Memorial Day Memories

When I was little my parents joined a private lake club in New Jersey called Deer Lake.  The official opening day of the summer season was Memorial Day and I don't think we ever missed going on that day every year.  In 1965 we purchased our campsite in the camping area.  There were a lot of wooden platforms where people would set up their large tents, generally old army tents, moved in makeshift furniture and spent the summer.  Memorial Day weekend was always the BEST!  I had numerous friends there, many of whom I did not see during the fall and winter months.  It was so exciting to see everyone again.  As so many others did, my mom and I spent the summer there while my father commuted to work from the tent.  The campground originated during WWII during the gas shortage so people could just stay at the lake. 

We camped every summer all through high school and up until I got married.  My parents kept the campsite and and we and our kids would go almost every day just for the day.  After my father passed away my mom continued to camp by herself every weekend.  My girls loved the lake as much as Rich and I did and made many friends.  In 1988 we were transferred to Pennsylvania but not far enough away that we couldn't go to the lake.  We resumed camping with my mom every weekend until we were transferred to Texas in 1991.  She continued camping for another 2 years until she made the move to Texas. 

Once Deer Lake gets "into your blood" it never leaves.  Evey Memorial Day I think of the lake and all the fun we had growing up there.   We sailed and raced our Sunfish sailboat, we participated in swimming races, rowboat and canoe races and mile long swims.  We all learned to swim there and Rich and I took lifesaving classes.  We go back to visit once in a while and it always feels like going home.  Jennifer has also taken Lacie there twice.    My grandparents were original members and my aunt and uncle and cousins also were members.  Rich grew up there with his family but weird as it may seem that is not where we met.  Most of our friends moved away years ago, although a few still go every summer.  Unfortunately we lost contact with a lot of our old friends over the years.

Through the miracle of Facebook I started a Deer Lake Group page a couple of years ago in the hopes of reconnecting with some of these old friends.  I succeeded - there are almost 200 members of the group and I have once again been in contact with friends I hadn't seen or heard from in 40 years!  All my Deer Lake friends are very special to me and always will be.  We created life-long friendships and memories at the most special place on earth!

Now my Memorial Days are spent at home in Texas with the family in our pool.  Yesterday they all came for a swim and "breakfast for lunch".  It is amazing how fast one family can fill a pool!  They swam in the morning then we cooked a pancake lunch on our grill's built in griddle.  I have no idea how Jennifer and James can afford to feed these kids!  We went through 2/3 of a box of pancake mix, 1-1/2 pounds of bacon and half a family size bag of sausage.  They were still hungry so Jennifer scrambled 9 eggs for them.  And after that they devoured most of a large home-made cheesecake.  We ate outside in

our outdoor room that Rich built last year.  My Deer Lake friends might think they recocognize the design of the structure.  Yes, we were thinking of the camper's shelter when we

drew up the plans.  You can't see very good in the picture but the

railing around the structure is a duplicate of the railing on the bridge to

the campground.  And if anyone remembers Janet Farnow and her

renouned cheesecake - that is the recipe I used.  And as usual we talked about past summers spent at Deer Lake and how much we miss it. 

Happy Birthday Lacie

Yesterday was Lacie's 10 birthday!  Seems like just yesterday that she was born.  She has blossomed into a beautiful young woman who makes us all proud.

Her celebration started Friday nigh with a sleepover at home with 8 girls.  So as not to bother the party we had 2 of the other kids, Georgia and Daphne, overnight and Gabbie and Grant went to Hoyt and Beth's, the other grandparents.  It was your typical late night sleepover with a bunch of giggly girls.  How fun!

Sunday afternoon was her family party.  Lots of kids, presents and of course a cake made by Jennifer.

Our present to Lacie was an overnight stay at our house last night followed by a trip to The American Girl Doll Store in Dallas today.  As most girls would be she was quite excited at the prospects of picking out her first very special American Girl Doll.  On the way home last night we stopped for dinner at Chilis along with Mimi.  After breakfast this morning we peaked at dolls on the internet before we headed out to "the store".   I was pretty sure she had already decided what she wanted from our internet browsing.  I had hoped for one who looked just like her but she had other ideas.  She fell in love with a beautiful Native American Indian doll named Kaya in a blue dress.  Of course the doll came in a brown dress, the blue one being sold seperately.  But it was her special present and we left the store with doll and blue dress. 

On the way home we treated her to lunch at The Rainforest Cafe.  Of course her new best friend also attended. 

If I haven't mentioned before (and I am sure I have) Lacie is a very special young girl to us.  She is of course beautiful but also kind, thoughtful, smart, sensitive, caring and just an all around good child who has never given any of us any trouble.  She is the product of her great up bringing by Jennifer and James and a true gift from God.

Happy Birthday Lacie - we love and treasure you!

Cruising

On January 29, 2012 Rich and I took our first cruise.  We went on the Carnival Magic, a new ship sailing out of Galveston, TX.  It stopped on Cozymel, Grand Cayman and Montego Bay, Jamaica.  We left on Sunday.  Monday was spent at sea  - a very rough sea.  According to seasoned cruisers it was unusually rough.  My lunch menu was Dramamine and Pepto Bismol.  That helped but it was tough.  That night we went to a show and watched the spotlights swaying pretty bad.  Even the cruise director mentioned how bad it was.  On the walk back to our cabin I was literally bouncing from wall to wall.  Luckily we woke up to calm seas on Tuesday and it stayed that way the rest of the trip.  Phew!

We absolutely loved the cruise!  I was afraid I might freak out when I couldn't see land or other boats but that was not a problem.  It took us most of the week to explore the boat.  It was as long as 3 football fields and 14 decks tall.  Our cabin was on deck 2 in what they call a cove balcony.  We really liked being close to the water and really enjoyed the balcony.  The room was quite spacious and comfortable.  Our room key worked the lights in the cabin.  Upon entering we had to insert the key into a slot for the lights to come on.  When leaving, we removed it and the lights went off.  What a great energy saving program and source of anusement for me. 

We chose "our time" dining which was really nice since we could eat whenever we wanted.  Most nights we went to the main dining room, also most breakfasts.  Lunches were spent at the many buffets.  We had 2 "dress up" nights which was nice.  The food was wonderful.  Even with my lapband I was able to enjoy a wide variety of dishes.  Every night we met new people - everyone was very nice.  Most were seasoned cruisers and gave us a lot of tips.  Every night in the dining room they dimmed the lights and the wait staff danced for about 5 minutes.  Quite amusing!

Here are some pictures from the inside of the ship.  Everything was brand new and shiny.  We saw three Vegas type shows and 3 comedy shows.  There was lots of various entertaiment everyday including trivia games, live bands and karaoke.  Regretfully I couldn't talk Rich into the karaoke.  The casino was fun but not very profitable for us.  There was one deck full of shops, luckily not very profitable for them. 

 A good chunk of our time was spent on the outside decks.  There were two pools and numerous hot tubs.  There was a large water park - Rich went down both slides.  We played miniature golf, pool and Rich went on an overhead ropes course.  We got in lots of sun and relaxation time, especially enjoying the adults only Serenity Deck.  I mostly relaxed and read!

Our first stop was Cozymel.  We got off the ship and shopped for about an hour but didn't have any excursions scheduled.  It was quite colorful! 

The second stop was Grand Cayman.  We had previously scheduled an excursion to swim with the dolphins and stingrays.  There was no dock in Cayman so we had to take what was called a "tender" - a small boat that transported us from the ship to shore.  From there we took vans to where the dolphins were.   We then boarded another boat for a 5 mile ride to Stingray City, a beautiful sandbar in a cove.  There were numerous other boats there.  It took a little courage for me to exit the boat via a ladder but I finally summoned all my courage and did it.  We were chest deep in the bluest water I have ever seen surrounded by stringrays with a 5' span.  These creatures were extremely large and incredibly soft and we had a great time playing with them.  Of course there were professional photographers with steep prices but these pictures are priceless to me.  The underwater pictures were taken by Rich.

Getting back on the boat via the ladder was another challenge but I managed.  We then went back to where we started with the dolphins.  We donned life vests in preparation for our swim with the dolphins.  Again - another ladder!  I just could not do it with a bad knee and sore shoulders from the previous ladder so I finally just jumped in!  Hence the wonderful hairdo in the pictures.  Again, there was a professional photographer and we ended up purchasing pictures and a DVD.   This was a once in a lifetime experience!

Stop 3 was in Montego Bay, Jamaica.  We investigated exursions before hand but none got very good reviews so we decided to pass.  We were warned about getting off the ship and being accosted by drug dealers.  That didn't sound like much fun so we stayed on the ship.  Actually, excursion day is the best time to say on board since we almost had the boat to ourselves.  We really enjoyed it.

Being in the middle of the ocean with almost nothing around you is great for viewing sunsets and sunrises.

Although while sailing we didn't see many other boats we apparently were not alone.  We saw quite a few other ships while at the various ports.  The shear size of these ships is amazing.

Every night when returning to our cabin after dinner we were treated to chocolates and various towel sculptures created by our staff. 

All in all our experience was fabulous and something we will ever forget.  The boat was georgous, the food was wonderful and the staff was fabulous.  I don't have one bad thing to say about the trip and would recommend it to anyone who hasn't already tried it.  This was our first cruise but it won't be our last!!!

Pinterest Projects

Most of my friends know what Pinterest is.  In case you don't here is their official description -

"Pinterest is a virtual pinboard. Pinterest allows you to organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. You can browse pinboards created by other people to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests.
People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and share their favorite recipes."

What they don't tell you is how addicting their website is!  When you get on for the first time you have to request an invite.  This may take a few days (not sure what that step is for) - just be patient, it's worth the wait.  When you get your invitation you can sign on with your Facebook account and all your FB friends who are on Pinterest will be added to your "following" list.  You then set up your own "boards" for your personal interests - then start pinning!  Two of my boards are "Things to Make" and "Recipes".  There is not enough time in the world to make all the things I have pinned that I want to make, even in retirement.  But I have made some of things I have pinned.  Some turned out better than others.  Here is what I have created so far:

One of the first things I pinned was this letter covered with pictures.  It took quite a while to collect all the pictures digitally.  I copied them into Powerpoint and sent it to FedXKinkos to be printed - have to use a laser printer.  Of course all the pictures turned out too big so I had to resize them and have them printed again.  Cutting out and gluing them to the letters was very time consuming and stressful to make sure they all fit just the way I wanted them.  I loved the letters  I got from Hobby Lobby and was very happy with the way they turned out.  The funny part was that weeks after I had made the project, Jennifer pinned the same idea to her board of things to make.  It was funny to see her reaction when she opened the present on Christmas.

I REALLY wanted to make this bowl that was made by rolling paper, gluing to a balloon then popping the balloon.    I had been saving magazines and waited until after Christmas to start this project.  It was a PROJECT all right!  I cut, folded, and rolled paper for 4 days!  I really thought I had enough to complete the project.  I blew up the balloon and started gluing.  It was quickly obvious that I had used too large a balloon and had half the amount of paper that I needed.  The look of the finished project was pretty cool but I haven't found any practical use for my "half bowl".  It will probably end up where the magazines should have gone in the first place - the recycle bin!

Another early idea was this windchime made from a collander, silverware and beads.  I finally made it to "Pickers Point" - an antique and collectible shop I have had my eye on for a while.  Great shop  - they had all the supplies I needed - I already had the wire and beads.  This project took about 2 hours and is already hanging on my outdoor room.  I will probably make another version for the other side.  Last year I hung plants there and had to replace them 3 times due to the Texas heat and lack of rain.  These windchimes won't have that problem.

The bracelet and ring were fun projects.  I like the bracelet best.  The beads I used for the ring are a little too big.  I might try that one again.

This necklace was fun and drew a lot of compliments when I wore it before Christmas.  I used various Christmas ribbon I had on hand.  Some of it was a little scratchy though. 

The rest of my projects were recipes.  Every one was really good so I can't wait to try more.  Luckily Rich is a real good sport where food is concerned and will eat just about anything and enjoys trying new things.  The parmesan crisps turned out great and very easy to make.  I did splurge on freshly ground cheese rather that the powered kind I usually have on hand.  Cheerios Breakfast Cookies are really good.  With my lapband, crunchy things are easy for me to eat.  I have a whole bagful in the freezer for a quick and easy breakfast.  The cheesy olives turned out real good too.  Rich wasn't quite as excited about them as I was but he ate them anyway. 

I was so excited when I saw the rosettes.  I used to make them in the 1970's and had long since gotten rid of the special iron needed to make them.  Of course Amazon had one for sale and two days later I had it.  Cookies are fried one at a time and the recipe made about 3 dozen.  Many hours later I was finally finished.  They turned out the way I remembered - very similar to a funnel cake.  I did forgot exactly how I stored them.  They got soggy pretty quick and when we wanted to eat them had to crisp them up in the toaster over.  I don't remember doing that before so I must find a better way to keep them crisp.  The pancakes poured over a strip of bacon was REALLY good as was the cream cheese and cucumber rolled in a tortilla.

By far our favorite recipe was the one for shrimp.  It was easy, quick and YUMMY!

Did I say how much I LOVE Pinterest??  Every day I find at last 10 more things I want to make.  All the above projects can be found on my boards along with a link to the recipes.  A lot of the craft projects did not link to instructions but I was able to figure it out by looking at the picture.   If you are not currently on Pinterest get on quick and link up to me!  Lord knows I didn't need another computer addiction besides emal, Facebook, 3 versions of Angry Birds and jigsaw puzzles on my iPad but this is FUN!  Happy pinning!

Holiday Memories

Yikes - Thanksgiving has come and gone already.  As usual the family and some friends came to my house.   I LOVE cooking the Thanksgiving meal.  It gets hectic when it's time to serve but I still love it.  This year I cooked a 22 lb turkey that I got for free by shopping at Tom Thumb.  I am so very traditional.  I make Pepperidge Farm stuffing - the same that my mother and mother-in-law used to make and probably my grandmother.  I also make mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes with marshmallows, green beans almondine, creamed onions and dinner rolls.  My mom always makes the pumpkin pies - the same way she has been making them since I was little.  This meal has not changed in the last 20 years that I have been cooking it!  Nothing fancy for us and that's the way we all like it.  I remember going to my grandparents house in Nutley, NJ for Thanksgiving every year along with my aunt and uncle and 2 cousins.  I am an only child and those cousins were the closest I had to a brother and sister.  I can visualize sitting at their dining room table eating just about the same meal that I just described.  One of the best parts was jumping into the newly raked piles of leaves in their front yard.  And the smell of burning leaves which you were allowed to do back then. 

The day after Thanksgiving is reserved for Christmas decorating.   Years ago my husband discovered a good sized empty space behind a bathroom, behind my closet and under our stairs (poor planning by the builder).  He cut a hole in my closet and put in a door and that is where we store all our Christmas trees and decorations.  The only drawback is that most of my clothes and shoes have to be removed and put on the bed until we can return the empty boxes back into the closet.  If I want to go to bed that night all the decorating has to be done in one day.  Around New Years we do the same thing but in reverse.

I see so many beautiful trees and decor ideas in magazines and on-line.  But my house?  How could it be anything but traditional!!  I have a large tree in my formal living room (aka play room for the grandkids).  I have some beautiful ornaments but the most treasured ones are the old ones.  I have the girls' first ornaments from 1976 and 1979 and ornaments that were given to us by our parents in the early years.  When I was little my grandmother put cute little ornaments on my gift packages.  I still have them.  Until a few years ago I still put them on my tree but since they are so old recently they have stayed in their container. 

I have a slim tree in my family room.  It is mainly decdorated with unbreakable ornaments.  The kids are old enough now that they don't touch the tree but I am very attached to the ornaments and will probably use them forever.

On the mantle in the family room I have a nativity set that Rich made for his mother when we were first married.  I remember finding the instructions in either Woman's Day or Family Circle Magazine.  He cut them out and carved them by hand.  She loved that set and kept it in her living room all year round.

When Rich was little his mother took him Christmas shopping in a local drug store in Orange, NJ that was owned by a family friend.  Rich picked out these figures and asked the owner how much they cost.  He asked Rich how much he had and was told 5 cents.  He said that was exactly what they cost and Rich purchased them for his mom.  I know, it sounds like a Leave It To Beaver story but trust me, I heard that story every year that his parents were alive!  His mom was SO proud of them and I still display them (on a high shelf!).  Notice that they spell the word Noel.

Rich's parents had a small stuffed Santa that was displayed in their living room window every year.  Unfortunately the sun came in that window and it is very faded (light orange now) but I still display it.

When I was growing up I had my favorite Aunt Betty.  She was one of my father's two sisters.  She loved to spoil me!  Two of my favorite Christmas items came from her when I was little.  The first is a large stuffed Santa.  After doing some research I discovered he was the Coco Cola Santa.   He has two left hands and is actually worth quite a bit these days.  Not that I will every part with him!  The second is a metal mechanical Santa bank.  He worked until just a few years ago.  I was very little when she gave these to me so they are over 50 years old!

When I was little I remember getting my parents up very early in the morning to open my presents.  I always got what I wanted and still believed in Santa until I was 12.  For some reason my favorite toy was a large chord organ which I enjoyed playing.  Not sure why since I have no musical talent!  After that we would go to see my Aunt Betty and Grandma O'Connor then on to my Aunt Eileen and Uncle Herm Ferber's house to see my cousins Donny and Terry.  Thanks to Facebook I have been in touch with Don whom I haven't seen in over 40 years!  After that we went to Grandma and Grampa Wills with my Aunt Marge and Uncle Ken and cousins Kathy and Kenny.  The best memory I have is the three of us in the front corner of the living room under the tree tearing open our presents in record time.  Unfortunately I don't remember exactly what most of those presents were except that Kenny always got Erector Sets.  Memory is a funny thing!

I have tried to keep traditions alive in my family.  When my girls were little I made them needlepoint stockings.  They still get filled every year.  I LOVE Christmas.  My favorite part is finding just the right presents for everyone and seeing the surprised looks on their faces every year.  I feel so blessed to still have my mom around for the holidays (91 years old).  She will spend the night with us and partake in all the festivities.  Including a prime rib dinner on Christmas Day.  She is like a little kid this time of year!

I wish happy memories and traditions for all my friends!