Eastburn Adventures

In Southwest Missouri, we have several festivals that are classic "Ozarkian." From Sucker Days in Nixa, MO to Apple Butter Makin' Days in Mt. Vernon, MO, people turn out from near and far to enjoy the fun. I don't go to these festivals. In my family, we have our own.

Several years ago, my entire family went to Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO together. We found it hard to pull my dad away from the candy shop, where they were demonstrating how to make peanut brittle. My dad is a very enterprising person, and it wasn't surprising to see him shaking his head and saying things like, "it's not going to turn out right," and "they're playing with it too much - for a show." What he was really thinking was, "I can do better."

As usual, he was right. He found a recipe in an old Betty Crocker cookbook, and tweaked it (and no, I won't share the recipe). He made custom boards for spreading the brittle allowing it to cool in optimal time after spreading. Year after year he turned out pounds of homemade peanut brittle which was distributed to his business suppliers, neighbors, friends, and family. Everyone said it was the best peanut brittle they'd ever had, and each year asked when he was making more. About six years ago, my sister Kathy decided she wanted to learn the secret to Dad's peanut brittle. Ever the little sister, I couldn't be left out, so I invited myself to the party, and thus, our tradition began.

Somewhere along the way, we started to refer to our one Saturday in November as our Annual Peanut Brittle Makin' Days. Year after year, some things never change. Every year, Dad tells Kathy she's not doubling the recipe right. Every year, he tells me that I'm playing too much trying to spread the brittle out on the boards. Every year, Mom watches and offers her advice on how to make the peanut brittle, even though she's never done it. Every year, someone gets mad, someone gets hurt, or something gets broken. And every year, the recipients of the 1/2 pound bag of peanut brittle are thrilled, and tell us again, "Your dad makes the best peanut brittle."

This morning was no different than any other year. After 3 1/2 hours we had about 15 pounds of brittle made, and the casualty was my digital camera. I knew this would make a great post for the blog and I wanted to get a family photo. Unfortunately, my camera and tripod was knocked over and crashed on the kitchen floor. It wouldn't turn on at all, and my family photo wasn't meant to be. (After I got home and it sat for a while, it did start working again). These are some of the pictures from Annual Peanut Brittle Makin' Days:

Kathy is cooking a new batch:













Dad and I are spreading it out:

And Mom is "helping."

So even though I didn't get my family photo today, I still have the memories of another year of our family tradition to treasure. Because, in the end, it's really not about the peanut brittle at all.

Dear Ms. Spunky:

This will confirm your reservation at Chateau Eastburnia, arriving Friday, June 8 at the Springfield-Branson Regional Airport. Per your request, a car and driver will be awaiting your arrival to bring you to the Chateau.

We have received your pre-shipment of travel necessities and are pleased to report that your clothes are neatly hung up in your closet, and your unmentionables and socks are in your dresser drawer. We pride ourselves on service at Chateau Eastburnia, and if there is anything at all you require to make your stay more enjoyable, please do not hesitate to ask.

Cafe Rober' is open 7 days a week, and we do suggest that you ask the chef to prepare a special dish for you. We do not believe that you will be disappointed. We also want you to feel that this is your home away from home, and thus, if there are special items you would like stocked in the refrigerator/cabinets, please respond to this e-mail with your list.

As always, thank you for staying at Chateau Eastburnia.

Dear Chateau Eastburnia,

No special grocery list is required. I heard a rumor that the kitchen staff would be on vacation next week. If certain cravings strike and we want to use the kitchen while they're gone, any of the local grocery stores will be able to provide us with whatever we need to prepare a meal. I'm sure Rober' will not mind some help in the kitchen since the staff will be missing.

My only request would be that you please record "So You Think You Can Dance" tonight on Fox with your magical DVR device. It will be on at 7 or 8, and I believe it's on for one hour. That is, unless the Chateau is already planning to record something else.

I thank the Chateau for its kind attention to detail. However, if someone really did put all of my stuff away, I'll feel very bad. The same service was not performed at Spunky's Solstice Chalet. I'm sorry if my guest services have not been as accommodating, and will strive to make them better in the future.

Your's truly,

Spunky

Dear Spunky,

Chateau Eastburnia has received your entertainment request and is pleased to report that it will not be a problem as the Chateau has invested in a dual-magic DVR. We will strive to have the program available for your viewing pleasure upon arrival. However, unfortunately, certain things are out of our control, and the forecast is for heavy thunderstorms late this evening. Should it rain during the program, it is possible that the satellite will lose its signal. Because you are a valued guest, we are strongly encouraging those storms to move out of the area so that tomorrow, and the rest of your stay, will be quite pleasant.

The Chateau is very pleased with its relationship with Spunky's Solstice Chalet, and looks forward to visiting it again in the future. We had no complaints about the service, and have recommended it to many friends and relatives.

Looking forward to your arrival,

Chateau Eastburnia

After Robert and I were married, we discovered that he had an issue with his wedding band turning green - not his finger, but the ring itself. So a couple of years ago, we upgraded his white gold diamond channel set ring to a cool black titanium ring with white gold bands running through it. Problem solved. (Don't worry, we upgraded my ring at the same time!)

Fast forward. Lately I have discovered that I have an fondness addiction to Starbucks' Vanilla Bean Frappuccinos. Yum. So much so that I convinced Robert to pull through a drive-through yesterday morning before work. As we pulled up to the window, the guy took our money, and as Robert reached to take the Frap, Mr. Tattooed Starbucks exclaimed, "Dude - man, we're ring twins!" (Seriously, they weren't alike, Mr. Starbucks' ring was just a black band - but still. . .)

Robert couldn't put the window up fast enough, and as we pulled away he said, "I want a new ring."

The holidays seem to throw a crimp in my usually ordered schedule, and this season is no different. We've got events every weekend between now and Christmas. I'll try to stay on top of things, but no promises. :-)

Thanksgiving was okay - we drove to Lebanon to spend the day with Robert's family, watched the Cowboys win, I knit on one of the gazillion pair of Fetching, and we drove home with no leftovers. Good for the diet.

Friday it snowed! Yippee! (But it didn't stick.)

We skipped the Black Friday sales except I went and hung out for a couple of hours at Simply fibers and did end up spending a little cash. I caved and bought another skein of Dream in Color Smooshy, and I got 8 hanks of Classic Elite Fame for Clapotis. Knit Together is starting a knitalong in January. Hopefully, I'll be done with Christmas knitting by then!

Saturday was our Annual Peanut Brittle Makin' Days, and this year my niece Lisa joined us for the first time. It's always an amusing time with family, and everyone who's received some of our famous brittle has been very complimentary. (See this link for more details from last year's PBMD's.)

Sunday we had a baby shower for our good friends Nathan and Cheyenne - the recipients of the Baby Yoda sweater and hat. It made my day to see how excited they were about it!

Back to work yesterday, and already the Christmas invitations are coming in. There's 3 work parties (one we'll miss because we'll be out of town), our choir banquet, our anniversary, friends' annual Christmas dinner, and a belated celebratory dinner for Robert passing the Series 7 exam. Plus, we're planning a trek to Silver Dollar City with my sister and brother-in-law to see the Christmas lights, and then an overnight trip to Kansas City to see the lights on the Plaza (and Robert's got a few surprises up his sleeve, too)!

And somewhere in the midst of all this, I still need to start and finish another pair of Fetching, a scarf, and possible 2 pair of socks all before Christmas. See why I can't keep up with blogging?

I feel horrible. I should have posted sooner, but somehow, I let distractions get the better of me. Last Friday was Robert's birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Sweetie! :-) And let me tell you, sweet he is! It's his birthday - and he gives me a present! (Okay, so it's an early anniversary present, but still). What is it? It's awesome! Just ask Amy. . . It's a Palm TX - with WiFi and Bluetooth! And yes, I can get Ravelry on it! So, I spent a bit of time this weekend playing with it and trying to get all the cool features set up. (I'm not done yet.)

On Thursday, I won a contest on a local radio station which gave me prizes of $20 to a local pizza place, 2 tickets to see George Carlin, and some (not so cute) snowmen plates. The plates and tickets are being regifted (seriously - anyone who knows me knows I'm not going anywhere near George Carlin), but we went out for pizza on Robert's birthday. Having been paying a lot of attention to our diet lately, pizza was supposed to be a nice treat - and we did do it in moderation.

The problem is that this had to be some of the worst pizza I've ever eaten, and the service was horrible. Our waitress' boyfriend showed up and almost knocked over the table next to us as he was sitting down, she obviously wasn't paying a lot of attention to us because of him; another waitress asked Robert if he needed a refill of his soda, and then she forgot to bring his glass back - seriously - we had to get the other waitress to get it after about 10 minutes; and the kicker was when both waitresses visited the ladies' room and one held the door propped open talking to her friend while the other was in the stall. The problem? The restroom was on the opposite wall of where we were sitting, and with the door open the restroom was reflected in the windows which gave Robert a perfect inside view. Review - pizza bad; entertainment - mildly amusing!

Let the crazy times begin now. We've got a work dinner this week, our anniversary on Friday, our church choir concert this weekend - in three services, an annual Christmas dinner with friends, two Christmas work parties next week, our trip to Kansas City, and another dinner out that's been scheduled for a while. And somewhere in all of this I still need to finish the Christmas knitting! But don't forget what the season is all about - the birth of Jesus! Check out this awesome video on Kate's blog - enjoy!

Happy Anniversary - A Love Story (between a man, a woman, and God)

Today is a day I never believed would happen - my 5th anniversary with Robert! I am blessed beyond measure to have spent the last 5 years with Robert, and each day it just keeps getting better and better. Our love story is a story of God's redemptive love, trust, and healing. I hope you enjoy it.

WE MEET

Without going into too much detail of the past, let's just say I had very good reasons for not trusting the male species. By 2000, I was the oldest (and longest) member of our church singles group and had pretty much given up hope that I would ever get married, much less even date again. That's the year I met Robert. All I really thought of him at the time was that he was nice, but I wasn't interested. Instead, we became "friendly." Not friends - yet - but just friendly.

THE DECEPTION AND TRICKERY BEGINS

In October 2001, after a special event at church, a group of singles planned to grab a bite to eat at Village Inn, but it ended up being only Robert, his friend Michael, and me. Somehow we got into a discussion about relationships, honesty, and what men and women really want. Robert, being very sneaky and sly (I know this now - but not then) made the comment, "You know, growing up, I had 3 sisters and all my friends were girls. I'd just like to be able to call a girl and go to dinner or a movie and have it not mean anything." Silly me. I believed him.

WE BECOME FRIENDS

I think it was sometime in February 2002 that we discovered we both liked flea markets and spent a Saturday driving to several in the area. THIS WAS NOT A DATE. (He'll try to convince you otherwise, because there was pretty much a blizzard happening and we were driving on the highway and I didn't cancel - I just didn't want him to think I was chicken.) He also started calling me about once a week - usually on Mondays - and (yes, I know this NOW) under the pretense of finding out about some singles activities our church was having. I remember one call, which was during the Winter Olympics and I really was only half-listening to him and flipping channels because the luge or something boring was on, and came across the first rose ceremony of the first episode of the first season of The Bachelor. I flipped out. "WHAT ARE THESE GIRLS DOING? ARE THEY INSANE? WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD DO THIS? (Oh, no - don't pick her - she looks snooty. . .)" Poor Robert. I made him turn on his TV and watch the train wreck with me. The next week, he called me earlier in the evening and said, "Hey, there's this stupid TV show on. . ." and we ended up watching it "together" over the phone. Oops. I got hooked. We ended up watching the entire season together over the phone, and it led to many interesting discussions. Such as: Me: That's not a date - that's a fantasy. How can they get to know the real person in that situation? Ridiculous. Robert: You're right. They can't. OR Me: How can he pick out a ring? He doesn't know which girl he's going to pick. Doesn't he know that each girl has her heart set on her "own" ring? How lame! If I ever get married, the guy will know that I want a platinum band, princess cut center stone, and bagettes on the sides! Robert: (takes notes. His sneakiness and trickery continues.) The good thing about the show is that it caused Robert and I to have a lot of serious discussions about relationships and expectations in a safe manner, because we weren't in a relationship! We dealt with all that stuff before we even started dating.

THE PARTY THAT CHANGED MY LIFE

Meanwhile, our lives away from each other continued. Steve and Ginger were engaged, and a bunch of girls had a fabulous bachelorette party for her at a friend's house. Some of the girls from our singles group set out to prove that Christians could have more fun at these parties without going out and getting drunk and doing all sorts of inappropriate behavior. They were right. The highlight of the night was when Steve and his gang crashed the party, and he got down on one knee in front of Ginger and sang Michael W. Smith's "Love of My Life" to her in front of all of us. (Collective "awwww" now.) Then he had a stretch limo SUV waiting out front and whisked her away for a private drive before coming back for the rest of us. I stood in the hallway watching Ginger leave and said, "I want to get married just so I can have this party!" The next morning in Sunday School, I said how wonderful the party was, and that I now believed "there are some good guys out there - they're just all taken." Oops again. I really hurt Robert's feelings without knowing it. But thankfully, he swallowed his pride and continued his sneaky, underhanded trickery to pursue me. (Note: this is an ongoing disagreement between the two of us - he swears that I tricked him into chasing me.) :-)

A WEDDING PROPHECY

Steve and Ginger were married in April, and at their reception, a mutual friend turned to me and said, "Well, you're next." I laughed, because I wasn't dating anyone, and didn't think there were any prospects. A couple of weeks later, when Robert and I were watching The Bachelor, he asked what I was doing the next night, and if I wanted to have dinner. My brain immediately went back to the October 2001 meal where he said he just wanted to be friends with a girl and dinner didn't mean anything. I believed him, and said, sure. I met him at the restaurant (note: he did not pick me up); I offered to pay for my own meal (but he insisted, saying he could "buy a friend dinner"), and that was that. It was not a date. (This is another ongoing dispute between us.) However, I did become confused at that point, wondering if there was something going on in his mind thinking that it was a date. But since I didn't know if it was supposed to be a date, I decided it wasn't a date.

THE (OFFICIAL) FIRST DATE

A couple of weeks later while "watching" The Bachelor together, and I said "that's not a real date" - he asked me, "What do you consider to be a real date?" My response - because I figured this would help me figure out the earlier dinner together - "Both people have to know that they're on a date so they know what the expectations are." Robert - "How would you like to go out on a date?" Me - "I'd love to - with who?" Oops. I went too far. I was teasing, but again, hurt his feelings. But again, he swallowed his pride and said, "with me." Of course, I had to say yes at this point - I knew I'd gone to far. We decided to go to Silver Dollar City the upcoming Saturday, May 4, 2002, but on Thursday, I won 4 tickets to a St. Louis Cardinals game from a radio contest. I e-mailed him and asked if he minded changing our plans, which he didn't, because that meant he got to spend more time with me. (tee, hee, hee). Oh yeah - did you catch that I won 4 tickets, not 2? I also invited my nephew and his pregnant wife on our first date. Did I mention that I had some relationship issues to work through? And maybe a problem with trust? In all fairness to me, we took separate cars to St. Louis - yes, Robert and I were together. On the ride back, we got into a very serious discussion which completely freaked me out and left me no choice but to tell him some very personal details about my past. Robert was very concerned, caring, and considerate, and told me that he didn't want to freak me out more than I was, but that a few weeks before he'd been thinking and praying, and that what I'd just told him came to mind. God was literally preparing him to hear what I had to say before I ever said it! Amazing!

I FREAK OUT

After the first date, things happened fast. I freaked. I got scared. I prayed. I cried. I talked to my best friends. I prayed some more. The Monday after our first date, Robert sent me a dozen red roses and signed the card, "Tammy, I never dared to dream that I would meet someone like you. Love, Robert." Did the boy just not get that he was freaking me out in a major way? (Yes, I still have the card.) He asked me to have lunch with his family on Mother's Day, and the Tuesday before was when he first told me those three little words. Freak. Out. I went to lunch, but got sick on the drive down to Lebanon because I was so nervous. Robert was very gooey in those days, too - which also contributed to my freak out situation. He asked what I was doing on Memorial Day weekend and asked if I wanted to go to Colorado with him because he "wanted to see the sunset in the mountains with me." (gag. too. much. sweetness. Ok, ok - I liked it a little.)

THE SIGN

Although we were officially dating now, I still went out with my girlfriends. I think it was the Friday after I met the family that Amy and I went out to dinner. She asked how it was going with Robert and I said, "He's in love with me." Her response was, "well, duh." I was completely freaking out with her, too, and said, "I don't know what to do - I can't handle this - I need a sign - I just need a sign!" At that very moment, she said, "Isn't that Robert's car?" Can you believe it? He was driving home in a way he didn't usually drive at the exact moment I said I need a sign. Score another for God's plan and sense of humor. My response - "I need another sign!"

THE PRAYER

Obviously, I was praying a lot during this time. Here I had a man in my life saying he loved me, and I couldn't accept it. Everyone loved Robert - he's intelligent, sweet, kind, Christian, had a good job, funny, caring, thoughtful - I could go on and on. What was wrong with me? One night, I cried out to God - "I just don't know what to do. I don't know if I love him. I don't know that I really know what love is. I don't want to make a mistake." I believe that I heard the Lord answer in my mind - "Tammy, my child, what have you been praying for all these years?" Me - "That I would meet a nice guy." God - "And what does everyone say about Robert?" Me - "That he's a nice . . . oh." And then the kicker. God didn't tell me outright that Robert was the man He'd prepared for me. He didn't tell me that I wouldn't have doubts. But I heard God ask of me so clearly, "Do you trust ME?" Talk about putting faith into action. My head knew the answer, but I had to get that through to my heart. The next time I saw Robert and he told me that he loved me, I was able to respond in kind. I think he was about to cry the first time I said to him, "I love you, too."

THE PROPOSAL

At this point, I pretty much knew that he planned on proposing in Colorado. Now, he's a romantic, but I'm practical. So when I was in a local Christian book store and saw "The Christian Wedding Planner" on the shelf, I bought it "just in case." I figured that driving back through Kansas on Memorial Day was going to be a long, boring drive, and we'd have hours to get a lot of the planning done. (I didn't know I was a Knitter at that time or I'd been knitting away!) I stuck the book in my backpack. We left on Friday night, drove past Hays, KS and spent the night, and arrived in Estes Park, CO early the next day. We drove around, and poked around in the shops downtown. Robert wanted to drive up into Rocky Mountain National Park for a bit, but it had snowed the day before so we could only go as far as Horseshoe Bend. We got out and hiked around a little - and all the while I'm thinking how is he going to propose at sunset and am I really going to say yes or am I going to freak out more - and he points out this ridge on a mountain to me. "Do you see that bluff over there?" "Yeah." "I think we could see forever from up there - but you know what - I can't see my forever without you in it. Will you marry me?" Yikes. What happened to sunset? It's too early! Also, we were standing on the edge of a mountain. If I said no, I wondered if he would he jump or instead push me? Oh yeah - this was God's plan for my life. The answer is yes. And yes, the ring was a beautiful platinum band, princess cut center stone, with bagettes on the side. I told you he took notes. So, three weeks after our first date, we were engaged. Now it was my turn to freak out people - starting with Ginger! She'd asked me last minute to be the reception coordinator for her wedding because of issues she was having with the wedding coordinator, and said she'd return the favor for me someday. She just didn't expect me to ask her to do it just a month after her wedding! (And if you do the math, you'll see that it was exactly 3 weeks after our first date that we were engaged.)

THE WEDDING

We did get a lot of planning done on the drive home through Kansas - although Robert was a little surprised when I pulled the wedding planner book out of my bag because he thought he was going to surprise me - and since 2002 was literally the year of weddings, I got a lot of ideas of what to do and what not to do. Because my niece was getting married in September, and my sister Kathy worked at our church, she knew the church calendar and that November 30 was the first available Saturday for a wedding and had passed that information along to me "just in case." (Poor Robert. He really didn't stand a chance.) The 30th also happened to be Robert's birthday, as well as the Saturday after Thanksgiving, and that wouldn't work. So December 7 was the next available date, and that's when we said our vows. The ceremony was perfect (although the rehearsal was a disaster - but that's another story), and although we have a wonderful marriage, what I remember most about our love story is how God guided us to each other. I'd known for years that if I ever did get married, I wanted my friend Peggy to sing "On the Side of Angels" at my wedding, because there's a line in the song that says, "Every time I touch you, don't you feel it, too - the gentle Hand that's guiding us, you to me, me to you?" and "Heaven only knows why this took so long, but only Heaven knows when Love is right or wrong." And it is - very, very right.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER

I am so thankful for my marriage, and my love for Robert grows deeper all the time. The best is yet to come. . . and oh yeah, I did get the most awesome, fantastic, fun bachelorette party ever - but that's yet another story. Thank you, God, for the blessings you've given me, especially Robert. I love him with all my heart.

So, everyone knew that Robert and I were taking off these few days before Christmas. We've had them scheduled since August, so it's been a long time coming, and we were going to Kansas City to stay on the Plaza, do some shopping, and see the lights. Fun, right? Oh, and Robert's been teasing me for months that he had a surprise for me, but that it wasn't romantic and I couldn't open it, and I'd eventually understand everything. Now, I'm usually a hard person to surprise, but I promised him I wouldn't try to figure it out and ruin it for him, so I pretty much forgot all about it.

So, we drive up there yesterday, visit a couple of yarn shops - I was really impressed with The Studio - and although I was ready to check into our hotel, Robert wanted to shop and look in the giant Barnes & Noble and The Sharper Image.

Finally, we get to the hotel, he checks us in and we head to the room. I unpacked while he went and parked the car. When he came back to the room, I was in the bathroom and he said, "Hi, honey, I'm home! And I picked up your surprise at the front desk." So I come out of the bathroom and - are you ready for this? Are you sitting down? Michelle. From ALASKA. In our hotel room. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I was floored. I knew she was spending Christmas in Texas with her dad and siblings this year, but she came up with the idea to fly into KC and got Robert in on the plan, so he arranged this whole trip as a cover to come pick her up to spend a few days with us. We'll take her back to KC to fly to Texas on Sunday, but wow. Talk about a surprise - I never would have guessed it in a million years!