Dining Out Country Style with Family...at the Old Montgomery Steak House (Live Music ~ Cute Video)

There’s nothing like a great steak, fried catfish, or country style chicken fried steak at the Old Montgomery steak house in Montgomery, Tx.

The food and atmosphere were perfect for a family outing.

 

Tim and I asked Andrew, our son, and Elisabeth, our daughter-in-law to go out with us for supper one evening and they brought the babies along which made for a really fun evening.

We knew how much Elisabeth, originally from Germany, loved country music.  And since Tim’s cello teacher, Heather, was performing country music at the restaurant that evening, we thought our kids would really enjoy hearing her.

    Heather performing one of her original country songs.

  I thought you’d like to see some photos of our fun family evening.

    

Lena loves to pose for the camera..but you have to take the picture fast! Little did we know how much Lena, our granddaughter, would like the music and singing.  She had a wonderful time!

She just danced to her heart’s content. She was also Heather’s biggest fan, cheering and clapping after each song, which made Heather smile.  (Ps. I just had to link to Natasha’s Sunday Song Linky Party. She will adore this video!)

 

August enjoys his own dinner.

He loves to talk with mommy! 

 

Lena gets a cuddle from mom.

Andrew, our son, holds little ‘Augy’.

Tim and I and our newest grandson, August.

      

 

Well…we had a delicious dinner and a great time and hope you enjoyed the photos. Be sure to visit the Old Montgomery Steak house in Montgomery, Tx. 

Who knows? Maybe we will see you there you some day!

Happy Homemaking…..

Sleep When the Baby Sleeps...Photos of a Sweet Baby Face

Yesterday, I had quite an eye-opening discovery. It really IS harder to care for babies than it is to manage teenagers. I followed that age old golden rule of 'mommy-hood' today because I HAD too! Remember? Sleep when the baby sleeps. This is especially important for Grandmas--We aren't getting any younger--eh?

 I love that my Aunt Joan comments whenever I post a 'grandbaby' post. :o) She is the Queen of Grandmas. She cares for her grandson, full-time, while his Mommy teaches school--FIVE DAYS a week! Now that's a dedicated Grandma!

I put in one small eight-hour day and I was truly AMAZED at the energy required. It certainly did bring back memories of my years with five little ones. Young mommyhood requires TONS of physical energy. (Good job Ebeth for hanging in there!)

Older mommyhood, on the other hand, requires ALL of your mental, spiritual, and emotional energy..all done with hours of prayer but it isn't quite as demanding physically. 

In fact, my heart is breaking as I write this. But it's not something I feel free to blog about. It has to do with one of my babies--not August's parents, of course. No one warns you that sometimes,   motherhood can include  a whole lot of pain and grief..and sometimes regret... and questions like.. "If only I had done more..been more..phoned more, ...prayed more."

 But even in the midst of my own doubts and fears..there is this tremendous joy...the gift of new babies and new life.  Each life, the life of my own sons and daughter..and daughters-in-law, and their children, is a special gift..one I want to celebrate today.

Pray that the Lord will watch over each one and lead them all home...to Him

I had a wonderful day playing with and caring for my sweet GrandBaby August and taking his picture. And I hope you've had a great day too.

Happy Homemaking!

PS. I think I've discovered the secret to good 'baby taking; photos...take a LOT of Photos--VERY fast!!! And at all different angles. Then pick the good ones and edit them...and crop..crop..crop! Finally, I think I'm getting the hang of this photography stuff!  I'm so glad I spent some time re-reading Shona's The Artistic Mother.Shannon Mucha has wonderful photos too at Art in the Every Day.

Taking Care of Grandbabies

What a week! I spent a lovely Monday with my children and grandchildren so I wasn't able to do the post I planned. I helped take care of the granchildren all day while mommy prepared for a class she teaches on Tuesdays. As it turned out, I also got to attend August's circumcision. It was done their at the house by a pediatrician who is also a rabbi and specializes in this operation. He was able to 'squeeze' this house visit in so suddenly--there we were right in the middle of it.

Of course the thought of taking August to school all day, probably fussy and sore, did not appeal at all to mommy--so I offered to stay again today. So I didn't get my usual post in but I do have a recipe to share that I did a couple of days ago. It's waiting for everyone to eat (yea--no cooking dinner tonight!). I'm going to TRY to squeeze in cooking chicken pot pie to leave here for the kids. This MAY be too ambitious a project.

We'll see... Can I still do it??!! Rock the baby--boil the chicken--feed the baby--steam the veges--change the baby--roll out the crust.. hmm.. I may have to cheat and use Bisquick. Ha!

I'm going to squeeze in a little quilting--when he naps.  (Or should I say--IF he naps?)

Have fun...you know I will be. :o)

Happy Homemaking!

My New Grandbaby has arrived! Meet August Shepherd Rodgers (new update on baby included)

Here is our dear little grandson, August Shepherd Rodgers. Isn't he beautiful?!  He weighed 10pounds 2 ounces!! I can hardly believe it. Elisabeth had a very short labor, so short that the midwife didn't arrive until after the birth. Apparently another midwife who was nearby and a good friend, Erin, came over right away to help Andrew and Elisabeth. The labor was a 'whole' 45 minutes long!  I know just what that feels like. I drank cod liver oil too to help start labor with my first home birth and it lasted about 35 minutes. Yes it's over quick, but the labor is VERY intense! Basically, you start out in transition. There's nothing much really leading up to it. 

 Elisabeth, with her best friend and doula, Rachelle Davis, while Lena meets her little brother.

Lena woke up after all the fuss was over to greet her little brother. She was mesmerized and gave August the sweetest little kiss.  The Seago family was also there and Rachelle, who usually helps with the delivery as a coach, stayed close by to be a help to Elisabeth.

Lena helps Grandma cook breakfast.

After a while she decided to wander around a bit and helped me cook sausages for Elisabeth for breakfast. I had brought eggs, homemade bread which Rebekah had made the day before, cantaloupe and some really good fresh sausage links. Elisabeth loves good sausage and that's why I wanted to have it on hand.

We got the call at 5:30am. I'm not sure when the official time of delivery was, but the midwife and assistant were there still cleaning things up and checking on Elisabeth and the baby's health. There has been some concern because August's temperature was a bit elevated and  his breathing is a bit rough. When Tim and I left this morning, they had decided to visit a doctor in the area and just have a quick check up to make sure everything is ok with the baby.  He may need some oxygen. Please keep him in your prayers.

Proud Daddy Andrew (my son) and I with August

Our whole family is going over tonight to bring Andrew and Elisabeth dinner and visit with the our newest grandson.  It's so wonderful to be nearby! I so wish I could have been there for Matthew and Amanda's births, but we could not afford to fly there right away.  Nicholai was already several months old before I got to see him for the first time. I posted a video of him on the article (day before yesterday) dealing with Mange because it showed Percy, our dog,  inspecting Nicholai who fascinated him for some reason.

Lena was very interested in the sausage cooking. And kept saying 'hot-hot!" about the pan of food. She likes helping me cook.

After awhile, I passed her on to Grandpa Tim so I could slice the bread and warm it up. Elisabeth was able to eat it right before she and Andrew headed off to meet the doctor.


I'm sure I'll have more photos to post tomorrow so...stay tuned...and


Happy Homemaking!

UPDATE:  Hi Everyone, I'm babysitting Lena overnight so Andrew and Ebeth can keep a good eye on August. He had more breathing difficulties and they had him on oxygen for a little while at the house.

But Andrew called an hour ago and said his oxygen level was stable now and he seems fine.  Wow..this is hard to type with a little helper in my lap! She really wants to move the mouse for me. :o)

I'm very sorry that August was having so much trouble, but so glad I can keep Lena and make the overnight vigil of keeping a close eye on him easier for the kids.  I think Rachelle is with them too. She was there when I went to pick up Lena.

 Rebekah and Jacob dropped their  Beef Stroganoff off. That is one awesome dish! I had not made it from scratch since we got married. Tim was oohing and aahing. Lena ate meat, noodles, and greenbeans with applesauce for dessert. She's allergic to milk--so no sauce.

Andrew feels like they are out of the woods now..but it will be a long night for them.  I'm not sure if Rachelle is staying overnight with them, but if so, that will be great. She's extremely capable. :o)

Keep August in your prayers and thank you so much for all the well wishes! You are such sweet bloggy friends!

A New Grandbaby is on the Way! (Almost. :o)

We have such exciting news! Elisabeth, my daughter-in-law, is at least..on the way.. to having our new grandson. She's been kind of in and out of labor the last two days. We are expecting things to pick back up any minute/hour/day? She has already made a lot of progress...and now is sort of 'hanging' on the precipice of having the baby. I don't want to go into all the details..but this baby will be coming fast. So I'm finishing up my paperwork for the week and getting the laundry caught up so as to be available for what ever she and Andrew need in the next few days.

I will be hanging out with them some after the baby is born, so you may not hear much from me in the next few days. But I am going to pre-schedule a few posts of things that I've been wanting to share but couldn't last week due to all the painting and traveling.

credit

I'm going to start working on Beef Stroganoff for the kids sometime in the next day or two. Got to do something with all this energy!!

My new grandson's name will be August Shepherd Rodgers. ( Although they might change their minds...I guess it's not settled till the baby is born.)  Did I mention that my son's wife is German? I'm working on my German in the hopes to be able to read fairy tales from the book I bought in Germany to read to my German grandchildren. Maybe I should just sign up for a class at the local community college! :o)

 Web Cam with mike...only $4.90!!

Speaking of grandchildren, I've discovered a new way to 'keep in touch' thanks to my smart and wonderful Aunt Joan. She visits with her kids and grandchildren, that live in Washington state, via web-cam. Now why did I not think of that?  In a couple of days, I'm going to talk Amanda and Matthew (my marine son) and see if they have a web-cam and Skype. If not, I shall buy the web-cam for them. :o)

I will have so much fun talking to my sweet and darling little grandsons in Virginia and my son and daughter-in-law. Ahhh the joys of technology! They do sometimes help make life BETTER.  If you haven't tried SKYPE yet..you are missing out on a great FREE communication tool.

Photo Credit - Lone Star College

On another note, I did get Jacob to his test at the community college on time... (with 10 minutes to spare driving from Grand Prairie..very fast!) I still had paint all over me. How embarrassing!

 Photo Credit - Lone Star College

He will be attending orientation next week and meeting counselors. Talk about a busy month!!

When I'm not helping Elisabeth with the baby, I'll be sewing mom's cushion covers and supervising my last homeschooled child's lessons. It's going to be a VERY busy year with one child graduating, two kids working, and full-time school with the third plus a brand new grandson close by.

Can't wait to cuddle little August..and I have the cutest cow to give my granddaughter Lena when I go over to see the new baby.

And I have a special ministry banner to sew before the month is out. (More about that later. :o)  So, take care and don't give up on me...I'll be back soon with lots of great posts..when the baby dust settles. :o)

Hope you are having as much fun as I am! Every day is such a sweet gift from the Lord...

Happy Homemaking!

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  For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth. By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mother's bowels: my praise shall be continually of thee.I am as a wonder unto many; but thou art my strong refuge.Let my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honour all the day.

Psalm 71:5-8