So far 38's alright!

I'm truly blessed! Oh, how I love my birthday, seriously, I do! It's been a great day...so many wishes from great friends and family - the people who matter most!

Surprises? Well now that you mention it, I was at work when a picture text arrived to my hello (Bev and Mendie lingo for cell phone, ha!). I quickly realized that the car in the picture was mine! The very same car I safely parked in it's spot when I arrived at work. Imagine my shock when I saw... =)

and then....

and....

Could those sweet, innocent kids I tell you so much about be responsible? YES they could and ARE!

Despite what you're thinking, it was a relatively quiet ride home. One 'honk', a few smiles and strange looks.

I adore cross necklaces. I honestly don't know how many I have but it's a lot. Thanks to Bev (a.k.a. Luanne (thought I'd tell you that in case I slip and call her that)) my collection grew! I haven't had it off since I got it. I LOVE IT...don't you?!

I could go on and on about the sweet cards, the great notes, the much needed (ok, wanted!) new clothes and the shopping money but it's best summed up by saying I'm blessed and am very appreciative of each and every one!

I spent most of the evening laughing...wondering why? Here's a peek...

I'm telling you when they're all here together there's never a dull moment!

Oh yeah, did I mention something about an apple? Well, here it is...

All in all a great birthday! And by the way allbodies (Morgan - you said that when you were little instead of everybody =)) only 365 days 'til my birthday....so 'cited ;)

Good night and THANK YOU! I hope you all know how much you mean to me!

Happy Birthday to me!

Yep, it's true, today's my birthday....ALL DAY LONG! =) Love that! I promise to update later with my celebration highlights but was reminded that I didn't let y'all know that today is my day! Ha!

Only Molly

I was sitting on the floor looking through the pictures on my camera and Molly would not leave me alone. Don't misunderstand, I don't usually mind but she was persistent tonight so I had to catch her in the act! This makes me laugh every time I look at it! Hope it makes you smile too.

Weekend highlights...

Even though most of the weekend was rainy and cloudy, I managed to squeeze in transforming the outside to looking more like fall. The inside's been'pumpkined' up for a while so it was time to catch up. By the time I was finishing up, it was raining pretty hard. Oh well, I survived and it's done.

Duffy carried pots and got rid of the summer flowers. Shew, we're officially ready for fall (at least we look like we are).

The boys (Jon and Jacob) haven't played ice hockey lately. But tonight, Jon had the opportunity to play a pick up game with kids that will probably form a team to play more regularly. It was great to see him out there and although the pictures aren't that clear (had to take them through the badly scratched glass), you can see the smile on his face!

He didn't skip a beat, he was out there skating his heart out. It's great to see him having so much fun.

P.S. You'll notice that there's no mention of football in the highlights, that's because there's nothing good about it! Our 'skins didn't do well.....AT ALL! Guess there's always next week...funny, that's not making it feel any better. Ha!

One year later...really?

It almost doesn't seem possible, but one year ago today we brought Mason home. I never have liked it when people say that the older you get the faster time goes, it just didn't make sense to me...well it's starting to now. Ha!

Life sure has changed since his arrival. No more waking up and just laying in bed, nope, he's ready and waiting to 'go outside'. Those two little words can get you more kisses than you can imagine. Nor can I just take my time getting home. He's waiting! Sounds like I'm complaining, but truth is I wouldn't trade him for anything! He's the sweetest and I'm not quite sure what I did with all of my time before he was here!

Super Yummy!

We've devoured this many times compliments of Mom, but I'd never made it on my own...until now! It's soooo good! I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Start with crushing 2 cups of pretzels
Mix those with 1/2 cup of sugar and 3/4 cup of melted butter (or margarine)

Press that in a pan and bake at 350 for 8 minutes. Let it cool....

Then, mix 8 oz cream cheese, 16 oz of cool whip and 1 cup of sugar. Place that on top of the pretzel mixture.

Next, you'll need 6 ozs of strawberry Jello, 1 1/2 cups of boiling water and a 10 oz package of frozen strawberries. Mix the jello and water, then add strawberries. Pour this on top and refrigerate until gelled!

It's VERY easy to make! The hardest part is waiting for it to get done! Ha!

The way it was...

Anybody who knows me, knows that I like my Blackberry a little bit...OK, I love it! But as I thought about Wednesday's walk down memory lane, I remembered that I had my very first cell phone stashed in the closet. So, I dug it out for a little comparison! Not only does it look a lot different, but the first phone was for emergencies only! Not for constant communicating, texting, e-mails, tweeting and checking Facebook statuses! (how did I survive? HA!)

This could easily double as a favorite things post! =)

The Great Frederick Fair

This year marks my 37th consecutive visit to the Great Frederick Fair! It's a tradition for me and I love it. The past couple of years, we've visited at night and the crowds were a bit too much. So this year, we decided to take advantage of this nearly perfect fall Saturday to enjoy some fair time.

Since I was little, one of the first stops for food has been to Carroll Manor's tent. Staffed by volunteers from their local fire department, they have great soups, hamburgers and fries.

But, for the past couple of years, Hemp's has been our favorite. Great barbecue beef, fries and SWEET TEA! Yum!
From the looks of things, lots of folks agree...it's the best! (Glad we were here early, honestly, the lines are shorter than usual.)
It wouldn't be complete without a visit through the midway

to see the ferris wheel

and the yummy junk food

and probably my favorite, visiting the animals!

Yep, it was a great day at the fair!

Go to dinner recipe

I've only made this a couple of times but it's easy and uses ingredients that we usually have already. Hope you enjoy it too!

1 can cream of mushroom soup (I substitute for cream of celery...not into mushrooms too much)

1 pound of hamburger

2 cups of hash browns (I use Potatoes O'brein and they work great)

1/2 onion chopped

1 cup of cheddar cheese (that's what the recipe says but we love cheese...let's just say we use more!)

Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Brown hamburger and onion together, drain. Pour the hash browns into baking dish and then the meet and onion mixture on top, pour the soup over that and then top with cheese. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes

Quick and easy to make...it's great with some ketchup too!

Funny, I don't think I know the name of this dish...any suggestions?

Earles Court

As we walk down memory lane this week, I have to share a picture that was taken 17 years ago! It was that many years ago this week, September 17th 1992 to be exact, that we moved into our townhouse. In some ways it seems like forever ago and in others, like yesterday. From the looks of our 'get up' (Julie's phrase for outfits) it was a looooong time ago, ha! Memories, aren't the great?

Know the story

My friend Bev and I try to remember to 'know the story' when we encounter different people and situations. This little phrase is meant to remind us that not everyone thinks like us and that although we may not understand or agree with people's ways or actions they may have a story that would bring perfect sense to their decisions. It's so much easier said than done to remember to live by this on a regular basis. Isn't it for all of us? Don't we all have a story?

An old friend shared this with me and I felt the urge to share it with you. I'm sure some of you have read this before (I had too) but each time I see it, it strikes my heart and snaps me to a better place.

I hope you enjoy it:

Breakfast at McDonald's

I am a mother of three (ages 14, 12, 3) and have recently completed my college degree. The last class I had to take was Sociology. The teacher was absolutely inspiring with the qualities that I wish every human being had been graced with. Her last project of the term was called, 'Smile.' The class was asked to go out and smile at three people and document their reactions. I am a very friendly person and always smile at everyone and say hello anyway. So, I thought this would be a piece of cake, literally. Soon after we were assigned the project, my husband, youngest son, and I went out to McDonald's one crisp March morning. It was just our way of sharing special playtime with our son. We were standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone around us began to back away, and then even my husband did. I did not move an inch.... an overwhelming feeling of panic welled up inside of me as I turned to see why they had moved. As I turned around I smelled a horrible 'dirty body' smell, and there standing behind me were two poor homeless men. As I looked down at the short gentleman, close to me, he was 'smiling' His beautiful sky blue eyes were full of God's Light as he searched for acceptance.. He said, 'Good day' as he counted the few coins he had been clutching. The second man fumbled with his hands as he stood behind his friend. I realized the second man was mentally challenged and the blue-eyed gentleman was his salvation. I held my tears as I stood there with them. The young lady at the counter asked him what they wanted. He said, 'Coffee is all Miss' because that was all they could afford. (If they wanted to sit in the restaurant and warm up, they had to buy something. He just wanted to be warm). Then I really felt it - the compulsion was so great I almost reached out and embraced the little man with the blue eyes. That is when I noticed all eyes in the restaurant were set on me, judging my every action. I smiled and asked the young lady behind the counter to give me two more breakfast meals on a separate tray. I then walked around the corner to the table that the men had chosen as a resting spot. I put the tray on the table and laid my hand on the blue-eyed gentleman's cold hand.He looked up at me, with tears in his eyes, and said, 'Thank you.' I leaned over, began to pat his hand and said, 'I did not do this for you.. God is here working through me to give you hope.'

A good sport

So, needless to say I'm happy football's back, really we all are! Don't get me wrong, I like most sports, but there's something about football that just gets me more excited than the others (sports that is).

I had to share a picture, but there's a story that goes with it. Jonathan is a loyal Cowboys fan (yuck!) but last year he lost a bet (I honestly can't even remember what it was) and being the good sport that he is, he tolerated a picture in Duffy's jersey. Please take note however, that he's holding up four fingers - that's because we were in forth (last :() place in our division. Guess he got his point across, huh?! :) Here's hoping for a better season this year. Go 'Skins! (right Jon? ;))

Sorry Jon! =)

From one season to the next

With the weather a little cooler than normal, I'm really ready for fall! So, I decided to dig out the pumpkins today. No matter the season, I always like when it changes, but there's something about the colors that come along with fall that I love. Here's a couple of my favorite decorations...

Just need to transform outside...it's still looking a lot like summer!

I had to share this too. Mason and Titan got new treats today and they LOVE them! They sit by the cabinet where we keep the treats and wait! Mason even tried his groundhog pose to see if being that cute could get him an extra one! Good try! =)

For a great cause!

A few friends from work are participating in a charity softball tournament this weekend. Despite the cooler than normal temperatures (probably perfect for the games) and cloudy, sprinkling skies, the fields were packed! It took a few minutes to figure out where they were playing...four fields in full swing. From the looks of things, the local women's shelter will benefit well.

At the end of their second game, our team wasn't fairing very well on the scoreboard (games 1 and 2 were both losses), but with one game to go, they were still full of life and enthusiasm.

Many of the players haven't been on the field for years (decades =)), but they were out there anyway.

Good job Deena, Jana, Becky and Terri! You're braver than I am...ha!

Favorite things Friday!

I have a new favorite thing! (well not quite yet but soon....very soon! =)) It's an Apple! Not this kind..

This kind...

I can hardly wait! Thanks Duffy!

More to come on this ;)

We're ready for some football!

This Wednesday's walk down memory lane doesn't take us too far back in time - this picture is from April's draft dayparty at FedEx Field. We are most definitely ready for some football and are excited for this week's kickoff!

When the music stops...

Pick a room! Not quite, but if you remember, I mentioned that we re-arranged half the house a few weeks back. I'm finally getting around to taking some pictures of the way it is now.

Since moving in earlier this year, Julieanne tip toed to her room trying not to wake us (remember, she's 18 and we're well....older :) so we're typically sleeping long before she is). Getting there meant walking past our room and needless to say Titan and Mason don't let many things happen in the house without letting us know! So, we'd been talking about her moving to the basement. After some thought, she decided that would be the thing to do. Let's just say easier said than done! If we were going to do it, we were going to do it all...that meant moving Jonathan to the room that Julie was leaving, Jacob to Jon's room and all of the sewing/office stuff to Jacob's room. Wow - an entire day of furniture moving! Exhausting to say the least but I really do like the way it all turned out.

Julieanne's new bedroom




her bathroom

Jonathan's room

Jacob's

My room

You can see there's still homes to be found for a few things but all in all we're settled. Shew...glad that's done!