've got to warn you, we are very boring so don't count on hearing from me for awhile.

Andrea (Tallman) Frederick

2008-09-02T17:47:00.001-07:00

I guess I will be the first to post about my life since I'm the one who came up with this bright idea! Here goes nothing....

As most of you know, I married Vance Frederick in 1999. We will be married for 10 years in June! Seems like a long time and then it seems like the time has flown! He is a lineman for Tri County Electric and received a journeyman lineman diploma in January. I threw him a HUGE surprise party for his accomplishment in February and he was shocked. He still doesn't really trust me b/c he thinks it's creepy how well I lied to him! Oh well, everyone has their talents. (He's at the top right)

In May 2002, we had our son, Colby Curtis. He is now in 1st grade. Colby and I get along like vinegar and water sometimes. He is a wonderful, helping boy 80% of the time, but when he's not....WATCH OUT! He loves being outdoors: fishing, riding horese, roping, etc. His dad is definitely his number 1 fan!

On Colby's first birthday, we got some news....Surprise! we were pregnant again. So a short 20 months after we had Colby came Emma in January 2004. She is now 4 1/2 and a little princess. She loves clothes, makeup and accessories. She has just now discovered the wonderful world of shopping. Emma and I love hanging out, just us girls! She also has a strange sense of understanding at such a young age and a deep love for God. Although, Emma is a princess, she does not object to being outside and usually comes in dirtier than Colby.

In addition to my children, I am a teacher. I have taught for 7 years. This year I am in 1st grade and loving it. It's a nice break from the hubbub of kindergarten. It is hard to work with an age group and then come home to that same age group in the evening.

Vance and I have also started building a house this summer. We are excited to see it change everyday when we go look at it. It consumes a lot of our time and thoughts as we get closer and closer to moving in. We should be able to move in November. YAY!Well, there's my life in a nutshell. Please post your's. If you can't figure it out, just email me or leave a comment here and I will help you out! Happy blogging......

The Reunion

2008-09-02T17:02:00.000-07:00

The 10 year reunion for the Class of 1998 was August 30th. We had lots of catching up to do and seem to get back in touch with many friends. First, at 1:00 some of us met at the park to introduce each other to kids and spouses. We attempted volleyball, but mostly just chatted and caught up. Then on to Memphis, where we had supper and "drinks" at the Fabius. We were there from 6:00 to 1:30. Some of us had a better time than others, but I think we can all agree when saying we're glad that we had it! Everyone needs to thank Hillary for being the main "chief" behind the planning. I just wasn't up for it this time around. I know some of us already have plans milling about for the 15th, so keep thinking!

Info

2008-09-01T19:52:00.000-07:00

O.K. guys. I think we all agree after our very fun reunion, we need to stay closer together. I'm not sure how this will work, but I've invited you all to be authors of our post. Please include new babies, houses, jobs, marriages, moves, and anything else exciting going on in your life. Your first post should be an "updating everyone post." Just remind everyone where you "are" in life and maybe share a couple of pictures. I'm very excited about this and hope it works. Good luck.....
P.S....we are not here to critique everyone's work, so let's just hope Mrs. Rowland is not reading our wonderful grammar mistakes:)