Mountain Musings

I C U

May we ask for your prayers yet again for Aunt Bunny? Early Monday morning the Rescue Squad came and transported her to our local hospital as she was suffering with pneumonia symptoms.

Last night she was moved to the Intensive Care Unit and was put on 100% oxygen to help her breathe. There was talk of possibly putting her on a ventilator, but that was avoided at the last minute when she rallied somewhat, although it may still happen if her condition worsens.

I've been back and forth to the hospital all week to be with her. Would you pray for wisdom for her doctors in treating her pneumonia and congestive heart failure? And please pray for strength for Aunt Bunny to recuperate from this illness in the coming days.  Thanks so much!

~Deb

Wedding Bells for Courtney

Courtney, Hannah's long-time penpal and friend, was married this afternoon in a beautiful ceremony.

Here's Hannah, the maid of honor, posing with Courtney for a picture during the reception.

And speaking of reception...all the baking Sarah was doing this week culminated in a beautiful wedding cake with gorgeous fall flowers. We're so thankful that the cake was a success and a blessing to the bride!

Of course, we have many more pictures we could share, but we don't want to take away from Courtney's special day and what she'll share later. Be sure and check her blog as I'm sure she'll write about the wedding when they return from their honeymoon.

Please pray for Christopher and Courtney as they begin their new life together.

~Deb

A Bridal Shower

Last weekend we girls traveled to a shower in Richmond honoring our friend, Allison, who is getting married in November. It was great to see her and her mother along with all the other ladies and girls in attendance, some of whom we hadn't seen in at least a year. Alli's aunt Rhonda, Joanna, and Meredith did a lovely job of hostessing and preparing the delicious spread of shower food.

We enjoyed chatting over tea, playing a fun shower game and watching Alli open the many generous gifts for her new household.

Congratulations, Alli! We're glad we could celebrate with you.

~Hannah

The Baking Begins...

19 sticks of butter

15 cups of sugar

33 eggs

24 cups of flour

8 lbs. confectionary sugar

30 oz of chocolate

Early this morning Sarah began her big day of baking the wedding cake!

She will bake all the layers today and do the final assembly at the reception area once we arrive in North Carolina.

If you think of her, please pray that all will go smoothly in both the baking and the transporting of the cake to North Carolina tomorrow.

And, of course, pray for Courtney and Christopher as their big day arrives.

~Deb

Michigan Memories...

  ...and Ohio and Pennsylvania. Just a few sample shots from all our cameras that sum up our recent family trip.

Left to Right, starting at top row:

Jonathan and Sarah at Lake Erie's Luna Pier; Baby Ethan's crib all ready and waiting; corn shocks in PA fields; Granny and Jonathan at Micah's racquetball court; Amish quilts and furniture;

Dad returning the racquetball (most of us tried our hand!); a Mailpouch tobacco barn; Dad and Aunt Bunny on the streets of Volant, PA; the beautiful lake scenery at Micah and Elizabeth's local park; Mom at a Volant shop;

A corn crib? at an Amish farm; Hannah, Jonathan, and Sarah at Lake Erie; horse and plow in Amish country; Dad and Granny at Micah and Elizabeth's apartment;

Dad and Aunt Bunny strolling across the park bridge during our 1 1/2 mile walk; Micah demonstrating the sport of racquetball to us; Sarah and Jonathan getting their hands wet in Lake Erie; Micah pointing out amazing details on Ethan's ultrasound DVD;

Micah putting together the new stroller we brought; Hannah taking photos at the park; horse and buggy crossing; Granny playing a hilarious game of Catch-Phrase; Canadian geese at the park.

~Hannah

Monday Wash Day

While traveling through Pennsylvania last week, everywhere we looked the clotheslines displayed Monday's wash. It was amazing, as it's not common to see clotheslines really put to use anymore. The further we drove down the country road the more laundry we saw. Everybody does laundry on Mondays! These lines boasted dark Amish clothing, rugs, and quilts--a delight to see.

Hannah snapped this picture when we stopped at a Quilt Shop located on an Amish farm. As we parked on their property, she quickly took this photo. Is it okay to take pictures of Amish clothing?

I don't always do laundry on Mondays--only when it needs doing. How about you? Is today Wash Day at your house? And will you hang your laundry on a clothesline? 

~Deb

Olive Garden Sunday

Soup, Salad, and Breadsticks! Yesterday our fellowship gathering enjoyed a delicious meal as the ladies of our church prepared some Olive Garden recipes found online.

Is that a large enough pot of soup, or what?! We were missing a few people at the last minute so we had plenty of leftovers to freeze. I should have doubled instead of tripled!

The recipe for Pasta e Fagioli can be found at TopSecretRecipes.com if you'd like to give it a try.

An Olive Garden salad dressing recipe for the greens can be found at this site. And a breadsticks recipe can be found here. Everything was delicious!

If you've been to your local Olive Garden restaurant lately, you'll notice the dessert brochure in the center of the table that features "for a limited time only" a slice of their Pumpkin Caramel Swirl Cheesecake.

Sarah found this pumpkin cheesecake recipe online when Girl Talk featured some caramel happiness. This ginger snap cookie crust made a delicious dessert! 

I think our Olive Garden Sunday was a success, and we'll have to plan a similar one in the future and try Olive Garden's Toscana soup, although this is a purchased recipe from the site. But I'm sure it would be worth it!

~Deb

Can You Believe It?

 All these quaint and wonderful shops...and the Girotti ladies bought nary a thing!

~Deb 

Sunrise over Lake Erie

Our annual fall family vacation definitely created many new memories for all of us--we just returned from Michigan where we visited Micah and Elizabeth. Now we can picture where they live, the hospital where Micah works, and the birthing center where little Ethan will be born in January!

Traveling home this week, we were just in time to see the sunrise over Lake Erie. I have to say, this was one of my favorite parts of the trip.

The crisp morning air at the lake made our jackets necessary. However, I admit that I never expected Michigan to treat us to such wonderfully warm weather the entire weekend! Here are my mom (Granny), Jonathan, Hannah, and Sarah with beautiful Lake Erie behind them.

And...guess who we took with us?! Lookee here at Aunt Bunny walking along the pier at Lake Erie!

This was the first time any of the seven of us had traveled to Michigan. Many, many thanks to everyone who has been praying for Aunt Bunny's recuperation. She really enjoyed seeing the fall scenery in all the states we traveled through.

More pictures of our travels to come.

~Deb

Win This Quilt!

At the moment I'm sitting in a hotel room in Pennsylvania catching up on some long overdue blog reading - love that high speed internet when traveling - and I'm so glad I didn't miss this giveaway!

Head on over to Pigtails and Snails and enter your name to win this beautiful yellow sunflower quilt. I just signed up and think it would match perfectly in my guest room!

It's a Lizzy Anne original titled "Spring Up" and was made by Elizabeth Cranmer in wonderful fall colors. You can enter until Friday, October 17, at 7 p.m. MST. Go leave a comment on her blog for a chance to call it your own!

~Deb