Over the River and Through the Woods...and Around the Bend, Down the Street...

“Oh, my my how beautiful, oh my beautiful mother

She told me, ‘Son, in life you’re gonna go far, and if you do it right, you’ll love where you are

Just know, that wherever you go, you can always come back home.’”

(Lyrics from 93 Million Miles by Jason Mraz)

 

Sometimes we’re away from home too long and we just need an energy boost by seeing and hugging the ones we love. I’m not sure you’re interested, but I’m going to tell you about my weekend at home. It was a nice, quick trip and so worth it!

 

I had the good fortune to catch a ride home this past weekend with a lovely couple from church. They were going to see their son in a concert at the college that happens to be in my home town. Graciously, they offered to take me along. But I never felt like just a tag-along. They made me feel very welcome and we had a grand ‘ole time on our eleven hour round trip!

 

When I was planning the trip, my dad told me that he would be out of town on business but my mom was going to be around at least. However, as the time came closer, my dad got sick (boo!) but that meant he needed to stay home and therefore, I was able to see him (yay!).

 

It also just happened to be the weekend before my mom’s birthday. Getting to see each other that close to her big day was a extra special treat for both of us. I also got to see a few of my good friends, my best friend, and my grandparents—who made an afternoon trip on Saturday to meet up with us.

Saturday was a nice, full, fun day for all of us. I slept in (which used to mean that I slept till 11 or 12 but now means I got to sleep past 8. Woot!) and then Mama and I went to get mani/pedis! I chose two different shades of pink (Pink Friday and You're Such a Kabuki Queen, both by OPI) and mama chose a dark purple for toes and a “Chocolate Shakespeare” (also by OPI) for her fingernails.

Afterward, we ran a few errands and then met up with my grandparents for lunch. We went to O.I.P. —one of my favorite pizza places ever!—and then went back home to meet up with Keira. Then, we went to the aforementioned concert. We hung out for a while and then Mom-mom and Pop-pop headed back home.

Mama, Daddy, and I went to Red Lobster to celebrate Mama’s birthday! She was craving some lobster from Lobster Fest. It was such a special treat. Then we went shopping and got some ice cream from Friendly’s!

Keira (my best friend from home) came over for a sleepover and then she went to church and lunch with us in the morning. Then it was back on the road and back to Elgin.

A whirlwind trip but a wonderful one. Now it just has to hold me till August. But that’s what Skype is for, l have discovered, and I am thankful for it! :-D

Hearts & Hugs,

Rachel

Long Weekend Fun!

Hello blog reading friends!

Please, take a seat. Have a little listen and I’ll tell you the tale of our week in the BVS house! Grab yourself a warm drink and relax as I tell my story. (That is, you may only want a hot beverage if it’s getting colder where you are like it is here in Elgin.) But I’m not complaining, I prefer slightly cold to very warm!

Anyway, let me begin my story before your drink gets cold.

Once upon a time, there were five BVSers. These BVSers were friends and living together. One day, as they all chatted over a delicious dinner, they discovered they had something in common. A love for all things cheesy—okay, that was pretty cheesy itself, sorry.

SATURDAY

On Saturday, we went to a lovely lunch cook-out at Christy W's and had a blast!  We had good food and good times!

 

SUNDAY
After church we went to Monroe, Wisconsin, at Carol’s suggestion. We wanted to see the bountiful harvest provided by Brennan’s Market and the delicious chocolatey-ness of The Swiss Colony. We bought at least five amazing hunks of cheese which are already half eaten!

 

On our way home, we saw a miniature golf course. On the fly, we decided to stop. We found out that it was rather expensive, however, so we didn’t stay to play. The stop was not wasted, though, since we met a wonderful goat that I promptly named Josiah.

 Continuing on toward home, we stopped in New Glarus where there just happened to be a festival going on! It was winding down, but the town itself was a treat to see and so was the fudge that some of us got.

 The last stop we made was in Freeport, IL to eat dinner at Pizza Hut with Carol’s mom and little sister. It was nice was way to wrap up a fun, satisfying and successful day!

MONDAY
It was Labor Day, and we had the day off so we ventured out to do some apple picking. We (Cat, Carol, Jeremy, Anna, and Virginia) headed to The Homestead Orchard for some delicious Macintosh and Early Blaze apples that we picked ourselves.

Seeing that they had raspberry bushes, we asked if we could pick some of those as well. They said they were pretty much picked out, but suggested we go head down the road a bit. We did as they said and found a whole field of raspberries where they let us pick for ourselves.

 

On the way home we stopped at Borders for their “10 Days Left – Going Out of Business” sale while Cat, Carol, and Anna went to get some groceries.

That evening, we made a list of all the apple dishes we wanted to make and Don started right in by making apple sauce, yum! He also made pink rice crispy treats (he tried adding strawberry syrup to give them flavor) and apple cider by mistake ;-D. Cat made delicious egg rolls for dinner, Carol and I made fresh squeazed and squashed raspberry lemonade! Carol also made us some sweet tea!

 All week we’ve been feasting on apples, raspberries, lemonade, tea, rice crispy treats, cheese, egg rolls, and happiness! Okay, sorry, I had to throw it in. At least I didn’t add rainbows and smiles to the list!

Peace and Hugs,

Rachel
P.S. Pics were taken by Cat! More pics on her Facebook!