the back door

i wonder if sitting there at the prom they knew where their life would go. today my parents celebrate 50 years of marriage. in today's world, that is quite a rare thing. i can honestly say my parents are just as happy, and frankly maybe a little happier than ever. i feel blessed to have seen a marriage that honors both God and one another. i have watched my mom serve and respect my dad at all times. i have watched my dad love and cherish my mom. they taught me what love looked like. yes, i was always disgusted by their kissing and hand holding and ugh...their dancing in the kitchen, but deep inside i loved it - and still do. they have truly lived life side by side as they raised 4 kids, married us all off, hang out with their 10 grandkids, and travel the world. they shared their first kiss as husband and wife in this same spot 50 years ago. i think they look pretty good today! thanks mom and dad for being so in love and choosing to love deeply

the past few weeks have been a whirlwind of furry! the good, the bad, and the ugly all rolled into one, although i'm not sure the ugly is really there - or even the bad, so maybe just the good kind of whirlwind furry! we headed off a few weeks ago to holiday world with my parents and 2 of my nephews. this is a family favorite. i was the only brave soul among us that would tackle the big rides with my nephew. sadly, i've gotten older and after hearing my neck crack and snap mulitple times told him i was done. although i fully enjoyed the plunging water ride! then my little crew took off for spring mill state park. we were super excited the cave was open. however, i was totally freaked out when a wonderful little bat critter didn't like us invading his space. then the guide let us experience total darkness - while the bat chose that moment to stop his screeching! be still my anxious heart.....i guess there was a little ugly on the trip! of course, travelling with ...

this weekend we'll are saying good-bye to my grandpa. grandpa was 94 years old - can you imagine? me and my grandpa grandpa was an amazing man that led his family well! i always remember him telling jokes or laughing, but we also couldn't get away with much when grandpa was around. he loved peanuts, so much so that every christmas we would all buy him peanuts. while it sounds superficial, it is such a real memory and to this day, when i eat peanuts i always think of him. i was the youngest grandchild, #13 actually, so when i went to visit it was just me. when i was born they had just sold the farm and moved to town. it was a small town and he knew everyone. from the time i could walk, he would walk with me up town to get pizza, take me to the rainbow restaurant, or to the dime store to pick out a treasure of some kind. it was a long walk, but he would always be so patient. what i really remember is that grandpa loved us all. he always encouraged us and always acce...

i have a ton of blogs i'm wanting to put up, but i feel compelled to share about our after dinner hours tonight. while finishing up dinner i made the comment that i really wanted a baked item - you know, like a pie or cake or something. hubby threw out "or cookies" to which princess replied, "let's make cookies i can take to the tea party!" okay - cookies it is. i remember that i don't have any kind of chocolate chips and since i don't like to make sugar cookies i suggested oatmeal raisin to the crew. every one seemed fairly excited at the prospect. so then i text my friend kelly and beg her to come pick our green beans. now i realize i should get those cookies made - i mean wouldn't it be fun to offer her and the boys a warm cookie after taking my green bean bounty?!?!!? then i remembered i also needed to make a veggie type breakfast casserole for saturday. so i pull out the computer and search for zucchini breakfast recipes. i settled...

so whizboy turned the big "10" a few weeks ago! i can't believe he has now lived a decade. what a tiny squirt he was, then he was fat - VERY FAT, but such an enjoyable toddler. now, he is lean again and enjoyable mixed with a bit of frustration. i'm told that goes with the gender and age. anyways, we had promised the kids with the move to the farm they could have friend parties because there would be a ton of space to run and play. of course, i didn't anticipate 90 degree weather:) but we had a football event that could rival any superbowl in history. 5 friends from chuch showed up in their jersey's ready to run! we did a punt, pass, kick, and sprint contest. although it was hot, it was fun. then we came inside to "cool" off with some cake and homemade ice cream. we opened some gifts too! note to others - green frosting does funny things to ones digestion! since they decided this old house without AC wasn't cooling them down, this...

as most of you know we planted a garden here at sycamore hill. now, we always gardened in town, too. we could get a couple helping of green beans, some peppers, one year 4 ears of corn and some zuchinni and squash. well, this years garden has turned into a crazy jungle! we have vines running wild and zuchinni that could be used for batting practice! it is insane...... one of our abundant crops is cucumbers. i hate cucumbers but hubby and whizboy love them. he thought he planted just a few. well, today alone they had to have picked over 25 of those cukes. we've given a bunch away already and have more on the way. feeling a bit overwhelmed with these, and feeling the need to use them to our benefit i broke down and made a batch of these... yep friends....I MADE PICKLES!!! i despise pickles....everything about them, the smell, the look, the taste...i even make hubby brush his teeth before he can kiss me. and i get all weird when a pickle jar is placed on a buffet table ...