Families Meet!

Everything starts with a toast!

Boys will be boys at any age!

Ania’s father, 2 groomsmen, Aaron James John & Larry.

As you can see the women more than out numbered the men at super last night….possibly a reason for the shots above?!

I think Ania’s mother (in black & yellow) was very shocked by the amount of our family that was able to come for the wedding….

It was a wonderful gathering & supper, all traditional Polish foods, Oh, the food!  We opted for family style rather than a plated meal….the various dishes kept coming and we kept stuffing ourselves everything was delicious!  I may possibly come back heavier than I left at this rate. 

Oh, and all the luggage made it!

Technorati Tags: family,Poland

Evie’s New Ride!

 

While we are gone, Isaiah & Evelyn are staying with Rachel

I think she’s pretty happy with her Aunt Rachel right now!

Oh, we miss them!

Sorry, I can’t get the photo to turn correctly.

Technorati Tags: family

Old town, Poznan,

The suitcases are being repacked,

trying to figure how to keep formal clothes from being crushed..to bad

All the trips we have been on we’ve been fortunate in that we have never lost luggage…..

This will be the time. 
I had a nightmare last night I attended my sons

wedding in a denim dress.  

But I guess the important thing is

we will be there

Where?  Here!

Old town, Poznan, Poland Photo

We will be staying here

If my house burns down while we are gone….

don’t call me. 

I want to enjoy my time with them!

We can rebuild when we come home…

I wanted to make a few changes anyway!

Not the best attitude I know but, its been almost 2 years since we’ve seen them!

Now I need to complete the “Gotta Do” list for those babysitting the house and 4 legged kids while we are gone…

I think I will be stuffing suitcases until we leave at 3PM!

And yes, there will be photos!

Technorati Tags: weddings,travel,family

Food for thought

Technorati Tags: food,nutrition

One of my good friend’s Johanna & I are always looking for good food/bad food info.

This is what she sent me today….

This article is hanging on a bulletin board in a doctor's office.
Pass The Butter .. please.
        This is interesting . .
Margarine  was originally manufactured to fatten  turkeys. 

                  When it killed the turkeys,  the people who had put  all the money into the
research wanted a payback so they put their  heads together to figure out what to do with this product to get  their money back. 

It was a white substance with no food appeal ……..

so they added the yellow coloring
and sold it to people to use in place of butter.  How do you like it?
They have come out  with some clever new flavorings.
DO  YOU KNOW.. the difference between margarine and butter?
Read on to the end...gets very interesting!
Both have the same amount of calories.
Butter is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8 grams compared to 5 grams.
Eating margarine can increase heart disease in women by 53% over
eating the same amount of butter, according to a recent  Harvard
Medical Study.
Eating butter increases the absorption of many other nutrients
in other foods.
Butter has many nutritional benefits where margarine has a few
only because they are added!
Butter tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the
flavors of other foods
Butter has been around for centuries where margarine has been around
for less than  100 years .
And now, for Margarine..
Very  high in trans fatty acids.
Triple risk of coronary heart disease .
Increases total cholesterol and LDL (this is the bad cholesterol) and
lowers HDL cholesterol, (the good cholesterol)
Increases the risk of cancers up to five fold.
Lowers quality of breast milk.
Decrease s immune response.
Decreases insulin response.
And  here's the most disturbing fact.... HERE IS THE PART THAT  IS
VERY INTERESTING!
Margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away from being PLASTIC..
Anything that is hydrogenated means hydrogen is added,
changing the molecular structure of the  substance.

You can try this yourself:
Purchase a tub of margarine and leave it in your garage or shaded
area. Within a couple of days you will note a couple of things:
*  no flies, not even those pesky fruit flies will go near it
(that  should tell you something)
*  it does not rot or smell differently because it has no
nutritional value ; nothing will grow on it. Even those teeny weeny
microorganisms  will not a find a home to grow. Why?  Because
it is nearly plastic. Would you melt your Tupperware and  spread
that on your toast?

Middle Age Happen to Us All

Technorati Tags: pets

Middle Age Facial hair…..it strikes everywhere!~

What’s wrong with this Photo?  Besides needing cleaned…Little bird is loose some where in the house….I’ll let Papuga loose to find him.   Not all children are…well I was going to say 2 legged but theses are!

Sewing Projects & Early Morning Visitors

I’m getting so excited about this trip I feel like I’m ready to jump out of my skin!

The needle feeling in my hand faded off yesterday afternoon (thank God) so I was able to finish my sewing project.

I love backpack purses for traveling.  Leaves my hands free for the coffee cup and Cinnabun at the airport!

I picked up this old blue one years ago at the grocery store of all places, It was on clearance for $3.00-$4.00…

Poor thing is so ratty now It’s seen a lot of traveling.  Each time I pull it out,  I always kick myself for not making one a bit larger.  Cause you know I’m to cheap frugal to buy one for $40.00-$80.00!

I knew I had the makings for another & after rooting around found 5-6 chunks of quilted fabric, grommets, & cording. Not to excited about the pattern now but 6-7 yrs ago I  loved it.  But, It will work…use what you have right?

After a hour or two this is what I had

 

I did add a interior pocket, sized it up about 4 inches overall in width & length…more room for knitting projects for the flight.  Oh, the one thing I did buy was the drawstring cord stopper thingie.  And then I found 4 that I already had!  Instead of a magnetic closure I used a jean replacement button on the flap….a bit more secure for travel.

Not to bad for stash busting!

To bad its not Turkey season….we had a whole flock of turkeys at the pond this morning.  I counted 20 before they took off.  One adult stayed on watch at each end of the group, babies & other adults snacking on bugs and having a drink at the pond. 

Sorry for the cruddy photo but they just would not pose properly!

I’m surprised they stayed as long as they did once they saw me…wish they were this calm when Mr Fix~it is looking for them!

Well, I better get to packing & I

Technorati Tags: sewing,stashbusting,vacation,weddings,wildlife

need to make one more garden harvest!

 

Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That

Thursday or Friday’s Pickins from the garden

Underneath the fat boy cucumbers were enough smaller (with what I had inside already) to put up13 pints of bread n butter pickles

The next day I had enough beans, green and Dragon tongue to put up a few more pints.  Green peppers sliced and in the freezer along with a few zucchini, shredded & ready for bread & soups.  A small batch of  left over peas but those did not make it past the sink, I love fresh peas & snacked on them while I was taking care of the beans.  I’m the only one in the house that likes peas anyway.

A little bit of knitting, The shorties I finished Thursday or Friday

Our internet and cable has been off and on the past nights, more off than on with the storms we have been having.  So I haven’t had a chance to list these yet.  I’ll have to get that done in the morning..

I started a sewing project last night, thought I would complete it this afternoon but….I was on the back deck and started cleaning out a few neglected flowerpots.  I started pulling a weed out of one and felt like I’d grabbed a handful of nettles.  At first I thought I’d gotten bit by something, was finishing cleaning out the pot and then going in to check my hand. 

When I grabbed the weed again I hollered…..my whole hand felt like it was on fire, swelling & felt like I had 50 needles poking me.

 

The tall skinny sucker?  It has thousands of little hairy fiber like “thingies” up and down the stalk.  But I didn’t see them!  After about 15 minutes of washing my hand in cold water and 30 minutes of masking tape……..to remove those fiber thingies….it still felt like it was on fire hurt like crazy..   little aloe helped but, That was over 12 hours ago and it still swollen & has the needle feeling like when your arm or leg goes to sleep.  Any idea what plant that is?  Needless to say I’m not cleaning out that pot, it’s on the way to the dump.  It’s pretty ratty & one Danielle has been giving me a hard time about anyway.And it was my right hand….and yes I’m right handed.

Saturday morning I stumbled came into the kitchen for coffee.  Stumbled is actually more accurate,I’m not a morning person at all…..anyway, I forgot about the high chair and stubbed my foot on the leg and heard…”snap”  just like a twig.  I hate that sound, cause I know how much its going to hurt for a day or so. 

Its a good thing I found a replacement pair of favorite sandal's, I doubt I’ll be putting a shoe on that foot for a few days. I think I’d better look again at my choice of shoes for the wedding & reception!

Ania and Aaron - wedding website by mywedding.com

 

Ania and Aaron - wedding website by mywedding.com

The past few months weeks I have babbled made mention of our upcoming trip to Poland for our sons wedding.  I cant’ begin to tell you how happy we are to include Ania to our family.  She is anything we could have dreamed of to be a partner for Aaron James.  The love and joy that they emote is indescribable.  

A real eyes wide open,

through the good and the bad love

They respect each other & I think that makes all the difference

We have met Ania’s parents via SKYPE, well…as much as you can on camera &  a language barrier!

So Ania & Aaron (Jimmy) have created this website to allow extended family & friends to meet & get to know a bit of each other.  Also to publish wedding plans, location for those of us traveling. 

So, while I go dust off our passports….Enjoy!

If Aaron had seen this….

I’m sure he would have tried to talk Ania into it.Talk about celebrating with joy!

I love the guests reaction,

Do Bunnies go to Heaven? Yes they Do, Isaiah told me so!

I came home Wednesday night and was greeted by Isaiah saying Grandma, Wolfy gone….he’s with Jesus. 

(OK, Think fast now Katie….he knows going home to Jesus is a good thing, a happy event for that person/rabbit.  Although we miss them terribly we in some respect celebrate it for them)…..but this bunny was fine….so I came out with the intelligent comment of………

“Oh No!”

What happened?

Well, he told me “he must  have been verrrry sick”  and gave me a hug.

He came inside with me and I was still trying to think of what to say……He sat on my lap, gave me a hug & said, “It’s OK Grandma, Jesus is petting him now.”

 

Today while I was out, I received a text from Erika saying

“The Rabbit Died”

Now, I don’t know about you, but BUNNIES were not what I was thinking of in reading that statement……You know, the rabbit test?

No?

Never mind…

So I text back

WHAT!!!

And yes, it was all caps!

Turns out, Sheepy died too!

We have no idea what happened, they were fed, watered…clean hutch, good food from a breeder etc., possibly a virus of some type we were told.

Tonight when Isaiah came in, he said

“You know Sheepy is in heaven too?  I bet they’re in Jesus lap right now & he’s petting them.  He knows to be gentle”

You know what little man, I bet they are too.

Who am I to argue with innocent faith

Technorati Tags: pets,faith

Little bit Of Sewing

Technorati Tags: diaper,thrifting,repurposed,sewing

A few more diapers finished last night

And since I’ve had a few e-mail’s asking how & what I make them of…..

The green are totally recycled/repurposed fabrics.  Stripes were a knit pull over top & the inside was a piece of the flannel sheet below.  For added absorbency I used a inner lining of a purple repurposed sheet & also added a layer of it around the cotton fleece soaker sewn in the wet zoneVelcro closures and its ready to wash! 

Most fabric’s have a finish on them, and repurposed fabrics usually have fabric softeners.  Both need to be washed 3-4 times to to get that out of the fabrics before using as diapers to reach full absorbency.

The Green and blue are for Mr.. Max, and of course the pink ifs for the “Diva”. 

The main expense when making thrifted diapers is the elastic & touch tape/velcro.

I wait for 50% off coupons for the elastic at my local fabric store and buy a spool.  I’ve also joined coops for the touch tape (which is much stronger than velcro)

Flannel sheets I can pick up at Goodwill or thrift shops for $1.00-$4.00.  When I get sick of one color I use XL-XXXL men’s flannel shirts which can be found for about a $1.00.

These are usually our “at home” diapers and I use the new fun prints (bought on sale of course) when were out of the house.

The the pattern I use, was purchased from Smartmamahome.com

It comes with 10  different styles & sizes.  Best $ I’ve spent in a long time!

Learned more than you wanted to?

They Do Multiply!

Who ever said rabbits multiply over night was not joking! Meet Sheepy

Don’t ask me……

I have no idea where they are coming up with these names….

looks like a Ralph to me!

She's pretty skittish, runs and hides behind the little house when we come near. 

Wolfy,  She's another storey, she loves nothing more than to be cuddled and petted.

Like we need another critter running around here!

Excuses me “hopping” around here!

Technorati Tags: Critters,pets,varmits,rabbits

A Little Bit of Knitting

Custom pair of Toddler Capri’s for Kelly

She’s been waiting a bit for these, I had my sizing incorrect, then when it was correct I ran out of yarn….dyed more and still was not correct colors. Third time’s a charm

Alaska Lass Capri’sFinished with a basket weave cuff.

I think I have the shorter repeats pretty well balanced now.

She also had a few Elfin toppers made. I love this pattern, easy to size up or down

I have one more pair of longies working and another pair of shorties I hope to complete this week.

If you’ve read my blog for very long I’m sure you’ve met Debby of  “Useful Hands & Heart”  I ask that you keep her and her family in your prayers.  Her son Jeremy was killed in a car accident over the weekend.

I can not begin to imagine the loss & pain this beautiful, loving & strong faith filled family is going through right now. 

But, I do know any and all prayers for the entire family would be appreciated.

Garden Updates

Brr, Is it really July?  The past 2 days we have had a 20 degree temperature drop! We had to go pick up a few cool weather outfits for this little one!

  It was even down to the 50s Friday night!  Swimming was out but we had a lot of time outdoors while it was nice & cool

We had our bonus Granddaughter Raven for the weekend.  For such a chunky baby I can’t get over the changes.  She's growing so tall & slim!  She had her hair cur for locks of love and the new cut really fits her personality

I was able to get some sewing done, a few diapers & covers finished.  Most recycled fabrics for the diapers but a few new started

The Garden has been taking off like gang busters!  Its pretty much recovered from the truck episode, not all the plants survived but what did is doing well.  The green beans were replanted right before that happened and again after so both sets of those shoots are coming up and look great.

Looks like I will have quite a few green beans to put up this fall.  I had my first pickings last night!

I’ll also have some Dragons Tongue “green Beans”this is my first year planting this heritage been and they are really producers. They have a bit of a sweetness to them.  They start out as a white & deep purple streaked bean and lighten as they are exposed to sun

I intend to save most of these for seed so we will see how that goes

The tomatoes are …..coming along very slow, not seeing much growth at all.  But, everyone else in our area has had the same issue.  They are putting out 1-2 tomatoes…lots of blooms though.

We had on plant tomatoes plant left & no room in the garden, so I put it in the flower bed behind the garage.  We call it the monster.

Its over 6 ft tall now….with one tomato on it! Again lots of blooms so we’ll se what happens

  

The cucumbers are producing faster than I can pick them.  I see a batch of pickles being made this week, & the cantaloupe are not far behind.  We have quite a few melons a week or so from picking.

In all I’m excited with how this garden has turned out.  Its been a few years & I had not expected to see such good results.

So how was your weekend!

Yesterdays Fun Finds

Yesterday I had errands that took me from one side of Louisville to the other, with a few added stops in between. Fun stops, its gotten to the point I think my little car’s stopping at thrift stores on its own !

My oldest daughter Danielle loves “Tea Cups” so I’m always on the lookout for cheap good buys on them.This is what I found yesterday……for $1.00!

I have yet to identify the pattern, so please give a holler if you know, however I did find a bit of information on the Colclough Company here. Dani as we call her, works as a residential therapist at a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Center for Adolescents and Children. Long shifts, lots of highs and lows. She has worked nights for quite a few years & finally just switched to days. She’s learning all about sunlight again! The cup is just a fun way to help celebrate her new hours.

One of my other stops was the fabric store. Well, I coupons..for 40 & 50 % off…I couldn’t let them go to waste!

Plus flannel was on SALE!

I picked up a few new boyish prints, could be PJ’s for Isaiah and diapers for another little man

For our Diva Miss Evelyn I found this cute owl print pinwale corduroy…super soft, I’m think it will make a warm little pinafore for for this winter. I almost missed it then the bolt some how jumped into my cart……

No I didn’t think you’d believe it but it was just to cute to pass up. Besides I still had my 50% off coupon to use and I couldn’t let it go to waste! Its my duty to help boost the economy!

What’s up Wednesday..A little Late!

Quick run to the thrift store & I found the perfect tablecloth for my oldest daughter.  Nice & heavy cotton, blue, yellow & white plaid.  It’s to big for her table so she can cut it down an make about 6 napkins with the scraps.  Not bad for $1.00!

Erika found the Martha Stewart pitcher….still with tags for under$1.00. 

We may go 6 times and not find a thing & the next come out with bags full!

My cucumbers are growing and producing like crazy.  I unfortunately missed these 4 under all the growth.  Looks like cucumber snack sticks are on the snack menu.

A little sidewalk chalk put to good use!

Great art work and a “map to our driveway”

just in case you got lost along the way!

My co-op purchase of Pul came yesterday & just in time. Evie & another little guy have just about outgrown the covers they have.  When I opened the package it looked like a rainbow in a box!

I just  love all the bright colors, I’m reallllly tired of pastels!

Looks like I’m on diaper making duty tomorrow!

We have A Bunny

Mr. Fix~it caved so

we have

a bunny.

Wolfy needed a new home so

Mr. Fix~it & the guys got to work

One nice thing about having a garage now is all the

pieces, parts & leftovers we can save.

We had to purchase hinges & wire, everything else was

scraps we had

 

Everyone pitched in

We took a time out to attend a grad party for a friend

Pirate Theme….

Katie our Bonus daughter received her Masters Degree in Education

had fun

And because she brought a rabbit home

I can add what ever photos I choose

Chatted with friends & cuddled with Evie

After the party they guys got busy & finished the Hutch

Hauled it around back & set it up

Buddy kept giving us this look of

What !  You mean it staying?!?!

 

30 minutes later

1hr later…..

He was back out there again all afternoon

He just keeps giving me this look of

How many more!