Photos at the farm...

This is as close to being posed as it gets for this little guy. By that I mean that I start clicking away with my camera whenever he slows down for a moment. ;o) I'm sure y'all know what I mean!

Is it just me or do those mums look almost as big as he is?

The Hubs was desperate to get out of the house for a while so we all -Poppi, too- piled into the car and drove out to a farm. That's where these pics were taken.

This farm used to be a Christmas tree farm with a small, but lovely, gift shop. Now it's grown into a place where you can take hayrides, get a sweet treat from their bakery, eat the best macaroni and cheese ever in the restaurant, pick out a pumpkin or take home a freshly cut Christmas tree depending on the season. On occasion, they have live music in the barn and host school field trips. In short, it's one of our favorite places to go when we need to have some family fun.

I have plenty of photos to share from our most recent trip out there...but since the laundry and an active/hungry toddler are waiting for some attention, I'll have to share those later.


You understand, right?

Birthday party success...kind of.

{The cake that Dad ordered from a local bakery. It was divine!}

Dad's birthday party was a hit. He smiled and laughed and enjoyed being surrounded by friends and family alike. Some friends of the family (that are more family than friends) graciously allowed us to use their beautiful home and this novice party thrower was abjectly grateful for their help.

{Some lovely posies fresh from the garden and a pumpkin that I painted with Dad's initials.}

My only regret is that I wasn't able to get more photos. Out of everything that I and all my wonderful helpers got accomplished, I forgot to charge my camera's battery the night before.

Yes. Scatterbrain, party of one. *sigh*

But, Honey, we had fun!

Even if it's not pretty and happy...

I've been blatantly putting off writing here, lately.

I love my blog and, most especially, love reading and commenting on what others in the blogosphere have to say and share.

I don't like to use my blog to whine or complain, gripe or moan.

Sometimes, though, the urge to do so overwhelms me...when that happens I tend to stay away from my blog. I just think that no one needs to hear me dump out my woes and indulge in a self-pity party. ;o)

However, I feel that a dose of honest sharing might be a good thing right now.

The Hubs is still in a lot of pain. There are days when he's completely unable to function. On those days, of which there are more than a few, I go between tears to a horribly potent mixture of despair, frustration and anger. Going through that much pain for as long as he has has begun taking a toll on the Hubs and I get very frustrated that it's not getting better any faster. It took the military docs far too long to diagnose this problem and now he's paying the price.

So there I stand, helpless to do anything to make it better or offer even the tiniest bit of relief.

He's such a good husband and father. I hate that this pain is making him feel like he's become less of one. It's so not true!

So, I'll pray.

I'll listen.

I'll comfort.

I'll encourage.

And, every now and then I'll share. Even if it's not pretty and happy.

Thanks for listening.

Party Planning

I like planning things.
I enjoy doing research, drawing out my ideas and making lists.
Lots of lists.
I can't help myself!

Making those grand plans come to fruition.....now that's something that I have to work on.
I've gotten a teensy bit better about that.
I guess it comes down to keeping it simple and focusing on a few key details.

My Dad's 6oth birthday is around the corner and I'm pulling things together for a party.
Of course, I have some great people around me lending a helping hand...or three!

What am I focusing on?

*Food
*Ambiance
*Personal Touches

The food will be homemade things that Dad asked for...chicken salad, my pasta salad, etc. He picked out a cake from a local bakery that will be so, so yummy.

Fall colors and touches will be a big part of the ambiance. I'm going to try my hand at painting his initials in a cool script on a pumpkin. A smaller pumpkin will be used as a "vase" for some flowers straight from a loved one's garden. A pot of sliced apples and oranges simmering in some clove and cinnamon spiced water on the stove will help everything smell fabulous.

The personal touches will mostly center around a display of photos of my Dad over the years. My handy digital photo frame will be a big part of that. I'll be raiding Dad's house for a few more...including one of my Mom that he specifically requested.


So there you have it.
My idea of party planning.

I'm so excited!

Sweet Shot Tuesday

Saturday evening, with a little help from the Bubs, I made carrot cake cupcakes. A little something sweet for us to go with our other game-day fare on Sunday. I thought that the cupcakes were lookin' pretty good with the Zip-Loc bag piped frosting....and then the Bubs asked, "Mom, what're you gonna put on top?"



He asked a good question. He gave a great suggestion...pecans! Fortunately, I'd just made some brown sugar-glazed pecans to top our salad the next day.

Yes, my boy, you can help me in the kitchen any ol' time!

Click the button for more Sweet Shots over at Life with My 3 Boybarians...

Self evaluation and truth...

Self evaluation.

Two words that make me wince.

There's just no way to pretty that phrase up, is there?

I had a big dose of it recently. That, m'dears, wasn't pretty...tears flowed aplenty and ugly parts of my heart were ruthlessly bared to be poked with a rather large stick.

The stick was called Truth.

As painful as the experience was, I'm better for it.

Misunderstandings were cleared up, insecurities were tossed aside and weights were lifted.

Did I face this dose of ruthless truth bravely?

No way, Honey!

I needed it, though.

Truly.



Feel free to visit my other blog, Anna K. Originals!

Not just another Monday...

September 20th.

Not just another day for our family.

Today would have been my Momma's birthday.

So, if your mom is still living....

Give her a hug,

tell her how much she means to you,

or even send her a card.

Something.

'Cause I may not have been able to say good-bye to my Momma,

but I did get to tell her I loved her and that she was a blessing to me.

That, m'dears, is a precious, precious thing.