Countryside Campground, Mogadore, Ohio
He who despises his neighbor sins, but blessed is he who is kind to the needy. ~ Proverbs 14:21
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THOSE WE LOVE, WHO CELEBRATE OCTOBER BIRTHDAYS! Tyler, grandson Kade (now 4), son Kyle (now 33), Jessica and Martha! And our grandson, Alex’s New Life birthday!
And now, I get to cram a month’s worth of activities into one post. Better grab a snack.
About 25 years ago, I was experiencing trouble with my throat. I seemed fine, but I constantly felt like something was strangling me. After several consults with various specialists, I ended up seeing a speech therapist who determined that stress (good and bad) affects my vocal cords, just like some get ulcers or migraines, or neckaches (hence the phrase “You’re a pain in the neck” 😊). After several weeks of therapy with her, she was able to teach me how to manage stress levels and learned to practice what she taught me in order to diminish the side effects any time they begin to arise, preventing it from debilitating me. Since then, I’ve dealt with it very successfully all these years, until this visit home. For some reason, I just wasn’t able to get a handle on it. And then I developed another issue which didn’t help matters – some type of congestion stuck in my head and draining down the back of my throat, making me cough, which is one of the big no-nos. Blaine thought it was a cold, but it’s most likely allergies or sinus, even though I’ve never had a problem with either of them. My take? It really sucks getting old. 😊
At any rate, my condition got bad enough that I lost my voice for a few days. (Surprisingly, Blaine didn’t really like it, lol) And even as I healed, I had to be continuously vigilant in managing my symptoms. But I’m very happy to say that I returned to normal by the time we left. Thank God for my speech therapist, Susan Ruhlin!
Not exactly how you expected me to start out, is it? 😊
We spent our time in Ohio visiting with family and friends, attending a birthday party, partaking in a family work day at my mom’s, attending our oldest grandson, Alex’s baptism, and enjoying an early Thanksgiving dinner! In fact, every day of our October calendar had something written on it. But it was a most wonderful type of busy-ness! We are so very thankful for all those who take a break from their busy lives to spend time with us when we come home and we know how blessed we are.
You’ll find the bulk of the pictures we took at the end of the post. Unfortunately, there are events that we have no pictures for (like Thanksgiving) because we just didn’t think of it, and no one else did either. ☹
You’ll also find a couple of recipes down there.
We ended up with one day with no commitments – the Friday before we left. So we took a day and drove up to Cleveland. Blaine (believe it or not) wanted to visit the Cleveland Museum of Art and the West Side Market. I guess Boston got him thinking that museums weren’t so bad after all. 😊 We both agree that Cleveland’s was much better than Boston’s – at least in our humble opinion. But Cleveland still had some wacky things they were passing off as art. Trust me. You’ll see. At least all their bathrooms were labeled correctly.
I should’ve taken the picture from the side. : )
THE THINKER
Auguste Rodin (1840 -1917)
1903
Bronze
H. 180 cm ; W. 98 cm ; D. 145 cm
S.1295
Cast made by Fonderie Alexis Rudier in 1904. Transfered to the musée Rodin in 1922.
When conceived in 1880 in its original size (approx. 70 cm) as the crowning element of The Gates of Hell, seated on the tympanum, The Thinker was entitled The Poet. He represented Dante, author of the Divine Comedy which had inspired The Gates, leaning forward to observe the circles of Hell, while meditating on his work. The Thinker was therefore initially both a being with a tortured body, almost a damned soul, and a free-thinking man, determined to transcend his suffering through poetry. The pose of this figure owes much to Carpeaux’s Ugolino (1861) and to the seated portrait of Lorenzo de’ Medici carved by Michelangelo (1526-31).
While remaining in place on the monumental Gates of Hell, The Thinker was exhibited individually in 1888 and thus became an independent work. Enlarged in 1904, its colossal version proved even more popular: this image of a man lost in thought, but whose powerful body suggests a great capacity for action, has become one of the most celebrated sculptures ever known. Numerous casts exist worldwide, including the one now in the gardens of the Musée Rodin, a gift to the City of Paris installed outside the Panthéon in 1906, and another in the gardens of Rodin’s house in Meudon, on the tomb of the sculptor and his wife.
It was at the entrance to the “American Art” room.
I guess I missed the helmet . . .
We were astounded by the craftmanship.
If you wanted to see the REAL exhibit, you had to pay an additional $15/person.
Since we didn’t know what was in the exhibit, we passed.
Probably should’ve left the picture out, but at least now you can see the date.
Gorgeous!
There was no date, but it was probably the very early 1900s.
Give us a realistic painting any day of the week . . .
We’ve been to Alabama, but it didn’t look like this.
But after reading the placard, we at least understand this one.
I shoulda been an artist, Blaine too.
What aspiring artist wants to title their piece ‘Sucker!’ : )
You can tell because of all the pictures I took. : )
Music was playing and no echoing.
You can feel like you’re outside without being outside. : )
And now, I’ve grouped together a few things that we thought fit the holiday season:
Cleveland’s West Side Marketplace has been around for over 100 years, and was pretty busy. Outside, were produce stands all selling the same things. Inside, were a few people selling cooked food like sausage sandwiches, but it was mostly meat and bakery stands. No. Not at the same place, silly! Multiple meat stands and multiple bakery stands. We bought some bulk sausage that ended up in our freezer because we weren’t home all weekend, a piece of key lime cheesecake to share – oh my was it good!! – and a huge apple-maple-bacon fritter, also very yummy, especially when we warmed it a few seconds in the microwave!
Everything is so artistic and delicious looking!
I was going to take a picture of Lance’s Beef because that’s my brother’s name,
but there were too many people in the way.
And now the pictures and recipes I promised you . . . . . . .
but the morning sun sure made it look like it was! Stunning!
Chris and his three sons, Cody, Max and Alex.
Fun night, but LOUD! : )
They said they had a great time!
I stayed home with Shena and played with kids. : )
Cooper Thomas Peck!
Kyle and Shena’s new one.
He has red hair like Blaine. : )
Meet Finn and Annie.
(girls will understand this comment, lol)
We called him that morning. He was very excited to be four!
After a couple of times, Harper insisted on reading it to me,
at times embellishing on the story. : )
We’d never been there before, but it’s a really nice Park!
And we had a great time!
We couldn’t be more thrilled!
that made it looks like something you should open. : )
A letter from my grandpa’s father, written in his own hand over 90 years ago!
Love the address on the envelope too! : )
Great day! This was the Christmas store we visited.
It’s how they celebrated Kyle’s 33rd birthday.
We’ve decided he’s not really that old . . . .
Can you guess the theme??
Alex is the tall one, Harper’s in front of him, Cody’s beside him, and Max is the toothless wonder. : )
Nice evening!
Goofy kid!
The ugly stuff in the foreground looked (and thankfully tasted) much, much better than the picture shows! And Jessica’s not in the picture, but she was a huge help getting dinner on, too!
The three of us made 200 pieces of Geosa, a giant pot of fried rice and salad.
We had cookies for dessert that Mom and I made a few days prior.
Blaine, Shena, baby Cooper, Kyle, Alex, Cody and Max
so we drove over the Quail Hollow to hike a bit.
Fall is so stunning!
I often wonder why God didn’t make it like this all the time, but I guess, just like
so many other things, if it was all the time we’d soon take it for granted.
I would not want to live somewhere where I never see the glorious beauty of Fall.
It sure was fun though!
“Grandma, do you want a braid or a pony?”
They gave us their Groupon. As with most dives, the food was really good!
our friends Rich and Martha always make it memorable!
We took the sardines and kippers to ‘Thanksgiving’ with us.
Max loves them, but he told us he likes the plain sardines best.
He’d probably like anchovies on his pizza too . . . . Gross!
Cody, Max and Alex
Not too many campers during the week, but the weekends were still filling up.
Below are the recipes I promised you:
From my friend, Jen Curry on the night our former Old Testament Bible Study group got together:
CREAMY WHITE CHICKEN CHILI (Jen Curry)
1 T. vegetable oil
1# boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
½ C. onion, chopped
1 can (14 oz) chicken broth
2 cans (15 oz) Great Northern beans, drain and rinse
1 green pepper, chopped
2 T. McCormick white chili seasoning
8 oz. sour cream
1 C. half and half (or whipping cream)
2 C. Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
Sauté chicken and onion in oil until chicken is done. Set aside.
Combine broth, beans, green pepper, and seasoning in a large pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add chicken mixture, reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. Add sour cream and half/half and stir well.
Serve with shredded cheese.
Serves 6-8
From the Work Day:
GEOSA (Aunt Mitchi) (This is my Aunt from Okinawa)
1 pound hamburger
1 medium head cabbage, diced fine
2-3 carrots, shredded
2 bunches green onions w/tops, chopped
6-7 cloves garlic, minced
Salt & pepper
1 pkg. Wonton wrappers
1 small bowl of water
Soy sauce for dipping
Mix together first 6 ingredients. Put one spoonful into the center of 1 wonton wrapper. (Be careful not to put in too much filling or the wrapper will tear.) Dip finger into bowl of water and wet two sides of a wrapper. Fold wrapper across the filling to form a triangle. Press together. Crimp in the sides. Set aside until all are made.
May be cooked in two different ways, depending on whether you want them soft or crispy.
Soft: Fry both sides over medium-high heat in a small amount of oil until browned. Add a small amount of water and quickly cover the pan. Steam for 2-3 minutes. Remove to platter.
Crispy: Fry both sides over medium-high heat in a small amount of oil until browned. This is the method I use.
Finished batches can be kept warm in 250-300 degree oven.
Makes about 50 pieces.
HINT: While preparing them for frying, do NOT stack them – they’ll stick together! You can put wax paper between layers if you need too, but it’s best to just use a large platter and keep them in a single layer. Use the leftover filling to make fried rice.
FRIED RICE (Aunt Mitchi)
Several options:
- Cook leftover Geosa meat till done. Meanwhile, cook 4 servings of rice. Mix together. Add soy sauce if desired.
- Make fried rice from scratch using any type of vegetables you want, lots of minced fresh garlic and SPAM. Cube the SPAM into small chunks and brown a little. Remove from pan. Add veggies and cook until well done, adding some soy sauce to taste. Meanwhile, scramble 2 eggs in a separate pan. Mix everything together into cooked rice.
Serving size depends on how much rice and how many veggies you make.
HINT: You can cook veggies and fry SPAM in sesame oil for a bit of a different flavor, instead of the leftover Geosa mix.
SUGAR COOKIES (an everyone favorite)
2 ½ C. flour
1 t. baking soda
¼ t. salt
1 C. butter, softened
1 C. sugar
1 large egg
2 t. vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. Cream together the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla. Slowly add the dry ingredients. Mix well. Chill if desired.
Roll out dough very thick. Cut with cookie cutters.
Bake for 9 minutes.
HINT: It took Mom and I quite a few years to come up with a good-tasting, soft sugar cookie, but I think we did well. Everyone loves them! Cookies swell quite a bit when baked. I don’t recommend using large cutters unless you want giant cookies with no shape.
GINGER KRAKLES
1 ½ C. butter
2 C. brown sugar
½ C. molasses
2 eggs
5 C. flour
4 t. baking soda
2 t. cinnamon
1 1/2 t. ginger
1 t. cloves
colored sugars
Cream shortening with brown sugar, molasses and eggs until well blended. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon , ginger and cloves. Add to creamed mixture and mix well. Chill until dough can be handled easily -about 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Form dough into 1” balls. Roll each ball in colored sugar to coat well. Place balls about 3” apart on cookie sheets covered with parchment paper.
Bake for 8-10 minutes until set but not browned.