Happy Birthday Grandma

Mom and Dad were down for a visit last weekend and while they were here we celebrated her birthday. On Friday the kids and I made a special cake for her, complete with fondant flowers and chocolate buttercream frosting..... it was very yummy.... (first time making the chocolate buttercream and definitely not the last, I also used a 'new to me' chocolate cake recipe that was SO easy to make..... Josh said it was the best chocolate cake he has ever had.... I'll include the recipe at the end!).

A couple of years ago for Mom's birthday we went to Sharon Woods and had a family picnic, after that Mom said it was one of the best days of her life! So on Saturday we met Carrie and Joel at Sharon Woods for a picnic lunch. It was so much fun.... we played ball with the kids, explored the creek, and hunted for little creatures (and even found a few). As usual, the weekend went by way too fast. We are anxiously awaiting for their next return which will be in a couple of weeks!

Just a note: that baby in my sister's belly is a little boy!

Chocolate cake recipe: 1 box of chocolate cake mix, 1 large box of chocolate pudding (cook and serve not instant), 1 package of chocolate chips. Preheat oven to 350, grease or spray 9x13 pan, cook pudding according to directions and let cool. Once cool mix together with cake mix (no other ingredients!) in a bowl (mixture will be very thick). Pour into prepared pan(s), pour chocolate chips over cake and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean!

Fun in Illinois

This past Thursday we headed out to Illinois to celebrate the 4th of July with family. On the first night we stopped at Brownsburg, Indiana and stayed the night. The hotel had an indoor pool, which is a must-have for burning off energy! Although the kids were so wired with excitement and the craziness of having everyone in the same room that they didn't get to sleep until after 10:30.

We took our time getting up the next morning, and then headed out to Bloomington, Illinois. Once there we met up with one of Josh's cousins, grabbed a bite to eat, and headed to a water park. It was so much fun, the kids had a blast! The area for the younger kids was perfect..... plenty of stuff for the 'big' kids to do, yet was also very safe for Casey. After the water park we went to our hotel to check in and then headed back over to his cousins house for a cookout. After lots of visiting, kickball with the kids, and catching fire-flies, we headed back to our hotel for some much needed rest!

The next morning, the 4th, we woke up to lots of rain! We headed over to Josh's uncles house for a cookout and pool party. The weather was still pretty crappy.... rainy and chilly.... but that didn't stop the kids from wanting to put their suits on and swim! Josh suited up with them to supervise..... Casey was the first one back to me, he wasn't even wet except for the rain, and Clay soon followed. Carlie, of course, had to be bribed to come back in the house! After eating tons of food and hanging out, we headed over to another uncle's house (very large family!) for camping and fireworks. The 'camping' part didn't really work out very well as it was still raining, but we got to have more good food and the rain finally quit in time for us to watch the fireworks!

After the fireworks we decided to start heading east. We talked about driving the whole way home, but finally came to our senses when we got to Champaign and found another room. The kids were in their pajamas and we didn't even carry up the suitcases.... just wanted a place to rest for the night! We got home Sunday afternoon around 1, and even though we had a great time, it was good to get home and back into our own beds! Thanks Illinois Heap's for having us out.... we really enjoyed our visit!

A Tribute to Salty August 1999 - June 2009

Our sweet, little cat Salty had to be put to sleep this past Thursday. She was almost 10 years old and I loved her very much. She was such a good cat and followed me almost everywhere I went. The poor thing was starting to lose control of her bowels and bladder, and blood was also present when she would go. The vet said it would probably be best at this point if we put her to sleep. It was very hard for me to do! I sent the kids in to Mom and Dad's on the day we put her down.... I knew that I would be a mess and I didn't want them to see me like that, I also wanted to be able to spend time with her before she left and get rid of her 'stuff'.... the litter box, food bowls, etc. while they were gone. Josh ended up taking her on Thursday night at 7:30 and I made him promise me that he would stay with her. He stayed back as long as he could and ended up getting teary-eyed himself! That night and the next day were the most difficult, probably because the kids (big distractions) were gone, leaving me to think about Salty, but it also gave me a chance to mourn. We love you Salty girl.... we'll never forget you!!

Happy 70th anniversary Meme and Papa!

This past weekend we went back home to celebrate the 70th wedding anniversary of my great- grandparents. We had a lot of fun and got to see some family that we hadn't seen in years! Naturally I only managed to take a couple of pictures! :(

I have such fond memories of my sister and I staying with Meme and Papa when we were little. Meme used to take us on long walks, we would go down to the little bridge and throw rocks in the water, we loved sitting on the swing with her while she sang to us, she always let us help make 'no-bake' cookies, we would get to eat ice cream out of these pretty, little, shiny bowls (she still has them, I believe), and we always got a warm bubble bath.... she always made our stay as special as she could.

Meme has been struggling with Alzheimer's for over 10 years now, and for the last few years Papa has been taking on all of the household chores like cooking and cleaning. He is such a wonderful person, very patient with her and always doing whatever he needs to help. My Grandma calls him a saint. I can't even imagine how hard it is for him, not just the physical part of helping her to the bathroom, with dressing, walking, bathing, etc., but also the mental and emotional aspects of it too..... watching your spouse slowly fade back into a child-like state is certainly a difficult thing to do. But what a perfect example of unconditional love!

There are some days when Meme will cry out for Jesus to come and take her home, and our family has said, how wonderful that even in her confusion she knows where she's going.

I love my great-grandparents very much. I am so thankful for them, and for the example that they have set for us. I'm also thankful for the wonderful memories and will always hold them close to my heart!

*The first picture shows the 5 generations, and then the cake I made for the party.