50 is the new 30!

One of our oldest, and dearest friends just turned 50 and his dear wife (and family) pulled together a wonderful surprise party for him.....he was stunned! Ron and Ray have been friends since Ron was in highschool, and these are two of the wonderful friends we 'hung out' with while we were dating and newlyweds....Ray was actually the D.J. at our wedding! 2 more years, and Ron will join him in turning 50!
Happy 50th Birthday, Ray! Ray's sister, Char, made the coolest cake....Ray-opoly! Each of the squares was written on cake parchment with info. about Ray's life...loved this idea!

This is one of the pictures that they had up....oh, how we laughed! This was taken on a riverboat cruise in the summer of 1987...we had so much fun that night!

The "Three Stooges"....our friend, John, Ray (with all of his '50' garb!) and Ron..

Lisa and I....laughing about old times, and how WE don't think we've changed much! LOL

Ron and John.....John was in our wedding party 20 years ago, and this was the first time we've seen him and had a chance to catch up in ages....it was SO GOOD to spend time with him!

~This was our "date night" last Saturday evening! (we joke that our last date night was when we both went to Aldi's to shop by ourselves! LOL) We keep saying that we need to make more time for dates together, but it seems that our family is in a particularly busy season right now, we're lucky to spend an uninterrupted evening together as a family right now! LOL But, as a special friend is fond of saying....this is just a season of life right now! Thanks, Jolyn!

Memory making days...

After talking with my wonderful mother this morning, who is out of town (where it is WARM and SUNNY) until March, I promised her that I would update and put pictures on of all the kids...so...I am doing both! (miss you, Mum!) Anna and "Molly"...this American Girl doll used to be my niece, Lauren's when she was little. Unfortunately, Lauren decided to cut all of her hair, and then she was given to my girls. She has been in the attic until today...when Anna reminded me that she was in there, and she is now ALL ANNA'S! Anna is so very excited that this doll is her very own...not her sisters doll! She feels extra love for her, since she is missing most of her hair! (I hope to have it replaced, some day!) Sara will be doing a special "doll" post soon....both of my oldest daughters have really enjoyed playing dolls with Anna!
Anna and Ty having a tea party this morning...

"Reading" books together....these two are just like brother and sister together!

Ty LOVES to play with my hair! He 'hides', plays peek a boo...and "finds" me....cracks us up! He does the same thing with my long skirts! LOL

Ronnie decorated his cake by making an R out of legos and having a special Lego cake...he had so much fun doing it!

Ronnie and his cousin Maggie (next to him) share a birthday!


His reaction to the Wii game, NHL Hockey 2010 !

On his birthday, he had a friend over for the afternoon, then got together with some friends from church to celebrate his birthday, and the birthdays of 2 friends as well. Ronnie and his friend, David, were born same day, same hospital...we visited each other hours after Ronnie was born!

He loves his air hockey game...

Two very cool 'snaptricity' kits with a total of over 175 different activities with electricity! He is also going to a Penguin hockey game with his dad...courtesy of his Aunt Lori and Uncle Todd! Lori started this tradition years ago, and it is a highlight of Ronnie's year that he greatly looks forward to!

One way that he celebrated, was going to race slot cars with his friends....I love Ronnie's expressive face!

Ronnie, Aaron and David...the birthday boys! Ronnie and David, same day, and Aaron a week later!
Our two photographers...Alaina and Sara!
The "slot car" gang!

Lots of basketball going on around here...Sara got some great action shots!

Ronnie played against his good friend, Caleb on Saturday....it was such fun!

Ronnie, Caleb and the boys concentrate so hard on the coaches and refs...Upwards is such a great league!

~So....life goes on! LOL Tonight, is a "family night"...no one has to be anywhere, we're going to light a fire, play Wii, eat some icecream and relax! We really need this time together to enjoy as a family! Off to gather the troops! ~Sue~

Balance...

So much to write about going around in my head...and so little time! I will be posting pictures from Ronnie's 8th birthday, 2 parties, basketball pictures...and our little Anna falling in love with playing with American Girl dolls and LIfe of Faith dolls....and playing them with her big sisters, while her only brother is enthralled with electrical circuits and Legos...and everyone is enthralled with the 'Sugar Creek Gang'.....lots of posts to come! LOL

Our family has been struggling with 'balance'...and I am liking this word lately as a new friend with a fairly large family (7 children) and I were talking the other night while waiting for daughters to finish dance class....she used the word balance a couple of times...and it has reverberated in my mind ever since....and then last night 2 more friends and I were all talking (each one of them have 7 children also)...and we were talking about balance. I think for us right now, we are going thru a season of finding out what the Lord's will is for our family...for our time, resources, energy, activities and our opportunities to show Christ's love by hospitality. I think, for me (I am SO strong willed!)...the Lord allows me to experience things so that I KNOW that they are not for us...but I learn from these seasons. (sometimes I need reminded!)LOL

One of my dear daughters reminded me recently that the name of our blog is "My Simple Blessed Life"...and she emphasized "Simple"...and said "Not!".... but when we started it, our lives were much simpler...looking back thru this blog/journal, I can see clearly where we have gotten 'out of balance'....for GOOD things....but not what is BEST for our family....

We only have a few more months of outside commitments to fulfill (which coincides with Ron's job contract resolution) and we are now re-evaluating and prioritizing our time. So....as journaling our family days and journey to an ever simpler life is a priority for me (and writing a creative outlet), more posts will be coming as our families, as a lot of families these days strive for balance...and for us, God's best for us! ~Be blessed! Sue~

A Fun History Lesson

Today we went to the Heinz History Center and had a great time! We had lunch before exploring the huge museum!
There is what is called Kidsburgh and it has a fake ice cream parlor called Isalys... Ronnie is the waiter :-)


There is a life size cow up in Kidsburgh that you can pretend to milk. Anna enjoyed this!

Me buying ice cream at 'Isalys' with the cutest little clerks ever!

Howdie Doo-Dee sign that used to be at Kennywood... Anna was mad that she was too short!

An original car from an old rollercoaster... people aren't allowed in, but they said nothing about dolls :-)
A large cutout of a Penguins goalie... Ronnie looks too cute!

Look at little tough girl Anna :-)

There is a miniature log cabin in the kids center that is stocked with play food, wooden bowls, and even flour sacks!

An old diner counter...

L to R:

Violet, Ronnie, Nellie, Anna

Ronnie racing to stack cans with Anna

Anna trying to use a spoon to transfer fake pickles to a jug.

Anna and a mysterious friend pointing towards the exit.

What a fun day we had! My favorite part was the trolley :-)

The weather outside is frightful.....

But...inside.....another story! Here are some scenes from our day....the weather this winter has reminded me so much of the winters we used to have when I was young...the snow never really melted much...we would just get more! The view outside my kitchen window...I am blessed to have a hemlock that is always green...
Well over 7 inches of snow and counting....they are calling for 1-3 more inches overnight tonight....our 9th straight day of snow!

View off of the deck...

Our shed in the back....the arborvitae also stay green all year...so out the kitchen door and thru the diningroom window I am able to see green....right now, everything looks dusted with powdered sugar!
Our huge ball of ice and snow in the front yard...waiting for the middle and top to make our snowman! Maybe when we are out of this arctic freeze on Monday or Tuesday, the kids can get outside and have some fun...and get our snowman done!
But inside on this snowy day....fun playing Wii...by the little ones (who are much better than I am!) And the big ones....Meghan was the queen of homeruns tonight and Sara cleaned up at tennis! We're really enjoying this!

My beautiful daughters....talking (at the same time on speaker phone!) to one of their best friends in Idaho!

TONS of chicken broth made! Had chicken soup for dinner and will be freezing most of the rest.
A fire in the fireplace....
Watching Casablanca with Meghan and Sara...now that my little ones are asleep!

A fresh bowl of popcorn....
And warm, soft yarn on my hook! What a wonderful way to spend a snowy day! ~Sue~