Adventures in Babysitting

I spent the weekend taking care of Miss Lauren and Miss Emersyn. Oh my. I'm just glad we all survived each other. Such sweet kids and not really hard to care for at all, but…(there's always a big but!), I am not young anymore. And there were stairs. So my already overweight body had to pack yet another 25 lbs. or so up and down stairs several times a day. I remember stairs in a couple of our houses, and I felt very differently about them then, than I do now. Of course I was much thinner and youthful. Poor Lauren had to play by herself in the toy room upstairs because Granny wouldn't go up and down them even more. She did great though. Even picked up and put away all her dress-ups that she got out. We had a few chair and bowl gymnastics in the kitchen, but no one is permanently damaged. Emersyn just played and crawled or slept, right on schedule. Her only real protests were diaper changes. She hates her diaper changed. I wish I had taken my camera with me, but like the dork I am, I forgot it. She would crawl away from the toys, come back around the couch and just peek around the corner. She would look at me until I looked over, and then she would pull her head back. Pretty soon here her little face would be peeking around again. I think she was deciding if I was paying any attention to her. So cute. I decided to make some bread my first day there to see if I could work out a recipe for Taya. During my mixing time I looked over and Emersyn was sitting on the floor just staring at the cabinets. I couldn't see what had her rapt attention. About then she did the whole eyes closed and unfocused to trying to keep them open thing and I realized she needed her nap. She never once cried about going to bed. A girl after my own heart - she loves her bed. Lauren protested some about sleep time, but once in bed was fine.

I don't have the mother's ears I used to, so I don't sleep well when in charge of small people. I'm afraid I won't hear them if they wake up, so I just don't sleep very deep. All in all though, it was an adventure. I now know all about Barbie Rapunzel, Barbie Swan Lake, Barbie Nutcracker, various baby einstein scenarios, Tinkerbell, Enchanted, Toy Story, Chicken Little (the sky is falling you know), just to mention a few of the visual aids.

I know my kids will all roll their eyes when I say…“I know why we have our children while we are young.” I so admire our mothers for all the work, both physical and emotional that go into their families every day. I know I did it at your ages, and am glad. There's nothing like caring for a family that makes you grow and mature. There's nothing like looking at the mother's you all have become and seeing that all the parenting was so worth it.

I hope Taya and Kevin know that I do feel the pain of watching Gramma Pearl during this hard time. You are all in my prayers all the time. With all the trauma and even the drama, we just need to be still and know God is a loving parent and all will be well. I know his will, will be done and we need to accept and realize it's all good. To have faith and to trust is difficult, but once we accept he does what is best for us all, there is comfort. I know all will be well. Glad you were able to go. I love you.

Call of the Jungle

It's almost time for the next summer fun movie, so I better get last week's on here. Madagascar 2 was pretty fun. Of course the kids had all seen it, but it was new to me. Very cute and some good lessons to learn in there. I especially like the “Chunky” song. For obvious reasons. This week coming up is “Kung Fu Panda”, and I hope it exceeds my expectations.

The week was a crazy one. The AC at Jamie and Summer's house took a permanent siesta, so we are sharing our cool air with them until they can get back into humane temperatures over there. It is nice to have them with us while they get it all figured out. I am working on some school t-shirt designs for the year coming up and am having fun with that. I love to get art here and there, maybe draw what I can't find and put it all together for different PTA/PTO's to sell. I have learned a lot in the process over the last few years. It's especially fun when I see the shirts I did on Faith, Tawna, Summer,or Rylee. I've done shirts for Robert's Sterling Auto Glass Co, R.B.'s Arizona Glass Co and Jamie's Ace Automotive. I'm glad they let me do their logo work - it's a way of helping them (I hope) with what I can do.

I was hoping I could go out to Queen Creek and pick corn - yes, to can it. I would like to do a batch or two and get the process figured out. I know one thing, I'm not going to the farm to pick by myself, so I will have to plan it for a time when one or two of our guys can come help. I remember doing corn with Nana when I was young, and it was kinda fun. A bit messy, but it cleans up. We had fresh frozen corn in the freezer all winter. It really is good, and I kinda miss it. I would like to see if the fresh canned kind would be as good. At least it would be a way of keeping some on the shelf. We'll see.

Our Father's Day

What a day! We started off with a fun surprise at church. On a previous primary activity day, the children decorated old ties that had been collected. There were ties of all decades of fashion. Wide ones, skinny string ones and everything in between. The kids unleashed their creative juices and with large amounts of glue (apparently, judging from the surplus on the ties) glued all manner of embellishments on said ties. There were pipe cleaners in various configurations, pom pom balls of all sizes and colors, many and varied jewels, and even some feathers. Bright ones. The ties were then folded and placed into blue lunch sacks and each man received his fashion statement for the day as he arrived at the doors into the chapel. I loved how the men were good sports and wore the ties with their suits, etc. An excellent way to start the day. I wish I had gotten a picture of some of them. Our ward Relief Society has volunteers bring in pie for our guys. We cut it up and plate it in the kitchen and then take it to Priesthood Opening Exercises to serve them. I think it is the best attended Opening Exercises all year. Guys do love their pie.

Once home I went into cooking mode to get things ready for dinner. Grumpy chose Swiss Steak for dinner this year, and that takes a little prep. He came in and cut all the meat up for me as he is better at meat cutting than I am. He did the onions for me too and then I banished him from the kitchen to take a nap somewhere. I will post the pics of the prep and recipe for Swiss Steak on Nana's blog. It is a recipe I got long ago from Gramma Harmon. Over the years we have modified it a bit, not the ingredients, but the finished product. She and Papa Harmon were coming over for dinner and were bringing their own baked potatoes. We have learned to eat Swiss Steak with rice instead of potatoes, so they were bringing their own side dish. I made squash from our garden and some corn and peas for the little ones that don't appreciate squash yet. I made Grumpy's favorite pie: Coconut Cream and then I made a Lemon Cream too. (my favorite) Taya made a delicious Peach Cobbler (also one of Grumpy's favs) and we had some vanilla ice cream on hand for that. We had a great dinner, and a great time visiting. I wish I had gotten pictures of Taya's Peach Cobbler, and the pies on plates, but I didn't.


As things were being cleaned up, Faith came and asked me to please go and sit on the couch by Grumpy. I assumed the kids wanted to give Grumpy his cards, etc., so I went in and sat down. We were both given the cutest cards ever. I guess Tawna was up to her creative vices and made these funny cards. I love them.





Our kids all went together and bought us a big surprise. We were a little speechless. At least I was. I will preface the gift by saying how sweet it was of all of them to do this. Lots of thought and a lot of money went into it. It was a combined Mother's Day, Father's Day present and I am still tearing up every time I look at it.



You can't tell by the picture, but it is a new Microwave. We have all completely worn out the microwave in Papa's house. I don't know how old it is, but it is definitely in it's death throes. It is quite the process to get it to work, and you have to hit it just right for it to come on, but if you don't do everything just so, the door falls apart and you get to figure out how to put it back together so you can warm up your food. I kept saying we were going to use it until it refused to work anymore. The kids must have believed me, so mercifully got us a new one so we could put the other one out of it's misery. I can't wait to get a couple of the boys over here to install it. It was such a nice thing and I hope you all know how much we appreciate it. You guys are the best and we were really surprised. I would never have guessed.


Above, Papa poses for me with his pirate patch on. He had cataract surgery on his left eye last week and is doing great. We do 3 kinds of drops 4 times a day to keep it that way. Bob and Sydney had him over for breakfast and Tracy and Kevin had him over for dinner on Father's Day. Papa always comes home and tells me all about the dinners (breakfast in this case too) and is full of love and appreciation for his children and grandchildren. He received many nice cards and presents and loves anything we give him. We all love him so much and hope he can feel our love and concern for him. We couldn't have asked for a better father. He had a great day too, and of course helped us eat the pie and cobbler. Family is everything.

My Guy

Such a great combination of wonderful attributes, character, humor, talent and yes, even a little nerdiness! It all makes him the person I have loved well over half my life. He is many things to many people. A great father to his children, a wonderful son to his parents and mine, a valued employee, diligent home-teacher, well prepared Sunday School teacher, and the most fun Grumpy to his grandkids. He is everything to me. It is hard for me to express how much I love and care for this man. I don't often buy cards that express sentiment, more often the cards are irreverent and hopefully funny. I don't often plan spontaneous outings or surprise vacations, but try to do small things that bring a smile in his many travels. I was thinking about the many things he has done that have surprised me over the years and one event keeps surfacing in my mind. Maybe because Father's Day brings back such memories.

We were living in our first home in northeast Mesa. Our ward was having a special all day mini women's conference and I was going to be gone all day that Saturday. The twins were about 10, Summer 9, R.B. 7, and Jade was 5 that summer. I had a great time at the function and was hoping all had gone well at home. Upon arriving home, I noticed Grumpy's 1970 El Camino was parked in the garage. Ummmm… strange. Oh well. I was walking past it when I noticed it was sort of painted. Like when kids get ahold of paint and brushes and know no bounds. Oh. My. I found myself praying they were all alive and well, surely despite being chained in their rooms and possibly beaten. Probably beaten. To my complete and utter amazement, all was calm inside. Grumpy says to me, “Did you see the car?” I respond, “Yes. How did that happen?” Apparently he got out the poster paints, mixed them with liquid dish soap, gave the kids brushes and told them to go for it! You would have to know how particular he is with his vehicles in particular and his possessions in general to appreciate my total shock. The kids had what appeared to be a great time wielding brush and paint all over Daddy car. Of course the liquid dish soap makes it all wash off, but I was still in shock. I didn't even know how he knew that. (My art class in high school painted cars inside the mall once. He must have remembered the paint thing from that). What a fun memory he made with the kids that day. I don't know if they ever think about that, but I remember it well. One of the things that endears him to me every time I think of it.

He is always willing to put himself aside for his kids, for others, and especially for me. I know he loves me unconditionally. I so very much appreciate that. He is the Best!

In the pic at the top he is spending some time at the piano. Sundays are his day to relax and he spends time playing the songs he knows. He can't remember them all the way through anymore, and without the music he can't refresh his memory. They are oldies, but goodies, so are not easy to find music for. “Born Free” (a certain arrangement I have not been successful in finding), “The Green Leaves of Summer”, “Love is Blue”, and some of the newer songs he has learned more recently. I love that he can sit down and work off some stress by playing music. Thanks for all you do for us. I love you, my honey.

Jordyn's Jam

I know, yet more jam. Jordyn had a sleep over and we had fun making some strawberry jam for her to take home to her family. She stemmed the berries, combined the ingredients to start cooking, measured all the sugar (and there's a lot) and then stirred the jam on the stove for awhile. I took over for awhile so she could sit down for a few minutes. When the jam was done cooking, she ladled the jars full and we got them ready to process. She learned a lot and I had fun just being in the kitchen with her. She is the proud canner of 11 and 1/2 pints of really yummy fresh strawberry jam. Yay Jordyn!



Two years ago she was a huge help when we were doing peaches and tomatoes. I hope she continues to enjoy the kitchen, she is a girl of many talents and she will be a great cook. Quite the student too, so she is good at many things. She was nice to go to Taya's house today to watch Emerson while Taya took Madison and Lauren to see Spiderwick at the Summer Fun Movie Day. I hadn't seen it before, so was pleasantly surprised. Some of the little ones were a little scared though. It was really funny to hear their comments all through the movie.



After the movie I went with Papa to his eye surgery appointment. He did really well and the nurse said everything was very normal with no surprises. He will be a couple of weeks recovering and then will get the other eye done.

I am washing pint jars so I can do some more apricot jam and try out some plum jam. I even got some blueberries to do a couple of jars. I have done them before, but don't really use many blueberries. They are so good in muffins of course, but I don't bake as much as I used to. I know corn is available now as well as green beans and always carrots. They are on my list. Meanwhile, I think “gourmet” hot dogs are on the menu for tonight. It's hard to beat a good hot dog with green chiles on it.

Just Life

Sunday in the kitchen cooking for who knows how many. Jade and Jaxon came in to help and so Jaxon learned to peel carrots. He did the whole batch and was cheerful about helping. Jade and I traded out the everyday dishes for the Stars and Stripes plates, etc. in honor of Independence Day coming up. We ended up with quite a group for dinner and it was wonderful to have that (mostly) happy noise in the house. Emmy is less than happy if she can't have her Mom or Dad, but we found ways to bribe her. Chocolate frosting still warm in the pan seemed to be a big hit. Sorry about the bad diapers Taya, but she really had fun with that.



Well into the evening Emmy's defenses were down a tad, so her bottle was bribe enough to get her on my lap for awhile. She has the cutest thunder thighs ever.

On Friday last week Jordyn was over and she and I made two different kinds of chicken salad for sandwiches to be eaten on our trip to the lake Saturday. It is the first time we have been to the lake in over 3 years. I really, really, really love the lake. There is something about being on the water that speaks to my soul. Grumpy and I, Summer, Jamie and kids piled into two vehicles and off we went. Sitting in the boat being gently rocked while we eat with the family is great therapy for me. Even while they are tubing, skiing or swimming it is nice to relax with each other. No phones, faxes, beepers, T.V. etc. to interfere with that little bit of family time. Gotta love it.

Grumpy made bread again on Friday night, so we will have some bread on hand while he is gone this week. Instead of helping him, Jade, Taya and I went to Cheesecake Factory for some Fried Zucchini and then on to a show. We saw “The Brothers Bloom”. It was different. I don't feel any need to buy it for our movie library, but it was a fun evening. Grumpy never minds when I am out with the girls. That way, I don't mind when he is out with the boys. It works out pretty well. Even though our time together is pretty limited, we just take what we can get and make that work.

It was a meatloaf Sunday, and I was going to take pictures for a recipe to post, but the camera battery needed charging so maybe next time. I made a chocolate cake for dessert and so breakfast will be extra good for a couple of days. I figure there's probably as much nutrition in chocolate cake as any of the cold cereals on the market to buy. Now there's a great rationale if ever I heard one.

I've been thinking about family a lot this week, and I am profoundly and eternally grateful for mine. My brothers and sisters, Dad and Mom, children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews (grands there too) are blessings on top of blessings to me. I am sometimes overwhelmed with wonder that we are all here in this great country enjoying the benefits of this land like no other. Even when I am upset over the things that are happening and threatening to happen, I am thankful for this nation and the hard won liberties that our rights are predicated on. I pray everyday that the Lord will soften the hearts of those determined to circumvent those rights and spur the rest of us to whatever action we can take to stop that from happening.

In the middle of all that, I am grateful we can still find time and means to do fun things with each other. We continue to build good memories that link our generations together. It isn't always big trips to the dunes, or little runs to the lake or trips to wherever that build good memories. Those things are fun and make good memories, but the simple meatloaf Sundays and all the other simple days in between those things are the basic fabric of our lives. I hope all my family knows how important each one of them are to me.

I love you all.

Who?

Horton. Apparently he had really good hearing to hear the voices on the speck. Cute movie, a little silly, but that is the M.O. for a Dr. Seuss book/movie. Good character building innuendo, kids don't get it, but they like the silliness and the action. I don't feel the need to buy it for our movie library, but it was fun to see it with the kids. Emersyn was with us for this one, and she was a good girl. She and Taya had a nice nap in the nice theater chair toward the end of the movie. I wish I had my camera, but of course couldn't have taken the pic in the darkness anyway. Too cute to see them sleeping so peacefully while Horton saved whoville from extinction.

I am finishing volume 4 of the “Prelude to Glory” series about our American Revolution. I am learning a lot about the history of it all, and of course the writer's view and conjecture on all of it. I can't even imagine how hard it was for our soldiers, and if not for the burning desire to be free, I'm sure none of them would have stayed to fight. It only underlines to me how complacent we have become about our freedom. I hope as a people we can wake up and be the Americans our forebears were. They were remarkable, courageous, principled people. This is a good series. I hope I can have it read by Independence Day. It's one of my favorite holidays. I truly do love this country.

The Mama's and the Papa's

Another new tradition for us (hopefully) this year. Since Mother's Day and Father's Day always involve hard choices on where to be for our children, we decided to try and simplify the process. Grumpy and I chose the Saturday 2 weeks after Mother's Day and 2 weeks before Father's Day to have our children over for dinner. It was an all adult night so we could really talk to each other and not worry about who's kids were where and doing what. Each daughter brought 2 place settings of their china/crystal/flatware and napkins to set the table. I did a tulip centerpiece and provided placemats and chargers (as well as anything else they needed). Each couple brought something to add to the meal and I did the entree. We had a great time, and I of course loved seeing the table set with such beautiful dishes. We only really have room for 10 at the table, so Grumpy and I, Papa, and Taya and Kevin sat at the bar in the dining room. It takes a little more effort on our part to be part of the conversation at the table, but we managed and I know Papa enjoyed the meal and conversation with us.



All the Mama's. Not Jennifer though.



All the Papa's. Ditto that Robert is a Papa-in-waiting. Handsome dudes, yes? We think they're pretty hot.

Our Table…


Tawna and Nathan's “Oxford Lane” Legendary China by Noritake


Taya and Kevin's “Café Du Soir” New Decade china by Noritake


Summer and Jamie's classic White and Gold banded place setting by Gibson China


Stacie and R.B.'s “Sweet Leilani” Legendary China by Noritake


Jade and Jeff's “Bordeaux” by Noritake China (on loan from me, an heirloom from Nana and Papa. He bought this china while serving in the Air Force during his tour of duty in the South Pacific on Guam island. He hadn't even met Nana yet. He gave it to her before they were married).


Jennifer and Robert's china by Royal Doulton I can't remember the pattern name, but it is a true classic. (on loan from Jennifer's Mom, an heirloom from Jennifer's Paternal Great Grandmother)


Mine and Grumpy's place setting “Aida” by Franconia in Germany given to me by Nana and Papa my sophomore year of college. Papa's place setting was the same as ours and he seemed to really like being involved in the whole thing. It was nice that he could be there with us.

It was so fun to see all the pretty dishes and nice to have an occasion to get them out and use them.

Our Menu…
Appetizers:
   Green chile/bacon wraps by Summer and Jamie
   Seven layer dip and corn chips by Stacie and R.B.

I didn't get pictures of the appetizers and sadly they were all eaten when it occurred to me to get the camera out. I will get the recipes for everything we had and post them on thecooksinnanasnook.blogspot.com. The food was amazing.



Salad by Jade and Jeff
   Spinach salad with craisens, sliced almonds, grape tomatoes and Raspberry/Walnut Vinaigrette or Ranch/Italian dressing

Entree and side by Granny and Grumpy
Lasagna with a side of zucchini and yellow crookneck squash

Garlic bread by Tawna and Nathan



Dessert by Jennifer and Robert
Pumpkin cake layered with cream cheese frosting topped with a glaze and sliced almonds with two scoops of French Vanilla ice cream.

Entertainment…
A movie none of us had seen before (with the exception of Papa) called “Forever Strong”. It is based on actual events and is about a Rugby team that has built a fantastic record over 3 decades of competition. It was really good and we enjoyed the story.

I hope the “kids” enjoyed this dinner as much as we did. I so look forward to these events and hope that in the coming years this new tradition will be well loved. I already love it and am looking forward to the next one. I can't help but pause to think how much Nana would have loved seeing the dining room decked out with such beautiful tableware, happy conversation and a menu with family favorites to feast on. It's the “little things” that bring her memory to these celebrations. I definitely got her crazy love for all things dishes. Not to mention the rest of the paraphanellia (?) that goes with them.

good times.

I forgot to mention the fun door prize. I had extra stuff, and so made up a small lasagna to send home with someone. We assigned numbers to each couple, put the numbers in a bowl and Grumpy drew. R.B. and Stacie took the door prize home and will enjoy it with their kids.

The Official Dessert for the Summer

I thought I would post a little bit about Nana's ice cream. She was so good at whipping up a batch or two, and Papa would do the honors of freezing it. She would make Vanilla (with just a touch of lemon flavoring in it) and bake a big chocolate cake often in the summertime. Works in perfectly with my idea of what the summer food groups ought to be. Who needs dinner when you can have cake and ice cream? I can remember many phone conversations that either started or ended with, “I have ice cream in the freezer for anyone who wants to come eat some with me!” After a while she got a recipe for the toffee ice cream and refined and honed it to perfection. I know Bob and Syd and Tracy and Kevin know how to do her recipe to it's finest. I posted a picture of the recipe above and I think if you click on it, it will appear much bigger. I guess you can print it out from that, or you could leave a comment with your email address and I will send you a pdf file that I know will print out great. I am looking at the ice cream freezers now available at Sam's Club for around $60.00 in the half gallon size. They have both the hand crank feature and the electric motor attachment which would be nice. I may have to go back and get one to try out.

I just can't think of summer without the sound of the ice cream freezer going (especially on the holidays) and enjoying some ice cream with Nan and Pop. Those are precious memories and I treasure them. I'm glad I had a Mom that “went to all that trouble” for her family. I don't really know how anything could be that much trouble when you are doing such wonderful things for your family. After all, if you don't do special things for your family, who would you do them for? Thanks Nana and Papa for the many, many things you did for all of us. We have such a lot to remember.

I am posting the recipes on Nana's Cooks In Nana's Nook blog. I hope you will make some ice cream from her wonderful recipes and throw caution to the wind for some ice cream and cake for dinner sometime this summer. I, meantime, am going to explore more flavors and techniques to learn some new stuff. Freezer Time! I also will be going online to find a recipe for the Brandied Fruit that Nana used to keep going. It is a culture that must be tended and added to, much like the popular Friendship Bread that makes it's rounds from time to time. We would put it on vanilla ice cream and it was heaven. If I find it, I will post it.

Movie Day/Birthday Day

The second in our Summer Movie Series was “Nim's Island”. I was pleasantly surprised and really enjoyed the story. Jody Foster is a good actress and I haven't seen anything Gerard Butler has been in that I didn't like. He was excellent in “Phantom of the Opera” and is basically just good to look at. Once again the 14 kids we had with us were happy to be there, happy to eat popcorn and various kinds of sugar, and happy for the sodas. The 6 adults along for crowd control had a really good time and I am now looking forward to next week's “Horton Hears A Who”. I generally love Dr. Suess, so I hope it does him justice. I have since gone online to see the trailer for “New Moon” coming up in November - it looks like it will be really good. Can't wait for that.

I think the kids went to “free lunch” at one of the local elementary schools and somehow fit swim lessons in somewhere. Then they all went to open swimming at the pool and splashed around until around 4:00. Then home for some quiet time. The boys went to do boy things with Grumpy, R.B., Jeff and Robert and the girls went to Megan's Birthday Girls Night.





She chose T.G.I.Fridays for the restaurant and so off we went for a fun dinner out with the girls. Then on to yet another movie - “Up”. Not quite what I was expecting, but enjoyed it. The storyline, and general subject matter was a little more adult in context than I thought it would be. The girls liked it, but there were some tears.




By the end of the movie everyone was tired, Faith was coming down with a cold and didn't feel good and Rylee came home with me to wait for Jamie to come pick her up to take her home. I stayed up and read for awhile and finally made it to bed about 12:30 am. A pretty good day all things considered. I hope Megan's birthday was as fun for her as it was for the rest of us. Happy Birthday Megan and thanks for choosing a girls night. It was the best.

Sunday Bread

I guess this could qualify for Sentimental Sunday…only it's Monday! Sunday isn't always a bread making day, but it happens often enough that I have fond memories of fresh bread on Sunday. This Sunday however was a learning day for Grumpy. He has always wanted to learn to make bread and even tried once before long ago. Those loaves were more like slump block, but he gets an E for Effort. I didn't jump on the bread band wagon for a few years after that, and it does take some practice. I had good teachers in California when I made the commitment to make my family's bread. I have enjoyed doing it ever since. Grumpy is a great student. He made perfect bread yesterday, so I thought I would post the pics I got in the process.






The loaves are beautiful, yes? Thanks Grumpy for getting us great equipment so breadmaking is fun to do. You did great!

25 Years with the Company

Long ago and far away (25 years) Grumpy went to work for the Company. It was a good thing. It still is. He has had a wonderful career with them and we are grateful for the opportunity he has had to be a part of their industry. He is an outstanding employee and always does his best. I went with him on his business trip to El Paso last week as he was celebrating his 25th anniversary. This included dinner at the restaurant of his choice. He of course chose the Cattleman's Steakhouse on the Indian Cliffs Ranch which is about an hour from El Paso. It's kind of out in the boonies, and is really a cattle ranch. It is a sprawling ranch house type restaurant with lots of things to look at. There are deer outside, and a little museum, some bronze sculpture, paintings, some other animals and attractions. The beef is amazing, and so that is what we had. The El Paso Area Manager, Andy, and his Assistant, James were able to go with us.



It was a nice evening, and always a pleasure to spend time with “the guys” Grumpy works with. They are great guys and I know Grumpy appreciates the job they do.



The menus have lots of history and some humor on them. For instance; the menu item Lobster and the Steak and Lobster cost “A King's Ransom” instead of a dollar amount. It's anyone's guess how much that is.






There is a museum under construction honoring the Texas Cavalry and I took some pics of the cannon and the gun caisson we could see through the window.



Good times. The steaks were the best ever, the conversation too, and was a nice way to celebrate the occasion. We missed Grumpy's bosses, Phil and Ron but their schedules are just too tight to do everything all the time. They have been great to work with and Grumpy has great respect for them. He always says he works with the best. I don't think he is up for another 25, but a few more are definitely in the plan. I can't speak for the company, but I know how much I appreciate his dedication to the job, and his outstanding work ethic. He is a good man. I love you honey.