Easter Past

My dad told me that it was national siblings day today (or yesterday), and folks on Facebook were posting pictures of themselves with their siblings. Since I don't do Facebook (except for my Etsy shop), I thought I'd post a picture here because I love my sisters. It's a bonus that my mother was in the picture, too.

Ta-da!

That's me, right there in front wearing the crocheted purple skirt and vest. My sisters are the ladylike-looking ones on either side. 

I'm fairly certain I was all dolled-up because it was Easter. I was blessed then to have two wonderful big sisters, and I am no less blessed now!

Five on Friday

1.  Christmas Reading.  I've been wanting to post more about books I'm reading, so here goes. Over Christmas I was able to read two books.

My Christmas reading

Sister Bernadette's Barking Dog: The Quirky History and Lost Art of Diagramming Sentences by Kitty Burns Florey was a gift my husband gave me for Christmas because I picked it up in the used bookstore and said, "Get me this for Christmas, please!" He obliged after commenting that I was the only person who would want to read a book like that. 

Well, both of my teenage sons picked it up and read it before I did. All on their own. Then I picked it up and read it in one evening. I loved it. Florey meanders through a bit of the history of grammar instruction in the United States, falls into the old argument between language descriptivists and language prescriptivists, and lands somewhere in the middle with me. 

This book made me want to look up my 7th and 8th grade grammar teacher, Mr. Kite, and recommend it to him. Maybe I will.

The second book is Kim by Rudyard Kipling. I recently happened upon a comment somewhere online comparing this book to The Far Pavilions by M. M. Kaye. I read Kaye's lengthy novel when I was a teenager and reread it a few years ago, appreciating the historical aspect of it more the second time around. I was curious about Kim, and it didn't disappoint me.

Except the ending. The ending was disappointing to me. I wanted more, more, more. But the ending made me think, think, think about why Kipling chose it. In the end, I'm still thinking about it, and I think I like the ending better now. Have you read it? What did you think of the ending?

2. A Portrait of Me.  I'm glad I didn't get one with Mommy NOT "waering clohes," right?

Portrait of me by a dear child

3. Facebook.  I've ventured into Facebook land. Last night I created a Facebook page for Sideling View Crafts. I'm still not going to be active with my personal profile because I know I'd enter that rabbit hole and never return, but I do want to grow my business a little bit. Check out the page and like it or share it or whatever-- I'm still so confused about all of it! Feel free to leave a comment giving me some advice. 

4. What I'm Listening To. (Or, after reading Sister Bernadette, should it be "That To Which I Am Listening"?)  In either case, the children have been listening to this album the last few days; that means I am listening to it also. I'm okay with that because it's Snoopy, and who doesn't love Snoopy?

5. Great Clothes Heap Challenge Update. I haven't forgotten this challenge. I even moved a few bags around and begged my husband's help. 

Have a great relaxing (or, if you prefer, productive) first weekend of 2020!

Blurry Pictures, Beautiful Night

Back before Christmas my husband came home for lunch one day and said something cryptic. He said, "I'm going to tell you something, and I don't want you to say anything."

Of course, I was curious and worried. I replied, "How long till I can say something?" He told me he just wanted me to listen and not say "no" right away.

He told me that Loretta Lynn and Crystal Gayle were scheduled to sing at the Grand Ole Opry in January at the old Ryman Auditorium. He continued that it was more than we spend normally, but we'd never taken the kids to something like it and we wouldn't often have the chance to see such a legend, etc.

I immediately said, "Yes! Go buy the tickets!" That afternoon I called and bought tickets. I proceeded to worry that sickness or winter weather would ruin the whole thing.

Then this past weekend, we went to Tennessee. We were able to visit and stay with our beautiful niece and nephew (and their parents) since they live outside of Nashville. The weather was great, and the kids had lots of fun playing outside.

But on Saturday morning, we woke up with one sick little boy. We started wondering which of us would stay behind and which would drive into Nashville with the others. By afternoon, sick little boy wasn't too terribly sick, so we decided to chance taking him along anyway.

The drive in was easy. We found parking for our van easily. We walked to the Ryman Auditorium. Everything was going well.

Then it got even better. We found out Crystal Gayle was actually being inducted into the Grand Ole Opry that night!

When we went inside and sat down, this was what we saw:

I couldn't wait for the curtains to open!

Then it got even better when the music started. I loved the format of the show with so many different performers. We all enjoyed it. Except when the little one felt sick. Except when a bigger one got a bad headache. But even then it was an amazing show. 

The performers that night were:  Jeannie Seely, Ryan Kinder, Mike Snider, John Conlee, Smithfield, Connie Smith, Riders in the Sky, Jesse McReynolds, Emily West, Opry Square Dancers, Loretta Lynna, Crystal Gayle. . .and their sister Peggy Sue.

I think the kids' favorite was Riders in the Sky. They were funny!

Blurry Riders in the Sky

My favorite, before and after the show, was Loretta Lynn. At age 84, she can still sing. The headache boy thought it was nice that she sang one of her songs that he "kind of" likes-- "Fist City." (This is the boy who loves Metallica, so Loretta Lynn is a little bit of a stretch for him. Crystal Gayle is a bigger stretch.) 

Blurry Loretta Lynn in one of her fancy dresses

The three blurry sisters singing "Coal Miner's Daughter"

And, yes, Crystal Gayle still has long hair down to her ankles. Some of the kids thought she was singing, "Do-nuts make my brown eyes blue!" instead of "Don't it make my brown eyes blue." So cute. 

I've never been to the newer home of the Grand Ole Opry, but I definitely recommend going to the Ryman to take in a performance; the Opry plays there in the winter some. If I lived closer, I can see myself saving up money over and over to go to the Grand Ole Opry. 

Afterwards, we took in some lights and sights as we drove out of town.

It might be a bit premature seeing that January isn't even over yet, but I think I can say this is the highlight of my whole year!

The Pioneer Woman Experience

Way back at the beginning of November we traveled for two weeks. We drove too much for the liking of some little kids, but we did get to see new sites.

The one that was most exciting for me was this little spot in the middle of nowhere, Kansas. This log cabin is a replica of Laura Ingalls Wilder's little house on the prairie. That was the first big book I read as a child, and I've worn out copies of the series from so much reading. They're still my favorite books as an adult. While this site was closed for the season, we were still able to walk around and see what was outside of locked doors.

I actually started to get emotional when we pulled up here!

Since we were headed to the Oklahoma City area from here, it wasn't too far out of the way to go to Pawhuska, Oklahoma, where Pioneer Woman (a.k.a. Ree Drummond, blogger extraordinaire and Food Network star) had just opened her new store, The Mercantile, earlier in the week. My kids watch her show with me on Saturday mornings, and my little girl (the middle one) really loves her.

Pawhuska is a little town, but it seemed hopping on that Saturday afternoon. You can see why in this picture. 

Approaching The Mercantile, the line to get into the store.

And on the other of the building, there was another long line.

I'm guessing this was the line for the restaurant.

At this point, my husband and I knew we'd not be stopping because seven children and a line that looks like it would take hours isn't my cup of tea. I'm also not into waiting in line to shop in a store of any kind. But I decided I wanted to take a picture of the lines for this blog, so we hung a left and turned around. While we were doing this, two children swore they'd seen Pioneer Woman's husband, Marlboro Man (a. k. a. Ladd). The adults weren't buying it. 

On our way back through town, we saw this:

This hand-held sign reads "Cool Stuff".

So we followed and went around the block. And wouldn't you know, cool stuff appeared. If we hadn't been driving for so long with little children, I would've stopped to look at the cool stuff more closely.

Metal bison and roosters qualify as "cool stuff."

On the way past PW's store, I did get some pictures (namely the ones above). AND see the fellow in the cowboy hat below? That's the husband the kids had spotted before, out mixing with the crowd. 

Ladd Drummond

So then we drove on out of town, into the eventual sunset. And there were many, many tears from my disappointed little daughter. I felt horrible. It was the one thing on the whole trip she was looking forward to, and I just couldn't make it right. 

However, on our way to the interstate from there, I saw some gorgeous scenery. I pulled out the camera to take a picture, rolled down the window to take a picture of it, but since we were driving the speed limit which is so fast out there, I clicked on this instead:

The Drummond Ranch

While I didn't plan it and don't actually know if that is Pioneer Woman's family's ranch, I thought it was a funny accidental shot. And the possibility that the vehicle we saw coming out of the drive might have been her beloved Pioneer Woman seemed to calm the crying girl down a little bit. But not entirely. Disappointment is a sad thing.

This was some of the scenery I was trying to get a shot of:

Not long after, we noticed this field.

Windturbines, oil, and cattle grazing 

We guessed that whoever owned that land was making a killing on one spot of land. Talk about maximizing potential!

_The Hancock News_ Column--November 4, 2015

I’ll be 40 this month, and already my memory is failing. Sometimes when my young children reminisce, their stories from the recent past only faintly ring a bell.

The last few weeks I’ve been trying to recall events and details from 30 years ago, a time that made a big impression on me.

It was 30 years ago this week that my hometown of Petersburg, West Virginia, experienced the Flood of ’85. The waters of the North Fork of the South Branch of the Potomac River (along with numerous creeks and streams) swelled with inches on inches of rain and changed lives--both those who lost almost everything and those who lost nothing.

I was one of the latter, a fourth grader, excited and a little scared. Thanks to the local radio station, WELD, we knew ahead of time that the waters were rising. I was big enough to realize that my own home was safe. Although we lived less than a half-mile from the river, we were on high ground.

I was more worried about the safety of my truck-driver Daddy and what would happen if he weren’t able to make it home like my Uncle Randall who was stranded at our house. The electricity flickered and failed, and I was relieved when my father finally pulled into the mud-puddled driveway around dark. 

Then there were six of us sitting in the darkness of our living room and listening to the rain pouring down and to the battery-powered radio that kept announcing when and where the river was cresting and how far above flood level.

I slept that night, but in my troubled sleep I dreamt about the waters rising around my bed. When I woke, I heard a new sound with the rain-- the sound of rushing water.

That next day, people ventured out, trading their battery-powered radios for the ones in their cars and trucks. They were greeted by a changed world. The river had completely swept away roads and bridges and buildings, covering everything with inches and feet of mud and debris. It eventually retreated to the new banks it’d carved out for itself.

I don’t remember exactly how long it took for life to return to normal. I don’t think we were out of electricity as long as we were without drinkable running water. It was quite a while until roads and bridges were rebuilt. Both grocery stores in town were hit hard, so we traveled 45 minutes away for food. A temporary post office was established. My school had been flooded, and I’m certain we missed more than a month of classes.

 Many businesses were closed permanently, and high water marks were visible on buildings for years.

At the time I thought I’d never forget any of it. Now much of that time period is blurry to me. Through conversations with friends and family, I’ve discovered some of the memories that remain are distorted or entirely wrong. It’s safe to say if my brain were a computer, I’d have more than just a few corrupt files.

But, you know what? I’m fine with that because in the course of my chitchats about the past, I noticed my loved ones came up with just as many blank screens and error messages, regardless of age.

**************************************************************

I’ve been trying to do better with planning our meals because it saves so much time, money, and stress. One of my struggles in meal-planning, however, is remembering all the favorites, not just repeating the same 4 dishes over and over.

One meal that I usually remember and that nobody minds having frequently is Sloppy Tots (or Sloppy Taters). Basically it consists of tater tots (or roasted chunks of potato if I don’t have tater tots) topped with sloppy joe meat and shredded cheddar cheese. I know that around these parts sloppy joes are called steamers, but for kids, “Sloppy Tots” sounds more fun than “Steamer Tots.”
   
Sloppy Tots

Tater tots (or oven-roasted potatoes)
Shredded cheddar cheese
Mild banana pepper rings

2 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup minced onion
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1 lb. ground beef
6 Tbsp. ketchup
1 tsp. chili powder
2 Tbsp. brown sugar

Prepare tater tots according to package directions. If you don’t have tater tots, wash and cut potatoes into bite-sized pieces, coat with olive oil, sprinkle with a little seasoning salt, and bake in a single layer on a cookie sheet in a 400ºF oven, flipping twice with a metal spatula, for about 30-45 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp. I make sure to poke them with a fork to test for doneness.

While potatoes are roasting, saute onions and peppers in a skillet with butter until translucent. Add beef and brown. Drain off the fat. Add the ketchup, chili powder and brown sugar, stir, and cook uncovered until heated through.

To serve, top each serving of tater tots (or taters) with a helping of meat. The shredded cheddar goes on top, and garnish with the banana pepper rings, if desired.  (Note: Use this recipe for tasty sloppy joes/steamers.)
   

FYI: The Story Behind the Trees

Did you ever notice trees like these lining the road?

Somewhere near Fort Halifax, Pennsylvania

We did last fall when we went for a short family day trip. My husband and I noticed all of these trees, on both sides of the road planted at regular intervals. And they were big and old, and we didn't know what kind of trees they were (I guess that means we need to study trees this spring).

A quick search for "trees near Fort Halifax" revealed that they are sycamore trees, but not just any prettily placed sycamore trees. No, these trees were planted in 1922 as part of a movement to remember the veterans of World War I. It was a nationwide movement, a "Road to Remembrance"program.

This particular strip of trees, dubbed Sycamore Allee, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. There are other similar memorials across the country. Another quick internet search revealed that.

So maybe one day in your travels you may come across a bunch of big old sycamore trees, and know you'll know a neat little piece of history.

It's also a chance to remember those who fought a war which, likely, you didn't live through, but which was significant enough to those who lived through it to be nicknamed, "The War to End All Wars."

*This post has been shared with Strangers and Pilgrims on Earth's Art of Home-Making Mondays.

(Mostly) True Animal Tales

Nonfiction seems to be a favorite of the boys in our household. Throw in a few animals, and this week's two books are bound to be favorites-- or are they?

My mother put a lot of effort into finding books for the children for Christmas this year--books that would both interest them and books that seemed age-appropriate and had good reviews.  For my 7-year-old son she picked two nonfiction picture books, one about a young Teddy Roosevelt and one about an elephant named Queenie.

As per the way things go when at Grammy's house, the children were tucked in by their loving grandmother. She even read one of the new books to each of the little ones. My 7-year-old picked Queenie: One Elephant's Story which is written by Corinne Fenton and illustrated by Peter Gouldthorpe. After reading the tale, my mother came out to the living room and apologized for reading the book to the children. She was worried that it upset them too much.

You see, this beautifully illustrated book is a true story about an Indian elephant named Queenie who was a mainstay in the Melbourne Zoo in Australia for quite a long time. She gave rides and was a huge attraction. Then one day, *SPOILER ALERT*, she crushed her caretaker. Then she was put to sleep, not only because of the accident, but also because of a food shortage during World War II. 

This book is a good book, but it joins Faithful Elephants: A True Story of Animals, People, and War* (by Yukio Tsuchiya) in the category of good picture books (about zoo elephants who get killed during World War II) that really are not meant for little kids. These books can upset an adult. They are not necessarily kid material; preview them first, especially if your children are young or sensitive.

On to the second book.

One of my main goals in blogging about kids' books is to help parents find "safe", if not great, books for their children to read that the children want to read. It occurred to me a couple of weeks ago that the book in one son's hands had visited his hands more time than I could count, and my other son had also read it more than once. It is True Tales of Animal Heroes by Allan Zullo.

True Tales is a nonfiction chapter book about real animals who rescued kids and teens. The author notes in the beginning that dialogues and situations have been dramatized and names and specific incidents changed, and I definitely saw that while reading it. Overall though, this book was a fun read, and I can see why kids like it. If your child can read it, it's appropriate. My boys started reading it after the Magic Tree House stage of reading; it's fairly easy. I looked to see if it is still in print because it's a Troll book, and I figured it might not be the kind of book that has staying power; many used copies are available on Amazon for a penny each. Animal lovers will love this book.

* When looking online to find the author of Faithful Elephants, I found there are some who dispute the truth of the book and many who object to its strong anti-war propaganda-like message. I just thought I'd let you know since I hadn't really intended on reviewing that book since I hadn't read it for years--but it seemed to go hand-in-hand with Queenie.

Happy 151st Birthday!

During my school years, West Virginia's birthday (June 20, 1863) was drummed into my brain. Each year at church camp, we celebrated West Virginia Day by singing the state song. While only the first verse and chorus are committed to my memory, how the rest of the song resonates with me now that I'm grown and gone!

"The West Virginia Hills"

Oh, the West Virginia hills! How majestic and how grand,
With their summits bathed in glory, Like our Prince Immanuel's Land!
Is it any wonder then, That my heart with rapture thrills,
As I stand once more with loved ones On those West Virginia hills!

CHORUS:
Oh, the hills, beautiful hills, How I love those West Virginia hills!
If o'er sea o'er land I roam, Still I'll think of happy home,*
And my friends among the West Virginia hills.

Oh, the West Virginia hills! Where my childhood hours were passed,
Where I often wandered lonely, And the future tried to cast;
Many are our visions bright, Which the future ne'er fulfills;
But how sunny were my daydreams On those West Virginia hills!

CHORUS

Oh, the West Virginia hills! How unchang'd they seem to stand,
With their summits pointed skyward To the Great Almighty's Land!
Many changes I can see, Which my heart with sadness fills;
But no changes can be noticed In those West Virginia hills.

CHORUS

Oh, the West Virginia hills! I must bid you now adieu.
In my home beyond the mountains I shall ever dream of you;
In the evening time of life, If my Father only wills,
I shall still behold the vision Of those West Virginia hills.

And I'll bet you thought this was West Virginia's state song!  Well, it wasn't until this year. Evidently, 3 official state songs just weren't enough. 

*I remember this line as, "If by sea or land I roam. . . ." However, every online resource I could find uses the above lyrics. If anybody out there can shed light on the contradiction, please let me know; I'd love to know exactly how crazy I'm going.

Straddling the Fence

Well, it appears that one of two or three or four or five things has happened. Either

1. I completely stumped all of my readers.  OR
2. My geography question was so ridiculously easy that everybody thought it was just a rhetorical question.  OR
3. Nobody really cared. OR
4. I should've had a real prize. OR
5. You forgot your homework.

Although you should perhaps have ventured a guess, I will tell you the answer. In the picture in the previous post, I was standing in two states. My left leg was in Pennsylvania, and my right leg was in Maryland. I was straddling the Mason Dixon Line. The stone marker you see is actually one of the special crownstones that was placed every 5 miles along the line. I suppose that means that the coat of arms you see is the Penn family coat of arms. The south side of the marker is the Calvert family coat of arms. This crownstone has sunken over time so that a large portion of it is buried. 

And there's your geography lesson for the week.

Weekend Homework

Do you know where I am standing in this picture? (Geographic location please. "On the ground" does not count.) 

Put your guess in the comments, and while I'd love to send the first winner a cool prize, I don't have any sponsors or such, so simply feeling proud will have to do.

The Weed-Eaters

Last week the children and I did something I've wanted to do for quite some time. We harvested dandelion greens from our yard for supper.  I've heard of people eating dandelions because they're health-conscious or poor. I was curious. So out came the bowls for gathering, and we nearly froze in the crisp breeze while we gathered from our newly greened-up yard.

My 2-year-old thought dead leaves and grass would compliment the dandelions nicely.

I must admit that cleaning the greens was tedious. Even without the little one's contribution of leaves and such, plenty of grass found it's way into our sink full of dandelion leaves. My eldest helped me for a while, but his enthusiasm for the task soon waned. As soon as I had what I guessed to be enough for supper, I just tossed the rest of the uncleaned into the compost bucket.

I'd heard my mother talk before of how they used to eat dandelion greens in spring, so I called her for some how-to cooking advice. She told me what she remembered, that they'd collect the greens really early while they were still tender and not too bitter and that Grandma would make what she called "lettuce gravy" to pour over the cleaned greens, but she didn't have Grandma's recipe for the dressing. I called my aunt who looked in her "little black book."  There she found where she'd written down exactly what Grandma told her:

Beat up an egg. 

Put in about 2 tablespoons of flour and a cup of water.

Add vinegar and sugar and salt to taste.

Put in some meat grease, about a tablespoon.

Bring to a boil. Then cool to eat.

I talked to my mother again who'd found a similar recipe in a local cookbook that gave me a bit more of an idea about measurements for this warm dressing. Then I made it and poured it over my bowl of greens.

Dressed and wilted dandelion greens, after the crew ate

So how was it? Well, there were mixed reviews. My husband said he wasn't a horse, but he didn't give it a totally vertical thumbs-down--I think he left room for something else, like maybe sauteed poison ivy, to be worse. My second-born gave it two thumbs down; I think he said something along the lines of disgusting. The two-year-old lost interest in eating anything except the fresh-baked bread we had. The other three children all gave it thumbs-up. But. One who gave it thumbs-up didn't eat more than one bite. One didn't take seconds. The other one said he liked it, but didn't want to eat it because it made his tummy hurt. Later he insisted that he loved it and took seconds to prove it. None of them actually gagged on it.

I, on the other hand, liked it. I thought it tasted like endive, with a slight bitter but not unpleasant taste. I would totally do it again, especially if I didn't have to clean it. But whatever you do, don't reheat it for leftovers. I gagged on that.

Life Choices

Our children have memorized the end of a speech attributed to Patrick Henry.  A couple of days ago, our 4-year-old daughter ran screaming into our room. She was being chased by her 6-year-old brother.

"What is going on?!" we demanded.

Said brother, "Well, she said, 'Give me liberty or give me death!' I chose death."

Maybe it's good I had no brothers.

King James and Patrick Henry

The King James Version of the Bible, in many places, has been replaced by versions with more up-to-date language. I think this is great for children and others for whom the older language cause understanding problems. However, the KJV was the Bible of many generations in our English-speaking world, and many great thinkers and writers made reference to it, adding depth to their meaning. Many of the nuances in their writing have been lost to us who no longer hear and memorize from the KJV.  

I realized this today in church during the Gospel lesson about the master calling workers into the vineyard. In the English Standard Version of the Bible, Matthew 20:6 reads:

And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’  

In the KJV, it reads (emphasis mine):

And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?

That struck me as similar to the children's memory work for history.  They are now learning about the American Revolution, and two of them have chosen the end of Patrick Henry's famous speech (emphasis mine):

It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace – but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death! 

Before today, I didn't recognize that as a biblical allusion, but it certainly adds to Patrick Henry's argument.  I wonder just how much goes right over my head because I do not know the King James Version or even enough of any version of the Bible.

It's not just the Bible.  How many other thinkers and writers allude to other greats, and it just whizzes right by the masses because of our ignorance? What a shame.

And while we're on the subject of Patrick Henry's famous speech, did you know that there's a stinkin' good chance he didn't even deliver it the way we know it? Do yourself a favor and google it.