Family – Asbery's Echoes

Working on the Weekend

We had a nice quiet Thanksgiving. We spent the day at Dad and Mom’s along with Eric, Jeremy and Abby, and the grandkids. We had a delicious lunch of turkey and dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, veggie tray and Pam Cake. Pam Cake is made by a local lady and is so delicious. She made over 100 cakes as a fund raiser to make money to buy a piano for her church! There were a lot of Pam Cakes eaten over the weekend I’m sure! We spent the afternoon playing games and enjoying each others company. And I didn’t take one picture the whole day.

The rest of the weekend was spent cutting down trees and splitting logs at Dad and Mom’s. From morning until dark. I always dread the thought of doing this but once we get out there and get started I really do enjoy it. Being outside in the fresh air, the physical exertion. Just being able to see the finished product after a day of hard work is so satisfying. Now Dad has enough wood chopped and stacked to get him through the winter in his shop and so does Joe along with wood for next year’s campfires. I think we enjoy the campfires more because of the hard work that’s put into it rather than just buying some that’s already cut and split. And now the timber is looking a little bit better too, which makes Dad feel better.

Blessed Assurance, Beth Twist, Heartstring Samplery

In the evenings when we settled in I worked on this piece. I love this hymn and the song would go through my head as I was stitching! Beth Twist of Heartstring Samplery has introduced a new piece each month of this year based on a church hymn and this is November’s piece. I haven’t had time to stitch every design yet but when this one came out I knew it was one that I would have to stitch right away. I got up early in the mornings to stitch and worked on it every night. I watched the Prime series Victoria while stitching in the mornings before anyone else got up. I’m really enjoying watching that. I can’t imagine what her life must really have been like. I’m sure she never had to split her own logs for the fire but maybe she missed out on something there!

Busy Times

Drew decided out of the blue that he wanted a pet in the house. I thought we were finally past that and even though I sometimes missed having a four legged critter around, the work entailed kept me from not missing it too much! Then all of a sudden Drew started asking again. His choices, a hamster, a fish or a kitten. I said no to a fish. Cleaning out a fish tank is not my idea of fun! A hamster only lives for a very short time. And we had this beautiful little kitten living outside already. Plus, mice control! So, we now have Milkweed inside. Millie for short. Milkweed is one of five that we brought home from my folks’ to raise as their momma disappeared. We bottle fed them all. One didn’t make it, two disappeared and unfortunately Drew ran over one with the Mule. A hard lesson for him but he pays a lot more attention now when he’s driving something. So now I’m busy with a kitten in the house. Oh the messes she makes. Especially when I forget to put my threads away for the night.

Peace Be To This House – designed to be a Christmas ornament but I love it so much I plan to frame it. It’s teeny tiny – stitched on 40 ct and so very sweet.

A sampler I stitched years ago and decided to finally frame. Simple Joys, Simple Life.

Sweet little freebies from Pinker n Punkin Quilting. Perfect for ornaments for the kids. Now to decide on how to finish them.

Which leads to stitching! I’m always busy stitching! I’ve framed a few that I dug out of my finished pile to enjoy and I’ve stitched some new things. I am caught up on orders which is a great feeling. Now to work on the kids’ ornaments for last year and this year. And maybe get a jump on next year’s too!

Making gifts for birthdays and Christmas is keeping me busy too. I made two sets of these Advent Christmas ornaments. One for the grandkids and one for Drew. We’re all ready for December 1st!

I’ve cleaned out my bedroom closet and have a pile of clothes that no longer fit. Now to decide whether to keep them or give them away. I don’t plan to gain weight again but I’m still a little leary of getting rid of them all. And Drew and I cleaned and organized the bathroom cupboards. I have this goal of getting each room picked up and organized. Unfortunately neat and tidy is extremely hard for me! But I’m working on it!

This past weekend we had beautiful weather and decided to take advantage of it and spend time at my folks’ cutting down trees and splitting wood. For some reason I always dread the thought of this but once we get started, it’s work that I really enjoy. Their timbers were destroyed after the storm that went through earlier this year and Dad has been wanting to get some of the downed trees taken care of so that’s what we worked on. Some of the trees were already down, some needed to come down. Joe did most of the downing and cutting while I used the splitter to split the logs and Mom, Dad and Drew stacked the logs on the trailer. We were all tired by the time we were finished last night, and cold too as the wind had picked up and the temperature dropped, but it was such a great feeling to have gotten so much accomplished! And boy did I sleep good!

Drew and Rambler took a nap while waiting for the work to get started!

The garden is cleaned off and put to rest for the winter. The chickens have been cleaned out and bedded down for cold weather. The flowers are all sleeping. I love this time of year. I love all the seasons and am thankful I live where we get to enjoy each one. But I love this season the best. I enjoy the darker days and the time we are able to spend slowing down. A time for lamps and soft light and blankets to cuddle up in. I look forward to the holidays but even more, I look forward to that time after the holidays. It’s almost like we’re being given permission to settle in for a time. To be calm and quiet. To reflect on what has passed and to get ready for the what is to come. It’s my favorite time of the year.

Enjoying the Outdoors

It was a cool crisp morning. The clouds were beautiful and the sun was shining. It was a beautiful day to enjoy the park.

We’ve had such beautiful weather the past few days. Beautiful fall days mean getting outside and soaking in the sunshine as much as we can before it turns cold for good.

Last week Drew and I decided to visit Yenruogis to hunt for rocks. He’s studying geology in science and we wanted to have rocks on hand to study. Spur of the moment we decided to give a shout out to the homeschool group we get together with once in awhile and see if they wanted to join us. We met Thursday morning, the kids wandered all over the park and then we ate a picnic lunch. It was actually pretty cold that day but when the sun popped out it was nice and the scenery was beautiful!

Yenruogis is a small park just outside of our little town and we always seem to forget it is there. The lake was originally a quarry. There is primitive camping and lots of places for picnics. You can walk all the way around the lake, which the kids did. We really need to take advantage of this great place more than we do and we plan to. It’s also a great place to go sledding in the winter.

Lake Darling – the kids love walking over this bridge!

Then Abby asked if we would want to meet at Lake Darling on Saturday to walk the trails. So we got up early, packed our lunch and met her and the grandkids at our favorite camping spot. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm. The kids played for awhile at the playground, we ate our picnic lunch and then walked the trails. It was nice to enjoy each other’s company and to get outside in the fresh air.

I wonder what these two are talking about?

An October Sunday

I planned an impromptu get together last Sunday. Drew had been begging to go on a Mule ride and I was thinking a wiener roast would be fun so I convinced Joe that we should drive the Mule to Dad and Mom’s and have a wiener roast in the timber.

Uncle Drew and Bayah relaxing in the back of the Mule.

The day was beautiful with warm temps and sunny skies. I contacted Abby to see if they would like to join us and let Dad and Mom know we were going to be using their timber. They had originally planned to be gone but decided to change their plans and join us.

It ended up being such a fun time. We ate hot dogs and chips and pumpkin bars. Some played corn hole, some sat and enjoyed the afternoon. Drew gave Bayah rides on the Mule and the kids had fun climing the bluff and exploring the timber. Then we had s’mores before heading home.

Joe and Jeremy are accomplished at roasting hot dogs!

If corn hole is being played, Braxton will be playing!

The kids love to climb the sandstone bluff

We had spent the weekend getting things done around the house and finishing up the chicken coop. Joe knew he had to be gone this week for work so was focused on that. I just wanted us to have a few hours of relaxation time, being with family and enjoying the beautiful fall weather. It was nice to just spend a few hours enjoying each others company and enjoying the beautiful fall day.

Houseal Family Get Together

Dad and Mom on the right, us, Jeremy and Abby on the left. Uncle Jerry was down a couple of spots and Skip and Brandi were a little ways up the hill.

Another Houseal Family Get Together is in the books. We had the most beautiful fall weather this year and camping at Lake Darling is always a great experience. We camped Thursday through Sunday together with Dad and Mom, Jeremy and Abby, Skip and Brandi, and Uncle Jerry. Then on Saturday everybody else came for the day. I took lots and lots of pictures and still didn’t get pictures of everyone. And we didn’t get a group picture this year. Oh well, hopefully next year we’ll remember. I love that we try to do this every year!

I found a rock at our campsite! Thanks Brandi!

Joe and Uncle Jerry heading out on a trail. I drove them to the other side of the lake and dropped them off. I’m hoping to walk this trail yet this year.

We walked at least one trail each day and the kids brought their scooters along.

I wonder what Bayah and Great Grandma are discussing?

Brandi brought her paint supplies and rocks along and lots of rocks were painted and hid around the park. So much fun!

There was lots of corn hole played. Uncle Jerry and Jeremy won the tournament on Saturday!

Grandpa and Bayah may or may not have hid under the table to eat candy before we ate lunch!

An early morning walk before everyone before anyone else was up.

Dad and Joe – wonder what they were discussin?

Mom and Uncle Donnie (Mom’s baby brother)

Mom and Uncle Terry – Mom’s younger brother

Uncle Jerry. He’s not a Houseal but he’s always invited and I love that he camps with us too! He’s Dad’s brother-in-law.

Noah and Braxton (Braxton LOVED playing corn hole!)

We had morning fires and evening fires – lots of wood was burned over the weekend!

Meet Rubio

This is Rubio. She lives at my Dad and Mom’s along with her goat friend, Hazel. They are both Boer Goats. Hazel is Drew’s goat. Given to him by his Great Uncle Jerry. At the time Uncle Jerry gave her to Drew we didn’t have a place to keep her so Dad took her in. And he became attached! So, he then brought Rubio home from Uncle Jerry’s so Hazel could have a companion and they both live together at Dad and Mom’s where they are spoiled rotten! They even get daily treats of Fruit Loops!

Yesterday evening we went to Dad and Mom’s for supper. We roasted hot dogs over a fire in the backyard. Drew brought Rambler along and Rubio was fascinated. Dad doesn’t have a dog anymore so she doesn’t really see dogs much at all. Hazel paid no attention but Miss Rubio stood on this rock for a very very long time and just watched everything we did. I’m not sure if she was keeping an eye on Rambler or Drew or if she just liked the commotion of all of us out in the backyard. It was funny as she usually pays no attention to us at all.

It was a beautiful evening to sit outside.

It was a beautiful evening. The humidity had died down and there was a nice breeze. A wiener roast in the backyard was the perfect ending to a busy weekend of working on projects and getting a few things done. Rubio seemed to think so too!

August Storm

Last Thursday brought us an overnight storm that was quite the ride. We were all in bed and almost asleep when the wind picked up and we could hear things blowing around. Then the rain started in, along with hail. We knew it wasn’t going to be good.

We were lucky and didn’t have anything too major as far as damage at our place. We had tree limbs down, the trampoline was blown completely away and Drew’s swing set toppled over yet again. Compared to many others, we were very lucky. We spent all day Friday at my folks’ place cleaning up their damage. They had trees down, facia missing from the house and their canopy where they park their camper was destroyed. They had a vent blow off the camper and a little water inside but Joe fixed that right away. My Uncle Jerry came and helped out and we got their yard all tidied up. Their neighbors weren’t so lucky. They had a brand new 5th wheel camper that rolled and was completely destroyed and on up the road there were grain bins destroyed. Crops were flattened, roofs were missing, many many trees down all around. A tree fell on the roof of a friend’s house and left a hole. But nobody injured or lives lost. So, when you look at the big picture, things really aren’t that bad.

We didn’t have homeschool on Friday as Drew helped out with cleanup. We headed over to Dad and Mom’s to assess the damage then came home and put on our work clothes and gathered the tools we would need. In the meantime, a neighbor stopped by and Joe and Drew went with him to help with a tree limb that was down on a power line. Then over to spend the day at Dad and Mom’s where Drew pitched in. His favorite task was dragging tree limbs down to the burn pile using the Mule.

Saturday was spent at home where we cleaned up our yard. Dad and Mom came and helped. The swing set was righted and repaired. We’ll have to purchase a board to finish up that process. Tree limbs were drug to the burn pile, the yard was raked, the patio and deck were cleaned up. The worst part at our place was the amount of dead birds we found, everywhere. They were mostly sparrows. I have never seen so many dead birds after a storm. Joe figured he raked up at least 20 from under the oak trees alone. Very sad.

Then on Sunday a neighbor came over and asked if he could have Drew for the day. They went to the cemetery down the road and did clean up there and then did more clean up at his property at the end of our gravel road. Our road ends in a dead end and the neighbor has property at the bottom where he has a couple of cabins on the river and he had lots of tree limbs down. Joe and I ended up down there later and helped them finish up. Then we sat in his screened in porch and visited for awhile. It was nice to catch up.

All in all it was a very busy and exhausting three days. We didn’t get anything done we had planned for the weekend as clean up was first priority. And it was a great learning experience for Drew as he got to witness first hand family, friends and neighbors pulling together to help each other out during a time of need.

Weekend at Lake Darling

It was so nice Thursday as we were pretty much the only ones there!

My daughter contacted us right after we came home from our Clear Lake camping trip and asked if we would want to camp at Lake Darling with them the following weekend. And of course, we made it happen! How could we not make it work when it meant spending time with her and our son in law and our grandkids? We had such a great time in a beautiful setting.

We had such a pretty view across from our camper. These guys visited a couple of times.

We spent the weekend relaxing, hiking, playing games and just enjoying each other’s company. There was some really good food to eat too. Great Grandpa and Great Grandma Ward and Uncle Jerry and Cousin Todd came for a visit Saturday afternoon/evening which is always a treat. Great Grandma brought homemade peach cobbler and homemade strawberry pie!

There’s nothing like camping to enjoy family. Days and evenings with nothing to do but be together. Very little internet reception meant the kids didn’t beg to be on devices and us grown ups couldn’t spend much time on devices either. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and we took advantage of the cooler temperatures. There are paved trails along the lake and through the woods that are great with little kids as they can ride their bikes and scooters. There are also trails to hike that aren’t paved which we plan to walk someday too.

There was a mink running along the shoreline here. He ran under the bridge we were on when I took this picture, crossed the creek and ran back under the bride. He was a pretty little critter!

A little coffee and early morning reading for me! I like to get up before everyone else and have some alone time and listen to the campground wake up.

The early morning sun peeking through the trees

Grandpa and Braxton having an early morning discussion

Drew starting an early morning fire to warm me up

Bayah may have gotten tired so Daddy gets to carry her scooter while Grandpa gives her a ride

UNO in the evenings. When Abby and Jeremy were dating we would play UNO at the campground, now we’re playing UNO with their kids!

Grandpa is trying hard to convince Bayah that there’s a crocodile in the lake. She knew better!

Camping has been a favorite of ours for quality family time for years now. And it makes my heart happy to have my daughter and her family camping now too. She said once that she has such great memories of our camping trips when she was growing up and she wants her kids to have those same memories. Joe and I are blessed that she wants to include us in those memories!

Home

I just can’t decide which I like better – the zinnias or the cosmos. So I brought some of both into the house to enjoy!

“A home is for functionality. Not a show place.”

I read these words today and they resonated with me. Now, I would never say my home is a show place. It’s just a simple, little, very old house. It has rooms and they all have four walls – no open floor plan here. It has cracked plaster and worn floors. It’s been added onto and I have to be honest, the addition was not done well. The original part of the house, the over 100 year old part, is built to last. The addition, which was put on long before we bought it, was not. The floorplan is wonky. When we had it appraised years ago, the appraiser said the floorplan was odd but works. When we bought this place, 31 years ago, I didn’t really want it. The only positive for me was it was in the country. And it wasn’t going to be our forever home. And yet, 31 years later, here we are. And this is home. I’ve grown to love this little house.

Drew had been gone visiting my sister for a few days so my little kitchen table was pretty and neat with a vase of flowers sitting in the center. He was home for maybe a 1/2 hour and this is what it looks like now! He did leave the vase of flowers for me to enjoy too!

I’ve raised four kids in this little three bedroom/one bathroom house. We’ve eaten countless meals and played countless games at the dining room table. We’ve spent countless hours sitting in the living room talking and just being. I’d hate to guess how much time I’ve spent in the kitchen cooking and doing dishes. When you live in a little house with that many people, if you’re truly living, you really can’t have a showplace in the sense that you have a beautiful, spotless home with everything perfectly in place. Just the opposite. Even when you’ve spent hours cleaning and picking up, there will still be a mound of shoes at the backdoor, eggs in a basket on the kitchen counter, piles of books and toys scattered here and there, a project started and not yet finished on the dining room table. And that is how it should be. A comfortable place to just be. To live. To function.

My dining room table right now. They just keep coming! And I just keep trying to keep up!

We used to entertain here quite a bit. When the older kids were younger and our group of friends also had kids, we would have people out. The kids would play together in the bedrooms and the adults would play games and cards at the dining room table. We had lots of fun. That slowly changed over the years. As the kids got older and involved in extracurricular things, our time was spent with our friends at these functions. Then the kids grew up and moved out. Now entertaining means the kids come over to visit. And bring the grandkids. And this little house pretty much stays the same. We’ve done some improvements here and there and there’s many more that need to be done. But for the most part, it’s stayed the same. It’s home. It’s lived in and loved. It functions. Not as a showplace but as a home. And that makes me happy.

Lake Darling

Joe asked if we wanted to go for a drive last evening and we ended up at Lake Darling. It’s a beautiful state park. They have done some major improvements over the past few years and cement paths are one of them. We had never walked on this one and Drew wanted to walk across the bridge so even though we weren’t really dressed for a hike, or dressed for being out in public!, we went ahead and took off. It was a beautiful evening, the heat and humidity had died down and there were very few people around on a Tuesday evening. Even though we hadn’t planned on going anywhere to begin with and we certainly hadn’t planned on going for a hike, it was just what we needed. Family time outdoors.

My dad grew up in a small town just down the road from Lake Darling. It’s a manmade lake and he remembers when it was made. He talks about going to the dedication ceremony that they had. Mom moved to town when they were in high school and she always tells the story of how when they were dating, after a long hot day of making hay, Dad would come pick her up and they’d head out to the lake to go to the beach so Dad could cool off and clean off! I don’t know that the young kids today will ever understand what it meant to make hay. It was a hot, dirty, itchy, hard job. I can remember trying to help when I was younger but I could never manage to haul those bales around.

I can remember when I was little camping here and swimming at the beach. Then when I got married, we camped here many times with our kids. We’ve met here many times over the years for picnics with family. The last time I saw my Grandpa Houseal alive was at an outing here. There are so many memories associated with this beautiful place.

Now I’m ready for another camping trip to Lake Darling. Hopefully this fall. We’ll bring our bikes and hit those trails and see what more Lake Darling has to offer!