Kansas Family Lends a Hand
The Menningen Times
Christmas 2001    Barely on Time Edition    250 µ¢
Ken & Laura Menningen    164 N Franklin St, Whitewater, WI 53190-1317    (262) 473-8876    menningens@charter.net
Susanna Surprises
Baby arrives quicker than expected
By Heyda Storck
Of the Times staff

The Menningen family in Whitewater, WI proudly welcomed Susanna Joy into their family on July 4, 2001. The birth marked a joyous end to nine months of waiting and finally settled the debate over gender balance in the family. Susanna joins Alex (7), Nathan (4), and Carolyn (2-½) to make the family fully symmetric. All reports indicate mother and baby are doing fine.
The birth was an interesting one. After a false labor early Tuesday morning, Laura Menningen was awakened at 1:15am Wednesday, July 4 with contractions. Her water broke at 2:55am and she went to awaken her husband Ken. After
Smile, Susie! Her parents insist she smiles a lot except when a camera is aimed at her.
placing calls to the Anderson family, who were designated to babysit during labor, and the hospital, Laura went into the bathroom to get ready to go to the hospital. As Ken was making other preparations he heard Laura call out loudly. He went into the bathroom to find out the baby was coming! Laura said, "Call the ambulance!"

Ken retrieved the telephone and dialed 911. "Hello, we're having a baby in the bathroom," he said, still not fully awake. The dispatcher verified his name and address and said help was on the way. He put the phone down as Laura began to push again. "Wash your hands!" she said, and seconds after washing Ken helped Susanna arrive into the world! Within minutes the Andersons, a police officer, and the paramedics all arrived. Despite all the clatter and noisy conversation right next door to their room, both Alex and Nathan slept through the whole event. Carolyn woke up and was comforted by the Andersons before going back to sleep after Ken and Laura left. It was a memorable Fourth of July!
Since that day Susie has grown considerably and the other children have taken a liking to her. A number of photos have been taken of all the Menningen children.



Blissful beach The Menningen children earnestly explore the wonders of a Floriday Keys beach.		 Week of Warmth
Family escapes winter weather for awhile
by Lois T. Luhgage
Special to the Times

The Menningen family encountered low airline fares available last winter and took the opportunity to head south for some warmth. Laura took Alex, Nathan, and Carolyn to visit her mother in sunny Key Largo, FL. Susie also came along for the ride, though the cramped, stuffy womb prevented her from enjoying the sunshine and sea breezes like everyone else. The family enjoyed quality time with grandma, pleasant strolls through the neighborhood, hikes through two parks, several trips to the beach, an air boat ride in the Everglades, and an art festival. Meanwhile, Ken stayed in Whitewater (actually,
the weather wasn't that bad!) to teach his courses. In the evenings he busied himself stripping wallpaper and painting the boys' room. "It's surprising what a lick of paint will do, eh Gromit?", he was overheard saying. Ken was also very grateful for the help from his father Ron Menningen, who lent a hand that Saturday with the wallpaper removal. When asked for comment, Ron said, "Well, I remember in the old days we used to burn the wallpaper off with a propane torch. These new-fangled, water-based paper removers sure cut down on the 'ol 911 calls." Laura was also very grateful for her mother's hospitality and enjoyed her week in the warm Florida sun. Southwest airlines was pleased to be of service to the family, and a spokesperson remarked at how well-behaved the Menningen children were during both flights.
Tenure Triumph
Probationary appointment ends with promotion
by Monton Klimbe
Special to the Times

After six years of hard work, UW-Whitewater physics professor Kenneth L Menningen has earned tenure. The award comes along with promotion from Assistant Professor to Associate Professor effective fall of 2001. The decision became final at the June 2001 meeting of the UW Board of Regents. Earning tenure means that it is much more difficult for UW-Whitewater to dismiss Dr. Menningen. The purpose of tenure is to preserve academic freedom by insulating professors from retribution they might receive for teaching or researching controversial topics. Despite the popular misconception that the word "tenure" is a contraction of "ten-year" university officials assert that it is normally comes after a five to seven year probationary period, depending upon the university. When asked to reflect upon the accomplishment, Dr. Menningen replied, "Now I can finally grow a beard, smoke a pipe, and start wearing a tweed coat!"
Taxing Tenure Dr. Kenneth L Menningen used to look young and spry, but after laboring to earn tenure he has noticeably matured.
Inside This Issue

Local apples mysteriously disappear / 1C
Neighborhood book club begins/ 3D
Cousin succombs to cancer / 1B
Child seeks chance for champion chops / 3C
Mother learns to despise Legos / 1E
Sister moves to area / 1F

4 Day Federal Reserve Rate Forecast
Tuesday
6.5%/5.0%
Sizeable drop as recession approaches		 Wednesday
5.0%/4.0%
40% chance of rebate checks by noon		 Thursday
4.0%/1.5%
Mayhem late as realtors collapse from exhaustion 		Friday
1.5%/-3.0%
Widespread savings penalties and cost free loans
Community Calendar
Monday: Ken will begin a lecture series on "The Do's and Don'ts of Restaurant Patronage." Today's topic: "Buffet Restaurant Pitfalls."

Tuesday: Alex will demonstrate a combination of Tae Kwon Do and Light Saber arts at an interactive workshop at 1pm. Bring a helmet and proof of health insurance.

Wednesday: A hands-on tour of heavy construction equipment by Nathan has been cancelled due to the tour guide's temerity. He will present a video in the safety of the family room instead.

Thursday: Carolyn will present a hands-on tutorial on presenting a formal tea party using simple tableware available from Walmart. No spiders allowed, lady bugs and worms are welcome.

Friday: Nathan will hold a seminar demonstrating the tackling techniques he's learned from Alex over the past year.

Saturday: Laura will lead a workshop on baking, showcasing the simple pleasure of old-fashioned molasses cookies.

Sunday: Susie will hold an insightful session for curious adults, "Patterns in the puddles: how babies communicate with drool."
Painting Promises Perfection
New colors add light and cheer
by Nalen Hammer
of the Times staff

Local resident Ken Menningen has been slowly improving his house. Among other projects, wallpaper was stripped from the boys' room and it was painted a lighter color, the electrical system of the house was mapped out, the kitchen was stripped of wallpaper and repainted, and a wooden clubhouse was constructed with the leadership of friend Scott Roggenbauer and capable assistance of Uncle Kaz Ueda. Despite the failure to paint the garage, seal the driveway cracks, or to complete any of a number of other projects, observers report that Ken still looks really cool in his tool belt. When asked to estimate the completion date for all his home repair projects, Ken said, "Wait! Stop! Don't try to flush that toy! Arrrgh!"






Clubhouse The new backyard clubhouse is a hit with the kids.		 Bunny Brothers
Not-so-mini Rex makes two
by Patti Lagomorph
Special to the Times

The Menningen family in Whitewater have acquired a new pet rabbit. Prince is a grey Mini-Rex that got shafted when dealt his hand from the gene pool. His failure to acquire the "mini" gene means Prince is one chunky bunny. Nathan enjoys caring for him, though, and Prince keeps his porch-mate Rex on his toes. Prince was acquired during a family trip to the Walworth county fair. He is a well-mannered rabbit though a tad more reclusive than Rex. Once he gets more accustomed to people we hope he'll provide years of fun for both boys, as well as training in responsibility and concern for others. You can see a picture of Prince in this year's photo collection.
The Menningen Family
wishes everyone a
Merry Christmas
and a
Happy New Year!






Notes and Minor Stories

 


Helping Hands

Eidene Anderson and her daughters Corrie and Bethamy made a 11 hour trip from near Kansas City, MO to visit us from June 26 to July 12. They were of invaluable assistance during the arrival of Susanna. In fact, they were among the first on the scene! Afterwards they helped care for the other children and finished essential household chores while Ken and Laura cared for Susie. We extend our most grateful thanks for all their hard work and for the joy of their extended visit!



 


Letter Archives

You can still see our Christmas 2000 letter, our Christmas 1999 letter or even our Christmas 1998 letter if you wish. We'll keep this going until we run out of allocation space!



 


Unbelievable!

We're always late with our Christmas letters. This year the birth of Susanna was enough to get me going on it in mid-July! The next question is: "Will I complete it on time?" The answer is: "Not exactly." It looks like I'll get some of them mailed on Christmas Eve. Sigh.



 


Apples disappear from kitchen

While I was writing this Carolyn appeared with another one of her pilferred apples. She is very adept at smelling them out whereever we try to hide them. On the plus side, they make a very healthy snack. On the minus side, we may be raising a kleptomaniac! If we visit your house, keep an eye on your apples!



 


Book Club Begins

Laura was instrumental in organizing a neighborhood book club. At least ten ladies are involved. So far they have read One True Thing by Anna Quindlen and The Red Heart by James A. Thom.



 


Cousin Departs

Our family has mourned the passing of Debbie Gore, Laura's first cousin, who succombed to pancreatic cancer in October. She is survived by her husband, Butch. Laura was able to travel to Cincinnati, OH to attend the funeral with Alex and Susie.



 


Child aims to earn belt

Alex has begun lessons in Tae Kwon Do. The point of the endeavor is to train him in respect for elders, in self-discipline, and in motor control. He is a very enthusiastic student and hopes to earn his first promotion (to "high white" belt) sometime this spring.



 


Legos have disadvantages, too.

There's no debate that Legos are excellent toys for encouraging creativity and developing fine motor and concentration skills. However, they bring trouble in the family, too, from small pieces scattered about the house, to squabbles about who gets which piece, to a constant thirst for the latest and greatest set no matter how recently they received the previous set, to a tendency to become so absorbed with a Lego project that the child ignores more pressing concerns unfolding around them. So we've actually restricted Lego play time to try to take advantage of its benefits while minimizing the problems.



 


Sister moves to Janesville

We're all quite excited to welcome Laura's sister Lisa, her husband Kaz, and their children Ty and Mae to Janesville after living for a number of years in the Philadelphia area. Family visits have been plentiful since their late October arrival. It's great to be near family!



 


Are penalties on savings next?

I'm sure you've noticed the interest rates on passbook savings drop astonishingly low. Even certificates of deposit at my bank are well below 3%, at least for the shorter terms. I was talking about this with a friend and we imagined what would happen if interest rates went negative: you'd have to pay a penalty for putting money in savings! Let's hope it doesn't happen in the name of "stimulating the economy!"



 


Buffet Restaurant Pitfalls

In early January Laura and I joined a couple we know from Wisconsin Dells for a dinner at a Madison area buffet restaurant. The next day Laura and I were flat on our backs with gastric distress. Laura had to go to the hospital for dehydration (remember she was pregnant with Susie at the time, and morning sickness was compounding the bug) that evening. The couple we ate with were fine, so it might not have been food poisoning, but neither Laura nor I are eager to return to any buffet restaurants for awhile.



 


Molasses cookies rediscovered

For the first time in our married life Laura decided to bake molasses cookies. These things are truly a delight. If the thought of a soft, warm, molasses cookie makes your mouth water, why not write and ask Laura for the recipe?



 


Toy clogs toilet

Right around the time Susie was born, Nathan decided to send R2-D2 spelunking. He flushed the plastic toy down the toilet. Fortunately, it didn't make it to the water treatment plant. Unfortunately, it clogged up the toilet. Because of where it was lodged, the entire fixture had to be lifted off the floor. But with the help of grandma M. and the Anderson girls, the toy was retrieved and everyone was relieved (no pun intended!). The whole event had a way of bringing the family together... was it the urgency of the situation?






Ken Menningen
menningens@charter.net
Last Update: 12/24/01