Hickory Apple Festival...

It didn't rain today!!! Praise God for sunshine!!! Today, since it was really the last day of Ron's vacation, we headed out to Hickory, Pa. for the Hickory Apple Festival....it was so much fun! We were just so happy to do something as a family, without rain! LOL Someone may be wondering why I have a picture of a schoolbus...well, this was our 'shuttle' from the field where we parked, down to the town of Hickory...and the only time my children have ridden a schoolbus! I had to preserve it to memory! Seriously, we were very grateful to have the free shuttle...the town was jammed with people, no where to park...it was a real convenience to us to be able to park and ride.
Ronnie and Anna enjoyed the petting zoo...the usual, sheep, goats, rabbits and even baby piglets!

This was cool...a man had about half a dozen birds...peregrine falcons, hawks and this guy...a red tailed hawk. Since we see them all the time around here, but never close up, this was really neat to see.

Ronnie liked this display of arrowheads...

And, of course...APPLES! Look at her face...candy apples and caramel apples were enjoyed...

(This one was hard to bite!) Apple pie and apple crisp were sampled by the Gorecki family as well...of course, I told Ron to buy me a bag of apples and I'd make him a whole pie...but it was a really worthy fundraiser for the local volunteer fire department, so we didn't mind the prices.
It is always so nice to be able to do anything with Ron...with his crazy schedule, doing anything as a family is always the nicest memories for us!

All the kids had a good time....look how crowded it was! This is a much anticipated, local event!

~Seems the whole town, and all the little towns on the way into Hickory pick the weekend of the apple festival to have garage/yard sales....we must have passed 50 of them! On the way home, we did stop at one that looked promising...and it paid off! Meghan got a hard cover edition of the Fanny Farmer Cookbook...Sara got a lamp for her room, but Ronnie and especially Anna really were lucky...


Ronnie got a "Meet the Robinsons" science kit..complete with microscope, slides and testtubes...he came home and did experiments until it was time for dinner.

Little Miss Anna....she got a real "my first" Singer sewing machine! It really works! It is safe for little fingers, and she is so excited....first thing she said is she wants to sew a quilt for her dolls...here she is practicing. She also got a bike. The bike she has, has hard plastic wheels, and no brakes...we took it on the trail and she hated riding it. This bike, although not as 'pretty', has real tires with excellent tread, BRAKES ( I was worried about that!), and best of all...it has a seat on the back for her to give rides to her dolls and stuffed animals. She was so excited! We're going to get her a basket for the front and a bell...and she'll be ready to roll! It was a fun day!
After a healthy dinner of homemade chicken fingers and 'smashed' cauliflower...Anna helped me make some chocolate chip cookies....a treat after the healthy dinner! LOL

I thought I would leave you all with some warm, sweet, gooey images!
With a glass of cold milk....a perfect ending to a perfect day! Hope you all have a special, blessed Sabbath tomorrow! ~Sue~

Vacation memories...Lake Chautauqua

Well...we're home. It is bittersweet....we all loved our vacation at the lake so much! But...there is no place like home! (especially now, as the Penguin's hockey game is on tv right now!) We had such a wonderful time on vacation...even though it was COLD and RAINY....we had 1 day of no rain...and it was still cold, overcast and windy....but it was so good to get away! My parents came up for a few days...bringing goodies! They love to spoil my kids (especially their Buppy!) and we had tons of lunchmeat, white bread and buns, rootbeer, icecream, and tons of candy....all the things they rarely get here! LOL We will be detoxing for weeks! This is the view from our window...anywhere you sit in the livingroom or eating area...this is what you see....even cloudy or raining, the view of the lake was so peaceful and beautiful!
The kids had a tire swing and a wooden swing to play on (in between raindrops) while they watched the ducks

Our little fishermen...they were so excited to go fishing! We were prepared for the weather (thanks to advanced weather forcasting online!) so we had warm raincoats, and boots...

We bought 2 'punching balls' at Wal-mart while buying a few groceries...they were a hit! We all had so much fun with them...at one point we broke into 2 teams and were hitting it back and forth across the livingroom...ok, not exactly advance rocket science, but boy, did we have fun!
My step-dad, Ronnie, Meghan and my mom
We were able to have lunch at this resteraunt that we visited 4 years ago when we were here...and it was every bit as good as we remembered!
Wish I was able to get a better picture of this mexican mural....it was beautiful...and the food was excellent!

Because the docks were already taken in, we walked down a little lane and fished off of a little wooden bridge...this is where they were able to catch a few perch...everything they caught was too small to eat, but we're hoping next year, to catch some big ones...Ronnie wants to catch a pike really badly!
I really loved spending time with everyone...and yes, I fished, too! This is the one that Anna and I caught with her own fishing rod...she was so proud!
This is Anna with the first fish she ever caught...Lake Chautauqua is also where Ronnie and the girls caught their first fish as well....good memories, here!
Since it rained most of the time, we got creative inside. One day, Anna made lunch for everyone "all by herself"! She patiently made pizza bagels for everyone, and was so proud!

In between the rain, I thoroughly enjoyed long strolls with my beautiful daughters...while the little ones fished with dad....it was so beautiful there, and peaceful....we talked about the future, our plans...and what we can change when we get home, to make our lives more like they were at the lake.
We enjoyed lots of games...card games, Phase 10, and Ronnie now loves the game 'connect 4'! He's been playing it with everyone. (he beat me the past 4 games!)
We hadn't played the game "Set" for years, and when I found it in the cabinet, I took it up with us...Sara is the QUEEN of Set! We can't keep up with her! It sure sharpened our visual perception, though...and we will be playing it frequently again around here to keep up!

We did a few puzzles while we were gone. The 24 piece puzzles, Ronnie & Anna got the hang of quickly...so we moved on to the 100 piece puzzle that said for ages "5 and up"...well, this 100 piece puzzle was HARD! Took us forever to put it together...Ron finally finished it! Oh, how we laughed!

My mom and dad were NOT crazy about Set...they got the hang of it, but decided it was too much agrivation...they are 'card sharks' and taught us a few new card games. One was called "Pay Me"...that was a lot of fun!
Another favorite game for the little ones is Clue Jr. As the older girls love the origional Clue, when I found this at the thrift shop, I snagged it! We really want to play more games together, so it will be nice for 3 of us to play this at one end, and the older ones at the other end of the table playing the origional...that way we are all together, having fun, but the little ones can play, too.
Our last night at the Lake, last evening, it DIDN'T rain! We pulled out the telescope and looked at the moon and stars....we really think we saw Pluto! (complete with a moon on either side of it....it was a powerful telescope!)LOL I love the expression on Ronnie's face in this photo!
Looking at the moon...with the beautiful sunset behind them!

We had a great bonfire going....roasting marshmallows, making s'mores (yum!)..Sara and Anna were loving the marshmallows!

My mom and Meghan around the fire...

The Gorecki family...enjoying the bonfire...before the cold drove us inside!

~We also spent some time watching old movies, watching the "Mystery Woman" movies...great mysteries...and just talking and enjoying each other's company.

It was so nice to "re-connect" and relax! It was very interesting to us, with no internet, no phone, no obligations, no cable tv....made us all think differently. My quiet time was awesome....looking out at the lake, and looking around, counting my blessings. I was able to crochet 3 pairs of wool slippers, one wash cloth, play games with my family, get caught up with my poor neglected journal...it was wonderful!

~One thing our family decided to do, is to only access the internet once a day....so checking emails, once a day. Checking facebook, once a day. Checking blogs....once a day. Updating our blog...once a day....ONLY going on the computer once a day....so, if it is an emergency....CALL ME! LOL If I'm not busy with my family...then the machine will not pick up...or leave a message...I'll get back to you when it is not inconvenient for my family. I think it finally got thru my thick head...I am going to use technology....not let it control me! The internet is too tempting for me...I love to research...I love learning new things...I could research all day, storing information, printing out projects to do...but I will only have these children for such a short time, they deserve my attention...and when I am available, my family is content.

So...our family vacation was a great success! Relaxing, lots of memories made, lots of family time....and important lessons learned. Thank you, God! ~Sue~

And....we're off!

We're off for our vacation....Lake Chautauqua...here we come! We'll catch up with another visit next weekend when we come home...I pray that you all have a very blessed week! ~Sue~

Catching up with family and friends....

After lots of homemade chicken soup....turkey soup....elderberry and vitamin C....our family is on the mend! Some of us are left with a few sniffles, little coughs...and a little fatique, but we're much better! Thought I would share some scenes from the past 2 weeks around here....lots of homeschooling, "nesting in", and getting into a workable routine...even colds didn't throw us TOO much! LOL

Turkey and rice soup....
Meghan and Sarah....our Sara was trying out her new camera...

I LOVE this one! Sara took it...I wish she could have been in it, too...what fun all the girls had that day!

The Lord has been bringing lots of new friends into our lives lately...my new friend, Rebecca has Sophie, who is Anna's age...and they played so sweetly together...and Sophie's brother , Isaac and Ronnie are the same age...they had a blast! Rebecca just had her new baby, Lela, in August, so I got the pleasure of snuggling a newborn, while visiting with my friend! I love how the Lord brings like-minded people together...and provides good friends for all of my children, too.
Lots of ALGEBRA!!! Sara doesn't like it any better than Meghan did...thank goodness, I'll have a number of years before having to tackle it with Ronnie! (Thanks, David, for the tutoring!!!)

And, of course....we have Ty! He is so much fun! He loves going down the slide with Anna!
Or doing anything, really, with his cousins...I'm so grateful I get to "have" a baby here two days a week!
Ron has been cranking out projects from his to-do list lately....we couldn't afford a new front door right now...so he and Ronnie painted it! Ronnie loved using the electric sander....his very favorite show is "Extreme make-over, Home Edition" with Ty Pennington....the next big project my guys will tackle is tearing out the tile in the downstairs bathroom and replacing it...Ronnie can't wait to do "demolition"!
I love color....and I love my new green door!
Last Sunday, I took Ronnie and Anna to the Oliver Miller Homestead in South Park for the Revolutionary War Encampment...he is a science and history buff and loved it! They had a lot of neat things this year.

Last year, Ronnie was more interested in the soldiers, this year, both of them were more interested in the daily life of the people...tools, what and how they cooked, and especially the toys that children played with.
They also talked a lot about the chores that children did...Ronnie tried the yoke for carrying buckets of water, and Anna found a lot of chores were very similar for her...sweeping with a broom, helping cook, and clean and gardening...

Wednesday, my nephew Ben and his wife Crystal came from Delaware with my new great-nephew, Hayden! It about killed me not to hold him or get too near due to my cold, but I so enjoyed seeing all of them! This is my sister-in-law, Maureen...holding her first grandchild! Ron and I are looking forward to grandchildren some day....we have an area of the attic for things marked "Save for Grandchildren"! Special toys and books, special clothes I can't part with...I hope to see my grandchildren wearing them and playing with the toys when they come visit. I want to have a very "grandchild friendly" home...and hope to have them frequently.
Family is so important to us...here is a 4 generation picture....Ro, Ben, Maureen and Hayden

I love this picture of Meghan...talking on the phone to a girlfriend! With 2 teenage girls, we sometimes have LOTS of phone conversations going on...sometimes on speaker phone, so everyone can talk together!

Tonight, we had a neighbor over for dinner and to play....Luke and Ronnie love to play together, and Anna enjoys it too....they were funny playing twister!
Luke's mom, Allison, sent down cupcakes, icing and toppings for them all to decorate together...Luke's dad came in time for the fun!

~So, that should have everyone caught up! With family out of state, special friends out of state and even out of the country, I felt like catching up with everyone!

We've been making large amounts of food...tomorrow is a huge pot of chili (since it is supposed to rain and be chilly tomorrow)....a lot of which we'll take on vacation with us. Tomorrow, we'll finish up laundry, packing and some baking so that after church Sunday, we'll pack up the suburban and head north to Lake Chautauqua, New York! We are all so excited! Time to make some special family memories together with my parents...fishing, playing games, watching old movies and enjoying special "vacation" food. Hope everyone has a very blessed weekend!
We'll be catching up again when we get home from vacation! ~Sue~

Sigh....we have colds!

I guess 'tis the season' starting up again....most of us have colds. Praise God we don't have the flu...just bad head colds. So....we've been drinking lots of tea, eating lots of homemade soups...and trying to rest. LOL

I stopped at the local health food store for a new bottle of Elderberry syrup. I love this stuff! It is nothing but concentrated elderberry...no sugar or anything added. We take it by the spoonful, as hot tea...hopefully, this plus some extra vitamin c, lots of kefir smoothies....and garlic in everything....we will all be well soon! Especially for our vacation next week...it's our first family vacation in four years, so we are especially looking forward to it.

Oh, well....off to rest. Hope no one else gets bit by the 'cold' bug! ~Sue~