candid camera

Posted on March 7, 2016 by Shanda

Can you feel the love? This is my favorite picture from Ethan’s 18th birthday party, he’s in a love sandwich between his girlfriend, sister, and cousin. And then there is Emily hugging a cat behind them, and Seth sitting on the couch, amused.

MORE PICS—all from my phone—

This is what Sarah, Seth, and Caleb have been doing all weekend…riding scooters. They are only 27 dollars on amazon and we just ordered a black one for David as well. I love them because it’s a fun activity that they can do outside and we let them ride them in the house, too. It’s the sweetest sound to hear their wheels running along the floor as they enjoy their scooters.

The dining room became a small wrestling gym on the day of Ethan’s party…..

Rich wrestled Jimmy, who actually showed some promise! He goes to our church and isn’t from our town so alas cannot join our team next year.

Getting pinned by Coach

Caleb (green shorts) was the ref.

I took pictures and periodically screamed be careful.

Ethan and Zak

soon everyone wanted to wrestle and I did a cartwheel.

There was loud music going on, too.

later on that night Caleb (G’s boyfriend) and Rich did a sit up contest that went on and on and on…..

They each did over 500 before Caleb cramped up and had to stop, Rich kept going for another 20 or 30 sit ups and then he stopped, too.

I discovered all these goofy selfies disrespectfully left on my phone so yeah…they’re going on the blog….**payback**

We watched movies, ate food, had pie and cheesecake as birthday cake, ice cream, and I went to bed at like 9:00 pm but Rich stayed up with them until 3. When I got up at 6:30 there were kids sleeping all over the place, I walked into each room to check on them with a smile on my face. Ethan woke up and made pancakes for all of us using his Grandma’s recipe. Then came a turn for everyone in the shower and a trip to church where several of them had a hard time staying awake because of their long but fun night.

a super super bowl gathering

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Shanda

God granted us some much needed encouragement this morning. On Thursday, I had to pick Sarah up from school because she had a fever. I took her to the pediatrician and the preliminary test they did showed yet another UTI. A never-ending UTI was what alerted us to her kidney stones. My heart sank as we went to fill a prescription for antibiotics and all weekend, even though we had fun, in the back of my mind I was starting to obsess again about UTI, kidney stones, water intake, low sodium diet, and citrus fruits.

Fast forward to just an hour ago. The doctor’s office called with the final lab results which were NEGATIVE for a UTI. Soooooooooo grateful!

She’s getting over the fever and a bad cough but otherwise she is fine, and by the way she doesn’t really wear glasses. The ones in the picture are just for fun from Claires so she could be “just like Grace”. Her dad read her a Narnia story book on Sunday morning and we spent the rest of the day getting ready for a super Super Bowl gathering of friends and relations.

MENU:

Pizza ordered out (three party sized) meat, mushroom, and plain cheese
Tossed Salad brought by Isaac and Cassandra
Cocktail meatballs made and brought by Louis, one of the wrestling boys
Homemade cupcakes brought by Dom which were made by his Mom
Caroline’s Taco Dip
Caroline’s chocolate chip Blondies
Homemade chicken wings using this recipe
Barefoot Contessa’s outrageous brownies (sure to give anyone a chocolate coma)
chips and dip and salsa
crackers and cheese
fruit tray
veggie tray

They were watching a youtube video….Caleb and Grace (young love)…Dave, Caleb, and Sarah

Rich and Zak greeted one another with a handshake

Zach, Michael, Ethan, Jacob, and Dom

The basement full of kids

Portrait of all of us—25

Me and my brother Isaac

Me and my mate

Emily wasn’t in the group photo because she was at work (young love pic #2)

Ethan and Tessa (young love #3)

Ethan wasn’t mad, I think this is his “I’m tough and cool” face.

Parker the dog snuggled with the company as much as possible.

*****

The children had a snow day on Friday and guess what? They are home again today for another one. The snow just started and the flakes are numerous but small. The sky is solid white and each time I look out the window the snow is blowing in a different direction (usually straight down or to the right). It’s a cold, dry snow and supposed to last all day. Ethan made a fire in the fireplace, Grace and Sarah are having sister time, Caleb and Seth have been playing but just turned on a show “If you give a Mouse a Cookie”. Jacob went and got Emily before the snow started and they just made eggs for breakfast. Rich went to work but we’ve been texting each other.

*****

It is thus, in little days — that our years come to us. We have but the one small fragment to fill and beautify at a time.

The year is a book, and for each day — one fair white page is opened before us.

And we are artists, whose duty it is to put something beautiful on the page.

Or we are poets, and are to write some lovely thought, some radiant sentence, on each leaf as it lies open before us.

“That we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” 1 Timothy 2:2

~JR Miller

the story of a birthday, with recipes

Posted on January 4, 2016 by Shanda

On the morning of December 31, Jacob woke up and smiled. It was his nineteenth birthday and he was looking forward to being home all day long as the center of attention, with lots of family and friends saying Happy Birthday over and over, and generally making merriment in his honor. As the first of seven children, he always felt his very best in a crowd.

His sweet girlfriend was the first to arrive. The day was sunny and pretty.

Emily and Jacob spent time together until she had to go to work.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, I was very busy making meatballs out of 10 pounds of hamburger.

M E A T B A L L S

I have opinions about meatballs. The ones found in the frozen food section of the grocery store are miles away from being as tasty as homemade. The only ones I have found pre-made that I will pay good money for are a brand that costco sells in the refrigerator section. They are sold in bags of sauce and they are very good. But I haven’t been able to find them lately and also they are a bit more expensive than homemade.

I didn’t like making meatballs until I thought to myself, “I DO like making cookies and they are the same exact concept”. Big bowl, dump in ingredients, mix, and form into balls on cookie sheets. Bake at 350. EASY!

Here is a basic recipe, but the sky is the limit with meatballs. Simple is best.

4 pounds ground beef
2 eggs
4 slices fresh bread, town into bread crumbs
1/2 finely minced onion
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup tomato juice

Mix together, form into balls, bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until done.

At this point you may cool them and freeze for later, or use them in your favorite recipe.

For Jacob’s party I put them in a crock pot, poured sauce over and turned the dial to “warm”. I prepared buttered noodles and kept them in casserole dishes in the empty oven to store until dinner.

A note about sauce. I do buy prepared sauce and keep it in the pantry but lately I’ve been cutting the saltiness of it by adding a big (28 oz) can of plain whole tomatoes to the pot. To me this has a fresher taste and is more “tomatoey” rather than “processed spaghetti sauce”. A plain, simple, but high quality sauce is nice for simmering meatballs because the meatballs flavor the sauce deliciously.

The house began to fill with teenagers. Jacob is blessed to have great friends in his life and also a birthday that falls on a great party day—New Year’s Eve—and for the last few years the day has turned into an all night celebration for them (not me. I hate staying up late.)

With Ethan and a couple other boys on the wrestling team, we try to have lots of fresh fruit and veggies in the fridge at all times. And it’s good for all of us to eat them.

Caleb’s mom won the “best dip” award (no prize, just the title) by sending along a a couple bags of waffle fries for us to bake and then serve with this dip:

1 tub of sour cream
diced chives (a couple handfuls)
a pack of bacon cooked and diced
a cup of shredded cheddar cheese

Mix together and chill for at least an hour and then top with a little more chives and bacon. Serve with waffle fries.

amazing…so so good

Our old couch is now down in the basement along with a TV and the game systems. So this year it became the kid’s favorite hang out place. I just had to control my curiosity and not go down to see what they were doing constantly.

Just once in a while. And it’s always interesting. Who would have expected seeing Ethan with a tower of dog biscuits on his head?

This is the face of someone whose heart was saying all day long, “How can my darling baby boy be 19 years old?”

Rich is always trying to get kids to do sit ups and push ups with him.

TIME TO EAT! but first a birthday blessing……

directly followed by a little bit of wrestling

not sorry Tessa….you’re beautiful even with your tongue sticking out….

LOVE LOVE LOVE these SMILES!

Emily came back as soon as she was done with work. She couldn’t wait to dive into the meatballs because I had only let her have one of them that morning.

even more wrestling

They were watching a football game together. (Caleb is a huge football fan).

Eventually it was presents and cake time.

This was Seth about to almost put his dog in the flames. *sigh* thank goodness Emily was there to intercept. Blowing out the candles couldn’t happen fast enough, in my opinion. I think Parker the dog was nervous, too. He helps me keep things under control.

Moist Chocolate Cake

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup baking cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 cup canola oil
1 cup brewed coffee, room temperature
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the oil, coffee and milk; beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla; beat 2 minutes longer.

Pour into a greased 9 by 13, or for a layer cake, two greased and floured 9 inch round baking pans. Bake at 325 for 25-30 minus or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely before frosting.

BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

1 cup butter, softened
8 cups confectioners sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 to 3/4 cup milk

Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of completely cooled cake (note: this is plenty of frosting to top two 9 by thirteen cakes kept in the pans, which is what I did for the party).

(I doubled this recipe for two 9 by thirteens)

recipe source: taste of home baking classics cookbook

Thank you to Emily and Ethan and his girlfriend Tessa for serving out the cake and ice cream.

Jacob had a wonderful birthday and it was fun to see him enjoy himself. One of my favorite things about him is his ready laugh.

That’s frosting on those pants.

By the next morning, after a night of doing who knows what, the teens were all watching Sesame Street of all things. We ate breakfast prepared by Emily at about 8:30 and then people began to either 1) leave or 2) crash all over the couches to sleep.

Jacob had a lot of changes in the last year and we look forward to seeing him continue growing and learning throughout this next one, too. His last year of being a teenager.

Time flies. And we are having fun.

busy kitchen, happy hearts

Posted on December 15, 2015 by Shanda

Good morning, dear friends and relations, it is a beautiful fall day. The official first day of winter is in one week and it currently does not feel a bit like winter. Caleb, my precious soft hearted boy, had tears in his eyes this morning as he looked at the weather report for the days leading up to Christmas. NO SNOW. He said he prayed about it, too. He wonders if we will have ANY snow AT ALL this winter. It’s so important to him that it makes me long for snow, too. What a happy boy I will have on that day.

I went down to the chicken coop to let out the hens and give them a bowl of leftovers. I collected three eggs and stood at the pond to look at the beauty around me as I prayed a good morning prayer to God, asking him to send down his blessings on this old world, thanking Him for all He enables us to do each day….learn, grow, think, laugh, praise, heal, feel, work, BE…new creations. The old has passed away and the new has come like a miracle. Every good thing comes from above and our thankful hearts please Him.

The birds are happy, too. I have a feeder by the porch which brings in the songbirds. They sit in the bushes by the house and take turns flying over to select a seed.

I opened windows and turned on the house fan for some fresh air. Later on I will go the post office to get a Christmas card weighed because I bought a pack that require extra postage, but how much extra? I need to figure it out and get to work writing my cards, which I do so love to do, sending out mail is a pleasure. Receiving it is, too!

*****

How about one last post featuring dear Hannah? Oh, we had a lovely visit, doing so many simple sweet things together like sing and play piano, put together puzzles, watch TV, go for walks, and……..WORK IN THE KITCHEN. How fun it is to work side by side with another woman in the kitchen! Four hands are better than two. And we were blessed with two little helpers….eight hands ready to work in the busy kitchen.

While Hannah set to work making her famous chicken noodle soup with homemade noodles, I began a batch of Christmas cookies….Russian tea cakes. I only regret that I didn’t think of sending a box home with her because they are a very sturdy and delicious cookie indeed, able to survive a trip to Alaska.

flour, eggs, butter, water, salt…..such humble ingredients turn into the best of comfort foods…NOODLES

She rolled the dough as thin as possible and then cut the noodles on a cutting board.

Then, she sprinkled them on a floured cookie sheet to dry for a little while.

I put Seth and Sarah to work rolling balls of cookie dough. “Is this one too big Mom?” she asked. “Yes, a little.” “Okay,” she said as she solved the problem by taking a chunk off to put it in her mouth.

just right.

sweet happy Hannah. In this picture you can see the paper Angel garland over the entry to the dining room. Hannah bought one for her house, too. Isn’t it pretty?

The noodles are all cut out and waiting to be placed in hot flavorful chicken broth.

The cookies are done and powdered sugar (which Sarah called flour over and over regardless of my corrections) was everywhere — reminding us of Caleb’s elusive snow.

I left Hannah briefly in order to pick up my teenagers from High School and take a few of their friends home. When we returned, dinner was done. She made fresh and creamy mashed potatoes for us to pour the soup over. Every bit of this meal was homemade and it was so delicious that even though I was filled up by my first helping, I knew it would be a crime not to enjoy a second helping. So I did.

And it was just what Grace needed to recover from a long long day of school.

But that wasn’t the end of Hannah’s work in the kitchen that night. As soon as she was done with the chicken, she began a batch of overnight cinnamon rolls.

((By the way, Hannah was wearing an apron that she made for me years ago.))

THE NEXT MORNING……Sarah eagerly watched the cinnamon rolls bake in the oven at 350 degrees.

pretty pretty profile

The cinnamon rolls were blanketed with cream cheese frosting.

Once again, I helped myself to several cinnamon rolls too many just for the sake of taking advantage of the freshness, the homemadeness, and the lovingness of Hannah’s baking. Although she mourned what she considered *a shade too brown of a bottom*, let me assure you THEY WERE PERFECTION.

After our cinnamon roll breakfast, we took David, Caleb, Seth, and Sarah to the movies. But before we did, we attempted a “frameworthy” photo of the two of us. Forever friends.

That night, Hannah helped us decorate our Christmas tree. Tomorrow I will share the family photos she took of Rich and I with the kids. But this next one was one that I had Grace take of the two of us holding books that we bonded over. I first believed Hannah was a possible kindred spirit because she mentioned on her old xanga blog that she was reading the James Herriot books which I absolutely LOVE. Then, later on, once we became pen pals and got to know each other better, we read several LM Montgomery books together, including Pat of Silver Bush.

Book recommendations!

“A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.”

“True friends are always together in spirit” LM Montgomery

together again

Posted on December 10, 2015 by Shanda

“friendships multiply joys and divide griefs” HG Bohn

My Alaskan friend is sleeping off her jet lag this morning so I have a few blessed minutes to tip tap on the keyboard now that the children have been fed their pancakes, cleaned up, and gotten on the bus. It’s a misty morning. Caleb woke up and said he had dreamed that it had snowed, and without missing a beat he cried, “WHY WON’T IT SNOW!!!!!” He doesn’t want a green Christmas but I said it’s better than a blue one.

Hannah and I went for a walk yesterday and just as we were stepping off the lawn onto the road an ambulance came slowly down to park at the end of the trail by our woods. A uniformed man got out and started striding up the trail purposefully. We *needed* to know what was happening so I went over to the window to ask the man in the passenger seat what was going on, imagining that someone was in trouble in the woods. He laughed, “He needed to go to the bathroom.”

You never know what God is going to bring across your path just when you needed a nice laugh. We left the men in peace and continued on our walk quite amused.

There is a delightful little thrift shop in town so we headed there to do a little rummaging. Hannah loves to sew and she enjoyed going through all the patterns which cost 25 cents a piece. She found four to take home and use. We looked through the household goods and for the very first time EVER in this shop, I FOUND FIESTAWARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Two ring handled periwinkle blue mugs! Another gift from God to put smiles on our faces. Two mugs! One for me and one for Hannah to take home with her.

All these things for five dollars. (books, something for Dave, an ornament, a piece of pretty fabric, a hand crocheted jingle bell wall hanging, a lidded glass jar with lily of the valley on it.)

AND THE TWO FIESTA MUGS.

So then we put the box in my car and walked up the sidewalk to the coffee shop for a nice lunch. We had bean sandwiches and quiche with water to drink.

After lunch we walked up to our favorite shop. When Hannah came almost three years ago on her first visit, the two of us visited this particular shop together for the first time. It was in my own town but I had not been inside yet. It was delightful, full of charming items and decorated very nicely. It has an “Anthropologie” feel to it, a feast for the eyes and nose because there are fragrant candles in the shop, too.

We asked the shop keeper to take our photo in front of her beautiful Christmas tree.

We headed back home, stopping for small caramel lattes at the Dunkin Donuts drive through.

We watched a movie and then it was time to go get David from newspaper club.

The afternoon flew by as we sang at the piano, played with the kids and worked on a Nativity puzzle while listening to music. We made chili for dinner.

We brought a table in to the dining room and set up a Nativity set with Seth and Sarah’s help.

The kids aren’t allowed to play with it so Sarah sits in front with her own little dolls, which is why Cinderella has made an appearance.

After some TV and a little reading, the first full day of Hannah’s visit was over.

*****

And ye, beneath life’s crushing load,
whose forms are bending low,
who toil along the climbing way
with painful steps and slow,
look now! for glad and golden hours
come swiftly on the wing.
O rest beside the weary road,
and hear the angels sing!

“It Came Upon a Midnight Clear” third stanza, by Edmund Sears

I hope my friends who happen by this blog today have a blessed and peaceful day. You are loved.

I feel pretty!

Posted on October 16, 2015 by Shanda

First a couple of photos of my babies…not really babies at all…they are five and six now.

But they are the closest thing to babies I have. Well, besides my kitty.

We were waiting for the bus at 7:40 am this morning.

I feel pretty! (do you know the song from West Side Story? Grace and I sing the phrase “I feel pretty” whenever we feel especially pretty. And I’m singing it today because of my tunic.

My friend Hannah made it for me. She lives in Alaska and we have been pen pals for a long time now, and she came to visit me for a week a few years ago. I think I owe her a visit, don’t you? I’ve never been to Alaska before. I love learning about her life and her days.

I met her when we were both blogging on xanga. The first thing I read on her site that made me think she was possibly a kindred spirit was that she was currently reading through the James Herriot books. Eventually we learned that we had a lot more than that in common. We were homeschooling moms, the same age, loved the same books, and each had a bunch of children that were all about the same ages. We both got married in the same year, too. She and her husband have 6 children, four girls and two boys.

Our temperaments are a lot alike, as well. For example, we both have suffered from depression and have been able to help each other through dark days.

We both love Jesus.

Hannah is a very talented seamstress, she made Seth and Sarah each a baby blanket when they were born. She’s been sewing her own clothes and asked if she could have my measurements and if she could sew me a shirt.

Jacob and I went out to run errands all morning and as soon as we got home I ran to the mailbox and it had arrived!!

For you ladies who sew, here are some of the details: The pattern is the Schoolhouse Tunic from Sew Liberated. She ordered the fabric, which is voile, from fabric.com. The fabric is by Art Gallery Fabric and designed by Katy Jones. Maybe Hannah could answer questions in the comments if you have any.

She also made a tank to go underneath. It’s a soft, thick stretchy fabric with a nice wide band around the hem. She did a quality job and I’m thankful and humbled by her generosity.

She also sent these little goodies. I especially like the mushroom earrings. Her mom made the scrubbies and the earrings so you can see that amazing talents have been passed along from mother to daughter.

Today has been so unusual. Not only did Hannah’s package come, I also got a letter from Gina, and Wilma! The cardinal is a postcard that Dawn sent me a few weeks ago and I never did tell her I received it which is really sad…so hopefully she’ll see this post…and I’ll be writing to you four ladies ASAP, I can’t wait, and I bought some Halloween stickers today to decorate the envelopes.

Last but not least, here is a picture of Ethan (my senior 17 year old son) right after he got off the bus this afternoon. He dressed up for school because he has an away game tonight for soccer.

Happy Friday!

meeting together, a blog post of friendship

Posted on September 2, 2015 by Shanda

What do I look for in my friend?

Someone who can feel what I feel. or

Someone who doesn’t have as much emotion as I do, and can balance me out and tell me the logical facts, and calm me down. or

Someone who likes the same things I do, whether it be books, nature, fiestaware. maybe

Someone very similar to me. what about

Someone who tells me when they are hurting and struggling, so I can help.

Or, someone who is almost my opposite who can teach me things I never thought of before. perhaps

Someone older, someone younger.

A listener. A person with heart and soul. or

Someone who lets me love them.

A person who cares, loves, is kind and patient.

But most of all, the person I want for my dearest friend is a woman who has Jesus in her heart.

Not a pretender, not a “head knowledge” of truth, but the heart that is just like mine, a Jesus-heart.

In other words, I have found in my own experience of friendships, that there is no formula whatsoever but a foundation through Jesus Christ, for the purpose of “whatever reason”–that certain something she can give to me, or I can give to her to help us both be better people and keep pressing on the upward way. The Holy Spirit draws us together, He writes that woman’s name on my heart, or my name on her heart, and we have a relationship to enjoy for as long as we can.

God has put women in my life that I simply cannot forget and will not forget. We will be as loyal as the day is long. I know this because we annoy each other at one point or another – – but we can never do anything to cut the tie of friendship we feel is ours to keep.

I do have my own very priceless circle of friends that is written in stone, but there is room on the stone for more. I am always open for more kindred spirits. But I don’t go searching for them, God puts them in my path, whether at church or wherever.

Some of my friends even live “in the computer” and even if it sounds far-fetched, I know it’s true and I love it! I love that I have friends whom I have never seen face to face, yet can share common interests, encouragement, prayers, and so on.

Social media is the modern age’s pen pal system!

God’s people are everywhere and He can use all kinds of ways to draw us together. He wants us to have close relationships with others. It lifts my spirits to hear from my friends, and it’s wonderful to be a blessing to my friend, as well. I need it in order to live because life gets so heavy at times. The burdens are great. Things happen to shake me, and I can reach out to a friend and see how it is….she stops what she is doing and prays for me in love and concern.

It’s such a beautiful thing, I cry.

Anyway, one of these friends is someone I am blogging about today. Her name is Bridgette and we met years ago at church. Some of the fun things we have in common are the love we have for our families, pinterest, and fiestaware. We also have the foundation, which is Christ. Bridgette’s friendship humbles me because I can’t always see why she cares for me so much. I feel shy around her at times. I love that she encourages me by sending me happy emails of chickens wearing sweaters, or by sending a text message of a picture she took of a spider. She loves keeping up with me by reading my blog and she remembers things I wrote even a long time afterward and that means a lot to me.

We had years of time together as members of the same church, talking and visiting at those functions and also getting together, just the two of us. I remember one night after church we went to Crackerbarrel together and drank ice tea with our meal…I didn’t sleep a wink that night from the caffeine. Also, we were pregnant at the same time…several times..which was fun. And, when she and her family moved away I was heartbroken, as a matter of fact, I’m still sad about it. But such is life.

Mostly what I sense around this special woman is the quietness of a life lived close to God, and a heart warm and open to love anyone and everyone. She truly has a grace-filled heart for encouraging other people, and what a gift that is!

When Rich and I took the children to Georgia recently I was able to arrange a long-overdue visit with her. She was a lot more excited about it than I could have imagined. Thank you, B, for your faithful friendship to me. I love you and care about you and yours. I’m here for you anytime you need a friend, day or night.

We met at a pizza place. She has five children, one of the girls is hidden next to Sarah.

She talked about Sarah to her daughter so much that it was love at first sight.

We only had the time it took to eat the pizza, because we had such a long drive ahead of us. Bridgette and I would have liked to have a longer visit of course, but were thankful for what we managed to squeeze in. She sent me on my way with snacks, a journal, coffee, and chocolates, which I am still enjoying.

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Hebrews 10:24-25

“Dear Jesus, please bless any woman reading this today with friendships that will lift her spirits, make her laugh, and help her along in whatever plan you have for her life. Help her to be a good friend to others, too. Give her someone she can trust, in Your timing and in Your way. Help us to obey your prompting when you place someone on our heart. Thank you for supplying our every need. If we need a friend, you will give us one.”

books, a carrot, friends, spiders, a flower, bugs, and gifts

Posted on July 28, 2015 by Shanda

Yesterday the dollar movie was Diary of a Wimpy Kid Dog Days so I made the kids go in without me. I walked the mall and went to Target. While I was in Target I browsed the books and wrote the titles of some that looked interesting. After the movie was over we went to Taco Bell and then to the library and I checked out all the books I had written down.

Uncle Dave, do you like Dave’s shirt? He loves the solar system and deep space just like you. And he harvested his first carrot from the garden. He could hardly wait for me to take the picture before he ate it.

The best thing happened. My dear forever friend Christie came for an overnight visit on her way to Canada. I love her so much, we’ve been friends for 15 years! We hadn’t seen each other in six years but we have kept in constant contact.

This is her daughter with my Sarah.

The kids were looking for fishing bait this morning and found this mama spider. Do you see all the little babies she is carrying on her back? Emily brought me to the rock they found her under. Emily was scared, she said the spider knows what she looks like and will come to find her. But I was thankful she was brave enough to show me. There was a bright orange slug next to it. Visiting? Or about to become dinner?

This photo was taken at 10 o’clock this morning right before Christie left with her three children. Oh it was just so good to catch up with them.

As soon as we waved them out of sight I went back to see the spider again. (morbid curiosity) and guess what???? The slug was completely gone and there was another spider there. I’m assuming it is the baby-daddy. Caleb said to me, “If it bites me you better take me straight to the doctor’s.” We came away unscathed.

There was another happy couple on a Queen Anne’s lace flower.

Little gifts from my friend. Maple Syrup from Michigan, tea, and irresistible chocolate biscuits from Australia (she wrote an amazing blog about her experience living there). She also gave me the dangly earrings in picture #3.

short but sweet

Posted on July 22, 2015 by Shanda

This is why Colleen and I are at home at each other’s houses. Because we have a touch of the crazy in us, and so do our husbands and children. Crazy good times happen.

Colleen is my Aunt and we grew up together as next door neighbors on a quiet farm road in New York. We went to the same school and the same church. Like all good family, she is a lifelong gift from God. She and her husband have four girls who are about the same ages as my children and what a fun time it is when we can get together.

The kids really want to be with us most of the time, but once in a while we can convince them to run off to swim or jump on the trampoline or what-have-you.

Rich and I live four hours from our families and honestly, I was feeling quite lonesome and homesick for “my people” the other day. I am very content being here in Connecticut but there comes a time when a woman just needs to be with her mom….or, an aunt. To sit and visit, talk about all the memories, relax, forget the housework, and be together again.

Colleen’s visit this week came at just the right time. Uncle Roger was on a business trip so she came to see us.

She and the girls arrived yesterday and we sat and talked on the porch, made dinner together, sang hymns, and watched a little TV. Today we talked on the porch, went downtown to the coffee shop and thrift store, had lunch, visited some more, and then she and the girls left for home again. It was a short but very sweet visit.

(We missed her daughter, Madelynn. She was busy doing her summer missionary work with children. My Jacob isn’t in the pictures, either, because he was sick.)

Molly’s shirt says, “Bacon: just another reason why I know Jesus loves me.”

They brought their little chihuahua dog, Reese, with them. Seth, Sarah, and David could not leave the dog alone, they fell right in love with him. He was such a good and patient dog.

(day one)

(day two)

Dave was a good boy, talking to Aunt Colleen all about turtles and the fact that on September 27 he has a birthday and wants his parents to get him a tortoise. “Once you see a tortoise eating a strawberry, you’ll want one, too” he assured us. He came to the porch with a female garter snake. He has Aunt Colleen convinced he will be working in a zoo one day.

Dave was trying hard to get Reese to love him so he put peanut butter on the bottom of a glass.

My aunt brought me some homemade blueberry jam made from Candy L’s berries, and some bread n butter pickles, too.

She gave me this pretty painting that she did of “my peaceful place”. I told her that Rich would be finding me in front of it very often.

The flowers looked so pretty in the early morning sun as I left to take Grace to her babysitting job this morning at 7 a.m. On the way home I picked up 2 dozen donuts to go with breakfast. Okay, I admit they WERE breakfast.

The children played in the warm earthy pond together just like Colleen and I used to swim in our old pond, too.

We took Molly downtown with us and bought iced teas and an entire bag of books. (2 dollars for the books!)

forever friends

Meg showed us Reese’s tricks. He sat, he shook his paw, he rolled, he practiced playing dead. He did a great job.

Marissa, Dave, and Meghan

Today I am extra thankful for all my crazy family!

They are my best friends.

“Should I live a long life, bless me with my true friend to take the journey with me.”

rich’s adventure

Posted on January 12, 2015 by Shanda

Last Tuesday night, Rich was at the school coaching. He had ignored some warning signs that something was not quite right in his groin area but as usual, being the man he is, he kept on going strong. He was wrestling with the heavyweights as he’s been taking a ‘hands on’ coaching approach and it happened to be Jacob that he was working with at the time – on the mat with him wrestling with his usual aggression and speed. Unfortunately for him, his groin finally tore with a vengeance and he was left hurt on the mat, stunned, shocked, and thinking only of the pain.

A day later, as he attempted to limp through his work schedule and not go to the doctor’s, he noticed a bulge had appeared. He spoke with the other coaches, the trainer, our doctor, a specialist, and was advised by all to go to the hospital to get it checked out.

After coaching Thursday night’s meet, and watching his son Ethan finally win a match, he drove himself to the hospital. The next morning, I drove through a snowstorm to join him. Six of our children were at school, and I took Sarah with me, believing with all my heart that hernia-repair surgery would only take a short while and I could go home in the evening.

Sarah was a comfort and joy to us that day as we watched her play with her box of animals. The kind Jamaican nurse brought a blanket for her to play on so she didn’t have to sit on the floor. We spent the morning together, just the three of us, and then at noon they wheeled Rich to the operating room.

No one in our family has had to have surgery (other than teeth being pulled). I wondered how he would manage and hoped there would be no surprises. It was a relatively minor injury and surgery compared to what it could have been, so we were at peace and thankful. Sarah and I walked around together and an hour and a half later the nurse called to tell me they were just about ready for surgery. This was a surprise to me because I thought he would have been almost done by then. This showed me how clueless I really was about surgery. Even a minor surgery can be an all day affair.

The view from the 9th floor.

I took Sarah to the cafeteria for lunch. We ate together in waiting room while she watched PBS cartoons on the TV. After lunch we walked to the gift shop where I purchased a paperback mystery and a soft gray wolf for Sarah. She promptly named it Soft Paws and is still carrying it around in her arms even this morning. I don’t like hospitals but I thought it was important to make the experience as pleasant as possible for Sarah.

The doctor eventually called to tell me that the procedure went fine and that Rich did very well. He let me know that the nurses would call me when he was taken back to his room, which would be another hour or two.

I was in his room when they brought him back and Rich was very sleepy as he recovered from the anesthesia. He was talkative. His sentences were slow and his reaction time was very delayed. If I told him I loved him, it took him about 5 seconds for his face to melt into an understanding smile. He only wanted me, the first word I heard was my name, over and over (his eyes were shut). When he understood I was there he needed to know where his Sarah was and how the boys got home from practice that evening. He was thankful for all the attention from the nurses and was never gruff with anyone. Even full of drugs he used impeccable manners and would respond “yes sir” or “yes ma’am”.

When they moved him to his bed he slowly lifted his arm to point to the stretcher. “I……like…..that……BOARD……better,” he explained to us, eyes shut.

I eventually took out a pen and paper to jot down the funny things he said. We had a great time going over it the next day, laughing hysterically with Rich pressing a pillow to his side so it wouldn’t hurt as much.

It soon became clear that he would be staying another night. He told me not to leave him, so I asked Isaac and Cassandra to get Sarah and take her back home.

We spent the night taking a couple of naps as nurses kept coming in the room to check on Rich.

We were glad when it was morning again and knew we would be going home.

Rich’s liquid breakfast was hysterical. It was jello, juice, broth, and coffee. I happily took off for the Au Bon Pain downstairs for a breakfast sandwich and coffee.

He told me that his pain level was a steady “4” because I made him laugh too much. I took that as a compliment. They say laughter is the best medicine, right?

Getting stronger by the minute.

He wore things on his legs to help prevent blood clots. He admitted that he liked the hospital socks and thought they were comfortable. (He is a harsh judge of socks because it is so hard to find nice socks for his big feet).

I stirred up a package of Emergen-C into his water. The nurses and I had to make him drink, he didn’t seem to understand the necessity of so many fluids. It was fun to take care of him.

Nurse Sonia checked his vitals one last time. He truly was in great shape, with perfect blood pressure and an athlete’s slow pulse rate. His only complaints the entire time was his terrible groin injury and then the swelling of the hernia operation. There were no surprises, no complications, and we were so grateful.

I read my very first “Mary Higgins Clark” mystery. It was a nice easy read to keep my mind half-focused on something besides hospitals, illness, injury, and death. Admittedly, it was a murder mystery, but it was entertaining and did a good job of holding my attention.

Rich had to breathe through this blue thing to exercise his lungs after surgery. I called it his peace pipe.

He found a wrestling show on TV and it helped take his mind of his shot.

Dressed and ready to go home in a motivating t-shirt!

Before I forget, I want to take a moment to write how thankful we are for Nicole P. She drove the boys home from practice, and took them to the school Saturday morning for their tournament. She also brought them home again. Brett W. and Mike P. were a huge help in coming to the hospital so that Mike could drive Rich’s truck home. Brett and his wife Jen also had our son David overnight. My friend Caroline K. also helped with getting Grace to school for singing, and she also took care of the little boys until Jacob and Ethan were home. Mike helped with taking care of things at home and kept everyone’s spirits up. We are thankful for our cherished children and their help and encouragement. Our brother in law, Jason, went to the boy’s wrestling tournament to “stand in the parenting gap” and sent us frequent updates and pictures. And, of course we were touched by all of our friends and family who called and prayed. We love all of you so much! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

Today we are all home together. The children have a snow day and Rich is doing what he can to work from home.

Happy Monday, my friends! You are loved.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6