Where is the Johnson Family today?

   Hi All. It has been almost an entire year since I last posted on here. I have decided to do a final post.  I figure most of my previous readers no longer read this blog so, that being said, I feel I need to finalize this part of our family. 
 
   First let me tell you that I used variations of our names when I started this blog. My kids were younger and I felt like I needed to protect them at that time. I want to fill you in on that.

    Jeremiah is actually Jeremy (He always wished he was named Jeremiah)
    SunnyKaye is actually Sonya (Sunny was a nickname from high school and my middle name is Kay)
    Madilynne is actually Paige Madison (She named herself here. She wished her middle name was Madilynne)
    Ryder is actually Nathan Ryder (He chose his middle name)
    Johnson is our real last name

   
    Jeremy and I have been together for 27 years now.  We will celebrate our 22nd wedding anniversary in December.  Paige has graduated from our homeschool and is attending college.  Nathan is in 11th grade of our homeschool.   

   I have an Instagram account that you are welcome to follow.  I do update that much more often.  IG is easier for me to keep up with.  I am sovojo on there.   Leave a message that you were a Pines reader!  Hope to see you there. 

   I have enjoyed my time on here and maybe one day I'll come back to Pines but for now, I'm going to stop and not have guilt. Thank you for reading our family blog and I have enjoyed this part of our journey.

From My Front Porch/Bits and Pieces

  We are at the end of December! The Johnson family has been enjoying the last days of 2017.  Jeremiah has been home on vacation. Yay! It's always enjoyable when he is home. ☺

   Our Christmas was easy this year.  We spaced out all the running around.  We went to my mom's on the 23rd.  We hosted Christmas Eve dinner here and then went to Jeremiah's parents on the 25th.  That day was a little out of sorts due to scheduling conflicts with his siblings.  We had decided to have a family dinner this weekend so that we could all get together at the same time but several people from each family was sick!  Mostly head cold type issues but I definitely do not want it so I was happy to cancel! We will try again next weekend.

   We are experiencing a lot of the bitter cold and snow that is mentioned in the news.  We have about 6 inches of fresh snow. I'm not sure how many inches were there before and it is still snowing.  Jeremiah and Ryder are excited and they have been on the snowmobiles a lot. The township hasn't plowed our road much but Madi made it to work without issues...Oh, except she forgot her glasses!!! Jerm and I ran them down to her. Here are a few photos from the front porch. It is 14* outside as I type this!

   I tried a new recipe...they were called Sprinkle Cookies.  I like happy cookies and enjoy making them. I think these cookies are pretty but I am not sure that I will make them again.  They weren't winners with everyone in the family. 

   
   Madi got me a pair of slippers for Christmas.  Little lamb slippers! Meep!  I love them.  They are so soft and warm.  I need them when the temps aren't above 20 degrees!!!  Jeremiah said that 20* was a warm spell for us!

    I hope everyone reading this has a Blessed New Year!  Lots of love from the Johnson's in 2018!  I'm excited to see the Lord's blessings this coming year!  

Blueberry Soda!

   Madi arrived home from work last night with a big smile and announced she had a surprise!  She opened up a grocery bag and pulled out 10 bottles of this:

  

   Best Daughter Ever!!  Love her so much!

It tastes as good as I remember!

 

   You may remember me mentioning this soda in a previous post if not well, I did!  ;-)

First Snow of 2017

  Last night we received our first snowfall.  When we got up this morning our little forest was covered in the fluffy, white stuff.  The sun hadn't come out yet and the world still had the dark, forlorn look from the storm. 

   The wind picked up and blew some of the remaining leaves from the trees all around.  I didn't think to take a picture this morning to document the first snow.  I just looked at it and enjoyed it from inside. 

   Both kids went out and enjoyed it.  They rode the golf cart and 4-Wheeler around in the snow.  It wasn't much but they enjoyed the little bit we got.  There is more to come! 

   As I write this; the wind is gusting around 40-50 mph. The sun is on "full shine" 😊 and the snow has pretty much melted.  The temp went from the 30's last night to the mid 40's. 

   I had been using the oil furnace to keep the house warm but this morning called for a wood fire.  I started a fire and the house is toasty warm again. 

   I decided that I needed to put something in the crockpot to give the house a savory smell.  I put chicken breasts in with some small, whole potatoes, corn and some seasonings.  I have some homemade bread to go with it also.  I may make another side dish and/or serve it with some red beets.  Depends on what we want to eat tonight.

  I used to menu plan on a regular basis.  I found that I didn't want to eat what I had scheduled for that day.  I decided to just have a list of foods handy that we all like and could be make rather quickly.  This system seems to work best for us.  I keep the freezer and cabinets stocked with all the basic items I need to make those meals.  This is the way my mom cooks so I guess I'm just used to that style.  Plus, I don't do so well following recipes.  I like to change things up and add in leftovers.

   That's it for now.  I started this post to talk about the first snowfall and ended up on a rabbit trail that has me talking about menu planning!  Oh, this will make Madi happy when she reads it.  She says that I write like I talk and apparently, I don't stay on subject!  HaHa!

   Have a blessed day and enjoy the weather you are receiving today! If you don't want to enjoy the weather, make a menu!  😊

  

Pumpkin?? Fall Only??

   Are you a person who only craves pumpkin in the Fall?  I enjoy pumpkin all year long. I have a pumpkin sheet cake recipe that is so good you have to eat it whenever you want, no matter what season it is!  I understand the whole eat in season thing but I don't care when there is canned pumpkin on the shelf!

   Jeremiah requested pumpkin gobs back in the middle of summer.  I made two batches of those gobs!  They ate it them so quick that I only got two out of both batches.  I found that recipe when the kids were little and I wanted a recipe to supplement our Thanksgiving studies.  They were called Pilgrim Pies and I couldn't pass that up. Perfect!

   Since I am a person who can eat pumpkin any time I am all about eating Aldi's Pumpkin Tortilla Chips!  Oh! My! Gosh!  They are so, so good!  I could eat them anytime.  I got this bag two weeks ago and I ate almost every single chip myself!  I don't even feel slightly guilty about eating all of them either. I wish they had them more often than in the Fall but I will get them when I can. 
 

   Do you like these chips?  Have you ever tried them?  I hope I'm not the only one. 

 

 

Where, oh where has the Johnson Family been?

   Oh boy!  Have we been busy.  Crazy days for us.  I'm not sure when I posted last but we started school for the new year in August.  I was really sad about the thought of starting this year because it is the last year of homeschooling for Madilynne. However, I am enjoying this year because when you have older kids you can really have some good discussions about the topics they are studying. They have some really good thoughts and sometimes challenge my thinking! 



View of VA Beach from our room balcony.

   We have been traveling a lot lately also.  As much as I like getting on the road and being together making memories, I am so glad the traveling is done.  The last trip was to Virginia Beach, Virginia.  I loved the trip even though I am not a huge water fan.  I loved waking up every morning to seeing the ocean, the surfers and dolphins while drinking my tea!  I was really surprised at how well Madi and Ryder got along.  When you have two teens, well, they can kind of get on each others last nerve.  Both kids were awesome to travel with....most of the time!  ;-)  The trip to the beach took us 7 hours to drive to.  That's a long time in the car.   

   We were at the beach while Hurricane Irma was bearing down on FL.  My brother J lives in FL and he hightailed it out to safety in NC.  I am so glad that he was safe and as far I know right now, his home didn't sustain any damage. 

   I have been busy getting the produce from the garden canned for the last month.  Our garden gave a lot of produce but the wildlife around here ate their fair share this year.  I was able to can several batches of salsa and some jars of green beans.  I froze some zucchini and green peppers too. I bought some carrots and my mom helped me can 29 quarts today.  That was a lot of chopping!  Jeremiah grew two nice pumpkins.  He brought them to the front porch to use as fall decorations. 

   Speaking of fall... some of the trees are starting to show their colors!  My dad has a saying that "The colored leaves are the flowers of fall." 

    I think that I will finish with that for the evening.  I hope to post more later! Blessings to you all!

Peek Into My Life

   At church several weeks ago before starting his sermon one of our pastors announced that the church cleaning crew found a note where a lot of the teens sit. 

 

 He read, "If you keep staring at her, you'll go blind."

   I personally loved this!  My "romantic heart" thought this was so awesome.

 

 Teen boy smitten with the lovely teen girl... Ahhh....  

  
   When we arrived back home I teasingly asked Jeremiah if he ever stared at me while we were dating?

Jeremiah: Yep, all the time!

 

Me: All the time? You must not have stared enough because you aren't blind.

 

Jeremiah: I stared enough. I wear glasses now.  ~wink~

 

   Let me tell you, that was one of the sweetest things he could have said to me! Yes, it falls into cheesy but it melted my heart!  ~Dreamy Sigh~  

 

Life With A Teen Boy??

First thing: this was posted with permission given from Ryder.

 

What happens when you have a

 

Teenaged boy and add in

 

A treadmill on high speed and

 

An 8lb weight

 

!

 

!

 

!

 

!

 

!

 

!

 

 

 Ryder truly thought that the weight would just roll down the treadmill.  Well, THAT didn't happen!  HaHa!  Everyone is safe and no harm was done except to the window.

 

 

 

 

 

Busy Week on the Hilltop!

   Oh, the weather outside has been delightful!  We have been enjoying the change to warmer temps.  We have done a lot- and I mean a lot- of running.  The car is getting a work out!  I love it.  It's been busy but we are together and we have a good time talking.  Ok, sometimes the kids majorly disagree on something but overall it's a good thing.  My kiddo's aren't really little anymore (15 and 16 years old) so discussions can sometimes get deep/interesting.  They both seem to have a sweet spot for the 1980's and early 1990's music...  Really??? Who seriously wants to go back? Haha! 

   We have had many pop-in visitors this week.  My dad, my uncle, my mom came with my little nephew C.  Mom and C spent the afternoon with us.  C is 14 months old and he is so much fun.  I love to listen as his little feet pitter patter across the floor. He makes sweet little sounds to communicate and a couple short words like "Mom, Dad, Baby, and Ball".  He loves to wave "Bye" and "Hi".  We also had some friends of Ryder's come and spend a day here too.  The boys were constantly on the go. 

   Ryder mowed our yard and started mowing at one of the jobs that he carried over from last year.  All the grass is growing and starting to green-up.  I enjoyed getting the first scent of freshly mowed grass.  When my uncle stopped in, he wanted to get a whiff of the fresh smell too!  After a long winter the smells of spring and the birds singing are welcome- except for those who have those spring time allergies.  I'm sorry for you.  Jeremiah has been dealing with those recently and it isn't any fun; it takes away from your enjoyment.

   Madi had a "hankering" for a sandwich from the little creamery we visited with our homeschool group this winter on Thursday. She had to be at work at 1 so it worked out great to go have lunch before her afternoon shift started. I got the same Grilled Chicken Salad that I got before and it was so much better.  They have really improved since they opened last year.  I guess they just had to work out the bumps.  It is real food and not packaged, processed food and the taste is so much better!  They had a couple new farms listed on their sign to let us know where they got their produce and meat. 

   We went to a dinner last night (Friday) to celebrate my sister-in-law's birthday. Jeremiah had work so he wasn't able to make it. We went to a new restaurant about an hours drive from home.  I wasn't impressed with it.  I ordered a Grilled Chicken and Ranch sandwich (minus the bun) and I was far from impressed.  The chicken breast was too grilled.  It seemed like I was actually eating charcoal sometimes.  It was also grisly and fatty.  I think that is the term I want. Madi said her food was ok, not good but ok. I think it was called a Chicken Cheesesteak. She also ordered some onion rings that were huge and did have a very good flavor to them.   Ryder got a Philly Cheesesteak and he said his was good.  As an appetizer, he ordered some chicken strips and was happy with those.  The two dips that came with the strips were good.  My mother-in-law wasn't overly happy with her food either. I wasn't impressed with the prices either.  I felt that they were high.  No wonder they didn't list the prices on their online menu.  Most people wouldn't want to pay that much.  It worked out to roughly $20 per person without the tip!  If it was "real" food and not premade, packaged food from a chain restaurant I might not bulk as much but not for that.  I don't plan on going back there to eat. Ryder and Madi said they don't want to go there again either.  However, it was time spent with family so I wouldn't take the time back and we also tried out another new restaurant.  It was time well spent even if the food didn't turn out so great.

   Tonight, we are going to go to my in-laws to have Easter dinner with Jerm's family.  I am taking coleslaw and candied carrots.  We will be going to my mom's after church for dinner tomorrow. She has everything covered for dinner at her house. It is also a smaller dinner (9 people) since it will just be our family and my brother's family attending. 

   So I will end my post with that.  I hope you all have a most blessed Easter!

Random Thoughts and Updates

   It has been a quite awhile since I visited the blog.  I wasn't trying to avoid posting or writing but I was just plain ol' busy.  I decided that I wasn't going to push to get something written even though I have been very aware of the time that passed. 

   We are currently experiencing some warmer weather but not hot.  It has been in the lower 60's and I can definitely handle that. I am usually not in a hurry to rush warmer temperatures but this year has been different and I am (im)patiently waiting for warmer weather.  I am ready to get back to shorts and t-shirts. 

   Madi brought this little kitty home from the store about 2-3 weeks ago.  Someone dropped off/abandoned this little kitty and she was bones covered with skin. The poor little thing broke Madi's heart and she called me to ask permission to bring her home and try to nurse her back to health.  Madi named her Buffy and she is thriving and growing like crazy.  She feels like silk- so smooth.  Buffy is such a sweet and loving kitty.  She is a cuddle kitty too. She loves to nap and snuggle right by you. 

                                            ~~~~~~~~~

   Ryder celebrated a birthday recently and he made it easy on me.  We met with family at a little local eatery about 5 minutes away and then returned home for cake, ice cream and gifts.  I only had to clean and make two cakes.  He wanted a Funfetti cake and a butter cake with chocolate icing.  He asked my mom to make him a pineapple upside down cake also.  I told him that I could make that cake but he said that Gam's cake tastes better!  I had to laugh because I learned how to make the cake from her and make it exactly like she does.  Oh well, it saved me the work and the cake did taste awesome! (I did take a small bite and it didn't hurt my stomach.) My mama does make a good pineapple upside down cake!

   One of the gifts Ryder received for his birthday was a drum set.... Yes, a drum set and Jeremiah and I were the ones to give it too him.  I have regretted that decision several times already BUT since he has been playing them and Madi will play them while he plays his electric guitar it is starting to sound so much better and not just banging.  I am quite impressed by how quickly they have both picked up playing them.  It will actually sound pretty good with some more practice. 

   We have not been parents to shy away from giving our kids musical instruments like recorders and flutes or xylophones and toy drums when they were little.  I have always felt that music was good for brain development.  Both of the kids were introduced to classical music at birth.  Madilynne doesn't care much for classical music now but Ryder still enjoys it and will occasionally listen to it before bed.  Jerm played guitar for both kids all the time and later he encouraged them to strum guitar along with him once they were old enough to follow simple instruction- around a year old or so.  We also sang a lot to them when they were little. 

   Our kids enjoy playing acoustic and electric guitar, ukulele, keyboard, harmonica, violin and now drums.  They both started formal instruction on violin and branched out from there on their own.  They are self-taught on the remaining instruments for the most part.  They received some instruction on guitar from some family members but not much.  I probably couldn't afford lessons anymore!  LOL  I'm glad they have a good base knowledge of music to teach themselves. 

                                               ~~~~~~~~~~

   As for my digestive issues... I have been doing really good in watching what I eat but I have sampled some foods that contained gluten.  I have only experienced a bellyache once but that was because I knowingly ate more than I should have.  I have found that if I only sample something it is ok but more than that isn't good for me.  I am hoping that I am getting better because I wasn't able to sample before without getting sick.  I just need more time. 

                                               ~~~~~~~~~~

   I have been clearing away a lot of junk and clutter from our home lately.  I am gearing up to do some Spring cleaning soon and I need to get rid of the "stuff" first.  I feel so much better getting rid of it.  It just took up space and made everything look messy.  Much to my surprise, a lot of the clutter was truly junk that just needed pitched.

   Well, I figure that's enough stuff to write about until the next time... Have a blessed day!
 

The Awful Candy Experience!

   My mom, Madi and I went to a little store that makes goat cheese. My mom has been there before and she likes the cheese a lot. Madi and I tasted some of the cheese selections.  I have to say that I am not a fan.  Madi liked one of the cheeses but honestly they just tasted "goaty" to me.  I couldn't find an enjoyable taste to them. 

   Mom and Madi each bought a chocolate candy they were selling.  They were made with dark chocolate and looked so good! Mom got a cherry chocolate  drop and Madi got a vanilla chocolate drop.  When we got to the car mom popped her chocolate in, chewed a bit and got the most horrible look on her face.  She promptly opened her door and spit the chocolate out right there in the parking lot!!!!  She said she either spit it out or something else would happen!  She felt bad about it but it was nasty!  Madi decided to try hers carefully.  She took a small bite of it and got a horrible look on her face.  She didn't want to swallow her bite either.  I took a small bite of hers and it was AWFUL!  Truly awful.  I haven't tasted something so bad in a long time.  My mom thought it couldn't have been as bad as the one she had so she took the remaining third of the chocolate.  It exited her mouth also.  Yuck was the defined word to describe that awful chocolate! 

   We discovered that just because they had fancy names and looked beautiful the insides were horrible and left a bad taste in your mouth.  Life learning experience from some chocolate drops... 

Random Thoughts

   I have a bit of randomness going through my brain today so I decided to just do a weird blog post of those thoughts.  Random and jumbled- my specialty! 

   ::Am I the only person who can't wait for the election to be over?  I am all about going and voting and such but I get so tired of the bickering and the TV ads constantly ripping the opponent apart.  Ack! What irritates me most is that they pick a small section of wording and use a sentence fragment in an attempt to make you believe a lie.  I know it's part of politics but I dread it!  

   ::I made tomato soup again yesterday.  I ended up with 29 more jars.  Madilynne is thrilled with our supply.  Actually, I will say that we are all happy that the shelves are filling up.  I am thinking that I will attempt to make a V-8 type drink next.  I am not sure how this idea will turn out.  I need to look into a recipe for that.

   ::I need to make grape juice.  Our grapes are finally ready to harvest.  I may make some today actually....well, after I clean my messy house....keeping it real for ya!  :-)

   ::I am enjoying the cooler evenings.  We have pulled out the long sleeved shirts/flannels. Jeremiah is itching to build a nice big campfire!  We haven't had many campfires this year but only because we have been pretty busy. We need to slow down and enjoy our time together.   

   ::I have been focusing my time on being at home lately.  I still run Madi and Ryder to work.  Madi is working 3-4 days a week at a local discount store.  She is still really liking it.  She runs the register, stocks shelves and does some cleaning.  Ryder has several mowing jobs that keep him busy along with odd jobs when someone needs a helping hand.  He is gearing up for archery season because deer season is coming soon.

   ::I am so glad we homeschool. The kids are really gaining a lot of life experience and are able to keep up with their school work. They are learning how to handle money and make decisions on how to spend it wisely, save and tithe.  Our hope is to educate our children to be wise adults and not so much about being "smart kids" on paper.  Let me clarify that there is nothing wrong with smart kids but they need to know how to use those "smarts" in real life situations or it isn't going to help them when they leave home.  If you have an interest in home schooling, I would definitely encourage you to pursue it.  It has been wonderful for us. 

   ::Our chickens have been giving us many eggs!  I have been using them up quickly and even have a few people willing to buy them from us.  It isn't going to make us rich but it pays for the chicken feed!  :-)

   ::I have been eating way too many bologna and cheese sandwiches lately! I am not even sure why... yesterday I ate two, two people!  I don't even know if its real meat but it tastes-so-good!

   Well, I think that I will wrap this up.  I have much to do today. And maybe I need to make a sandwich....

   Be Blessed! 

  

Bits and Pieces

   Happy Independence Day to those of us in the USA!  Celebrating the 4th of July for us is picnics, BBQ, swimming and family everywhere.  Some new friends and the start of some new relationships are introduced. It is so fun to see how much the babies have grown since the last picnic (Memorial Day) and how big the mama's-to-be bellies are getting! The skills that the toddlers and younger kids are developing and how fast those tween and teenagers have shot up, they are going to be so tall!!!  Where do those boys put all the food?

   As much as I enjoy visiting will all the family...

   I am not fond of the questions of why we homeschool.... We have been homeschooling for over 10 years and we do NOT plan on stopping.  We love our life and our kids are not anti-social or under-educated.  I am not questioning why you are sending your kids to public schools nor am I asking questions about what those teachers are teaching them. This list could go on and on and on...

   I always hate to have someone ask me to try the new food they brought and ask me what I think of it.  I am happy to tell them if I like it but it is hard to tell someone that it isn't something I like.  I have to be tactical in my approach in telling them that it isn't my favorite thing to eat!  I don't lie about it but I also do not want to hurt their feelings.  I like to have the truth told to me so I try to tell others-politely...

   Oh, what list would be complete without listing the family gossip!?  I will admit, complete honestly here, that at one time I was into the family gossip and drama.  That was long ago and I have since discovered that those same people also like to talk about me when I am not there.  Oh, I KNOW that I have been under fire for being different in the family for years. 

Try being the

A) only home schooling family

B) the family concerned with the safety of vaccines (we have dealt with reactions)

C) the family into natural health approaches and using essential oils

D) trying to eat mostly organic in the group. 

   I have learned not to partake in the chitchat anymore.  I am not perfect in that but at least now I am more aware of what I say.  We should try to build each other up, find the positive, that's what family does, right?  I think age/time/experience brings wisdom but then again....some of the partakers in the chitchat are older than me!  Maybe I learned my lessons faster...must be because we homeschool!  Haha! 

   You know, we don't have to like everybody in the family but we do have to show respect to each other.  Every person has a different personality.  We aren't all destined to be best friends but there is no need to not like someone because they are different. 

   I love my family and enjoy visiting with them each time I get a chance.  I know that I am blessed to have family and this isn't written from a mean spirit. I just hope that you see this as an opportunity to love your wonderful family, flaws and all.  Build each other up and take the criticisms in stride even if "Auntie Mae" tells you that you have a big backside or that the shirt you are wearing isn't flattering to your skin tone!  :0)

   We have another afternoon of food and visiting.  I hope you all have a blessed day and enjoy the crazy family you are part of because I will certainly be enjoy mine. 

  

Color My Walk

 

Summer evenings make for the best time to take a walk. The sun is sitting low in the sky and we usually have a breeze of some sort.

 

 

We went for a walk on Sunday and I thought that it would be fun to take pictures of the flowers that are right beside the road.  This is one of the perks of living on a country road!

 

 

I am having a bit of trouble getting all the pictures I took to download so these pictures will have to do. I also wanted to make them a bit larger but they are coming out blurry! Ack! Oh well, I can't win all the time. :-)

 

 

I personally think that daisies are a "happy" flower. We don't seem to have as many daisies this year.  Last year it appeared that we had more of the perky flower along the road.

 

I was happy at the variety of color. Tiger lilies were in several different groups along the road.

 

 

There were a lot of these bright yellow blossoms along the road.  They were scattered and not in big bunches but it made for a nice splash of color for our walk.

 

Ryder found several patches of wild strawberries along the fields that he stopped and picked.  Wild strawberries are very small in size- about the size of a pea- but they are very sweet. 

Cat Sitting- Pumpkin

   Pumpkin is fast asleep by the laundry basket. He is a deep sleeper.

   Madilynne came downstairs and asked me if she could cat sit her best friend's kitty for awhile.  I quickly replied, "Yes" and threw her off guard.  She was armed with all kinds of reasons why she should be able to watch the kitty.  She didn't expect me to agree to it and definitely not a fast positive response.  We have dog sat for family members before but never had a cat.  Pumpkin has by far been the easiest to keep.  



His little paw is curled under! So cute!

   Pumpkin has adjusted to our house nicely.  I was pretty concerned about his adjustment because we have our own cat, and I was a bit leery that she may get territorial or something and go crazy on Pumpkin. Oh, they still keep their distance from each other but nothing has happened.  It's kind of funny to watch them side step around each other. 


Pumpkin washing his face!

   We set Pumpkin's belongings up in the playroom. He has his own space at night. We are able to keep the door closed and he has full range of that room at night.  I feel it is good to separate them at night.  Our cat can have her regular space at night and not be concerned that Pumpkin will invade her area and I don't want to wake up to cats "arguing"!  :-)  I open the door to the playroom as soon as I come downstairs in the morning but Pumpkin stays under the cook stove until he feels ready to face the day.

   I think we are spoiling him though. He has his pick of couches to sleep on, air conditioning and Madi even turns a night light on for him every evening.  The one night it was bright from the moon so I didn't think he needed the extra light. Ryder really likes the kitty and Jeremiah has a temporary lap cat since our kitty isn't really a good lap cat.