“We fancy men are individuals; so are pumpkins; but every pumpkin in the field goes through every point of pumpkin history”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 5:40 PM
PLACE: Porch
SUBJECT: Pumpkin
We bought pumpkins at Aldi’s [a grocery store] this weekend. They are nice big ones and only cost $3.49 each. Can’t beat that.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 6:49 PM
PLACE: Junior High School
SUBJECT: DramaQueen (center) and friends
8th grade graduation this evening. She wouldn’t let me take an individual picture of her. And I had issues taking pictures during the ceremony. I did, however, manage to catch her walking back from getting her diploma…
She looks so happy. Congratulations DramaQueen…I’m so proud of you!
“All the thoughts of a turtle are turtle.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 - April 27, 1882)
TIME: 10:32 PM
PLACE: Girl Scout Camp
SUBJECT: Turtle
I guess our little talk with the girls worked. They begged me to take them on a hike this morning before we left for home. We took a different trail and ended up finding this turtle near the end of the walk. He looks a bit grumpy though. Kind of like the girls were yesterday.
“We are born believing. A man bears beliefs as a tree bears apples.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), U.S. essayist, poet, philosopher. "Worship," The Conduct of Life (1860).
TIME: 3:37 PM
PLACE: Work parking lot
SUBJECT: Crab apples on tree
We saw the sun today! The crab apples on the tree at work looked pretty against the bright blue sky.
“The sky is the daily bread of the eyes.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), U.S. essayist, poet, philosopher. Journal entry, May 25, 1843. Journals (1909-1914).
TIME: 11:31 & 11:38 AM
PLACE: Freeburg, IL
SUBJECTS: Corner of building (101 S. Belleville St.) and trees in the park
HH and I drove to Freeburg, IL to eat at a Wurstmart (one of his favorite things to do). It was a rare day in November - bright blue skies and warm winds. The clouds were dancing and racing across the sky with the wind. All I wanted to do was keep looking up and taking in all the beautiful blue color I could while we were outside. Rain is in the forecast tomorrow…I've got to enjoy it while I can.
“There was never a child so lovely but his mother was glad to get him to sleep.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 9:16 PM
PLACE: Home
SUBJECT: MonkeyBoy
Here is my tired boy. School, a basketball game and that pesky homework just done wore him out today.
“A man finds room in the few square inches of the face for the traits of all his ancestors; for the expression of all his history, and his wants.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), U.S. essayist, poet, philosopher. "Behavior," The Conduct of Life (1860).
TIME: not sure…sometime between 1930 & 1940?
PLACE: My 2nd great-grandfather’s produce store
SUBJECT: Great-Aunt Stella
I went to a get-together this evening at the home of my 2nd cousin on my paternal grandmother’s side. She also happens to be my 4th cousin, 1 time removed on my paternal grandfather’s side. How does that happen? Well, you see, my dad’s parents were related…Grandpa C’s great-grandfather was also the 2nd-great grandfather of his wife, my grandmother. Hmmmm, that could explain a lot about the family. Anyway…this photo was displayed on a shelf and I took a photo of it. It shows my great-aunt Stella (who is my dad’s maternal aunt AND 3rd cousin. She is also my 3rd cousin, 1 time removed. Are you confused yet?). She is standing in her father’s produce store which was located on Main Street downtown. My StellaDella is her namesake.
“I dip my pen in the blackest ink, because I'm not afraid of falling into my inkpot.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 8:30 PM
PLACE: S. 11th Street
SUBJECT: Tree silhouette against evening sky
MB’s baseball team’s end of the season party was held at the same house that we did last year. SD and I were late, as she had soccer practice from 6 until 7pm. Still, she was able to get some swimming, jumping on the trampoline and fishing in the hour and a half that we were there. The evening sky was a pretty pink and the clouds a lovely blue. The trees looked like black ink drawings on a watercolor background.
“The reward of a thing well done is to have done it.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 7:48 PM
PLACE: Kitchen
SUJECT: Last of the Baileys in a juice jar
Even though I should, I don’t clean out the refrigerator on a regular basis. It’s not on my list of priorities – I usually wait until it gets really icky. Tonight, it got to that point. I threw out a lot of stuff, removed and washed the shelves and now it is beautiful and clean once again. I even found this bottle of Baileys shoved way in the back. It had just enough left to fill up an old jelly juice glass. What a nice little reward for me. As I drank it, I vowed to do better by my hardworking kitchen appliance. But, more than likely? Not gonna happen.
“Sprinkle joy.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 7:27 PM
PLACE: The White Cottage
SUBJECT: StellaDella’s sprinkles on top of whipped cream on top of her cotton candy ice cream
The HandsomeHusband and MonkeyBoy went to see the Green Lantern and I dropped DramaQueen and two of her friends off to see Super 8. That left me and SD so what else could we do but get ice cream? First, we stopped by my dad’s house to see if he wanted to come with us (I left my cell phone at home), but he wasn’t there. I did have a feeling that we would end up seeing him anyway and I was right…as we were sitting at the outside picnic tables and eating our concoctions, he showed up. I’m psychic! (or psycho)
"Announced by all the trumpets of the sky,
Arrives the snow, and, driving o'er the fields,
Seems nowhere to alight: the withered air
Hides hills and woods, the river, and the heaven,
And veils the farm-house at the garden's end.”
Emerson, Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), “The Snow-Storm.” 1-5.
TIME: 12:34 PM
PLACE: South 11th St.
SUBJECT: Cornfield
Last night, as we slept, the snow arrived. We didn’t get as they were predicting, but there was enough to mess with people’s minds as they were driving. Plus, our temperature dropped like a rock: from the 50 degrees we enjoyed on Friday to about 16 degrees right now. The wind is blowing hard so it’s downright brisk out there.
“To the attentive eye, each moment of the year has its own beauty, and in the same field, it beholds, every hour, a picture which was never seen before, and which shall never be seen again.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), U.S. essayist, poet, philosopher. Nature, ch. 3 (1836, revised and repr. 1849)
TIME: 6:10 PM
PLACE: Mine Haul Road
SUBJECT: Cleared field
The new refrigerator arrived today…it is a whole 2 cubic feet larger than our old one. It also feels larger because I tossed out all the fuzzy, green, rancid items when transferring food from the old fridge to the new one. Always a good way to make more room in the refrigerator! I couldn’t get an interesting photo of the new appliance, so after supper, I went for a drive to see what there was to photograph. I drove some back country roads and found this field. I liked the tracks that were left on the ground after the harvest.
“There is an optical illusion about every person we meet.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), U.S. essayist, poet, philosopher. "Experience," Essays, Second Series (1844).
TIME: 7:31 PM
PLACE: Front yard
SUBJECT: Birdbath reflection
At the end of May, I moved the birdbath from the backyard to the flower bed in front of the house. We had storms this morning which filled the saucer with rainwater. I like the optical illusion of how the reflection makes it look as if the birdbath bowl is hollow and lets you “see” the entire length of the porch skirting.
“We do not live an equal life, but one of contrasts and patchwork; now a little joy, then a sorrow, now a sin, then a generous or brave action.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 9:24 PM
PLACE: Living room
SUBJECT: Oreo
Today we said goodbye to my Aunt Dolores. During the church service and at the gravesite, I though a lot about Mom. I hope Aunt Dee wasn’t offended by that – I’m pretty sure she would understand though. After the services, we went back to the church for a luncheon and family visit. I returned home about 1:30 and laid down on the couch until HH and the kids arrived home at 3pm. DramaQueen had a basketball game (they lost 25-5) and a Cadette meeting tonight. She also lost cell phone privileges for 24 hours due to her smart mouth being disrespectful to her mother. *SIgh* Here’s to a better day tomorrow.
For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 8:02 PM
PLACE: The kitchen
SUBJECT: Turkey cookies
Well, I hope that a Happy Thanksgiving was enjoyed by all those in the States today. We will be celebrating the with the “Family” on Saturday so we just had a small quiet dinner at Sujomi household. HH made a ham, garlic mashed potatoes and a wilted slaw (all very tasty – especially because I didn’t have to cook!) and I made pumpkin pie for dessert. Heck, I even got out the wedding china.
I made these cookies last night and the kids helped ice them this evening. These will be coming with us on Saturday to Dad’s house. A funny thing about these cookies, they are called “Sour Cream Sugar Cookies”. My dad hates sour cream. He even jokes that he doesn’t like anyone who likes sour cream, but these are his favorite cookies! He prefers them un-iced and I made sure that I have a container of those just for him. If you like a not-too-sweet cookie, then you should enjoy these.
Sour Cream Sugar Cookies
In a medium bowl, sift together:
3-1/4 cups of flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Then, in a mixer combine:
1/2 cup butter (softened)
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Beat for 2 minutes, then blend in 1/2 cup sour cream. Change your attachment to a dough hook and slowly add the flour mixture.
Roll and cut out with cookie cutters.
Bake at 425 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
Cool on wire rack.
Ice as desired.
“There are only ten minutes in the life of a pear when it is perfect to eat.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American, essayist, philosopher, poet, & leader of the Transcendentalist movement, 1803–1882)
TIME: 7:23 PM
PLACE: New Athens, IL
SUBJECT: Pears
A fairly quiet Saturday, compared to last week’s with its family reunion. Tonight we went as a family to a friend’s surprise 50th birthday party at a Knights of Columbus hall. The man is a big Dallas Cowboy fan and the hall was decorated with a blue, silver and white theme. These pears were piled in a bowl on the head table. Why pears? I have no idea, but I’m sure there was a good reason for them. One thing that I can’t get over is the fact that it only cost $1.25 for a draft beer in the bar. Sweet action! I think I need to drink there more often.
“You send your child to the schoolmaster, but 'tis the schoolboys who educate him.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American essayist, philosopher and poet, 1803–1882)
TIME: 8:15 AM
PLACE: School playground
SUBJECT: MonkeyBoy, StellaDella and Friend
Today was the first day of school, well, until 11:30am anyway. It was a cloudy and overcast morning and the pictures I took in our “1st day of school” spot on the front lawn look gloomy because of that. Since tomorrow is the 1st full day, I will take pictures again and they will count for first day shots. The kids will roll their eyes at me, but too bad, so sad! I’m the mom and I can call a photo do-over if I want to!
Our school does what is called a “Walk and Talk” in the morning from 8am until the first bell rings at 8:20am. When the kids arrive at school, they walk in a large circle around the playground and talk to their friends. MB and his classmate took SD under their wings during Walk and Talk this morning. SD was disappointed, she thought that she would get to climb and slide on the play structure until school began. And apparently she was disappointed in the curriculum as well. While we were eating lunch, she informed me that “Mrs. K--- did not teach me how to read today!” Hmmph, tomorrow I shall have to tell Mrs. K--- that I am very displeased with the fact that SD cannot read yet and that my faith in her ability to teach kindergarten is quite shaken. ;)
“The reward of a thing well done, is to have done it.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), U.S. essayist, poet, philosopher. Lecture, March 3, 1884, in Amory Hall, Boston, Massachusetts. "New England Reformers," Essays, Second Series (1844)
TIME: 8:07 PM
PLACE: School hallway
SUBJECT: School hallway and banner
Tonight I had a leadership team meeting at the children’s school. The leadership team was put together by our principal when she arrived at our school 3 years ago. It consists of parents, teachers, and the principal. The main focus of the leadership team is to improve the overall school environment for our children. We discussed a new program regarding rewards for the students this year. The goal is to eliminate rewarding the kids with candy, stickers, small prizes, etc and replace that by teaching them to make good choices because it is the right thing to do. We want to move from extrinsic rewards to one with more intrinsic recognition. It is a new mind-set and will undoubtedly, make some kids unhappy at first. The current reward system has just not been retaining the behaviors that are desired, so we are taking this new approach. It will be interesting to see how this program is greeted by the kids next week when school begins.
“Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air…”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)
TIME: 2:00 PM
PLACE: Millstadt Pool
SUBJECT: Monkeyboy
Our field trip this week was swimming. We went to the Millstadt pool with my sister and her kids. My sister-in-law and nephew joined us shortly after we arrived. They have a wading pool area for the little kids, however it was closed today due to an "incident", so everyone was in the main pool. In the "deep end" with the diving board, they rotate between letting people jump off the diving board and letting people swim in the area. This is MB jumping off the side during the swimming time. The kids had a good time - even though we forgot our towels at home! Doh! I made sure that tons of sunscreen was liberally applied before we ventured out into the sun. Around 3pm, dark clouds and thunder rolled in...closing the pool for the day.
