Labor Day

My brother, Johnny, and his beautiful wife, Corey, hosted a family cookout on Labor Day and we all had such a WONDERFUL time!

~Thank you~

 Amy and Abe just returned from their Minnesota Adventure which I will blog about soon!

 Loving Abe!

Grandpa Joe and Abe spent some time together...

 I can't believe Abe is walking!

He looks so "old".

 Abe loves his daddy and says dadadada every time he sees him.

Thank you, Kate, for this sweet picture!

I didn't get too many family shots, but I did manage one of my dear niece, Rupa, and her cute daughter, Priya.

 Johnny showed us his motorized bicycle.  Next time, I want to give it a try!

I am so glad Brooke decided to join us as she had tons of schoolwork to do and wasn't sure she would be able to make it.

Now that my parents are gone, I value the importance of family gatherings more than ever.  

~It was the best of times~

My Story Squares

 Kate and I really did have a grand whirlwind visit!

 I started a mini online class and instead of scrapbooking prompts, I am doing Story Square illustrations.

I have such fond memories of this dear, sweet lady!

I wonder where her life journey took her as she married shortly after I had her and moved on...

~Love doing the Story Squares~

My "Other" Family

 I added a child to my "pretend" family...Samantha!

Of course I needed to order the "new" Samantha doll today for inspiration for my stories.

Lots to write about...when I make the time!

Sock Monkey Love

I am reading this wonderful book and have rekindled my love affair with Sock Monkeys!

Hmm...

A Spur of the Moment Trip to Syracuse

Kate decided to head to Syracuse for Scott's first football game of the season late last week and wondered if I wanted to make it a Sister Road Trip...and I did!  We were sorry Cassi was unable to join us.  Next time!

The drive to Syracuse was a fun adventure in and of itself and we arrived at Missy's beautiful home just hours before the game.

I felt as though we were at a resort and was sorry we wouldn't have more time to take advantage of this wonderful setting.

Kate was clearly enjoying herself...

Happy...

Admiring Elsa's new car...

 We did spend some time visiting with Elsa's beloved guinea pigs.

Off to the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York...

Tailgating with Missy, Elsa, and Kate!

Inside...

 Let the game begin!

 Scott is in the middle of the huddle and Kate and I are admiring the new team uniforms.

 We always think of Mom when we watch the marching band.  How she loved them!

 The game against Villanova was a heart stopper!

After 3 1/2 hours, we went into double overtime...

And we WON!!!

After the game...

We all attended Scott's press conference and were thrilled to be part of the Syracuse Orange's first victory of the season!

Thank you, Missy, Elsa, and Scott for a fabulous 18 hours...

Kate and I really did have the best of times and a great trip back to Ohio.

Our Amish Neighbors

 Our neighbors are hard at work...as usual.

Watching our Amish Friends allows me to live in the past for a short period of time and it makes my heart happy... 

Brooke's Open House for Parents

I love that Brooke has a gift for the parents who will be attending the Middle School Open House this evening.

Beams From the Heavens

We are so blessed with the magnificent views on our farm.

Vicki's Journal...Story Squares

 Oh, how I miss my mom...

 Kate and I were talking about "life" yesterday and she mentioned the word acceptance.

That is something I need to work on...

Sometimes I miss the days when I was teaching, raising children, visiting my parents, being part of art groups...rug hooking and Malabar Farm Spinning and Weaving Guild...and starting up Hittyville.

Life does go on and I love this part of my journey, but now and then find myself thinking about the hustle and bustle of daily living back in the day.

So...I have made up a family who is having all those kinds of adventures and decided to write about them in a private blog.

The children are based on some of my favorite dolls. I am so excited to work on this project.  I won't be limited by posing dolls and making sets...just lots of writing from my imagination!!!

~The mind can be a wonderful thing~ 

Hitty Jane's Journal

 Oh, I am so excited!  Doll Mother found these perfectly wonderful rugs for my homestead...

I have a new dress with the Syracuse University school colors...orange and blue!

The reason I have a new dress is Doll Mother and I are joining Kate for a Grand Adventure to Syracuse, New York!
Doll Mother's sister, Missy, is married to Scott, who is the Head Football coach at Syracuse University.  I have never been to a football game and am REALLY looking forward to it!
The orange friend in the picture is Little Otto who is related to the Syracuse Football mascot.
The very handsome Syracuse Gnome gets to live on my front porch during the football season.

Life just keeps getting better and better! 

My Mini Morning Vacation

 Today decided to treat myself to Breakfast by the Pond.

I need to do that more often...

Needing Structure

 I have so many things I want to do and need to start making a list to organize my thoughts.

I feel better already!

Hitty Jane's Journal...Interior Design

Such glorious news, dear Journal!

Doll Mother and I have started decorating my living room.

  My dress matches the colors of my furniture...

I can't wait to see how we decorate the walls.

~Fun~

Molly Mouse and Friends

A spotted giraffe is really quite tall

And makes Molly Mouse

Feel ever so small.

Vicki's Journal...Humid Tuesday

 I finally got around to making Brooke's "First Day of School" gift.

 I thought it might be fun to journal in squares....

Short and sweet...

~Happy Tuesday~

Sunday With Abe

Another glorious Sunday...because we got to spend time with Abe!

Joe had some more work to do on Noah and Amy's fence and we met up with our West Park Family at Panini's.

Abe is looking out the window and watching the traffic light change colors.

My grandson doesn't miss a thing!

I love the mother-son bond Amy and Abe have...It makes my heart so happy to know Abe has the best mother in the Universe!

After lunch, Abe and I did some car watching.

His attention span is quite amazing.  We finally had to pull him away after a full fifteen minutes of watching the world pass by.

Two older ladies spotted Abe from their car and waved quite enthusiastically at him.

Back home...

 Joe and Noah redid the fence to make sure the Houdini Dogs cannot escape...as they did a few days ago!

Now Noah can weed and mulch along the fence line.

 Noah needed Joe's ladder and tools to trim the Crabapple tree.

 Looking good!

 I love that this sign is right by Abe's house!

This West Park neighborhood has many police officers living in it and everyone watches out for one another...especially the children.  

 This tree island is just beautiful!

After a long nap...

 Abe played drums on his blocks for Mr. Fox.

 This is Abe's favorite picture at the moment.  He kept opening the book to these pages and just stared at them.

 Amy told me Abe has started to verbalize when he looks at his books.

Pre-reading!!!

 I witnessed Abe's first attempt at opening the door to their entry hall.

 Abe proceeded to open the door...and close it...and open it!

 Ellie likes sitting on Mommy's lap too...

 Amy and I took Abe for a walk in his new stroller.

 It was time for Joe and I to head back to the Farm and say goodbye to our beloved West Park Family.

Abe has mastered the art of waving...

~It was the best of visits~