Ciao Down

Ciao Down has been updated with a few new recipes over the last couple of days. Check it out if you wish.

7 Things About Me

If you've read more than 3 other blogs you know what's going around now...7 random facts about yourself.
I have no idea really how I'm going to come up with 7 random facts...but here goes.

1. I got a brand new '93 Camaro when I was a senior in HS. I was the first one in the little town I grew up in to get the new body style of Camaro and let me tell you I thought I was some kind of cool. Now days it's a 4 door family sedan with a car seat - and the little guy sitting in the back is the cool one, not the car or the driver. ;)

2. I went 4 years to a 2 year college - not because I was just playing around wasting time & moolah. I had 2 years of pre-requisite nursing classes then decided to go into Occupational Therapy (all the same pre-requisites thank goodness)...where I spent another 2 years. Mom jokes that she finally convinced me I could NOT get a Masters degree at a Jr. College. (Yes, I did go on to a University after that.)

3. I never cease to be amazed at all the connections in the "Blog World". It's amazing to me who knows who and who's related to whom. Some blog entries make me laugh uncontrollably and some make me cry.

4. I moved one time in the first 16 years of my life, and 18 times in the next 16 years.

5. From the time I was pretty young I always thought if I ever had a son his name would be Christopher James(my Dad's name)...but then I married someone with a long last name so I had to let go of that name. Yes, I did shed a few tears over it.

6. It hurts me when someone dies and someone else makes the comment "well, he/she is in a better place now". That may be true, but I feel like it de-values the pain someone is feeling over the loss of that person. The pain is still just as real no matter where you believe the deceased is.

7. I love my life and wouldn't trade with anyone else in the world. I'm married to the right man for me and we think we have be greatest son in the world.

So there you have it...7 random things about me. I'm not tagging anyone...play if you want, don't if you don't. ;)

Game Night

We had game night at Brad and Lesha's Monday - we all had a great time. Many of us played Cranium which is a combination of Charades, using clay to mold things, drawing, and answering trivia type questions. There are some interesting pictures in the slide show of different ones trying to act out something.




At the end of the evening Lesha gave the boys a bath...with MUCH help. ;)
How many pairs of hands does it take to wash two little boys? Five apparently!

Grandma S.

David's Grandma S. passed away Thursday afternoon. It was not unexpected but it's never easy to lose someone you love. Many people loved her for different reasons, but the reason I loved her most is she helped make the man my Father-In-Law is (her son), who helped make the man my husband is.

In going through some of her things, her children found this written in her handwriting:
(I took out last names and just left last initials.)

How we met
Cloyd LeRoy S. and (Alice) Pauline K. S.

She was 19, he was 21. She lived at Staples, Mn and He lived at
Long Siding, Mn.

She was born at Blue Grass, Mn, He was born at Adams County, Illinois.

They both went to a church convention at Hector, Mn in the fall of 1939 for 4 days.
She was visiting with a girl friend who said “There is Cloyd S. getting a drink out by the barn. Lets go get a drink.”
He smiled at her, she wrinkled her nose at him. A few days after, she got a letter from him - thus it started.
They were married August 2nd, 1941.
(They just celebrated their 67th anniversary, 5 days before she passed away.)

This made me smile as I read it as we usually can only think of our Grandparents as "old", but it gave a little glimpse into their younger days. I can just see her wrinkling her nose at him. She always had such a sense of humor and an infectious laugh. It's fun to think about our Grandparents when they were young and just flirting with each other. To think that that "wrinkled nose" lead to 6 kids, 14 grand-kids, and 16 great-grand kids!


"The history of our grandparents is remembered not with rose petals but in the laughter and tears of their children and their children's children. It is into us that the lives of grandparents have gone. It is in us that their history becomes a future."

Trip home for a few days

Jacob and I spent most of the week at my parents this week as it's probably the last chance I'll get to go home before Gertrude gets here...and I needed some good spoiling by Mom and Dad you know. ;) Actually, Brad and I don't get the "royal treatment" we used to get...that's all reserved for the Grandkids now. Oh well, I thought I'd try anyway. Plus I wanted Jacob to get to go swimming in their pool as it hasn't worked out for us to do that yet this summer. You would know, though, the pool was going through some funky something so we didn't end up getting to get in it after all. :( We did get to go down to the town where my Grandmother lives and see her and more family so all was not lost. Jacob and I got to spend most of the afternoon with my cousin Lena and her 3 kids, which was great for us both. Much fun was had by all. ;) These are a few pictures from the afternoon. Wyatt and Jacob are only 3 months apart. Little Mr. Wyatt was quite the ham for the camera and Jacob was so serious for some reason.



It was wonderful to go to my parents for those few days, but it sure felt good to be back home with David. Jacob was ready to see his Dad, and I was ready to see my husband. Ain't love grand. ;)

Flash Back Friday...

OK, so it may be a bit corny to call this "Flash Back Friday", but I though it would be fun for me to look back at the pictures from this week 2 yrs ago and 1 yr ago. And you, my dear readers, have to play along. Or just go on the the next blog you're hopping to. ;) I actually remember taking these pictures.



This one from 2 years ago was my favorite for a long time. That smile just melted my heart. He always woke up from his naps so happy.



This one from last year was when he was just learning to walk. He thought he was so cool in Daddy's shoes. We spent many hours walking in circles in that apt. while he was getting used to the walking thing.