Camping, The First Installment

We went camping with three kids, and came back with three kids, so I consider our camping trip a success! Here is the first installment of pictures:

We went to Hickory Run State Park, in the Pocono 'Mountains.' Just to give you Colorado peeps an idea of what a PA mountain looks like, here she is in all her glory. No, the mountain does not get any taller on the right of the picture, and no, we were not already part way up the mountain.
Look, Ma! I can climb!

Exploring in the woods near our campsiteThis is some treacherous territory! Hold on to your false teeth, Tyler! (OK, I totally could have gone around this tree, but what fun would that have been?)

Look! It's Sasquatch and her offspring!

We found this little pool of water down at the creek. Katie was looking for minnows.

James rigging up a play tent of his own.

James brought his Bible and an assortment of books to read on the trip

Ooooh! Magnets!!

Go Fish was the hit of the trip, game wise. The kids played many, many rounds with Jeff. One of them was always running up to me saying 'Mom, I smoked Daddy! I won! I won!'

Katie the 'supervisor' checking in on everyone

Fire! Pyros in the making

James was fascinated with the workings of the fire.

Tyler was fascinated by the food. And the worms. And the caterpillars. And the dirt. More on that tomorrow.

I'm So EGGcited!!!!!

We have eggs!!! Yesterday I found 3 eggs laid in a dark corner of the shed. The kids and I were so excited we danced around the backyard squealing! Later, we found the hen laying another egg so now we have 4. Incidentally, it is the hen I thought might be a rooster. I'm happy she's a hen!

Eggs!!! From Actual Chickens!! That live in my backyard! :)

Look at that! It's going to be good!

I went all out and even made bacon. Might as well do it up good!

The egg on the upper right is store-bought. You can see the yolk is a lighter color. The eggs will also get bigger over time, in case you are wondering. I'm not sure how long it takes, so we'll see.

Go Ahead, Laugh At My Expense

Last night, I went to lock the chickens up like I do every night. Their run is enclosed, with chicken wire buried around the perimeter so nothing can dig in, or at least that's the hope. The door slides closed on the inside so they are safe inside at night. Even though the run is enclosed I still close the chicken door for added security. So....I went to close the chicken door. Mind you, I am armed with only a flashlight. I opened the door to the shed and saw beady little eyes staring at me, and some ugly teeth flashing. I pretty much FREAKED OUT!! I didn't scream, though, which was good. The 'thing' retreated under my feed shelf. I was like Chicken Little running around yelling 'the sky is falling, the sky is falling,' because did I mention that Jeff was gone? Yeah, of all nights to attend a 'Mens Night,' he chose last night. Figures. So I started to run back inside. The creepiness factor was really high. Then, I realized that if I left the 'thing' by itself, it could get to my chickens. Yikes! Can't have that happen. So I ran back. As I was running I brushed into a spider web and jumped out of my skin. When I got back I decided it wasn't prudent poking around in a dark shed with a 'thing,' known only to have small, yet menacing looking teeth. So, I got a big stick and went back to look. I don't exactly know what I was thinking I would do with the big stick, since chasing the 'thing' in a dark shed filled with lawn mowers and chickens would be somewhat akin to a blind man trying to find a penny on the bottom of a swimming pool. Nevertheless, I gathered my wits about me (sort of), and clutched my stick. I peered under the shelf to find a possum staring at me with its teeth bared. It was pretty young, judging by its size. I tried to poke the stick under there to get it to come out. It didn't budge. I tried to move the shelf, but it too wouldn't budge. I tried to shoo it out with the stick again. No luck. I considered calling Jeff. You know, something like 'Hey, I know that the last time you have had a night out to yourself was like 6 years ago, but I'm freaking out here because there's a small rodent in the chicken coop and its dark and I'm really scared and I think I might have seen the boogy man and could you please, please, please come and save me?!?!' I figured that wouldn't be the thing to do, so I went back to my pathetic attempt at rodent eviction. I kept thinking, hoping, that the possum would play dead and then I could just sweep him out somehow, but no...he just stared into the flashlight with his teeth bared. I tried a few more times to nudge him out but to no avail. Then, he ran out from under the shelf which caused me to freak out even more, because at least under the shelf he was cornered. Fortunately I had leaned the baby gate (no, we do not keep our babies in the chicken coop) in such a way that the little beast couldn't easily make a run for it. I managed to herd him with the stick out the chicken door into the run, where he disappeared out of sight. I slid the door shut as fast as I could and checked the coop up and down for more rodents. All was well, and the chickens were probably wondering when I was going to stop shining the darn flashlight at them. I started to check out the run to see where he got in, but decided that poking around in tall tomato plants for a possum was not my idea of fun. It could wait til morning.

PS. I **think** the possum squeezed through the 2" squares of the fencing...time to put some chicken wire over that, methinks! I am really glad I saw it, because according to the all-knowing internet, possums will eat chickens. Eek! That was enough excitement for one night.

Best News!!

Katie had her 'big' appointment today at CHOP. Last year, her hip had made no progress and the doctor had said that if it didn't improve then we might have to consider surgery. All year I have been praying that it would grow on its own, so she wouldn't have to have surgery and another cast. Well, guess what?! It has improved and is 'good enough,' so no surgery. Woooo!!!! I am so happy! He said that there are a lot of people with the degree of displasia that Katie has who walk around every day and don't even know they have it. He also said that her femurs twist a little when she walks (typical of hip dysplasia). I asked him if that is why she runs like she does, where her knees twist in and her legs flail out. He said that was also due to the dysplasia, and called the 'egg beater' run. It isn't a problem at all. Yayyy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so relieved and happy, can't you tell?

Adventure

This morning I decided on the spur of the moment to take the kids on a little adventure. The original plan was to go to Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve and a covered bridge. (James is very interested in covered bridges). We ended up stopping at Washington's Crossing too: the place where George Washington crossed the icy Delaware River on Christmas Day. Our trip was a lot of fun. The Preserve was nice and they had a big collection of birds, nests and eggs. They loved seeing the owls. Here are a few...OK, a bunch...of pictures from the morning:

The boat pictured is the same style, but not the same exact boat, that was used by George Washington. The boats look very heavy, and the oars along look like they would take several men to maneuver. The house shown is a very old (1700's?) house near the sight. We didn't actually take a tour this time, just walked around, so we didn't go in.

On to the nature preserve: the kids wanted to stop at every tree stump or rock and take a picture!

Are you surprised that James loves this cabin? He really wanted to go in, but it was not open to the public. It was built in the early 1930's, part of the 'New Deal,' when the preserve was a state park.

This kid! He is Jeff's son alright. That's what I get when I ask either of them for a smile. :)

Cheese!! (Meanwhile, Tyler is frantically trying to escape the backpack so he can join the fun)

Proof that I did take Tyler: I think every picture of me in the last 5 years includes a baby on my back.

Exploring

Behind every beautiful smile...

Is one of these!

This was taken at Washington's Crossing.

I am not sure what this flower is, but it was everywhere. It smelled good, and the butterflies and bees were ALL OVER it!

Van Sant Covered Bridge AKA Cry Baby Bridge***

***Long, long ago, when we first moved here, my sister's friend regaled us with tales of 'Cry Baby Bridge,' which he told us was haunted. He told us that when you park your car in the bridge, turn off the lights, and sit quietly, you can hear a baby crying, and hand prints will appear on your car, along with other terrifying things. We mentally rolled our eyes, but took him up on his offer to take us there. Late one night (see, this was long ago...before kids) we hopped in the car and drove up to the bridge. All the way there, Brian chattered on about local history, and all the creepy bridge stories. As we got closer, he talked more quickly and it was evident he was starting to freak out. Jeff, Rachel and I were trying hard to contain our mirth. As we approached the bridge we were ordered to remain silent. Brian was truly scared at this point. He pulled onto the bridge, and cut the lights. We sat there, holding in our giggles, and silently counted to ten. Then Jeff, Rachel and I screamed simultaneously. It was awesome. (We had planned it that way while Brian wasn't listening) Well, needless to say he freaked out and screamed like a baby. He turned his lights on and sped out of the bridge as quick as he could. By then, we were laughing hysterically in the back seat.

Real Conversation, Hot Off The Press (And A Chicken Escapade)

James: Girl kisses are gross!
Me: James, you're never going to get a girlfriend.
James: Girlfriends are stupid! Remember, I'm never going to have one.
(I do remember...but I just like to hear his speech because its funny)
Me: Oh, yeah, you're just going to have a wife, right?
James: Yeah.
Me: Who are you going to marry? (Again, already know what he is going to say)
James: Katie
Me: You know James, you can't marry your sister.
James: Why not?
Me: Because you really need to swim out to the deep end of the gene pool, buddy.
James: What does that mean?
Me: It means 'Don't marry your sister!'
James: Is that a law?
Me: Yes.
Katie: Hey, Mom! (pretending to dive in) I'm going to go swimming in the genie pool and get wet!

I can't make this stuff up, folks!

In other news, this morning I was getting a few things finished up before we had friends over. James volunteered to take the trash out, and came running back in frantically trying to tell me something. It had to do with the chickens. Low and behold, those wiley little feathered beasts had figured out how to push over a screen I have up to keep them from going under the fence on one side. Four of them were in our neighbor's yard, and the fifth was out of the fence all together trying to get to the others. Now as it turns out, I have yet to tell those particular neighbors that I have chickens. Its not that I want to hide it or anything, but they are very...uh...elderly, and I rarely ever see them. For the record, I am sure they could care less that I have chickens, but in my mind, I debated. Should I go over and tell them 'Uh, excuse me, but my chickens are in your yard. Oh, yeah, by the way, I have chickens. So, do you mind if I go in and chase them out. Or, I could just send James over the fence to herd them back in. I chose option B. I hope they did not have a heart attack when they looked out their window to see a small boy chasing chickens around in their backyard. Instead of cooperating, they hid under a bush and refused to come out. Then I sent Katie over. In the meantime I caught the other chicken and put it back in the yard. The remaining four refused to come back in. I think they wanted to, but were scared and confused. After some fruitless arm waving and exasperated coaxing, they weren't budging. Alas, it was time to bust out the frozen corn. Now I know their kryptonite! They came right over, all but poor Patty, the bottom of the pecking order. Big Martha, she was smart. She was reaching her head through the fence to get the corn without coming through. I had to grab her and pull her, flapping and squawking, through the gap. (No birds were harmed in the making of this blog post!) After all that mess, I don't think the chickens will be roaming the yard much til I fix that gap. Here I was worried about them flying OVER the fence. Silly birds!

Ode To Mom (Really Bad Poetry Ahead)

When we were young,
Many hymns you sung.
Things you taught,
Cheese-less hamburgers you bought.
(Oh, wait, that was Dad.)
Lots of good times we have had.

Then one day I saw you take
A few chickens to the 'back 40' and soup you did make.
That gave me a new respect for you,
Seeing what you do.
Put the fear into me,
In trouble I did not want to be.


Oh, Mother, Mother, what can I say?
You dispatched a mean young rooster today.
It seems that you have ninja skills,
Dispatching chickens fits the bill.
Those chickens never you should cross,
They better learn that you 'da boss.

Cock-A-Doodle-Dumpling

*****If you are squeamish or don't want to know where your food comes from then you probably want to skip this post*****

(Hey, Rooster, wanna come over and hang out?)

My friend Jess ended up getting chickens at the same time I did. One of her pullets turned out to be a rooster. It was decided that the rooster must go. Mom jumped in with her mad chicken butchering skills and got 'er done. I have seen Mom butcher a few chickens back in the day. She grew up doing it, and then when I was younger Mom and Dad raised meat birds. Apparently dispatching chickens is like riding a bike, you never forget. In fact, to quote Mom, 'I could do it in my sleep.' We arrived at Jess' house at 9, where Mom got right down to business. I caught the rooster and Mom immediately took that sucker by his feet, hung him upside down and cut its head off.


Hey, look! Its the south end of a rooster flying north! (Quoting Mom)

That's when things got crazy. The rooster thrashed about, as they do after death. Before she could grab its wings, it thrashed right out of the noose and proceeded to run about the yard like a chicken with its head cut off. Oh, wait, he was a chicken with his head cut off. Yes, we chased that thing around as it randomly dodged this way and that. Mom was yelling, 'Get him! Get him!!' Mom finally got it pinned down and held it til it stopped flapping. Meanwhile, the children were playing in the yard, oblivious to the ordeal. (They did watch quite a bit of the process) After that came the standard plucking and gutting and such. Katie and Tyler sat right at Mom's elbow watching. Tyler kept pointing and saying 'Chickies' so apparently he got it figured out. Mom made it look very easy, and we were done in less than 40 minutes, and that was with Mom taking the time to show us the steps.


And the legacy lives on...

Katie was quite interested in the process

And because I know that you are so fascinated with the subject matter of today's blog post, I will teach you a neat little party trick for the next time you find yourself butchering a chicken. (Sadly, something happened with the video of this, so you'll just have to visualize it with the help of this picture...my apologies! You must be so heartbroken. :) Anyway, get yourself a chicken foot. Remove some of its skin. Find the tendons and pull. Voila! Its like you have your own marionette, chicken style. The talon will open and close as you pull on the tendons. Now don't all rush out at once to try this!

James: That's nice Mom, now what's for lunch? Payton: That lady is nuts! I sure hope my parents are saving up for therapy 'cause I'm gonna need it!

On a side note, Mom says that Grandma Heppner used to get fed up on occasion with a mean rooster. She would look at him and declare her intentions to eat him. She would go get her knife and walk around looking for the offender. He would be quickly dispatched and turned into supper.

Not Even 8am

Its not even 8 am and I have already gone on my run, found 5 bucks, and caught a baby mole to show the kids. James wanted to keep it, but I said no! The little stinker makes some loud squeeks for such a small thing, and it bit me when I tried to touch it. It was really cute, as far as moles go, because it was only about 2 1/2 inches long and its fur was like gray velvet. We'll see how cute I think it is if it ever finds my garden!

In other news, the kids have been doing swimming lessons this week. They are both loving it and doing great. I think last night James giggled the entire lesson. He was so excited and having so much fun. It was a little cool, so they let the kids stay in the pool the whole time and he kept dunking his head under and jumping out. Katie sat on the side in her adorable tutu bathing suit, with her orange googles, shivering until it was her turn again. I must bring my camera tonight!

Our Weekend Of (Not) Camping

So instead of camping this past weekend, we stayed home. The heat was outrageous, hotter than I ever remember around here. One day it was something like 107 degrees with a heat index of 120! The humidity adds the special twist that makes it pretty much unbearable. The good news is, we survived, the chickens survived and our air conditioner didn't burn itself out. We gave up trying to cool the upstairs down, and it was so hot the thermometer was tapped out at 120+. Eeek! I can't believe the computer didn't melt. These old L-town houses have slanted walls upstairs, so that the ceiling/wall is in direct contact with the roof. The insulation is 60 years old and has degraded to the point that I don't think it does much of anything. But I digress. Wait! That's right, I wasn't going anywhere with this post anyway, so how can I digress?!?! That brings me to my next point. (Mrs. Haffly, my 7th grade teacher, would be cringing right now at my lack of transitions!) The chickens...they are coming of age. They are 18 weeks and starting to show signs that maybe they will start laying soon. I am officially on egg-watch, even though they probably won't start for a few more weeks. I emailed my friend and chicken expert, Linda, and she confirmed that the time is near. So exciting! And the burning question that keeps me up at night (not really)....will Big Martha lay blue or green eggs????? Any bets? They advertised blue, but apparently the breed can crank out blue, green, or occasionally pink eggs. (Not all colors from one bird) The rest will lay nice brown eggs.

In other random news, I have officially surpassed the 60 pound mark from my garden!!! Yesterday I picked a 16 ounce Brandywine tomato...not too shabby. I finally decided to put all the ripe cherry tomatoes in a dish where Katie can access them. No more trying to reach them on the counter. Now she has access to her 'candy dish' whenever she wants. This girl and her tomatoes. And speaking of tomatoes....guess what? Much to my dismay, the Groundhog Love Shack has yet another resident. Argh!!!! Seriously!!!!!!! I think this is about the millionth groundhog we've had. Of course, the little garden terrorist has taken bites out of at least three of the biggest tomatoes in my garden. I found where he was getting in and blocked it off. Do you think I could train my chickens to bark at it whenever it comes out???

Makes Me Want To ROFL

We were at Joanns this morning because James wants me to make him a cowboy backpack for school. While perusing the patterns (which ended up a totally fruitless endeavor), Katie decided to doodle on her arm, and draw a plethora of random marks around her mouth. Kind of reminiscent of cat whiskers, but not quite. One of the workers there saw Katie and asked her if she had drawn on her face. Katie got shy and buried her head on my leg. They she realized that everyone could see her artwork, and she started crying. She looked up at me and begged me to 'washcloth it off' because she was 'going around looking like an idiot.' I tried, and failed, to keep my composure after that and turned away to giggle. It made it worse that James told her, in a sticky sweet voice, 'Its OK, Katie, you don't look like an idiot. You just look really funny.' I had a good chuckle over that whole interchange. Some peoples kids!

It's A Bird! It's A Plane! Oh, Wait....

...its just the humidity hanging in the air. It is so hot here, and the forecast says its just going to get hotter. This morning it looked almost like fog hanging in the air, but it was more like a thick suffocating blanket of humidity. Can you tell I hate humidity? I don't think I'll ever get used to it. Due to the extreme heat, we won't be going camping. Somehow the thought of baking in our tent with three overheated kids didn't sound too appealing. We'll go in a few weeks, and hopefully the weather will be more, uh, seasonal. So instead of going camping, we will be making S'mores in our super-duper pizza box solar oven, right here in our front yard.

Don't Worry

I won't be posting for the rest of the week. Our internet/phone is being transferred over and we will be without service for a day or two. Then we go camping for a few days!

Run Like The Wind

For no apparent reason, I haven't mentioned on here that Jeff and I have been running for several months. Yes, me...running. Never thought I'd get into that but it works. We take turns going in the morning, 5:30 to be exact! I am happy to say that I am up to running a little over 5 miles each run. We started out running, then walking, running, then walking. Then we moved on to running 5 minutes, walking 1 minute. I am happy to say that this morning I actually ran for 45 minutes without stopping, which is the longest I've ever run in my life!!!

My Little Helper

Last night I was making pizza. I had roasted a whole tray of veggies, baked the crust, and was in the process of assembly. I had to make a quick trip to the facilities. When I came back, what did I find???? That's right: Tyler 'helping' me out. Now, I had heard the chair sliding around, but I thought it was James putting the chair back where I asked him to. Turns out, he had already returned the chair and it was Tyler dragging it to the counter. With lightning fast precision, he dumped my whole jar of cornmeal and the pizza sauce on top of the roasted veggies. He was in the process of mixing it up with the rolling pin when I got back. Such a helpful little guy, right? :) I had to rinse off the veggies in a strainer and the pizza was a little bit heavy on the cornmeal, but it turned out alright.

In other news, I caught Katie trying to pee standing up just a few minutes ago. Seriously!?!? Clean up on aisle 7 please!!!

Random Randomness Volume 9 Edition 72

Aren't these carrots beautiful! These are thinnings from the garden. Yum!

Jeff's Birthday Cake, after Tyler found it

The beautiful Chef Katie to the rescue!

Just fill that all in with some whipped cream!

And voila! No one'll know the difference. Well, except if you get the piece that is 82% whipped cream.

Happy Birthday, Jeff! Welcome to 30!

Having nothing to do with cake, but sweet nonetheless:

Last night we *tried* having Katie sleep in the boys' room. She has been going to sleep in our room, then we move her upstairs later, when we get her room cooled off. With the weather we've been having, that ain't happening, so she's been downstairs. I put her toddler mattress on the floor and put them all to bed. Next thing you know, I hear whispering. (Of course!) After a while, I peek in and see the older two snuggled up in James' bed, talking and giggling. Tyler was standing at the side of his crib joining in. James told me they were telling each other funny stories about when they were little. I am pretty sure it went something like this: Hey, Katie! Remember when you ate that whole pan of mashed potatoes? (giggles) Yeah! Hey, James, remember when I ate all those mashed potatoes? (more giggles) That is their favorite story right now. I finally had to break up the party in the interest of them getting some SLEEP! This morning when they woke up they were whispering together and playing with James' stable. Of course, it didn't last long, but it was cute while it lasted.

Happy Birthday, Big T!

(digging into the bowl of whipped cream leftover from Jeff's b-day cake)

Today is Tyler's second birthday! He is growing way too fast for me, but he hasn't listened to my petitions to stay small forever. This kid is a whole lot of energy wrapped up in one pretty small package. His smiles and his kisses melt us every single time. I think we'll keep him around. :)

VBS

This week is Vacation Bible School. I am helping in the craft class. Surprised? Didn't think so. Yesterday James FREAKED OUT and cried, screamed and wouldn't let go of me. He has been getting much better about this but apparently this time he just couldn't process it all. It was hard on both of us, but he needed to go for his own sake. He is starting Kindergarten next month. Yikes! I can't believe it. They were very good with him at VBS and he did OK, but cried for most of the rest of the day. It was hard on both of us. Then, it was like a switch, last night before bed he calmed down. He relaxed and stopped thinking about it. This morning, he was so nervous he threw up. He cried and held on, then he was OK. He did great! I was so happy, relieved and proud. He even told me that VBS is more fun that Mommy. I take it that he had fun today! Hopefully the rest of the week goes just as well. There are almost 300 kids, and its very, very hot. Yay for air conditioning!

Blueberries

This post is a long time coming, but a week ago, my sister-in-law, Mom and I went to Fred Plus III in Pemberton, New Jersey. If you live close, you should definitely go. Fred is a total character. He even gave Nikia the same speach he gave me: You're wearing flip-flops! Did anyone tell you that you were coming to a farm? He lectured us on how to care for the blueberries (no plastic bags or you're gonna have jam before you know it!). All together, we picked about 60 pounds of blueberries in an hour and a half! And at a $1.40 a pound, you can't beat that. We had so much fun and I look forward to going back next year too.

Another Tidbit

I looked all over for our cooler. I couldn't figure out where on earth it could be. Then I remembered that I found it last fall, reeking of mold and onions. James had decided to go into the business of selling onion grass. He picked a bunch, wrapped it in a damp towel, put it in the cooler to dry, and forgot all about it. By the time I found it the cooler was ruined, and the onion grass was unsaleable. At least he has a ready supply waiting in the yard if he decides to go back in business.

Also, James caught a firefly today and put it in his bug cage. His bug cage has a loose door. The firefly is now flitting about in our house. He will join the rolly polly, the moth, and who knows what else that has escaped that cage!

Yipee!!

I can really hardly believe it, but I picked the first tomatoes of the season today!!!! Bloody Butcher tomatoes, to be exact. How's that for a gruesome name? I was just doing my ordinary garden inspection when I saw a few tomatoes that were just starting to turn color. That made me very happy, and then...then I saw a few ripe tomatoes toward the back! One had a big bite out of it, so it went to some very happy chickens. The other two are sitting on my counter and I am trying to be a good girl and wait til dinner so everyone can have some. Pretty soon, I'll probably be rolling in the 'maters but for now, they are going to be a delicacy!

Snapshot of My Day

So, right now Katie is walking around with a bean bag wrapped up in a receiving blanket. It is her baby, and her baby is sick. In fact, to quote Katie, her baby is 'bawfing and thwoing up and very sick.' She is telling the baby things like 'Its OK, sweetpea' and 'You need to rest now; you are really sick.' Yep. I think that girl has the motherly instinct alright. :)

P.S. This is totally random but guess what I have found in my washing machine in the past week or so? A German coin, a quarter, various rocks, a cowboy, a cactus (toy), a small stick, a bowl, and a piece of wood. Nice, huh?

Busy Days

Now that summer is in full swing, it seems like the days are busy. When I think about it, its not like we are doing anything fancy. Our days are filled with playing in the backyard, going to the park, the farm, etc.. Our latest acquisition is the 'Apple Slide,' named by James. (Because its red, of course...unlike the yellow banana slide of my youth.) This water slide has already provided several hours of entertainment. We have also been baking things, including Jeff's 30th birthday cake. (More on soon...it involves Tyler the sneaky ninja and the cake...pictures too!) As you can see from the pictures above, Tyler makes sure to get in on all the action too. We also, pre-4th, got a couple packs of sparklers for the kids. They loved them! It made me feel all nostalgic for the days when we would go to Grandma and Grandpa's house for the 4th and Grandpa would always have sparklers. We cousins would camp in their backyard and talk until Uncle Ron (AKA the voice of God) would tell us to 'GO TO SLEEP!!!'

Recovery

This whole week has been a recovery period for the fun-overload we had last weekend. We have mostly hung around the house, though we did go raspberry picking one morning. This morning the kids got to go the house o' magic (aka Grammy and Chappy's) while I went grocery shopping. Hallelujah! The cupboards were bare, and shopping sans kids leaves my sanity intact. This weekend should be much more low-key. I am sneaking away early in the morn to go blueberry picking with my sis-in-law and Mom. Tomorrow afternoon I am preparing a birthday feast for the Jeffro. I have brought in, all the way from Colorado, the secret family recipe for his Mom's goulash. Just kidding, but that's what I threaten him with because he wouldn't tell me what he wanted for his birthday dinner. (He is NOT fond of his mother's goulash, by the way...) We will be having....you guessed it! Megzican food! And pineapple upside-down cake. Should be tasty.