__________________________________________________________________________________________
Almost!
June 29, 2007
As I mentioned last week, Abe and Ty were coming home this week and my sisters, Chris and Rachel, and their families were coming to welcome them home.
me, Rachel, Chris
We’ve had a great time scrapbooking, swimming, rock climbing, eating (bbq rib night was my favorite), playing games and visiting.
My brother-in-law Bruce
Calvin
My brother-in-law Hugh
in front of the grill on rib night
Ty joined us Tuesday
FR/L-R Pal, Ty, Charlie, Jesse, Calder
BR-/L-R Maddie, Cache, Justin, Jake, Cali, Ande
(We use our garage door as a welcome home sign and use sidewalk chalk to write the message. This week, we've just kept adding to it each day new people arrived.)
and Abe was supposed to join us last night. We were nearly ready to leave for the airport via Laser Quest for a quick game of laser tag when Abe called on the phone. His flights hadn’t connected and he and seven other missionaries were stranded in Los Angeles—the earliest flight they could get out on being Sunday. Chris and Rachel’s families must leave before Sunday so that would have been a bit sad for them to miss. However, several hours later the missionary travel agent called and said she’d finally finagled a flight for Abe tonight, so we get to anticipate for one more day. Thanks so much for the e-mails and phone calls wishing us a great week.
In between all of the pandemonium and fun, I have thought about you and wondered what to write about in the Friday newsletter before the 4th of July. On the phone, Abe said of all the holidays the 4th of July was the one he missed the most in the Philippines and wondered what we were doing this year to celebrate. Here is a picture of him (Abe is on the left in the first picture and the right in the second) and another missionary sporting red, white and blue ties and celebrating the 4th of July in the Philippines:
Down with the British! Up with Freedom Standing and singing a patriotic song on their bed
Here are ten things I love about America
- Her heroes
- Her founders
- Her beautiful parks and lands
- Her interstate freeway system
- Her checks and balances government
- Her ability to grow crops and produce manufactured goods
- Her resiliency
- Her incredible story
- Her people
- Her freedoms
Please send your list of things that you love about America and I will post them the 4th of July on The Neighbor’s Blog for the world to see. (If you have a picture of yourself you'd like to add, that would be great as well.) I have frequent visitors from other countries and would love to share some of the great things about our country with them to let them know that most Americans love America. (If I can figure out Mr. Linky by that time, I’ll do that so if you're a blogger you can link to your post if you’d like. I’ll ask my webpage guru this afternoon when he comes to visit if it’s doable.)
Well, it’s just about time for all of the kids to come in from the tent on the lawn—amazingly they’re always hungry in the morning—so I need to get breakfast cooking. I’ll post a picture of the homecoming tomorrow and then be back to regular posting on Monday. Jane
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
__________________________________________________________________________________________
A-N-T-I-C-P-A-T-I-O-N
June 18, 2007
Years ago, we saved and waited to take the kids to Disneyland. Having gone myself often when I was a child, I couldn’t wait for the kids to see and experience it. Calvin and I talked about surprising the kids with the trip, but realized anticipation is half of the fun—waiting, planning, speculating, hoping, replanning, packing, repacking, day-dreaming—and so we told them in plenty of time to let the anticipation build. Ande made a countdown chain and that chain stretched FOREVER down the hall, I was almost as excited to get rid of the chain as I was to go on the trip.
Today is my last day of a-n-t-i-c-i-p-a-t-i-o-n, for this week kicks off six weeks of celebrating for us. Many of you newsletter subscribers know and love my sister, Rachel, a frequent contributor to Letters from the Trunk. She and her six kids will arrive tomorrow. Rachel and my nieces, Jesse and Maddie, and Cali, Ande and I are going to the Tri-Cities Scrapbook retreat at the end of the week. My sister, Chris, and her family will be here next week. They are both coming to celebrate the return of Abe from his mission and the kick-off for Ty to go on his.
Next week Ty will return home, having resigned his appointment at the United States Air Force Academy to go on a two year mission to Taipei, Taiwan for our church. Ty will be home for one month before leaving for his mission. A few days after Ty returns home, Abe will return from his mission to the Philippines and will also be home for a month before reporting to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Our family will be together for one whole month!
Grandparents and more cousins will also come in the next few weeks, as well as we will travel to Utah to attend a family wedding.
Anticipation has served me well the last several months—planning events, preparing menus, day-dreaming—but it’s almost here and today there’re groceries to buy, a lawn to mow, an air mattress to blow up, a tent to pitch, a scrapbook retreat to pack for, baking to be done and the ever present laundry and ironing to be done.
And that’s life in my world.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
That's what I'm doing...I'm anticipating your return to blogging. I know I'll have to wait but it will be a glorious return! I hope you are enjoying all the time with your family. I have thought about you lots in the last couple days. Imagining all the fun you are having! Live it up Jane, you deserve every second of it. Can't wait for all the homecomings! Love, Melanie
Have the best time with your family, Jane! What a blessing to have so much to celebrate!
Love, Kelly
I'm green with envy! Have a wonderful time and please tell everyone hello for me. Happy trails!
Love to you - Sue
Enjoy your family and all the good times! Snapper
I hope you have an absolutely wonderful month with your family, Jane! I can't think of anyone more deserving. Susan Walker
Jane - I am giddy with excitement for you. It will be such good times. Enjoy your family - can't wait to see all the scrapbook pages in November. Have fun ;-) -Heather
Oh, I’m with you. I’d take anticipation over surprise any day. Enjoy your whole family time! Love, Barb
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Happy Father’s Day
June 17, 2007
Happy Father’s Day to Calvin! He’s an incredible father and here are just five things that I appreciate about him this year:
- He’s generous. This year he bought our family a new couch. It was sorely needed and he gave up his birthday money as well as coughed up another wad to go with it to buy us a large, brown, leather sectional. You gotta love a man that will buy his family furniture for his birthday.
- He keeps our place looking nice and has taught our kids to work in the process. Whether it is burning gargantuous piles of branches and leaves, moving sprinklers, building a quail pen, trimming the willow trees, planting a garden—he likes to keep our place looking nice. You gotta love a man that’s a good steward over his piece of earth.
- He’s patriotic. His eyes mist and he gets a lump in his throat whenever he talks about America and her heroes. He proudly sings the National Anthem and gives numerous lessons to our kids and other youth about freedom and its price. You gotta love a man that’s a patriot.
- He’s a good provider, protector and presider . . . and bowler. He can still trump us in any activity. You gotta love a man that can out bowl anyone in the family.
- He’s a good dad. He doesn’t play favorites. He plays a major role in each child’s success. You gotta love a good father, he’s irreplaceable.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
__________________________________________________________________________________________
You’re a Classic!
June 14, 2007
These DVD’s and Audio Books are often available at the $tore and make a cute gift/card for a graduate.
Wrap "the classic" in school colored tissue paper and make a mortar board tag from cardstock with a DMC floss tassel attached by a brad with the words
You’re a classic!
Congratulations on your graduation.
printed on computer paper and glued on the opposite side to cover the brad.
Another graduation gift idea is a Cooking 101 cookbook—a mini scrapbook filled with quick, easy and inexpensive recipes.
The book is a $1.96 plastic album from Wal-Mart. Each page is a different recipe glued onto cardstock with very simple embellishments. Written on the inside cover is, “To one of my favorite people—Here are some of my favorite quick and easy recipes to help you through college. Best wishes!” Here is a passel of easy hamburger recipes.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
Those are both great graduation gifts, I’ve been trying to think of something inexpensive for my graduating laurels. I have enjoyed looking through your website many times, but I liked that your post today brought me back in to your website through the hyperlink to the ground beef recipes. You’re a good neighbor.
Love, Barb
__________________________________________________________________________________________
It Smells Like Summer
June 13, 2007
I was spreading fruit puree on the leather trays when Ande walked in the kitchen this afternoon and said, “That smell reminds me of summer . . . well, all year long really.” I haven’t made fruit leather for several months, but the smell of strawberries reminded me of summer, too, and so I thought I’d share that as my homemaking tip for the day.
When the kids were little, I had two who hated fruit and two who loved it; nonetheless, they would all eat fruit leather. One day one of the boys asked for “any kind” of leather in his lunch. I questioned him as he is a plum leather fan and he said, “Oh, I can trade leather for anything I want. All the kids want leather.” I was flattered and mad at the same time and told him “No more trading leather,” he could trade his snacks, but not the leather (I knew full well he wasn’t trading it for something equally as healthy). The rest of the kids said that they could sell leather for $1 a roll on the bus. Ark! They were selling it and then coming home and eating it. I gave them a few extra rolls that day and told them they could share but no more trading or selling—their entrepreneurial plan dried up.
I’ve made lots of fruit leather through the years and here is my simplified recipe:
Puree fruit in blender. Pour onto dryer sheets. Dry until pliable. Roll up and store in saran wrap or plastic bag in a dry place.
It truly is that easy. You may use fresh or canned fruit. You may use sweetener or not. Fruit leather is so versatile and uncomplicated to make and it can easily be adapted to your likes. Here’s a few added tips:
- I use an old fruit dryer—25 years old to be exact—and it still dries great and has been a worthy investment. If you do not have access to a fruit dryer—consider purchasing one at a yard sale, online auction, or through a second-hand store. You can make fruit leather in your oven and there are books in the library that describe how this is best done.
- You know the adage, “Waste not, want not,” but when you see the last browning pear, the bottom of the soggy strawberries, or the stiffening applesauce in the jar, it’s easy enough to “Want not and waste it.” To remedy wasting leftover or slightly discolored canned peaches, pears, cherries, berries, apricots, applesauce, or fruit cocktail—keep a container in the freezer that you can regularly add your leftovers to. When the jar is full, thaw and make fruit leather (but don’t show it to anyone until it is fruit leather as it might look a tad revolting)
- Some fruits—like berries and peaches—become very brittle when dried alone, yet they have wonderful flavor. To make pliable leather, combine these fruits with another fruit (such as applesauce) in a 1:1 ratio. If you read the ingredient list on commercial fruit leathers (no matter what flavor) you will see pears as the main fruit. I use applesauce instead of pears because it is cheaper and less time-consuming to replace, but either fruit works well and has a mild enough flavor that the other fruit flavor comes through predominantly.
- I mentioned two of our children hate fruit, one especially so, he always has and probably always will because even as a baby he didn’t like it. But, he LOVES plum leather and will eat it every day—who would have thought a fruit hater would like plums? Never discount a fruit thinking your children won’t like it. Plum leather is cheap and dries well straight. Just pit the plums, put them into the blender and process until smooth. Spread on dryer sheets and dry until dry, yet still pliable.
- Along that same line, the best batch of fruit leather we ever made was a combination of old bottled plums, peaches, pears, applesauce and a few berries. I’ve never been able to replicate it! Don’t be afraid to try different combinations.
- Try spreading a thin layer of caramel on applesauce leather and then rolling up and slicing into little rounds. It tastes like a caramel apple—albeit a bit mellow! You can do the same thing with strawberry leather and cream cheese. It is really pretty when sliced.
- Lightly spray your drying sheets with vegetable oil spray to keep leather from sticking to the sheets.
- Store leather in individual baggies and then put it in an airtight container. One fall I dried 350 rolls of fruit leather at one time and it kept well for several months until it was eaten. I don’t recommend storing it in the freezer as the condensation can make it sticky.
- If I don’t have enough time to get my fresh fruit dried before it will spoil I bottle the puree and then make fruit leather throughout the winter. For example, when the apricots were on, I started a batch drying and then filled quart jars with puree and processed them in a boiling water bath (following manufacture suggestions). As we ran out of leather, I opened jars and “leathered” it.
- I did dry tomato leather once and it was pretty much a waste of time. A little can of tomato sauces stores just as well. Since then I have stuck with fruit leather to eat as snacks.
- Leather makes a great snack for outdoor movies, ballgames, hiking, or in the car. It is filling, non-messy and good. Add a few nuts and some water and I’m one happy camper. Leather also mails well to kids in college, servicemen, and missionaries (who are in arid climates).
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
Dear Jane,
Thanks for your fun post today. Fruit leather reminds me so much of summertime too. I remember my mother making it when we were kids and just the thought of it brings back happy memories. Your post was perfect timing because later today I'll be picking strawberries at a friend's home and now I know just what to do with them!
Thanks!
Leslie
Okay, Jane, please forgive me. Remember, I'm the 'detail' person - some may call that something different, definitely more derogatory, but I prefer "detail"!! Anyway, can we just have some "Neighbor Jane" time at the next retreat? I need some real specifics on some of this stuff - how thin is a thin layer - do all the layers of the dryer finish at the same time - should there be any "shiny" spots, or will it look completely dry - about how many hours (or exactly how many hours) does it take for 5 layers of leather? You see, I'm just not a jump in and try it kind of person - I need to know it will be a success the first time around! Help me out, friend - or, just schedule me a 4-hour block of "Neighbor time" at the next retreat, and you can share all your secrets ;-) -Heather
(Heather, these are GOOD questions. My trays are about 6" x 11" and I put approximately 1 cup of puree per tray. I rotate my trays every hour or two or three, depending on how often I forget. Each type of leather takes a different amount of drying time, depending on how much moisture is in the fruit. Strawberry/applesauce leather takes five-eight hours--I'm really guessing here. And, I wait till all the shiny or wet spots are completely dry. The good thing about dried fruit is that even if it over dries it will often redistribute the moisture. So, you may have a brittle edge, but a moister center, but by the time you put it in a bag and store it a day or two the dried part has absorbed the moisture. Does that make sense? My fruit dryer is a forced air one, which makes a big difference in drying times. You're welcome to borrow it! Don't hesitate to ask questions and I'll answer them as best as I know.)
Great tutorial on fruit leather! I really need to invest in a dryer – the oven on low is problematic. I was intrigued by the dryer sheets - when do you peel them off? As soon as it’s dry? This is a home art I have not developed. Barb
(Hey Barb...I love your comments. I always look for them on other people's blogs, too! Yes, I agree, the oven on low is problematic and a food dryer has been a good investment for us. I peel the leather off when it is dry--but still warm. It peels and rolls easier. Sometimes I don't have to roll any (like yesterday) because the girls and Calvin grabbed it off the trays the minute it was dry.
One thing I have not tried, but would like to know if anyone has is drying fruit leather on silicon sheets. My friend once dried hers on Teflon sheets that she bought at the kitchen supply store and cut to fit her dryer. Anybody out there tried silicon (I'd love to be able to dry more at a time) or know where you can get Teflon sheets?)
This is FABULOUS! I’m as excited as the day I learned Marshmallows could be made at home.
But I’m glad I kept reading the instructions so the CONTEXT would answer my question…when you first wrote to ‘spread the fruit on dryer sheets’ I was so puzzled…what did Jane do to keep the ‘Bounce’ from making it taste funny? And, wouldn’t the chemicals in a dryer sheet cancel out the nutrition in fresh fruit leather?
I’ve learned over time to keep reading, simply because I have asked one too many of those kinds of questions before. (!)
Deb Meyers
__________________________________________________________________________________________
June 12, 2007
Lelly’s self-portrait challenge this week is to look around your homes and showcase the history and folklore of America.
All I had to do was roll over this morning and I was looking straight at my piece of Americana—I sleep and live with Daniel Boone.
Calvin made the two guns, the hatchet, the coat and the beaver hat and uses them all with some regularity. And when he’s not Daniel Boone . . . he’s Jim Bridger.
This skunk was eating his quail . . . and well, no one messes with Jim Bridger's quail. You'll have to imagine my portrait in these pictures.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
I think you’re the only SPT-er that has their own piece of living Americana. That was funny! You could write a historical fiction novel with personal insights of what it would have been like to have been married to Daniel Boone. I’m going to be chuckling to myself the rest of the night, Love, Barb
Didn't that skunk still smell awful??? I can only imagine how mad I would be if that were my animal!! Congrats to Ande on her h.s. graduation. Now are you empty nested or is she staying in town for college? Jenny :)
[Jenny, Yes...it still had a slight scent but Calvin loves the smell of skunk scent because it reminds him of hunting (they use it as a scent guise) so as I stayed far enough away I was ok and he was close enough he was o.k. (I was pregnant when he'd come home from hunting with the skunk scent on him and well.....ewwwww....I'm still not super fond of it).
Ande will go away this fall to school and then we will be empty nesters. Beware! It comes sooner than you think :) I swear. It really does. We have really enjoyed the kids and it's been hard to see each one leave, but the alternative of having them live with us until they're 50 isn't very appealing either! We'll miss them all badly, and that's why we're excited to be together for a whole month this summer. We figure it could well be the last time. On the flip side, I can see some things that will be fun....so it's a bitter/sweet thing. I'll let you know when it hits how it really is. JP]
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Slip Slidin’Away
June 11, 2007
Whoa. Last week slipped away from me. On Thursday, Ande graduated from high school. She is the end of the line for us. It all seems part of a dream. It doesn’t seem she can really be moving on, but I know she is as the calendar says so. Graduations are memory magnets. As Ande entered the gymnasium I remembered my graduation and something from the kids’—Trevor’s, Cali’s, Abe’s and Ty’s—too. Pomp and Circumstance will do it to you.
Ande loves heels and wore her spiky black ones to graduation. She lost one on the stage as she was walking to get her diploma. It was perfectly timed, fitting and funny. She laughed as she went back to retrieve it. Jamsri, her boss and friend, made her a rose petal lei that was beautiful. It was a great night for Ande and for us.
Friday’s NJP newsletter was on taking advice. I asked subscribers to send some of their best advice. Here are three pieces sent from some of the neighbors:
“Ya gotta be tough to have fun!” Monica
“Taste your words before you speak them” Linda
“My entire stress management program consists of chocolate in one form or another…..” Joette
Saturday we had to tackle a huge project. We have several large willow trees in our yard and if you’ve ever had a willow you know that they’re the most littering tree there is—they would be fined if they were human. Willows think nothing of dropping their branches anytime, especially right before company comes to visit. Calvin trimmed the willows and now those trees look respectable. The project made a huge mess—springtime-clean-up-without-the-dead-leaves huge. Cali, Calvin and I hauled tons (literally, there was more than 2,000 pounds) of branches to the burn piles. Calvin and I were popped, but Cali was like a pack-mule. In her words, “The only difference between me and an ox is I’m smart enough to know this _ _ _ _ _” (I’m sure she meant to say “stinks”). By the end of the project we were wishing we’d saved it for a day when Ande, Abe and Ty were home to help. Ande had to work and then had a date so she missed the tree project, but she redeemed herself by bringing home Killian Korn (a great brand of caramel popcorn) from her date.
Sundays are best when Saturdays are hard. I’m always glad for a mandated rest (now that is a play on words) and though we’re busy with church meetings and family there is still something restful and rejuvenating about Sunday. After church and dinner my nephew came over to visit for a rousing discussion on religion, politics and education. I love discussions.
Here we are to Monday. We have two more days of school. The kids in class are hanging on by their toenails—everyone is more than ready for summer to begin. Likewise, I’m excited too; our family has a great summer ahead. We’ll all be together for a month—the first time in a few years.
And that is life in my world.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
Oh, Jane - what an exciting week for you! Congratulations to Ande - you all look gorgeous! I am so lucky - Matt handled our latest "big tree branch" project on Friday while I was at work! And yes, Killian Korn has almost total redemptive powers - even from skipping out on a big project ;-) -Heather
Together for a month, sounds lovely. I’m looking forward to an RM post! Barb
__________________________________________________________________________________________
The Kirby Man
June 6, 2007
I am not always real quick on the up-draw and usually give people the benefit of the doubt and then have to reevaluate intentions later. Yesterday a man stopped and said he had a special on carpet cleaning. I have really wanted to get the high traffic areas of our carpet professionally shampooed before company comes this summer, so I hoped this was an answer to my wish. The gentleman had stopped by once before and Cali talked to him, so I figured if he would make the stop twice when people were home he probably wasn’t casing our place, but truly wanted to share his carpet cleaning special. He offered to shampoo any room in the house for free last night, at 7:30 p.m. (which I thought was ambitious of him), but I suggested we wait till today, thinking, “As long as he isn’t a mother raper this is going to be such a nice blessing.”
After he left I wondered if he was legit, but couldn’t think of what he’d want to steal if he wasn’t. I replayed our conversation and vaguely remembered him mentioning Kirby. Then it clicked, he was a Kirby salesman and he was cleaning my rug so I would buy his vacuum. Oh, I do hate negotiating prices, I am a liability in that process and we find it best if I hide while Calvin makes the deal when we buy a car or couch or . . . Kirby. I can go a long time without something, but I have a hard time telling someone that I don’t think their product is worth the money they ask when I do get something. I figure if they’re nice folks they will only ask what it is worth.
I dreaded the gentleman coming back today; I dreaded telling him we weren’t vacuum shopping. When he came to the door, I asked if he was a Kirby salesman and when he said that he was I explained that although he had a fine product we wouldn’t be buying a vacuum and therefore he didn’t need to feel obligated to clean our carpet and thanked him for his time. (And I said it about as fast as that last run-on sentence reads.) You see, when he offered to shampoo a room last night I asked him if he’d clean more because I thought he was a shampoo man not a vacuum man. He had looked at me funny when I asked him to do the additional rooms, but said that he would do it for $40 if I moved all of the furniture and didn’t want too much done (which I thought was a funny gimmick . . . offer to clean one room for free, but not want to clean the whole house for money).
Like a good salesman, after I told him we wouldn’t be buying a vacuum he said he was more than happy to clean the free room, and do the $40 job, and show me how the Kirby works, and teach me carpet care 101.
I got to see for myself the sand and grit that I’ve heard so much about from other women at Pampered Chef or Tupperware or At Home America parties. I am now the proud owner of twenty five filters of dirt on my counter—all for $40. The man was pleasant and I don’t think he’ll be back to steal anything…but then again, remember I’m not real quick on the up-draw.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
Oh Jane! I feel your pain! I'm terrible too with salesmen. In fact, one of the pros of Terry working from home is that he can take care of the salesmen for me. Otherwise, I was buying everything! All I can say is, wood floors through the whole house. No more Kirby sales man for me! Yea! Susan
That was a real mystery picture at the top of this post! Barb
__________________________________________________________________________________________
June 5, 2007
When I was in first grade our teacher used to line us up for lunch according to the colors we were wearing. She would say, “Anybody wearing red may wash their hands and get in line” and we’d race for the sink. Then she would say another color and another color and another color until everyone was in line. I hated when she said gold or silver. My shoes never had buckles and I was always last on gold and silver days, but the rest of the days I was a contender—especially when I wore my lucky shirt. My lucky shirt had little flowers with all of the colors on it. When my mom didn’t notice I wore it more than one day in a row. When she did notice, I only had to wait one day because she did five-ten wash loads each day.
Lelly challenged us to find the predominate color in our world for our self-portrait this week. I expected to find lots of blue when I started looking throughout the house and in my closet because I love blue. Nope, there was very little blue.
I expected I would find mostly green in my closet because my sister likes to wear green and she passes her clothes on to me. Nope, there was very little green.
I did not expect to see red so prominently displayed throughout our home. You would think I would have noticed that I was always throwing in a splatter of red here and there as frequently as it is splashed throughout our home and in my closet: red table, red curtains, red sweaters, red walls, red pillow, red decorations, red stripes, red rug. . . even my legs were burned red and my toenails painted red this week! It really should have come as no surprise, but red is definitely my color this week.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
I bet your mom could not figure out why you always wanted to wear that shirt! I love that story and nice self portrait btw. You have great legs, even with sunburnt knees! Barb
Your toes are so cute. My need some attention. But, ouch on the sunburn. I hope it calms down soon. :)enny
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Life in My World
June 4, 2007
We played a fun game. It’s called “Pin Down”—and it seems everyone had heard of it but us, they said it’s a popular grade school P.E. sport. Ten people each have a bowling pin they guard in the middle of the gym floor. It is each man’s job to protect his pin while trying to knock down others’ pins. There are random soft (nerf-type) balls on the floor to use to knock down each other’s pins. When your pin gets knocked over (either by your clumsiness or someone else’s aim) you run to the sidelines and someone else comes in to take your spot. The game rotates quickly as there are no teams, just each man for himself. It is fast moving and really fun. I was winded within a few minutes! If you ever need a group activity that gets people to quickly interact, this is a good one.
We realized after we started to play Pin Down that Abe’s friend’s wedding reception was also the same night. Oops. It was one we had planned to attend but had forgotten. Rather than miss it, we went in our shorts and flip-flops—not a pretty sight, but I kept telling myself people were there to see the bride and groom not me and tried to blend in with the tablecloths.
Last week we went out to supper at the restaurant where Ande works. She went with us, but also waited on us. Oh-ho, the food was good and I didn’t hesitate taking the waitress’ advice on what to order! It was fun to meet her bosses and they gave us four wonderful desserts at the end of the meal. It was fun to be a part of Ande’s work world and see how confident and capable she is in it.
I also took my wedding dishes to Goodwill. I’ve had them in a box for fifteen years. Remember stoneware? Those incredibly heavy dishes that chip easily? The minute we had little hands that started setting the table and clearing their own dishes those plates were boxed in exchange for lighter, more durable ones. I have lugged that box of wedding dishes through six moves. As I was unloading them on the Goodwill dock Ande said, “And that is why there will never be any heirlooms in our family.” She’s probably right, but when I offered to keep them they both said, “NOOOOOOOOO….we don’t waaaaaaaant them.”
And that is life in my world.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Please send your comments to jp@neighborjanepayne.com Thanks!
Jane - I'm so impressed you threw the wedding dishes away. I'm getting so close on many, many items. I'm tired of moving things, cleaning them, dusting them, breaking them to get past them to something else . . . Last night, I think we took a big, Big, BIG step toward de-cluttering. It involved me promising to take pictures of Matt and the boys playing with some of his old toys, and also promising veritable "works of art" in scrapbook pages of said old toys, if we could just throw some of them away! I'll keep you posted . . . -Heather
Hi Jane,
Your pin game sounds like so much fun! I think I may have to use that idea for a combined family FHE we want to do soon.
I had to email though about your wedding dishes. You will probably think I'm so strange, but I always feel happy for friends when I hear they've let go of something they have lugged around forever or don't use, or just something taking up space in their homes. My family can attest to the fact that I'm the ultimate purger (of stuff that is, not food - lol). Nothing - (with the exception of scrapbooks, journals, or personal notes) is safe in our home. If it's not needed or used in our home, eventually it ends up at Goodwill, given to friends, or sold on Ebay. I just love that feeling of freeing myself from excess stuff. Sentimental stuff is definitely harder to let go of, so I just wanted to send you an email pat on the back.
p.s. My mom used to have a ton of stoneware too and I'm so glad she didn't pass it on to me! That stuff sure was heavy!
Have a great day!
Leslie
You’re not the only one who’s never heard of pin down, but I’m going out to buy some toy bowling pins right now. And I’m definitely passing this game along to the cub Akela. You are so fun that you were out there playing!
What can I say about going to the wedding reception in shorts and flip flops? Brave? Humble? I love that you are the kind of girl who will show up no matter what, and who knows that people will be glad to see her.
My own mom is a ‘chucker’, actually so is my dad. Not many family heirlooms, but I really appreciate all you ‘chuckers’ when I go to thrift stores! Barb
