Princess Kati Turns One

Kati Martinez Schrock turned one this week.  Her birthday party was in Howell, Michigan at the home of her Grandparents. Kati had a long nap after church and woke refreshed for the party goers downstairs.

Kati's dad thinks it is funny to put his glasses on his children.  Here is a picture of Kati the librarian. I wonder if her brother will push his glasses up on the bridge of his nose and laugh at Kati because she is soooo smart.

Momma Julie made Kati's cake.  The frosting was actually home made whipped cream with raspberries in it, and sprinkles on Kati's cake, of course.  There was a bigger version of this cake for Aunt Jen's birthday, but it had a lot more candles and no sprinkles on it.

Kati was all smiles when she figured out that she was allowed to dig her hands into the cake at will.

Of course, big brother, Moses, got in on the action and helped Kati eat her cake.

There was no news of another little Schrock at this one year birthday party, but everyone was smiling and a good time was shared by all.

The drive to Michigan took a lot longer on the way up.  Marlin was like a horse running for the barn at the end of the day.  We made it home in less than 4 hours (I won't say exactly how less since this is a public blog! haha!)

Still Family After All These Years

This is my cousin, Gary Railsback.  It's funny how I never really knew him growing up.  In fact, I only saw him a couple of times before we were adults, but as adults, our paths have crossed quite a few times. Gary was raised in California, the son of two school teachers. He was born and raised almost entirely in the same location.  I, on the other hand, was raised all over the world since I was the daughter of an Air Force Chief Master Sargeant. As fate would have it, we are together all these years later discussing family and events of the past, and catching up on the current paths of our lives. It is good to connect with family!

Peonies in April

It's hard to believe that it was just last year that we were trying to figure out how to put the peonies in cold storage so we could save them for Emilie's May 21st wedding.  While we thought we would need to extend the life of the peonies, the weather had different plan.  The cold wet spring delayed the coming of the peonies.

We were able to save one from my Japanese Peony Tree (Hilda says it is a tree because it actually has bark compared to the typical bush)  The peonies didn't end up being ready to well after Emilie's wedding, but this is what my bush looked like at Easter:

We tried to incorporate this one lonely little peony into Emilie's wedding bouquet, but while Barb was working with it, the bloom fell off onto the floor.  We all just stood there in disbelief at the pile of petals on the floor, Barb with her hand over her mouth, and the rest of us wondering what in the world just happened.

It all worked out in the end.  Barb had some other blooms from her bush and a couple from  Jimmy's yard that made for a beautiful bouquet...and the petals on the floor... We picked them up and used them to sprinkle on the runner with the herbs at the wedding.  It worked out perfectly.  Yep...as I always say...every wedding has a story.  I'm glad our stories were minor glitches!

Pure Joy

Annie & Eric came to visit for Easter this year. We took advantage of the beautiful weather and took a walk along the newest part of the Nickel Plate Trail to shoot a few Engagement Photos....you know, to post on the parents & grandparents refrigerator, right Annie?

It has been a pleasure to be a part of the journey of Annie & Eric.  I knew he was "the one" the first time I met him.  They both chose well! I love the smile that I see on Annie's face when she is around Eric.  They complete each other like that one last piece of the puzzle.

This last weekend, I had the pleasure of driving my mother in law to Holmes County, Ohio for the first of Annie's wedding showers. It was a joy to participate in the festivities and to meet Eric's family.  They are first rate people in my book...so warm and friendly and inviting...just like Eric. I'm so happy for you Annie girl! Thank you both for including me in your lives!