no longer a teenager

My younger brother isn’t a teenager anymore, since Sunday…this is sorta hard for me to grasp.

Like seriously yesterday we were…

playing cowboys and Indians together

arguing as we hauled maple sap back from the woods together

gleaning corn for the cows together

cleaning his room together, more like I was cleaning and he was watching and talking 

hunting white-tail deer together

swimming in flat rock river together

running all those roads around our old place together

And now that all over and he’s grown living in Tennessee six hours away. We text weekly and call some. I miss him but know this is the way life is indented to go.

 

And this weekend I went to visit him in TN with Christina…enjoy the few photos I remembered to take=) I had all these glamorous ideas of actually writing this post up during our drive home on Sunday. But I regretfully didn’t get to it and so it’s here a day later than I planned but oh well=/

The only picture of me…I know I know…without a schedule and a structured life, I can’t even remember to take a photo!Home at last!!! To lots and lots of snow and sub-below zero weather…just wonderful…

So here’s a quick recap of our trip…

Friday –

Christina came home from work saying her car was acting up.

I test drove it and moved the rattling pens in the console. Moral of the tale the car was fine…really fine!

Started on our six hour drive at 7:00 a.m.

Stopped to buy a sleeping mask for my tired “shot gun” rider. (so yeah it was a quiet and a very boring drive)

Met Samuel in Loblesville, TN. (Think a perfect redneck haven and you will have just begun to imagine what it’s like) TN had just suffered an ice storm and we all know what ice does to southern drivers, so Samuel led us in a less hilly way to his home.

Crashed at Sam’s house. (It’s so small and adorable)

Dinner at the Stoll’s house. We couldn’t drive up the hill due to the ice and snow so we walked up their mountain…I developed a head ache, which made my night miserable. Plus they served pasta and I had cuts in my mouth from a accident driving horses a few nights before. I’ll just stop there. (we were suppose to actually stay with these people for the duration of our stay but it was canceled due to their pipes freezing, poor people were without water for days. Which equaled no showers for them either)

Saturday -

Woke up at 4 and my siblings didn’t start stirring until 10:00 a.m.….I was starving!!!!

All the restaurants around opened late due to the weather….so no breakfast just shrimp alfredo

It was dumping buckets of rain all day long. And that on top of the ice made the road conditions worse.

Shopping…the only thing left to do. Christina and I got some wonderful deals at Goody’s.

Ate frozen pizza and cake at Sam’s house while watching his favorite you-tube singing clips=)

Then back Stoll’s house to watch “The Good Lie” btw: a very very good movie! The ice was still bad so we again parked and trudged to the very top of that pathetic hill.

About ten, after running to a friends house to shower the parents came in saying we were flooded in. GREAT! All the rain and temperature rise had creation yet another problem. Did I mention how much I love Indiana?!?!?

This bad new called for something chocolaty…freshly baked black bean brownies soaked in chocolate syrup did just the trick to cheer us all up.

Slept on their couches, and watched movies all night long. Needless to say we became very good friends with ALL the Stolls,

Sunday – Samuel’s 20th Birthday!!!!!!

Again, I woke up before everyone else.

Christina agreed to walk down and see if we were still flooded in.The water had all gone back down and the roads were clear. Also the hill was melted enough to drive up (so glad we didn’t have to walk that again!!!)

Ate a late but wonderful brunch – they made Belgian waffle with blue berry topping…so good!!!!!!

Everyone hurried back to their places of running water to clean up, then meet at the bowling alley in Dickson.

Samuel opened all his gifts from home that we brought with us=) while Christina and I hurried with our showers and makeup.

Samuel won the only game Christina and I had time to play with them. They continued to bowl long after we left.

Homeward bound by 4;30 p.m. (difficult leaving that sad face, of Samuel, behind us…but thankfully his friends were staying with him the rest of the day…..to help him celebrate his day=)

Home by 11:30 (They last hour I slept…but it was more like a series of a million nightmares. Seriously all the stuff I had to do this week kept playing through my mind)

12:30 p.m I sat in a daze on my bed thinking…inwardly vowing to never leave for a weekend again. even though I know I will…and I’ll regret it then too. Mainly because of ALL the work before I leave and after I get back is so stressful.

All and all it was a wonderful trip. Getting to see the wonderful smile of Samuel and celebrate his day, actually, with him was oh so worth it. All of it.

It was such a memorable weekend=)

 

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BTW: here’s a few pictures from the making of my first cake, frosting and all=) sadly I only took some on my phone…it was late at night, so I’m giving myself a break. Samuel loved it!!!

~Photo-a-day~ Nov 19-Nov 25

I went to my first Amish benefit dinner Friday night. Our neighbor kids took me on a tour of their school house. Picture a “Little House on the Prairie” school and you’ll will be imagining it perfectly. I totally could have gone to school like this. I mean they have the perfect play ground for recess and a stove inside for heating their lunches…

Samuel came home for Isaac’s birthday last weekend. He looked so good, just three weeks and he looks so much more like a man older. I wish he was nearer so I wouldn’t notice the change. His move hasn’t been anything but a good decision, so far. We all miss him, but thus is the life of adults. We all move on. He’ll be missing Thanksgiving with us, but he’s coming home for Christmas…and I’m going to visit him in January=)

Our entire family was together Saturday night for Isaac’s 17th birthday party…it was a fun night. I couldn’t help but be thankful for all these wonderful people God has blessed me with to call my family.

Samuel, Isaac and I did the weekly grocery shopping for our mom, together Saturday morning. The music was a bit loud at times and we might have pushed the cart a tiny bit too fast. But we got it all done in an hour! I was pretty proud of ourselves….haha! I love hanging with my brothers. They kept throwing food to one another. I think when I handed Samuel a large spaghetti squash and he throw it to Isaac who wasn’t expecting it, I could have died from embarrassment.

 

Day 323

~I feel…~

….so ready for this work day to be over. One good thing about my second job is I get to be outside.

Day 324

~work~

After I work my 7-4 job and then go an work horses till seven thirty, I finally arrive home to this. This is where I work on my dad’s business books every evening.

Day 325

~play~

As an adult, my definition of this word has changed a bit. This is what I do for play…make card/scrapbook…I have such a good time. Friday night I was making more Christmas cards for soldiers, while waiting on my bread to bake=)

Day 326

~my home~

It’s feels amazing to see this face again…he’s still calling this home. Soon that will change and Tennessee will claim that right in his heart. sniff

Day 327

~a treat~

Baking treats with Casey…I love this photo of her=)…I spent Sunday afternoon with this fabulous girl, cooking up more amazing things=)

Day 328

~technology~

Making Amish noodles for the first time. I’ve helped an Amish family make these once, so when mom told me we needed noodles for Thanksgiving, I jumped at the chance…I borrowed this pasta maker from my bosses wife. It worked like a charm=)

Day 329

~currently reading~

Mom is reading the “Little Duke” to Isaac for some part of his school. I remember her reading to me back when…those were the days.

Its taken me a bit longer to get this post up today Works been super crazy today and I had to work solid over my lunch break. When, of course, I normally write this.

Tomorrows Thanksgiving!!! Where has this year gone. I can’t believe it’s already here…

I’ll be running a 5K (click here for more info) in the morning bright and early…with my best friend! I can’t wait=)

~Photo-a-day~ Oct 15–Oct 21

Someone please tell me how to stay motivated about life when you’re just so dang tired, both mentally and physically. Seriously I feel asleep, the other night, while reading a book. Sitting on the floor, with just my head on my bed while waiting for my younger brother to get out of the shower. I woke up at three, in the morning, this way. Talk about a seriously stiff neck. After my usual 4:30 work-out and morning shower=) I was quite my normal self.

Another bracket popped off my tooth the other day. It’s thankfully in the back of my mouth, so I don’t notice it unless I eat. which of course I do three times a day and it succeeds in making it as difficult as possible. The hassle of trying to fit a dentist appointment into my already FULL schedule…resulted in this conclusion. “I’m positively tired of braces!” -sigh- it felt sooooo good to get that out… Again I ask myself: What convinced me to get them again?!?!?!? So 7:15 on Friday it is=)

Jogging horses after work is a lot of fun…but cleaning the stalls is a different story…eight of them total at the moment, but more horses are expected as the yearling sales continue. My poor hands! All blistered up from the shovels, scratched from harnessing up these crazy animals and dry from the wind. I NEED gloves! but when can I find the time to go get them. I guess I’ll have to start buying my living necessities online.

On Saturday I worked on cleaning up our families old computer and installing all the programs etc. onto the new. The desk looks so different with just a laptop. Unlike the old computer box with a billion plugins, this laptop only has one=) I sorted through all the stuff in the drawers…filled several trash bags…throwing stuff away is always enjoyable=) While doing this I got to…you guessed it…COOK! I made two pumpkin pies (the dessert Victoria wanted for her birthday), peanut butter smoothie (which we used like ice cream on the pie, sounds weird/gross but you’d understand if you were raised with it=), spaghetti pie and all the sides that go with that. So fun! So I went back and fourth from working to baking…I could totally get used to this ratio=)

Day 288

~my afternoon~

my afternoon was spend figuring my budget for the next week…one of my all time favorite weekly chores.

Day 289

~accessory~

Day 290

~late~

yeah it was LATE…after square dancing all evening, this kid still had a lot of energy.

Day 291

~on the wall~

Victoria’s party=) we decorated with stars. She’s really into astronomy at the moment=) it added a fun retro feeling to the night…haha. We watched the entire North and South movie with everyone…four hours total. My parent’s rock…staying up with the best of us and finishing it out=)

Day 292

~layer~

Salmon meat layers…btw this was an AMAZING lunch!

Day 293

~a pattern~

yep I finished it…well should I say my sister Alexandria finished it, haha  (check out about this quilt here)

Day 294

~unique~

a very unique evening. I took my camera to work and just before started on my dad’s businesses’ books, I thought about taking my photo of the day. But no camera, I left it at work. Which is only 15 minutes away and Christina was so kind as to ride along, but STILL…

So that was my week=) Thanks for stopping by!

Which photo/s was your favorite?!?!?!?

 

One Republic/ Come Home cover Sammy Atherton

Here's a little treat for you=) My brother just put this up last night. I am his older sister, but I totally view him as being older...

I'm so proud of him=)

Hope you enjoyed! 

and please feel free to leave a comment on his video so he can see it=)

~Photo-a-day~ Sept 3 – Sept 9

 

I went up to Shipshewana for my 6 week’s check up. This time Ally and Christina went along…but more about this amazing trip in a later post=)

I was busy with taxes this passed weekend…trying to get everything done before the deadline. I believe we made it. I haven’t breathed for the last month it feels like=) so hopefully I’m done with the 12 hour days=)

I stayed up late Friday night with Christina and watched the BBC North and South…we finished at two in the morning! it was the best fun, I had never seen it. And it was actually good enough to keep me awake through the entire thing.

Isaac and I ran in the Color RAD run on Saturday morning and easy 5K…and I believe he’s almost convinced me to run a mini marathon once more, but this time he promises to join me (if it was just for the training, I’m in….lol).  knowing myself I probably will….

I’m leaving for North Carolina again today! =) this time we’re driving and I’m with my two younger brothers and parents. Vacation spent with family is always fun and I’m sure this will be no different. I got everything done, and myself in the car. Didn’t think I would…haha=) But we’re on our way, seven hours in the car with these crazy brothers of mine should be a lot of fun. And also sharing a room with them…okay I just need to take a lot of pictures=)

Day 246

~up~

The Amish we raising this barn! it’s going up nicely=)

Day 247

~exercise~Day 248

~circle~

My mom’s taking voice lesson and preparing for the upcoming Messiah performance, I believe in December. I love listening to anyone who can sing, sing. And the other day she waited till later in the day to practice and I was actually at home. Yeah it was lovely=) I can’t wait to hear her sing with the choir=) it’s going to be awesome!Day 249

~pathway~

Day 250

~bright~

Day 251

~a sport~

Gotta’ love siblings that are so willing to model for my pictures

Day 252

~empty~

My boss’s empty chair…he was out of the office all day.

Can’t wait to share all about this mini vacation fun with you all!

Headed to warmer weather and sunshine!!!!! So the rest of my week will be awesome, I hope your is too.

What will you be doing?

 

brothers….

 

I LOVE my brothers!

They are simply amazing…

…and I couldn’t imagine my life without them.

 

BROTHERS

I can’t help but smile as I look at these=)

Happy Labor Day!