Baby shower, stomach bug

On Saturday morning we, along with Lori and Austin, headed out early for Lancaster County.  Dick's niece Laura, who had been Destiny's WONDERFUL, AMAZING kindergarten teacher at Manheim Christian, is expecting her first baby, and we were invited to her baby shower.  Laura is on the right.  On the left is her brother Eric's wife Suzi, who planned the shower from their home in Virginia!  Laura didn't even know Suzi was in Pa until she saw her at the shower.

This is a row of Stauffer women.  Notice the blue necklaces?  Especially the ones on Krista (fourth from left)?  At the very beginning of the shower Suzi handed everyone a blue yarn necklace, complete with a tiny yellow rubber duckie.  Throughout the entire shower we were not to use the word "cute".  If anyone heard us use that word they could take our necklace.  Well! How do you NOT say cute at a baby shower???  I lost mine almost right away! 

Dear Lori had her hands full occupying the cutest boy in the room.  I guess we should have let Pawpaw entertain him while we were at the shower.  There were just way too many things there that he wanted to touch and play with and rip apart and throw.  Definitely not a place for a rough and tumble boy!

Last week Lori had a stomach bug for a few days.  Yesterday morning my stomach felt queasy.  I ate just a little bit at the shower.  I wasn't even in the mood for the yummy looking Chex mix.  That is not normal!!  On the trip back home I was feeling horrible and just could not get warm.

After we got home at 5:30 I hit the couch with covers piled on top of me.  Absolutely no amount of covers, even an antique wool comforter from my cedar chest, could keep me from shivering. I dozed all evening, went to bed at 9:30, blankets piled high, and slept eight hours. At some point I woke up HOT and got rid of the wool comforter on top. I still believe in the old wives tale that a fever needs to be sweated out!

I felt better this morning.  I had to feel better.  I was subbing for the piano player at Fillmore UM (8:15 service), and then doing an offertory special at Zion Community Church (10:45 service.)  Dick was accompanying all of the above with his guitar, but it was clear as the morning wore on that he felt worse than I did.  We came home after that second service, and he hit the couch.  He's been snoring ever since.  I tried a piece of toast a while ago, but it doesn't feel very good in there, and my head is just pounding again.   Waaaaah.  What's going on here?  My immune system used to fight all these things off before they actually got me down.  I guess pride goeth before a fall, haha!

Well, time to sleep some more.

Singing group memories

This morning my friend Kati posted some lyrics on FB from a Dallas Holm song.  I decided to go to Rhapsody and listen to some Dallas Holm.  Oh. My. Word.  Talk about being taken BACK!!  In the 80's we had a group called The Freedom Singers who sang a number of Dallas Holm songs, including Hey, I'm a Believer Now and Rise Again.  I posted on FB about the memories those songs brought to me, which led to a fun thread of comments from former group members.  One comment was about the itchy blue dresses we girls wore, which made me think about a picture we had in those dresses that I should post.  So here goes!

But before I post that picture, I must post another.  Long before there was the group called The Freedom Singers, there was the group called The Witmer Trio.  We sisters sang acappella from the time we were in elementary school until I married Dick and he began accompanying us with his guitar.  Here was our Mennonite hippie look in 1975:  me, Barb, and Doris with Dick, the cool guitar player.  Please notice his plaid double knit  pants!  I think I made them.  The only time I ever made a pair of pants.

Eventually we added Don, a bass guitar player, to our group, and I played a portable keyboard.  We even made two records!  

Then my sister Barb got too busy being a dairy farmer's wife, and Doris and I were having too many babies, so we called it quits. 

But before long Dick and I were itching to start a group again.  Bass player Don was still available, and we pulled Dick's brother Steve and a girl named Nancy together.  The first place we sang the guest preacher said that we sang with such freedom we should be called The Freedom Singers.  And The Freedom Singers we became. 

Nancy got married after about a year and moved further away, so we pulled in another girl named Linda.  She stuck with us for several years, and it was she who reminisced today about our itchy blue dresses. 

And now, The Freedom Singers in the itchy blue dresses and matching ties: Steve, Linda, me, Dick, and Don.

After a few years Linda got married and moved away, and by that time my sister Doris thought she was done having babies and was available to sing again.  Our children, Steve's children, and Doris's children were all within the same age range, and we even put them on the stage for a song or two every place we went. 

Here's a picture from that era.  It must have been after 1985 when I finally got contacts for the first time. And Dick had been told his eyes had improved and he didn't need glasses or contacts, lucky guy.

We sang together until the summer of 1987.  At that point Don had become a long distance truck driver and wasn't always available, and Dick and I had been called to lead the worship at Grace Community Fellowship, which required a bigger time commitment. 

I wish I had some way to post some of our songs.  They're all on cassette tapes, and not the greatest quality either. But just indulge me and let me pat my own back a little when I say, "We were GOOD!" 

Pawpaw and music

Dick had off work today, so for Austin it was a Pawpaw day.  Here are some of the pictures I took.

Austin has developed a chest cold, so breathing treatments are needed several times a day.  After I gave him lunch, Pawpaw gave him his treatment.  After a few minutes I looked in on them, and this is what I saw - both of them asleep!

After his nap it was snack time with Pawpaw.  He likes my homemade granola.

Then Pawpaw introduced him to the harmonica.  He showed him how to blow into it.  And when he did and it made music.....

...Austin was very, very pleased with himself!

Next it was the piano.  

He especially likes the setting that sounds like vocal oohs and aahs.  Music and Pawpaw.  It doesn't get much better than that!

Is it or isn't it?

My friend Cheryl somehow took a picture of the brief moment on last night's video that shows someone who looks very much like Ray.  Thank you, Cheryl!!  

Those of you who know Ray - look at the guy in front.  Does that look like Ray or what???  It seems like he should just be able to look over here and say something corny like he always does. 

Keep praying for Ray

I went to bed last night breathing prayers for Ray's safety. When I awoke in the wee hours of the morning I thought of him and prayed. I knew that his ship is based in a very dangerous area. And that "security" is his official job in the Navy.

This morning I was sad to read the news that the four Americans who had been captured by the Somali pirates had been killed during the night. I read how the US forces had boarded the yacht after the gunshots to come to their aid, and how they took the pirates captive.

Later today I was told that Ray had been one of those US forces. I found a video this evening on the news that shows some of our guys on that yacht and there is the briefest view of one who looks and handles himself so much like Ray. I have watched it over and over and over and over again, pausing it, enlarging it, making it go forward and backward. I have no doubt that the protection of the Lord is with him and that he senses it.

http://news.yahoo.com/video/politics-15749652/u-s-navy-4-american-hostages-killed-by-pirates-24273916

Thyda is longing to hear from him. We cried together on the phone this evening. My heart aches for her. At the same time my heart is bursting with pride for him. As he comes to your mind, please lift him to the Lord.

The Here and Now

I have realized that my past week of posts have been mostly about the past - partly because it's fun for me to think about the past and partly because it's hard to know what to write about the present.  But since I often find myself using my blog as a diary, I guess I'd better get to writing about the here and now in case I ever want to check back and see what was going on in February 2011. 

We had the most AWESOME weather last Thursday and Friday.  Just gave me such an emotional lift!  Unfortunately it was followed by bitter and extreme wind over the weekend, which was followed by this:

 With more to come tonight.  It makes me feel like crying.  But at least on FB today, this picture was followed by a whole lot of conversation among my sisters about how much fun it would be to take a sister trip to Lisa's house in Florida.  Just thinking about how much fun that would be lifted my spirits. 

And of course, Austin always lifts my spirits.  Being with him never, ever gets old.  He enjoys crayons and paints and chalk.  Probably another Stauffer artist in the making. 

A really fun thing are his blocks.  As always, seeing how high we can build them is a great challenge, but the best part is watching him learn more and more of the letters, numbers, and objects on the blocks.  Even matching them!  

The biggest news is that Jeremy has been snatched from Ashley Furniture by Regency Furniture in the Baltimore/DC area.  It is a great career move for him, but was not an easy decision to make at all.  He HATES cold weather, and he has loved living near to George and Lisa and Sophie.  So making this move holds a lot of excitement, but also a whole lot of sorrow.  Needless to say, for Lisa's family, the sorrow is probably even deeper. My heart aches for them all.  On the other hand, it's amazing to me to imagine Jeremy living within a four hour's drive from us.  And I'm very, very proud of Jeremy for the way he is so quickly becoming a valuable, sought-after interior designer.  

My thoughts and prayers are constantly with Ray.  His ship is part of a fleet that is based right smack in the middle of all the unrest that is taking place in the Middle East.  It's so hard for Thyda being in VA away from family, without Ray, sometimes going days without hearing from him.  Thankfully, she does have a support system there.  

I'm excited about upcoming opportunities for music ministry.  This coming Sunday I will be substituting for the piano player at Fillmore UM.  Dick will play his twelve-string with me.  The following weekend I will be leading worship at a women's retreat at Camp Hebron.  Dick has now joined the choir at Fillmore, so it's fun practicing together.  We really, really enjoy the friendships we are building with the people at this little church. 

Birth control advice from the olden days

As I was reading Dick's baby book yesterday, I noticed that he did not walk until he was 15 months old - same as Austin! Then this morning I was thinking what that must have been like for his parents. Dick's brother Bob was born when Dick was just 11 months old. So for four months they had two non-walking babies! Look at them - Dickie and Bobby, as they were called! (And of course, we see on this one again the resemblance of Dick, on the left, to Austin.)

I was reminded of a funny story Dick's mother used to tell. She was such a good story teller. As we all know, the subject of how babies were made, and how to keep them from being made, was not something commonly discussed back in those days. Not even between mothers and daughters. Dick's mother said that she got pregnant on her honeymoon. Unfortunately, that pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. But shortly thereafter she was pregnant again, and little Dickie was born. When she found herself pregnant again when her baby was only a few months old, her mom told her, "Well, RUTH!! You need to watch yourself!" Dick's mother told me, "I wanted to say, 'But you never told me how to watch myself!'" She went on to have three more little boys in the next few years - Stevie, Jimmy, and Freddie. We wouldn't want it any other way!!

A few years before that my parents were busy starting their family - Janet, Richard, and Mary Ellen, each a year apart. Here's what they looked like about the time I came on the scene.

And why wasn't I born just a year after Mary Ellen? Instead of four-and-a-half years later? Apparently my dad took some birth control advice from the "nurse" that came to help my mother after each of her first three babies were born. Martha was a feisty single woman who easily spoke her mind. When she came to help my mother after Mary Ellen's birth she said, "Well, Mabel, I think you need to make Paul sleep under the bed." Hmmm. (I AM kidding about my dad actually taking that advice, I hope you know!!)

So the advice to you young couples starting out - Girls, watch yourselves! Guys, sleep under the bed!

Familiar-looking little guy

Does this little guy look at all familiar? It's one of the many pictures in Dick's baby book that remind us of Austin! I'd try to show you more of them, but his dear mother GLUED the pictures into the book and there's no getting them out! I guess I could cut them out, but that seems like an awful thing to do after all the loving care she put into putting that book together.

Happy Birthday, Jeremy!

On this day in 1980 at 12:45 AM, our family, which at that time consisted of Dick and me, Lisa and Anthony, welcomed Jeremy into our family. We had a well-planned, properly attended home birth, because that's the way we wanted it. We woke Lisa and Anthony up after Jeremy was born, but I'm not sure Anthony was completely awake! And here's how we looked back then: (sorry about the very poor picture quality)

Meanwhile my dear friend Elta was hosting a party in the kitchen for everyone but me. That's our doctor waving, Dr. Nicolazzo. I had to beg him into agreeing to a home birth, but he decided if it came with food afterward, he might do more. And he did.

I know this all sounds just too weird to most of you, but it really was a wonderful, joyful, fun night. I'm glad we did it that way.

Happy Birthday, Jeremy! What fun and joy you have brought to our family since that night in 1980! I surely would love to be with you to celebrate it like I was two years ago when this picture was taken.

Have a great day and an exciting year!

Strange weekend, more changes

This is the first weekend since we moved to State College that Dick has off work and we are neither going to Lancaster County nor having company here.  And it feels very, very strange.  

As I mentioned before, our church in Lancaster County hired a new Minister of Music, so we no longer need to make the trip for me to lead worship.  What I didn't mention before was that I was pretty sure that two weeks ago was our last weekend with Destiny for a while.  A few weeks ago Destiny's mother told us that she and the children would be moving to Florida to be near her sister.  As much as I knew I would miss Destiny, it felt to me like it could be a good move for them.  Destiny LOVES Florida, having gone with us many, many times, so she was excited about it.  The move has not been without controversy, however, so I have been breathing prayers day and night.  And trying to play the role of peacemaker.  They did move this week.  Yesterday afternoon I got a text message that said, "Grandma can u call Lisa and Jeremy to tell them that I am in Florida."   I texted her their phone numbers so she could call them herself.  It wasn't too long till I got phone calls from both Lisa and Jeremy telling me they had gotten calls from Destiny.  Hopefully they will be able to get to see her since they're only an hour or so apart.   And of course, we have even more reason now to make trips down there and hopefully move there someday.  At this point of the weary winter weather, that sounds like a wonderful idea!

When Destiny was here for Christmas break I saw something on my friend Mary Ann's blog that grabbed my heart, and I knew I needed to get it for Destiny.  We went to the Hallmark store, and I bought it and gave it to her.  Now I'm SO glad I did.  Here's the picture of it from Mary Ann's blog.

The card says, "Close to me, apart or together, always close to me."  I can't look at it without tears.  She has been such a huge part of our lives for the past ten years.  

This morning I went to the monthly women's prayer brunch.  I LOVE these women.  We are truly kindred spirits in our love for the Lord, our families, and others.  They make me feel so truly cared about and understood, which is huge for me, since I was so richly blessed with that at our church back home.

And now for some pictures from my week.  First of all - the angry, strangled dinosaur I found in my drier!

Pawpaw time.

 Austin climbed into his toy box and sat like this.  I asked him, "Is that your new potty?"  He said,  "Poot!" which is how he says, "poop"!!  Oh that cracked me up!  There's just no end to the new and funny things he says and does. 

I'm REALLY in the mood for a game of Scrabble.  Anyone want to come on over for a game?

Imaginary friend

Did you or your kids ever have an imaginary friend?  Jeremy used to have one named Pete when he was around three years old.  Pete got the blame for everything Jeremy did wrong!  Well, Austin has an imaginary friend too, although his actually has a face. 

Here he's talking to his friend.

He likes to make sure his friend sees all the funny things he does in his playroom.  He shows his friend his toys.

 And who is his friend, and what does its face look like?

I kid you not!  His imaginary friend is the clock in his playroom!!!  It is SO funny and so cute to see him interact with the clock.

Today would have been my dad's 88th birthday.  I cannot believe how many times I think of things I want to tell or ask him, and then I remember I can't.  He was such an anchor in my life.  In our entire family's life.   I know this picture is on my sidebar, but it's my favorite one.  He was singing one of his favorite songs, The Wonder of It All, when I snapped this photo in 2006. 

This morning Dick and I came across this picture of him taken in the mid-seventies!  He wanted to take it to work to prove to the guys that he used to have an afro!  Actually, he never wore it that big.  He purposely picked it out as much as possible for this picture!  I think we measured it and it was four inches long!  

Thirty-five years later, haha!  Still good-looking, right?

Oh, the cold, the cold, the cold, the cold

Oops, I guess I haven't written anything here for a while.  I think this cold weather and  the cold I'm STILL dealing with is sapping my creative juices.  Or freezing them.  My cold is at the "sudden throat tickle that makes you cough till you gag" stage.  Especially when trying to go to sleep.  I resorted to Nyquil last night, but it didn't take effect soon enough.  But, boy, was it still in effect when I woke up this morning.  I felt like my head was full of bricks.   

Yesterday we had rain, then in the evening the snow came down heavily in huge flakes.  When driving home last evening in it, I felt like I was being attacked as the huge flakes came lunging toward my windshield.  This morning, however, everything was gorgeous because of the snow hanging on everything.

We did a few fun things over the weekend.  Friday evening we went to the monthly spaghetti supper at Fillmore UM.  Eating together is the best way to get to know people.  We sat across from an interesting couple who lives a couple of miles down the road.  He worked as an eye surgeon in State College and retired two years ago.  The last time we met a couple that owns a bed and breakfast in Bellefonte.  

Saturday evening we went to Outback Steak House to use a gift card that Sam and Jenn had given us for Christmas.  We never eat beef, so on the few occasions that we go to a steak house we enjoy a good steak.  This time we even started out with a bloomin' onion.  Mmmmmm!

Dick enjoyed some baby back ribs.

Sunday evening we went to a super bowl party with folks from Anthony and Lori's church.  I took some of my yummy molasses ginger snaps.  Here's the recipe:

Molasses Ginger Snaps

1/4 cup softened butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup dark molasses

1 egg

1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup white flour

1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon ginger

Mix together, form into small balls, place on cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 8 minutes. 

These were definite favorites at our house when my kids were growing up.  I think I used to make them with all whole wheat and a whole cup of  honey (no brown sugar) back in the day.  But I don't bake much anymore, and since this was to be for other people I didn't want to go too crazy.  I remember when I used to make a peanut butter cake with all whole wheat flour that we thought was soooo yummy.  When I served it to company one time someone asked with kind of a turned-up nose, "Does this have whole wheat in it?"

So of course, with all those eating events over the weekend, I had gained a pound when I weighed in for the biggest loser  competition last evening.  It's being really hard for me to be motivated, and I'm blaming it on the cold weather.  

Today the wind blew ferociously.  This evening I was going to go to the Bible study that Lori and I go to.  She wasn't able to go this time.  But when I saw how the roads were drifted enroute to Anthony's house, I changed my mind.  I think I heard that our temps are to be above normal next week.  I can hardly wait!!!!

Stories from my week

I forgot to post some cute pictures I took on Tuesday evening.  Because of the craziness of the weather I did not keep Austin that day, so instead, that evening Dick and I babysat him while Anthony and Lori went to a movie.  I know I've said it so many times before, but Austin is just crazy over his Pawpaw.  When we got to the door, he basically ignored me and clamored for Pawpaw.  I guess I'm just too everyday, hahahaha!!

I gave him his bath, after which I wrapped him in his "towel".  He took off out of the bathroom looking for Pawpaw.  Is this adorable or what?  (Sorry, I took it with my cell phone in a dimly lit room.)

After his bath it was time for his breathing treatment, so he sat on Pawpaw's lap.  Melt my heart!

 And what were they watching so intently?  A baby Einstein video that teaches about the different families of instruments in the orchestra.   So he should have a head start on that when he gets to music class!!

So I said the other night that I was going for a free hair appointment Thursday morning.  Just as I was getting ready to walk out the door that morning, I heard on the news that roads would be blocked off at certain times of the day for Obama's entrance from the State College airport to the Penn State campus, and then back again.   Most of them were roads I use to go to Austin's daycare and also to go downtown. Oh boy, I wondered how this was all going to work out!  

I got to the Empire Beauty School downtown with no problem.  Got there right on time for my 9:00 appointment.  As I signed in I looked around at the students working and spotted an adorable girl that I hoped was the one I had emailed back and forth with.  She was!  I asked her right away,  "Now, I will be finished by 11:00, right?  Because I have to pick up my grandson at 11:15 from daycare, and I don't know what the situation will be with the roads with the president arriving."    She assured me there would be no problem.

She was the sweetest thing, but very, very new.  Her instructor actually did a whole lot of helping her.  I felt like a guinea pig!  And there was indeed a problem getting done by 11:00!  I felt sorry for her after her instructor went on to help others and she was trying to finish me up, very aware of the time, but also not quite sure if she was doing it right.  The instructor finally came and helped her to finish, but there wasn't time left to do any styling after the trim.  I finally left at 11:10!  I called the daycare right away to tell them I'd be late, and they told me that the roads around them were starting to be blocked off.  I thought I knew a back way to get to them, but alas, even that was blocked!  

I drove up to a policeman that was blocking with his car and told him I need to get to the daycare for my grandson.  He told me he was sorry, but they were instructed to block everything, and the motorcade would soon be going by, and I'd be able to get through in about 15 minutes.  

So I sat there in full view of the road from the airport.  WHY, oh WHY did I not think of getting my camera out of my purse???   After a while I watched the motorcade go by, as close to a US president as I'll ever be, and I have no picture to prove it!  Rats!!

So anyway, here's what I look like after the free hair job.  It's shorter than I ever had it, but that just means less time to take care of it.   I think I'll go back to them.  Their prices for regular appointments are really a lot less than other places.  They gotta learn on somebody, right?

I'm feeling better than I did the past two evenings.  My right ear opened up this afternoon and my throat and sinuses have settled down too.  I surely hope I'm on the way to kicking this thing for good.  

Does anybody remember what warm weather feels like???  The smell of Spring??  The color green???  I'm trying to imagine....

Miserable

I feel miserable this evening and there's just no up-beat way to say it.  For the past week-and-a-half I've been fighting a cold with every method I know - green tea, Hall's Defense Lozenges, Zicam, water....  I have been keeping it repressed, but not completely gone.  And tonight it's trying to settle into my throat and vocal cords.  

Add to that the wild wind outside right on the heels of more snow and ice.  And the increasingly alarming news from Egypt, other things that make me sad ...... like I said, I just feel miserable. 

On a brighter note, Austin feels much better than he did a few days ago.  He was so much fun this afternoon.  And in my car this afternoon he spelled Austin for me from A to n, without any help from me!  I could hardly believe it!  I think he inherited Anthony's incredible memory.

Tomorrow I'm going to do something wild and brave and crazy.  You all know how much I love my hairdresser in Manheim, and the bad experiences I had trying new people up here when we first moved up.  And how I therefore have kept going back to my Manheim guy ever since.  But he was out of town this past Saturday when we were in the area.  I had planned to make an extra trip this coming Saturday just for my hair appt.  But our weather has been just too crazy for me to consider driving by myself.  And besides, work has been slow for Dick, resulting in too-small paychecks, and I felt really bad thinking of spending so much money on my hair at a time like this.  

The other week I was checking out Craigs list when I discovered the "services" section.  Under "beauty" there was a student at Empire Beauty School needing people for FREE beauty services as part of her training.  SO I got brave, or desperate, and emailed her, and tomorrow I am going to her for my free trim and root touch-up.  

I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow night!