A Birthday Tribute

We're in the preparations for my love's birthday dinner--steak, local sweet potatoes, and the obligatory something green (hmmm).  A super-fantastic looking cheesecake is ripening in the fridge readying for the multiple toppings we'll try on it (he couldn't decide which he wanted).  He has been playing with a rich, dark chocolate homemade ice cream recipe this morning--the batter is chilling as we speak.

I asked family member to send in any funny stories or good memories that they wanted to share:  Jacob had memories of "The Red-Headed Babe and The Pencil-Necked Geek," Alexa shared her appreciation for one-on-one time which included a glider ride over Mount Desert Island during peak colors one October, and Lee's email revealed of one of his lesser-known talents:

Did he tell you the one where he told me he could flush himself down the toilet? I was little and thought he was pulling my leg but when I went up the stairs following him he would come up behind me from down stairs. He was really going out Mom's window and jumping off the porch roof. Being young I couldn't believe someone could jump that far so flushing himself down the toilet seemed logical.

I love that last sentence! Hahaha!  I got such a kick out of the look on Casey's face when we read that one!


Here's a "card" that we want to share:

  I love the sweet reassurance she adds at the end. :)

Happy birthday Case!

Another Day at the Conner's

Well, I've talked about baking on Sundays, done an FHE post...probably the only other day of the week that really stands out at our house (other than Wednesdays, which is Youth Night so we aren't even here), is Friday night.

Friday is like this big release--you made it through another week. Ahhhh. Time to kick back, relax, maybe watch a movie, have a little free time when it's okay to put off whatever needs to be done for another day or another week.

Maybe that's what it's like for some people, but not here. Friday is ... fun! The kids invite bunches (yes, bunches) of their friends over, if I want I make pizza, we order out if I don't. The Wii, computer games, music--the limits of the week are off! Oh the noise, the smells, the noise, the eats, the noise, the sights, and the NOISE! It's a blast!

On Friday nights, I'm living the dream of having a home where the kids would want to bring their friends to hang out and have fun. We talked about that many years ago when we only had one kid. I wanted them to come to OUR house--I wanted to know what they were doing and where they were and I didn't want to miss out on the fun of knowing my kids' friends.

Tonight, Friday night, is no exception. I've been making pizzas since 3:30 this afternoon when Kait called to ask if Ashley, Christina, and LaKell could come home with her from school. Then Jershon called to see if Christina was here and I told him someone would come down and pick him up. Then when the girls arrived LaKell had her little sister with her. Then Arthur showed up. Then Solofi. Then Sam said Joe and Jenny and Daniel would be coming up with him tonight....

I'm tired. I've been up since 5:00 this morning. But I'm old enough to know that when this is all over I'm going to miss it. Memories--that's what I'm after here.

Pie Night--A History

Well, it's that time of year again when I go a little crazy and bake every kind of pie on the planet--okay, it FEELS like I do. The crazy thing is I love doing it.

Many years ago, when the big kids were littles, we started a tradition of asking each of them what their favorite pie was and making sure we included it on our Thanksgiving menu. We also started having several guests over and including each of their favorites as well. As our family increased to its full size of 10, it wouldn't be unusual for us to have 20+ for Thanksgiving dinner and for me to make 12 to 15 pies (there were duplicate requests plus I make at least two of each of the big 3--pumpkin, pecan, and apple).

Of course with all this pie baking we had leftovers, but that was okay because the morning after is "Pie for Breakfast Day" which my kids consider part of the Thanksgiving holiday and I consider an absolute necessity after so much kitchen work the two days previous--it allows me to stay in bed and have happy kids who aren't pestering me or each other. It's wonderful.

Then a friend of mine invited us to our very first Pie Night. She held it on Thanksgiving "Eve" and invited many friends and neighbors to come, bring a pie if desired, and enjoy the traditional Thanksgiving dessert before you were too full. How fun! We really enjoyed it and it was especially fun to get together with everyone--it reminded us of how thankful we were for good friends!

Then we moved to Saipan. I love what a great place this is to live and raise a family (with the exception of the fact that it is so darned far away from aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, and the chicks that leave the nest and move back to the States), but at first it needed a few tweaks to make it feel a little more like home, so I decided to invite friends over and have a Pie Night--on Thanksgiving night instead of the day before.

Our friends have become our extended family here--Pie Night gives us a chance to share the holiday with more of them and unload some of the pie as well. Guests can bring pies that are leftover from their dinner or not--no matter. We eat pie, play games, talk, have sing-alongs. In the past the girls have danced (island-style). Downstairs we have a movie going to settle the kids down a little--this year it'll be the b&w version of "Miracle on 34th Street."

I really miss our family back home, but I am incredibly thankful for the people who have given us family here. I love them all.

Pie Night. I can't wait!