.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do.
So, throw off the bowlines.
Sail away from the safe harbor.


-Mark Twain-


so glad i had the privilege of caring for my dad the last 2.5 months of his life. it was not an easy time, but God is good and provides the wisdom (usually not before just the moment you need it) and strength (again, when you need it most and think you can't keep going on) to do what He asks you to do. i'm sure my dad is enjoying heaven: the place he couldn't wait to see, with his Lord and Saviour.

we miss you dad.

christmas

our lifelong friends, the snyders, attended christmas eve service with our family and then came back to the house.. we love the snyders! mom and jerry were here too and they KNOW we love them!


and olivia and keri:

happy birthday

to my mom who is 71 years young. so glad you and jerry could join us. we love you and we love being close.

what's going on

one sure fire way to tell what's going on in the house is to look who's been taking pictures with my camera.








pete planted seeds.
he is taking the watering and making sure they get adequate sun (a challenge for sure this time of year!) very seriously.
he is *so excited* at the daily growth.







there is lots of sewing going on.
my mom was just here for a brief visit.
she helped answer some questions about attaching sleeves to a shirt.
i love watching the melding of generations and mutual respect shared.

and i humbly thank God again for bringing us back home.

an historic event

we haven't had this much snow since march of '93 (and we were here for that one too...)

2 days after christmas

the sunday after christmas, we headed to virginia to meet my mom and jerry, my sister sherry and her family from michigan (sans mark-we missed you-because of his new job) and my brother billy and his family from tennessee. we met sherry and her 4 kids somewhere on 81 so i could help navigate since she wasn't feeling well.

we were meeting in virginia because my mom turned 70 on january 2nd, and she wanted to treat us to a mountain getaway vacation together, which meant renting a lodge that sleeps 22. it was beautiful and we had a GREAT time. we went to the masanutten water park and on walks looking for animal tracks (lots of deer, the kids think they saw bear, and lots of little birds, squirrel, etc.).

so glad we didn't have to drive from florida, and that we're close enough now to see my family more than once a year. thanks mom and jerry!

scenes from christmas 2

grandma and grandpa came up for a christmas lunch. (SO NICE to have them this close!)
the boys set the table.
olivia made the placecards and holders.
i made dinner!

happy thanksgiving!

"I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder."
Gilbert K. Chesterton

we are thankful this year to be close enough to have robin's parents over for our noon meal. i am thankful for all the hands of help i had in the kitchen, and for a husband who lets me nap afterwards. we had a wonderful thanksgiving eve church service last night. we had so. much. food. and lots of leftovers. good times, good memories. i did forget to get the ingredients for our traditional turkey candies but karis saved the day, even though she couldn't find candy corn, mike and ikes made a more colorful turkey.

dinner funny

after reading proverbs 9 after dinner:

mom: "what does rebuke mean?"

jack: "....throw up?"

olivia: "no, that's re-puke"

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah

another guest post

made by jack, in honor of our divided household.

World Series 2009

View more presentations from rufam.

food traditions

a couple of months ago, i read molly wizenberg's book and was touched by the simplicity of documenting family favorite recipes and the stories behind them. why, we should all write books! of course, i have never been a witty writer, and have never been interested in being published (my cousin, mike, and i tried to co-write a book once, he was the author, i was the illustrator. i think we were about 10) but family history is something i wish was documented more often (my aunt gail is the family champion for the robinson side of the family--she's dug up so much interesting information on my dad's parents/grandparents).

so, since the purpose of this blog is to document our family history, i hope to share (and have an occasional guest blogger or seven) some of our favorite recipes and the story behind them. in that spirit i present to you, chicken poppyseed casserole:

this became a family favorite after i had our third child and our oldest was just 2 years and 9 months old. my lovely southern friend/mentor (we were living in pa at the time, so her southern charm was somewhat of a novelty) jeanette brought this meal to us since we were quarantined for the first 2 months of his life.

chicken poppyseed casserole
serves 4-6? i always double it the kids love it for leftovers

2 c. cooked cut up chicken (layer in 8x8 pan)
mix together:
one can cream of chicken soup (i make my own from ground navy beans and some chicken broth)
and one cup sour cream. spread on top of chicken

crush one sleeve of ritz type crackers (a great job for a kid with some frustration to get out)
and mix with one stick of melted butter.

sprinkle with poppyseeds (adds no real taste, but makes it look pretty)
bake at 350* for 30 minutes or until bubbly.
serves great with rolls and brown sugar carrots.

can someone explain?

how this picture

cousin max with.....bambi?

got in my file of september photos?

egner beach pics part 2

look what i found!

pictures of our time at the beach with my mom, sister and her family!

(more coming tomorrow. just too tired to find more right now)

the new family member

our neice just had a sweet baby girl that we get to babysit!
here's an impromptu photo shoot we did this week with haley holding her on her shoulder and karis giving her a bottle.

what we've been up to

monopoly til midnight


a trip to australia (via vacation bible school)


visiting with michigan cousins
(and how pathetic that the only photo i can find of their visit is of their dog, jersey.
the drama of the vignette is on purpose. she is a princess)

we made it

it was a long trip to get our stuff, and we ended up with 2 trucks and towing the car, but we made it safely (thank you, Lord, driving those trucks is terrifying!) and our home closed in florida, ending that chapter of our lives.

soon, when we get caught up enough to post again, i'll post pics of olivia's 13th birthday, the new house God has generously provided for us, and pictures karis took of moving day.

the 3 bigs are off at creation for the weekend.
we have to pack up all the owner's stuff (from the new house we are renting) before tuesday, then we can settle ourselves in.

for mom

so sorry i forgot to post this picture sooner! here's willie, just turned 14, and me, ahem... quite a bit older. tall, huh?

easter....finally....hopefully...

trying to post

like everything it seems these days.....posting is not easy. the two little boys and i are still in florida, internet is spotty at best. been trying to post some easter pics but by the time they load, we've lost service and can't get back on. we'll see if these load all the way this time. if not, be patient, i'll be back in reliable internet service country by next weekend.

those in charge of the annual egg hunt

those eager to begin the hunt!