Crazy weather, sick little boy

 It's Friday evening and I'll update quickly before I go to bed. 

 

Starting with MONDAY.

On Monday I got the bright idea to make Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo and a copy cat version of Olive Garden's salad.  First time ever making that. I wanted to have enough of the pasta dish for us and for Anthony and Lori's family, so I did a recipe-and-a-half.  Good grief!!  It made SO MUCH!!  And silly me - I made it in the morning and refrigerated it.  Later in the afternoon I took theirs over to their place, then came home to eat some of ours.  Good grief again!!  Because of all the butter it was nearly impossible to take any of it out of the container without heating the entire thing first.  If I ever make it again I won't make that much, and we will eat it before refrigerating it.  Lesson learned.  

Somewhere along the way I took this picture of my kitchen when the sun made an appearance. 

After Dick came from work we went to meet Alex to get Elizer from him.  As always, he was the sweetest thing ever.  But I wasn't happy to hear the coughing he was doing.  

TUESDAY

On Tuesday morning Destiny and I debated whether or not he should go to daycare.  He didn't have a fever at that point and he really wanted to go.  So I took him.  I was glad to see how happy he looked when his teacher posted this picture. 

That evening after Destiny got off work we went to Trader Joes for some groceries.  We had such a fun time, as we always do when we're shopping together.  Elizer charmed everyone as usual.

WEDNESDAY

Wednesday morning he definitely had a fever, so he was my boy for the day.  His nose was running like a fountain.  

Here's a picture I took of our view of the sunrise that morning.  

It started snowing before noon and when Elizer noticed, he was so excited.  He ran to the window and said that Grandpa will use his snow blower! 

But that was not necessary, of course.  This is what we got, and then it turned to rain.

After his nap Elizer had fun playing with these toys.

We had our Ash Wednesday service at church that evening and choir practice afterward.  When we came home I was busy in the kitchen for a while.  I was really tired when I finally went to my bathroom to get ready for bed.  I was so shocked when I saw myself in the mirror!  I guess my "Ash Wednesday make-up" ran a bit, hahaha!

THURSDAY

On Thursday morning Elizer's cough was much more persistent, his nose was still running like a fountain, and he had a low-grade fever.  So he was my boy again for the day.  Destiny made a doctor appointment for Friday morning.  They have had some croup and RSV at the daycare.  

But he was still a happy boy most of the time and took a three-hour nap. 

He said this was his mask and he was a fire-fighter and I was the fire!

We had temps in the mid-sixties that afternoon!!  During his nap I went outside to hoe up some weeds that never froze all winter.  When he woke up we went for a little walk and then sat on the porch rockers for a while.  

I had made a big slow cooker full of beef and cabbage soup, and we took some of it to Anthony and Lori's.  We were disappointed that no one was home.  Elizer loves to see the boys.

There was no choir practice Thursday evening since we'd had practice after our Ash Wednesday service, so Destiny and Elizer were here for the evening.

 

FRIDAY

During the night it got SO WINDY!  I was woken up at 5:00 by a loud bang.  I noticed that Dick wasn't in bed, so my first thought was that something had happened to him in the bathroom and he had fallen.  But he assured me he was fine, and that the wind was knocking stuff around.  I got back into bed and soon heard that loud bang again.  I instantly knew what it was.  Apparently when I got the hoe out of our little basement on Thursday I had not latched the door.  The wind gusts were blowing it open and slamming it shut - over and over again.  So my dear husband went outside and around to the back of the house to latch it at 5 am! 

This was the blustery sky this morning.  

This morning I had an appointment for my required finger prick since I'm on warfarin, then I got groceries.  It was so cold and windy, right after that lovely day yesterday.  Ugh!! 

Destiny did take Elizer to the doctor this morning.  He does not have croup, which I was sure he didn't.  I was just concerned it would become that.  

I did our laundry today and some music prep for Sunday.  I've been slowly working my way through the episodes of Call the Midwife.  I usually watch an episode or two per week while I fold laundry.  I'm still on season five.   I love it SO MUCH!   

This evening I started a big piece of pork in the slow cooker for pulled pork. 

My little cactus has bloomed so profusely for the past month, but it's winding down now.  Just a few more buds yet.

Have you seen the line-up of the moon, Venus, and Jupiter this week?  This was my attempt at photographing it this evening.

Also this evening we were watching a high school track meet that Sophie was in.  This was the 200 meter dash.  No problem guessing which one is Sophie in this video!

And that was my week, folks! Have a great weekend!

Uncle David Shenk's memorial service

 I'll update here before I hit the sack.  I've got a full day tomorrow.

Destiny and Elizer hung out here for a little while on Friday afternoon.  For the first time ever Elizer took an interest in these blocks.  Each one makes a unique noise when shaken. He was having fun stacking them.

He found out you can't stack one on top of a rounded one!

We left for Lancaster after Dick came home from work.  We took Elizer with us to give him to Alex.  Dick and I went to my sister Mary Ellen's overnight.  

My Uncle David Shenk's memorial service was held on Saturday morning.  We got there an hour before the service started and stood in an increasingly long line of people waiting to greet the family members.  

As I've said before, David's wife is my dad's sister Grace.  Dave and Grace have four children and seven  grandchildren.  I'm connected with some of them on Facebook, but it was so very good to get to see and talk with them face to face.  

The service was AMAZING!!!  Every word, every story, every song was incredibly impactful.  It lasted long, but it felt like we didn't want it to be over.  David's life and ministry was unlike anyone I've ever met or heard of.  

Below are pictured his four children and a son-in-law.  Left to right - son Jonathan, daughter Doris and her husband Caleb, daughter Karen, and son Timothy.  They each shared memories and stories, from the heartfelt to the hilarious. 

 

Many others spoke.  David was involved in ministry around the world his entire life.  

There was a meal served afterward, and during the meal there was an open mic.  So there were many more stories.  Of course there were other cousins there that I seldom see, so it was a rich time of inspiration, laughter, and connection.  A day I will never forget!

When we and Mary Ellen finally left we drove into Lancaster City to see this sculpture of Harriet Tubman which is at the Martin Luther King Elementary School during Black History month.  

Back at Mary Ellen's house we decided to get some pictures.  Of course there's always some laughter when we try to do that.

Then we left for home.  It had been a very good day.

This morning we had a very happy church service.  We've had Pastor Jim since Pastor Lynn decided to leave at the end of September.  We really like him a lot, but he had been asked to serve temporarily only until the end of June.  Both he and our church very much wanted him to stay longer than that, but in the UMC the bishops make those decisions.  This morning our District Superintendent was there to tell us that Pastor Jim will be staying for sure until the end of June 2024.  Everybody clapped and cheered!  We have exciting things happening in the coming year.  We're planning for ground breaking sometime in March for the new building.  

Look what's happening in my flower beds!!  Yikes!  These poor things are most likely going to get hit with freezing weather before Spring arrives.  

Have a good week!

Our Valentines Week

 I have a bit of time today to update here before I have a whole week's worth of pictures and events. 

MONDAY

As I said on Sunday (my last update) I was doing the lovely colonoscopy prep.  Sunday evening, and especially Monday morning, were pretty unpleasant.  The procedure (both upper endoscopy and colonoscopy) were a piece of cake because of the marvelous anesthesia.  Dick took off work Monday to be my chauffeur.  I was so glad to finally be able to eat and drink afterward!

Late in the afternoon we left for the Duncannon area to get Elizer back from Alex.  We had enough time to swing by the house that Sam and Steph just bought and moved into.  Who wants pictures of boxes everywhere?  So I didn't take any.  These are from the internet.  It's a really nice three bedroom, bath-and-a-half two-story.  Sammy and Bianca will each have their own bedroom when they are there.  A big upgrade from Sam's tiny third floor apartment he's been in the last three years!  We're so happy for them!

When we got back in town we first of all went to Starbucks in the Penn State library to see Destiny.  I don't know how I didn't think to take a picture of Destiny and Elizer hugging and kissing.  Even the students hanging out there think they're adorable!

Then we had to get a few groceries, so we went to the grocery store.  Elizer was so delighted to see the robot "walking" around!

Shenanigans with Great grandpa!

Destiny and Elizer slept at our house that night since she had to work till 11 pm.  

TUESDAY

Valentines Day!  Destiny got Elizer all dressed up and his hair brushed for pictures.  (In case you wonder, that bottle has just water in it!)

Is he the cutest little ham, or what??

A picture his teacher posted that day.

This was the collage I posted for Valentines Day.  

The words of this song came to me as I typed the years the pictures were taken.

WEDNESDAY

This is how my day started out on Wednesday, hahaha!!

Wednesday was our son Jeremy's birthday.  I had a planned home birth, and it was a perfectly beautiful experience.  The year was 1980.  

I did something really fun yesterday!  I participated in the African American Read-in.  And guess where I read??  In Hunter's first grade classroom!  He did not know I was coming, so it was really fun to surprise him.  When the teacher had the kids sit on the rug, Hunter said he wanted to sit right beside me, and he carried a chair over so he could.  It was so wonderful to be in a classroom again, and I LOVE reading aloud to kids!!  An interesting thing about Hunter - it was really important to him to tell me the names of each of his classmates.  He probably could have told me each of their birth dates too, haha!!

Out in Oregon Jeremy worked a very long day.  He is SO busy at work, which is a good thing for business and income, but hard for a family man.  His tired mind was warmed by Brennan's sweet card in the evening.  That cake doesn't look too bad either!

We made a Happy Birthday video for him.

THURSDAY

And now it's a rainy Thursday.  Did I say that yesterday our temps got up into the 60's??  What is going on??  When I got the mail, the neighbor man and I were commenting about it.  He said, "But just wait, March will be a B----."  I've been thinking the same thing.  So often when we have early warm weather, the cold weather and snow return for the Spring and seem to last forever.

Laundry and choir prep are on the agenda as soon as I finish up here.

Talk to ya later!

Fun week with Elizer

Super Bowl Sunday!  And I'm working here in the den on my computer where I can't even see the TV.  But I can hear it.  Besides I can't eat anyway, because, of all days, I'm doing colonoscopy prep for tomorrow's lovely procedure.  

So here's a rerun of this past week.  

MONDAY

On Monday evening we were planning to go meet Alex to get Elizer  from him, but in the afternoon we found out that his daycare would be closed Tuesday because the teachers and too many students were sick!  So Alex was keeping him an extra day.  

I made chili that day and took some of it over to Anthony and Lori's, complete with all the fixin's for what we call Mexican Pile-up.  

TUESDAY

On Tuesday I had a hair appointment in the morning.  In the afternoon I went to Pastor Lynn's house to help her with packing for her upcoming move.  She's still living in the parsonage, and will be moving to a nearby apartment.  We took some things over to the apartment, so I got to see it.  It's a cute little place in a really nice wooded setting. I packed a whole lot of books that afternoon, most of which will be donated.  As always we had a lot of fun.  

In the evening Dick and I went to meet Alex to get Elizer.   Destiny was home from work when we got to her house and had already had a chance to shower.  It was SO adorable to watch them hug and hear all the "I love you's."  

WEDNESDAY

I took this picture of my cactus enjoying the sun on Wednesday morning.  

Unfortunately, Elizer had had a fever when we got him from Alex on Tuesday evening, and even though he didn't have one Wednesday morning we did not take him to daycare since they have a 24-hour no-fever policy.  Besides, since there had been so much sickness among the staff and children, we did not want to add to it.  So he was my boy for the day.  In the morning he wanted to play in the tub while I was doing my hair and make-up.  

He took a long nap in the afternoon, which gave me a chance to make some big pans of seasoned baked chicken and roasted veggies and sweet potatoes.  After Elizer's nap I took some of it over to Anthony and Lori's.  Once again Austin delighted Elizer by coming to the big picture window, and once again I forgot to take a picture of them waving to each other.  Elizer giggled.  So sweet! 

That evening we picked Destiny up from work and went to pick up a FB Marketplace item about half an hour away.   Our play kitchen set has needed to be replaced, so I've been looking for one at an affordable price for over a year.   Elizer didn't even see what we put in the back of the van that evening!

THURSDAY

Elizer did go to school on Thursday.  I could hardly wait to bring him here after I picked him up.  The new kitchen set was the first thing he noticed when we got home.  He had the greatest time playing!

Dick and I had choir practice that evening, and Destiny wasn't here yet when we had to leave, so we took him along.  He loves going along to choir practice because the nursery has such fun toys.  Everyone enjoys seeing him.  Destiny came to pick him up after a while, and they came to our place.  So when we got home from practice we had more time to play together.  We colored and did play doh.

My dad would have turned 100 that day if he were still here on earth!  How I would love to sit down with him for a good talk, some laughter, some prayer, and some singing together!!  He was so good at all those things!!

FRIDAY

Friday morning was SO windy, but there was a pretty sunrise.

Destiny has off Fridays and Saturdays.  She stopped in Friday afternoon.  Elizer had fallen asleep in the car and kept sleeping for a while on the couch.  We were admiring his perfectly handsome little face!

I made bacon broccoli quiche that day, trying a different pastry recipe, which I think I really like.  Later in the afternoon I took one of them over to Anthony and Lori's.  Destiny met up with a friend and they took their little boys to Chuck E Cheese for the evening.  

SATURDAY

On Saturday morning Destiny brought Elizer here.  She was going with some friends to a tattoo shop in State College that was offering a Valentines special on small tattoos.  

It was SO NICE to finally have him here in the daytime when Dick was here!  And it was a beautiful, sunny day, although cold.  Dick took him for a walk.

And they stopped in at the playground behind our house. 

When they came back we sat on the porch for quite a while.  Notice his rain boots, haha!!  Destiny had gotten them for him at Gabe's on Friday, and he insisted on wearing them! 

I love his imagination!  He crawled under the barstool in my kitchen and pretended he was working at a fast food drive-thru window!!  He was handing Dick a piece of pie on a plate!

Later we took him over to Destiny's place when she said she was finished at the tattoo shop.  Elizer was playing with an a toy phone.  He tried to put it in his pocket, but realized he didn't have any pockets.  So he put it in his boot, hahaha!!

When Destiny got home she got things packed to take Elizer to Alex.  

We came home because I had a very important date!!  A Witmer sister Zoom call!!  What a wonderful time we had!!  The first session ended after 40 minutes, so Betty's husband Scott got us set up with another 40-minute session.  Rose was driving part of the time, but she was still participating via her phone.  Life is hard for each of us in one way or another, but it's so good to have each other to share with. I love my sisters! They are my very best friends.

I was making a pot of ham and bean soup all day Saturday.  By evening it was ready to eat, and it was a so GOOD!!

SUNDAY

After church today we went to Walmart for a few things and then a few other errands, including taking some of the ham and bean soup to Anthony and Lori's.  They had been out hiking in their woods, so we got to see them and talk for a while.  

When we got home we noticed that some chutes are coming up in the front flower bed!!  Woohoo!!!!  

This was our sunset today.

This evening Anthony sent me these pictures of Hunter.  For the first time ever he wanted his hair cut SHORT!!

  

What a ham, lol!!

So now it's the end of the third quarter of the Super Bowl game and the Eagles are ahead.  

And that's all for this time!  Have a good week!