Bloomin' Iris and Trenching Celery?

I took this picture of my reblooming Iris on November 18th...yes I was very shocked to see it continuing to tough out the cold nights we had been having. God shows us little miracles if we look for them.

I spent a lot of my growing up years helping my dad on the family farm. One of the crops we started growing after my parents sold the cows, was celery. If you ask my father, he would tell you I didn't always enjoy helping with the celery. In the fall, after it started getting cold we would spend many evenings trenching celery and then when it got even colder we had to cover it with paper and corn fodder. As I have aged I appreciate homegrown celery and so when my dad asked if I wanted a few plants for my garden, I decided to give it a try. Trust me there is no celery like homegrown celery for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Well, last week while my iris was still blooming away, I decided it was time to trench my 50 or so plants of celery. Memories of my childhood came flooding back as I got to work, but this time I actually enjoyed it. So here are some pictures of the last crop in my garden and I have a new appreciation for all the hard work my father put into raising celery and providing for our family.

PSU V. MSU @ Penn State, November 22, 2008

Wow it is hard to believe I graduated from Penn State 7 years ago this December, time sure does fly when you are having fun. I think the year I graduated is the last time that Neil and I were at a Penn State football game. This year we had the priviledge of going with good friends of ours. When we finally knew that we had the tickets, Monica and I decided that we were going to tailgate in style...because how many times do you get a chance to do that. We made lots of yummy food to take with us. We had sausage chowder, hamburgers, bratwurst, cole slaw, party mix, awesome pumpkin whoopie pies, coffee and hot chocolate. As game day drew closer we knew we were going to appreciate lots of warm food and lots of layers of clothing. We took plenty of both, but it is hard to stay warm in subfreezing temps. I believe it was 27 degrees and snowing when we arrived in State College and no sign of the sun. We arrived earlier that expected because we didn't run into traffic. I think everyone stayed in their warm beds a little longer that morning. We had plenty of time for tailgating and keeping ourselves warm. We alternated between throwing the football we had taken and eating warm food to keep from freezing. At one point Monica and I crawled in the back seat of the Tahoe and put all the blankets on us and played Mancala for a while. Finally it was time to head to the stadium...we put on as many layers as possible and headed off. I remember at one point walking up the ramp to our seats and saying to Neil "this is one of those games you watch at home on tv and say man those people have to be freezing!" Well, we weren't frozen and as long as we stayed packed in to our seats everyone's body heat helped to make it feel warmer. It was very exciting to see PSU win the Big Ten Championship and I would go to another game in the cold! Enjoy a few pics from our day.

West Virginia

Ahhh! It was wonderful to get away for a relaxing weekend with most of my family in WV. The leaves were way past their peak, but it is still absolutely gorgeous down there. We did some hiking, ate food, went to the Purple Fiddle (very cool WV coffee shop), played a cool game and enjoyed each others company.

View from the top of Seneca Rocks

Seneca Rocks

Neil and Ellie playing together

Gary is pondering how to "blokus" Marci

Hans and Marci picking some Cranberries

Very diverse plant life in the Sodds

View of Dolly Sodds Wilderness Area

Beth and Ellie enjoying a hike in Dolly Sodds

Christmas Is Coming!!!

I have the privledge of anticipating Christmas much earlier than many people do. Fall is winding down and we are starting to think about Thanksgiving and Christmas. Every day since about the middle of October, I am reminded of how quickly Christmas will be here. Each day when I walk into the greenhouse at work the poinsettias are a blaring reminder of how soon the holidays will be upon us. So, I just thought I would share a couple of pictures from my world to remind you that Christmas isn't all that far off. But....first we need to give thanks for all the many blessings in our lives.

Pig Roast

A couple of weeks ago we had the priviledge of helping to organize a pig roast fundraiser for friends of ours who are going to Guatemala for two years. They will be helping an organization in Guatemala that supplies food and support to orphanages in the Guatemala City area. We are excited to be a part of their support team as they take this new venture in life. I have included some pictures of our resident pig, who did an excellent job of attracting attention along Columbia Avenue that day. No, this is not the pig we ate! However, the pork was delicious and it was a beautiful fall day!! Who could want anything more than that?