Oh, The Busy Days Of Summer!

Wow...what a week I've had! Most of my busyness was because of a party we threw for Matt's parents' 40th wedding anniversary on Friday.  It was a huge success and very well-attended. 

Here's a picture of my parents (on the left), and Matt's parents (right) when Adina was born. I know that was a whole year ago, but I don't have many pictures of Bob and Carmen together.

40 years together...how awesome! It's hard to imagine being married to someone for that long, yet now that I am married, I can only hope I will be blessed with that many years with Matt. 

Anyway, back to the party.

I was in charge of the food. It was fun. Busy. A little overwhelming at times. Hot! - My house was like 80-some degrees...yuck! I had a lot of help. Mostly from my kids...they helped remind me that they were in the house, too, and I had to play with them a little. :)

My mom and sister came to help, too.  I'm so glad they did.  I would still be boiling and peeling potatoes if not for them.

The party was held at Bob and Carmen's farm. We rented a tent for out on the lawn, and borrowed some picnic tables from the fairgrounds. It was very laid back...picnic style.  We got a pig from my dad and had our butcher in Hallock roast it. It was fabulous! Carmen made her famous beans, and I made buns, potato salad and macaroni salad. Aunts and friends brought assorted bars for dessert.

And, it was a perfect evening weather-wise. How lucky for us! With all the rain we've had this summer, we really lucked out.

And, I made a cake. White with almond flavoring...cream cheese frosting with almond flavoring (Carmen's favorite). I wrote on it "Happy 40th Bob and Carmen" and put a little border around the edge. My sister said it was cute in an 'old-fashioned sort of way'. Not exactly the response I was going for, but oh well.  Guess I'll need more practice before I go into the cake-decorating business.

Earlier in the week, Matt's cousin and her husband and their four boys from Missouri came over for supper and a visit.  So did his parents, grandma and aunt. We had so much fun! The three older boys, ages 8, 7, and 6 were busy fishing, riding horse, playing with play guns, and running all over the yard. Their youngest son is just a year old, so he played in the sandbox with Adina. Clarence tagged along with the big boys and had a blast...they're right up his alley - busy, tough and wild - and they didn't mind a bit that he was right on their heels. We had so much fun visiting and showing them our cows and pastures. Hopefully we can make a trip down to Missouri again to see them and their farm.

And, just one more sidenote...I found a new website/blog, and am a huge fan! Check it out...www.pioneerwoman.blogspot.com.  I even bought her cookbook and have read through the whole thing.  Her writing's fun to read...she's got a good sense of humor.

Last night and tonight, Matt is/was involved in the rodeo in Greenbush. He's in the wild cow milking contest with three other local guys.  We found out he's a fast runner, because last night they got first. If they get first again tonight, they'll all get belt buckles.  Keeping our fingers crossed...   Clarence loves the rodeo, the horses, the cows, and playing with other kids there. I hope when he and Adina are bigger we can go there for the horse shows...we'd all have so much fun!

Have a happy and safe 4th of July!