Cooking For the Daughter-In-Law

We got up late on Tuesday morning. While we were having our coffee we were discussing whether or not to call Sarah, our daughter-in-law and ask if she wanted company, when the phone rang and it was her. She had been to her doctor appointment and wanted to tell me all about it. Our little Owen is due in about 58 days now. So, we decided to get in the truck and drive down.

On the way, we stopped at a farm market and picked up new potatoes, green beans, squash, peaches, and blackberries. Those blackberries were as big as my thumb!

When we arrived at their house, Michael was in the yard playing with his friends. As soon as he saw our truck, he raced across the yard to greet us. I heard him telling his friends "It's my grandparents!" That made me feel really good, like a real grandmother. And when Sarah saw the bags of groceries, she said to me, "As soon as I hung up the phone, I thought to myself, yeah, she's gonna cook dinner for me, yum!"

That night, I cooked dinner, except for the pork chops, which my son, Seth, did on the grill. We had green beans with new potatoes, fried yellow squash with onions, fresh creamed corn, and a peach-blackberry crisp based loosely on a recipe from Karina's Kitchen at the Gluten Free Goddess blog. Everything I cooked that night was gluten free, but I did not tell my family that it was because I did not want any bias in their opinion of the meal. They all raved about the food,most especially about the crisp, which they insisted on calling a pie. It was all good.

I used white rice flour to coat the squash before frying, which is the first time I have done that. The squash turned out very crispy and golden brown, and seemed to me to be better than when I used wheat flour for all those years of cooking it. I used rolled oats and rice flour for topping of the crisp. The only negative comment I had was that it was too chewy. Oh, well, if that is the only thing then it wasn't too bad.

We only got to stay for one night, then had to come home as we had not really planned on going down there. But we did make plans to go back in two weeks. So, that was our days off this week.

The Land Of Little Grandchildren...

Sarah and Michael at the playground at Granite Hill Campground

A few days ago I promised more about my visit with the FabGrandchildren. I know you all have been chomping at the bit to hear all about it, and I apologize for the delay. I have been either working, sleeping, or goofing off since they left, so I haven’t had time to write.

One of the things I have been doing is playing games at Fandango. My diligence and persistence at these games paid off the day before yesterday because I won two tickets to the movie of my choice for having the all time high score on a word game called Suds (but that is another story).

Ok, where was I? Oh yes, the visit with FabGranddaughther, Sarah and the FabGrandson, Michael. They are the children of my son, Seth, who is in the Air Force. Sarah lives with her mother and stepfather in Seattle, Washington. Michael lives with his dad and stepmother in Washington, D.C.

Sarah flew from Seattle to Washington with a stopover in Cincinnati, Ohio. She said the flight attendants took very good care of her. She got to visit with the pilot in the cockpit before the plane took off. She said she made friends with two grownups who were sitting in the same row with her. This I believe because I do not think she has ever met a stranger!

After a day or two visiting with her dad and brother at their house at Andrews Air Force Base, they all came up to Gettysburg to spend a few days with us.

Michael roasting weiners at the campfire.

Seth brought his tent and other camping gear, but Sarah decided she wanted to sleep inside with me. We folded down the dining table to make it into a bed for her. She was delighted to have her very own “bable” to sleep on. We did all the regular camping things, like making s’mores, roasting marshmallows and wieners on a stick, fishing, and walking around the campground.

On our days off while they were here, we took them all to The Land of Little Horses.

Seth and at The Land of Little Horses

We have seen the signs for it since we got here in March, and every time I mentioned taking the grandchildren there, FabGrandpa harumphed and said, “That is so hokey! No way are they going to like doing something like that.” It costs $12 per person to get in the gate, another $2 for a pony ride, and another $1 for a cup of food to feed to the animals. What you get for your $12-$15 is wonderful! Even FabGrandpa had a good time. They have about 50 miniature horses, regular horses, a camel, llamas, an alpaca, some other exotic mammals, a full grown turkey, goats, peacocks, and I don’t know what all else. They have a show where the animals do tricks. Three horses danced, and another one could add, subtract, and multiply. A dog even played basketball. And Sarah got chosen from the audience to play basketball with him. If you ever go to Gettysburg, you really need to go there. What fun! Ever since we went there, every place we go is "The Land of Little..." whatevers.

We went to a farmers market and let the kids pick out their favorite berries. That night, Sarah helped me make strawberry shortcake for everyone. She put the little sponge cake things in the bowls, spooned on the berries, and tried to squirt the whipped cream out of the can but her little fingers just wouldn’t reach.

Another place we went was called The Round Barn. It is exactly what the name implies, a barn that is round. I have never seen a round barn before. It was a beautiful building in the heart of orchard country in southwestern Pennsylvania.

My daughter in law, Sarah, at the Round Barn

They had animals there too, which was a big hit with the kids. They got to pet a donkey, and saw a baby goat. Oh, and that bump is the mystery boy, Owen, the newest Fab Grandbaby, who will arrive sometime around the end of September.

They stayed with us for three nights and then had to go home. We had arranged to have four days off the next week, so we went down to Washington to spend that time at my son’s house. My daughter, Rebecca, was there, too. She came up from Norfolk for two days.

FabGrandpa, Michael, Sarah, and Aunt Rebecca at Seth's house.

That Monday, we had told the children we were going to take them to the National Zoo, but it was 97 dgrees outside, and they had already seen a ton of animals, so we decided to take the Metro into Washington D.C. and go to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. You know, the one with the dinosaur bones. Both kids loved that display. So did I. I have been to DC twice but had never been to that museum. They also loved the gem and mineral display. Michael collects crystals. There were some on display there that were bigger than he is. Oh, one of the things I did not realize is that all of the Smithsonian buildings and the National Zoo are free.

But out of all these things we did, the thing the kids enjoyed the most and talked about the most was riding on the Metro. It was like magic—both kids sitting perfectly still, silently looking out the window as the train rolled down the track. Every mother, and every FabGrandmother, should have a train!!

The last day I was at my son’s house, the Fabgranddaughter and I spent the afternoon making a scrapbook of all the things we did while she was here. I went to Wal-Mart and had them print out a lot of pictures, and bought some colored paper, sheet protectors, and a glue stick. I glued on tickets, brochures, and pictures, and she wrote about them on each page. It turned out to be a very nice memory book for her to treasure and remember her trip. As if she could forget ME!

p.s. I have a few more pictures I want to post, but my connection is very slow. I will add them tomorrow, I promise!

FabGrandpa's Socks

I don’t know what it is with men and their socks. Jim always seems to be needing more socks, more often than I do at least. He says they lose their “springyness” and when they do, he does not like to wear them anymore. This is long before they look worn out to me, but because I love him so, I get him some more socks whenever he starts talking about the lack of spring, WHATEVER that means.

While we were at the sock store, better known as Target, I also got some socks for our new little man, who we are calling “Owen” for the time being, until his parents name him something else. Those cute little socks were just irresistable, almost as cute as I imagine the baby himself to be.

Jim is very excited about this new baby. The child has no blood relation to Jim at all, but the prospect of being “Poppa” is appealing to him. He loves all three of “our” grandchildren as much as I do. I would say “maybe more”, but I don’t see how that is possible. He loves to spend time with Spencer, Michael, and Sarah, and absolutely loves his role of grandfather. He is the FabGrandpa, no matter what anyone else thinks.

This is one of my favorite pictures of all time, Poppa with Michael, 1997.

Poppa with Spencer in 2002.

With Sarah at the 4-D Theater at Stone Mountain Dec 23, 2005. He loves his grandsons, but this little lady has stolen his heart!

Hadassah House Ministries

My niece Stacie is a truly wonderful young woman. She, along with her husband John, have a created a ministry to girls and women called Hadassah House. The vision of Hadassah House was given to Stacie in order to reach out to females of all ages, to let them know that through faith girls can recognize they are chosen by God, called for a specific purpose, and equipped to complete that purpose.

Perhaps Stacie’s screen name on MySpace says it best, “Complete, Lacking Nothing”. When I saw that, I was really surprised. I have known people who feel that way about themselves, but I have never seen anyone choose a screen name to let the world know it. I was even more surprised when I read her blurb about herself. She told a story of struggling with fear, insecurity, low self-esteem, and rejection as she was growing up.

She said she was an extremely shy and timid child, and had very few friends. I knew she was shy around me, but since she lived hundreds of miles away and we saw each other only two or three times a year, I just attributed that to her being a child amongst adults she barely knew. But, I could just not believe it when I read that she had always considered herself to be ugly and friendless. I always thought she was a very beautiful girl and well liked by everyone, not just us, her family. I am happy for her now that she can call herself “Complete, Lacking Nothing”. I feel that way about myself, too.

On the Hadassah House Ministry website, Stacie writes in her testimony “I no longer deal with the rejection, insecurity, and intimidation that haunted me for the first 29 years of my life. God has completely delivered me from low self-esteem, and I am confident of who I am in Christ. I know that He loves me, and He has called me for a specific purpose, and He will "Complete" that purpose in me!

Part of that purpose is to help girls, teens, and women realize that they, too, are special to God. He has a special name for them -- just like He does for me, and He wants them to see themselves the way He sees them. It is my desire to see girls learn who they are in Christ at an early age so they will not walk in the intimidation and insecurity that I walked in for so long. I want to see teen girls build strong relationships with Jesus so they will not be moved by what the world around them has to say about them, but they will serve Him with all their hearts, that He may complete His purpose in them, and raise them up to be leaders in their generation. Finally, I long to see women become everything God has called them to be. No longer will they be pushed around by the lies the enemy tells them, but they can stand firm knowing God created them with special gifts and talents for the body of Christ, and He has equipped them with everything they need to fulfill their purpose.”

I am excited about Hadassah House Minsitries and what they have to offer to girls and women. But, like any other new venture, they are still struggling to fund their mission. They have several specific needs, from prayer to a building or office, to sponsorship of girls who are not able to pay for materials for the program. If you would like to find out more about Hadassah House and what they believe, and what needs they have, click here.