Off To Climb a Mountain... Maybe

That is the plan. Priscilla and I are going to climb a mountain. I am determined. Now if determination can get me to the top, then the top is where I'll be, but I would appreciate a few prayers too. ha ha! (You can start praying anytime, we start climbing on Monday morning.)

I leave you with a few photos from last night's dinner. We don't typically eat flowers, but since nasturtiums are edible, I decided to make our plates look pretty. Thisis  Hannah's and mine looked much the same. I ate one flower and left the second. I like nasturtium leaves better than flowers. They're good mixed in with the other greens and vegetables and topped with a bit of salad dressing.

Oreo has turned into quite the beggar and since he thought something on our dinner plates smelled like chicken, he thought he'd take a look. (I was going to say gander, but we weren't eating goose... Okay, sorry. That was very poor joke.) I couldn't resist taking his picture. He really is kind of cute, in a naughty sort of way.

So, anyway, I will be signing off for a few days. Don't forget to leave me a note while I'm gone to the Adirondack Mountains with my sister. We should be back by Tuesday evening. I hope my husband and daughter can survive that long without me.
:0)

Monkeying Around

Dad used to tell us, "Stop monkeying around!" but I can't help myself... It's not my fault really, it's those silly monkeys, I tell you!

It was another day of small children, just three of them. Two cried when mommy left. They cried in harmony and also did solos. I'm fairly certain neither of them really knew why they were crying by the time they had finished. Ah, to be 3 or 4 years old again...

Yesterday we played sidewalk chalk with Josh and Jake. Today Lucas took it to a whole new level. He is an artsy kind of guy. He doesn't typically sit still for long but he does like to draw. This was his kind of project.

While chasing monkeys through the flowers, I found a little white butterfly who sat still long enough for me to take her photograph.

Phew!

It has become suddenly quiet and I am home alone with one small dog. Not only is it suddenly quiet, but I am suddenly tired. It's been a busy week so far. Two little boys stayed over for two nights. and on those nights we also had Josiah here. Hannah took him back to Auburn this afternoon.

Today we had not only two little boys, but two more little boys and a little girl. They generally bounce off each other, the furniture, and anything else that happens to be around, and make all kinds of racket. All in all I think it was a very good day, but now I am ready to be quiet and still for a time and start all over tomorrow with just two little boys and a girl.

I did not bake, cook, or clean today. I sat outside (and inside) and kept an eye on those children who must not be out of sight for even a moment of time. No wonder I'm tired and rambling on like a lunatic.
:0)

Lookin' Up

My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD;
In the morning I will direct it to You,
And I will look up.

Psalm 5:3

Every once in a great while I stop to think about my blog title. After several years of struggle, life has once again settled into something more peaceful and relaxed. I'm enjoying my grandchildren, soaking in the summer, and relishing time to enjoy life. It's time to catch my breath and reflect on what God has attempted to teach me the past several years, and how He uses the circumstances of life to mold me into His image. There have been times during the past four years that I was fairly certain I wouldn't make it through the trial with any sense of dignity intact. Perhaps that is part of God's plan to either keep or make me humble.

My dad used to joke and say, "It's hard to be humble when you're as good lookin' as me." And then he would laugh. His battle with cancer five years ago, his steady faith, and unending love have been a stronghold for me on days when I wanted to run away and hide from the task the Lord had called me to. I desperately miss both my parents, especially when it comes time to gather our family together. In my heart they will always be missing and yet strangely present at the same time. Sometimes I find myself thinking of them and looking up.

It's A Baking Day!

And you shall take fine flour and bake twelve cakes with it... Leviticus 24:5

It was a baking day. The weather was coolish and damp, my house was cleaned yesterday, and I was feeling relaxed. I decided to try that Glazed Lemon Zucchini Bread I've seen on Facebook and Pinterest. I have way more zucchini than I could ever bake into bread, scads of it. I also had a few very ripe bananas. They went into a very nice looking loaf of Grandma's Banana Bread (without any zucchini).

I jumped on the gluten- free boat again about a week ago and have been doing pretty good at it, but I did have to taste the lemon bread. (Somebody asked me if it tasted as good as it looks... and it does.) I've been noticing that although I say gluten doesn't "hurt" my stomach, I do have some tiny sharp pains directly after eating it. I think I just get used to feeling it and basically ignore them. So, anyway, the bread is good and I'm back to being gluten-free tomorrow.

My lemon bread didn't call for much zucchini, only 1 cup, shredded, so I tried out another new recipe, Zucchini Pizza! (It's gluten-free.) I sauntered down to the garden and picked out a few "almost too big" fruits, cut one in slices, and rubbed the slices with olive oil. I sprinkled on some spices and stuck them under the broiler for a few minutes, then topped them with sauce, a slice or two of pepperoni, and some shredded Italian cheese. They went back under the broiler for another few minutes and came out nicely browned. What a great lunch!

Sparkly

My house is sparkly. My daughter in law (the favorite one) came over to help me clean. I watch her children while she cleans houses, so we made a deal and she helped me clean mine today. I worked on the kitchen, like usual, and cleaned all the counter tops after the excavation process. She did the stuff that I never seem to get to. Well, almost never. I think I rather like this arrangement. Maybe we can do it again sometime.

This afternoon, my sisters and I went to visit that brother of ours. He's always happy to go out for a ride and a Frosty. There were no unexpected surprises this time; no hugs or kisses, no outbursts of laughter. He did a little tongue clicking and smiling at Rachel and a little anxious clapping. He did not appreciate the presence of my camera and therefore there is no wonderful photo of the four of us today. Your stuck with Priscilla and I instead.

PS. Please forgive the word verification I enabled. I've been getting quite a bit of spam lately.

Tablecloth

Some- times Pinterest works out well. This was one of those times. I followed a link with instructions on getting the yellow out of bedroom pillows and decided to toss a hand-crocheted tablecloth in the mix. I'd been previously reluctant to wash it, but the pillows were going in regardless and it was a beautiful day for hanging the tablecloth out on the line to dry afterward.

Given to me by "Gramma Gail" (my ML's childhood best friend) back in January, and beautiful in spite of the stains. It's even more beautiful now and if we ever find time to refinish my mother's dining room table, I know where it will find a permanent home.

A Short Sister Escape...

....Not that the sisters were short or anything.

Hannah and Bethany had plans to run errands together today, so I decided to call my own sister. "Do you have any hazelnut coffee?" I asked her. Rachel wasn't busy, she had hazelnut coffee, and she was only minutes away. I soon found myself knocking on her front door.

We sat at her kitchen table, drank hot coffee, and laughed as she finished my sentences for me. (Sisters will do that...) It was such a beautiful day that we decided to venture out into the big world and find something fun to do.

I knew that replica's of Columbus ships were in town so we took a ride to the Port Of Rochester and toured two small ships that scarcely seemed seaworthy. Did you know the 26 man crew all slept and lived on deck during their 30 day voyages?

It doesn't take long to walk about the decks of two ships as small as those belonging to Christopher Columbus, so after disembarking, we took a long walk down a long pier. (Ha! You thought I was going to say "off a short pier," didn't you?)


We took selfies, several of them, and then,







because we are both young at heart, we bought tickets to ride the Merry-go-round at Charlotte Beach. (That's in Rochester and pronounced Shar-lot.)

We consid- ered having ice cream for lunch, because Abbott's Original is right there, and it would have made a wonderful conclusion to our trip, but we opted for something healthier, and not much more expensive, and found ourselves back at Panera Bread.

Passing Through

 

This world is not my home
I'm just a-passing through
My treasures are laid up
Somewhere beyond the blue.

Both my parents have passed through. The world is no longer their "home" and neither is the little house where we grew up and they spent over fifty years. Deep inside I want it to stay home and keep a part of them here, but there is a good possibility it may never be my home again. I'm just having a hard time letting it all go.

VBS, Pretty Flowers, and Paperwork

It's Vacation Bible School week at church. I've not done more than drop a child off and pick her up, but I still get just a small taste of the excitement. VBS was always fun when I was a little girl. We went to the one at our own church mornings one week of the summer, and another week we attended a neighboring church for an evening VBS. This year there are six children I have babysat in the past few years (Oops, make that seven. I forgot the pastor's grandson), along with three of my grandchildren, attending our church VBS. It's been fun to see them and get a hug or two. Rocky gives a mean hug!

I cut some zinnias from my garden flower beds this afternoon and put them in a vase on my mom's table. She would have found them pretty and likely told me so. Maybe next year I'll have a big flower garden just for the fun of it.

My mom's table is not only home to a vase of pretty flowers, but lately also home to varying stacks of papers. Every time I think I have a job taken care of and mailed away, part of it comes back. It's happened with almost every insurance policy for which I've had the privilege of filling out paperwork. Last week new (or should I say "old"?) ones were brought to my attention; childhood policies. A letter came in the mail and we found the original paperwork tucked away in an out of the way file box. I have no idea what they are worth and my dad is still listed as the beneficiary. Perhaps the paperwork shall never end. We haven't even started on what to do with the house.

In spite of the looming paperwork (I say looming, but it's really getting done...), I am having a very nice summer. I still have things I'd like to check off my to-do list, like meet some more cousins, go to Canada, and maybe climb a tree, but I do have plans for a few of the others. I'm going to the Adirondack Mountains with my sister next week, and in early to mid September I have plans to both meet a blog friend (Wanda) and see my faraway grandson. Since I like to stretch summer way into September, perhaps I will get to check several more items off my list before the season is over. Not sure I'll get to visit all the Finger Lakes... Maybe I'll do that in the fall instead. :0)

Deliciously Dark and Dreary

I am a big fan of bright, sunny days, but my childhood in upstate western NY also brings a love for the dark, dreary overcast kind of day, the one where doing nothing is okay, naps are expected, and books are wont to be read. This was such a day.

The rain fell, the winds blew, and the clouds hid any sign of sunshine. It was quiet. I did not bake, I did not clean, I did not go out shopping. I did venture out to retrieve one child from Vacation Bible School. I did do a load of laundry, wash a sinkful of dishes, and take the garbage to the street. I made my bed, checked the 'puter (repeatedly), took a few photos, and caught a shortish (well, kind of shortish...) nap.  I haven't been sleeping much at night and thought it a good idea to take advantage of the dark and dreariness.

It's been dark all day long. It would have been a wonderful day to sleep in, or maybe even out, with the rain pattering on the rooftop. I checked my "rain gauge" and found that we had a good amount of precipitation. Perhaps I need to collect up my candle jars and put them away for a while.

Hannah's Party

Halfway through yesterday afternoon, in the midst of party preparations, I was struggling to keep my eyes open. I tried shutting them on purpose, but sleep didn't come and my mind kept going over all I had to do to be ready for Hannah's party. Finally, after two cups of coffee and the arrival of a few guests, I began to come back to life again.

I'm pretty sure Hannah was blessed by the party this year. I worked hard to make up for my lack of giving her even a small birthday gathering last year. Many times through the past 12 months I've bought her something and told her with a smile, "It's for your birthday," but nothing really beats a genuine birthday celebration. Oreo joined us for the picnic and found some guests sympathetic to a famished yet friendly feline.

There were enough young people for a game of Ultimate Frisbee on the far side of the yard. It was fun to watch.

 I have to say, one of the biggest blessings for me was having my family together for a family gathering and feeling like we are whole again. We were missing Joe, who had to work, and Jim and Michele who live too far away, but otherwise we were together; kids and significant others, grandkids, and friends. Made me miss my mom and dad but I'm pretty sure if they could see us, they'd be smiling too.

Thank you, Hannah, for being part of our lives, for wishing for a "surprise" party, and blessing us just by being you.

Full of Beans

Tomorrow is Hannah's birthday party/ bonfire. It's sure to be a busy one, as was today, so if you don't hear from me tomorrow, that'll be why.

I hadn't planned on making a bean salad for tomorrow, but my visit to the garden this morning made me think otherwise. Three Bean Salad was a favorite of my parents and made an appearance at almost every summer picnic. Mom used canned beans, but today I used garden fresh ones instead. My Darling is a fan of this dish but my brothers in law are not so much so it gives my sisters a chance to enjoy the treat without making it themselves.

I had three small berry pickers here for the day. I sent them to the ragged blueberry patch while I picked beans and they each picked a box of sour berries to munch. They were quite pleased with themselves.

Inspiration

Hannah braided her own hair this morning and Lucas had something to say about it. "You look like Frozen right now," he told her.

"And you smell pretty," said Simon.

 They're not always full of compliments so it was really cute. And it inspired me to take a picture. I just hope she doesn't start building an ice castle or making snowmen in July...

And then there's Aubrey who is typically out on the swing set singing, "...the cold never bothered me anyway..." at the top of her lungs.

Out to Lunch (again)

I have purposed to wear myself out this week and, with a little help from My Darling, am doing a very good job. He has been making sure I don't slack off too much while I play.

Today Priscilla and I met our cousin Kim for lunch. We went to a little Italian deli in Canandaigua where Kim and I ordered the strawberry spinach salad and Priscilla opted for a sandwich. We ate outside on the patio where the breeze whirled Kim's hair around her head, threw a feather at her, and we could hear each other talk without having to shout. I have decided I really like meeting cousins and learning more about who they are. It's too bad there aren't any grand family reunions anymore...

(The photo is a very old one from a family picnic at Kim's grandparent's house. That's me with the white hair and Priscilla is the baby sitting on the lap of my dad's cousin Patty. The little boy is Kim's cousin Larry who is now a doctor. Our grandmas are sitting behind.)

I took my camera along with me today, even had it at the restaurant, but didn't take any pictures. Bad, I know.

After lunch with Kim, Priscilla and I met Rachel in Newark, NY for a visit with our brother Tim. He is in a new residence now, one with handicap accessibility and just across the side street from his other residence.

I don't always know exactly how to communicate with this brother of mine, so I often take the "little sister" approach and try picking on him a little. He was in the front seat on our ride, Priscilla and I were in back. I put my bare foot up between the seats and gave his arm a few taps with my toes. Rachel made reference to my "stinky feet" and he laughed out loud which made us laugh too. Later she said something else, which I can't recall, and he laughed again. It's so good to hear and see those kind of things.

He seemed happy in his new home and they claim to love him already. I'm liking that.

Minding My Busy-ness

Staying busy. I thought perhaps I would take some time to relax this week... ha ha! Not happening.

We're doing a summer cleanup over at Mom's house. I've been pulling weeds from the brick sidewalk. My fingers are worn out, poked by prickers, dry, and sore, but the bricks are looking better.

Tomorrow I am meeting my second cousin Kim for lunch. I know we've crossed paths in the past but this will be our first real meeting. She is an artist and the granddaughter of my grandma's sister. Her blog, "Coffee Makes Me Happy" is on my sidebar, but she doesn't take comments. :(

I missed my walk with the ladies' from church this afternoon, choosing instead to take my daughter out to lunch and pick up some things for her birthday party/bonfire this Saturday. I hope it turns out to be a good day for her, but I think I'll have a hard time beating a busload of kids in Grenada singing "Happy Birthday".

Kayaking

For years now I have wished to go kayaking. Today my wish came true when Rachel and I headed down to the Baycreek Paddling Center. We opted for two single kayaks and headed out on Irondequoit creek and into the Ellison Wetlands. It was a beautiful morning.

At one point Rachel asked me if I'd seen any alligators... I didn't see any and we paddled on. We saw dragonflies, water lilies, ducks, and... wait! what was that? It wasn't an alligator, it was a crock. (ha ha!)

I loved our trip up the creek and back. We didn't travel too far, but were out for an hour and had a great time together.

Dragonflies were abundant. They're one of my favorites. I credit that to my mom who always made a big deal about how pretty they are.

 

Apparently ducks love the swamp. There were several pairs wondering what in the world we were doing.

 We paddled as far as this little "island" in the middle of the creek, and doubled back around it. In some ways I felt like I could stay out there for hours, but my shoulders and wrists were getting tired, and my back, not used to sitting on my butt with my feet straight out in front of me, was starting to ache, so we headed back toward the bay.

Rachel and I enjoyed lunch together at Panera Bread. I filled my soda cup with brewed tea. I didn't taste it until I had already eaten most of my soup and salad. I remarked to Rachel at how dark it looked, and she replied that it must be very strong. One taste told me it wasn't tea at all, but cold, black coffee. Oops. Wonder who messed that one up? I opted to make it into iced coffee and fixed it up with some half and half and several packets of sugar.