In the past several years Hempfield Church of Christ has offered Trunk or Treat to the kids in the community.  About 20 cars back into a circle, pop their trunks, and decorate them creatively to delight the kids (and the adults!).  I have participated for a number of years, as I did this year.  I’m not real creative but always manage to offer something.  This year the theme was:  SNOOPY!

I packed a bunch of blankets, assorted items from my collection of room accessories and the former baby nursery, plus dozens of my little Snoopy characters.  It was really overwhelming, that collection — and it wasn’t nearly all of it.  But the kids really liked seeing the variety.

One of the fun things was that my cousin Mark’s daughter and her boyfriend did the Great Pumpkin Patch, complete with Snoopy on the doghouse roof.  Miranda made the shirts and they both did the cardboard cutouts.  They were my choice for ‘best trunk’. 

As it got later in the evening, the almost-full moon peeked out from behind the trees and added to the ambiance of the evening.  Candy disappeared like ghosts in the fog, until it was time for the kids to go inside to the fall festival.  There were games, funnel cakes, and grilled hot dogs – and lots of fun.  Such a great evening for everyone – including the hard-working adult kids who put everything together!  Another successful year!

Yesterday Ligonier Valley Writers and Ft. Ligonier joined forces to have an all-day writer’s conference at the fort.  I was asked to be one of the speakers, and had worked pretty diligently for a month to prepare.

My workshop topic was on local research resources and how to incorporate information into your writing.  The workshop went very well, and by the end of the day (and four separate workshops) we had all learned valuable information.

In addition to the conference, I enjoyed two other events.  I arrived in Ligonier about 45 minutes early, changed shoes and grabbed a warmer jacket, and walked the town.  Ligonier in the fall (0r anytime!) is a quaint, unique little village, complete with the ‘Daimond’ (including the gazebo), antique shops, specialty stores, and historic buildings.  Above are the photos that I took, and I hope you notice the two-shaded Victorian Lilac house!  I love that house!  The orange maples lined the streets and added character to the charm.  Parts of it reminded me of Colonial Williamsburg.

The second event was the guided tour of the fort.  Normally it’s a self guided tour, going and your own pace and reading the plaques in each building/location.  Mary, the museum director, took us on a walking tour and gave us interesting bits of information on the fort during 1758.  A junior guide, Connor, finished up by taking us through some of the building and explaining their functions, and adding to the history.  For instance, did you know that if the French would have taken the fort in Ligonier in that battle of 1758, we may all be speaking French and not be America at all?  Hmmmm.  I’d be in trouble, as I don’t speak French!  🙂 These ovens were made to bake bread and pastries, etc, but I think they’d make a great pizza!  Mary told us that during special events, they do fire up the ovens, and a local café DOES bake pizza in the ovens and sells it as a lunch special.  I’m going to remember that!

Totally, it was a great day, and thank for Mary and the staff at the fort, as well as Mary Ann from our writer’s group, to arrange this great day and present the opportunity to learn, and have fun doing it!

Normally I like to use my pages to share the fun things I have done, or events taking place, or time with my very special family and friends.

Today I am just going to reflect on a truth that just hit home with me within the last few weeks.  I have been looking at a certain situation through a distorted glass, and even though I can’t say I have made my peace with it, I am certainly trying to take myself seriously.

And before you get excited, no, I have not been considering marriage.  But in reading that little truth about the Marriage Box, I have compared it to another part of my life.

A very wise, wonderful, Godly woman – my dear sister – always says that doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.  I really did get that, but I just kept thinking each time was different.  And now I see it was because of MY behavior, MY attitude, and MY choices that it was turning out exactly the same way every time. And ironically, it was sitting through the movie, THE WAR ROOM, that several amazing truths worked their way into my soul.

So I’m accepting responsibility, stepping up to the plate, and gently but firmly taking a different path.  It’s not bad, or heart-breaking, or distressing (at least I hope not).  But I’m hoping all of you who read this will pray that I can make good choices for the right reason, and not keep doing that same thing over and over. 

God is good, my friends are supportive and understanding, and my family agrees with my sister.  So thanks for your support, as I take that small step – in a different direction……..

Thirty Four Years ago this very evening a little baby boy entered my life, and nothing has ever been the same.  He and his big sister have meant the world to me, and I cannot imagine facing any day without them in my life.

It was a sunny, bright October day – the leaves were crisp and littered the back yard.  Kelly and I were raking them up and she was jumping in the piles.  My mom picked her up mid-afternoon, and I waited impatiently for his dad to get home from work  – car salesman at Smail Auto – to take me to the hospital.  He called at 5pm and said he’d be a little late as he had a delivery.  I told him quite emphatically SO DO I!

At 9:26pm Nathan Wade was born, with all his toes and fingers and ready to take on the world.  He has made me laugh, made me crazy, made me angry, made me proud, made me a grama twice, and made me feel life was hard and good and blessed all at the same time!

Today I just want to say that I hope he has many wonderful years ahead, knowing that he is loved and needed, that he is a great dad and son and employee, and that life is better because God made him exactly the way He wanted him to be.

Both the girls drew pictures and txted them to their dad this morning (I don’t have a copy of Autmn’s).  We baked brownies (from scratch!) and ordered Jioio’s pizza and sang happy birthday and opened gifts. 

I love you, Nate, and so do your beautiful daughters.  Have many many more happy years!!!   

After meeting at 6:45am at Walmart Plaza, boarding a bus and driving across town, we climbed the stairs to track #2 for our trip to Altoona.  The view waiting on the platform gave a great  view of Greensburg.  It was exciting to hear the whistle and then see the engine snaking around the corner and slow to a stop.  There were about 50 of us on the tour, and although the day started out a little overcast, the sun popped out from time to time.

This painting greeted us when we stepped from the train in Altoona, after a gently swaying ride along the tracks for a little less than two hours.  The countryside looks very different from that side of the tracks, and I really enjoyed peeking out the window.  We climbed onto the bus at the station and were off to our first stop of the tour:  Boyer’s Candy Outlet.   We all crowded into the small space and shuffled around, choosing treats and sweets at amazingly low prices.  I got a bag of triple twist chocolate/peanut butter covered pretzels – oh, yum!

Everyone was munching on something tasty as we rode the 2 blocks or so to the Train Museum.  That was my favorite place!  Three floors of displays and exhibits, some set as they would have looked in the mid-1800’s. 

INCLUDING a kitchen, a street sidewalk, and electric poles with insulators.  Fun!  We walked into the ‘bar’ to watch a wall-sized video of a conversation reenactment, and took a seat at the bar to listen.  I sort of broke the rules, though…. 🙂

NO LADIES ALLOWED AT THE BAR!

The bus took us back around Horseshoe Curve, where we ate lunch, watched a freight train go past, looked out over the lakes, and saw the cars go up and down the incline. 

The next stop was the pretzel outlet, which had the coolest door handles.  Another stop

at the winery and we headed back to Altoona for a very nice dinner downtown.  We had just enough time after we ate to take a photo of the huge wall mural on the outside of the building, and some really unique road signs.

It was a very fun day, and I totally enjoyed the sights and experiences I had.  It was my first ‘bus’ tour, and I would certainly do it again.  Thanks to everyone who made it such a special day!

The day started out with a 6:15am phone call to tell me it was raining in Smicksburg.  Hmmmmm. Thanks, Roger!  That was ok – we were prepared for the weather!   Joni, Teresa, Kath and I were heading to the Fall Festival in Smicksburg PA, braving the elements as the rain kept up a steady pounding on the entire hour and a half drive.  We were almost there, a little before 10am, when Teresa exclaimed that there was a bald eagle and two huge crows in the tree we had just passed.

Being the adventurers that we were (are!) we turned around almost in the middle of the road and made our way back, then turned around again.  I crept slowly, watching the trees to the left.  And sure enough, there they were.  When we stopped the car the put down the windows, the crows took off, but the eagle sat still.  It turned its head from left to right several times, but ultimately sat there for the photo shoot.  It was dark and rainy but we took several pictures.  We had just quit snapping when the bird lifted from the branches and sailed into the air, its wingspan wide and its white tail spread for flight.  What a sight.  I don’t think I’ll ever see anything like that again.  Kudos to Teresa’s good vision and Kathy’s steady hand to get the picture.  Needless to say, even though the day was fun in lots of ways, the early morning eagle sighting was the highlight of our day!

The four of us spent three hours tramping over town, looking in stores, buying chocolate and treats, trying on hats, and purhasing those special items that caught our eye.  Such different shoppers we all are!  We grabbed a semi-healthy (???) lunch at a festival tent outside of The Village Sampler, and sat under an awning eating and listening to a local band play Johnny Cash.  I didn’t know there were that many prison songs even written….   Then we walked down to the Heritage museum and looked at a collection of local history treasures – many of them donated by my Aunt Joan and Uncle Clifford Griffith.  What a neat place to visit – they did such a good job with that little building. The front side of the main room was the original town’s post office, still quaint and authentic-looking.

Once we were done checking out all the local wares, we headed the Mazda back down Route 210 to Aunt Joan’s, who had ‘put up’ corn for us in August.  We stopped for the corn, hugs all around, and a drink from the fresh water spring coming out of the side of their driveway.  It’s tradition!

The rain had totally let up right around noon, so the afternoon and the trip home was comfortable and relaxing.  I venture to say we walked close to 3 or 4 miles around that town, and had a great time sharing the day with each other.  It’s great to have such a family-type place to go (my family are from Home/Smicksburg!) with great friends to share it with.  Now, what can we come up with for our next adventure???  Ideas, anyone???

  (First let me explain that we call ourselves the Skunk Hollow Girls – simply because the area where we all ‘grew up’ was nicknamed Skunk Hollow (because of the skunk cabbage, not because of skunks!) and it consists of all the female cousins of my grandparents, Erma and Jess Crooks.) 

SO I’m guessing that most people – when thinking of an ideal weekend – do NOT immediately think of Skunks or Dillweed.

Ah, but how wrong they would be!  For the past dozen or more years, 10 cousins from Home, PA, get together several times a year to just…. get together!  We have had bonfires in the driveway, Christmas parties at Carbone’s restaurant, toured a castle, spent a day at Linn Run …. just to name a few.

But one of the most fun events is our yearly trip to Dilltown, PA – and a quaint, charming Bed and Breakfast called the Dillweed.  The rooms are named after herbs:  Parsley, Thyme, Rosemary, Sage, and the Garden Suite.  The gift shop has a wealth of treasures, and the breakfasts (especially the Scottish eggs) are fabulous!  But the most fun is hanging out in the parlor, eating ourselves into another pants size, and talking until we can’t keep our eyes open.

We have been going to the Dillweed as a group since 2008.  It’s one of the highlights of our year and one of the first things on the calendar. This photo is of that first year – 8 of us went.

Last year, shortly after our weekend, the founder and owner of the Dillweed passed away from cancer – how we miss her!  This year, we were directed to the back herb and flower gardens to find a memorial plaque, and bricks placed about the gardens with the fruits of the Spirit from the Bible.   I snapped the picture of ‘joy’ which seemed so appropriate – but I was admonished that I SHOULD have taken the photo of self-control.  Whatever are they trying to SAY???? 🙂 

I can’t even begin to describe how precious these girls are to me (including Holly who was absent this year) and what a special bond we have created – and no better place to enjoy our time together than the Dillweed Bed and Breakfast.  Check them out on the web – they have a huge Christmas Open House in November (14th and 15th) – and the theme is ‘angels’ in honor of Cynthia. 

Love you girls!!! 

Last Saturday we had the delightful honor of attending my cousin Holly’s daughter Olivia’s wedding.  It was elegant and wistful and fun, all wrapped into one evening.  The bride, her mom, and her sister Amanda could not have looked lovelier!  Amanda and the groom’s brother sang a duet – THE PRAYER – that was partly in Italian, and I was mesmerized by its beauty and their talent.

I was surprised to find out that Josiah is a ‘car guy’ – works as a business manager for a car dealership.  A friend of mine that used to work with me actually trained him and was at the reception.  Such a surprise and treat to visit a little with Eric and catch up with his family news.

The cookie table was laden with treats.  The photo booth brought lots of laughs, and the bridal party made a grand entrance of dance and celebration. It was an extra treat to spend some time with an old friend (well, we are both old!!!! :).  Roger and I go back to my high school crush on him, and I enjoyed spending a little time with him and Denny – his brother and father of the bride.  Best wishes to Olivia and Josiah, and to their families as they have these happy and precious memories to last a lifetime!!!  God Bless!!!

On our last visit to see my parents, Kathy and I offered to jump in with any chore that needed done.  We didn’t know what we were getting into!

Mom mentioned that the Martin House that they got for their wedding (29 years ago!) had been stored in the corn crib for almost as many years.  She was afraid the weather would cause it to deteriorate and had kept it out of the elements.  It was time – she decided – that she stopped hiding it away and got it into the front yard where they could enjoy it.

First step was for John to get the John Deere tractor out and back it up next to the door of the corn crib.  It was about a 4 foot drop from the floor of the crib to the bed of the cart.  Hmmm.  Kath and I climbed the step ladder up into the building, and started hefting in to the door.  That thing was HEAVY!

We managed to slide the thing over to the edge and with everyone’s help got it lowered into the cart.  Kath and I jumped down and closed up the shed while John gave the bird house a little scenic tour around the farm yard.  By the time we got to the front flower bed, he had it backed into place.  Mom got a few bricks so it wouldn’t be sitting directly on the ground, and we lugged the thing off the cart and onto the bricks.

After several tries, we had the Martin House perched on the bricks, facing the house, tucked into the flower bed by the bird feeder.  

Mom walked around it and pronounced it satisfactory but missing something.  We went tramping around and found a little wooden Dutch boy and girl out by the Magnolia tree.We stood back and admired our hard work.  Perfect.  The little Martins will be exceedingly happy, having a snug, dry little place to lay their feathered heads, guarded by a couple to cute kids.  And a distinct pleasure to the eye, as well!  We love projects!  What a fun time…..

Well, we’re a little late this year.  The girls and I traditionally have our annual Crocus Tea when the crocuses pop up through the snow in the early spring or late winter.  This year, time got away from us, and before I knew it August was finished and we had not had our tea.

When Nate told me yesterday I would have both girls for the day, I knew it was now or never.  So without a word to anyone I buzzed over to Walmart last night and picked up all the goodies that are traditional to the event.  Then this afternoon, after I finished mowing the grass, we all three got a shower.  While they were in their rooms getting dressed, I slipped invitations under the doors – – Come to the kitchen and prepare for the 5th annual Crocus tea!

They love it, and when it’s unexpected, they love it even more!  We pulled out the lace tablecloth, all the good dishes from the China cupboard, the fancy silverware, and antique serving dishes. 

One of the favorites is the pre-shaped sugar cookies, and this year (since it’s NOT spring!) we settled for ghosts and pumpkins.  They added colored sugar to dress them up, and while they baked we cut cheese into small pieces, sliced leftover pizza into inch sized squares, filled the cut glass dishes with Kix cereal, Vienna Sausage bites, M&M’s, Ritz crackers, pineapple chunks, and Flip Pretzels.

There were soft drinks in the stemware and iced water in the tea cups.  Then, it was time to change, and they knew the drill.  We had to dress up!  Included in the trappings were earrings, headbands, necklaces, bracelets, and even makeup.

The only way to get Chrissy in a dress was to let her keep her shorts on underneath.

Chrissy had the prayer, and invited Jesus to join us because it was so special, and then we had a very prim and proper meal together.  They are polite and happy and thoughtful toward each other, and even help clean up the table when we’re finished.

And I hope that as long as I am able and the girls are willing, that we can have our Crocus tea every year, even if the Crocuses aren’t blooming, that we have Halloween cookies, and listen to Christmas music on CD’s!  I love you, girls!!!!