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This is the American cemetery at Normandy, France.
I've actually been here with my family and there's no way to describe the feeling, looking out at those seeming endless rows of headstones. The incalculable loss associated with each one.
Just a gentle reminder that the freedoms we enjoy come at a price....sometimes the ultimate price.
So around here this week...
This is either a Sunday afternoon or Monday morning activity every week for me. I get my ducks in a row in my calendar and planner. This is necessary because my psyche doesn't do well in chaos. I need a plan.
Marc's family came over to do a little garden work and we picked some rhubarb. I'll freeze some and turn some into strawberry-rhubarb jam.
Speaking of strawberries, we're going to have a few soon. I'm telling you, the impulse buy at the farm store check out those several years ago turned out better than I ever thought it would.
My lone pink lilac bush is blooming beautifully this year. There was a time I thought it might not make it, but it recovered and is really lovely.
With the fairly cool spring, the pansies are thriving. It won't last forever, and I'll have to find something else to plant, but I'm enjoying them while I can.
My husband and I traveled to the cabin last week for a couple of quiet days. Spring days at the cabin rank second only to fall days.
In the distance, you can see there's still snow on the far highest peak.
It was just cool enough to keep a fire going downstairs to take the chill off.
I made a batch of hummingbird food, hoping the migration back this direction has started. Saw one lone bird the morning we left.
Apparently, there have been some industrious robins working hard, though.
We'll see how lucky this little egg is in a nest on the cabin stairs. Does anyone remember the Ollie/baby robin story from when he was a puppy?
My husband and some of the boys went back later in the week to chase a critter and sent me this one. Spring in the mountains can be a little unpredictable.
Some of the grandboys tagged along as part of the adventure.
This picture of Isaac makes me laugh. Marc says he was doing a little whining and was told he needed to smile in this picture for his mom. It's a pretty painful smile.
The trip was apparently exhausting for some of the little guys.
Sent to me from the kids and grandkids this week, I got this one of James who had his first eye exam.
And there was this. Collin graduated with an LLM from the Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School. It's extra education on top of his law degree. True to the military life, his family is off to a new posting, moving this weekend.
But first, there needed to be dinner...that John had to share his with his hair.
Isaac needed some dental work and all 3 boys wanted to watch the overhead movie that was playing.
This is just so cute with the boys holding hands.
And just to pile on the cuteness factor, here's Jack. He's in his favorite fuzzy blanket, propped up in the nursing pillow. He love that blanket and loves having it touch his cheek. My daughter said after she took this picture, she came back a few minutes later and he was asleep.
Topping it off, here's the boys' 3-month picture. Jack's on the left and Leo's on the right.
I'd like to say I got huge quantities of creative things done in the past month, and I suppose I can't complain because things did happen. It's just that I keep telling myself there should be more to show for it.
This was a long unfinished project that is finally completed. It was supposed to be a little pillow, but I chose to make it flat to put on a little clipboard.
It was a kit from Midway Wool, and the pattern itself is from Sunflower Patterns. I can't seem to locate them in a Google search.
This is a small project from a recent Primitive Gatherings wool box. I'm really grateful when these small projects come through. This one whipped up in an afternoon and gave me that instant gratification feeling of accomplishing something start to finish.
In case you're wondering what it is....it's a thread catcher. All the little tail ends of threads go in there so they don't end up all over the floor. Cute and utilitarian.
Then there was this. Angelic choruses literally sang when I put the last binding stitch in these quilts.
These are the quilts for Jack and Leo. Jack's is stitched in grey....
and has the grey back and binding.
Leo's is stitched in navy and backed/bound in navy.
I had enough hourglass squares left over that I was able to put a little decorative element on the back side, which was kind of fun and adds some interest, I think. That makes me current with all my grandchild baby quilts. I know of no others I need to be working on at present.....right kids? Right?
With the weird up and down temperatures we've had lately, I could have easily had several more soup days, but I don't think that's going to happen going forward. I think we've finally reached the end of my preferred temperature range.
So I'm going to call it. The last, last, last soup day has come and gone, and I tried a new recipe for it. I've had variations ripped out of a couple of magazines for a while now, but decided this one was the least complex, most straightforward version. Don't be put off by the longer ingredient list. If you have everything ready, it comes together pretty quickly, and the taste is totally worth it. Again, I'm going to attribute most of that to the homemade chicken stock. It's magical stuff.....seriously. A note on this recipe---> You know how they don't sell ground meat in half-pound quantities? I doubled the meatball ingredients and then froze half. That gives me a head start on another meal. This is a delicious bowl of comfort food on a cool or downright cold day.
Italian Wedding Soup
Meatballs
It's my Collin's birthday today!
Why is it that whenever I see this picture of him, I'm reminded of Jabba the Hut?
It really wasn't his fault. He was a colicky baby and ate about every hour on the hour. Fortunately, he grew out of that and into the sparkling personality we know and love. OK, maybe "sparkling" is the wrong adjective. That doesn't quite describe him. He always liked everything to be fair, and when he experienced things he didn't think were fair, he took action. That may have gotten him disciplined occasionally, but he's a guy who sticks to his guns, both literally and figuratively. He's an Allan, after all.
The boy is in the Air Force. He's been there for several years now.
Doing his bit to preserve freedom from as far away as Afghanistan, despite what the pinheads in Washington do....pardon my French.
He's a great dad and we love him, as we love all our kids. Happy Birthday to my Collin!
So around here this week....
These cute boys were here.
Grandpa tried handling them both at the same time. Juggling two babies is a little tricky.
We had a baby blessing for them. These family milestone events are always just the best.
We got to go to an outdoor piano recital for Evan's boys. Edward likes the fast ones.
Frederick played,
and so did Roger. True to the rather whimsical weather we've ben having lately, what was 80° earlier in the week, was in the low 50's and blustery, threatening rain, for this particular event.
In more everyday things, the hostas are unfurling,
...and my first peony has bloomed. The colors this time of year are beautiful.
Sent to me from the kids and grandkids this week, Edward has been studying Pride and Prejudice at school, and at the conclusion they had a Pemberly Ball. Edward was dressed to the nines to attend.
Eric had a tree fall over in his yard and spent some time pulling it back up and staking it.
Emmett and Ephraim enjoyed lunch in a big box. Ah, simple childhood joys.
Speaking of which, how many of us have done this exact thing as kids?
His mama made the comment that she was glad he wasn't blowing these all over her yard.
Here's Isaac in our backyard having a good time and only slightly concerned that his mom might actually give him away to the circus.
Finally, I got these two pictures from my daughter. I'm pretty sure this is Leo.
Same baby, two different days. What a difference a day makes.
Now that my husband is retired, I think we'll be spending more time up at the cabin during the week. We have a couple of big projects up there this spring, though, to get things in running order. We took a trip up last week to try to get one of them done.
There's not a lot of snow right down around the cabin. Just this pile left from the snow falling off the roof.
We needed to take out the old water heater and put in a new one. I'm always a little skeptical when my husband says he's going to do these projects. They aren't his favorite and he'd a lot rather have someone else take care of them. Then I remind myself that he's extremely capable when he wants to be. That, and the fact that it's an on-demand water heater, so we didn't have to manage a huge tank, made it possible. I was a little worried I wouldn't get my hot shower, but like I said, he's very capable, and we did manage it. Now we just need to get the solar system fine-tuned. One of the large batteries exploded sometime during the winter. My husband got it bypassed, but we're limping along with one less battery.
We took a drive in the rhino while we were there. I found this on the ground next to the vehicle. My husband thought maybe one of the grandkids have found it and left it there.
It's always interesting to go on these excursions. Eagle Scout that he is, we are usually prepared for any contingency. Walking sticks for hiking? Check. Backpack filled with water, toilet paper, gloves, binoculars, and our lunch? Check.
Extra jackets? Check. Wide coverage hats? Check. Gun in case we run into a bear coming out of hibernation? Check.
Dogs? Check. My husband had one idea about where to wander, but we were held off my some snow drifts in a shady spot. He probably would have tried to just bull his way through, but his wife's a chicken.
The snow hasn't come completely off the mountains around us. There's still a little snow pack left to come down, but we surely didn't get excessive snow this past winter, and probably could have used it.
As you can see, this is my most common view, my husband out ahead and me bringing up the rear.
Sometimes he'll cross country while I stick to the trail. He always wants to see what's "over there."
After we got home, we wandered to the river to see how high it was running. High, but it's definitely been higher.
We had a few rounds of Fetch It Up for Gus. Ollie fetched a couple that were close, but the old boy just doesn't have his heart in it anymore. It's like he rolls his eyes when we throw a stick.
And why is it dogs have to do this? We're lucky here that it's just dry weeds. Down home he has to find where one of the horses has peed. It's disgusting.
Now wait for it.......wait for it......and there's the shake.
I also was able to finish up a quilting project. More about that later in the month.
From the kitchen this week, we tried a new recipe for soup which will appear here next week. I think it's the last, last, last soup until fall, but we're going out with a bang. We also tried a new recipe for something called Spicy Pork Noodles which made use of the last of that pork I posted last week. I'm glad I saved that and made it into another meal. It will also be appearing on a recipe day.
We used leftover salmon for sandwiches one night. I use this just like tuna fish sandwich spread....and little Miracle Whip/mayo, a little pickle relish and my husband and I are set. It's just one of those really easy things for busy or too-hot evenings. Yah, I know some of you are turning up your nose, either because your not fish people in general or salmon people specifically. We, however, aren't hampered by these prejudices. Just don't try to sneak any mushrooms or raisins into anything....
We also did a pan of these Lazy Chili Rellenos with some of the Anaheim chilies I froze last summer. The last time I made these, they were very mild. This time I apparently got the spicy end of the pan. Hit or miss, I tell you. Note to self and anyone else who wants to freeze whole, roasted chilies. Don't put them between waxed paper in layers. They did NOT separate easily and I had a terrible time trying to get them apart. I'm not sure what else to use, though. Maybe parchment?
So here's what we served with the Marinated Pork Medallions. They also come from Taste of Home magazine and I would link you directly to the recipe, but this recipe came from a general article on stuffed potato variations, and was just a passing idea combining several of the suggestions in the article. The corny name for them also came from the article, so I'm going to do the best I can here to give some kind of cohesive recipe for them. I haven't eaten a lot of plain, baked sweet potatoes. They're good, but some of the traditional toppings like sour cream aren't necessarily what you want to eat on them. This recipe suggests things like chive butter, bacon and yes, maple syrup. If that doesn't constitute a Candied Earth Apple, I don't know what does. We tried all the toppings listed and they were delicious together.
Stuffed Sweet Potatoes, aka Candied Earth Apples
Toppings of your choice:
Bake the sweet potatoes at 350° about 30 minutes less that you'd bake regular baking potatoes. They don't take quite as long. I'm going to recommend you wrap them in foil and then put a cookie sheet on the rack underneath the one you're baking them on. They tend to drip a bit and who needs that in the bottom of their oven? Unwrap, slice lengthwise and top with whatever you want.
So around here this week....
We've been working outside some. Marc's family is sharing our garden space this year and they have been over to help with planting. I think we've got everything but the green beans in the ground. Marc also wanted to see if he could take some cuttings from my lilac hedge to see if he could propagate them in his own yard. Hopefully that will work. He crawled between the hedge and the fence to do his clipping...
....and then had to get himself out again.
The cables on the fence don't move so he had to wiggle himself through them as they were.
That particular corner is right by the wood pile and Jude found that stumps make pretty good chairs for spectators.
Admittedly, the hedge is going great guns and the smell permeates the air for a good 10 days or so. They are a little early this year, since we haven't had our traditional #savethepeaches frost during April/May.
I'm seeing the tulips I planted return.
The colors in the yard during spring make my heart happy.
We've also noticed this. This is a new peony we planted last year. One of my sisters-in-law took starts from my husband's grandmother's bushes in her yard many years ago. She divided them last year and gave us some starts, and I think a couple of them are going to survive. It's such a nice reminder of Grandma Gwen.
Sent to me from the kids and grandkids this week, my daughter-in-law, Elisa sent a few from her canyon rim wander with Ephraim.
She got a beautiful morning view of Shoshone Falls. That's Show-shown, not to be confused with Show-shownee. You can tell who's local and who's not by the way they pronounce it.
And from my daughter....this is Leo. Is this not just the cutest??
I will admit that off and on in the past, Mother's Day has just not been my favorite. I listen to people listing the perfect attributes of their mothers and think, "That's just not me." And I feel badly that it's not. Sometimes I'm able to find a pair of Big Girl Pants and realize that everyone has different gifts and abilities. I told my daughter just a month or so ago....."you didn't get the hair mom, or the house decorator mom or the mom who can't start her day without 3 hours of cardio and can only stomach paleo foods. You got the hot breakfast, meal planner mom and the piano mom." And since my daughter does love a good breakfast, that works. We all have to play to our strengths.
This past Mother's Day was wonderful for me, though, because it was full of things showing that my family really gets me. My kids checked in which is really all I ever want for Mother's Day. My daughter also thanked me for her Mother's Day breakfast, since her husband heated up some apple pancakes I left as a freezer meal when I was at her house right after the twins were born. That made me chuckle. I also got a couple of really lovely cards from Bryce's family and Marc's family. Collin's family, you might remember is all Jurassic, all the time and sent me this Dino plant stake. When I opened it, I really just laughed right out loud. For a mom of 5 sons and Gramma Honey of 14 boys out of 16 grandkiddos, I totally get this and it's found a home in one of my pots on the patio.
Then while we were at church, the in-town kids came and chalked the driveway, in very sweet and hysterical ways. It was an event organized by Evan's wife, Jan. We started with this drawing of a cat, right at the edge of the garage. This hearkens back to when I may have very accidentally....squished....not one, but 2 of our barn cats who were trying to get into the garage. Not together, but on 2 separate occasions. It's not that I tried to, mind you. But it did happen and it's found a home in family lore.
There was a rendering of Schrodinger's cat. There is a small, but non-zero chance that this may have been the subject of dinner time discussions at our house.
And math. There was math on my driveway. My children all know my feelings about math in general and cheesecake math in particular. Someone let me know that this is the quadratic equation formula, otherwise I would have been clueless. Just give me ALL the split infinitives and dangling participles, people. Do not subject me to math.
This little dig was made especially by Eric. It's a conic sections graph (or so my right-brained husband tells me). Eric maintains he uses conic sections on almost a daily basis. I say anything beyond basic math operations doesn't live at my house.
There was even a nicely drawn suggestion for possible future dead critter display. This particular iteration will happen only over my cold, dead body.
We moved on to Mom-isms....things I said to my children when they lived in my house and I had actual control over certain aspects of their lives.
These things were uttered mostly when they were teenagers. "But Moooooooooom! So-and-so's mom is letting them do such-and-such." "Yes, but I'm not THEIR mom. I'm yours, and you will not be participating."
This was a good memory for me. Every time my kids went out of the house I would say this to them....
"Be nice, be kind, use good judgement."
And every missionary letter I ever wrote ended with that same thing, with the addition of....
"Remember, you're mama's boy/girl." I hope they always remember that they are always my boys and girl, not matter how old they get.
There was all kinds of fun artwork from the grandkids.
Marc's church happened at the same time mine did, so they sent drawings to my daughter-in-law, Elisa, who duplicated them.
Caroline produced this anatomical heart. She was just tickled to bring the medical aspect into it, along with the implication of love.
I think Ephraim had some help with this one.
There was an impressive number line contributed by Emmett.
And this pelican. They are not on the list of favorites right now, as they are making frequent trips to the ponds to eat our trout.
Edward's bee rendering. Bees made several appearances on the driveway because.....Gramma Honey.
Dragons made an appearance from Gwen.
I really appreciated the expressions of love that appeared in various places.
Honestly, I wished there was a way I could preserve all the drawings forever.
But the sprinklers have already come on and washed some of them away.
I was also really grateful that Evan took some pictures to document the event. He knows his mama.
Love all my family both near and farther away who made it a really great Mother's Day.
