I just looked back at my last post, and was shocked to see that I last blogged on October 12th!!! I knew it had been awhile, but didn't realize it was 2 months already!

A lot has been going on lately and other then jumping on Facebook for a few minutes to catch up on the recent happenings, I haven't had time to just sit down and write. If you are friends with me on FB, a lot of this may be repetitive, but if not, I'll update you on the last 2 months.

As many of you know, I've been having pain in my left wrist since breaking it earlier this year. It was determined that I had De Quervain's Tendinitis, which is basically inflamation in the tendon that sits below the thumb. My Orthopedic doctor wanted to try a cortisone injection first, to see if that would relieve the pain. It helped....for about 2 days! So when I returned in a month, he suggested just doing a minor surgery to cut and release that tendon. I agreed, so on Halloween (of all days) I had the wrist surgery. It was quick and painless (till the anestetic wore off)! I had about a 1 1/2 inch incision and 4 stitches. They gave me Vicodin for the pain, which made me terribly sick for the first week or so. But gradually it started to heal, the stitches came out, and the Vicodin went back to the medicine cabinet! I still have some numbness at the base of my thumb back to the incision site, but I'm told that will either take a long time to heal, or may never heal properly at all. At least the pain from the tendinitis is gone. Praise the LORD!

The month of November, like many of yours, was filled with fall activities and preparing for Thanksgiving. Our kiddos had a LONG break over Thanksgiving, with a total of 10 days off of school! It got a little hectic here during that time, but having a few sleepovers, doing some Thanksgiving Day projects, and of course all the fesitivites of Thanksgiving, it went pretty fast! Here are a few pictures of some of our Fall Fun!

Thanksgiving Feast in Mason's kindergarten class

Place cards we made for our Thanksgiving table

Hand Turkeys!

Thanksgiving dinner at my Mom and Dad's

November seemed to come and go by so quickly, and now I can't believe that we are in the full swing of the Christmas season! I've been kept very busy shopping for gifts, wrapping those gifts, hosting Christmas parties, baking cookies, decorating the house, you name it! I've come to the conclusion that I'll take a break in January! While it is a ton of work, I really do enjoy it. Christmas has always been my favorite time of year, and I just love to see the excitement and the anticipation on my kids' faces as the day draws closer and closer! They've all made their list's and I tried my hardest to fulfill everything on those lists! I am very much looking forward to seeing them opening their gifts and squealing with delight! At least, I hope they do!

The Saturday after Thanksgiving we went and got our tree. Usually we just go somewhere local and cut one down, but this year we decided to try Elizabeth Farms, in Lititz. We got to go on a horse-drawn wagon out to the field and choose our tree. We then enjoyed hot chocolate, candy canes, wonderful french fries from the food stand, a visit with Santa, a train display and many other wonderful features! The kids loved it and although it was a bit pricy, I would do it again, as you pay for the WHOLE experience, not just the tree! Here are some pictures....

Our horse-drawn wagon awaits....

The Yeagley Family Christmas tree!

Train display

So as you can see, we've been kept busy so far, and we still have A LOT of things we'd like to squeeze into the next 2 weeks or so! I am really trying to get things together to get our annual Christmas card photos out, but it still has not gotten done. Please don't be offended if you don't receive a card from me.....at this rate, no one will :(

May each and every one of you have a very blessed and MERRY CHRISTMAS and may you always remember the "reason for the season."

"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift"

Merry Christmas from the Yeagley Family....

Darryl, Heather, Abbey, Evan, and Mason

Until next time,

From brokeness to blessing

This was my devotional this morning from Dr. Tony Evans......

Remodeling is a way of transforming and updating a house or place of business in order to make it more appealing, efficient, or useful. Usually, it involves a redesign on the inside of a building, but it can also include the outside of the property.

Those who have been through the process of remodeling know how extensive and upsetting it can be. Even in the best of circumstances, workers will still create dust and chaos. Yet, in order to enjoy something old being made new, you have to go through the process of remodeling. The same is true when you view God's plan for your life.

There are times in the life of every believer when he or she will go through a time of remodeling. It is a time when God is updating our life by stripping away old thoughts and habits and replacing them with His truths and principles. Instead of calling it remodeling, we call the process brokenness.

Just like the beginning phases of a construction program, it may be hard to imagine a beautiful outcome - especially when things have been torn apart. Sheetrock is missing, and tools are scattered from one end of your home to the other.  However, before we can do the same, we have to be willing to allow God to give us spiritual eyes to see life from His perspective. After all, He is the One who holds the blueprints to our lives. Paul knew that there were many glorious benefits to the times he faced suffering. The greatest was his testimony of faith in Jesus Christ. No matter what befell him, Paul continued to trust in the One who had saved him and was in charge of his life. Have you come to a time of brokenness? If so, let God remodel your life, and you will be amazed at the outcome.

                                                                            Until next time,
                                                                      

Camp Swatara

This past weekend we camped at Camp Swatara, in Bethel, PA. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, and we had a great time! We camped with my parents, and another couple from our camping club, Glenn and Mary.

The kids kept themselves busy riding bikes, playing mini golf, taking walks, and playing ball. It's a lot more fun when Daddy plays too!

One of my kids' favorite things to do camping is to make smore's. We don't usually do it too often, because I'm not a fan of the mess that it creates! But this weekend, we decided to let them make smore's and we all enjoyed them! I think we forgot what they tasted like!

Saturday night the campground had a magic show for the kids. It was cute and for the one "trick", they picked Abbey to come up and help! It was a card trick, and we STILL can't figure out how he did it! She loved being a helper though!

We had a little visitor over the weekend! Friday evening a stray cat came around and we spoiled it by feeding it and letting it lay on our laps. The kids LOVED it and she stayed around the whole weekend. At one point she made herself at home on one of our chairs!

As always, our weekends fly by when we are camping! We love this time of year and look forward to hopefully at least 2 more trips yet before it's time to pack it away for the winter! Here's some pictures of the rest of our weekend!

Abbey and my Mom hanging out by the fire!

My Mom and Dad

Glenn and Mason chilaxing by the fire! It took Mason about 30 minutes to eat that smore!

Until next time,

A is for Apple

One of my favorite activites to do in fall is going to our local orchard and picking boxes of apples! This is the first year that I have taken all 3 kids along to pick! They were super helpers (except for the fighting over who was going to pull the wagon), and they picked 3 boxes full (1 and a half bushels) in about 15 minutes! This year our selection included Fugi, Golden Delicious and Ida Reds. We plan on making applesauce, and I tried my hand at an apple pie today! I haven't tasted it yet, but it smells delicious and looks just as good!

Ok, I couldn't wait any longer, so I cut a piece and am enjoying it right now! Let me tell you, that is a darn good pie! I don't mean to pat myself on the back, but pat pat! As many of you know, I'm not that skilled in the kitchen, so when I finally make something that tastes good, I get pretty excited! LOL!

Well, now that that's done, here are some pictures of our apple picking adventure!

Until next time,

Changing of the Seasons

I love fall! T-shirts by day, sweatshirts by night, waking up to the crisp, cool air coming through my bedroom windows, the aroma of apples and pumpkins coming from candles placed all over my house, the sounds of crunchy leaves underfoot....what's not to love?

In her book, A Family Raised on Rainbows, Beverly Nye says, "I love the fall season....It's a change of pace. After the carefree outdoor days of summer, I start feeling like the squirrels. Time to get my nest ready for winter and the holidays ahead....I love the smell of bonfires, the crispy apples in the orchards, and as funny as it may seem, the dried cornstalks in the fields. Somehow it gives me the feeling that everything and everybody have done their duty, and all is right with the world."

From the mulled apple cider to the high school football games, from pumpkin patches to the sound of chainsaws cutting wood for future winter nights fires, I just love it all! I enjoy hanging my wash when it's still chilly out and taking it down when the sun has dried it to a crisp (literally). I love pulling out all my pumpkins and fall decorations and transforming my home into a cozy retreat. I love trying my hand at a homemade apple pie or a big batch of applesauce with apples picked fresh from the orchard. So fall, is by far my favorite season of the year!

If you're not as quite enthusiastic about the fall season as I am, here are a few ideas taken from a book I am currently reading, Queen of the Castle.



• Gather seeds from the spent flowers in your garden; bag up and label, to plant in the spring.
• Pull out candles to dine by.
• Serve an all-orange dinner, with the kids devising the menu. Possibilities include orange juice, carrot sticks, grilled cheese, orange-colored pasta with Parmesan cheese, orange Jell-O, orange sherbert.
• Hike with your family on a woodsy trail. Look for big leaves to grace your table.
• If you've carved a pumpkin, sprinkle cinnamon (or nutmeg) on the inside of the lid. When you light the candle, it'll smell like pumpkin pie.
• Make up the beds with flannel sheets so everyone's nice and comfy.
• Buy small, round loaves of bread, one for each family member, and hollow out leaving a thick crust; fill with chili or stew and serve to applause.
• Buy a jug of fresh apple cider from the market.
• Pull out your slippers and curl up on the couch with a blanket, a good book, and a cozy fire.

As the fall season is now upon us, I would also encourage you to take the time to perhaps invite a family or 2 into your home, that you may or may not know well. I know there are some of us who don't enjoy entertaining, and would rather not have the mess in their house, but I am the opposite, and love to entertain, and I can tell you, that you are really missing out on something special if you don't entertain. Hospitality is not about trying to impress or competing to see who's the best housekeeper or the best cook (I can't cook, so there's no use competing here)! It's simply about opening the home GOD has given us, grand or humble, welcoming others into it. And don't feel like the meal has to be something fit for a king! Many times we've bought premade strombolli at the store and baked it at home, getting rave reviews! We've also ordered out for pizza, and yes, even McDonalds has become the meal of choice on certain occassions!

I had started something a few years ago, that I really enjoyed and would like to start back up since fall is upon us. Once a month, we would invite one family over for dinner. This would be a family that we knew, but yet didn't "really know." We chose a family from church, but you could choose someone from your workplace or wherever. The goal was to get to know these families a little bit better, give our kids other kids to play with and get to know, and just to enjoy the fellowship with someone other then family (although there's nothing wrong with that), or really close friends (that you may see day in and day out)! We had a great time doing it and I hope the families that we had over felt the same way! So I would challenge you, invite a couple, or family, someone who may be going through a tough time, or whoever into your home this fall. How many times may you have missed out on a blessing GOD had planned because you refused to open your home or life to others?

Host-and hostessing, as we know, is often a heroic endeavor, requiring daring, ingenuity, a desire to take chances and a concern for others. These traits are also called for in saints and Nobel Prize winners.

                            -Laurie Colwin

"Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it." (Hebrews 13:2)

Until next time,





First day of kindergarten

Well, after an earthquake, hurricane, and major flooding, Mason FINALLY started kindergarten today! He was soo excited to go and he had a difficult time falling asleep in anticipation of his big day! His alarm went off at 7:15, and he got right up and got dressed, which is HUGE for Mason because he will sleep till lunch if you left him!

We left for the bus stop, and he stood eagerly on the curb with the other kids and waited for the bus! When it finally came, he quickly got in line and climbed the stairs. He didn't even look back or would wave to me! He was soo excited to be a "big" kid! There were no tears (from Mason or Mommy), just a look of excitement on his face as he took off on his new adventure!

After making sure the bus was safely on it's way to school, I met Karen at Burger King and we enjoyed a long, leisurely breakfast! It was good to catch up again, and before I knew it, I was home to hang out my wash, make kids' beds, and then time to head back to the school to pick Mason up! He says he had a good first day, but isn't really giving me alot of details at this point! I know he had a good time and will have very fond memories from his kindergarten year!

Until next time....

Lake in Wood

This weekend we went to Lake in Wood campground in Narvon, PA. Since the kids' school was closed Thursday and Friday, we decided to make a long weekend and go up Thursday afternoon. We weren't sure on Thursday if the schools would be closed on Friday, but we took a chance, and it worked out!

This campground is our kids' favorite campground! It boasts an indoor swimming pool, (also has an outdoor one, but we were here after Labor Day), mini golf, 3 playgrounds, paved roads in the entire campground, arcade, store, Gnome Cafe, and many other amenities! It's a great place to ride bikes!

We were with our Camping Club this weekend, and we always do a "potluck" type meal together Saturday night. When we visit this campground though, our "potluck" is Shady Maple Smorgasboard, since we are only 6 miles from there! Everyone in the club went, with the exception of Mason and myself! For anyone who knows me well, knows that I despise smorgasboards! They are way overpriced (I couldn't eat $10 worth), and the germaphobe comes out in me when I enter places like that! You stick to the floors, have to fight people who act like they haven't eaten in a year, watch people licking their fingers and then handling food, sneezing and snotting.....ugh....I could go on and on! It just reminds me of cattle feeding at the troughs! No offense to anyone who enjoys it there (my hubby LOVES it there), it's just not my type of dining experience! AND I don't even like "home cooking, PA dutch food"! So Mason and me drove to New Holland and did a little shopping while they were all out for dinner!

Speaking of cattle, check out these pictures I took on the way back to the campground! How appropriate!

The campground has an adorable little cafe called The Gnome Cafe. It features burgers, quesadillas, nachos, mozzarella sticks, etc. The whole "theme" of the campground, including the restaurant, is, you guessed it, GNOMES! Now, while I find these little critters hideous, they are EVERYWHERE! The kids enjoy trying to find all of them all throughout the campground though! The cafe's food is very good and reasonably priced as well.

So our weekend there consisted of swimming, riding bikes, a visit to The Flower and Craft Warehouse, nightly ice cream runs, and a trip to the cattle troughs, I mean Shady Maple.

Here are a few pics of the kids enjoying one of the playgrounds....

Until next time.....