I absolutely love...............

being a wife, a mom and a daughter and a granddaughter, you get the picture, but for the last two and half years of my life I have entered a new stage that I LOVE! I am an Aunt. First came Riddick, with his brilliant blue eyes, chubby cheeks that I love to kiss and my newest little buddy Marshall who has a pretty kissable set of cheeks himself, but now the fun is coming!!!! We learned yesterday that Riddick's little sibling is going to be a sister! That's right I am getting a niece. I am very excited. I love my mother so much, but I LOVE my aunts alot too and it's a different kind of love, friendship, mom-like and MORE. So now I will get to experience that love on the other end and look out Trinity (the planned name as of now) here comes Aunt Kathy! So there I have 'announced' the big news. (had to announce it somewhere, seems some parents and grandparents have about todl the rest of the world! ;)
From Tulip~
KH

Marshall and Jenna

See even 'baby' Marshall likes the big ol' tire!

The greatest toy in the world

Forget shopping at ToysRUs and spending hours trying to find just the right thing to entertain your kids. Just stop by the local tire shop and buy the biggest intertube you can afford. The above 'example' is a tractor tube that the guy who repaired the 'actual' tire, was so kind to patch this old tube so the kids could play on it! All four of our kids absolutely love it, they play on it constantly. I have even caught David lounging on it as well. This particular shot was posed, as they are usually running and jumping etc etc and I wouldn't have gotten a shot at all.
Just thought I would share a pic of my littlest sweetie.
From Tulip~
KH

David and his sweetie pie

No I don't think there's any concern of competition. Here's my goofy husband and one of his crazy friends. David and Dwain (Shelton), take a few minutes and pose for the camera at the wedding reception we attended Saturday night. Dwain was the best man for Shannon Jesse a neighbor who got married last weekend. The guys were talking and goofing around and so I told them to pose and this is what I got. I told them to say the Corn is planted, which made them both smile, since that's finally done.

Summer Stuff

Hey there,
I don't seem to find as much time to blog it seems with Summer in full swing. So here's some tidbits:
Last week I am going to assume Cody and Sam enjoyed 4H Camp. I got when I asked how was camp? Okay and good. Even my chatty oldest child was pretty tight lipped. They both admitted to dancing with girls the night of the dance, I think they came home with most things that they took and I am fairly sure that they actually used the soap and shampoo that was sent. They also both came home with those great extension cords that REC donates the supplies for so 4h campers have a day to learn about electricity. Sam did say if he had more supplies he could make more, maybe I will send him shopping with Grandpa Charlie before Christmas and have him make some for the rest of the family.
Let's see, Thursday last week, the old washer finally totally quit spinning any water out of the clothes, and as luck would have it (sarcasm intended) it was the same day that the dryer decided to quit working as well. I of course had washed a load of clothes that I REALLY needed and needed quickly that morning. So Seth Jenna and I wore jeans that day. My birthday gift from Mom and Dad was sitting but a few feet away, so washer replacement was an easy fix. The dryer only needed a 'tune-up' kit as per the advice of Gary Ennis (Ennis Appliance, Bus Loop 70 in Columbia, the only place to buy appliances, IMO) so forty dollars later I was back in the laundry business, a necessary evil at this house and one that must be practiced constantly, or we will all have to dress like Seth and the rest of us don't look near as cute running around in undies only.
Now for the other excitement of the morning and an upcoming potential visit with Gary, our refridgerator is about to poop out as well. So while picking up the parts and after texting David a hateful message about appliance (s!!!) for Father's Day, I did browse the 'fridge' section. The 'ol stimulus check from Uncle Sam and 'Dubya' has a definite use at this house.
Other projects so far this summer have been painting. Jenna's room is now 'Satin Doll' pink (big shock there, huh?) It still is getting some new curtains and a little detail/decorative painting before the 'big reveal' pictures will show up on here, but it's CLEAN (always a plus) and organized (close to box full of outgrown toys, Happy Meal junk, etc was culled out and she hasn't missed any of it, which always leads me to wonder how much more could I have gotten away with?)
There's more paint to be 'spread' the hallway and the bathroom are the next victims, will update on the progress as it happens. I've been alerted of potential black mail photos as the barbies are out and Jenna isn't playing alone, so I have some re-con to do.
That's all for now.
From Tulip~
KH

I've been baking

Well today I have been baking. David is on a county farm service committee that meets about once a month to review various county farm programs. I have gotten in the habit of sending something to the group to snack on while they are meeting. (It's been good for my catering biz, as you can imagine!) Anyway today I tried a newer recipe that I wanted to share.
Coconut-Pineapple Loaf Cake, which sounds like a mouthful, so I decided to name it Hawaiian Pound Cake, and here's the recipe:
1 1/2 Cups Coconut (I used the sweetened flake type and a 'generous' cup would probably be enough)
1 stick of butter (it called for unsalted, I used regular butter, but I bet that margarine would work as well) at room temperature
1 1/2 Cups flour (it called for extra to flour the pan, which I forgot to do)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 Cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 Cup sour Cream
1-20 oz can Pineapple (the recipe said chunk, but I wasn't satisfied with the results, crushed works much better, in my opinion) well drained
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread coconut on a cookie sheet. Bake until lightly roasted, 6 to 10 minutes, stirring maybe once or twice. Butter and flour the loaf pan. (I only sprayed it with Pam and had good results) Use the larger 9x5 loaf pan! Combine flour salt and soda, set aside.
2. Using mixer on high speed beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce the mixer speed to low and alternately add the flour mixture and sour cream (three parts flour, two parts sour cream, beginning and ending with flour, does that make sense?) Mix until just combined.
3. With a rubber spatula fold in pineapple and about 2/3's of the coconut. Spoon into the pan. Sprinkle remaining coconut on the top. Bake for 65 to 70 minutes (mine took 75+ but I was doing two, and my oven is a little off) Bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The recipe suggested covering with aluminum foil halfway through, which I would definitely do, it helps to keep it from getting so brown. Cool in pans for 15 minutes and then cool completely on wire racks. Store at room temperature wrapped in Saran wrap. The recipe says up to two days. It didn't last that long here, but I think if you thought it might last longer at your house, you might want to store it in the fridge, it's a VERY MOIST bread. The texture is somewhere between pound cake and a quick bread. VERY GOOD! Try it.

Okay well the guys are at the 'Red Power Roundup' in Columbia. The big boys are at 4H camp till tomorrow and currently the little kids are helping grandma Gladys (as Seth would say RAM-MAW) with the baby chicks. So before they come looking for me, I should close.
From Tulip~
KH

Baby Marshall

Our sweet little nephew is growing fast. Last night he and his Mommy came to see what was going on at our house. Liek most little fellas his size, he was mostly interested in looking at the leaves in the trees and keeping a close eye on where his Mommy was. At the time David and the boys were leading calves and Aunt Beth went in to help, which left Marshall to hang out with Jenna, Seth and I, which of course we HATED, ha! Not!
From Tulip,
KH

Summer has begun around here

Well, I guess I am not going to be good at blogging in the summer months. Will try to catch everyone up. I think the last time I blogged it was mid May. Well since then, we've gotten out of school. Had gobs more rain, won't even go into how David is feeling about that. THe above picture was taken Memorial Weekend. With gas being so reasonable and our LARGE SUV, we didn't go anywhere. So Sunday afternoon we took a short drive. We ended up in Moberly and Rothwell Park. On sunday afternoons there are rides to be taken on this little narrow gauge railway. For a $2 ticket and a few minutes time, we entertained the gang with that. As you can see Cody and Sam were only so so about our choice of entertainment, but we reminded them that 'in the day' they too were big train fans. We are enjoying the 'beginnings' of Summer and all that entails, Strawberries from our Amish neighbors, getting the calves ready for fair. Seth and I are bucking heads with potty training, but making progress. We are sleeping at night with every window of the house open, all that 'good stuff'
Anchor Fest has been and gone. I have to say that I never stepped foot on the square. I worked both night for Dad at the Pool Hall. David took the kids to the carnival, the closest i got was the early morning Anchor Run that the boys enjoy participating in. Rain was an issue for the 'fest-ers' Friday night, but Saturday more than made up for it.
From Tulip,
KH

Aunt Kathy Time

This evening we got a surprise guest at our house, my sweet little nephew. His momma and daddy were enjoying a Cardinal game in StL and a bit of adult time and technically he was supposed to be hanging out with Grandma Linda. Well Grandpa's help at the pool hall fell through, so Aunt Kathy to the rescue. You know I just hated it the whole time, ha! NOT! It is so fast how you forget what each age group does, and it hasn't been that long since I had a 2 and a half year old, like LAST YEAR. It cracked me up how busy Riddick is. He checked out the whole yard in like 30 seconds. He got distracted though at one point, he discovered the cows. Now they were interesting and he watched them for quite some time. In fact I really think his Daddy ought to consider getting him one. Living in town, eh, no matter, Riddick likes those cows. Then he discovered the chickens, little red feathered cows that aren't behind the fence and then look, Sam caught one and he got to 'pet' it, as much as you can a chicken. Yeah that was some cool stuff. We explored the barn and all of the various gates and fences that you can climb up and down in there, while we fed Barbie the bottle calf, at that point, I think looking her face to face, he decided that fences were probably a good invention. He wasn't scared, but didn't stick around long either. We enjoyed playing with sticks, and rocks and low tree branches, does this poor child have any cool stuff at his house, poor little guy! Also rode the assortment of kiddie cars, tractors, tricycles, etc.................. One of the highlights though would probably be the ol' swingset. I could certainly tell that he was a veteran swinger and slider, he knew all the tricks. He had balance down real well, could make the swing go 'high' and was a daredevil like many little boys before him on the slide. Because as you know, sliding on your bottom is for sissies; especially when your agile little body can flip right over at the top of the slide in a nanosecond, give Aunt K a devilish grin and down you go. After a few hours of 'outside' it wasn't too tough a sell to head inside and see what was new in there. Alvin and the Chipmunks were discovered on the TV. Soon enough there was the ultimate in kids feasting available for all interested parties in the kitchen. Macaroni and Cheese and Hotdogs. Ketchup must have been very good as it had the biggest dent. He tried blueberries, nah not so much, licked the ketchup off of the hotdogs and ate maybe one or two macaroni, yeap little brother, being two is all about eating enough to survive and absolutely no more. Not that I thought that you were kidding, but a girl can hope. Instantly reminded me of days gone by, we've been there too and he will outgrow it and as long as food is offered, he won't starve. So we finished up supper with a big cuppie of milk and watched Alvin till Grandma got here to save us from mean ol' Aunt K, how dare she make guys go in the house and eat and wash our hands........................ Just wait till Daddy hears about this.
Love, Riddick's Aunt Kathy

Taking a Minute to Catch my Breath

Hello All~
Let's see since last week, we have, had a track and field day which our 'superman' won all three of his events, which were 50 yard dash, 100 yard dash, and high jump. Wooo Hooo Sam!!! Sam also had an awards lunch at which he received the 'Mr Charming/Gentleman' award and another one, which I can't remember what it was, as I think I am still in shock about the first award! Apparently they didn't get a vote from Jenna, LOL!!! What else?????? The boys are lifting weights with the wrestling coach, more for Cody than Sam, but that adds trips to town for me.
Oh big news, David and I went out on a 'date' something that we don't do very often at all. The kids stayed home and 'babysat' themselves. We came home to Cody, Seth and Jenna all in Cody's twin bed, but asleep. So guess it all worked out. We shopped a bit for Mother's Day. We ate out at a place that had came highly recommended to us, HuHot, Mongolian Grill. It was excellent. You design your own dish, picking meat veggies, noodles and sauce, then watch it be stirfry-ed. Very good, we will definitely go back. We weren't particularly successful in our shopping, I am wanting to tile some in our kitchen and think that we can teach ourselves how. So I want to try something smaller as a first project. I am wanting to tile a wall at the end of our cabinets with mosaic tiles. The big problem is that online, I saw EXACTLY what I wanted, and of course didn't find it locally.............. so now debating about paying the shipping or making a different choice. So the project is in limbo...........
Had a great Mother's Day, didn't have to cook MUCH.............. The men at Tulip cook breakfast for the women, so we started our day that way. With a huge breakfast on our tummies, we 'survived' till supper, which was spent with my side of the family. We ate BBQ and all the fixins'
This week includes, more end of the year 'parties' for the various clubs Cody is in, a farewell to the band director at school bbq, Sam's class picnic, and the birthday party of a very dear woman in our life, Alice Vaughn, and I am not sure what all else.
Seth thinks we all need to go to bed RIGHT NOW, and I am tending to agree with him, so for now,
From Tulip~
KH