Royalty

While the rest of you were setting your DVR's so you didn't have to get up so crazy early and watch the royal wedding, I was making lists, double checking flower colors and if a wrist corsage was what Willy's date wanted. I have made my fair share of corsages and boutonnieres for our kids, I started when I paid to much for a bad corsage. I figured I could rip ugly petals off just as well as the florist who seemed a bit annoyed with me that I would not want my boy to hand a browning wilted flower over to his date. I start with a trip to Hobby Lobby for supplies and a grocery store or Walmart for some affordable flowers. Then the assembling, which is very fun for me to be a bit creative.

These are the two corsages I did last fall for Avery and Willy's Homecoming dates.

Lexi's corsage.

Willy and Lexi

Taylor's corsage.

Taylor and our handsome Avery.

Avery was on Homecoming court last fall, so yes I do live with royalty!

Spring time brings Prom and the fun starts all over again. I found mini roses, oh so cute. The mistake I made was hot gluing them on, I usually sew or floral tape, but last fall I glued roses on and it worked, I just think that the mini roses are a bit more delicate. They started to brown a bit before the dance(by then pictures and supper out were over and sweet Lexi didn't mind..I know 'cuz I asked and had enough time and mini roses to replace), they were however really pretty when Willy slid them on her wrist.

I also made Willy's boutonniere so that it would match Lexi's corsage.

Stunning!!
More royalty! Willy was on Prom Court (Willy is the 4th one in). By now you do realize that with 2 boys on court it makes me...ok so maybe not the Queen Mother, but something royal!

Buckingham Palace has nothing on us, to see Lexi and Willy in the grand march...
royally stunning!

If ya can't take the heat...

Grilling out is one way we keep our house cooler in the heat of summer. I would really like one of those green EGG ceramic grills...but here's the honest truth...rarely do I do the grilling. Jon does our grilling and he is pretty much a master at it on our Weber kettle grill. I'm the kitchen prep part of this dynamic duo. Although I'm pretty sure if we had an EGG he would love it...and I would love him loving it. I did decide if I was going to say that we would really love an EGG I should at least make and attempt at grilling a meal or two. So far this summer I've done one meal all by my lonesome.I made pork and grilled corn. I found a recipe for grilled corn with a mayo mixture smeared on, it was really good. Most of the time when we grill there are 2 things that are a grill staple for us, grilled toast, and potatoes on the grill.
When we make Grilled Toast we try to use bread that we can cut thick, I like using sourdough. Butter both sides and sprinkle with Lawry's season salt and grill both sides, so good that even the ones that get a bit to dark get eaten. This year we are using natural lump charcoal, so far we are pretty impressed.

Potatoes on the grill.
Grated potatoes
Thinly sliced onions
Butter, salt, pepper, Lawry's, lemon pepper.
Spray heavy duty tin foil. Put potatoes, onions, butter and seasons on tin foil then wrap up and then wrap with another piece of tin foil. Grill until done. We usually put on before we put the meat on unless we are grilling something that is really thick.

Tastes even better than they look!! The sweet corn is from our garden, we plant Gotta have it from Gurneys and it is by far the best corm we have ever had or grown.

Summer supper out doors...keepin' it cool inside.

Here I am helping clean up(fulfilling my part of the dynamic duo;) in my new apron from Cowgirl Goods, I love it! Oh yea Cowgirl has an EGG, and she hardly uses her oven...yup she's cool.

Too Far

We went to Missouri for a long Memorial Day weekend. It is a long, long drive. Along the way I found my self saying "this is just too far" thats the adult version of "are we there yet?" But really 485 miles to get there is defiantly not too far to meet...

Connor our new grandson.

Nor is it too far to be able to snuggle him in my arms.On the ride home Jon couldn't leave Missouri with out making a last stop on the Missouri-Iowa boarder at a huge fireworks warehouse....he may have gone too far this time, I'm quite certain he will get his butt tossed in jail when he lights them all off. A friend lent us her touring van, and let me tell you it was a really, really, sweet ride, complete with a sheep skin rug for me to sit on. We have not had a full sized van for years, just minivans, with alot less leg room, cargo space, and space between the seats, this was a treat to say the least.
Over 1200 miles round trip was not too far......but the space between us was!

Sugar Shack

Our ride out to the sugar shack, Bob & Beauty. We could have driven in for it was dry enough...but who would want to pass up a wagon ride!?!

We were reminded that life in the woods would indeed be moving at a much slower pace.

This guy was our musical entertainment while we were enjoying our pancakes and REAL maple syrup. There is a funny little story behind this picture, so I'll set the stage, pun intended. In Feb. we celebrated Jon being sober for 24 years (YEAH~HOORAY~YAHOO!!!), back in what I refer to as the crazy daze, the guy would dance all night long with me...now when we do go to a wedding dance its a couple of slow dances and his dance card has been fulfilled and he's good for the evening. When I have reminded him how much he used to dance, he says "why do you think they call it liquid courage?" So we're eating pancakes, listening to Woodland Willie and he starts to sing "Love me tender" and I think hey it is a slow one...a girl has to try...right? I look across the picnic table at Jon and say "so...are you going to ask me to dance??" and with out skipping a beat he said "I need a few more pancakes in me." It was good humor and a good laugh:)
Our other entertainment for the day was my Heaven on earth!! When we first laid eyes(and my hands followed with in seconds) on the sheep and goats, Jon knew it would be a very long visit in the woods. This little guy was 11 days old, he just had his tail banded, goodness he was so so sweet.
Sweet curiosity.This is the actual sugar shack where the maple sap is boiled down to make maple syrup. My Grmpa & Grma made maple syrup when my Dad was growing up and when I was growing up, seeing all this was a sweet walk down memory lane. We would go to their home in the woods and help empty the sap buckets off the trees. Grmpa would let us put more wood on the fire, Grma would can the syrup and my Dad would take some of it to sell down in the "cities" that's what Minnesotans call Mpls/St. Paul.Inside the sugar shack, look at all that sweet steam, the ratio is 40 to 1, it takes 40 quarts of sap to make 1 quart of syrup. "Jody Bloom"
When I showed Grace the pictures from my amazing day she said this one should be titled "Jody Bloom" The floor of the woods was covered with these little Violets.

Even the view out the outhouse window was wonderful, the Violets look like a carpet.

Nieces:)
A girl after my own heart!I'm tellin' ya, my Heaven on earth...I am one happy camper!!!
The ride home did not disappoint either, it was a day that was tailor made for me.

Its all about...me

I was more than willing to let this birthday pass without much pomp and circumstance, I did know that Jon would treat me like the queen that I am(hey he said it, so I'm running with it!). I was pleasantly surprised when my sister gave me a sweet birthday blog post, thanks Tami. After spending the day just being with my family it was time for my birthday meal.

Jon cooked, Grace and Willy helped.Avery put himself in charge of taste testing. He can't help him self when there is shrimp scampi on the menu!

Willy set the table, with a bit of direction from Grace, she told him to flip the knives over. We go back and forth with the knife thing, the blade edges are to face the plate, but the writing on the blade faces up and we don't want to be trying to read sideways. What would you do?

Willy gave a lesson in proper silverware usage "work your way in."

The sparkling cider was chilled and the salad tossed.
Willy dished up the shrimp scampi (Ave is already at the table by now).Grace dished up the tenderloin tips and mushrooms.

My feast is ready, and I will tell you, I felt like Astro when George Jetson was shrunk and Astro kept saying "rook at the rimp-rook at the rimp" over and over again. But just LOOK AT THE SHRIMP!!! I love shrimp, and Jon made 2 kinds. And the mashed skin on baby red potatoes, mmm~mm. Amazing!!!

How sweet it is! Now you will understand where the queen status comes from.

Thats right, I'll be cooking with Wolfgang(he even signed the box they came in)! Then it was onto dessert, I will share that later. It was a very special day.

End of Summer...

This was Grace's last year on Bethany Ski Team. Below are a few pictures from ski camp she went to and then the ski show on the Black River. It is really hard to get good pictures when your planted on the beach chatting and all the action is out on the water. Some of the photos are from the ski team disc that they hand out at the end of year root beer float award night.

Water front meeting and prayer.Grace in back of boat full of skiers and ski's, these would be some of the ski's Jon and his brother make.
Jon and I on the beach, I would be the one under the umbrella,
"have I ever told you how much I love my umbrella" is a statement he had to listen to over and over this summer.
Our niece and her little friend watching the ballet skiing, our other niece Brooke is in the ballet line.Grace on wake board.An unscheduled event...wave jumping!

End of a long day full of little Blessings...

...end of a short summer.