Snippets of Life with Steven

    The teeny tiny pencil that Steven has been using for way too long finally wrote its last word.

    "Friends and family, " he said, "come gather around the trash can for this solemn occasion as we say our final good bye to my little pal. We wrote many great things together, and some not so great. The memories I made with him can not be erased."

    A few dramatic dabs at his eyes and then he was off to get a new pencil to continue his school work.

~~~~~

    There were errands to run and upon leaving the last store Sharon told Steven to hop on the cart, and went running to our vehicle with him squealing with laughter the entire way.

    The few items we got were tucked into the back, the cart placed into the corral next to us, and we got in. As we were seat belting ourselves Steven sighed a happy sigh, "That was fun!" he said.

    I started pulling out of our parking spot. His voice became all chipper: "So, Sharon, same time tomorrow?"

~~~~~

    The house was quiet as Steven and I were focused on the project in front of us, when all of a sudden a peculiar noise started.

    We looked at each other and tried to listen a bit more intently. The added concentration did nothing to solve the mystery of the noise, so I got up to investigate.

    I was halfway down the hallway when Steven came flying up behind me, and grabbed my hand. "I'll go with you!" he said.

    My heart melted into a hundred little puddles at his protectiveness.

    We got to the end of the hallway and discovered the snow and ice on the roof was melting rapidly and hitting the window and outside windowsill creating the weird unexpected noise.

    He dropped my hand, we both laughed, and then returned to our project relieved that everything in our world was still alright.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

I decided to participate in the Wednesday Hodgepodge once again. So without further ado, here we go.

 1. Besides the predictable name-rank-serial number, what's something you know by heart?

Account numbers for various monthly bills, passwords, several phone numbers, a handful of addresses, a pile of songs, the cute little German prayer my Mom taught me as a wee child, the order of the colors in a rainbow, assorted passages of scripture, the times tables, the alphabet, a few favorite recipes, and more I'm sure if I took the time to think.

2. Something recently that had you tickled pink?

Getting to spend time with our grandson.

3. How do you define the word romantic, and are you one? 

To me being romantic is simply keeping the one you love in your thoughts so much that you're continually looking for ways to serve, care for, and do things they like. A gift or two here and there for an extra touch doesn't hurt. 

4. Finish this verse with your own original thought....'Roses are red, violets are blue...

Roses are red
Violets are blue
I'm feeling blessed
I hope you are too

5. Five little things you are loving right now? 

1. My reading glasses - oops I just admitted to needing them, but they sure make things easier for me.
2. My favorite cozy blanket.
3. My favorite teapot.
4. Celery - random I know, but it's my favorite snack.
5. Flourishing houseplants.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Steven and I tried to build a snowman. We gave it our best effort, but the snow was not the right consistency so we ended up simply making a giant pile of snow instead.

I think he enjoyed it as much as he would have had we been able to build the snowman. It's the time we got to spend together that counts.

Cooking as a Newlywed

     The day after our wedding as LV and I were packing up our wedding gifts to move into our home we came across a pretty glass casserole dish with a divider down the center.
    LV picked it up and said, "Oh! I'm already looking forward to eating the casseroles you'll make in this dish."
    I tucked that bit of information away as we finished packing everything up.
    Fresh meats and vegetables weren't an option for us the majority of the time back then. We grew all our own food, but it was canned. Recipe books were used for desserts not main course.
    Several evenings after setting up our house I was trying to come up with a plan for supper. I decided to make that casserole LV had been looking forward to.
    I filled the one half with mashed potatoes. I drained a can of green beans and dumped them in the other half, poured a beef gravy over both, and popped it in the oven.
    I served it with a smile, and he ate it without a single word of complaint.
    I still laugh when I think of it.

Winter Days

     There's something about winter days when it's cold and snowy outside, but cozy and fun inside that gives me all the nostalgic feels.
    Our winter this year has been a little colder than they had been the for the past few years, but we've been keeping the furnace humming, and pulling out various fun projects to fill our days. Games are also getting a lot more use during this season.
    We didn't have board games in my early childhood, but we still played games. A favorite was called, "Ding-dong Dingly".
    One person was blindfolded and would say a little rhyme in German, each of the other players would take turns responding, at which point the blindfolded person would give them a number telling them how many steps they were allowed to take. And then the game began.
    At five and six years old it was exhilarating trying to save some of your allotted steps in order to evade the blindfolded person who was trying to find you. 
    One evening it was Mom's turn to be blind folded and she found my brothers and me without a problem, but had a harder time finding Dad, who had chosen to take his allotted steps up the wall at the end of the hallway and was propped up as high as he could while Mom searched.
    We children were having such a hard time containing our giggles. When she finally gave up, removed her blindfold, and saw where he was the entire house rang with laughter.
    That was the end of that game that evening, and it was time for bedtime stories and being tucked in.
    Given the option of weeding the garden after supper during summer months, or playing games and having bedtime stories during the winter, it really is no surprise that winter was my favorite season as long as I can remember.

    

Enough Blue

 "Genug fa en Deitcha mann sei hussa flicka."

(Enough to mend an Amish man's pants.)

I think of that quote, and hear my Mom saying it every time I see a small patch of blue in an overcast sky.

The last time I remember hearing her say it was back when I was a teen. We were building a house for my grandparents and were planning to have a frolic. The sky was quite overcast and my Uncle John Henry expressed his concern that it might rain.

Mom pointed out a tiny patch of blue peeking through the clouds and said, "Genug fa en Deitcha mann sei hussa flicka."

I was embarrassed ... silly me. But now I quote it too, much to the chagrin of our children.