Easter and Gabby's Birthday

Easter morning . . . 7:30 a.m. . . . Buck and I were up and out the door to attend the closest I've come to a sunrise service in a loooong time. As always, he was enthusiastically greeted by all the fancy-looking pastors dudded up in their Easter Sunday threads. Buck's rare appearances at church garner much attention :)

When the first sermon concluded, we headed back to the nursery with a bag full of new wooden puzzles. The babies love wooden puzzles and the nursery's current stock was very well-used (like, the orange-fruit puzzle piece was partially colored in with orange crayon, well-used). I'm so glad we had the fresh options to help us with the nine babies who joined us for class. We had two criers, but they eventually settled in and had a good time. Praying for nursery babies outloud almost always calms them, pretty cool! It was also fun to catch up with our helper and pastor's daughter, who went to Africa with us last summer. She can drive a car now!

With our nursery time concluded, Buck and I headed home to get to work on the Easter meal. We decided to smoke chickens and ended up with four tasty birds. Brennen showed up in his powder-blue Easter suit, and awaited the arrival of his sweetheart (who was in the waiting line for brunch with her family at Village Inn). G$ went to the third service at our church, so he also arrived home, ready for lunch. 

I brought back the Fancy Egg Casserole version 2.0 . . . I think it went better this year, not as scary, lol! I tried everything to get the eggs to peel properly this year--I even laid them on their sides the night before, in the fridge, so the yolk would shift to the correct position. But alas . . . 2.0 it is :)

The babyweds joined us and enjoyed the tasty meal; Gabby contributed a delicious strawberry Cobb salad with lots of flavors. Lunch was followed by birthday carrot cake and cheesecake to celebrate Gabby's near 21st birthday!

She opened some gifts, opted for two-and-one candles, and we sang her the special song . . . it turns out that the only birthdays, so far, that I haven't spent with our kids (on the actual day) was both girls' 21st birthdays--otherwise we're at 100% :) That's pretty amazing! I know it will become more rare as everyone gets older, but I'm glad we still got to gather and celebrate her big day. Here's a pic from her actual birthday (I borrowed it :) . . .

Buck's celebration will be this weekend, combined with a send-off meal for Brennen.

When Sarah arrived, we distributed bunny-bags (my new word for their Resurrection Day celebration gifts this year :) The five of them crowded onto the wee little couch (which was pretty funny) and checked to see what was stowed away in their basket/bags :) Brennen got a box full of OTC medicine and a thermometer, since he doesn't have those things at his 5Guys house, nor at his upcoming summer-away apartment. Kind of a strange mix of things . . . jelly beans, Pepto Bismal!, marshmallow bunny, cough syrup! Lol :)

Daisy was beyond thrilled that Buck chose to nap on the floor instead of the couch! She felt he needed a dog-scented blanket to complete his rest :)

Chase and Gabby were set to attend Easter dinner at Chase's parents' home, so we stocked them up with a chicken and some cheesecake to go . . . plus birthday gifts, camping gear, and Easter bags--they almost needed a third person to help them out the door! Brennen and Sarah picked out a puzzle from our vast collection, then left to enjoy Easter dinner with Sarah's family. G$ was stuck with us, but he just hung out in his room mostly, while Buck and I watched the three-hour American Idol Easter special. We were astonished at how much glory God got on that show--it was awesome to see! And Carrie closing the show with How Great Thou Art . . . tears galore!!

Noah and Caelan were well cared for in their distant state. They were invited to lunch by friends from church and were given Easter gifts by their friends' parents (our Easter box was quite delayed in transit, so I told them theirs was hidden somewhere between Chicago and Cincinnati--they won for hardest to find, this year :) For dinner, they joined a couple Caelan nannies for on the regular; friends becoming family--the best kind of friends to have! We missed our studyweds and are excited to see them soon . . . it's almost finals week! 

But over everything--we are grateful for the mental, physical, and spiritual weight Christ carried for us to ultimately set our hearts free from the burden of our sin and shame. All glory to God for His great rescue plan to bring us into an eternal relationship with Him!

Spring Things

Storms mostly . . . all those April showers--tornadoes and hailstorms--bringing May flowers? and drainspouts pouring new roof nails onto the driveway . . . ahhh, spring! Lol :)

I'm not sure how far to back up to begin; oh, I know! Let's go to Brennen's house. He has a house! Well, he and lots of other guy have a house . . . they call it the 5Guys house, but I'm not sure that is an accurate number. I know there are a couple of extra guys subleasing over the summer while Brennen and C are away up north. We were excited to see his space, deliver the requested four dozen eggs, and pick up some car parts Chase left there for G$. It's a nice house! Way nicer than Buck or my first rental spaces :) They even have a unicycle (Idk why, though :)

It was a brief visit, although we did get to visit with most of the residents. This was the big meet-the-parents day for Brennen. Sarah invited him to an anniversary celebration where Brennen got to meet several family members, including Sarah's mom, dad, and brother. He said it went well and they've spent more time with her family since then :)

Back at home, I was in charge of taking care of the neighbors' pets while they had a little getaway to the south. The puppy didn't bite me this time, so that was a big win, lol! I also delivered eggs to our in-between neighbor (three dozen) and left another dozen on the counter for when our neighbors returned--have I mentioned we have a lot of eggs?

We also had a lot of meetings and appointments--at the dentist, I found out that my "golden tooth" as my nephew calls it, is actually a discolored three-surface filling. There's no way to make it match the rest of my teeth unless I get it removed and redone. It's crazy that this one has been on since I was, like, 12 and is still in good shape--just outdated technology, as my dentist said. It may be time to get it upgraded for the next 30 years of use! 

Buck and I both got bloodwork done and passed with flying colors--woohoo! My appointment with a new doctor at a new clinic (thanks insurance) was made slightly (underexaggerating) more stressful by the roofers . . . the roofers, you ask? Yes, the roofers. They showed up BEFORE 7 a.m. Oddly, Buck was already at work for an early inventory. I woke G$ up to move his car; he left for work not too long after. The dogs and I listened to the pounding on the roof for approximately four hours (it was fast and furious); the dogs did great! Then the roof guys took turns cleaning up nails and debris (it was crazy windy that day!) before heading out just before noon--well, my appointment, that I'd waited a month for, with a new provider, since all the other providers got scooped up when everyone else with our insurance lost coverage at the only other place in town to get healthcare, was at 1:00. And while not far away by car, it would constitute a 45 minute walk--and my van was trapped in the garage with an entire debris-filled dumpster blocking it in. I exhausted every ride option I could think of (including my bike with the flat tires), and then started ringing the neighbors' doorbells. At 12:35, I got one to clock out of her at-home job, grab her keys . . . and a truck showed up to pull the dumpster out of the way! I made it to my appointment on time and my neighbor got to go back to work. Was my heartrate elevated when they took my BP? Why, yes it was.

Three days later--a hailstorm rolled through. Actually, Buck and I were not home. We were invited to a Passover Seder meal at our friends' house. We'd never been to a meal like this before, so we didn't know what to expect, but it was really cool! Our Wedding Czar made me a table host, so I was in charge of pouring the grape juice for our table at each stage of the meal. The kids took red post-it notes and covered a door frame to represent God's instructions to the Israelites on the night of the original pre-Exodus meal. 

Everything on the plate represented something specific that the Jewish people prepare to remember those times--hyssop (represented by parsley) dipped twice in salt water (to represent tears), matzah bread (unleavened, because they were told to prepare quickly--no time for yeast), some sort of sweet walnut and apple concoction that represented the mortar in the bricks the Israelites used while they were in slavery in Egypt, of course lamb . . . everything was surrounded by Bible verses that Dan printed ahead. He spoke the traditional Hebrew blessings over each course of the meal. The children asked the traditional questions and the parents gave the traditional answers (all written on the papers that we got before the meal). 

The egg was a Christian addition to the ancient meal, representing an empty tomb after Jesus's resurrection (it was baked not boiled, per tradition). This is the meal Jesus was eager to eat with his friends before his death, where He introduced Communion--which we also took together with our friends. Buck especially liked the bitter herbs (horseradish). There was a seat at our table with Jesus' name on it--a traditionally reserved space for the Messiah. Buck asked me if I thought Jesus was going to eat his horseradish or if He'd be okay to share. Lol :) 

Allthewhile, the storm, with tornado sirens (G$ said they went off at home) raged around us. We drove home through green dusk with lightning strikes the brightest and closest I've seen. Chase and Gabby sent a video from their house, very near where a very large tornado formed and touched down, but didn't do any damage to structures or towns. We were thankful for God's protection on that crazy, crazy day of weather!

I'll jump forward a week to recall the next big round of storms--we were actually at a restaurant and as we sat down at the table EVERY phone in the place went off at the same time with an emergency alert tornado warning! And, of course, everyone ignored it and continued on as usual--as we do :) I did check a couple of weather stations, just to make sure it wasn't sneaking up on us. Turns out, back at home, there was a ton of hail (good thing Buck's car wasn't there to get dinged up), but apparently specifically just over our neighborhood! The local college sent kids to the basement for the second time in a week; G$ was at work and out of the fray. Look at all the nails that washed out of our gutters and downspouts onto the driveway though!! This is only about half of them. Yikes!!

Olive is managing all the *extra* pretty well. Seven weeks pregnant and looking roundy! Just two weeks to go. She did eat the nice note my boss sent me with a surprise gift from Amazon. But, paper has been kind of her thing lately; and I need to learn to like brewed tea ;)

Buck and the boys (young men) are getting excited for their upcoming multi-day hike. There's been much prep, sharing notes and ideas, polos back and forth, and even a practice tent in our living room! Camping food made it into most of the Easter baskets; the available supply for such adventures is actually pretty impressive!

I'm not sure I recorded the last vacuum switcheroo, but the time has once again arrived to swap the Shark. I know we are a lot for the carpet-cleaning machines. A LOT. I've tended this one's issues and worked it through several google-search-necessary concerns . . . but when the brush stopped rolling, I had to call in fully-functioning backup :) We're back to pink! And the previous one still works great on hardwood floors--which Brennen has at his new house. So full circle, back to the first topic of this blog, booooom! Brennen and his buddies welcomed our old Shark into their fold (I did see R sweeping when we visited, so they're doing a good job already keeping the place neat--but it's a lot quicker to use the vacuum :) 

Taadaa! Shark 1,235,653.0 

A Chase Post

We were very happy to host Chase and Gabby and Chase's parents for his twentieth birthday! Buck grilled steaks to order, I heated up some double-stuffed mashed potatoes, there was Caesar salad and watermelon--a nice meal together to celebrate two decades!

Chocolate cake is a big favorite amongst both sides of the family, so that was the dessert of choice for the party. It took awhile to light the sparkler candles, but that gave the ice cream a chance to melt a little (I remembered to get ice cream!) Brennen and G$ joined in the song, and we all sang Happy to Chase. It was nice to celebrate his big day with his parents, too :)

There were three other special guests--Gabby literally let them out of the bag :) The trio of cute kittens arrived for a meet and greet in a tote bag, in lieu of a traditional cat carrier. They are sooooo adorable! Olive was terrified of them, lol! She would hide behind the table or us or whatever she could to keep them away; she refused to make eye contact with anything small and furry! For the little white kitten, Cold Stone, this became an entertaining pursuit. He followed Olive all over, much to Olive's chagrin. We left Daisy in the kennel, although she likely would have been fine out. CS went home with Chase's family, and later Artos joined him. Buck was quite the fan of the little girl kitten, but G$ remained firm in his "no cats or I move out" policy :)

A week or so later, G$ met me at the college auditorium to enjoy hearing the community choir (which Gabby, Chase's mom, and I skipped this semester) share their spring songs. 

Gabby and some of the in-laws sat towards the back, so the baby nephew could make a run for the door if needed. But he hardly made a peep; probably enjoyed hearing his mama play piano in the auditorium and his uncles and grandpa singing sweet serenades :)

Chase is a hard worker and a good friend. He loves Gabby and was astounded to feel his daughter kick for the first time. Special times ahead! Welcome to your twenties 💕

Are You Ready?

Ready for a wild ride of catching up on the past month? Whee!

My mom had knee surgery and sent me flowers for my retirement. There was a blizzard that shut down the world for a few days (I handled work calls from home; stressful!!). My flowers came a little droopy due to the weather delay, but perked up some with water and sunshine (it went from 70 degrees, to blizzard, to 70 degrees again--insane!) Speaking of retirement, I'll also share the books I bought with my gift cards on a recent date night with Buck. Book shopping is fun!

Buck and I took an inventory of things that need to be fixed up around here. We decided not to get more chickens this year (I've got nine dozen eggs in the fridge right now--we're doing just fine with our current 14 hens!), but the coop needs some sprucing. We did a price shop at the hardware store and only got the necessities ;) (Photo staged--ain't nobody buying a hundred dollar metal chicken in this household, lol). 

We also used my little saw to trim the mulberry tree. We cut A LOT out of it, so we'll see how it looks when spring really arrives. We also tried to decide on deck paint . . . yet again. I thought one of these might be a match--I thought wrong, ha!

I'll stick with the home improvement theme, because I know it is providing riveting photo and journalistic coverage (lol). I spent a lot more money than I intended at a fabric store that is going out of business, but slowly, and expensively. I didn't get enough outdoor fabric to actually finish covering our rocked swing (buh-dum-dum), so I utilized two of the shower curtains we utilized as tablecloths at Brennen's graduation party to provide a back to my reupholstering efforts. It works, but I had to use my sewing rock (new invention, making use of the nature around me) to get the big needle through all those layers of fabric!

New roof is in the works--delayed from last July's storm. I'm not sure how the dogs will react, but they should be able to replace our shingles in a day (not the dogs, of course; the humans).

Did I mention dogs? Why yes, I did. Here's the scoop on them . . . Miss Daisy has been quite naughty since our return from vacation. Rewinding the tale: we learned Daisy climbs on us/the furniture when she needs to go out to go potty. That's an effective way to get our attention, even if it is a bit annoying. Here's something else about Daisy, she LOVES to be outside at night--sniffing the grass, chewing on sticks, barking at inanimate objects. Since we've been back from vacation, Daisy climbs up on Buck while he's watching TV, whether she needs out to go potty  . . . or just wants to play dire wolf in the moonlight (WIN for Daisy). Well, Buck called her bluff and put her in time out. She rarely gets kenneled when we are home, so she knew she was in the (indoor) dog house. Olive came by to support her, as a nice mother dog does. 

After a sufficient amount of time for Daisy to learn her lesson, Buck opened the kennel door, and basically climbed in to pet her and to tell her she could come out--she didn't! Lol! She just laid there sighing and pouting for another 35 minutes! Eventually she remembered that she loves attention, so she came over to be friends again with Buck. It was very entertaining and also a super break from Crazy Daisy antics!

Well, we've been watching Olive for signs of puppies, and figured out pretty quickly that we may have some little cuties on the way. Could she be any more cuddly? I don't think so :) Also, the ultrasound proved the pups are really real--due next month! At least four, maybe five or more--her other owners were SOOOOO excited! They said they were going to drive around the city handing out bubble gum cigars :)

Buck has been watching the latest season of the survival show Alone. Well, a moose appeared on the screen and the mighty hunters took as much interest as the hungry man on the TV . . . Daisy, maybe a little too much interest :)

I should record here, that I took Daisy to the vet for shots and a nail trim, fully expecting to sit there for two or more hours--but we were the only ones in the waiting room, what? And we were in and out, there and back again, in less than 45 minutes! Best vet trip of the year! :) No photos . . . there was no time! ;)

And finally (in the dog category)--we are saying farewell to Olive's stuffy puppy and to, yes, Hot Dog Water. I have sewn these two toys more times than I can count. Brennen was just saying he could not believe Hot Dog Water had lasted this long--he's seen a lot that little sloth. But, alas, the teeth have pulled the fabric apart in ways I cannot mend. Farewell, sweet Hot Dog Water--I almost feel as though I should have him taxidermized instead of put in Monday's trash. (Note: I made up the word taxidermied, and thought it was a solid creation. The squiggly, red underlines suggested the fancy version aforementioned, and I went with it . . . did we all just learn a new word? I think we did!)

How are we doing? Still holding on for all this updating awesomeness? Bet you didn't see that Hot Dog Water bit coming. Alright, let's go cars next . . .

G$ My Honey had his dreams come true when Chase's brother offered to sell him not one, but two Nissan Z convertibles! Graysen has been asking for a year :) He was soooo happy, that he was singing and smiling and planning all over the house. He even convinced his brother and friends that he'd "met the love of his life, and if they came to the farm they could meet her." C's gf R was the most disappointed to find out his new love was a car, but Brennen was excited for his brother--who now actively owns five (or is it six?) vehicles. The two Jeeps run, one of the Z's runs (the other is for parts), the GTI is close to running, and the Civic he wishes would run away, lol :)

It's a really cute car--like really cute. He took me for a ride after Olive's ultrasound. I saw him messing with his phone over by the steering wheel. When he hit record, I knew I was in for something :) He zoomed up the road in the racecar and I got an adrenaline-filled ride--I told him it was kind of like teaching driver's ed, except now I trusted the driver and not so much the car's ability to keep up with the driver (it has been sleeping in a shed for a couple years). Wheeeee!! We took a tour down some old familiar roads, then headed to Cane's for some hot chicken. It was fun afternoon with G$!

Here's my big car news . . . the minivan hit a milestone on the drive back from Olive's ultrasound. I was on the speaker phone with Caelan (she made the hour drive go by much quicker with her life's play-by-play :) I very safely took this photo: 77,777 so matchy!

And for our next auto update--Buck had a scary encounter on the interstate this week. He was in a two-lane construction area, when a Ford on the opposite side of the road lost its entire wheel! The wheel jumped the median and rolled up the Jeep in front of Buck's car, crushing the glass and setting off the airbags (the woman driving had some shoulder injuries, but she and her passenger are otherwise okay). The wheel then launched into the sky, heading straight for Buck's windshield! He swerved onto the shoulder and the side of his car took the brunt of the impact, knocking off his sideview mirror and scratching the paint. The wheel then bounced back across to the front of his car, denting his hood, before plopping down on the interstate. Good grief! The highway patrol were there almost immediately, and gathered everyone's information. It looks like the guy who, unintentionally, caused the accident has expired insurance. Praying that he can still afford to cover the damages to the two vehicles besides his own. But extraordinarily thankful that God protected Buck in this very dangerous situation.

Oh, and my van wheel also picked up a nail (Graysen filled it full of air for me after PT and then Buck took it to get fixed today) . . . which brings me to my next section--kids! (Our last flat was a nail from driving their road, so I'll just go ahead and blame this one on that road, too :) I got to go out and spend some auntie-time with . . . oh wait! I'm ahead of myself :) First, Buck and I attended a very emotional ;) concert hosted by Mr. M's second grade class (the theme was emotions, so all the songs were about them). They had props, dance moves, musical instruments--quite an impressive way to spend an evening. Here's a glimpse:

It was good to see his Grandma C, the first time I've seen her since her husband passed a couple months ago. She looked like she was doing okay. I'm sure being around these sweet kiddos was good for her heart! 

I can go back to my auntie-time talk, now :) C & K were ready for a date night and asked if I could come out and stay with the kids. Of course! I didn't make them go to bed on time, because we were having fun. Uncle Buck came out and was looking at the new sports cards Mr. M had collected at a recent trade show. Baby H was saying everyone's names, playing her own little match game with family pictures, and our last bedtime was pretty unhappy, so I was letting her go at her own pace as much as seemed reasonable. We want happy auntie time, lol! On the second round of back-to-back Mariah Carey All I Want for Christmas got Baby H doing her little dance bounce by the speaker, I scooped her up and danced her to her room. We skipped all the books and songs, and went straight to prayers. She cried some, but pretty much went right to sleep. Sweet dreams! BTW: Mr. M is a fabulous big brother. He knows what things Baby H likes and how to distract her for diaper changes, and she adores him! It is SO much fun to see them together 💓

I'm happily Aunt Jess-cuh-cuh :) Not bad for an 18-month old! And Mr. M for real stumped me with his pretty next level card tricks; I even had him repeat one of them on video for Noah, because he too is a card trickster. Such skills at such a young age :)

A week or so later, Uncle Buck and Mr. M FINALLY got a chance to go to a sports card shop together. I was invited, but that was the week I was coughing and not sleeping, okay, that's still kind of what's going on with me, but mostly that week I needed to stay in bed a little longer than their planned jaunt. Both returned excited about the finds on their sporty treasure hunt! Pretty cool that we get to live near them and be part of special opportunities like these to get to know and love them as they grow!

I'm going to sneak in a mini update, keyword: grow. Look at my plant that Caelan gave me a sprout to soak back in June! It's even growing another little fuzzy arm. Aww, fuzzy arms!

Ope, I forgot a kid picture--this isn't any kids you know. But our neighbor kids were out playing with the new puppy recently added to the new neighbors' family. How cute are they, all framed in the window (yes, on our lawn), but look how cute?!!

Alright, still with me? Let's see . . . I'm going to go with special dates. First up, I got to spend a great catch-up time with my favorite Wedding Czar! She had some laundry soap for me, and I like smoothies and conversation. It was fun to spend an hour or two with her--before dashing off to physical therapy, which feels like another part time job (except more expensive :)

Buck and I went to the used furniture and building supplies store to see if we could find any cheaper coop-fixing-upping supplies than buying new. We didn't, but we did find some cute tea plates and cups for Gabby's baby shower, AND . . . double deer pictures! I grew up with this picture in our house, and my mom still has it--or did up until a couple of weeks ago. We can send a replacement if needed and keep one for ourselves, lol :)

The guys are planning a hiking trip next month, so Buck is busy gathering gear to join them. Our most recent date day took us to a camping store that was pretty wow! And to the bank, and to breakfast, and to get coffee and chai, and to return some purchases, and to get chicken food, and to get groceries, and . . . well, I almost fell asleep waiting for our food to arrive! Busy day for low-energy me, but we got a lot done and had fun together :)

How cute are these baby geese? Gah!! They looked like they just waddled off the pages of a storybook! Just looking, no buying (although it was not easy; I think I actually put my hands in my pockets like we used to tell the kids to do when they were little--do not pick up the fluffy birds, me!! :)

I'm not sure if I've posted these pictures yet or not, but we are hermit-ing on Sundays that Caelan and Noah are on their church's worship team. It's sooo good to see them, even if it's via TV broadcast :) I love that they are using their talents to help draw others closer to God--including us!

Okay, I think that was most of it! I still have another post to do, but this is a pretty solid catch-up of the past month. If you made it all the way to the end, congrats! You get a gold star :) It's invisible, but really pretty! ;)