Friday, April 27, 2012

 Wow, it doesn't take long to get behind again!  Just busy. 
 Here are two pictures from this past Valentine's Day.  This is the sixth year that we've gone to the W--- family tea.  The "little" girls' table is getting smaller each year! 
 And here's the "big" girls' table.  With the girls getting older, many have moved, gotten jobs, or gone off to college.  As usual, my daughters had a wonderful time.  Thank you, Rachel, Rebekah, and Hannah!
 Allen and I were bored one day and experimented with a soft pretzel and bacon.  It was wonderfully delicious!  (Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.)
 In March, we celebrated Maggie's 22nd birthday.  Birthdays are an emotional time for her. She cried all day on the 3rd realizing it's been 7 years that she's had to deal with her arm/hand pain.  Then she wiped away her tears and enjoyed her special day. 
 As usual, Meemaw and Grandad came over for dinner and cake.
  We gave Maggie a unicyle for her birthday gift.  She's almost got it nailed.  Riding a unicyle is a lot harder than it looks!  I think we need to take her to the park with the smooth parking lot so she can practice. 
 Two things that made Maggie smile from ear to ear: When she went to therapy she was given balloons, a t-shirt, and two homemade pies. Then she went to acupuncture, and Dr. Hebron and her hubby had a beautiful gift for her as well! Maggie felt so loved! Thank you all for your thoughtfulness and for making my baby smile.   
 This week we have been helping Lizzie babysit little Clara while her Mom performs with her orchestra.  Clara is a bundle of energy...but she also enjoys spending a lot of time sitting and reading. 

Usually when Lizzie, Ruthie and I knock on the door for violin lessons, Clara always asks, "Anna?" (she pronounces it like a short "o" as in "ohnna") who babysits her on Thursday nights during choir practice.  So we are glad that this week she has forgotten all about beloved Anna!  She called me Mom...because that is what she heard Lizzie and Ruthie call me:-)
One of the exciting things about babysitting for Adina is that she prepares a fantastic meal for lunch everyday!  Since she is a wonderful cook, and knows how to cook dairyfree and eggfree, this is a real treat for Lizzie.  Of course, since we help...we always taste-test everything.  Then I ask for the recipe.

Yesterday's lunch was a Thai pork and eggplant dish that was just delicious. (The above picture shows my version.) I immediately stopped by the farmer's market for fresh eggplant and made it when I got home.  It doesn't look like much but even Allen said the eggplant was delicious.  Yesterday Adina made an italian pork roast baked in coconut milk...so I have that ready to make on Saturday! 

Our commissary has been selling the freshest brussel sprouts this spring.
We have enjoyed grilling them on the grill.  No bitterness whatsoever!
We have also enjoyed the fresh fruit.  I bought this fruit in March...and the watermelon was sweet!
Allen is always busy doing one thing or another, so he has started his own blog.  As soon as he gets a few posts going, I will add his blog on the lefthand column.  This picture shows him soldering some project.  He's also working on a weather balloon for his ham radio club.
On April 23rd, Mike and I celebrated our 29th wedding anniversary.  I forgot to take a picture of these flowers until they were old, but the sunflowers were just gorgeous.  Our friends, Lynn and Al, invited us over for dinner.  What a wonderful time we had...so much that I forgot to take a picture!  We always feel so loved after an evening with them.  Thanks, Lynn and Al. 
Sarah gave us a generous gift card for a meal at the local Texas Roadhouse.  We both had the Fort Worth ribeye steaks...wow!  Mike and I haven't had steaks for years...and now we've had them twice in a month! (Last month we had them at Mom and Dad's home.) 
We went on a Monday night since the line is sometimes 2 hours long.  We didn't have to wait at all (thanks to Sarah's online seating reservation).  I love the ambience in there...cacti all over, busts of deer, antelope, buffalo, longhorns, etc.  We even spent 10 minutes talking to some friends we haven't seen in awhile.  Thanks so much, Sarah.  We will remember this evening for a long time.
I found this picture of Sarah and Ruthie at the farmer's market buying Sarah's three chickens.  Sarah wants her own fresh chicken eggs...so she bought 3 layers.
We have been seeing 2 rafters of turkeys on our dirt road.  Large turkeys!  Probably  7 or 8 of them.  But we are never quick enough with the camera!  This was the best we could do.  (And did you know a bunch of turkeys is called a rafter?  I had to look it up!)
Finally found a picture of Abigail!  Natalie cut her bangs...and it makes her look much older.  This past Thursday night, my parents invited our extended family over for corned beef and potatoes...a family favorite.  Well, not many people could make it...so we got the leftovers!  Thanks, Dad. 
And this is for Anna...since this cat looks like Ranger...and has the same attitude!

Anna says she doesn't miss us anymore, so I guess she has settled in.  The nights are cooler in Uganda.  Anna says she is really enjoying herself.  She also says Uganda is much safer than southeast Asia.  They are able to eat raw veggies.  The missionaries even use the water to brush their teeth...but Anna isn't that brave.  We enjoy hearing from Anna everyday.

My children are at church for play practice, so it's nice and quiet here...just what I needed to blog.  Tomorrow will be busy for us with painting upstairs. 

Enjoy your weekend.  Many blessings ~ Kathie

1 comment:

Deb said...

Happy belated Anniversary Kathie! Sounds like you had a good time out. It was good reading your catch up post! No...hadn't heard of a rapter of turkeys...interesting. That asparagus on the plate looks so good; I'm a recent asparagus lover, but it's so expensive at our farmers' market.