A Bee-autiful Weekend for Some Honey

This past weekend was a-buzz with activity. 
There were bee beards, beehives

and honey products out the wazoo. 
We were bee-yond excited to take part in the 

31st anniversary of the West Virginia State Honey Festival. 

(Okay...enough bad puns already.)

Before Brie was able to find a location for her cupcakery,

she had booked a couple of fairs/festivals where she could set up to sell.

She has decided to not set up at the one later this month
because it will mean closing the store for two days
and it is less than two weeks after she opens.

But I'm so glad she decided to go ahead and do the Honey Festival!

We had gorgeous weather, sold lots of stuff,
and met some really nice folks.  : )

I snapped a pic of our tables so you can see some of Brie's handiwork.  

The small containers are homemade marshmallows
and next to them are the honeybun cupcakes.  

YUMMY!

 These are my pepperoni rolls, with and without cheese. 

 Starting at the bottom:  pineapple upside down, strawberry rhubarb, black forest,

s'mores, peanut butter and chocolate, pancakes and bacon.

 Some of my faves...the strawberry rhubarb is killer!

 She had to bake several dozen more on Saturday night after we returned home from the festival.

The peanut butter-chocolate, honeybun and white wedding cake disappeared quickly!

And I'm pleased to say that I had to bake more pepperoni rolls, too!  

It was nice having customers return on Sunday before we closed 

because they had tried them on Saturday and wanted more.  : )

It was definitely a crazy/busy weekend and I missed my kids,

but it was also a good weekend and helped us get an idea of

which items need to be more heavily stocked.  

Grand opening is less than 2 weeks away!  : )

5QF

I'm hookin' up with MamaM for Five Question Friday.  It's always a good time so why not join in?  Just click here and link up.  The rules are simple and you never know...you just might make some new friends!  ; )

1. Did you make any fun purchases this week?

Ummmm.....let me think......NO!!! I haven't BEEN ANYWHERE to make any purchases this week!  Being a bit of a homebody lately. 

2. If you could go to any musical concert, what would it be?

My dream concert was The Eagles and thanks to The Hubster, I got to see them!  He paid WAY TOO MUCH for the tickets when they came to town and I have to say, it was worth EVERY.  SINGLE.  PENNY.  ; )

If I need to choose one that I still haven't seen, I think I'd have to say either Billy Joel or Elton John.  I've had a love affair with Billy's 52nd Street album since it was released back in....oh my.  1978.  SERIOUSLY???  1978???  

Okay, I feel old now. 

3. What is your least fav/ most fav house chore?

I hate scrubbing toilets.  YUCK.  But seriously, most favorite chore?  Is there really a favorite chore?  I guess I have to say I don't mind laundry too much.  Especially since my laundry room is now a sunny yellow and I have my super fantastic new washer and dryer.  : )

4. Would you prefer new appliances or clothes?

Right now I'd have to say new appliances.  Not because I don't like the ones I have!  I really do.  I love my double wall ovens and my five burner gas cooktop.  They make me happy.  : )  But I'd love to have a commercial kitchen.  I'm green with envy when I see Pioneer Woman's 'lodge'.  Oh, to have that at my fingertips!  The stuff that dreams are made of.  

5. Miracle Whip or Mayo?

Two words for ya: 

KRAFT MAYO

'Nuff said.  ; )

How DO YOU do it? A Plea for Tips, Tricks and Ideas

Okay.  

It's that time of year again.

School is back in session and so are all the after school practices,

football games (they start this Friday night),

homework time,

LOTS of routine.

So many things to keep track of, get scheduled, etc.

So, I bought a BIG dry erase, one-month calendar page

that will stick to the fridge.

The spaces are large enough to write in everything we have to do,

everywhere we have to be.

I hope.

Anyway, I'm working on getting that filled in 

and I'm also getting back to my meal planning 

and putting to good use my meal strategies 

that make my life a little easier.

I always try to keep 1 lb. pkgs. of browned, crumbled 

ground beef in the freezer for quick meal fixes,

and the same with Italian sausage.  

It makes it so easy to whip up a fast dinner.

But right now I need to stock up on...

well, pretty much

EVERYTHING!

So, all you busy moms out there,

share your secrets with me!

What is it that you do to keep it all 

running smoothly during those busy times?

Also, I have another issue I'm attempting to tackle.

Tucker has always carried a lunch from home

more often than he's eaten hot lunch at school.

Between his food allergies, texture issues 

and just plain and simple picky-ness, 

it's always been easier to assure that he had enough to eat

by packing his lunch.
Some days I just wanna say:

But now, with dietary guidelines being enforced,

school lunches have gotten so bad that even Perri

is packed most of the time.  

Let me tell you,

if Perri won't eat it...it's pretty bad.

So I'm packing a LOT of lunches these days 

and I'm really sick of packing the same ol' things.

This is me most days:

 See the confusion?

Is there anything unusual that you pack for your kids?

Any ideas you'd be willing to share?

Breakfast ideas are most welcome, too,

I'm currently on the lookout for recipes for nutritious 

but tasty muffins, breakfast bars, and any dishes

that could be made ahead of time to serve them before they

leave for school.  If they can hold it in their hands and eat it on the run,

so much the better!  Some of our mornings are rushed.

But we also have mornings where there is time to sit down

and eat a good breakfast before we leave the house.

If you've previously posted this sort of thing on your blog,

just leave me a link in the comments! 

If not but you're interested in hearing about the ideas 

I receive from others, let me know.

I think it would be great if we'd all band together

and share what works for us when it comes to 

streamlining our busy mornings

and keeping our kids healthy and well fed.  : )

Weaving Threads

I have something I want to share with you.

Unless you are a relative of mine or you have some 

other connection to my family,

I know this won't mean nearly as much to you as it does to me,

but I feel the need to convey to you the importance of family treasures.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It seems I'm feeling quite sentimental here the last few days.

A very dear cousin recently sent me a video of a 

family get-together that took place in 1960, 

five years before my birth.  

I have to tell you.

I bawled like a baby.

It opens with my Daddy, smiling and enjoying his birthday celebration

with all the folks he held most dear.

There are many aunts and uncles, most of them gone now.
Aunt Mayme fussing at Uncle Bob to get the camera away from her
and Aunt Matt running from him.  : )

The almost-five-year-old version of my brother (he was 10 when I was born)

sitting with an ultra thin, oh-so-young version of my Mom.
Lots of cousins dancing and acting silly.

It was a pivotal moment for me, seeing these people in this way.

One of those uncles I don't recall ever meeting.

I'm sure I did as a very young child, perhaps even a toddler.

He and his family moved away and then he died rather unexpectedly

when I was still young.

Until watching this video, he had been merely a handsome face

in a handful of still photos stored in a cardboard box at my Mom's house.

But this video, this treasure, allowed me to see him 

really LIVING.

Laughing, joking with his siblings, having fun.

And most importantly to me, there was my Daddy.

Alive again, looking young and vibrant and happy.

The same with all those aunts and uncles 

who are no longer with us.

It broke my heart...

but in a very good way.

I miss these folks and I wish they were still here.

I wish I could have realized at a much younger age

what a gift it is to have a large and loving extended family.

I wish I had spent more time in their company,

listened more intently to their stories,

paid a little more attention.

It's just a few threads in the fabric of my life.

A snippet of time that I'm sure my Uncle Bob (the man with the camera)

never imagined would mean so much more than 50 years down the road.
But what an impact it has had on me.

I hope that when you watch this

it will make you stop and think.

The next time you have a chance to spend a few minutes

with an aunt or uncle or grandparent...

TAKE IT.

Enjoy it.

Savor it.

REMEMBER IT.

The older I get, the more important

those fond memories become.

When loved ones pass on,

those memories sustain you.

Those little threads we weave create a warm cocoon

which will warm our hearts even in the coldest of winters.