First...Grad party!

Another full day...and the first of our graduation parties!

Dawn, Matthew, and Tom Marasco

My very dear friend, Dawn's, oldest son, Matthew, graduated this year. Matt is the oldest of 4, and he will be going into the field of computer science, specializing in computer programming and/or security....very smart kid! And just look at his smile!

Anna and Dawn's youngest son, Luke are only 6 months apart...and they had so much fun playing together!



Yes....I even played volleyball...and in my long, "gypsy" skirt, too!

My cousin, Kim...she and Dawn are cousins....and when Kim is around....WE LAUGH!

Kenna, Briana, my Sara, Maria and Julia....all cousins! Meghan was playing photographer, and successfully avoided being in any pictures!

Ronnie played volleyball with us...along with many other games he was into today! What fun we all had! They had a snowcone machine that everyone thoroughly enjoyed, along with all the great food!

Anna and Maggie, who is Kim's youngest daughter. Anna loves Maggie and follows her around whenever we are together.

Dawn, Kim and I

~We have so much fun when we are together! Dawn was instrumental when I first became saved...discipling me, praying with me...then when she started homeschooling as well, we had even more in common.

We three gabby girls get to have another get-together on Wednesday night...to gab and laugh while the kids swim and hang out....we're all looking forward to our visit! Off to bed....another full day tomorrow, for Father's day! Congratulations, Matthew...and God bless you! ~Sue~

The 'Simple' life...and good friends!

We made a trip to 'Amish country' yesterday! Meghan, Sara and I are intrigued with the Amish way of living, have read many,many books about it and have adapted some of those ways for our lives. So....after Autumn visiting with us all week, we met her parents, our friends Mike and Jolyn in Sugar Creek, Ohio for a day of seeing the sites, shopping, visiting and enjoying time with our friends. First, the weather held off on the rain until we drove home, so we had a beautiful day to site see. Driving past and around Tappan Lake was gorgeous! It is so beautiful there! Entering the country, the gently rolling hills, farmhouses and barns were so peaceful and beautiful...we enjoyed the drive immensely! We met Mike and Jolyn at Heinis Cheese Factory for our first tour!

This was an interesting trip for me, as I was here with Meghan and Sara 10 years ago...and I spent the day remembering our past trip and seeing things thru new eyes. My reaction 10 years ago was awe....and a lot of wishing I could live in a similar manner and do a lot of the things that the Amish do.....now, it was interesting to me as we spent the day yesterday, thinking to myself..." I now DO a lot of this" and looking at the different crafts, quilting, and food that yes, I can do these things myself....am I an expert? No...especially in quilting, but I can do it! I've learned so much over the past 10 years....about living simply, enjoying the simple pleasures of life, enjoying simple, old-fashioned living and home arts , cooking and baking from scratch (I have chocolate chip/walnut biscotti in the oven now, smelling up the house!)....and I think the Lord has led me to study the Amish way of life so much over the past 10 years, to learn from them.....to not be concerned with what the 'world' or 'society' deems "normal" or "in"....to live in the world, but be as separate as we can, and to live humbly, simply and gratefully!

Here are Autumn, Mike and Jolyn reunited after a week away from each other....they were so happy to see each other!
Our gang touring the cheese factory..it was so neat to see how everything was made...then to eat all the samples! Of course, we brought some cheese home with us!
Jolyn and I....seems the Lord is deepening our friendship very quickly, and drawing our families together as well.

My guys...of course, they had to wear their Penguins matching shirts and hats!

Autumn and Sara....what a pair! They are very much alike, and had a wonderful time together...we're already planning future get-togethers....and at least once a month visits for our families!

After our cheese factory tour, we drove to Berlin...parked and walked amongst all the shops! Of course, our favorite shop was little used book store! (the girls and I could have spent hours in there!) Mike and Jolyn were such gracious hosts...always waiting while we 'oohed and ahhed' over things...wandering thru the craft shops, and quilting shops. From there, we headed to a huge indoor Amish flea market! Wow! It was huge! Tons of craftspeople selling their wares...we all had a great time! Funny....10 years ago I would have bought so much...but now, I got lots of great inspiration to make my own!

On to our last stop....an Amish buggy ride! Ronnie and Anna wanted to do this all day! They loved it! Our horses name was "Shirley" and she would speed up on certain places and the little ones would squeal! We talked about if we only road in these instead of cars, how we would have to live relatively close to everything, and everyone...relatives would have to live close to visit, or they wouldn't see each other very often. Not like our trip yesterday....hop in a car and drive for 2 1/2 hours!

At the same place, we wandered thru a large antique mall...Meghan was in her glory! (I could have spent hours there, but NOT with little ones who want to 'touch and hold' everything!) The little ones saw the animals and saw 6 tiny new kittens. (Of course, Anna wanted to bring them ALL home with us!) Sara and I made a quick stop at a quilt shop (could have spent time there as well, if everyone wasn't starving!)....again, I got some great inspiration from the quilt shop as well.

On to dinner! We went to an Amish restaurant called Der Dutchman! The girls and I had eaten there with my friend, Stephanie, 10 years ago....and it hasn't changed! Incredibly good food!!! It did NOT taste like restaurant food....everything was homemade (of course) and delicious! We were served family style...with chicken, roast beef, mashed potatoes, stuffing, creamed corn (it was so good!), and fluffy homemade warm rolls....with wonderful apple butter! At the end of this delicious meal...everyone could choose a piece of pie. We were so stuffed! Mike insisted on treating all of us....what a generous spirit he and Jolyn have! We were truly blessed! (we hardly ever go out to eat, all 6 of us....it just is not in our budget!) The weather held off until we were done....then the heavens opened up! Jolyn's son, Michael, called to tell her that there was a tornado warning! The wind was incredible, and the sky was green with the rain coming down in buckets, sideways!.....we ended up following the storm most of the way home...sometimes driving in it, sometimes behind it. We saw some gorgeous lightning strikes lighting up the sky...and some very cool cloud formations as well! Once a homeschooler, always a homeschooler...no matter where we seem to be, there is something really cool to learn!

Ron, me, Jolyn and Mike

~This is the end of our visit...while the storm was raging around us! Thank goodness they are coming to stay with us on the 4th of July (Ron's birthday!)....and go to Ty's first birthday party the next day and spend some time with the rest of the family! I feel so very, very blessed that the Lord saw fit to unite our families! My children are all calling them Aunt Jolyn and Uncle Mike....and we are planning on many, many get-togethers in the future! We are planning a trip in August to Ohio, to spend a few days with my friend Stephanie and her family, then driving down to spend a few days with Jolyn and her family....I THINK that Ronnie and Anna will be having a special adventure of their own , staying with Grammy and Buppy overnight for a few days while we are gone.

~Now....it's off to finish the biscotti, and get ready for a graduation party today. We have to finish some Father's day surprises for tomorrow as well!~ Sue

Recipe: Canadohta Lake Chicken

I wanted to post a picture to go with the recipe for this dish....but the pot got scraped clean!!! I can' t believe it! This is a recipe that I modified from my friend Marybeth...and after taking it to Canadohta Lake a couple of years ago, that is what Sara named it...and it's one of her favorites! Here you go:

~Canadohta Lake Chicken~

In a little butter and olive oil, saute as many cut up boneless chicken breasts (seasoned with season salt and garlic powder) as you like (we don't eat a lot of meat, so 3 breasts fed 7 of us) until golden brown. Dump in some homemade chicken broth (or canned), then add cut up zucchini, onion, lots of mushrooms (if your family likes them...we do!), onion, tomato chunks and fresh spinach on top.....put the lid on and simmer until chicken and veggies are done. Oops! Forgot...add basil! Then...take more chicken broth mixed with cornstarch and thicken dinner. We serve this on top of brownrice spagetti, and put shredded mozzerella cheese on top! Delicious!!! This is a great meal to take someone who needs a meal...sometimes, I'll leave the chicken breasts whole , put them on top of veggies and sauce and sprinkle with cheese. Bon Apetit! ~Sue~

Look who is hanging around my garden....

2 cute frogs!!! Oh, my goodness...look at Ty's smile!!! He will be 1 year old in 2 weeks, and is wearing his froggy outfit, and sitting next to "Mr. Froggy" who is 57 years old!!! Had to post this!!! ~Sue~

Reflections of "Autumn" days!

Ok....I know it is summer!!! My dear friend's daughter, Autumn, is visiting with us this week from Ohio! Here is a little bit of what has been going on since Sunday......

Sara and Autumn
An apron that I made for a birthday party on Saturday...I love this fabric! The once a year fundraiser, Salvation Army Fabric Sale is such a bargain! So much fabric, so little time!

(I loved the fabric so much I kept using it!) This is another birthday present (the party was for triplets)...a crochet pouch to hold Julia's hooks.

The pouch all rolled up....my first time making this...it worked up quickly and easily...I'm very happy with the results!

Sara and Autumn swinging...these two crack me up...they get along so well and are having so much fun!

My "crazy Filipino" friend, Judy, stopped over with her new baby! This is the ripple afghan that Meghan made for him.

Look at him looking up at Meghan! He was so alert!

This is Judy's 4th baby, Jeremiah Thomas Logan...he looks like his sister, Isabella! This is the double flannel blanket that I made for him.

I love babies!!!
Autumn loved holding him, too!

Ty playing hockey....or eating the hockey ball! We are getting him this set for his 1st birthday in 2 weeks!

Ronnie trying to teach Ty hockey...we're trying to teach him to say "Hocka" like Ronnie did at that age!
Anna is big into dalmations and the movie "101 Dalmations" right now....she loves this one!

The joke around here is that Autumn has been doing LOTS of work and chores here! She has been pitching in with Meghan and Sara a lot, and completely uncomplaining. Here she is grating the cheese for our taco/burrito night last night.
Sara chopped the lettuce and tomato....then the two girls made "power balls" before we watched "Nim's Island" last night. Autumn has been spending a lot of time in the kitchen here!

Tonight, the girls are babysitting for Ron and I while we go to our small group. Tomorrow, Autumn goes home...but not before we all get to spend a fun day together in Amish country! We are meeting Autumn's parents in Sugar Creek, Ohio, to spend the day, tour the cheese factory and Amish shops , then have dinner at an Amish resteraunt before coming home....a nice, family day trip....and getting to spend the day with Autumn's parents is a treat, too! Looking forward to tomorrow....and a fun filled weekend, with a graduation party, and Father's Day to cap it all off! Ah....summertime! ~Sue~

A Horse is A Horse...

Today Autumn and I went on a trail ride! Yay! It was so much fun and we had good horses! Here are some pictures:

Autumn and I with a horse field in the background :)

Autumn and I waiting to ride

Autumn and I ready to start!

Me (Sara) On Lumpy

~Autumn On Bugly~

City of Champions...AGAIN!!!!!!!!!

City of Champions...again!!!! 2009 Stanley Cup Champions...Pittsburgh Penguins! What a season!!! Way to go, Penguins!!!! This celebration photo was taken just minutes after the buzzer sounded....oh, my goodness...my guys were (are!) so excited! Ron is especially thrilled to have shared his love of hockey with his son...and the fact that Ronnie is as into it as his dad is! They play hockey together, watch hockey together, and talk and read about hockey together...they really do share a special bond thru hockey!
Poor Ronnie had a high fever all day today...so did Anna. He dozed off on the couch right before the game was over....woke up with less than 2 minutes left to go in the game! Here is his "Blue Bear" holding up his own "stanley cup" in celebration!

Tears of joy!

Look at these faces!!! A friend, brought this down for us last week....right now, it is hanging out the sunroof of Ron's car, as he, Sara and Ronnie are driving around a little bit, in celebration! My guys are SO excited!!!

~Congratulations to all of the Pittsburgh Penguins and the great fans in Pittsburgh for an awesome season and another Stanley Cup win!!!!! Way to go, Pens!!!!!!!~ Sue

Tis the Season...for Church Carnivals!

And, so it starts! Church carnivals....bring back so many memories from childhood! My sisters and I would always stay overnight (sometimes for days) at my grandparents house...my Gram would work St. Wendelin's carnival, we would get lots of free food and always meet our friends up there.

Ron, Meghan, Sara, Ronnie and Anna.....Ride tickets courtesy of Ron's Aunt Peppy!


Ronnie found a little canadian maple leaf "hockey guy" at the flea market....

Anna found ANOTHER stuffed dog....of course, her Daddy is a push-over for her big brown eyes!

Meghan found lots of things for her party and her hopechest. (right now,all of her things are in mine until she gets her own.) Sara didn't find anything exciting enough to make her part with her money! (smart girl!)

Then it was on to the rides....Ronnie and Anna were spinning on the cups...

flying on the helicopters....

Then it was on to the ferris wheel! We ran into Ron's cousin, Elizabeth , her husband Krister, and their daughters, Molly and Julia....I think Elizabeth had the most fun!

Even Meghan rode the ferris wheel! (Ronnie protected her!)

Sara and Anna on top! Ron and I were in the car behind them, and got a great shot!


One last ride for the little ones...then it was time for.....

DONUTS!!!!!!! Yes, these were fresh...hot off the machine! We bought a dozen to take home!

Anna's was covered with pink and purple sprinkles....of course!


Ronnie chose orange and black sprinkles...Bethel Park colors! We took them home to watch the hockey game!
THIS has been in my livingroom! A friend brought it home for Ronnie....hope it brings the Penguins luck! Tonight, it is do or die!

Ronnie is confident, though....he dressed his beloved "Blue Bear" in HIS Pittsburgh Penguins hockey uniform...complete with skates and his own Stanley Cup! Let's Go Pens!!!!!! ~Sue~