Year End Review

Well, here we are at the last day of the year, and I believe I said that I would check in and give an update with how well I was doing with my empty-nest goals that I set in September.

Read through the Bible.  I am still working on this. I got a little behind with all the excitement of our trip and the holidays but I am trying not to be too hard on myself. I will continue on and what does it matter if I don't complete it in a year. I will still have read through the Bible and if it takes me longer than a year, so what.

Clean my Upstairs. I did manage to get one room cleaned out and organized. That leaves me with two to go if I don't count Megan's room. I think it would probably be a good idea not to touch her room. I'm afraid she takes after her mom a little with the thought, "if no one can see it what does it matter." Anyway, I hope to continue on and clean out another room, but it does get a little difficult in the winter because we don't heat those rooms and so I always have the excuse that it is too cold to work at it. And believe me, if I have an excuse, I use it!

Lose some Weight. This is probably the goal that is actually going the best. I have now officially lost 18 pounds and I was delighted to shop for new jeans and find that I had gone down a size! I was also pretty happy not to put on weight while we were on vacation. Thankfully we walked a lot and I think that really helped me.

I plan to continue on with my goals as the new year starts. I would like to lose another 15 - 20 pounds and I would love to reach that goal by summer. I will continue to read through the Bible and I will conquer my upstairs. Some other things I hope to accomplish are to make a digital scrapbook of our European Christmas Market trip and to make a homemade soup once a week this winter. I had made soup once a week last winter and Steve, Josh and Megan loved it and I actually found that I enjoyed planning and making the soup so I want to do that again.

I believe I will stop there and not make any more goals, because sometimes they are hard to keep and then I feel like a failure. However, I think a few ambitions that seem manageable are good for a person. It helps me feel a little bit organized and motivated in an otherwise chaotic world.

As I reflect over the past year, it was a good one and I am thankful for my family and friends and for a job that I enjoy. I am looking forward to 2014 and I hope and pray that it will be a year filled with plenty of laughter, love, and peace.

Happy New Year!

PS. I just had to share this picture of my family. We tried really hard to get a family picture this Christmas and this was the best one. As you can see, even though the end result isn't what you typically see in a family picture, it is obvious that we were having a lot of fun!

My Christmas Angel

Well we are back from our trip and it was a wonderful, relaxing time but it didn't start out that way. Let me tell you about it.

We were on a European Christmas Market Tour with TourMagination which is based in Canada. The plan was for Steve and I, Bob and Julia and the tour leader's stepmother, Anna Blanche Martin, to catch a small plane from the Harrisburg Airport and then connect with the rest of the group at the Toronto airport to fly over to Munich, Germany.

The morning of December 9 dawned snowy and cold. The first thing we found out was that our 10:40 am flight to Toronto had been cancelled. The tour leader booked us on a 4:40 pm flight instead. This would make it really tight to make our connecting flight which flew out of Toronto at 7:45, but as long as everything went smoothly we would be able to make it. Of course things did not go smoothly. The flight was delayed and then delayed again. When we finally left Harrisburg it was 6:10 pm. We were losing hope that we would make it on time.

We landed in Toronto at 7:25. We had no idea where we were supposed to go but Steve took off ahead of us to try to find someone to help us. Bob, Julia and I and 80 year old Anna Blanche walked as fast as we could down a long endless corridor that seemed to go on forever.  We finally caught up to Steve who had asked an airport personnel for some help and he had pointed us to the desk where we had to declare if we were taking anything out of Canada to Munich.  The man behind the counter slowly looked over our documents as we waited impatiently. After a while he looked at the flight we were scheduled to go out on and commented calmly, "This flight is leaving in a few minutes." Duh! We assured him we knew that and asked where the gate was that we needed to board at. He told us to just follow a certain hallway. We began walking as fast as we could and although we thought we were going in the right direction there was always the feeling that we weren't. Several times Steve and Bob tried to stop a shuttle going the other direction to see if they could give us a lift but they always said they couldn't turn around! We felt lost in the huge airport and were desperately afraid we would miss the flight. Suddenly a man appeared ahead of us. I'm sure he had heard us talking and it was obvious that we were flustered and hurried. He asked where we were going and when we told him we needed to catch Flight # 745 to Munich, he said "I know where that is. Follow me." And follow him we did. He walked briskly and we matched his strides. For an 80-year-old, Anna Blanche was amazing. She kept up with the rest of us. The man brought us right to the gate where are tour director was anxiously waiting. All the passengers were boarded and our leader was pleading with the airline to wait for us.

We were so happy and relieved to have made it, that I am not even sure if we thanked our "angel" who guided us to our departure gate. I have no idea who he was, but he was not an airport employee. He was just dressed in casual attire and I believe he was carrying a briefcase. After entering the airplane and settling into our seat just as the door was closed behind us, I wondered if he was an angel sent to guide us.

We had a wonderful time with our tour group enjoying the European Christmas Markets. The Alps were truly magnificent and sometimes we could only gasp at the beauty of them.  God certainly made a beautiful earth for us to enjoy. I am also grateful that he takes care of us by sending "angels" to us when we so desperately need them.

Have a blessed Christmas. Enjoy this brief video of a band playing Christmas carols in the square of Oberammergau, Germany.

Happy Birthday Melissa!

Today is my daughter-in-law Melissa's birthday. Melissa and Shawn have been  married for almost eleven years and have just welcomed their first child, Awstin, into their family this summer. Over the years, I have come to deeply appreciate Melissa and here are just a few things that I love about her.

I love her laugh. Once she really starts laughing, it turns into a deep belly laugh and comes bubbling out of her and if she laughs hard enough, the tears will come gushing out of her eyes and she tries vainly to wipe them away with her hand as they just keep coming and she keeps on laughing. Just watching her laugh, makes me laugh.

I love her creativity. Melissa is so incredibly talented. She beautifully decorated their home that they bought and renovated. She chose colors that I would never have been brave enough to try, and put them together with other colors that I would have been afraid of and the result is spectacular. I love to walk into their house because it is so warm and inviting. Another way that she uses her creativity is through scrapbooking. I love looking through the colorful and creative pages that she puts together with pictures and journaling.

I love the way she treats animals. If you have been reading my blog, I have introduced you to her dog Indy. Indy adores her and she adores him. She also loves to show dairy cows at the local Lampeter Fair.

I love her work ethic. Melissa is a hard worker. She works for Quarryville Herd Health and I am not sure of everything she does for them, but I know she vaccinates and dehorns calves and does a lot of lab testing for them. She also milks cows for a local dairy farmer over the weekends and some evenings. I have noticed that she likes to be busy and she isn't afraid to get her hands dirty.

I love watching her interact with Awstin. Having a baby after 10 years of marriage was a major world upheaval for the two (3 if you count Indy) of them and Melissa has handled it amazingly well. She is a good mother and Awstin is absolutely thriving. Of course, Awstin is still really little, but I love watching the way she talks to him and seeing Awstin's response to her.

Most of all, I love that she loves Shawn. As a mother, we always want our children to be happy and what more could we wish and pray for then a spouse who loves them. I am incredibly thankful for their love and dedication to each other and to the Lord.

I am blessed to have Melissa Kay (Charles) Lehman as my daughter-in-law. Happy birthday!

It's That Time of the Year

Well, here we are at the busy time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I usually never feel settled at this time of year for a number of reasons. Although I absolutely love Christmas music and beautiful lights and the significance of Jesus' birth, I always have the feeling that there is something that I need to do, and someplace that I need to go, and something that I need to buy, and that somehow I never quite do the whole Christmas season as well as everyone else does. I suppose it is just too much looking at what everyone else is doing, how beautifully they are decorating, and how many dozens of Christmas cookies that they made etc, that makes me feel inadequate and think that I don't do this time of the year justice, and that my poor family suffers because of it.

This Christmas season is either going to be even more stressful or else (as I hope) more relaxing then any other. On December 9, Steve and I, and his brother Bob and wife Julia, are taking a one week vacation to Germany and Austria. We are traveling with TourMagination on what is called their European Christmas Market tour. This will leave me with less time at home to deal with the pre-Christmas stuff. I am hoping this will be a positive in that there will be things happening while we are gone that we obviously can't attend so I won't feel so overwhelmed with rushing around to this and that. However, I am smart enough to realize that getting back a week before December 25 will put a lot of pressure on those few days before Christmas. I am trying to persuade Megan that putting up the Christmas tree and decorating might be something that her and Jeremy would enjoy doing while we are gone, but I'm not sure I have convinced her.

As I jet across the Atlantic Ocean and back again, I want to keep in mind how blessed I am and  I am going to try to keep this wonderful season of the year in perspective and enjoy it to the fullest and to remember that Jesus came to earth as a tiny baby for ME! Why should I stress out about little things that don't even matter?

In my last post I mentioned things that I am thankful for. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving and here are a few snapshots of our family time together.

Thanksgiving Eve

Jay and Steve chatting while Awstin grabs a quick nap

Checking out a You Tube video. Notice all the Black Friday ad papers on the table. The children love to look through them and discuss what they will buy although usually they never actually make it to the store.

These two have been really shy about getting their picture taken together,

but I persuaded them to pose for me.

We spent the Sunday after Thanksgiving with the Lehman Family at the Kauffman's. I am so blessed to have these people in my life!

Sofia and Alaina

l-r  Krista, Nancy, Gina holding Brycen, Anna holding Katrina

Jennifer and Brendon (Judy in background)

Tasha and Zach

Mom

Julia (she is taking a picture of me)

Joel

Dan and Bob

Cheryl, Mom, Marie (Mom's sister), Doris

Zach & Brycen 

l-r Andrew, Megan, Joel holding Brendon, Dad

It's the most wonderful time of the year! :)

Thanksgiving

Here's a Thanksgiving acrostic of what I am thankful for this season:

T - Trees that put on a spectacular display of beauty this fall before dropping their leaves.

H - Hardworking and loving husband.

A - All my children and grandchildren.

N - Nice, warm home.

K - Kind, thoughtful co-workers.

S - Salvation.

G - Godly heritage.

I - Incredible times of fun and laughter with family and friends.

V - Vacation that is coming up in 2 weeks!

I - Ill-fitting clothes (this means I lost weight!)

N - New Hope Community Life Ministry (where I work)

G - Grass that is not growing so doesn't need mowed.

Come, ye thankful people, come, raise the song of harvest home;
All is safely gathered in, ere the winter storms begin.
God our Maker doth provide for our wants to be supplied;
Come to God's own temple, come, raise the song of harvest home.

 

 

A Helping Hand

Years ago, when our children were small, a friend sent us a $500.00 check in the mail. We hadn't asked for it and he had no idea what a godsend it was. He just sent it with a note that said, "I figured you could probably use this." Ever since this, we have at times tried to do acts of kindness to others as well. Usually we have no idea whether what we give comes at "just the right time" or if it is just viewed as a special blessing that was given to them. We try to be sensitive to where there might be a need but we can't really know because people in our circles don't generally verbalize when they are hurting and could use some help.

Recently, I received a Facebook message from a woman asking me if I knew anywhere that she could receive help with food and clothing. *Cathy* was someone who had attended our church's community day and her daughter had come to our Kid's Club program a few times, but I hadn't heard from her in a little while. I knew that she was having a hard time finding a job and sensed that she was in desperate need of a helping hand.

I made a few phone calls and was able to connect her with a thrift store that gives out free underwear and socks as well as allowing those who qualify to pick out a few outfits from the store for each member of their family. I also called the food bank that operates in her area and after the manager of the food bank talked with me and with Cathy, she is now signed up to receive food twice a month from them. That very day a coworker told me about a local church that operates a "Kitchen Cupboard" out of their church basement for the community. Instead of providing groceries, they supply the things that one can't usually get on food stamps but that are necessities such as laundry and dish detergent, soap, trash bags, cleaning supplies, toothpaste, toilet paper, razors, deodorant, shampoo, etc.

I took Cathy to the thrift store and she received new underwear and socks and picked out several outfits and coats and shoes for her and the other members of her family. I also took her to the Kitchen Cupboard and she got those needed household items that she just couldn't afford to purchase. She will be able to return every six weeks for as long as she needs to. On Wednesday, the local Food Bank will deliver groceries to her door and that too will continue every other week until she can get back on her feet.

Most people would consider that I was the one giving the blessing and it is true that I did make the initial contacts so Cathy could receive some much needed help. However, by doing this act of kindness, I received a blessing as well. What amazed and  blessed me the most, was just realizing that there are people and organizations that do genuinely care for those who are hurting. It is because someone cares that families are going hungry that a Food Bank gets started. Someone cares that people can't buy basic necessities and that is how a "Kitchen Cupboard" becomes a reality. A thrift store wouldn't have to give out free underwear, socks and clothing, but because someone cares that there are people who can't afford to clothe their family, this service is offered. We hear so much about how everyone only looks out for themselves and how the whole welfare system is abused but I was touched by the ministries that were available to my friend when she desperately needed them. It made me appreciate how many people are working behind the scenes somewhere to lend a hand to those who are having a hard time.

Cathy was so grateful for the generosity that was bestowed on her. I hope and pray that someday she can be the one passing on a blessing to others. There are times in everyone's life when we could use a helping hand. We should not be ashamed to ask if we need help. I have found that usually both the giver and the reciprocate receive a blessing. Perhaps the greatest satisfaction came when I messaged Cathy and asked her if there was anything else specific that she needed at this time. She responded, "Thank you again for today. I think we have everything we need. Thanks!"

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat...I needed clothes and you clothed me..." Matthew 25:35,36

Update on Empty Nest Goals

Well, it is already the end of October and six weeks since I set some empty nest goals. Here is my progress so far:

1. Read through the Bible. This is going pretty well. I loved reading through Genesis and Exodus but Leviticus and Numbers have been a little tedious at times. Just reading all the laws in Leviticus made me weary and extremely thankful that I don't have to remember all those rules. All the do's and don'ts seemed a little overbearing and I am grateful that Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice to I don't need to make sure I am offering the right sacrifice for every wrong I commit. Numbers is a lot of numbers but also has some interesting stories that I am enjoying reading again. It is nice to be doing it with Megan and we like to check up on each other and compare and swap insights and thoughts and musings with each other.
2. Finish Megan's scrapbook. Hallelujah!!! I am done. This actually went a lot better than I anticipated and it feels really good to have it completed.
3. Clean my upstairs. Unfortunately this part of my goal still waits. I tried one morning to start going through things and got overwhelmed. I tried to persuade Megan to help me one weekend when she was home but she declined so I am still waiting for inspiration. I really want to make headway on this before we go on vacation in December. Hopefully, soon I will have the energy and right frame of mind to tackle it.
4. Lose some weight. Well I am happy to say that I have lost 13 pounds! You really can't tell it when you look at me, which just goes to show how heavy I really am. But, I am plugging away and it actually isn't going too badly. I like having my meals already preplanned and it seems to make it easier for me to stay on track. Steve is finding it harder and I know he cheats more than I do, but he is trying really hard and has lost some as well (he won't tell me how much). He seems pretty motivated so that is good. Hopefully, we can both keep continuing on.

I don't think that is too bad of a progress report. We will see what the next two months brings and I will give an update at the end of the year. Hopefully, my upstairs will be organized, my Bible reading will be going well, and I (and Steve) will have lost more weight. I believe it does help to put this in writing on my blog because it keeps me accountable.

I kind of like being empty-nesters. But, I absolutely LOVE when Megan comes home and we get to talk in person instead of through texting and phone conversations and it is always so nice to have her around. However, it seems like when she is home, there is a certain other person in her life that she likes to spend a lot of time with now and suddenly spending a Friday or Saturday evening at home with Mom and Dad isn't as appealing J. 


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Dear Mark

Has it really been a year since you entered this world? Happy 1st birthday!!! What a sweetheart you are! Those enormous soft chocolate eyes just melt my heart every time I see you.

The night you were born it was raining and boy was it raining. Hurricane Sandy had been making its way northeast after landing as a Category 3 in Cuba on October 25. Your parents watched uneasily as predictions of power outages and flooding were forecast for our area. Late afternoon on October 28, your daddy called and wondered if we would be available to spend the night at their house. There were signs that you were close to making your entrance and he was concerned about road closures that would make it hard for him to get Mommy to the hospital if he needed to. He wanted to make sure that someone would be in the house to stay with Alexis and Lydia if they needed to leave in the middle of the night and also that Grandpa could monitor the chicken houses if the electric went out and the generator needed to be used.

We gladly made our way over the treacherous roads and through the pelting rain to spend the night on an air mattress in the playroom. We drifted off into an uneasy sleep. Around 2:30 in the morning your daddy woke us and said that he and your mommy were headed for the hospital. I dozed off and on and spent a lot of time praying until around 6:30 when my phone rang and it was your daddy. You were here! They had made it to the hospital safely and you arrived shortly thereafter. We were so excited to welcome you as our first grandson! Just like your daddy is named after his two grandfather's your parents named you Mark Stephen after your grandpas. Grandpa is proud that you carry his name. Your sisters soon woke up and we shared the happy news with them. Lydia was too little to understand, but Alexis was happy to talk to Mommy and Daddy on the phone and they were able to tell her about you.

After the girls had their breakfast, we loaded them and their things into our car to take them to our house where they were going to stay until Daddy and Mommy were ready for them to come home. On the way to our place we stopped at the hospital to visit you. Of course it was love at first sight! Here is a first family picture.

 

You went home to a wonderful, busy and energetic family. Your parents lives were very rich indeed as they took care of three active little children. Grandpa and I enjoyed every moment that we got to share with you and your sisters. Sometimes it was hard to get time with just you, because Alexis and Lydia were usually bouncing up and down and wanting to show me things and play with me! Here are a few pictures of your first year.

And here is a video of you and Megan shaking rattles together.

One special day that I remember with you was in August when Mommy and Daddy and Alexis and Lydia went to Knoebels Amusement Park for the day. They decided not to take you along and we had the pleasure of keeping you all day long. We had such a good time! You played and smiled and giggled and crawled all over the place. It was a beautiful day and I took you outside and you were fascinated with Chip. You kept trying to crawl over to him and Chip would let you get really close and then move away from you. You would sit up and stare at him for awhile and then start all over. It was so cute! I actually took a video of it.  Here it is.

Just a few weeks ago, we kept you and your sisters again for the day. It was such a fun, busy day. You really liked my dishwasher. Since your mommy doesn't have one, it was something new to you. Here are some pictures of you investigating it and a video. (Sometimes I just want to call you "little Jay." You look and act so much like your daddy did when he was your age.)

 

 





 

 

 

And that pretty much brings us to today. You are an active, busy, adorable little boy.  What joy you have brought to your family. I love you Mark Stephen Lehman and am so thankful and blessed to be your Grandma.

 

Love,

Grandma

Just Some Pictures and Videos

As you know I enjoy taking pictures and videos of my grandchildren so here is a post of some I have taken over the past couple months. I figure that part of being a grandma is showing off your grandchildren, right? The picture on the left with me and Alexis and Lydia was taken at Cherry Crest Farm in Strasburg. I wanted to do something special with the girls and had heard that this was a good place to take little children so one day in September I took them there. The weather was gorgeous and the girls loved seeing the animals and doing all the different activities. It is indeed a great place for little folks and I would highly recommend it. Here are a few pictures and videos:

 

Ready to Begin



This is my kind of maze. You can see where you are going!


 

True Farm Girls! They loved the corn.







             Poor Lydia had a hard time staying on her feet 

 

 

 

 

Tractor Ride! (Well, sort of) 

 

 Playing in water is always a hit.

 

  Waving at the train (Strasburg RR goes right by)

          Ride through the corn.

Just last week, I had all three of Jay and Kristen's children for the day. Believe me, I was busy! Here is a video that shows that we had a lot of fun and also that it was a bit chaotic!

 



 

Here's a short video of just Mark.

 

 

Of course, I can't forget Awstin. I keep him every Wednesday morning. I took this video of him last Wednesday, October 16. I am loving getting to share this special individual time with him.

 

 

Well, that's it. I will try not to bombard my blog with too many more pictures and videos of the grandkids until after Christmas. I sure do love being a grandma!

Dear Diary

Warning:  If diary entries bore you don't read any further!

I love diaries. They show us a little piece of how people lived and what they did years ago. Sometimes, if you are lucky they even reveal emotions that a person was feeling. Unfortunately, my own experience with keeping a diary has been rather abysmal. This has always slightly irritated me because I feel that as much as I like to write and read, I should have certainly been capable of keeping a journal for most of my life. However, that is not the case. I have three full years of diaries in my possession that I wrote. They are from 1973, 1978 and 1979. After that, I never kept another diary.

My Grandmother Kreider (my mom's mother) kept a diary for several years--1915, 1916, and 1921.  They are so interesting to read.  Here are several excerpts:

June 16, 1915 Wednesday. Clear. I picked the cherries from the early sweet cherry tree. They were awful specked. Just got about 6 qt. of nice ones this after. Helped to pick the big red cherries in the field. Got about 20 qt. of them. A gust this after but a light rain.

September 24, Friday. Doing the Fri. work. This after was pasting a few pictures.

January 1, 1916, Saturday. Threatening weather. We did the usual Saturday morning work. I was doing a little fancy work this after. Mother went over to Aunt Christie this after in the rain.

My grandparents got married on March 16, 1916. Grandma wrote in her diary every day up until March 12 and then there is nothing until March 25.  There is no mention of the wedding at all. She writes on March 10 that "Ada and I were baking nearly all day. The girls were cleaning up." and on March 11 she says, "We were baking cakes & icing them." Then on March 25, she picks up her diary again and continues to write as though nothing life changing had just happened to her although if you know that she got married you can read a little between the lines.

March 25, 1916, Saturday. Left Niagara Falls at half past five (So obviously they went to Niagrara Falls on their honeymoon). Reached Petersburg about 8 o'clock. Was up there all night. Surprised them & came down home next day.

Then on March 30 she writes:

We were up at Elmer's (her husband) home. They had the reception up there to-day. There were about 80 people there.

I am curious as to whether they had a reception the day of their wedding as well or whether they just got married on March 16 and then this was the one and only reception.  I guess if I researched it, I could probably find out the normal procedure for weddings back then, but it doesn't really matter. Grandma finished out that year and then quit journaling but picked it up again five years later for the year 1921. By this time, she had two little children, Elva and Mervin.

January 10, 1921, Monday. Cloudy till noon then cleared up nicely. Washed this forenoon and was sewing a little at Mervin's pink dress (it's bad enough that the little boys wore dresses but this one was even pink!) Did not get much done. Mervin was so fussy. He is getting more teeth. Elmer finished shredding at Dan Stoner's.

February 14, 1921, Monday. Clear and warm. Did not feel like washing. Did a little sewing. Elva got up this morn with chicken pox and was a little out of humor all day.

February 16, 1921, Wednesday, Mervin seems to be getting fever. The Health officer put the chicken pox tag up to-day. (Who was the Health officer?)

On April 5 she writes "Irvin (I don't know who this is) is in bed with the mumps and on April 7 she said "I'm feeling bomb." (What does that mean?)

Apparently keeping a diary and two small children, got a little overwhelming.  The last journal entry that my grandmother made was on April 27, 1921.

Clear and warm. Planted the potatoes in the lot & the peas. Cleaned the clothesroom this afternoon.

I decided to dig out my diaries and see what I had written many years ago. Here are some entries from 1973. I would have been 13 years old.

January 2, 1973 Tuesday. It was a little colder today. I can hardly wait till ice skating. I had school today but we didn't do very much. After school I had my music lesson so I had to get the eggs after supper. Then I watched a program on TV and read a book.

March 10, 1973 Saturday. Today was Lester and Lois' birthday. They are twenty-four years old....This evening we went to Lester and Marians to celebrate the twins birthday. The whole family was there. Duane and Stevie didn't know what to think of each other at first but then they got along pretty well.

March 15, 1973 Thursday.  I turned thirteen years old today. The whole school sang Happy Birthday. After school I played catch with Glen for a little while. Then I helped him take the junk down to the junk pile. He left me drive the tractor back.

April 28, 1973 Saturday. This morning I baked a cake and made dinner. This afternoon I washed the dishes, cleaned the kitchen and living room and washed my hair. We went to Lester and Marian's this evening. Duane was so cute and in a show off mood. We turned the clocks 1 hour ahead before going to bed.

June 13,  1973 Wednesday. This morning Mother and I went shopping. We left at 9:00 and got back at 12:00. After dinner Glen and I got the eggs and then Glen and Daddy went shopping. I washed the dishes and then helped Mother the rest of the afternoon. This evening Grandpa and Grandma came. Glen and I got the eggs and then I watched the Phillies game.

August 27, 1973 Monday.  We helped Lois and Jim pack all day. They will leave tomorrow morning at 3:00 am. Eugene and Glen went up in the morning to help carry the heavy things. At noon they went home to get the eggs. Daddy, Mother and I stayed until 5:00 pm. I will really miss them.

August 29, 1973 Wednesday. Daddy and Glen were away most of the day so Eugene and I got all the eggs. The automatic feeder in the block house wasn't working this morning so we had to carry the feed in buckets. Was that ever work! This evening Daddy and Mother went in to Penneys to pick up an order. Eugene and I watched the Phillies game.

September 21, 1973 Friday. I almost missed the bus this morning. I only had two minutes to spare. After school I baked a cake and helped Mother in the kitchen. This evening Glen  and I got the eggs. The one collector wasn't working and Glen really got mad at it. He came in and got Daddy and Daddy went out singing and the collector worked just perfect for him!

September 23, 1973 Sunday.  This afternoon Mother and I played a game of Scrabble. Believe it or not, I won!  I think Mother was trying too.

October 27, 1973 Saturday. Daddy is growing a beard. I don't see why because I never thought beards were that neat, but I guess he does. This afternoon I made some jello, dusted the living room and kitchen, swept the kitchen floor and washed my hair. I watched some football too. I washed the supper dishes and then read a little. At 8:00 I watched "Emergency!"

December 25, 1973 Tuesday.  This was rather a gloomy Christmas. I was sick all day. I threw up two times during the night and then right before dinner. Its a virus that has been going around. This afternoon Glen got sick and threw up twice. Nobody else is feeling quite right either so it was rather a dismal day. I went to bed at 9:00

I kept a diary again in 1978. I would have been 18 years old. Just a couple of red letter days:

March 15, 1978 Wednesday. Another year has passed and I'm a "big" 18 years old. I couldn't believe how many kids knew it was my birthday. Someone told Arnold Moshier and he made a big thing out of it and had Senior Chorus sing to me. I was so embarrassed! They also sang  at lunch. I skipped Youth Meeting tonight. Lesters were down for awhile. Gene and Glen are both caught up with buying houses. Gene might buy one in Willow Street.

May 20, 1978 Saturday. Wedding Day! Glen got me up at 6:30. Gene, Glen and I went to E-town church together. The wedding went beautifully. The baskets we had to carry were simply gorgeous and Glen & Marilyn seemed perfectly relaxed. The reception was at E -town fire hall. We got home around 3:00. Glen & Marilyn left right after the reception for their honeymoon.

June 13, 1978 Tuesday. Last day of school forever!!! I can't believe it. It really gives me a funny feeling. It seemed like school drug out today and I can hardly think that I'll never walk from class to class in that building again. It's sure been a good year. We seniors had a lot of fun.

June 17, 1978 Saturday.  Graduation day! We were supposed to have it outside but wouldn't you know it rained. We had just started the morning program when it stared pouring and everyone had to pick up their chair and rush into the gym. I was glad to graduate but in a way its kind of sad. I'll really miss the kids. Dad & Mom took Glen & Marilyn and I out to eat in Tom Grassel's new restaurant for supper. Then Glen & Marilyn stayed for the evening. We had a really good time.

June 21, 1978 Wednesday. This afternoon I helped Rhoda at the house. I did a lot of painting. We had one more boy in Bible School tonight. It went really well. Steve Lehman called tonight and asked for a date. I couldn't believe it. It doesn't suit me either night this weekend so we will do something the following weekend. I'm really excited about it. I think he's a nice guy.

June 24, 1978 Saturday . Wedding day again! The wedding didn't start until 2:00 so this morning Gene and I took his clothes over to his house. The day was just gorgeous. They couldn't have had a more perfect day. I really enjoyed being in it. John Horning was my escort and we really got along well. The reception was outside. I thought everything was well organized. Lester's came over this evening and Marian helped Dad get the eggs.

July 2, 1978 Sunday.  Tonight was my first date with Steve. We went to Sight & Sound. It went really well. We were both really relaxed and we just talked and talked. I have another one next Sunday night.

October 20, 1978 Tuesday. We bought a new car today! A 1977 Plymouth Volare. I really like it but can't wait until January when I can get my own car. This evening I worked on corn records awhile. Corn really came in tonight. By 11:30 the pit was so full they couldn't bring anymore so they left a truck load set. I left the dryer running and went to bed around 12:00.

December 31, 1978 Sunday. Had quiz practice this afternoon. It went really good. This evening Steve's youth group had a New  Year's Eve party at his place. We really  had a lot of fun. It's hard to believe that another year is gone, but it's sure been a good one. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Amazingly, I continued my journal writing through all of 1979. Again, just a few things that I wrote

January 12, 1979 Friday....When I got home dear mom was waiting up for me. She said she knows she shouldn't worry but she can't help it. It's nice to have a mother who cares so much.

January 15, 1979 Monday.  I got a job! I'm so excited I can hardly believe it. I just thank the Lord for it. First Federal Bank called me at dinner and I went in for an interview. He told me he'd let me know if I got it by the end of the week. I was barely home 15 minutes and he called and said I have it! I'll start Monday. I hope I like it but I'm scared.

February 28, 1979 Wednesday . I just really feel discouraged today. It's so hard to go to work among non-Christians and try to act like a Christian should. The people are nice but I just feel different. On top of that I have an awful cold and I've been miserable from that all day.

March 14, 1979 Wednesday.  ...Mom finally got her inheritance for the Kreider estate today. I can't believe that's finally ended...

March 30, 1979 Friday....A nuclear plant at Three Mile Island has leaked radiation that could be poisonous and cause cancer. It's all over the news and some people have actually evacuated the area. They said its dangerous for about a 5-10 mile radius. We're 22 miles away so I'm not worried yet.

April 2, 1979 Monday.  Today was just havoc. Everyone is so upset about this nuclear plant thing. The bank was just jammed with people coming to withdraw their money. On top of it all I was $100.00 off at balance time. We only got a 1/2 hour off for lunch and I didn't get off until 5:15. What a miserable day. They say the situation is stable but a lot of people have already evacuated. I hope everything turns out ok SOON.

May 24, 1979 Thursday Jonathan (my nephew) really isn't doing very well. He's still losing weight. Until he gains 2 days in a row the doctor won't let him go home. Dad, Mom & I went up to Glen's house and helped them. I painted & helped to put up wallpaper. They want to move in Monday but the house sure is far from finished.

June 27, 1979 Wednesday  Had today off. In the morning I got my hair cut and waited 1/2 hour in line for gas. Gas lines are terrible. PA is going to start rationing tomorrow....

July 1 1979 Sunday.  Steve and I went to River Corner tonight. We went back to Lester's afterward. Kendra suddenly took a liking to Steve and crawled all over him. I couldn't believe it but I'm glad.

November 4, 1979 Sunday.   I am engaged! I can't believe it. I'm so happy and yet so scared!...

November 24, 1979 Saturday ...Steve & I went to his brothers house for supper this evening. His two sisters and their dates were there too. We saw slides of when they were little kids. It was a lot of fun.

December 31, 1979 Monday  Last day of 1979! I had to work late because we had to balance after closing so I didn't get home until 6:00. Steve picked me up around 7:00 and we went to his youth groups New Year's Eve Party. Their adviser & Mel (Nancy's guy) collided in a game and the advisor knocked his front teeth loose. They took him into the hospital. So that dampened the party a little.

And that is where it stops. I believe I tried a few times after this to keep a diary, but never succeeded more than a few months. I wish I would have kept one when my children were growing up because it would be so interesting to go back and read now, but unfortunately like my grandmother, I also discontinued journaling when my life got busy with little ones and I never got back to it.

When we were cleaning out the house after my dad died, my sister found a diary that my mom had kept for the first half of the year of 1992. Recently, Lois gave it to me to read. As I began to read through it, I was swept with a feeling of sadness, not because of anything my mother had written, but because I realized it was just a mere two years before she was struck with that awful stroke that changed the rest of her life. She was so active and busy and each day was filled with ordinary things that she would have never guessed she would soon be unable to do. As I continued to read my emotion changed from sadness to thankfulness. What a blessing it is to have this memory of my 66-year old mother instead of the difficult last 12 years of her life that usually come to my mind. This was truly a gift from my mother that I received seven years after she died. It has brought back wonderful memories of a time when she was uninhibited by the physical and mental obstacles that took over her life far too early.

Here are some of her entries.

January 1, 1992 Wednesday The Lord privileged us to greet another year, asleep of course, but that's a blessing too when I sometimes have near sleepless nights. We enjoyed the day quietly at home, watched most of the rose parade on TV from 11 to 1, and ate pork and sauerkraut for dinner. Delicious! The weather was balmy enough in the afternoon for us to take a hike on the boardwalk. (She refers to the wooden steps going down to the park area on their property as the "boardwalk")

January 5, 1992 Sunday  I enjoyed our worship experience very much this morning. Lester taught our Sunday School class. Marian came in it too and added another dimension which we appreciated. Glenn Shenk led us in an impressive commission service for Duane as he enters VS at John's Island for a year. He also brought the message.  This afternoon I went up to Steve's and we ground the leftovers from their Christmas ham from Lobianco's (Steve worked for them). Then Mary and I had a game of Scrabble. She used all her letters first turn, but I gave her a good run at the end before she won. This evening we had a ladies' trio and a men's quartet lead us in worship at church. We ran out of gas going up the big hill on the way home. Dad flagged down the next car and they kindly took me back to Steve's and he brought us home and helped Dad get some gas and get in going again. The other good Samaritan's name was Via who lives on House Rock Road.

January 14, 1992 Tuesday.  I sewed patches this afternoon and after supper we went to Kendra's basketball game and what a game! They trailed by 8 points at the end of the half. But they really came back the second half. Kendra was the star. She totaled 24 points, 14 of them foul shots. We were really glad we were at that game.

February 3, 1992 Monday. The Lord gave me still another birthday, and it was a good day. I had several phone calls and an invitation to supper at the Clymers. I was working on the comforter most of the day. We enjoyed a good supper and then played several rounds of rook. It was a very enjoyable evening!  Soon after we got home, Glen called and we talked a long time. It is such a blessing to have a telephone.

February 16, 1992 Sunday ...Gene, Rhoda, Carrie & Derek were here for dinner. We had a good time playing Dutch Blitz and ping pong....

February 21, 1992 Friday...We took it fairly easy till 3:30 when we left for Black Rock. We helped with supper and clean-up. Got home at 7:30 just in time for Jeopardy.

March 11, 1992 Wednesday This is our 44th wedding anniversary. That's a milestone we didn't even think about 44 years ago. Although neither of us have had all our expectations met, they have been good years and we thank God for them and for each other.

March 29, 1992 Monday. Early this morning Elvin left to go down to Horning's in New Holland for some work on the car. The motor raced at times and they put a new control unit on the computer, didn't take long and didn't cost nearly as much as we feared it might. I cut out a new dress, am trying a new pattern. We had settlement for our last lot on River Road at 5:00...we are glad to be rid of it, but in a way I felt sad because it was like severing all connections with our home of 27 years. We ate supper at Dempsey's Diner ...

April 30 - May 7, 1992.  We drove to Florida. It was a very good trip. Enjoyed our time with Glen's family, met an interesting couple from Manitoba, Canada, who also stayed at Weaver Villa, and spent several hours with Duane and the V.S. Unit at John's Island.

May 12, 1992 Tuesday. I'm tired writing in this Diary now, so I'll just be sporadic for awhile. Too much work piling up on me.

And that is pretty much it.  Except for a few random entries in the next couple months, Mom stopped writing in her diary. Two short years later, her life as she was used to it ended. Although she made some recovery from her stroke, never again could she walk and talk easily or do other activities that she had enjoyed doing with ease. I am grateful for this little glimpse into Mother's world (pre-stroke) and I love the memory that it brings back of days long forgotten.

Maybe it's not to late for me to start keeping a diary....

Mice and Stink Bugs

Sometimes I get tired of living in an old farm house. We have always had problems with mice. When the weather turns cooler, the little furry creatures find their way indoors. They invade my living quarters and seem to think they are entitled to coexist with me. I refuse to let them win. For years, I would set mousetraps and empty them out each day only to have them filled up again the next morning. Finally last year, I resorted to rat poison. I had been afraid to use it because people said that the mice would die in the walls and the house would smell for weeks. However, it worked wonderfully! I put some in the basement and in the kitchen and even upstairs. The mice completely disappeared and there was no awful stench in the house. I figured the mice must have left the house to die. I was ecstatic. I had won the mouse war.

At the first sign of mice in my kitchen this fall, I went through the house and basement and put out the poison.  Within three days, we started to smell an unpleasant odor in the kitchen. Each day, it got gradually worse until it was REALLY BAD. We searched but could find no mouse corpse anywhere. Of course in the middle of all this, Megan starts dating a young man and I am envisioning her bringing him around and when they step into the kitchen the smell of the rotting mouse will have consumed the air and we will all be holding our noses or wearing gas masks. It did not seem like the ideal first impression to have of one's family. In desperation, I went to the store and bought several scented oil air wicks. I plugged them in and turned them to high. Soon the kitchen air was smelling more like apple-cinnamon than rotted mouse flesh. It actually covered up the horrible smell fairly well and I breathed a sigh of relief. One problem solved.

Then there are the stink bugs. Now I know that this has nothing to do with an old or new house. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to what buildings they decide to invade. I have friends in new houses that are bothered with them and friends in old houses that are not and vice versa. Ever since these nasty critters arrived several years ago, we have had a problem with them, especially in our office and bedroom and one of the upstairs windows and Megan's room. Our rental house next door (Dad's old house) and Josh's mobile home at the top of the hill are rarely bothered with them. This Spring, Steve decided he had had enough. He has his pesticide license and so gets some chemicals for spraying crops that the normal homeowner would not have access to. He tackled the house. He sprayed all the problem spots inside and out. I was afraid he was killing all of us as well. The house reeked and you can't tell me that what we were breathing was good for us. I opened all windows and doors and tried to get fresh air in and after a day or two, we breathed easier. The good news is that it worked. The stink bugs still tried to inhabit their favorite places, but they barely touched the spots that Steve had sprayed before they were struck dead. I vacuumed up hundreds of dead bugs (but at least they were dead).

As always, when the corn starts to grow, the stink bugs leave the house and live in the corn. The summer was stink bug free.  However, as soon as the corn came off, they tried to return to the house. I couldn't believe it when we were again deluged with dead stink bugs in the office and bedroom and upstairs. Whatever Steve had sprayed in the Spring was still working. The bugs would fly in and within minutes they were writhing in a death spin. I was happy, but a little concerned that these chemicals are still in my house and that potent. Thankfully they are up high around windows where little grandchildren can't reach. Once again, I am daily vacuuming up dead stink bugs.

So, for now I am winning the war on both the mice and stink bugs. What will be the next invasion to this 150 year old farm house? Retirement to the house next door is looking better and better.

So Many Relatives

My Uncle Elmer Kreider died last Thursday. In my mother's family of 11 children, Elmer was the 6th child (my mother was the 5th). He married my Aunt Bertha and together they had 9 children. Bertha died in 1994 and in 2000, Uncle Elmer married my Aunt Martha who had lost her husband (my Uncle Harold) in 1996. Harold and Martha had nine children as well, so when Elmer and Martha married each other they had a combined family of 18 children and their children were actually first cousins! This also means that Elmer married his sister-in-law and Martha married her brother-in-law. If you are confused by now that is okay. I am confused as well.

Both these families had been ones that joined the Eastern Mennonite Church in the late sixties. This was a very difficult time for the Kreider family and a great divide was created between the siblings that chose to not join the Eastern Church and those that did. This rift was never overcome and I rarely saw my Kreider cousins except at an occasional family reunion. After the split of the Eastern Church, we did not visit with these families anymore. I'm wise enough to know that there are two sides to every conflict, but growing up I was under the opinion that we were not welcome in these families because we were heathens and destined for hell.

I do have some pleasant memories of playing with cousins that were closest to my age before the families went their separate ways. There were 4 of us girl cousins who were born the same year and we enjoyed each other's company and although we didn't see each other very often, it was always good to catch up with them again when we got together. I sense that my generation does not have the hostility toward each other that my parents did. Many of them came to my mother and father's funerals and I and my siblings really appreciated it.

Lester, Gene and Rhoda, and Steve and I made plans to go together to Uncle Elmer's viewing on Tuesday evening. We knew that these viewings draw tremendously large crowds and the fact that Uncle Elmer had been a bishop in the Eastern church for 36 years would only increase the numbers that would come to pay their respect to his family. There was a three hour afternoon viewing and then the evening viewing was from 6:00 to 9:00.  We decided to go late in the hopes of avoiding the fullest and busiest part of the evening.

We pulled into the parking lot at 8:35 pm. Even in the dark, we could see that it was a mass of black cars and vans. We walked to the back of the church and two kind gentleman greeted us at the door. We stuck out like sore thumbs. Everyone around us was dressed in very plain dress and all heads turned to look at us. The men looked at us inquiringly and then hesitantly asked who we were. We explained that our mother had been a sister to the deceased. This gave them pause and they appeared to be uncertain about what to do. Then one of them said that the line began in the basement and that there would be a two hour wait. Did we want to stay? We tried not to appear shocked and after looking at each other we responded that yes we would stay. We had not come all this way for nothing and we resigned ourselves to not getting home until well after midnight.

As we entered the basement (this was a fairly large church) we saw that it was full of people sitting on chairs. This was the first stop in the waiting game. After about an hour wait in the basement you would get moved up to the pews in the sanctuary where you would wait another hour until finally being allowed to join the line at the back of the church that moved to the front and greeted the family.

The five of us signed the guest register and then as we moved further into the basement, one of the gentlemen that had met us at the door, motioned for us to follow him. Questioningly, we did as we were told. He took us right up the basement steps, into the sanctuary and to the back of the line that was waiting to walk up to the casket. We had been bumped ahead of all the people in the basement and all the people sitting in the sanctuary! He told us that since we were family, they decided to move us through. We were elated but also a little embarrassed. As we waited in the line, we saw more cousins who were patiently sitting on the benches, waiting their turn. They were as close family as we were, but they were not given the red carpet treatment. My cousin Martha came over to talk to me and asked how we got so fortunate, because they had already be waiting an hour and a half. I said I had no idea and we just laughed. It was good to talk with her again. As we made are way up to the front, more relatives came and talked with us. As I looked around, I did not see one other person other than the five of us that was not dressed conservatively. I think that this was the reason we were bumped up. Everyone else just treated the two hour wait as a social time where they caught up with friends and family. I believe they thought we would be uncomfortable in this setting for an extended period of time and so moved us to the front of the line.

I have a total of 67 cousins on the Kreider side and 18 of them were in the viewing greeting line. They were easy to talk with and they seemed genuinely appreciative that we came to pay our respects. We may have nothing in common as far as the way we live and our religion, but we are family. This is important. As different as they are from me, I respect how they choose to live. I hope that they can do the same for me.

PS. If you think 67 cousins is a lot, Steve has 74 cousins on the Rohrer side. Both our mothers come from a family of 11 children and many of them had large families. Neither of us can begin to put names to all our cousins. I find that kind of sad.

Empty Nest Goals

Well, now that Steve and I are more or less official empty nesters (Megan is not living at home this year as she is in her second and last year of earning an Associate's Degree in Ag Business at Penn State), I have decided to make a few goals for myself.

1. Read through the Bible. It has been many years since I have actually followed a plan and read through the Bible in one year. Megan made the comment that she was going to do it this year and I thought it would be nice to do it together. We started the beginning of September and have made our way through part of Genesis and the entire book of Job. I will admit that I was happy to get done with Job and move back to Genesis. The book of Job is well...just a little repetitive. I kind of feel sorry for Job's friends because I think they were really trying to be supportive. I really like the fact that they sat with him in silence for seven days. It was when they opened their mouths that they got in trouble. This is something good for me to remember.
2. Finish Megan's scrapbook.  For each of my children I have made a scrapbook from birth to 18 years of age. Megan's got stuck after her Junior year and I need to finish it. It has been laying around for too long. I started sorting and going through pictures last evening and already I can't believe how long ago it seems since Megan was 17. What a difference a couple of years can make in a person's life. High school is just high school and once you leave those halls, you tend to become a different person and start a whole new life. I need to finish this book while I still have some memory of those high school days.
3. Clean my upstairs. My upstairs is a disaster. No one except Megan has used the upstairs for years and it has become a place to throw things to get them out of the way. I tried to walk through one of the old bedrooms the other day and it was so cluttered I could hardly get through. This fall, I need to make some sort of organization out of the chaos. Just for an example, the old toilet in the upstairs bathroom broke and we replaced it several months ago. Instead of taking the old one completely out and to the junk, it is still sitting in the bathroom and when Megan comes home she has to walk around it. That is totally unacceptable. Why do we leave things go like this? Does anyone else do this or are we that abnormal?
4. Lose some weight. Ha. This will by far be the most challenging. With everyone out of the house, Steve and I decided to take the "easy" (losing weight is never easy) way (and most expensive) and join one of those weight loss plans where you have the food delivered to your door. We are planning a trip to Europe in early December and would like to be a few pounds lighter by then. We are about three weeks into it and of course the weight isn't coming off as fast as we would like, but it hasn't been too bad. Having your food choices already decided for you, has certainly made sticking to the plan easier. We will see where it takes us. (I'm suspicious that Steve is cheating a little!) I'm not holding my breath.

So...those are my main goals going into this fall season. Since I don't have to spend any time with meal planning, hopefully it will be easier for me to accomplish everything. We will see. I can be quite a procrastinator when there is something in front of me that I really don't want to do. Hopefully, writing this out, will give me the motivation to follow through.

Winning Something You Don't Deserve

Have you ever won something that you really didn't deserve to win? Well, I don't usually win anything, let alone something I don't deserve, but let me tell you about Thursday.

Gene & Rhoda had invited Steve and me to join them for the Friendship Community Annual Golf Classic. This is of course a fundraiser for Friendship. We had done a couple of other golf benefits, so we were happy to participate with them in this one.

First, let me say that I am not a good golfer at all. I am not even an average golfer. I would probably be classified as a "lousy" golfer. My swing is terrible and I basically can't even hit the ball with irons or hybrids. I do like the driver and I can sometimes get a fairly good and long drive off the tee. I only started playing it about 5 years ago and I don't play that often, but I do enjoy it. We like to play at Willow Valley which is just 9 holes and is easy to walk and the holes aren't too difficult.

When you play a Scramble which is how all benefit golf tournaments are played, everyone hits the ball and then out of the four the best ball is chosen and everyone hits from that spot and you continue this way right onto the green and into the cup. The guys have to tee off a lot further back then the ladies so sometimes it can be an advantage to have women playing with you who can get nice, long shots on their first drive and thus give you a better placement for your next fairway shot. So the hope was that Rhoda and I could help our team by hitting good drives off the tee. Well, Rhoda did her part, but I was off even to my standards. I couldn't do anything right. Usually the ball just dribbled a little bit in front of me, or I missed it completely. Sometimes it went a little bit, but I never had a good, solid hit that amounted to anything. It was a little frustrating, but I tried to enjoy the beautiful day and good company and forget about my poor golf game. When we were pretty close to being finished (I think it was either our 15th or 16th hole) I put my tee in the ground as usual, set my ball on it, and swung my club with a hope and a prayer. It was a beautiful, long, straight shot and by far the best I had all day, which wasn't saying much because I hadn't been hitting anything cleanly. I was relieved to have finally gotten at least one good drive.
   
Gene & Rhoda drove their cart up to my ball and I heard them saying something to themselves and when Steve and I got there, they told us that this was one of the designated holes that had a prize attached to it.  There was a rope down the center of the fairway and a prize would be awarded to the man and woman whose ball landed closest to it off of their tee shot. Well, my ball was about 2 feet to the right of the rope! We marked the spot and sure enough at the end of the day I was the winner! I received a $75.00 gift card to the golf club's pro shop. I was able to purchase a pair of $70.00 golf shoes (I didn't own golf shoes before).
    
I was happy to have won, but at the same time I felt very undeserving and even a little embarrassed.  I had that one lucky shot and it landed me a prize. The rest had played a much better game of golf than I had, and they received nothing. I have always said that life isn't fair, so I guess this is just another example of how the least deserving person comes out on top sometimes. I will definitely appreciate my new golf shoes. Now, if there was just some way that they could help to improve my game!  

Excursion to the U.S. Open Tennis in NYC

I've mentioned that I like watching tennis. In fact, Steve and I have actually taken quite a few vacations where we attended professional tennis tournaments. We've been to Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut to watch the ladies tour; Washington, DC for the men's tour and to Villanova University in Philadelphia several times. I've gone with other friends as well and taken Megan with me a couple of times too, to these tournaments.

If you are an American tennis fan, the granddaddy of all tennis is the US Open. This is located in Queens, NY and is one of the four grand slams of tennis. I LOVE the US Open and have been there quite often. For years, Bob Neff Tours offered an overnight bus trip to this event and it was very easy to attend. You simply showed up at the scheduled pick-up point in the morning and the bus took you to the Billie Jean Tennis Center and dropped you off.  You returned to the bus at the end of the day and it took you back to your motel and in the morning back to tennis. At the end of that day it took you home again. It was fun and relaxing and I got to enjoy a lot of tennis matches.

Unfortunately, a few years back, Bob Neff discontinued this bus trip and I had not been to the Open since. I was really wanting to go again, but the thought of driving was intimidating. The New York traffic scares me, plus the tennis center is located right next door to the Mets baseball stadium and if the Mets have a game, it can be an absolute nightmare trying to navigate through the city to a motel, late at night after the last match. Steve and I did consider it, but the timing this year wasn't that great for Steve to go so I started looked for an alternative way to get there.

The US Open website encourages people to use mass transit to get to the tournament. Now that was really frightening to me. The last time I was on a NY subway I was 12 years old and on a school trip. Well, I may have ridden it a time or two since, but never when I paid any attention to how they operated. I just followed someone else's leading. I knew I would need help if I was going to take the mass transit route. I decided to recruit my friend Becky. She is much braver than I am, and she was a little more familiar with the subway system, having a brother-in-law and sister-in-law that live in NY and also having used the mass transit system in Europe when she was there as a college student. She also enjoys tennis so I asked her if she would want to go with me to the US Open and handle the transportation end of things. She was up for the challenge and so the two of us set off early Monday morning.

We arrived at the Lancaster train station and boarded the Keystone Line headed to Penn Station, NY and enjoyed a leisurely and uneventful ride. At Penn Station we disembarked and walked up the steps to the huge open floor building. There were a lot of people mulling around, but since it was the middle of the day it wasn't too bad, and Becky (I was following) found the exit for 8th and 34th Street and we walked out of the building onto the sidewalk. Crossing several busy intersections we followed the signs for the subway and walked down the steps into the underground transit system. The first order of business was to purchase a Metro Card so you could ride the subway. That mission finished, we (well, Becky) found the E Train and we boarded it and headed west toward Flushing, NY. The subway wasn't full and it was actually pretty pleasant riding in it. I soon got used to the man's recorded voice saying, "stand clear of the closing door" as the train stopped often and picked up and dropped off passengers. It didn't pause long and if you weren't ready to board you missed it and had to wait for the next one. Nobody gave the two of us a second glance and most people were either sleeping, on their phones, or looking off into space.

We got off the E train at Jackson Height-Roosevelt Avenue and followed signs to the 7 train and boarded it toward Flushing Meadow and the Tennis Center. This train was not as nice as the E Train and there were no red, flashing ticker tape, letting you know what stop you were at, and what the next plaza would be. You actually had to watch out the window to read the signs for yourself. No recorded voice told you the name of the plaza or where you were headed. Nevertheless, Becky had done her research well and when the train pulled into the Mets-Willets Point station, we stepped off onto the platform and found ourselves within walking distance of the gigantic US Open Tennis Complex. We had arrived!

We had a great day watching tennis and even got to see the match of the day where American Sloane Stephens was able to prevail in a third-set tiebreak. We also saw Serena Williams and several others. Roger Federer was scheduled for the evening on Arthur Ashe stadium but got cancelled because of rain. At around 10:00 we headed for our motel. We got back on the 7 train and rode it eastward one more stop to Flushing. This is actually the end of the line for the 7 train and where it turns around to go back to Manhattan. When we came up the steps out of the subway, we paused to try to figure out which direction to walk. We had a map and knew that our motel was only 2 blocks away but we were unsure which way to go. We started walking one way and then I made the comment, that I could probably use the GPS on my Smartphone to guide us. This seemed like a really intelligent idea however one has to know how to operate it for it to be useful. I fumbled around and never did find the Navigation icon (which somehow mysteriously disappeared from my phone). After a few minutes we gave up and kept walking. As it turned out, we had gone the wrong way but we turned around and retraced our steps and were able to walk to the motel without any more difficulty.

After a good night's sleep we headed out the next morning to enjoy another day of tennis. When we were about a block away from the subway station, we noticed that there was a lot of people on the sidewalk. As we got closer to the subway, the crowds increased until they took up the entire sidewalk and spilled out into the street. Buses that said "subway shuttle" were everywhere. We soon realized that the subway was not operating and buses were shuttling people out of the area instead. It was bedlam. People were frantic to get on a bus and when one would pull up, they pounded on the door for the driver to open it up and let them in. The drivers were mad because the people stood in the street and wouldn't let them pull up to the sidewalk, so they blasted their horns and made angry motions with their hands for the people to move back. Policeman stood in the street and hollered to the crowd to "get off the street and onto the sidewalk." The line of people trying to get on buses was a block long and 8 or 10 people deep. The buses tried to pull up to the end of the line to load passengers and people kept running up to the front and pushing their way through in the hope of getting on one. Those of us that were halfway back the line had little hope of getting picked up. I figured we would be there for quite a while. In the middle of all this commotion, an ambulance tried to get through with lights flashing, siren screaming and horn beeping. The buses had the street so jammed that it could barely get through and people were crossing the street trying to get to buses on the other side so the ambulance had to navigate through buses, cars and people. It was a miracle that it finally got through. Becky and I were standing at the edge of the sidewalk, in the middle of this crowd not really knowing what to do, when suddenly a bus pulled up right beside me and opened its door. I jumped into the bus with Becky right behind me and we sat together on a seat. People surged into the bus. Once the seats were full, they just stood wherever they could. It was so full that the driver couldn't shut the door. He kept saying, "move away from the door. I can't drive the bus until the door is closed." Somehow, the person in front of the door managed to shift a little bit, so the driver could secure it properly and away we went. The man in the seat in front of us said, "I have no idea where this bus is going, but I'm going with it!" Becky and I nodded agreement and waited to see where it would take us. As it turns out, it drove us to the next subway station which was where we wanted to go anyway, and was right at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

After that exciting beginning to our Tuesday, we enjoyed a great day of tennis.  We were there early enough to secure coveted seats in the shade in the Grandstand Stadium and we stayed there all day watching whatever matches were being played. We got to see the number one American John Isner and several other big names. We left the tennis complex around 4:30 so we would have plenty of time to make it back to Penn Station to get the 6:30 Keystone train to Lancaster.

We found seats on the 7 train that was headed to Manhattan and Becky said to watch for the Jackson-Roosevelt Station where we would make the transfer to the E Train. Unfortunately, Becky had been looking at station stops for the E train instead of the 7 train, so we rode for a little while blissfully unaware that our plaza stop was never going to appear. Finally, we realized that something was wrong and Becky went to investigate (remember this was the train that doesn't tell you anything about what stop you are at or where you are going). She found a map and soon realized what had happened. We had already stayed on the train 3 stops too far. This didn't seem like too big a deal because we only had to get off at the next plaza and take the east train back 3 stops to 74th Street which was where we needed to be to make the transfer. What we didn't think about was that it was now rush hour and everyone was coming from Manhattan on their way home from work. To say that the train was full would be an understatement. When it stopped, I went to try to step on the already over-crowded train and a man said, "Get back. There are some people that have to get off."  Several people pushed their way through the mass and out on to the platform. Then some of us tried to board again. There was absolutely no room and the train does not wait for anyone. I wiggled and shoved and managed to get on and Becky was trying to come right behind me. She got her feet in and most of her body. As she tried to push her body forward, the door was closing behind her. It banged her on the head as it closed but she made it! I was very relieved, because I'm not sure if I would have panicked or not if we had gotten separated. That was a ridiculous ride back to our missed stop. We were packed like sardines. I certainly didn't have to worry about losing my balance, because I couldn't have moved an inch if I would have wanted to. We suffered through the next couple stops, where people again tried to board or get off. People didn't want to step off the train to let others disembark because there was the fear that you wouldn't get back on again. Finally, the train pulled up to the 74th Street station and Becky and I pushed and shoved our way off the train and on to the platform. I breathed a huge sigh of relief. The thing I can't believe is that people put up with that everyday. No thanks for this country girl!

We walked over to the Jackson-Roosevelt Station and soon boarded the E Train toward Manhattan. We had plenty of space and we were both glad to sit and relax a little bit. We exited the subway system at 34th Street and walked the short distance to Penn Station. It was a lot busier than the last time we were there. The large open room was full of people and most of them were just standing and staring at the big departure board high up on the ceiling in the center of the room. The board tells you whether your scheduled train is on time, but it does not give you the track number until about 10 minutes before departure. The public address system announces the train and track number and as soon as people hear what track their train will be departing from they make a beeline for that exit. When they announced the track for a train going to New Jersey, about 3/4 of the people in Penn Station all tried to cram into one little escalator that would take them to the track. I was glad we were not taking that train. Periodically you would see someone running frantically through the station in an all-out sprint, trying desperately to make a departing train. We had to wait about 40 minutes but eventually our train and track number was called and flashed on the departure board and we were able to make our way to the correct exit and board the Keystone Line toward good old Lancaster. Fortunately not too many people were making this connection so we did not feel hurried.

I was glad to sink into the seat of the train that would take me back to all that is familiar. I've decided that traveling to New York is not for the faint of heart! I owe a huge thank-you to Becky for getting us there and back. I would not have embarked on this journey by myself. There is not too much that fazes Becky and even through our ordeal of a broken subway system and missed connection, she remained calm and acted like this was ordinary (which it probably is for New York).

Would I do it again? I think so. Once you understand the system, the mass transit is probably the easiest way to get to the tennis venue. Since I love the US Open,  I'm sure I will want to go again. That is why I wrote everything down in detail so that the next time, if I need to I can navigate the way. Here's to being brave and learning new things when you are over fifty!


This is a video of the number one American John Isner. He is 6' 10" and has an incredible serve. Watch closely when he is serving. He bounces the ball between his legs from back to front before he starts his serve motion.