weekend report

Posted on May 22, 2017 by Shanda

He has been with me everywhere I have gone. Genesis 35:3

He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted. Job 5:9

Not to us, Lord, not to us but to you be the glory. Psalm115:1

The friends and pleasures of which you speak cannot compare with the joys which I seek. Christian, in Pilgrims Progress by John Bunyan

If you love me, feed my sheep. John 21:17

*****

Sarah’s last school program for 1st grade. Next year she will be moving on to the bigger elementary school in town. (my baby!)

On a flower the size of a dime. Sarah and I made baby sounds at it because it was so small.

The tree we planted from Grandma and Grandpa (Rich’s dad and step-mom). The children never forget about this tree and love to check on it. “It’s growing, Mom!”

Lady’s slippers in bloom

We found a small toad….. I took this picture moments before she started jumping around (similar to a toad) because she’s trying to be brave holding it in her hands….but she’s really feeling rather squeamish.

~Buttercups and guess what? We all like butter, very much. Especially on toast and popcorn.

Gentleman Gray walked with us. I had to carry him back, he’s not a cat that enjoys walking in the heat through tall grass with a strange dog “over there”.

KYMZ7519

While I had Gentleman, my sister randomly texted me a picture of herself with her fur baby.

Sisters!

Tessa’s Jr. Prom! She invited Ethan, of course.

They’ve been dating almost 2 years.

It was so hot outside. I did a five minute photoshoot on the driveway before they left.

Aren’t they good looking?

cuties

They didn’t get home until around 1:30 in the morning so I didn’t sleep very well. Mom-worries, you know. 🙂 They had a wonderful time, so happy.

Lots of baseball games for the boys!

I turned to Rich and silently mouthed, “Take my picture!” seventeen times before he got it. I had to be sneaky because if Seth had heard me he would have run off — he likes to tease me. This boy…..we rarely see him during his brother’s games but every once in a while he’ll come visit me. In this case he was coming to say, “No one’s working the food booth today. If you had a key would you work the food booth Mom?” Maybe he was hungry. Or wanting candy. Look at his outfit. Batting gloves, knee high Garfield socks. He’s so cute!

But what I love the most…..is he is still so much a Mama’s boy and loves to come close for some obligatory lovin’ . He knows it’s his duty so mom doesn’t get lonely and sad because her children are growing up.

Grown up Jacob came to the field after work.

The little kids spent most of the time up in the unused announcer’s booth watching the game from up high. Sooooo cute. Rich and I could see them from across the way.

The little league fields are our “home away from home” these days, we are there almost every day. If I drove a horse and wagon I wouldn’t even have to direct the horse….I would just say, “Take me to the ballgame” while flicking the reins and off we would go in the wagon.

Our rabbits are not caged, they live free in the chicken coop and when I let out the chickens they are also consequently free to roam. Number 1 bunny never hops out, but number 2 bunny is more adventurous and we were highly amused when we came home from the game and found it talking to the cat.

Sunday night dates, we love Pinkberry and Auntie Anne’s pretzels at the mall. And each other. Rich says, “I don’t even want to buy anything I just love walking around with you.” He’ll stare at me while we eat our treats and say things like, “you’re beautiful.” or, “I love that hair color on you.” And he’ll walk behind me five steps as we go upstairs and whistle. You know, regular & comfortable married couple stuff like that.

We went to Barnes and Noble and I took a picture of books I want to look up at the library.

Sunday evening walk all by my lonesome. I picked a few wayward lily of the valley (they spread through the years and I found some fair game– in the ditch) one of them pulled right up with it’s roots attached so I transplanted it in the garden back home.

I found a feather on the side of the road. I also got scared by the neighbor’s little vicious white dog.

Thus concludes the weekend report.

no words are necessary between two loving hearts

Posted on May 21, 2016 by Shanda

6eb5d093-41d8-4f57-9b0d-ce1ef6e5ccda_zps8zsf64gd

in a blink

Posted on May 19, 2016 by Shanda

Sixteen years later……..

My baby girl and I will go out shopping for sweet little dancing shoes. We will skip up a sunny sidewalk in town to the seamstress shop and pick up her beautiful dress; a long, mint green gown, newly hemmed for her small stature. She will talk of lipstick, jewelry, nail polish, and love.

…….she will be going to Prom.

Jacob and Ethan attend the prom

Posted on May 26, 2015 by Shanda

It’s the season for

pinxter bushes in bloom, (Seth and I went for a walk yesterday and brought back some for a vase)

lady slippers, (Joanna sent me a picture)

baltimore orioles, (I saw one this weekend, finally)

and the P R O M…….

Just a few short years ago (October, 2006 to be exact) Jacob and Ethan looked like this::

On Friday……..they looked like this (in the same location- the rock they were sitting on is on the far right of the picture):::

Of course I had to take a ton of pictures of them looking sharp in their tuxes. They looked quite handsome, my mama heart was just bursting with pride.

These two boys are one grade apart at school. Jacob is Senior and Ethan is a Junior. Jacob’s girlfriend is in Ethan’s grade and she invited Jacob to Jr.Prom, which is how the two boys were both attending together.

They are only 14 months apart and very close. They have done everything together, every step of the way, except now Jacob has entered the land of romantic love, leaving Ethan rolling his eyes and getting used to Jacob spending every spare minute with Emily.

Jacob

Ethan, wearing his class ring.

Me, with E

Me with Jacob

I love this one of the boys with their Dad.

Rich took this one with his phone, it’s quite terrible quality, but great because I’m with my boys.

They were using the windows as mirrors. They were feeling mighty good about their looks.

Emily’s beautiful corsage was made by a florist in town.

After I took the pictures in the driveway of our house, Emily’s mom came and picked up Ethan and Jacob. Grace was with Emily and some other girls, helping them to get ready. Emily’s mom picked up the girls, too, while Rich and I drove to the Gazebo to meet them. The Gazebo is the traditional place for the students to take pictures before traveling on to the prom venue.

We found Ethan first, and Grace jumped in for a photo with her dear brother.

They looked so stiff and formal I requested that he put his arm around his sister.

And now I just sit and stare at this picture which is probably one of my all time favorites. Grace is one step down in age from Ethan. They are a little less than 2 years apart but Grace is a Sophomore in High School because she started school when she was 4.

And then we saw Jacob walking toward us with his beautiful date……

Emily was so excited, she wanted a picture with everyone.

Here she is with Sarah:

With Caleb:

with Ethan:

with her Mom:

with me:

I’m not going to post the one with Seth because it ended up too bright. And there is no picture with David because he ran and hid.

Here is the one with Rich and Grace:

I kinda wish I had thought of taking a picture of the entire gazebo, but I did get some nice shots of them inside of it. Ethan did not take a date, but one of the girls from their group was also going along single so they did end up with an even number of friends to eat and dance with all night. Jacob and Emily, Ethan, Bridgette, Marissa and Tom.

I told them I wanted to see their pretty shoes and got quite a surprise….

Emily wasn’t wearing any.

pretty pretty eyes

Grace with the big brother she adores.

Seth hung around watching everyone, and Sarah kept seeing princesses everywhere.

Jacob, Ethan, and Emily walked away to mingle and get ready to go eat. Rich and I left with backward glances with the other children and headed home, happy to know that our dear boys were going to have a most wonderful time. The next morning we heard all about it and Ethan was still in a dancing mood.

The Lord is my strength and shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song. Psalm 28:7

{this moment}

Posted on May 22, 2015 by Shanda

{this moment} ~ A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

prom was friday

Posted on May 19, 2014 by Shanda

His father wore a white tux many years ago to his own prom and ended up hating it. He had secret anxiety that Jacob would also feel uncomfortable not only wearing fancy clothes, but brilliantly white fancy clothes.

Yes, Jacob, like his father before him, decided to wear a white tux to his prom and……. he loved it, he told us several times he wished he could keep it.

The day of prom was warm and humid. The class was scheduled to meet at the gazebo at 4 but when it began to lightly rain, they met at the town hall instead.

At 3:30, Rich was running around trying to locate the florist that I had ordered the corsage from, and I was standing in the kitchen putting Jacob’s cuff links on his shirt. Sarah was sick on the couch with a fever and Grace stayed at home with her and the younger boys when we left.

Rich met us in the parking lot with the corsage safely in hand, after all that I never really got a good look at it (except in the pictures, later on).

I hadn’t met Jacob’s date yet. All I knew was that she was an artsy type like Jacob, and that to ask her to prom he drew a message on thick white paper, in calligraphy; “Will you GOGH to prom with me?”

Rich and I waited upstairs with other parents while Jacob waited downstairs at the door with his friends, looking for their dates to arrive. The battery in my camera was dead (!!) so I had it plugged in …. those fifteen minutes of waiting were priceless as it charged. Jacob and his date came upstairs and walked toward us smiling and happy. We were so proud, they looked beautiful together.

The mamas took pictures and forty five minutes later all the young people were on their way to prom and had a wonderful, fun night of food and dancing.

The next day, after getting just a few hours of sleep, Jacob went to his state invitational track meet, threw a personal record in javelin and surprised himself by coming in third place.

It was a great weekend to be Jacob. 🙂