Please Pray

Please pray for Gary's extended family. His paternal grandmother died today. She was 90 and had been in poor health for a while. It wasn't unexpected, but sad none the less. If you have a moment, please send up a prayer for them this week. Thanks!

Strawberry Jam

What is it about taking this...

To this...

Made into this...

That makes me feel like a real woman? I LOVE homemade strawberry jam.

My Mirage of a Plan for My Life

I try to have my life under control, really I do! I am not the most organized, but usually I at least have a plan for our days. Then we hit days like yesterday and I realize that my plans are really a mirage. My plans are just a vision of what I would like my day to look like that quickly evaporate as soon as someone else enters the picture.

Yesterday afternoon, as mentioned, I was going to get my hair cut-actually cut and highlighted. The sweet girl that cuts my hair is 3 weeks from delivering her first baby. She is super swollen, and as a result, a little slower than normal. So, I left the salon LATE with cut and highlighted wet hair. I had to go pick up Nathan from his club after school a little early so that he could go help our neighbor with her kids. It's his after school job usually on Tues. and Thurs., but she asked for him on Weds. this week. No problem, I had told her he would be a little late due to my haircut, but now I was even later than anticipated. I got to Nate's school and asked for him to be paged, but the P.A. system was down. I had to search the school for him since he was collecting recycling and could be in ANY ROOM IN THE SCHOOL! I spent almost 30 minutes searching, asking each and every kid I saw if they knew where Nathan was. FINALLY, I found him. I was about 10 seconds from standing in the lobby and screaming his name as loud as I could! He, of course, had a friend with him.

"Mom, could we take Brady home?"

Well, what could I say? Sure, we could take Brady home. Where does Brady live? Oh, only 10 minutes past our house in the wrong direction. Normally this wouldn't bother me, but Grammy had to get the other kids off the elementary school bus and I didn't want to leave them at her house too long. Besides that, I felt sure the puppy was ready to go out. On the way to taking Brady home, Nate called our neighbor and she no longer needed him to come...it was too late. (Sorry Denise, I really tried!) We got to Brady's house and before I could say anything, Nathan disappears into the house to "just see it for a minute". It took me 10 minutes to get him back out to the car and on our way home.

We got home, and I have to go to the bathroom badly by now. I came in the house, let the dog out of his crate and don't even get to the front door to let him out before Kaylyn is ringing the doorbell. I open the door to a panicked little girl saying, "Momma, I HAVE to talk to you!". Meanwhile, the dog has gone out the door with no supervision. Thank goodness, he really had to pee and came back in for his treat. Kaylyn proceeds to tell me, in the span of about 24 seconds all in one breath:

A boy at school really likes her and gave her a pair of earrings today. She likes this boy, but only as a friend, so she didn't feel she could keep the earrings. She sent them back to him via another boy because she didn't want to hurt his feelings. The boy that likes her was really upset, buried the earrings on the playground, and was crying at school. Can we please go back to the playground dig up the earrings so she can give them back to him again. And, by the way, did she do the right thing and how can she make him feel better?

Ummmmm, can I go to the bathroom before I solve this crisis? Please? I really have to go!

So, we talked about what Kaylyn should say to this boy (thank you for thinking of her, she really likes him just as a friend-but a nice friend, she appreciated him thinking of her, she is sorry she hurt his feelings, etc.) and she called him and talked to him. Then we load everyone up in the car and went back to the playground to find the earrings. Of course, this wasn't an easy job, but Kaylyn wasn't leaving until they were found. It ended up that I called the boy's mom-she, of course had no idea that he was giving earrings to Kaylyn...and they were his sister's earrings!-and they agreed to meet us at the playground to dig up the earrings. That boy worked really hard to bury them-without a shovel-because they were about 4 inches deep! Thankfully, they were found, the kids played on the playground for a little while and then we came home so that I could...

...Make dinner. I was making tacos. As I am browning the ground beef, I noticed that it smells funny. Apparently my ground beef had gone bad and in the rush to get it going, I hadn't noticed until it was browning. Of course, I didn't have another pound of ground beef, so I trekked over to Grammy's to beg for beef. She, of course, had some so I started dinner for the second time-after I threw away the first ground beef and washed the pan and utensils. At some point, Gary came in and mentioned how hungry he was and hoped we didn't have to wait until 7:00 to eat. Guess what time dinner hit the table? YEP, you guessed it, 7:00 it was. So sorry, Honey, I really did try to get it done sooner!

All in all, it wasn't a bad day. I was thrilled to get a haircut and highlights. I was glad to take Brady home. I enjoyed having extra time in the car with Nathan. I was super proud of Kaylyn for doing the right thing and being concerned about hurting some one's feelings. The kids had been wanting to play on the new playground at school for weeks, and we finally got the chance. I had been wanting tacos for a couple of days and finally got them. It wasn't a bad day, it just wasn't what I had planned.

Someone out there, please tell me you have days like these? Anyone?

New Hair

I have a hair cut scheduled for today. I always want a new look, but chicken out when I get there. I have had about the same hair-long with bangs, give or take about 10 inches, since middle school. (I'm not counting those 2 years after the triplets were born and I had no bangs because I didn't get my hair cut-or wear makeup-for that long! Those are "the lost years".) Oh well, at least the highlights should help blend some of the grey. Nathan keeps telling me just how "white" I'm getting. Well, actually, he tells any and everyone around when the subject of my hair comes up. I love that boy, but might have to kill him! I just told him that most of those white hairs are labeled with his name. Actually, it's my desire to be totally white like my great grandmother, Mam, or my grandmother, Grammy Ruth, before I die. I remember their hair as pure white and just a beautiful texture as they aged. I figure I have earned those grey hairs, but I would like them to blend in! Oh well, it's the price of one more day, not to mention 5 kids, a husband and puppy, I guess. Have a super day! I'm off to get my hair trimmed and highlighted...not that anyone will notice the difference. It always looks the same to my family.

Funny!

The other day Jenny and I were at Sam's Club. When we came out this is what greeted us:

Good morning to you too!

Many Hands Make Light Work

Today Grandpa Dud got several loads of mulch for his gardens. My boys had a great opportunity to make a little money and help out Grandpa Dud. Claire made $.50 taking some great pictures for me. She wanted to help with the mulch, but I thought she would be better at picture taking...not to mention I was still in my nightgown and couldn't get out there myself! Anyway, here are some great pictures of the boys in action!

Field Day

Doesn't this look like fun!?! When was the last time you did something that just made you grin from ear to ear? Our kids spent the day doing that today. Here's a peek...

The kids in elementary school had their field day today! They had a ton of fun. It was just the most beautiful day. It was hot enough that the water games were fun, but not so hot that they were melting. It was a great time for all of them.

Please notice Claire's shirt. I helped make her class's shirts. Each class chose a different college to represent. Claire was the University of Delaware, Kaylyn was the Navel Academy, Danny was Penn State, and Collin was Washington College.

Daddy enjoyed using his new video camera. He got some great shots of the kids and they loved watching themselves when they got home!

Claire's Field Trip

Claire and I went on a field trip to the Herr's snack factory today. During the tour, we got to see tortilla chips, potato chips and popcorn being make and packaged. In the warehouse, they said that they have about a 4 day turnover. That means that all of the boxes in the warehouse will be gone and replaced with new ones every 4 days. That's a TON of junk food! It was interesting to see all of the different machines they use to make, package and box the different snacks. They also gave us warm chips from the fryer on the tour. Mmmmmmm, potato chips have never tasted so good! I thought it was interesting that any edible byproducts from the factories-chips that hit the floor, potatoes that aren't up to their standards, etc.-are ground up and fed to the Angus cows that the Herr's family raises. I'm thinking that HAS to be some great beef! I think Claire had a fun time, but it was a long bus ride for a short tour and lunch. At least we got to spend the day together. I sure love that she still wants me to go on her trips with her. She's such a lovie!

The Land of Plenty

This has to be the coolest farm EVER! They grow marshmallows! If only I could find a chocolate bar and graham cracker big enough to make s'mores. Mmmmmmmm!

Who are you?

Hey, I added the Live Traffic Feed on the blog and noticed some people visiting the blog that I might not know. WELCOME! I'm so blessed that you chose to visit my little blog. Please, feel free to browse around. I would love to know where you are from and how you found us, so if you feel comfortable, please leave a comment introducing yourself. I love new friends! Hope you decide to come back! Have a happy day.

3 vs. 3

Well, I thought when we left for the tournament, we needed to file this experience under, "You Must be Kidding Me!". It was pouring like CRAZY, much worse than 2 weeks ago when it was postponed. The powers that be decided that it was supposed to clear up, so they said the tournament was ON. Check in and the first games were a mess! It was raining pretty hard, but both Collin and Danny's team and Nathan's team won the first round. After that game, the rain did start to let up. By the third games, we didn't need our umbrellas anymore.


I was so proud of the poor girls, they were real troopers! They didn't play, but they hung in there the WHOLE day! They didn't even complain too much (although they were ready to go by the 5th games). I think a soft pretzel helped a little as did the snacks I brought.

I have to say, I am not sure I have ever been as proud of the boys as I was yesterday. They played-and played HARD-in tough conditions all day long! The fields were wet, the ball was wet, their socks and cleats were wet, their uniforms were soaked, and it was cold and windy. They played on as if there were no problems...as if it was reasonable to play on a rainy, windy, cold day. The heart and soul they left on the field was awesome!
Collin (black socks) and Danny's (white socks) team had 6 players while Nate's (number 17) had only 5. That missing player on Nate's team made a HUGE difference. Instead of being able to substitute all 3 at a time, his team had to rotate subs. On top of that, one of the top players on Nate's team hurt his ankle in the Quarter Finals and he was unable to play on. This left Nathan to feel as if he needed to "carry" his team. He was all over the field! I don't think they took him out for a rest the whole game. He was also playing against the most aggressive kid I have ever seen is his age group. If that kid had attacked a kid other than Nathan, he would've really hurt someone. (Nate is so big and strong, he didn't stop playing, but he was really hurting at the end of the game.) Gary said that Danny and Collin's game was close too. He said there were a few missed opportunities and the game might have turned out differently. I do know that both boys played really hard.


Unfortunately, both teams lost in the Semi-Final round. It was a bummer to get that far and not make the finals, but I have to say, our boys were amazing! Gary and I couldn't have asked for anymore out of them.


It turned out to be a much better day than I could've hoped. The boys did a great job, the girls were really very good, and the weather did clear a little. As a matter of fact, I am the ONLY person I know that can get a sunburn on a rainy day. I am RED today! Who would've thought I needed sunscreen when it was 58 degrees and raining? Not me!

Soccer Tournament

We are on our way to a 3 vs. 3 tournament in the RAIN! We have been told that they are going to play regardless of weather-barring lightning. great. Should be interesting. Updates to come.

Busy Weekend

We have a busy weekend...again. Soccer for the boys on Saturday and a special 3 vs. 3 tournament on Sunday. Kaylyn and Claire have a Grandmother/Granddaughter picnic at Grammy's church on Saturday. It always makes me a little nutty to have us going in different directions on the weekends (It's important to me that we support one another's activities, but we can't be at everything!), but I know they will all have fun. I just hope the weather holds up and it's not too hot and humid. Have a super weekend!

It's so Fun...

It's so fun living in a farming community. I have learned and seen so much that I never thought anything about when I lived the "the city". One day, our first spring here, I heard this awful droning noise outside. I ran outside to see what was going on, because I honestly thought there was a plane coming right through my window. Well, it wasn't coming through the window, but it was a plane...a yellow biplane dusting the fields all around our little community. It's just amazing to watch. He was back the other day and I ran out to try to get some pictures. It's hard to catch it just right, I get so caught up in watching him maneuver the plane up and around the trees, phone lines and poles. I almost have to hold my breath until he clears the trees. I'm just SURE he's going to hit them this time around. Somehow, he misses the trees, but hits the fields just right each time. It sure does look like fun! I have come to think of him as our own Yellow Barron. He is a true dare devil! I can just imagine him "barn storming" long ago. Happy, safe flying Mr. Barron...thanks for the entertainment!

Dear Mr. Chef...

Dear Mr. Chef,

When you teach a class, please be sure your recipes are correct. It is a terrific disappointment to take a class expecting new wonderful recipes only to find that they are awful! Even worse, when we spend our time following the directions you have provided, we expect delicious results. By the way, at no time is it appropriate to say, "Oh, well I used to have a great recipe for Italian Almond Chocolate Torte but I lost it. I thought this was close, but I guess not."

Please be sure the measurements in your recipes are correct. As you explained, baking is a science and the recipes are specific formulas-they should be followed closely. It makes your students wonder about your abilities when we have mixed up a recipe only to have you tell us to "add 12 oz. MORE coconut". Twelve ounces? That's not a little off, that's 3/4 of a pound! I am sorry, but that makes a HUGE difference. When the creme brulee doesn't set up, it doesn't help us to say, "Maybe it needed 2 more egg yokes." Oh, and please explain why we might need to reduce 2 out of 3 components in a recipes. Don't you think it should be consistent? Just where does the "formula" fit into this recipe?

Please make sure you bring the correct supplies to class. When you are making Creme Brulee, it is imperative that your blow torch WORKS! Without the crunchy top, it's not much of a brulee...it's just custard-unless it doesn't set up, then it's just a really thick milky substance no one wants to eat! When you are making a bar type dessert, it helps to have a 13"x9" pan. When you are making a torte, a spring form pan would really help with the presentation. If you are going to make marzipan fruit, please bring the marzipan. Do not use the leftover almond paste.

Please do not show up with Food Lion brand ingredients as I can't imagine that Food Lion stocks the best, gourmet ingredients. Please do not tell us that unsalted butter is all a professional chef will use and then bring us salted butter. And, please do not tell us about the ingredients you use in Europe if they are not available locally.

And finally, although I could continue, please do not tell your students just how important fresh, seasonal ingredients are and then proceed to teach us pumpkin and cranberry recipes in May.

All in all, I have to say that I am disappointed in your teaching and your lack of preparation. When I have spent $130 on a class, I expect a lot more.

Your disillusioned student

P.S. When you have students that have paid $130 for a course that consists of only 3 classes, it would be smart to send any leftovers home with them. At no time does it seem appropriate to explain that it was your birthday this week, so you are taking a whole fruit tart-that we have made in class-home to share with your friends. I believe that we paid a hefty price for that tart and it is one of the few recipes that DID turn out.

Last Cooking Class

I have my last cooking class tonight. We are making a souffle. I've never made one of those before. I have high hopes for this evening. I'll let you know how it goes.

Day of Recovery

I am recovering today. I hope to do NOTHING! It was a busy weekend and now I am thankful to have everyone back to school/work. Maybe, maybe, maybe I will do a little laundry...only after a nap. Yea! It's days like this I am so thankful to be a stay at home momma!

Mother's Day

I had a lovely Mother's Day. First thing this morning, the kids and Gary had a scavenger hunt for me to find different cards and gifts they had for me. Gary had some delicious chocolates for me from a local store...they were dark chocolate, my favorite. After that, we went to church. When we got home, I had everything done except cooking the things that needed to be heated! It was great! Well, yesterday I didn't think it was quite so great, but today it was really nice to just throw things in the oven and be done! Of course the kids were so hungry I didn't get a picture of full plates, but here they are half empty.

We really enjoyed spending time with Grammy and Grandmom.

After lunch, Gary, Grandpa Dud and Nathan cleared the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher. It was really nice to not have to clean up!

After everyone went home, I was thrilled to see Gary and the boys playing soccer for a while outside. It is so nice to see them playing together. The girls entertained me with a little dance. No gift could've been better than that for me.

I am so thankful to be a momma. It's all I ever wanted to be. God has so blessed me with such a great family.

Saturday Crazy

We had a crazier than usual Saturday. We had conflicting soccer games (of course...I hate those!) that started by 10:00. That would've been ok, but Nathan wanted to go watch a friend's lacrosse game at 8:45 first. We did, then rushed to his game over a 1/2 hour away. Nathan's team tied, although they came back from an 0-3 deficit. It was a great effort on their part. Danny scored 2 goals, one assisted by Collin, at his game while Collin held down the defense. I am just wondering if Danny scores when I'm NOT there on purpose!?!

On the way home, we stopped by WalMart-my LEAST favorite store on the face of the earth-for some last minute Mother's Day food. I made most of the food ahead of time since we were hosting Mother's Day and still wanted to get to church. I have a great make ahead menu of:
Tomato Pesto Tartlets
Onion Sticks (made by Grammy)
Bacon Canapes (made by Grammy)
Chicken Squares
Watergate Salad
Raspberry Poppy Seed Salad
Corn and Mixed Veggies
Mini Cheesecakes with Cherry and/or Strawberry topping
Cupcakes
It was really easy to make up and all I have to do is bake everything when we got back from church.

Of course the house needed to be cleaned and then we needed to mow the lawn and all of the common area around our house. This took Gary and I both mowing-Gary for several hours, me for just about one hour.

Nathan had a party to go to from 5:30-8:00...he needed to be dropped off and picked up from that!

On top of all of that, I have a horrible stiff neck and shoulder that just won't get better. I laid down for a bit with the heating pad, but needed to get up and get moving.

All in all, it was a crazy day, but we got everything done! I am so thankful for a husband that pitches in and helps out when needed.

Teacher Appreciation

This week was Teacher Appreciation Week. At our old school, I was in charge of that. Here, thankfully, I am just a worker bee, doing what I am told. I LOVE it. I shopped for the meat and Mom and I made meat trays for the lunch today. I wasn't planning on spending the whole day there, but realized that there was only one other mom to clean up. Needless to say, I felt bad and ended up staying all day. It was fun to see all of the teachers enjoy their lunch. They really do work so hard to make school a fun place for the kids. I was shocked at how much food was leftover for next week. I guess it's the lunch that keeps on giving! A special thank you for all of you teachers! There isn't enough appreciation for all you do!

Well, Good Morning

Well, we had just a LOVELY morning this morning. I don't think there was one person that escaped the @#$%&#@ on Momma train today!

Nathan has decided that all of the morals and values we have taught him his whole life are stupid and don't really matter. After all, kids at school don't live like we do and they are "fine". GREAT, I see home schooling in his future!

Kaylyn refuses to speak so that we can understand her. She slurs all of her words together and sounds like she has marbles in her mouth. When/if we ask her to repeat herself, she gets frustrated and angry. After all, everyone at school understands her so much better than we do at home. I see the silent treatment in her future!

Collin and Danny were awful to Grammy when she woke them up this morning. She stays here while I drive Nathan to school. She wakes them up about 15 minutes after I leave so that they can get their showers. They were really unhappy this morning about getting up and let Grammy and me know it! After all, all the other kids at school get to sleep in as long as they want! I see early bedtime in their future!

Claire, after watching all of this go down and my responses to it, wanted to know if she had mentioned that I was really grumpy this morning. After all, most mommas are happy to see their kids in the mornings. I see a new momma in her future!

Chip has spent the morning whining about going outside. He has discovered that he likes to dig in the front mulch...a lot! After all, all the other dogs get to dig where ever they want. I see attachment to a long leash in his future!

All in all, I would say that I had a "wonderful" morning. After all, the other mommas out there don't have grumpy, ungrateful kids. They have smiling, cheerful, respectful children that are happy to get up, communicate and smile sweetly as they leave for school. I see happy pills in my future!

Carpet Cleaning

We have been in the house for over a year and it was time to have the carpets cleaned. I decided that it would be smart to buy a carpet cleaner-we have 5 kids and a puppy and light tan carpets-rather than having a professional cleaning service come. I just felt that would be saving money in the long run.

Gary and I had a date night on Monday and we stopped at Sams Club and bought one. (I know, we are just wild and crazy!) It wasn't quite as expensive as I thought and it even came with the cleaning solution specifically for pet stains! Bonus!

Yesterday, I put it together and used it in 3 different rooms. I have to say, I really like our new Bissell ProClean Pet carpet steam cleaner. It worked great! It got out all of the stains and made the house smell nice. It was a little bit time consuming, but it wasn't hard at all. If you have a need for a steam cleaner, I would say this was a good buy. I am all for anything that makes my life a little easier (and cleaner!).

Cooking Class Part 2

We had cooking class again tonight. It was a little better than last time, although one recipe was totally incorrect and tasted horrible. We made a Paula Deen recipe (I could've done this one without any instruction, I promise you!) called Pumpkin Gooey Cake. Not sure why that was the name, it wasn't very gooey, but it was delicious. The best part of the class was when the chef taught us how to make mini almond paste pumpkins. He made one, and then left the rest of the orange almond paste sitting there. Well, to me, that was just an invitation. I finished the rest of the paste. Aren't they cute? We then made Cranberry Turtle Bars. It was a really good recipe for the holidays. The last recipe was Italian Almond and Chocolate Torte. All I can say is that it was a horrible waste of REALLY GOOD CHOCOLATE! When we tasted it, the chef said, "Well, I thought this was close to the recipe I lost, but I guess you need to add cocoa powder and a little more sugar." Really, I paid $130 for a lousy recipe? Great, thanks a lot. Oh well, it was fun to get out with my buddy Jenny. If nothing else, she gets the humor in the comments I make under my breath throughout the class. We spent a lot of time trying to hide our giggles.

Student of the Month!

Before school this morning, Nathan says,

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. I'm Student of the Month this month. It's no big deal." (Please see picture below to see his level of excitement!)

Well, it's a bid deal for the Momma. I'm super proud of the young man he is. He's the kind of kid that most Mommas can only dream of raising...and I'm not the only person that thinks so! I have had so many people tell me how great his is, from teachers to friends of the family. So, although I don't do it often, I'm going to take a moment and beam with pride, take a deep breath and say a prayer of thankfulness for my oldest son. (Fear not, it will only take a moment before something sends me back to worrying about my parenting!)

My Little Chip

You might remember that Chip is our new puppy. I actually named him Chocolate Chip, but we just call him Chip. He is adorable and a lot of fun. His is really snugly and great with the kids. He had a check up at the vet today and gained 10 pounds in a month! I couldn't believe it because we kept thinking he wasn't growing very much. I guess he was! The vet said he looked great and to keep doing what we were doing.

I say he's smart because he knows the commands: Come, Sit, Down. He does them pretty consistently with me, not so consistently with others. Gary says he's not real smart and is in danger of loosing his home because he is having trouble with housebreaking. That's the reason he has spent a lot of time in doggie jail as of late. Bless his heart, I think he is confused. He goes out and sniffs around, but then comes in a pees on the floor. It makes me want to strangle him! I am now in the market for a steam carpet cleaner. Any thoughts about brands?

The poor guy is really sore from his booster shot. The kids came home and he hardly even got up to see them. I called the vet and they said to give him a baby aspirin and a Benedryl. Poor puppy! I hope he feels better soon.

Bummer!

The boys were to have a 3 vs. 3 soccer tournament today. We got up early, got dressed, ate and left only to find out that it was postponed due to weather. Bummer! We did get word that we would reschedule for May 17th. Let's pray for nice weather.

Mowing

Our builder hasn't been able to pay anyone to mow our common areas in our community. The recession has been tough on all builders. In an effort to help out, we said that we would mow behind our house. The problem was there were HUGE rocks in the field so we needed to walk the whole field and get rid of them so they didn't damage the mower. Grandpa Dud had started several days ago and today we finished.

Here are the boys looking for rocks. They found and moved them before I mowed the grass.











Local wildlife. Oh, I didn't get a picture of the snake that Grammy killed for me today, but it was the third one this year! (I stayed on the tractor and watched it while Grammy got the shovel. I'm a little afraid of snakes, you know!)











Our field looked like this before:











And after: