Catching up, getting ready for the next big things

We've been having true summer weather and I LOVE it!  Occasional storms, but not any of those all-day-long  dreary, rainy days.

My main focus since my sister weekend has been, in addition to keeping up with all my regular jobs, getting things prepped and in place for the next two weekends.

First of all, this coming weekend is HUGE!!!  Sophie will be competing in the 100-meter dash and the long jump at the AAU Jr. Olympics in Norfolk, VA next week.  This is HUGE considering how recently she got involved in track and field competitions.

SO on Saturday morning Dick and I will be heading to Norfolk, stopping in Reading to pick up Destiny.  It's been a long time since we've done a road trip that far.  The really cool thing is that since Ray and Thyda live in Norfolk we'll be staying with them and finally getting to spend time with them for the first time since CHRISTMAS!!  I can hardly wait!!!

On Monday we'll go to watch Sophie compete.  Hopefully at least one of us will get a really good video of her running.    Then on Tuesday we'll have to drive back home.  I'm sad we can't stay to watch her the other days, but Dick has very few vacation days left.

Then the following Saturday, August 8, we have our huge annual cancer benefit at Houserville.  Music, food, and craft vendors all day long.  Our praise team will open things up at 11 AM.  Anthony will be performing again this year - I think around 3:00 in the afternoon.  Dick has put in so much time and effort lining up the bands.  I hope and pray we have great weather.

Here are a few pictures I took this week.  The first one was taken as I was leaving Wegmans on Friday.  It's such a beautiful street.

I'm enjoying the potted plant that Dick put together.

I'll have to share a couple of my misadventures from last week.  These are copied and pasted from Facebook.  (Sorry - it never seems to work when I try to bring stuff over from FB.  I'm just too lazy to rewrite everything.)

Too late I realized that my seatbelt was not the only thing that got soaking wet in last night's rain storm. I got out of my car at Weis Markets and realized my behind felt really wet. Oh no! Apparently my car seat had also gotten soaked! Now what? I told a woman outside the store my situation and asked if she could tell that the back of my pants were wet. She regretfully informed me that she certainly could. 

Hmmm, what to do? No way would I go through the store looking like I had wet my pants. Then I realized that Clothes Mentor, a very nice women's clothing consignment store, was just across the parking lot. I found a nice pair of capris that they allowed me to keep on after I paid for them. They even gave me a store bag to sit on!

Then the next day:

WHAT am I going to do with me???? Yesterday I had that wet seat/wet behind problem (if you missed it, you'll have to look on my page). This morning my car had that wet dog smell, so when I arrived at the church office and the sun was shining so very brightly I thought, "I'll just leave the windows open so things can dry out." A while ago a cloud burst dumped a whole load of rain right here, but I was working away in here, nice and dry. After a while the pastor came to my office and said, "I noticed your car windows are open." GRRRRR!!! Yes, they were. They were open so my car would dry out.

And this from Friday:

I tried a new chicken recipe today. When Austin saw it he asked, "Is that African chicken?" Lori said, "No." Austin asked, "Then why does it look so weird? Is it French or something?" Getting a little sophisticated with his food critique.

Sister Diary 2015

Okay, here I go.  This may be my longest post ever, but I want the pictures and details of this weekend to be all in one place for future reference.  My old sister diaries used to be done on a typewriter.  Thank God I don't have to do that!  Some of the pictures on this post are mine, many are Nancy's.  She has a fantastic camera and is a passionate photographer.  It was wonderful for me to be able to host without feeling the pressure to take pictures of everything.

On Thursday I started a group Facebook Messenger conversation with my sisters that continued all day Friday.  They kept me updated on their progress toward my house.   Barb had flown to Lancaster County from Idaho on Thursday.  She and Doris drove to my house Friday afternoon and got here first.  Betty was driving from New Hampshire and arrived next.   Rose was flying from Georgia and being picked up at the Harrisburg airport by Mary Ellen and Nancy.  They arrived last.

I was making Southwest Quesadillas and Lime Cilantro Chicken and fed them as they arrived.

After everyone was here we all crowded around the little kitchen table, talking and laughing.  Eventually we migrated to the living room where everyone had to first of all get my wifi password so they could log into it on their devices.  We were amused by FB posts that our brother Dick (Nancy's husband) was making on FB, definite attempts to get comments from us.  I said, "Awwww, he wants to be here with us!"  We decided we need to include him at least part of the time after this.  Poor guy has all the same childhood memories we do, but no brothers to laugh over them with!

Next I persuaded everyone to come out to my tiny porch where we sat in the candle light and had the best time talking and laughing some more.  I hope my neighbors had their windows closed and ACs running, because it was 11:45 when we finally came inside.  (Sorry, no pictures of us out there - you'll just have to imagine us on those chairs.)

Once inside, we gathered in the living room again for some reminiscing and belly laughter as I read some of my sister diaries to them.  Janet played such a huge part in the funny things that happened in those long-ago sister weekends.  We realized how intensely we still miss her - almost 11 years since she left this life so suddenly. Here's a picture of the last time we all were together in 2004.  Janet is on the far left.

I think it was somewhere between 1 and 2 AM when we finally all bedded down - Betty and I in my bed, Rose and Mary Ellen in the guest bed, Doris on the sofa, Barb on a cot in the den, and Nancy on the living room floor - her choice.  (-:

We had a blessedly unhurried Saturday morning.  We are all such BUSY women, and it was such a luxury to have no hard and fast schedule to meet.  I made sausage and pancakes with blueberry sauce for breakfast, which we ate at the dining room table.

Around noon we were finally all cleaned up and presentable.  We took a tour around my house to take a look at the flowers.

And then we piled into Betty's van and took this selfie!  Alllll Aboard!!  All seven of us.

Our first destination was the arboretum.  It was as lovely as ever, but by far hotter and more humid than any other time I've been there.

The fountain was more appreciated than ever!  The spray and the breeze from it felt AMAZING!

All seven of us:  Nancy, Betty, Barb, me, Rose, Doris, Mary Ellen.  


Was I praising the Lord here?  Directing a choir?  Nope, just airing out my sweaty armpits in the glorious breeze I was feeling at the moment, hahaha!  Notice the setup for a wedding behind me.  We were feeling sorry for the guests who would be sitting in that heat.

From there I took them on a drive around the Penn State campus, then we went to Rey Azteca, a really nice Mexican restaurant for our second meal of the day.  It was not crowded in the middle of the afternoon, so we were able to sit and talk as long as we wanted.

We were near the mall, and since there's no Macy's in Lancaster, some of the sisters wanted to do their annual Macy's shopping trip.  So to the mall we went.  It was gloriously cool inside.  Some went to Macy's, some went to Christopher Banks, some of us just sat and talked, and we all went to the bathroom at one time or another.

When we were all done with all those things, we piled into the van again and made our trip to Anthony and Lori's.  That's where Dick was staying for the weekend.  Anthony and Lori were home when we got there, but eventually left to take Austin bowling.  I took the sisters on a tour of the house, and then we settled for some R&R on their lovely porch.  Just what we needed with the heat and our full bellies.

Around 8 PM we decided to head back to my place, but first we stopped at the pond, where Nancy took these beautiful pictures, and Dick gave them a tour of the barn.

After we left we decided we were ready for some ice cream, so Berkley Creamery was our next stop. As usual, there was a long line, but at least it was not out the door and up the sidewalk like sometimes.  The weather was PERFECT for eating ice cream outside.  We had the best, best time sitting out there for at least an hour or more.  I don't know if anyone took any pictures, so I got these off the creamery's FB page.  Just imagine us sitting under one of those umbrellas.

When we came back to my place we pulled out some of the veggies Nancy had brought, the dips I had gotten at Trader Joes, the Farmer's Cheese Mary Ellen had brought, Tom Sturgis pretzels, the wine Doris and Barb brought, Mary Ellen's chocolate chip zucchini cake, my peanut butter rice chex treats, Barb's cantaloupe, Nancy's chocolate chip cookies (does that sound like enough?),and we watched the movie As Good As It Gets.  We actually stayed awake for the whole thing - after 1:00 AM!!  Not bad for older ladies like us!

We had decided ahead of time that we would not go to church Sunday morning, but rather savor every moment together.  I would have loved to introduce all my sisters to both of my churches, we could have sung beautifully for them, but our time together was too precious to share.  

So we just enjoyed a very laid back morning together.  We had yogurt, bagels, Mary Ellen's granola, fruit, and of course, coffee for breakfast.  Jeremy had sent his big Keurig on the bus with Destiny last week for me, and it was perfect timing - came in so handy for each person to make their own cup of coffee instead of waiting on a pot to brew.  

Rose, a kindergarten teacher near Atlanta, and Betty, Preschool and Kindergarten director at the Merrimack, NH YMCA, talked "shop" for quite a while over their breakfast.  

Eventually we all gathered here in the den and sang around the piano.  Folks, we sound amazing.  After one song Barb exclaimed, "We need to go on the ROAD!"  Hahaha!  Maybe we should put an act together for America's Got Talent.  We could call ourselves Sister Act III.  But in all seriousness, singing together was, as always,  a really precious experience.  There was NOTHING our dad loved more than singing together as a family.  

We put out the makings for sandwiches for lunch, along with chips, and all the leftover sweets, veggies, dips, and fruits.  As we ate, Mary Ellen pulled out some letters that our mom had written to her years ago.  Mary Ellen had moved to Mobile, Alabama and then to Harrisonburg, VA as a young adult, and she said Mom wrote her a letter every week!   She had brought two of them along, which some of the sisters read aloud to us.  Oh, the LAUGHTER over those letters as Mom gave Mary Ellen news that included many of us.  We decided these letters are indeed PRICELESS, and that Mary Ellen has to bring more of them along the next time we're together.  I think they were a big highlight of our weekend!

Nancy set up her tripod and camera for one last group shot.  We weren't feeling extremely smiley as the end of our weekend was imminent, but then someone said something hilarious, and that's all it took to get just the right shot.

We stood in a circle in my living room after this picture and prayed together and had a group hug.  Mary Ellen and Rose left first, around 2:30, so that Rose could catch her flight out of the Harrisburg airport.  Nancy and Betty left together in Betty's van.  Betty wanted to spend some time with Grandma Mary before heading back to New Hampshire, so she was spending the night in Lancaster County.  Doris and Barb left together.  Barb would be spending time with Grandma Mary too.

We kept the FB Messenger Group conversation active.  Rose let us know when she was on her plane and when she was later driving home from the Atlanta airport.  On Monday Betty let us know that she'd had a pleasant trip and was back home in NH by dinner time.  Last evening Barb let us know that she, along with her elderly in-laws, had made it to a hotel in Idaho and would be driving home this morning.   Her in-laws (who live in Lancaster County) will be visiting them for a little while.  

We will forever cherish this time we had together.  So many conversations, sharing from our hearts, memories, tears, much laughter.  In our case, there are truly no friends as dear as sisters.   This rose that Nancy captured outside my house is a perfect picture of our love for each other. 

I Love My Sisters

My sister weekend was every bit as wonderful as I had imagined it would be.  Lots of time to catch up, eat, drink coffee, reminisce, laugh, eat, cry, drink a little wine, sing together, eat, drink more coffee.... We even slept!  

I have very few pictures at this point, because I let my photographer sister-in-law Nancy take 500 pictures instead.  I'll share some of those along with some stories after I get them from her and after I have time to catch up with the rest of my life!

I LOVE MY SISTERS!  Pictured above:  Our brother's wife Nancy from Lancaster County, Elizabeth (Betty) from New Hampshire, Barb from Idaho, me, Rose from Georgia, Doris and Mary Ellen from Lancaster County.

Beautiful nature, cute grandchildren, barn work, SISTERS COMING!

I want to take time to share some pictures from this week before I end up with a whole bunch more pictures from our upcoming sister weekend.

The other evening I opened a back window and noticed the beautiful sunset over the mountain.  I so seldom notice it because of the way our house is situated.  I grabbed my camera and ran outside for a few pictures.  While I was out there I visited some of my flowers as well.  I don't take the time to do that nearly often enough!

This week Dick and Anthony were busy working on the barn.  Anthony plans to set up "shop" in the lower level first.  They were securing the doors - covering up the big one and installing a regular lockable door in the other one.

On the outside it will still look the same - like a barn.

And now some grandchildren pictures that were posted on FB this week.  Jenn said that Bianca tackled Sammy and gave him a kiss.  They love each other so much, it's just sweetest thing!

And look at this baby looking all grown up in her pink shorts and sneakers.  How can it be?  Not even a year since she was born!

We haven't seen Jada since Christmas, so I really love it when Lauren posts pictures of her.  Yesterday she had an eye exam and Lauren shot this pic.  Beautiful girlie, almost three years old!

This one is funny.  Lisa caught Sophie taking a selfie, hahaha!  I'd take more selfie's too if I was that cute!  Today is a big day for her - another meet qualifying her for better placement at the AAU Jr. Olympics track meet next month.   This girl is going places.  Someday I will wear a teeshirt that says "GoSo's Grandma"!  And everyone will know who GoSo is, haha!

Okay, gotta get busy!!  I'm SO EXCITED!!  The sisters are coming TODAY!!  Barb flew from Idaho to Lancaster County yesterday, Rose is flying from Atlanta to Harrisburg today, Betty is driving from New Hampshire as I write, and eventually they will all end up here.

I got three more chairs this week and got my tiny porch set up for all seven of us to fit, hahaha!!  I tried it out last night and it was nice.  

Of course, on Saturday evening we'll go to Anthony and Lori's and enjoy a REAL porch.  

Yesterday I mentioned to my sisters that I will be reading them my Sister Diaries this weekend.  Sister-in-law Nancy wondered what the sister diaries are - they sounded like a movie.  Oh my, they would indeed make a great movie, hahahaha!!  I have kept a diary of many of our sister weekends and they are HILARIOUS!!

The weekend here and in DC; special weekend coming up!

I'll start out this post with a beautiful picture I took from the back door at the church office on Wednesday.  At the moment the sun was shining brightly, but the clouds were as dark as could be.  We have had so many rainy days, and almost none without rain part of the time.

But this weekend has been wonderfully rain-free.  I almost hate to rejoice in that, knowing how desperately they need rain in the western United States.  Wish we could share!

On Friday I left early and drove to Reading to pick up Destiny.  She is having a vacation in DC!  I took her to the Greyhound bus terminal in Harrisburg and put her on a bus all by herself.  The very nice driver assured me that she would be ok.  The bus would stop twice, but she would not change buses.  Jeremy had instructed her not to get out of the bus, so I made sure she had plenty of snacks and a drink to take along on the three-hour trip.  It turned out to be longer than that, however, probably due to Friday rush hour traffic on the beltway.  Jeremy met her there and has been showing her a good time.  Tomorrow she'll do the reverse trip and I'll pick her up.  I'll share some of their pictures at the end of my post.

I went to Anthony and Lori's on Friday when I got back from Harrisburg.  Even without the blooming rhododendrons, it is still such a beautiful place to be.

I napped on the porch, then joined Lori and Austin at the pond for a while.  Later they were throwing a new frisbee.

Anthony was in Nashville for a NAMM convention (I think those M's have something to do with music merchandisers.)  This morning when he boarded his flight home he was wearing his Texas Blues Alley tee shirt.  The flight attendant looked at it and asked, "Did you go there?"  He said (to himself I think), "Lady, I go there every day!"  

On Saturday I had a whole day at home!  Well, almost all day.  I did go to the bank in the morning and was delighted to find a roadside stand on the way.  I got all this farm-fresh goodness for just $14.00!  I felt like I was back home in Lancaster County.

I did some catching up around here the rest of the day.  The most satisfying thing I did was my oven door.  It has been bugging me for a long time.  I had let rice cook over on the front burner one time, and the starchy water went down between the panes of glass in the oven door.  I finally googled for suggestions, and this is what I did:  I removed the insert from the drawer under the oven, found the slots in the bottom of the oven door, wrapped Clorox wipes around my back scratcher stick, secured them with rubber bands, then inserted my handy dandy tool into the slot and worked it like a wind shield wiper!  It did not do a perfect job, but it looks so much better!

And now for some pictures from DC.

She's been to museums, a bike ride, had a pedicure, went to the pool, saw the movie Pitch Perfect 2.  What a lucky girl.  Jeremy even got her the bus ticket!  I thought of asking if he could be my uncle, but then I remembered he took me on a cruise, so I guess I'll be satisfied with being his mom, hahahaha!

Here's the video of their bike ride, actually a cart ride behind a bike. 

I have a huge week ahead!  ALL my sisters are coming here this coming weekend!!!  Barb from Idaho, Rose from Georgia, Betty from New Hampshire, Mary Ellen, Doris, and my brother's wife Nancy from Lancaster County.  It's been a long, long time since we've been able to ALL be together as sisters without any hubbies or children or grandchildren.  I'm so excited!!!