I'm Confused!

 Tomorrow is the first day of Fall...correct?  I was a bit worried when I walked into Walmart on Saturday.   I thought for sure I had somehow missed it.  Missed the rest of September, missed my favorite month of October.  Missed Halloween! Missed Thanksgiving! Why?

The candy canes are out...

Christmas trees are lining the shelves!  Santa was everywhere.  I didn't click a pic of him because I was too busy wondering where the Fall decor had gone.  I was relieved when I found a bin of clearance scarecrows, pillows and an isle of Halloween costumes being eagerly picked over by parents and kiddos.  But the real salvation came from M&M's:

Yes! I knew I hadn't really missed Fall...the candy isle had these babies still available...whew! I hope your last day of Summer was great and I'm sending out a "Happy Fall y'all!"   Enjoy some pretty leaves, candy apples, maybe a pumpkin or too in the next few weeks.  Just please don't buy a candy cane yet...thanks!

Game Changers

Did you ever have a day planned and then something happens and things get changed, moved, or plain old cancelled?  I call those "game changers".  Sure, everyone has those. This weekend we had a few of them.  First, Saturday.  It's the day we run around and get the groceries, the laundry done (thanks Jack for that!) and any projects we might have on the calendar. Well, we did get the main things accomplished and then we decided, after some deliberation, to make a run for a new log splitter.  When we got back I said I really needed to get the lawn mowed.  With the warmer weather and not a ton of rain it's been almost 2 weeks since that was needed.  I hop on the rider, lower the mowing thingie, and make a move forward.  Then bam...I notice the front tire is flat.  OK, off the mower and on to Jack removing the tire and me running to Walmart for the repair.   Now there's an hour and a half I can never get back! Ha! It's always interesting to people watch at that place but I didn't really think I'd be there that long.  Game changer.  I got home and made the decision to try and beat the sunset.  I love Fall, but the early darkness is the one thing I'm not fond of. Well, I got the lawn mowed, but I didn't have the light to get all the trimming done. Just a mini game changer I guess!   So on to today.  I'm getting ready for church and Jack says: "I think I heard your phone go off".   (Why is it when calls come in on the land line, the phone "rings", but when they come in on the cell,  it "goes off"?) Anyway, I checked my phone and realized my sound was turned off...and who in the heck would be calling me on a Sunday morning anyway?  The hospital.  I looked at the number and had to make a decision.  I was not on call.  I was on call the last 2 Sundays.  I was not on call today.  What do they want?  I could ignore it, and just keep getting ready for church.  I could call them back and tell them I was not available today. I decided to call them back, find out what they needed.  Could I come in and help with a surgery? Deep breath.  Ok, I'll come in.  Game changer.  So I again missed church and teaching my kiddos but I know the team on call was happy to have a second pair of hands.  Sometimes we have to do what's right and not always what we want. Anyway, it's the start of a new week tomorrow.  It's Ashland's County fair week.  Looks like warm and sunny weather for the event.  I've been hoping for some cool, Fall temps but it looks like Summer is going to hold a bit longer. Fall does officially arrive in another week so I should quit complaining about the heat.  Soon we will be going from this:

To this:

Yep, now that's a game changer.  Night all!

This Day As Usual

Many bloggers have posted this week about 9/11.  I looked back at my posts from previous years to see if I had posted about this historic day. Yes, I did a few posts about it in the past. This day I woke up and prepared for work as usual. Jack and I went about our routine and headed out...Jack to his office, me to the hospital. Arriving at work I was met with the usual craziness that can make up an operating room and it's schedule.  Emergency cases, moving Docs and changing rooms and assignments...just the usual. We got it done with patients never knowing there were any issues.  On my way home from work I kept going back to 9/11/2001.  I thought about the people who got up and did their usual routine of getting ready for work, getting families ready for work or school. Thinking about the way their day would go, perhaps what they would have for dinner, or what bills needed to be paid. You know, the usual.  Arriving at work and doing what they do every day at the World Trade Center, or boarding a plane for a business trip or a pleasure destination. You know, the usual. The sun was shining on that perfectly beautiful September morning with crystal clear blue skies.  Folks expecting just the usual day.  From that day forward it was never again going to be just as usual for the 3000 plus people who died and their families and our country.  Everything about travel, safety, security and many other issues were no longer just the usual.  We should never forget how we felt that day.  We need to remember how blessed we are to live in this wonderful country with all it's perfect imperfections.  We need to honor the heroics of the first responders and the bravery of the folks on those planes.  Maybe we need to be better citizens, nicer neighbors, stronger families, kinder in all ways.  We should always remember this day...and that's my prayer for this day, as usual, for 9/11.

Signs

The first week of September has come and gone and little signs are appearing that says the seasons are starting to make the change.  I like living in an area that has 4 seasons and I truly look forward to Fall the most. (Although the Spring, after a long Winter, can have me happy to be out playing in the dirt!) I know how many folks feel when Fall arrives because all they can think about is what's coming next.  Yep, I get it but I will still enjoy the cooler temps and the fun decor that comes with this season.  So what are the signs?  Well, even though it's still 2 weeks away the Fall festivals are popping up here and there.  The cute shops are having Fall open house to welcome the season.  I'm not a coffee drinker but I know pumpkin spice lattes are here too.  I snapped just a few pics of the little signs at the Pines:

The buckeye tree is starting to slowly have some orange peeping out.

The dogwoods are sporting red leaves here and there along with the red berries. (not pictured!)

We put in a fire in the pit and did pie iron dinner and dessert.  See all the dry grass in the pit?  This is the first fire we've had in a long time. The Spring was just too wet and the Summer just too hot so when the night temps have been in the 40's and 50's it was finally time to clean out the fire pit.

Rae is enjoying her pie! (Yep, it's just a bit on the "well done" side!)

She got hold of the camera and took this angled shot of her Dad and Paw Paw sitting around the fire.

It's still a bit early for pumpkins but the fake kind are showing up now...and they don't rot! Of course when it's October the real ones will make an appearance because we need them for our Thanksgiving pumpkin shoot!  So the signs are little but the cool air we had this week sure makes you feel like having a bowl of chili...which I made today...and watching the football season begin too. (Not me, I could really care less about football but some folks seem to enjoy it!)  September still has warm air to it and this week we're expecting it to reach into the 80's again. It's an up and down climate but that doesn't stop me from getting excited about the little signs...one final sign:

Arnie got a new do for the season...and the bow, thanks to the Barker Shop...topped it off.  Well, enjoy the signs in your neck of the woods!

45 Years...Holy Cow

I wish I was being amazed at being 45 years old, but I'm actually being amazed at being married for 45 years! And they thought it wouldn't last..ha! We showed them! (there might have been times when we didn't think it would either!)  But time has a way of moving quicker as the years go on.  We raised 4 boys,  worked (and are still working!), bought a home, sold a home, bought a home, took vacations across this fabulous land and trudged day to day through the mires of problems that many folks have. The ups have been fewer than the downs, thankfully. We love our family, church and church family and friends we've made over the years.  Jack and I met on a blind date and my advice to couples would be to keep a blind eye on the unimportant things and work together to correct, improve, or simply enjoy the very important things. Other than that I have no great advice on marriage longevity.  It's a crap shoot most times!  I like to laugh and find many things funny. Growing old does test my sense of humor, but frankly I rather smile than cry. (I wear mascara after all.)  So, Happy Anniversary Jack! Look on the bright side Babe..you won't have to go through 45 more, in this life anyway!  Glad we knocked it out of the park the first time! Love you!

Yes, it was a big fat semi Greek wedding!

Happy Birthday And Merry Christmas!

First, Happy Birthday Jack!  Today is his birthday and all the boys came over with family and Craig called from Oregon to throw his happy greetings into the group!

A Texas sheet cake was his request and we had a really nice afternoon with everyone.  I must say, the weather has been absolutely perfect this weekend. Perhaps another request from the birthday boy? It was cool and no humidity and sunny...great weather for a quick birthday/anniversary trip.  Next weekend is our 45th wedding anniversary but I'm on call for that weekend. So I begged and was able to get this past Friday off so we could take a trip to Michigan to celebrate this weekend instead.  We'd been talking about going up to Dundee to the original Cabela's store.  It's pretty impressive! But then we'd also been talking about going further north to Frankenmuth, Michigan to see the Christmas store, Bronner's,  So after some back and forth deciding, we went to Frankenmuth first, stayed overnight there and then stopped at Cabela's on the way back.

A Christmas wonderland it is!

16 sections of Christmas decorations. If they don't have it, you don't need it!

Isles and Isles of glitz and glimmer. Christmas music playing and so much to look at. I found a few treasures and enjoyed just been amazed at the selection.Besides going to this store, we also headed to downtown Frankenmuth.  It's a Bavarian setting with tons of stores and we were told to stop for dinner at Zehnder's.  Holy cow, that was amazingly delicious!  The food was so good and the service was excellent. But there was so much food served we couldn't possible eat it all.  Thankfully we had a fridge in our hotel room so we could grab a doggy bag. (Arnie stayed here in Ashland with Jordan so no leftovers for him...sorry Arnie!)

The river is so pretty there and we missed getting a boat ride since it was late when we were done eating. Maybe next time!

The town is super cute, a bit touristy, but lots to do so if you're up in "Pure" Michigan, give it a go! The next morning we headed back toward home but stopped at Cabela's.

A bear hug anyone?

The store has an aquarium you can walk through.

A waterfall exhibit.

A few bison anyone? My in-laws raised buffalo for a bit and when my kids were little they called them "buttalos"!  We shopped and found some Christmas gifts and also a few bday gifts for Jack. It was nice to get away even for just over 24hrs! It was fun and relaxing.  Before bidding ado, I want to go back in time for just a minute.  On Thursday we attended a retirement party for one of our anesthesiologists,  Dr. Reed.

The guy with the happy face is him! He decided he'd had enough of computers and corporate medicine, and since he's 60, he said bye, bye!  On the way to the party we stopped and picked up someone you may remember:

My BFF, Donna! See her leg? Yep, she fell a few months ago and broke her tibia/fibula in 5 places! Yikes! A rod was put in her tibia and it's getting better slowly. She's hoping to get back to work next month. She's a trooper for sure! Well, it's been a busy end of the week that's been full of celebrating and enjoying.  Hope this next week is a good one for all of us! Fall has been in the air around the Pines and I'm not complaining! Night all!

I Must Confess

So what do I need to confess? Well...I did leave work early today, before noon even.  No, I'm not confessing that I went home sick. It was just one of those days where, after a bit,  they really didn't need as much staff and I, out of the goodness of my heart, (Ha!) volunteered to head out! It was a rainy day today. A nice gentle rain that fell all day long. A dark, dreary, curl up in a chair and read a book kind of day. And that's what I did! I even rested my eyes a bit...hehe.  I did get up and can some more pickles and made dinner.

See how lovely the rain looked? It's actually been a bit dry the last few weeks and it felt nice to have a gentle soaker.

I made shrimp orzo..a recipe I found some time back and we really like. 

Elderberry pie anyone?  It's one of Jack's favs and no I didn't make it. I'm not much of a pie maker.  Ellen who works in Jack's office made it. I thought I should snap a pic quick since it was going fast! Thanks Ellen, it's delish!

 I'll confess to loving my new screen door Jack put in. It's not crooked, just my photography! So what am I confessing about? Well, I guess I should tell you that I'm a stalker.  NO, I don't stalk people or do weird things like that.  I guess you could say I stalk real estate. I love to look on Zillow or Realtor.com at properties here and there and sometimes anywhere! Am I looking to move us?  Not really although you never know if that perfect house on a lake would pop up and tempt me!  I like to know how the market is going and also the prices.  I've learned a few things along the way. If you're going to sell your home and post it for folks to see here's some tips. 1. Clean the house. Don't leave the dishes in the sink, a thousand shoes by the door, laundry on the floor, beds unmade. 2. Close the toilet lid...just sayin..and while we're at it..put away the plunger, the toilet bowl brush, and any other personal items you  don't want the public to see. 3. When you make the bed, really make it neatly with the bedspread, duvet, comforter, whatever, straightened. 4. Get rid of the dead animal heads on the wall.  Now guys may like that but a whole room of Bambi and antlers isn't appealing. 5. Creepy basements don't photograph well. 6. Hide the real animals in your life. Get kitty off the counter and fido off the couch...atleast for the pics. 7. Too much religious things hanging on the walls, doors, windows...like tons of crucifixes or something might make some people think you're trying to purge the house of evil spirits. Not that I would ever think that. 👻  So that's my real confession for today. Yep,  it's a slow blogging time! Ha! Enjoy the rest of this week! 

August? Really?

Yes, it's August really! July had us in a flurry of busyness with a little travel, a few projects, and family gatherings.  All good stuff but I feel like I blinked and it was over! So now the Summer is reaching it's peak...the dog days are a bit less humid but the skeeters are biting in full force. I think they were kind enough to wait until our kids went back home so we could have a few days of outside fun. Now we'll be paying more attention to the garden and reap what we planted and raiding the farmer's market for the things we didn't produce.  Our blueberries and raspberries looked so promising this year but the relentless rain and no sun did them no favors. It was a disappointing year so we'll put our hopes on next year and buy the jams I didn't get to put up.  Soon apples will begin to appear at the orchards and applesauce will fill our shelves.  For now it's tomato season and we've had a few of them grace the table:

Add some fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil and olive oil to these beauties and it's LUNCH! YUM!

I managed to harvest some carrots and we have tons of cucumbers that are making delish pickles. So the next few weeks will find the canner cooking and the shelves getting filled.  Also family will benefit from some leftovers...always make enough to share! This month also brings some birthdays. Tomorrow Grandson Cameron will turn 12.  At the end of the month Jack will have a bday too along with our 45th wedding anniversary.  I know more on those events to follow. For now...hello August, let's have some fun!

The Whole Family Gathering

These past two weeks seem to have flown by in a bit of a blur. When Craig and family said they were coming this summer for a visit we went into planning mode as I know they did. They had to get plane tickets, car rental, activities and tourist things they wanted to see.  We had projects around the house we wanted to finish and also plan activities around what they were doing.  The first week I blogged about the trip to the Falls and then they had their whirlwind trip to NYC, Washington DC and many stops along the way.  We chose to stay here and get ready for the next part of the trip. It had been a while since any family pics were taken and I wanted to grab the Grandkiddos for a group shot of all of them. Not always easy with everyone's work and vacation schedules but somehow we pulled it off. The weather cooperated by not raining, turning pleasantly cool and low humidity to finish off their last few days with us.  We even got permission from the family who bought my in-laws farm to let us come and tour the grounds.  It brought back tons of memories for the kids. It's been 18yrs since they were there. The family that lives there now are so nice and did a beautiful job of remodeling the home and taking great care of the property. We thank them so much for letting us invade! I won't post pics of their home since I don't want to put them out on social media without their permission.  I will post these many pics from our group photo shoot on Thursday.  On Friday my sister and Mom came to join us for a family BBQ and for Mom to see Craig's kids again.  It all turned out great and I can't believe they are all back home and tomorrow I'm back at work. So here goes:

We are missing only one member. That would be Jackie's wife Evelyn. We had originally scheduled the pics for Friday but the two oldest Grandkiddos couldn't be there so we went with Thursday. I felt so bad she couldn't be there but she understood since it's been so long between pics with all the grands together.  (my Granddog Kip made it but Arnie wouldn't cooperate!)

Jackie, Craig, Jordan, and Phil...this wasn't the final normal shot..they had to get the wiggles out first.

Boys!

They had a good time catching up and just laughing all the time.

Jackie's clan...

Craig's cuties...

Phil's girls.

A few jumped for joy when we were done!

Some cousin bonding going on here...Addy Rae and Sophie really hit it off. So fun to see them play and get to know each other better.

Mom was happy to get together with her Grandkids and Great-Grandkids.

A little cake never hurt!

The kids have grown since Mom last saw them in person!

As the evening wore on we had fireworks, gun shooting, golf ball hitting, bow and arrow contests, and riding around the Pines on the old Gator...yep, I think they had fun.

We also had icecream sundaes all around...even Kip tried to snag some from Anthony. We really enjoyed this time with everyone and we were very sad to see Craig's family head back home yesterday.  But we'll be back out to visit them and I hope they can make it East again soon.  Love my family..they are the best!

Finally, I think Arnie was ready for a little rest! Us too!

Fast And Furious!

We've been a little on the fast track this past week.  Our son Craig and his sweet family are here visiting.  I guess saying "HERE" is only partly right.  They arrived very late Tuesday/Wednesday morning around 12:30am via Columbus Ohio airport.  Wednesday we spent taking my Grands to see where their Dad went to school, our old home in town where he and his brothers grew up, and some other places that are new to Craig since he moved away 20 some years ago.  We joked that every grade school and even the junior high he attended have all been torn down to erase any memory of his having been there! Just kidding Craig! One of the places his kids were looking forward to was Cedar Point amusement park. So we trekked up there on Thursday.  I hadn't been there is over 30yrs  and we went on a super hot day.  But like true kids, it didn't matter the weather, it was still a blast. We got a bit of sun and then in the late afternoon it stormed.  We ended the day wet and tired but had fun.

Here they are..Amy, Craig, Sophie, Taylor, and Katie.

The park is huge and they got on as many rides as possible.  Only one ride had a pretty long wait and they did that one first. The last roller coaster they were about to ride got shut down because of the thunderstorm that blew in.

Katie and her pink cheeks...Taylor keeps us laughing!

A bit wet at the end of the day but still smiling!  You wet those towels and they stay cool for a while. We needed them this week!  A heat wave hit us and thankfully will be gone by Monday.

At home the kids have enjoyed getting to know the Pines since it's been a while since they've been here.  Taylor giving his best boomerang pose! On Friday we headed up North to Canada to visit Niagara Falls.  It's only about 4-1/2hrs from here.

Even though I've seen the Falls many times, it never fails to impress.  Such beauty and power.  Again we were plagued a bit by thunderstorms but we did the tourist thing and took the boat ride to the Falls.

Poor Katie gets seasick but managed to make it back OK.

Again, Taylor makes us laugh!  Saying goodbye to Canada, we hit the trail back to New York state to see a Church pageant in Palymra NY.

It's pretty impressive too! It started at 9:15pm  and went until 10:30.  After a full day of driving and sightseeing, we were ready to hit the hotel and sleep. It's here we parted company with Craig and crew and they head out for a power car trip to NYC and then on to Washington DC and other sites along the way. They will come back here on Wednesday and finish out their stay with us and the rest of the family.  Whew, fast and furious for sure.  More of this adventure to come.  For now we're just waiting for this crazy heat wave to pass.  It's suppose to be much better by Monday and I'm hoping for good weather to finish out this week with a family cookout for Friday night.  Jack and I will be resting up tomorrow! Night all!