Vacation!

The hubs and I were off this past week to celebrate our ten-year wedding anniversary.  We tried and tried to come up with a great trip for our ten year celebration, but nothing seemed to work out, so we decided on a stay-cation this year.  Kind of a nice change of pace, really!  There's something to be said about being on vacation and still being able to sleep in our own bed every night.  It's been a good week.

On one of our days off, we decided to take a drive to a living history settlement about an hour and a half away called Sauder Village.  We'd never been there before, and decided that we would check it out.  It was a nice day, and we enjoyed talking to the workers who staffed some of the buildings.  Here are some photos!

When we entered the village, the first building we saw (after the shops) was the Grime farmstead.  We noticed Mark the horse (yes, that was his real name) hooked up to the carriage, and found out that we could take a carriage ride, so we did!

Mark and his driver gave us a quick ride around the farmstead.  Mark did a great job, and so did his driver.

Then it was time to go into the farmhouse.  The house was built in the 1860s, but then moved in the 1910s, and the house is restored to the 1910 style.

Hubby says I need one of these chair desks for out in our living room.  It's true--I do need one!

Here are a few more images from the farm:

Jars being sterilized by the sunlight on the fence.

An 1830s farm in the distance.

We continued around the village, and saw two work horses and another buggy horse in the pasture.  The buggy horses are actually retired race horses.

A 1908 church that was moved from four miles away to the village this past winter.  The interior and fixtures are original, and were in beautiful shape.

 We continued around the village and found a couple of very sociable geese:

We stopped at a summer kitchen:

And visited this 1840s home, where the couple and ten of their total 15 children were born:

The main room (where the stairs lead), and the entire family would crowd into this room in the evenings.  The loft is accessed by a ladder behind me, to the right, and the kitchen, the lowest level, was only accessible by going outside and down to the lower level entry.

Along with the basement kitchen, the family also used this outdoor bake oven to bake bread and other goodies.

The village was fun to visit for the first time, but not as authentic as I've seen some living history villages.  Still, the workers were knowledgeable about the buildings that they were displaying, and it was quite enjoyable to talk with them and be able to ask questions.  If you've never been here, and are in the northwest Ohio area, give it a try!  Here's their website: Sauder Village, Archbold, Ohio.

We have had a great week, just doing whatever we wanted to do all week.  Sometimes it's just nice to have time off of work.  It's hard to believe we've been married for ten years now.  We've been through a lot in ten years!  The circumstances have not always been great, but for me, they've been happy years anyway.  Here's hoping the Lord grants us many more decades together!

Let's Get Dirty!

"Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building."--1 Cor. 3:8-9

Last weekend my hubby and I worked on our yard.  The weather is so nice right now!  I'm doing all I can to enjoy it and soak it up.  I'm looking forward to the warm summer months ahead, and I'm enjoying all of the green that's been appearing over the past few weeks.

We are planning to have the cap on our front porch re-poured sometime this summer.  As a result, some plants needed to be moved.  We also have a bed of shady plants that becomes overgrown with weeds every summer, regardless of the weed block under the mulch and the weed killer that we spray, so I had an idea to move them to a better location and just cover that bed completely with mulch.  Then, we'll keep up the weed spray, and hopefully keep it looking nice!  It's a north bed that remains in constant shade and stays pretty damp, so it'll be a never-ending battle, but at least we won't have to be careful of the plants now.

We moved those plants to a bare area that used to contain an large round evergreen bush.  Our neighbor was kind enough to cut the bush down last summer, just leaving the stump.  However, the ground was bare underneath from years of growth, so I transplanted four day lilies, four bell flowers (which I split from one large plant), and two little tiger lily bulbs to that space, and lined it with paver brick that we already had.  No cost, just a little elbow grease, and we'll have a gorgeous space with orange and purple flowers this summer!  At least, I hope they bloom this summer.

I also transplanted several hostas and a sedum plant that split in two when I dug it up.  The hostas are now against the house, and the main problem will be to keep them watered, because they are under the eave and that area tends to stay pretty dry.  The sedum doesn't have a home right now, and will just have to hang out in pots, along with the columbines that I had to dig up in front of our porch. 

It was a lot of work, but the day was beautiful, and I always love doing projects around the house with my husband.  We make a great team!

From Ashes to Ashes...

Ecclesiastes 12:7: "then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it."

This weekend, I had the house to myself.  With her handsome hubby out of town for a guy's weekend, what's a girl to do on a beautiful spring day?  Well, I decided to take a little road trip of sorts that I've been wanting to do for quite a while--go to a graveyard.

Wait, what?

Okay, a little background: My grandmother was kind enough to write down her and my grandfather's ancestry going back a few generations in my baby book when I was born, which was my first exposure to genealogy.  I became hooked on tracking my ancestry, and I was on a roll several years back with the Ancestry.com website.  In digging up my family dirt, I discovered that I lived only about an hour away from the graves of some direct descendants on my grandmother's side!  What are the odds, considering I grew up in another state?  When I discovered this, I made a vow that I would someday get to the cemetery and "visit" my great-great-great-great-grandparents.

Whew, that's a lot of "greats"!



According to Google maps, the cemetery was only about an hour away, an easy drive through the Ohio countryside.  The weather was a balmy 68 degrees and breezy.  The sun was shining occasionally, and the only thing missing were leaves on the trees.

I didn't have a hard time finding the actual headstones.  I later discovered, after doing some web research, that many of the other names in the cemetery were also distant relatives.  I had hoped to find four specific headstones, although I only knew of two that were confirmed to be there.  Two is better than none, though, and so, without further ado, please allow me to introduce you to my 4th great-grandfather and grandmother, George and Jemima Lighthill!

(The curtains or drapes are typically a symbol of continuous mourning.)

(The book is typically a symbol of either the Bible, indicating faith, or a person who could read, a scholar.)

I hope you'll forgive them for not exchanging pleasantries.

Here are a few other pictures that I found interesting:

Not a direct relative, but the inscription made me curious: "S. H. Lighthill, Co. I, 100 O.V.I. (Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Civil War), Man of Mystery", and faintly below, "Faith, Hope and Charity".  I kept hearing the Johnny Rivers hit "Secret Agent Man" in my head after seeing this.  The 100 O.V.I. spent time in the Richmond prison camp, and then joined with Sherman's troops in his march on Atlanta.

Several of these marked the graves of Civil War vets.

I don't know who this person was, but I guessed that he was not only a sea captain sailor, but an avid arborist as well.  Certainly unique, as far as grave markers go.

It got me thinking.  I love the history of human life--the way that people used to live before modern technology.  As a living history interpreter, I have gained a general sense of what life was like when these ancestors lived.  But what was it really like?  I began to wonder about these ancestors: What did they do for fun?  Did they travel much?  Where did they live in the town?  What made them travel so far away from their family?  And, what did they look like?

(Supposedly my great-great-great-great-great grandfather [father of George Lighthill, above].  According to records, he lived to be 105, was 9 years old in Pennsylvania at the onset of the American Revolution, and at some point made his way to Iowa at 80 years old to live out the rest of his very long days.  This looks like a tinted Daguerreotype image, probably 1840s or 1850s.  It's obvious that at the time this was taken, he had no teeth!  Photo found on Ancestry.com.)

Well, maybe it's okay to not know what they looked like.  He looks pretty hangry!

(Page from the 1790 census, supposedly taken in Pennsylvania, for another ancestor.  The 1790 census was the first census ever taken in the newly-formed United States of America, and my ancestors were here for it!  From left to right at the top, they recorded the names of the head of the household, free white males of sixteen years and upward including heads of families, free white males under sixteen years, free white females including heads of families, other free persons, and slaves.  I absolutely love the handwriting.  Saved from Ancestry.com.)

I really love digging up my ancestry.  It can be time-consuming, but I've learned so much, and there is so much free information online nowadays.  Ancestry.com is pretty stingy with their information, but I was able to get the information I have without a subscription.  There are also free websites that you can try too, such as FamilySearch,  GenWeb, and GenealogyBank.  Sometimes just doing a name search on a search engine brings up entire pages of information that other genealogists have created.  Many records are public information, if you're willing to do some digging.  However you might find your family history, you'll find that it's a lot of fun to do!

Cast Iron Skillet Recipes

I recently purchased a 10" deep dish cast iron enamel skillet.  Since then, I've discovered what a pleasure it is to cook with!  I don't know how I've lived without all these years. 

Along with using the skillet for regular cooking, I've also been busy scouring the internet for all sorts of recipes to test.  I decided to take one for the team and try this awesome-looking skillet cookie:

The recipe can be found on The Cutting Edge of Ordinary.  I will say that the cookie itself was delicious, but I baked it according to the instructions and it ended up too done.  For me, I will bake it for probably 30-35 minutes instead of the suggested 45 minutes according to the recipe, but I WILL be making this again.  Oh yes.  I highly recommend this cookie for you and 11 of your closest friends--it does make a very large cookie!

The next recipe was from The Pioneer Woman.  I really do love her recipes, and was very eager to try these when I saw it: Buttered Rosemary Rolls.

I used regular-sized Rhode's frozen dinner rolls, and in this 10" skillet, I managed to fit 9 rolls in the pan easily.  I also used oregano and Parmesan instead of rosemary, but don't tell Ree.  Everything else was the same, I promise!

I baked these at 350 degrees for 14 minutes, and these were fantastic!  They were light and fluffy, with just the perfect amount of color all around the bottom and sides.  My hubby raved about these.

I'm also eager to try making a skillet pizza, I just haven't had time yet.  I've fallen in love with using the cast-iron skillet for everything!

I think this is why I've gained a pound and a half since I got this pan.  Sooooo worth it!

Spring Basket/Easter Basket Craft

In honor of March being National Craft Month, I have a craft to share!

I have a thing for glitter.  I love it.  You might have guessed that from the numerous craft posts that I've done with glitter as a main "ingredient".  I think that glitter makes everything better and more beautiful.  Have an old pair of shoes that just don't look good?  Put glitter on them!  Suddenly you're Dorothy and have just landed in Oz.  Did you get an F on your most recent school assignment?  Cover it with glitter and stick it proudly on the fridge!  Everyone will be so impressed.

My hubby, however, does not like glitter.  Whenever he sees my glitter box or glitter containers out, a look of fear washes over his face, and the utterance of "oh, no" may escape from his lips.  He knows that when I get the glitter out, he will find it EVERYWHERE.  Despite my best attempts to contain the bio-hazardous material, he will eventually find a fleck or two smack-dab in the center of his forehead, but only after he has had a super-important meeting with someone at work. 

What has this to do with a project?  Well, in an attempt to get myself out of the winter doldrums and into the spring spirit, I bought some supplies to make a spring-themed basket: a pretty blue wire basket, some green moss, some wide ribbon, and two packages of wooden eggs.  Do you see where I'm going with this?  You got it--a sparkly springtime egg basket!

Since we don't do Easter bunny stuff (because 1: we don't have kids, and 2: even if we did, we probably wouldn't do Easter bunny stuff), I'm calling this a spring egg basket, which can sit out as a decoration until the temps outside finally warm up--which might not be until July, so I figure that I'll get plenty of use out of this cute little basket.

First, gather your supplies:

• Wooden Eggs (Hobby Lobby, $4/pk of 4, or less if they're on sale or you have a coupon)--these should be in the woodworking aisle/section
• Basket of your choice
• Moss (I found mine in the floral section)
• Decorative ribbon of your choice
• All-purpose glue
• Glitter colors of your choice (spring colors are nice!)
• Paint brush
• Acrylic sealer (always a good idea to help with glitter flaking, although some glitter will come off regardless)
• Paper plate, newspaper, etc. to protect your surfaces and collect extra glitter

Next, prepare your basket:

I laced my ribbon through the openings on the side of the basket.  If you can't do that, you can opt to either just tie it around the bottom, wind it around the handle, make a big bow, etc.  Do what looks good to you!

I only laced the ribbon through two spokes in the back of the basket to keep it in place.

Tie a big pretty bow and trim the ribbon to your desired length.

Fill the basket with moss:

Then, the glitter!
Paint the eggs with the all-purpose glue and sprinkle on the glitter, making sure to not leave any bare spots.  It might take a few applications.  Allow to dry.

I held the eggs with my finger at the top and thumb on the bottom, and turned it as I painted on the glue.  I let them dry and then went back and painted the egg's top and bottom, holding it gently in the middle.

If it's warm enough, take the eggs outside and spray them with the acrylic sealer.  Allow the sealer to dry overnight in a well-ventilated area.  If it's not warm enough where you live yet, just wait until it is.  The glitter will be fine until then, as long as the eggs are not handled much.

Voila!

Because I had some of the supplies for this, like the glitter, glue, and acrylic sealer, this project cost me well under $25 for the remaining supplies.  This is a pretty family/kid-friendly project, and you can keep the eggs forever as keepsakes, as opposed to real eggs that get peeled and eaten.  If you don't want the mess of glitter, though, just use regular acrylic paints and let the kids decorate them that way!

Homemade Tagalongs--Better Than The Real Thing!

Girl Scout cookie season is always a highlight of the winter.  What a better way to drown your sorrows as you look out the window at yet another winter storm?  So when I came across this recipe on Pinterest, I knew I was bound to try them someday...soon.

When I got up this morning, the first official full day of spring, snow was falling again and covering the ground.  I thought to myself, "self, let's do some fun stuff today!"  Hence, homemade Tagalongs!

The ingredients and instructions are easy enough--chances are you already have everything you need to make them.  Get a box of Nilla wafers, your favorite kind of peanut butter, chocolate of your choice (I used both semi-sweet and milk chocolate), and some shortening.

I finally broke open my brother-in-law's Christmas gift to me--a 5 lb. bar of Hershey's chocolate. 

Lay out your wafer cookies on a cookie sheet or cooling rack lined with parchment paper.  Spread about 1 tsp, give or take, of peanut butter on top of each cookie.  If you like peanut butter, use a little more!  Then, in a microwaveable bowl, put chocolate along with a small amount of shortening (about half a teaspoon) and microwave at 20 second intervals until everything is smooth and melted.  Let it cool down a bit so that you don't melt the peanut butter.  Get a fork and spoon.

Set your cookie in the chocolate, and with the spoon, coat the cookie with chocolate, making sure not to miss any spots.  Now, with your fork, carefully lift the cookie out and tap the fork on the side of the bowl to help the excess chocolate drip off.  Set the coated cookie back on the parchment-lined tray.  Continue in this fashion until all cookies are coated, then move the tray to the fridge to allow the chocolate to harden and cool the rest of the way.  Leave them in for at least a half an hour.  I know, it's hard to wait that long, but it's worth it!

In my opinion, these are even better than the Tagalongs from the Girl Scouts (sorry, girls).  They're also quite a bit cheaper!  Boxes of GS cookies are selling around here for $4/box, and I bought a whole box of Nilla wafers for something like $1.50 (sale and coupon), and I already had peanut butter and chocolate.  Just think of how much you've saved your family by making these, instead of buying them! :)

To see the original post and recipe for these, please click here: Back for Seconds blog