You know how it is when you get home from a trip. The unpacking. The laundry. The empty refrigerator that doesn't help you to fill the bellies of the children who insist on eating every single day. We returned from the Lodge on Saturday at lunch time. I am ashamed to admit it, but Jason and I ended up needing to drive two vehicles on the trip because of the quantity of crap (I mean, necessary items) we had to take with us. I continue to be amazed at the sheer volume of things that need to accompany our crew on a trip like that. Anyway, because I had been in my own vehicle, I had pretty much formulated my to do list for the rest of the weekend in my own head on the 2 hour ride home from the lodge. It basically went like this: get organized because next week is the hardest.freaking.week.of.the.summer. That meant, get unpacked, get out my planner and map out everything that needed to be done this coming week. I also intended to take a shower since I hadn't done so before we left (gross, I know, but I am all about full disclosure).
When we walked into the house, Jason said, "I'm thinking we should make ribs tonight for supper. With coleslaw and corn on the cob." I'm pretty sure he could see the look on my face that said, "I was planning on pizza." But, we moved ahead with this plan, because who doesn't like a good rack of ribs smoked on the new grill? This girl certainly does. Jason quickly jumped back in the truck and headed for Byerly's to find some delicious looking ribs. And he stopped at the little Amish stand to pick up some corn, which was advertised to be freshly picked that morning. When he came home with the ribs, and I saw their SIZE.....I realized there was no earthly way that the two of us and the kids could consume them on our own. And so we called for reinforcements---- and the Mowry's were the MVP's of the weekend for helping to save us from the ribs! And so, a little party was born. The girls and I ran to the grocery store, picked up the things we needed to make it through the week and finalize our dinner party menu. When we got home, our neighbor knocked on the door and handed me a quart of freshly picked blueberries. And what do you do if you have friends coming for dinner, haven't unpacked from a week long vacation with not one, but TWO carloads full of stuff you haven't unpacked, and you haven't gotten a shower in 24 hours? You make a blueberry custard pie, of course. I just know my Grandma Mary would have been proud. And I was ever so grateful to my mother for having made one while we were away to 1. show me how to do it, but 2. remind me how much I loved them! Somehow we managed to power through the to do list, and found ourselves with a yummy supper, a shower and all of the bags unpacked and laundry done before 6 pm. I know. I'm amazed as well.
And why is it that some days when I have all day long to do 3 simple tasks, I can't manage to get them done?
We had a great night. The ribs were yummy, and the company even better. It was an awesome way to lift the spirits of the kids when they were so bummed to be missing their cousins and their extended family.
Sunday was to be our restful day, and we did our best to do that at least a little bit. We had gotten a beef tenderloin to smoke on the grill for Sunday and had a nice dinner planned. Which was fine until we lost power. Turbotville seems to lose power on a regular basis, but it doesn't usually last long-- maybe a second or two. Well, this little episode went for 2 hours. Which effectively scared both Jason and I out of eating the tenderloin for fear of food poisoning. Some may say we have no sense of adventure, but I say we were wisely cautious. And so, we have found the one downside to Jason's new grill--- you can't very well cook in it if there is no power since it runs on electricity. Of course, this happened at 5:00, and the kids were starting to complain of grumbling tummies around 6, so we did what any good, responsible parent would do with no way to heat anything up. We fed them ice cream for supper.
Joshua declared it the BEST DAY EVER.
Believe it or not, this was actually on my list of fun things I wanted to do sometime this summer. I may digress here a bit, but I used to babysit for a family who ate ice cream for supper every Sunday night. Their kids loved it. And I secretly did too when I was asked to watch the girls on a Sunday. They usually ate a big dinner after church on Sundays and then had an easy dinner that night if they wanted anything at all. So, I guess in a way, this was a mission accomplished. I will say, though, that I felt a bit guilty for the lack of nutition in the kids' diet that night. But we figured they would survive til morning when we could load them up with an extra Flinstone vitamin and a healthy dose of carrots with ranch dip and call ourselves caught up.
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