Sturgis Falls ~ "There's No Place Like Home"

We spent last weekend visiting family and enjoying the festivities at the annual Sturgis Falls Celebration in my hometown.  It's been several years since we have been able to make it back. It's always loads of fun & filled with lasting memories.

Like all good festivals, there's a parade of course.  My Sister, her boyfriend T, and my nephew P were also able to come for the weekend.  It's been too long since we were all together!

The theme for the weekend was "There's No Place Like Home", so there were several super cute Wizard of Oz themed floats.

The kids loved to see their favorite Panthers, "TC" & "TK" in all their Purple & Gold glory.

And of course, no proper Mid-Western parade would be complete without a few John Deere tractors.

During the quintessential "down-time" between floats, there is bound to be a little silliness.  :)

And of course, we can't forget the treats!  For safety reasons, people are no longer able to actually "throw" candy.  But that certainly did not stop them from walking close to the curb and literally handing out goodies to the kids.  Sure, there were the usual Tootsie Rolls and suckers. But water bottles, snack-size pudding cups, packets of sunflower seeds, paper fans, crowns and numerous coozies ended up in their little hands before the end of the parade.  It's amazing to me the creativity of some people.  WOW!  Their favorite by far was the full sized Popsicles!

The highlight of the parade, for us, had to be the Budweiser Clydesdales.  They truly are quite a majestic site to see!

After the parade, we all headed back to the house with the intention of cleaning up and heading back down to enjoy the festivities.  However, once there, we decided that there really is "No Place Like Home" and ended up just staying put.  The kids took off outside to play games, while the adults lounged on the patio visiting and enjoying the gorgeous weather.

More family stopped by for a visit, and eventually a few decided to go tour a local dairy farm (Honey & Miss B included . . . more on this a little later).  Those that stayed behind continued to relax and chat while the younger boys decided to bust out a sprinkler toy from their "younger" years.  This Mickey water toy has been around since C was just a little sprout.  This goes to show you that some things never get old no matter how "big" you may get.

We finished off the evening with tons of yummy food, recounting many stories & memories of us kids growing up  (some more embarrassing than others) and genuinely just enjoying the time together. It was so much fun to all just hang out.  :)

It may have been a pretty relaxing day by definition, but when the sun finally set . . . everyone just crashed.  I think that's a sign of a successful day.  :)

Sleep tight...

Just Keep Swimming, Just Keep Swimming . . .

L recently completed his 2 week course of swimming lessons through our Park Board.  All of 3 of my kids were born with fins, as they would love to live in the water.  We spend as many days as we can at the pool, and they are just as happy as clams.  But of course, we all know that learning the fundamentals of swimming is extremely important.  L has been at the same level for 2 years now, but he was bound and determined to pass this time.  And HE DID!!!

He was one happy boy!  It's the tradition of the program that on the last day, the kids get the last 10 minutes of lesson time to have free time in the water.  In past years, L could always be found jumping off the diving boards or going down the slides.  But not this year . . .  he wanted to show off his new found confidence in the water just swimming around.

And showing us a few tricks . . .

This is the face of one extremely happy little fishy!  Congrats L!  

Just in case I haven't mentioned it before, I love summer!!

"Traveling" Through the 50 States Dinners ~ Pennsylvania & New Jersey

In my blogging absence, we have been keeping up on our "travels" through the 50 states. We have tasted many delicious recipes from several different regions of the US.  Some have been deemed "oh so yummy!", while others have had the kids taking their requisite "must try" bites and then thanking me for making dinner but asking for a sandwich instead.  :)

I'm not going to bombard you with all the meals we have done at once, because that may just put you into a food coma equivalent to Thanksgiving Day.  So I will start off with a few at a time just to give you a "taste" of what we've been experiencing.

Pennsylvania was our second stop (after Missouri).  Not a lot of research was required to find a signature main dish for this state, the Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich (recipe from mr.food.com), with a side of Soft Pretzel Bites (recipe from handletheheat.com).  I had made these yummy little nuggets for a trivia night snack a while back.  After learning that soft pretzels are apparently a popular snack in Pennsylvania, I decided that they would go perfectly with this meal.  I will warn you, these are a little labor intensive as the dough is made from scratch.  But totally worth it!  

For dessert, we had these delicious cheesecake bars from Hershey heaven!  They were absolutely divine!!  I have searched high & low for the proper name and recipe to give credit where credit is due.  But unfortunately, the recipe seems to have not only to have been devoured by us but by the Internet as well.  :(  

Honey continues to quiz us on fun facts about each state.  I have decided that we may have to invest in buzzers like those on a game show as we continue this journey, because the shouting out of answers can get a little out of control.  Peaceful dinners ... what?!?

In addition to it's capital (Harrisburg), State Bird (Ruffed Grouse), and State Flower (Mountain Laurel), we learned that it was the 2nd state to be admitted into the Union. Pennsylvania is the only original colony not bordered by the Atlantic Ocean.  We also talked about the Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross and the Declaration of Independence.  I am amazed & delighted at how interested the kids are in this adventure!

Our most recent State Dinner was New Jersey.  After learning what the menu consisted of, Honey determined that Father's Day would be the perfect day to test out this one.  :)  We dined on Baked Italian Sub Sandwiches (recipe from food.com) with a side of Jersey Disco Fries.  These are simply steak fries smothered in cheese sauce and gravy.  Oh boy!  This was by far the most well received meal to date!  

Our dessert was New Jersey Crumb Cake (recipe from comfycook.com).  There are no words for this one, I will let the picture do the talking.  

I would definitely make this again, but maybe add a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.  :)

The usual state facts were quizzed and discussed, but there was one bit of knowledge that had us all a little dumbfounded.  Even though New Jersey ranks 47th among the states in area, it has the highest population density in the country.  The U.S. average is 87.4 people per square mile.  In New Jersey, the average is 1,195.5 people.  WOW!   L's Dino-loving heart was also excited to learn that the first dinosaur skeleton (Hadrosaurus) found in North America was in Haddonfield, NJ in 1858.  Our future paleontologist was ready to jump in the car right then and there!

Where do you think we should visit next?  :)

2015 Summer Bucket List

I am a list maker by nature.  I have found the older I get the less I seem to remember if I don't write it down.  It's no different for the every day items like grocery lists to the more important things such our annual Summer Bucket List.  

Here's our list of adventures & projects we hope to complete this summer.  Many are the same as last years, but as the kids grow and their interests change so does our list.

So far we have been able to cross off:

• Reading Program
• Roast S'mores
• Pool Days (no where near done with this one yet!)
• Feed the Ducks
• Dance Class
• Strawberry Picking
• Game Nights (also continuing throughout the summer)
• Swimming Lessons
• Scavenger Hunt in the Park
• Garage Sale
• 2nd Grade Math, 7th Grade Math & Tutoring (these are also ongoing)

I'd say we have gotten off to a pretty good start.  But the closer we get to July, I realize that the summer is going by way too fast!  Time needs to slow down please, we are having way too much fun!!!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day!  Three little words that make up a phrase that means so much.  I am honored to have 2 remarkable men in my life that are the epitome of what today is about.

To Honey ~ I am so thankful that we were destined to walk together through this crazy thing called life.  You are not only an amazing husband, but a truly incredible father.  As I watch you with our kids, I realize how lucky we are to have you.  Kind, generous, funny, hard-working, loyal, supportive, loving and humble are only a few of the many words I could use to describe you.  Thank you for all that you do for our family!  We couldn't love you more!!

To my Dad ~ Kind, loving, generous, determined, soft-hearted, brave and intelligent are just a few words that come to mind when I think of you.  But it's the memories that make me smile the most: Your ability to fall asleep anytime/anyplace no matter what the situation, teaching my children that a stuffed animal fight is a perfectly acceptable thing to do, helping me purchase my first car & my first home, showing me how to drive a tractor, standing on the beach in the beastly heat of summer watching you & Mom renew your wedding vows, crossing the finish line together as I completed my first 10K, and how it felt to have you walk me down the aisle on my wedding day.  A simple thank you doesn't quite feel like enough but on a day where we celebrate our fathers, I am honored to call you Dad.

Love you both so very much!  Enjoy your day.

Where in the World Has C Been All Summer??

C has been home from college for a little over a month now. YEAH!!  He had a very successful year at school and and has even been accepted as a Resident Hall Advisor for the next school year.  We are so very proud of him!!!

You may have noticed the lack of pictures of C so far this summer.  Well, there is a very good reason for that.  As much as we miss him being able to hang around and do things with us on a daily basis, he had a goal for this summer... GET A CAR!  

His previous one, for lack of a better phrase, went kaput last fall.  :(  We are unbelievably grateful to all his friends and family members that have driven him around for the last several months, but it was his mission this summer to not be without a car a minute longer. But in order to purchase a car, one must have the necessary income to acquire said vehicle. Over the past 3 years, he's worked part time during his breaks from school.  This year, however, he was lucky enough to get a full time summer job ~ Monday through Friday.  My baby is all grown up!  (Tear, sniff)  

All his hard work & saving finally paid off today when he was able to fulfill his Summer Dream and purchase a "new to him" Bravada!  

The previous owner was an elderly gentleman who took really good care of the vehicle, so it has extremely low mileage, leather and heated seats, sunroof, and more.  To say C is excited, would be an understatement.  :)  

Congrats C!  So proud of you!  Enjoy the new wheels!

Super Hero Science

I mentioned earlier that our library's summer reading program is Super Hero themed this year, which is right up my family's alley.  In addition to the reading program itself, they have several fun free activities for the kids to do throughout the summer ranging from arts & crafts to music in the park.  In reading through the brochure, one in particular stood out for this week that I thought might be fun to try.  Put on your capes and masks kids, we are headed to rid the city of evil with the help of none other than . . . SCIENCE!

Time was of the essence, as we learned from an earlier project here, that the room they do these activities in is quite small.  :(  So we arrived at the scene precisely the moment the doors opened to be greeted by our friendly neighborhood "scientist".  She explained that there were stations set up for us to try different experiments and we were welcome to attempt them as many times as we'd like.  A quick glance around the room had us all grinning from ear to ear ... the experiments were all X-MEN THEMED!!!  

Not ones to shy away from a challenge, we decided first to try to "defeat" one of the most notoriously evil villains in comic book history, Magneto!  (LOL!  I'm having way to much fun with this theme!!  Can you tell?)

As you can see from the instructions above, the object was to see if you could keep the paperclip floating in mid-air using the magnets provided.  This was a little more difficult than it looked.  Not only did you need to have patience but also a steady hand to keep the force between the two objects intact.  But Super Heroes must persevere!  At last, they achieved success!!

"The Force is strong with this one."....  oh wait, wrong movie!  Oops.  :)

Next, we worked along side JEAN GREY in efforts to learn a little about her powers of telepathy.  I would like nothing more than to be able to move things with my mind, like say... the folded towels into the linen closet or the clean dishes back into the cupboard.  But I suppose that isn't what super powers are meant to be used for...bummer.

After rubbing a balloon against your hair for a minute, the kids learned two things:    

1.  They have the best kind of hair to create static cling.

 

 2.  They were, in fact, able to move a pop can by the shear force of their minds (or the incredible amount of static electricity from their hair).  It was pretty exciting to say the least!

As much as the kids would have enjoyed "telepathically" moving pop cans all afternoon, STORM needed our help as well.

This particular experiment was one that we have done many times in the past at home.  But none the less, it was still fascinating to create the tornado of water with in the bottle and watch it spiral down the tube.  

Last, but certainly not least, we dove to the depths of the ocean to assist AQUAMAN.  Only to find that he had already defeated the enemy ... aka this experiment was out of commission.  :(  

We spoke with the "scientist" on duty & the kids learned how to manipulate objects in water should we ever be confronted with the same "evil" as Aquaman.  (Translation ~ how to attempt this experiment at home.)  

All in all, these were pretty simple but cleverly done.  It sparked enough interest in the kids to add "Science Experiments" to our Summer To Do List, so I say the "Mission" was accomplished!  Job Well Done Super Heroes!  

Thank you for putting up with all my ridiculousness in this post.  I just couldn't resist!  :)