End of April - lots of good stuff

Starting out today with gorgeous pictures I took last Wednesday.  I saw these colorful trees on my way to Anthony and Lori's place.

Before going back home I decided to take a walk around the arboretum.  It NEVER disappoints!!  This was my first time there for this season.

For several years the construction of the new Palmer Museum of Art (in the very spot where the arboretum parking lot used to be!) has been going on.  But now it is finished and will officially open June 1st. 

The lower picture is the old museum of art on campus.  Also a beautiful building. 

Thursday was our youngest granddaughter's first birthday.  Sweet RaeLynn!!  Isn't she just the cutest little thing?

And just as I was working on a Happy Birthday post for Facebook Thursday morning, I received a message with these pictures!!  Jess and Bjorn's baby boy, Louis Andrew, was born in the wee hours of the morning!! 

We had choir practice that evening at the old church.  The second coat of blacktop had been applied to the new church driveway and parking lot and could not be driven on.  We still had the electric keyboard at the old church, so we practiced with that. 

On Friday afternoon I drove down to Duncannon to pick up Sammy and Bianca for the weekend.  I don't do long driving trips by myself very often anymore, so I actually enjoyed turning up some of my favorite worship music as I drove through the beautiful mountains and along the river.  The sky was so gorgeous too.  

On the way back with the kids we were listening to Beatles tunes and Frank Sinatra - Sammy's newest music interest!  Isn't he something??

That evening we introduced them to Blokus and got them hooked!  I am not a very strategic thinker apparently, but I still have a lot of fun playing.  Dick was the best.  And the kids were pretty good too.

We were up late, but that was ok since we could sleep in on Saturday.  Dick went to a men's breakfast at church.  I made sausage and pancakes for the kids. 

It was a cool, rainy day.  Ugh!!!  So we had to discuss what we wanted to do.  I so wished it were warm and sunny so we could do something outdoors.  

We decided to go to the antique mall in Bellefonte.  We had been there with them last fall.

Bianca loved this chair.  Isn't she becoming the most beautiful young lady??

Trying out some antique chairs. 

From there we went across the street to a game and card shop.  Then we went to the Lego store.  It is owned by the son of our church friends, Will and Deb.  We have heard so much about it since the store opened, but have never been there.  They sell all things Lego!!  

I took these videos of their window display.

Of course we were hungry by then, so we went to College Buffet, a scrumptious Chinese restaurant.  We ate till we were stuffed!!  The only picture we got was this selfie.  

Back home again we decided to watch "What About Bob?"   We had watched it one time when they were here in the past year, and they wanted to watch it again.  I think we laughed even more this time.  It is just so funny!

Then they got out the karaoke machine they had brought along.  I had given it to Sammy for Christmas back in 2019, and they recently started having fun with it again.  I had no idea that on YouTube there are lyrics videos for the purpose of karaoke.  

After the kids had each sung a few tunes, I told Sammy I wanted him to sing "Let It Be" so I could harmonize with him.  What a cool 12-year-old boy - gladly singing with his grandma!

On Sunday morning we were excited to show the new church to the kids.  I took this reverse shot with my phone as people were gathering in. 

 

I also wanted to take a picture of the beams overhead.  Bianca saw what I was doing and informed me that when you take a selfie it's better to hold the phone higher than your face, hahaha!  Very true!!  But I told her I was really trying to take a picture of the beams. 

We had almost a full house at church!  I think we'll need to go to two services at some point in the not-too-distant future.  We built what we could afford for now.

After the church service we went home and hurried to pack up the kids' things and to pack a few things to eat in the car. 

Dick and I were heading to my Myers cousin reunion in Lancaster.  Along the way we met Sam and Steph to give the kids back.  Another fun weekend with them in the books!

Traffic was HORRIBLE!!!  There had been a Luke Combs concert in Beaver Stadium on Saturday evening - 80,000 people attended!  So on Sunday people were leaving town.  And on top of that, construction on 322 is in high gear, with one-lane traffic several different places.  It took us SO LONG to get to Lancaster.  We finally arrived at my cousin reunion at 2:15, over an hour late.  

We had a great time having conversations with cousins we usually see just once a year.  This is my mother's side of the family.  Here's a picture of the cousins who were there.  In front is our uncle Earl Myers, the last of ten siblings still living here on earth.  

From there we went to see the new family of four!!  We had a wonderful time with them. 

I always say that newborn babies are about as close to heaven as we can get.  So new and fresh and innocent. 

I was admiring these roses on the table, then found out that Bjorn had gotten them for Jess.  I was so impressed.  He said, "I thought it was the least I could do." What??  Isn't he the best??

Yesterday (Monday) I made Jamaican burgers for Anthony and Lori - his request.  They have mango chutney and lots of curry powder in them, and he loves them. After I took them to their place I went to church to meet the piano tuner again.  He needed to finish the classroom piano.  

I took this picture of the door and the lovely hydrangeas flanking it.  

As he worked on the piano I relaxed in the sanctuary.  It truly feels holy. 

I also enjoyed the view of the mountains through the windows. 

In the evening Dick mowed over at Anthony's place, and I went to our women's group monthly gathering.  We had a great time sharing and playing some fun games that helped us to become better acquainted with one another.  

In the busyness of the weekend we got a video from Lisa of one of Sophie's races at a meet in Jacksonville.  It was not live streamed, so we were glad to get the video.  She got her personal best collegiate time!  And when I watched the video I decided that Lisa might even yell louder than I do, hahaha!!  We call it the "Witmer pipes."  

I gotta share this video of Elizer.  Last week Frank took him to the boxing gym where he takes the girls.  Finally something Elizer was allowed to hit, hahaha!  

Yesterday Elizer had his first day at his new preschool and Destiny had her first evening of classes at the American Barber and Beauty School.  We talked on the phone a nice long time this morning.  Boy, I really miss them.  This past weekend was the first one that we didn't see them at all since they moved.  It's good I had the kids here.   And that the weather is beautiful and warm this week.

That's all for this time!

Birthday and Grand Opening weekend

 

This has been a good year for my tulips.  They bring me so much cheer!

Last week was a productive one.  

- I got some important weeding done.  

- The pianos at church got tuned, an important thing after a move.  

- I discovered some new music for the choir that we're excited about.  

- I made molasses ginger snaps, some of them for the Grand Opening at church, some for us.  

- I cooked two more meals for Anthony and Lori - roasted brats and veggies on Wednesday, breaded chicken breast cutlets and air-fried brussels sprouts and bacon on Friday.  

- I found a cute Old Navy shirt for Elizer at Kid 2 Kid, a consignment store to which Destiny sold a lot of things and has store credit.  

Friday was Dick's 74th birthday.  He went to work as usual.  We're not sure when we'll ever be able to afford to stop working and earning, so we pray for good health for a long time.  

Here's the collage I made for my birthday wish on Facebook.  Wasn't he the cutest baby?

In the evening we went to Texas Roadhouse as we always do on his birthday.  Sam and Steph had given us gift cards at Christmas, and Dick's been looking forward to his birthday ever since!

He loves his free birthday Cactus Bloom!

 

When we were finished with our dinner we went to Sweet Frog for dessert with Anthony, Lori, and Hunter.  Austin is 15 and sometimes prefers to stay home where he works on projects on the computer. 

On Saturday morning I got caught up on our bookwork and cleaning up around here.  Although that doesn't take as long anymore.  There's so much less to clean up without Elizer here.  But not for long!

They were coming here!!  The children's workers at church really wanted Elizer here for the grand opening ceremony.  So after Ozzy got off work on Saturday they headed to State College.  I was so excited!!

First things first - riding his four-wheeler and his bike around the driveway.  I got just this picture.  It was starting to be quite cold outside when they arrived around 6:00.  

And then LEGOS.   Destiny and Ozzy ended up building three intricate things, but I didn't even get pictures of them.  Boooo.  

Then we of course had to take him to Get Air.  We have that membership, and we might as well use it whenever he's here.  He had a great time.  So did Destiny and Ozzy.

Around and around he goes!

Mother/Son dance, lol!

This was the Sunday morning sunrise view from my dining room window.  We felt lots of excitement!

The Grand Opening Ceremony at church had been publicized extensively.  We arrived about 40 minutes early, and the parking lot was already getting full!  The parking attendants had good strategies in place for helping people find places to park, and I'm quite sure every strategy ended up being used!!  

All the overflow seating in the back hallway and fellowship hall (where people could watch on a TV) was used.  So much excitement in the air!  As Pastor Jim has often said, so many churches are needing to close their doors for lack of attendance, so our congregation being able to build a new building and increase attendance in the process is indeed something to celebrate.  He has been a tremendous leader and cheer leader in the 18 months since he came to our church.  He does not regularly wear a robe, but for this special occasion he did.

The service began with a processional.  Our district superintendent led the way, followed by the children. Our resident artist, my dear friend Vicky, had made banners for the children to carry.  Vicky's career was as a school art teacher, so she is a blessing to us!!  You can see Vicky holding Elizer's hand in the bottom photos. 

Next in the processional were the oldest members of the congregation, escorted by family members or friends.  Actually, Pastor Jim escorted one of the ladies.  She is in her 90's and was afraid she would die before we ever get into our new church.  Pastor Jim had told her one time that he's sure she will live to see it, and he would escort her down the aisle!  And he did!

The children actually sat in front after the processional through the opening and the first hymn.  I'm not sure how much Elizer sat - I couldn't see him from the piano.  But the teachers were sitting on the front row. 

Then it was time for their song, "I Walk by Faith."  We had kids who had never practiced with us!  But the teachers did the motions with them, and the ones who had practiced sang out, and their song was a huge hit!  I felt very much in my element after having done this type of thing for YEARS at Manheim Christian.  Except I was used to seeing the kids from the piano, which wasn't possible with this arrangement. 

Later in the service the choir sang "In Your House, O Lord."  It's so wonderful to have these risers for the choir to stand on. 

We had communion too.  In this church, "all are welcome to the table," even the children.  I took these screen shots from the video.

Lori and Hunter were at the service.  You can see Hunter below.  And Dick had Elizer with him.  In the video, Elizer took the bread and then turned and danced a little jig for the ladies on the front row.  I could hear them giggle.  Ugh!

There were cookies and coffee in the fellowship hall afterward.  And this cake donated from a local grocery store.  

There were a number of other pastors there.  In the fellowship hall I asked a gentleman if he was a pastor, and he informed me he's our Pennsylvania State Representative, lol!  I had a nice conversation with him.

When we came home I made dippy eggs for our lunch, Destiny's request.  

Elizer played outside for a bit, but it was so cold.  He pulled out a puzzle and put it together several times.  Later in the afternoon Destiny and Ozzy went to hang out with some of her friends, and I lay down with Elizer for a nap.  Dick napped on his recliner.

We got our favorite hoagies for dinner.  Our church sells $11.00 coupons, and we can get huge $15.00 hoagies with those coupons! And they're the BEST!!

At 7 pm they hit the road for Reading and were home by 10.  I loved having them here.

One more cute picture.  Sophie had been in a track meet, I think in Kentucky, on Friday and Saturday.  George went to the meet.  Lisa had to stay home for a high school track meet, since she's a coach.  While we were at Get Air on Saturday evening George sent us some videos of her events, then he sent us this picture.  He said that when he went to the airport to return home, there was Sophie with her team, hahaha!  Isn't she adorable???

In other news.....

I have lots of things to share about our weekend, but first I'm going to post about two things I've had on the back burner for a while.  

First off, some of you may remember when I posted about the sale of this house back in 2017.   I looked it up recently and saw that someone had paid $185,000 for it!  This is what I wrote then:

I had fun watching the work being done to it over the next couple of years.  

And now it's on the market again - this time for $700,000!!  

I don't know if this link will work here or not, but the pictures of the interior are AMAZING!!!

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1767-Houserville-Rd-State-College-PA-16801/75208708_zpid/

The other thing I've been wanting to tell you few faithful readers of mine - we have a granddaughter who will be turning a year old this week, and I've never mentioned her.  

Two Christmases ago at our family fondue, Frank (Destiny's dad) introduced us to his girlfriend Lisa Marie.  Then he told us they'd be having a baby in April.  We were quite surprised. 

RaeLynn was born on April 25th. 

 We met her on Memorial Day.  She's an adorable little red-head!

At Elizer's birthday party in August we again had a lot of fun getting to know her better. 

Pictured below are Frank and Lisa Marie with RaeLynn, and J'von is in the corner. 

Big sister Alaya is a baby charmer!

Elizer holding his auntie, haha!  They were SO CUTE together.

It pained me to not be allowed to post the above pictures.  But there were difficult relationships to consider, and it was a long time until either Frank or Lisa Marie shared about her on social media.  

Relationships still are not easy.  Both Frank and Lisa Marie have older children, and bringing two households together is difficult.  So they live separately but are friendly and share parenting of this beautiful little girl.  She is dearly cherished especially by Lisa Marie's older children.  I really, really like Lisa Marie.

And here is the picture she posted of RaeLynn last week.  She has absolutely gorgeous red curls!! 

I do hope we'll get to see her again before too long.