Blog of the Week...

In honor of my friend JudyB starting a blog, I decided to spotlight it as my pick for Blog of the Week! I met Judy about a year and a half ago, on SplitCoastStampers. She is an SU! demo, and lives in NY, but several hours away from me. We have become great friends, and we have a lot in common. She just started her blog, so check it out!! JudyB's blog... and leave her a bit of encouragement! She has THE cutest picture of her and her hubby, as well as a GORGEOUS wedding announcement frame. Good night! **Keri**

The Home of Almanzo Wilder

Happy Monday, everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! Fall has officially hit the Adirondacks, so I will be putting my hiking boots on and getting some great shots to share with you in the weeks to come! We had an absolutely gorgeous weekend, here. Warm, sunny weather, and the leaves are just starting to turn. Beautiful! This weekend, we went to the Almanzo Wilder Homestead, just about 25 minutes away from our house. This year marks Almanzo's 150th birthday, and they had a celebration this weekend. He was raised there, with his family, until he was 18. Then they all moved west. This is the home they lived in, as described in the Farmer Boy book, written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. How about a "virtual tour?" Follow me!

This is the historical plaque in front of the house, by the road. This is the house he grew up in! We visited it as a kid, right after the society bought the house, and before any renovations were done to it. It was just an old, run down, deserted house 25 years ago. They have done fabulous work renovating the house, and making sure every detail is right, and to the period.
This maple stands in the front yard, just off to the side of the house. The society has done research into how old this tree possibly is. After much comparison to trees recently cut in a cemetary in Malone, they say it is probably about 188 years old. BUT one can never be sure of ring thickness, etc. so it could be as little as 138 years, and as much as 246 years old. Pretty cool! Peter and Cody stood in front so you all could see how big it was. Peter is 6 feet tall!

Here is a photo of one of the many buggies, and cutters they have on display. Unfortunately, I could not take any photos inside the buildings, or you would be able to see more!!

Here is a shot of me and Cody in front of the buggy. Peter did well taking photos yesterday!

This is Cody, in a coffin at the Civil War Encampment that they had at the homestead. He has a bit of a morbid streak. A bit disturbing for a Mom to take a pic of her kid in a coffin...good grief. He said he wished he had his vampire teeth in...oh, to be 11 again! The carpenter/undertaker thought it was hilarious, and said tons of people had been doing the same thing!

Because it was a special celebration, Dean Butler, who played Almanzo Wilder for 5 years on the TV series, "Little House on the Prairie" was at the homestead all weekend! While he was there, he brought a crew with him to film a documentary! It is going to be released straight to DVD and be for sale at the homestead gift shop. Pretty cool! We stood in the autograph line, and he signed my 1971 copy of Farmer Boy, and he signed a photo for Cody. Peter got to take this picture of us! So weird to see someone you watch on TV standing next to you....fun!! I know some of you know but many of you probably don't, but I happen to be a bit obsessed with any and all things "Little House on the Prairie". I know most of the show by heart, but have them on in the background most days in the house. Cody really got into them this summer and it was fun to watch him experience the shows for the first time. Now we are starting to read the books over again. The show really didn't follow the books very well, but they are both priceless, in their own way!!

Have a great day, everyone! **Keri

Gothic Arch Challenge-Weeks Three and Four

Okay, so time REALLY got away with me! What's new, right?? I had a free morning yesterday, and got caught up, though! Last week's challenge on the Gothic Arch Challenge Blog was a family theme, and I have so many great vintage family photos, that I couldn't choose just one, so I did three arches!

*The McNeil Kids arch is dedicated to my mom and her siblings. (minus one who was not born yet! LOL) My mom is Diane-the little girl on the left end. I used scraps of paper and ribbon, and a Buzz and Bloom Stamp.

*The 19th Century Brooks Family arch is the first family photo we have, taken on the farm where I grew up over a hundred years AFTER this was taken. My Great-Great Grandfather and Great Great Grandmother along with their children, are in this photo. This is the house I grew up in! I used more scrap paper, a brad, and a POD scroll stamp.

*The 20th Century Brooks Family arch is of my Dad and his siblings/parents. He is the shorter boy, with the black shirt. I love to see all my Aunts as little girls with ringlets! More scrap paper, a printed definition, and some teeny buttons finished off this arch.

This was a really fun one for me, Nancy--I love working with and showing off my family photos!

*For week four of the Gothic Arch Challenge, our theme is gold. Here is my try at it. I decided to make it completely monochromatic-gold cardstock, ink and embossing powder only. Turned out pretty cool! Stamps are Blossoms Abound and Words of Wisdom from SU, and the vine is from POD Ornamentals.

Happy Thursday! Love Keri

Camp

Michelle asked me a long time ago to make sure to take some pictures at camp. I actually managed to get a few-just never got them posted! So here are some pics from my camp vacation!

Here is my younger brother, Neil, with Cody. Neil showed up one Saturday morning and it was a nice surprise, as I don 't get to see him as much as I would like! Aren't they cute??

Here is me with Neil! Man--I think someone needs to start lifting weights to tone up those arms! AHHH!!

Here is Cody and his cousin, Craig. Craig's mom and I are cousins and the boys are inseperable! They love each other and each other's video games so much!! We usually trade them off to each other for meals b/c they cannot be apart! This was my last meal before my surgery-Garlic Parmesan Smashed Potatoes and Sizzlin Chicken Skewers, and fresh green beans. They wolfed everything right down! Oh, and don't forget the blue Hi-C! A camp must! And as long as I am here, here is my recipe for the chicken!!

Sizzlin' Chicken Skewers

1/4 cup hot water

1/4 cup melted peanut butter

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup teriyaki bbq sauce (couldn't find this so I mixed some reg. bbq sauce with some teriyaki sauce half and half to equal 1/4 cup)

2 T. honey dijon mustard

1 LB. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips, lengthwise

Put all the ingredients in a large ziplock bag, and add the chicken. Marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours, but the long the better..Don't do more than 6 hours, cause the chicken won't stay on the skewers!

Thread on skewers, and grill for 4 minutes on each side. Doesn't take long at all, and they are SOOO good!

For the Garlic Parmesan Smashed Potatoes, I used red potatoes scrubbed, and cooked with the skin on them. When they are cooked, drain, smash, add plenty of butter, milk, jarred garlic, and a handful of shredded parmesan cheese and stir! They are equally yummy!!

Buttercream Frosting!!

I have had such a hankerin' for cupcakes! I finally gave in yesterday and made some, but I have to get rid of some today so I don't have so many hanging around! I didn't really have a reason to make them--not that I needed one, but I thought I would dedicate these to Tracy-who just had a birthday. Happy Birthday, Tracy ! I thought of you while I ate one for breakfast!! Anyway, I am taking Andi's idea of adding recipes on her blog and running with it. Mine will mostly be desserts which I know will break your heart, but keep watching for new additions!
I got this recipe for decorating frosting from my cousin, Lauri. Everything I know about decorating she taught me. I don't know much, cause we only had one session, but I can keep myself afloat with cupcakes! Here ya go:
Lauri's Frosting:
3/4 cup crisco
1/2 cup butter
2 lbs. confectioner's sugar
1 T. Meringue Powder
2 t. vanilla
1/3 cup water
I mix the crisco, and butter together well. Then I add the Meringue Powder, vanilla and water and mix again. Then I slowly add the powdered sugar and beat it until it is nice and fluffy!! Here is your finished product BEFORE your 11 year old son BEGS you to make it blue and you have to re-wash the beaters cause he already licked them once...I sense a conspiracy here...he got 2 beater lickings last night...hmmmm.....


And here is the finished product of BLUE frosted cupcakes, with sponge-bob liners and colored sugar sprinkles...pretty festive! Happy Birthday, Tracy, they were fabulous! On another note, we are doing a bit of remodeling. You ever hear the saying " a carpenter's house is never done"? Well, this remodel has been in the works for a couple of years now!! We live in what used to be my Grandmother's house. It is from 1910! It always had this wood shed on the end that my Dad adapted into a garage for my Grandmother's Chevrolet Celebrity wagon back in the day...My old Grand Prix fit in it with a hair's width to spare...Unfortunately, when we got the Monte Carlo, we neglected to measure and it was too long!! So we put a new garage on the side of this one, and cut and access door between the two rooms. We took out the old garage door and added a set of French doors with a sky lite above them. Our intention is and has been to make this into a family room. Where Peter can put all his hunting trophies, his gun cabinet, etc. It is a nice room, with nearly 11 foot high ceilings, and you have to walk down into it from the kitchen. I can just picture it with a Christmas tree in it! I am going to give it an Adirondack twist (how fitting!! ) so be sure to stay tuned for more updates. Next time I will try to locate a before picture...not pretty!! So between working all day, working around the property, and trying to get wood in for the winter, Peter has been diligently working on getting this room done. I told him I WILL have a tree and some stairs in there before the holidays! We have been using a step ladder for a couple of years!! We acquired a bunch of beams from my late grandfather's grainery and also a bunch of barn board, so there will be beams in the room, and also for the stairs, and barnboard on the walls, to chair rail height. Here is my poor husband, doing late into the night what he does day in and day out...I swear he could tape with his eyes closed. He does a bang up job, though! I am so happy that it is finally coming together! Now we need to decide on the ceiling-paint or stucco...decisions, decisions!! Two thumbs up, Honey!!

Last but not least, this flower caught Cody's eye last week. Since then, I have been watching and there have been many more on the same genetically altered stem. I always have Heavenly Blue Morning Glories all over the railings outside my door. But this one is just more gorgeous than ever!! We have a few more of these "tie dyed" ones every day! I need to mark some of them and save the seeds when they dry up for next years crop!

Have a great day!--Keri

We Have A Winner, Folks!!

I didn't get to do the 100th post drawing til yesterday afternoon--I have not had time to sit til then!! Anyway, thanks to the 6 gals who posted, I appreciate you all visiting. Our winner is Andi! I have recently become acquainted with her through the blog post at 2peas, and was immediately in love with her blog. It is so natural, inspiring, and enjoyable to read! So check out Andi's Blog and give her a shout out. Tell her I sent you!! Trust me, you will love her blog about crafting, family, and ranch life. SO COOL! Have a Blessed Sunday, Y'all!!(< for LR)
**Keri**

Gothic Arch Challenge-Week Two

Well, I am caught up! Here is my take on Week 2 for the Gothic Arch Challenge. This one was equally hard for me...These are something I have never tackled before..but I am enjoying them! On this one, I found this great pic of the couple sitting on the moon...It was from a vintage postcard. I used DCWV patterned paper, and SU! Cardstock--both being scraps! The 3-D paper flower is Prima. The scroll stamp is Autumn Leaves. I went over the black stamped scrolls with a Stardust pen, and at the ends of each scroll I added some glitter glue. Stamped with Staz on, distressed with Tim Holtz Black Soot. I also inverted the arch this time, and used the negative instead of the positive. TFL!!! Keri

Gothic Arch Challenge-Week One

Okay, so I know exactly how late I am with this--but life has really taken over..but I had all the stuff out to do it, and Lisa Renea encouraged me to go for it anyhow..Now I am really excited to do this week's Moon Challenge!!

Thanks to Nancy for starting the Gothic Arch Revolution!!

This is the first arch I have ever done, so be forgiving! I used this pic that I found off the internet a year ago for some Back to School ATC's I was doing. She is such a little darling!

I used:

DCWV Chalkboard Patterned Paper

Gray Cardstock

Purple Onion Designs Stamps-numbers, letters in background, and smile sentiment.

Buzz and Bloom Chipboard "speech bubble"

Jet Black Staz On ink, and Offray Gingham Ribbon!

100th Post!!

This is "A Country Life" 's 100th post!! So, in honor of that fact, any people that comment on this post from today until Friday night will get their name put in a hat for a package of goodies! I have no idea what goodies-but surprises are good, right?? So make sure to leave your comments!

Now, on to other business. Here in Upstate NY-today is the first day of school for our district. I just got back from bringing Cody to his first day of 7th grade, and I gotta say, I don't know whether to sit with my feet up and watch WHATEVER I WANT on TV, or cry cause I am lonesome already!! It will be short lived, though. My daycare babies will be here starting tomorrow. I was nice to have today off, though. I got to bring Code to school and I will be able to pick him up. Here is his new, cool, first day of school look:

Now, I have an Uncle, Uncle Charles. He is my great uncle, my paternal grandmother's brother. He is a workhorse, he works like a fool for someone his age. But I am convinced the day he stops he will wither up and die. Well, a little over a week ago, he and his son were working in the woods when they met up with a bee hive!! Uncle Charles got stung nearly 25 times. He is okay, didn't even go to the ER...just put something topical on the stings and moved along. He did say that he saw the sunset that night and rise again the next morning without a wink of sleep. Well, to make a long story longer, I made him a bumble bee card and sent it to him last week. When Sunday morning came at church, he came up to me and told me thank you, how much he loved it, and gave me a big ol' hug. He made my day!! Here is the card I made him:

I used:

SU! Summer Sun and GP White Cardstock

Black Gingham patterned paper

Bumblebee stamp from Walmart

Get Well Sentiment from Purple Onion Designs

SU! Cutter Kit

Ribbon-Offray

Black Gel Pen for bee trails

Ink- Versafine Black

Prismacolors and Blending stumps.

And last but certainly not least for today, I finally am getting around to posting photos of my wonderful Summer Secret Sister gift that I rec'd while away at camp a month ago! Time sure flies! Annie was my secret sister,and she sent me THE hugest box of goodies! All kinds of embellishments, everything from A to Z. Rubons, stickers, metal embellishments, rubber stamps (POD) and so many other things! She also made me a personalized painting with my initial on it! It is gorgeous, the colors are so bright and vibrant! The photo does not do it justice, as it was hard to capture with the glass, but you get the idea. Thanks to Annie--a GREAT secret sis!!

More Great News!!

We just found out that I am going to be an Auntie to a NEPHEW!! My brother and sister in law have had 4 girls in a row, and now they are expecting a little boy in January! This will make me an Auntie 16 times!! Cody is so excited about having yet another cousin!

I also found out the my (bad)cholesterol went down from 176 to 106 since I was put on medication a few months ago! I know it is probably most exciting to me, but I just had to share!!

In honor of the pending arrival of my new nephew, I made a couple of baby cards!

For this one I used:
Paper: DCWV Stack, SU! Brocade Blue, Doodlebug Bazzill, and GP White
Ink: Versafine Black
Stamps: Michael's $1.00, POD Ornamentals, andAutumn Leaves Swirls
Ribbon: Offray
Font: Three Hour Tour
Other: Prismacolor Pencils, Sansador and Blending Stumps, and Mono Multi

For this one I used:

Paper: SU! More Mustard, Buckaroo Blue, Close to Cocoa, Basic Grey Patterned Paper

Ink: Tim Holtz Vintage Photo Distress Ink, Versafine Black

Flower Embellishment: Prima

Stamps:POD, Michael's $1.00

Photo: Internet

And Miss Brodie Blue wanted to stick her head in and say HEY!!

--Have a Great Thursday! **Keri**

Good Monday Morning!

Happy Monday Morning!! I have been MIA for a few days! I had a stamping get -together here in Friday night, but we ended up sitting around and gabbing! We were all so starved for female conversation!!

Saturday I took off with Cody to go run some errands. We stopped off in Mooers to pick up Peter's newly sharpened chain saw blades and some bar oil. From there we headed to the city to wrap up school shopping. We had a limited budget, but we did well! I came in under budget, actually! Penney's and Sears were both having early morning sales, so we benefited from them. When you have a boy who only wants screen printed T's, and non-baggy Levi's, it isn't very difficult! We traveled the 45 minutes to the city, got everything, grabbed a early McD's lunch at 10:45, and were home at 11:30!! He got 4 new outfits, sneakers and a new zippered hoodie and he is happy as a clam!!

Saturday afternoon we went to a friend's house for their daughter's 16th birthday party! Happy Birthday, Sam! It is hard to believe she is 16. The party was a blast-tons of family and friends of all ages. I got her a cute screen printed T and some ELF makeup. Of course this occassion also merited a cute girlie card, which I really enjoy making!

Here is what I used:

CS-SU! Pixie Pink, Only Orange, and GP White

Ink: SU! Only Orange, Pixie Pink, and Versamark

EP-Iridescent Stampendous

Stamps-SU! Cool Cat and matching jumbo wheel, Happy Everything (inside)

Ribbon-Offray, Wal-Mart, and Michael's $1.00 bin.

Tools- SU! Cutter Kit

It is hard to see, but I wheeled the background with versamark and embossed it with iridescent embossing powder..I was afraid it was gonna be too much, but it is very subtle and really cute!!

I also made up another card that I had floating around in my head for a while...I love to use the color combo challenges at SCS--I thought of this one on my own, and was surprised to not see i on the list!

Here is what I used:

Stamps: SU Sweet Treats, Print Pattern, and Purple Onion Designs Bitty Sentiments

CS-Barely Banana, Real Red, Chocolate Chip and Very Vanilla

Ink: SU! Basic Brown, Real Red

Ribbons: Michael's $1.00 bin, Offray, Textured Trios, Dots Dashes n Checks

Tools: Blending Stumps, Sansador, Prismacolor pencils, SU! Cutter Kit, Clear Glaze Pen from Sakura

I colored using the Magic Colored Pencil Technique, and went over the red cherry with a Sakura Clear Glaze pen to make it shine. I wanted this one to look really ice-creamy in a DQ kind of way!!

**Sorry for the awful scans--the ribbons made it hard..**

Hope everyone has a Blessed Monday..

--Keri

Brodie-licious

If what's her name can be bootie-licious, then I figure Brodie can be Brodie-licious. In honor of her recent visit to the vet and very full and active recovery, I created a new layout! It has been a while since I did any scrapbooking, but I love how this turned out!! I got some Autumn Leaves clear stamps months ago at Walmart and finally opened them and got to use them!

Here is what I used:

Patterned Paper: Scenic Route

Cardstock: Doodlebug Bazzill, SU!

Stamps: Autumn Leaves Alpha and scrolls

Chipboard: (don't remember!!)

Ink: Versafine Black, Staz On Black

I love how the acrylic stamps worked with the versafine ink! I have not played with acrylic stamps much, and had heard about how hard they are to stamp using dye ink, so that will be my next project.

On a few side notes:

**Peter is back to work once again! He is up in Lake Placid, helping to rebuild the Lake Placid Lodge that burned a few years ago. When it re opens, they will be charging $2000.00 a night, plus an extra $500.00 for your dog...WHAT??? He is going between there and a big add-on at Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Plattsburgh. Hopefully these two jobs will keep him working all winter!

**As many of you know, our family suffered a terrible tragedy back in May when Peter's cousin was murdered. I don't want to say a lot about it, it is not my place to do that here, but I wanted to share with you just how generous and giving our community has been in these past months. We got word last night that a golf fundraiser put together to help the family raised a "substantial" amount of money last weekend. The Gibson Brothers also put together a benefit concert with all proceeds going to a scholarship fund per the family's request. They too, were very successful! This has been a horrible few months, but the accused was just indicted by a grand jury, so that is some good news. It is so heartwarming to know that the community is being so generous and caring.

**My surgery was fine, and I am all recovered! Thanks for all the inquiries and well wishes.

**We said good bye to my nephew last night, he is leaving this week to go to heavy machinery school in Virginia. He was 4 when I met Peter, now he is all grown up! We had a nice picnic last night, and saw him one last time before he leaves. It was a great night, but sad for an auntie!!

Guess that is it for today. Thanks for visiting, and have a Blessed Wednesday. --Keri

I'm Rockin'!!

Thank you miss Lisa Renea, for nominating me as a Rockin' Girl Blogger!! I am supposed to nominate more gals, but everyone seems to have been called upon, so ANYONE--if you have not been nominated, this means YOU!! I formally nominate you as a Rockin' Girl Blogger!!

Brodie is home as of Thursday afternoon and doing well. A few prescriptions for her digestive system for a few days, but she is definitely back to normal!!

Working on a few cards, and thinking about submitting a few to Simply Sentiments...Michele (POD) sent me some back copies, and I think I will give it a try! Thanks, Michele!

I have a few framed scrapbook pages I have been meaning to make for gifts, so I need to get to those. Still have not touched the coaster book since I have been home!! It took me days to get caught up on laundry and housework. The upstairs still looks like Hates but oh, well...

As soon as I get my bum in gear I will post some photographs of my latest "work!"

Have a great rest of the weekend---Rockin' Kerilou *Ü*

A Few Thank You's

Well, after two weeks, I am home and back in front of the computer! We actually arrived home on Monday around noon, but things just started getting crazy right off.

First off, a few thank you's for some sweet goodies! I had a minor surgery during my time away, and got THE cutest get better card from my best bud, Lisa--(LR)! It is gorgeous, the coloring is awesome!! Thanks, LR!

I also got a RAK from a gal on SplitCoastStampers--Sandra. She knew I was looking for some sleeves for my ATC's, and found these for me at a dollar store...She sent them to me, all dolled up, nonetheless!! So cool, thanks, Sandra!!

Even though I did have a minor surgery, I was able to create some goodies at camp! I made a really cool altered notebook that is similar to the one I made for LR last month...and now I am making my first coaster album--one page for every letter in the alphabet. It also has a western/cowboy theme....I got a great Secret Sister box while I was gone, too--so be looking for that!

Before I go--as soon as I came home, Brodie took sick...from both ends (TMI, I know!) I thought maybe it was a blockage cause there was evidence that she had chewed a squeakie toy....I was freaking out!! I took her to the vet yesterday, and they are 98% sure there is no blockage, and they tested for Parvo just in case, apparently sometimes puppies still get it when they have not been immunized long enough or fully. That was negative, too. She stayed in the hospital overnight, for some IV fluids. They are thinking it is just a bug--but we miss her so much. Please keep her in your prayers! We will call later on this morning to see if/when she can come home! Happy Wednesday, Kerilou

Off for a vacation!

http://www.mooerscamp.org/

It is that time of year again!! We will be heading out today for camp for a couple of weeks. It is only the next town over, so I will be making the 20 minute trip home now and again, but the blog will be taking a vacation, too!

The camp I attend, I have been going to all of my life! 32 years and counting. In fact, my parents have both attended all of their lives, too. It is over 100 years old now, and it is a really amazing place that brings you back in time. There are dozens of old fashioned cottages that people have owned for generations. We have a camper...I like to stay--without the risk of bats and the like getting to me. I am sealed off very nicely in my camper, thank you!! Camp meeting is always a great spiritual renewal for me, as well as a great time to get together with my very large and extensive family that we only see once a year. It is an old fashioned church "camp meeting" that is interdenominational. There is a youth program, a children's program, and church services every night. My cousin who is a SU! demo also attends, and holds workshops throughout the duration of camp.

I am really excited this year, cause I am no longer the snack lady at VBS! Cody is no longer young enough for Vacation Bible School, so I passed the torch on to someone else. No more rice cake lion faces for me!! All kidding aside, serving 75 childred highly involved snacks every morning for a week and a half is very taxing! So I am on my own this year.

I am also having a small surgical procedure next Wednesday, and I would appreciate you keeping me in your thoughts and prayers. See ya round!! --Keri

A Couple of Cards...

Here are a couple of cards I have made lately. Original designs, no less!!Bareback, "For You"All Supplies are Stampin UP!

Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Real Red, Very Vanilla, and Night of Navy

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Night of Navy

Stamps: Bareback, Print Pattern, Starstruck, and Happy Everything

Tools: Cutter Kit, Round Tab Punch

God Bless America

Cardstock: Real Red, Whisper White, Night of Navy, and textured navy CS from Michael's

Ink: Real Red, and Night of Navy

Stamps: God Bless America

Ribbon: Gingham red and navy from Michael's

Tools: Cutter Kit

Happy Birthday, Linda!!

Happy Birthday to Linda, "Redplaid" on this beautiful Sunday morning! I know the scan is blurry, only because I put beads on the centers of the flowers, and then it was hard to scan. We all made Linda ATC's for her birthday this year. Hope today and the coming year is fabulous for you, Linda! You deserve the best! ---Keri

Our Trip to Vermont

We promised Cody MONTHS ago that we would take him to Echo, The Leahy Center for Lake Champlain. It is a lake aquarium/interactive museum. The traveling exhibit for the summer is dinosaurs, so that was a must see for my 11 year old!

It was a beautiful day for a trip to Vermont. We live about an hour and a half from Burlington Vt, and much of the travel is secondary roads before we make it to the interstate for the last leg of the trip. Lake Champlain was just glittering yesterday, the sun made it beautiful. The cows grazing in the fields, all the wildflowers and roadside vegetable stands-everything was wonderful!

Cody loved the Echo center. They had all kinds of wildlife from our area--fish, turtles, snakes, lizards-all set up in really neat habitats. They had all kinds of interactive displays for kids to take part in.

The traveling dinosaur display had an actual dinosaur from Jurassic Park--the selling point in Cody's mind. The skeleton next to the JP Velociraptor is the actual size of the dinosaur...they made then considerable bigger for the movie!! They had some really cool displays...of course they were all in the dark, and under glass--a picture taker's nightmare!! I managed to get a few good shots, though!

The building is on Burlington's waterfront, with 2nd story balcony's facing the water. The sun beating down was wonderful. We watched dozens of sailboats on the water, along with the tour boat "The Spirit of Ethan Allen" and the Lake Champlain Ferry.

After the museum, we had some lunch, and I visited the LSS--only to find it closing it's doors with everything 30% off and half empty shelves...what a bummer!! That was the closest LSS--and now it is closing.

All in all, it was a wonderful day. The days we get to do something like this together are few and far between, and yesterday taught us that we need to take more time to do these things....life is short and there are no do-overs....

Get out and do things--it doesnt' have to cost a lot of money--I realized yesterday that I take for granted what a beautiful area I live in. The best places to visit are close to your home!!

Heritage...

After the tiny rant I had yesterday, if I didn't scare you away, I thought I would share a few heritage pages with you. Nancy has me so inspired! These were done long ago, and are not nearly as well put together as hers, but they are mine, and I love them just the same! I also love the old photographs because it takes me back to a time when things were simpler. Not that they thought they were, my Grandparents thought we were going to hell in a handbasket 30 years ago!! These are my Dad's Parents, Lyle and Bertha Brooks. Pa has been gone for 16 years, Grandma for 22. Seems like yesterday!

This is Lyle and Bertha with my Dad and his brother and sisters when they were kids. I love this photo, my aunts have Nellie Olsen curls! I am so glad when I look at these photos that we have them. So many people don't have access to old family photos, or just don't care. This is another one I did YEARS ago. I have a really hard time with heritage pages, so I try to keep them simple.
This last one is of my Grandfather, Lyle, on the farm. I love the candid-ness of it. I LOVE to remember him this way, even though this was far before I knew him. The only way I knew him was in a house in town after we took over the farm, or in a nursing home. There were no bib overalls, just regular clothes, a baseball game, and a candy dish!

Have a great Wednesday, all! --Kerilou