On the road again....

It's that glorious time of year when the valley girls head my way and we step away from reality for a couple of days. The hotel is calling us, Thai food awaits us, christmas gifts so much more fun to shop for together. Tomorrow I shall be whisked away to spend two glorious nights with my friends. The kids all have sleepovers to go to so they can't wait for me to leave the scene, Hud will enjoy some quiet downtime, and I hope to return home on Sunday rejuvenated and ready for the rest of the season's rush.

Happy Birthday Morgan!

Because Morgan is a Newfie and it was his birthday, we decided that November's gathering should be Newfie night. For alot of us we were preparing things for the first time as is often the case at our themed dinner nights. This time however most of us had never even eaten what we were endeavoring to prepare. Cooking with salt meats, codfish, pork fat etc were things that we had never done. We were not daunted though as we each set out on our own to make it a true Newfie night. The end result was fabulous. So much wonderful food and laughter that never seemed to die out, even on the way home. In fact I think our van load laughed the whole way home, leaving me with a very sore ribcage. There were moments we were gasping for air, first due to the laughter and second thanks to Jonathan continuously feeling the need to open the lid of the pot that held the last of the Jiggs dinner; the aroma of cabbage and turnip filling the van...need I say more?!? What a night!

Morgan's newfoundland flagged cake that we had before dinner so that his kids could have some before bed.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MORGAN!!!!!

Lisa and Susan chopping the pork fat for scrunchins....

bacon has nothing on this as far as fat goes!

smelling heavenly if a bit smokey!

Newfoundland Screech... cheap jamaican rum traded for cheap Newfoundland fish becomes a Newfoundland tradition...we saved this 'til the end up the night...one shot was plenty for each of us. YIKES!

mmm...frying bologna....

birthday boy in charge of the bologna...

oh how tasty...

Darrel and Terrance sharing the love!

Todd loading up on the Jiggs dinner...I would make it again anytime!

looks great Todd!

fish and brewis...gotta love the scrunchins and fat poured over top!

cod au gratin...

mmmmm....fishcakes!

Morgan and Vaughn giving us some Newfie music to tap our feet to....

Hudson post screech...not so sure he loved it!

Shelly is Screeched! YIKES!!!!

Home again....

Our weekend started out like any of our other weekends, with the exception of Yolanda coming late. She came bearing margarita mix, and champagne...we had much to celebrate as she and Paul had gotten engaged the night before. There was much shrieking and many happy tears when they arrived and we discovered what had transpired. Some of you may remember that two and a half years ago I mentioned a man in our church who had lost his wife suddenly. This past spring he and Yolanda started a beautiful friendship and now they are getting married. All of their girls are thrilled, and we are so happy for all of them. Some of us have had this couple on our hearts for a long time, and it is soooo wonderful to see how it has all worked together... Our getaway turned into a celebration, one I was so happy to be part of.

Beautiful Yolanda with our champagne that we didn't get into until breakfast this morning!

Good morning sunshine.....Paul came to pick her up this morning so they could share the news at church together...Emma is Paul's daughter...doesn't she looked thrilled?!?

Paul does not wear pink himself...just so you know....

Off I go with the girls for an overnight adventure...what shall we get ourselves into this time I wonder....

NOEL....

...and I don't mean the Christmas kind. The rains are here and the wind is blowing. The hatches if we had them would be battened down, the deck furniture is all put away, and now we just wait and see what comes. We are in for a doozie! Daniel left for the valley last night with Karen and told us that he would be safer than us as he was headed to the Holy land! What a nut! He will be thrilled if he is not able to come home tomorrow and ends up staying a few extra days. Me, I'm just content to curl up with the rest of the family here watching movies and eating popcorn unless the power goes out. Board games by candlelight is always an exciting option...

black cat cookies thanks to Tee's recipe...

a pre trick or treating visit to Grandmother's... Daniel's tie not quite right' but we got it sorted before he went out for real...he is supposed to be a wind blown man...

Craig and "Harry", the family witch and pirate...jake felt the need to get in on the action...

Counting up the stash before Claire decided that she needed to head out again. Sam had brought them home early as he was eager to partake of the goods.

Claire and Autumn enjoying the warm fall weather..

Sam and Mike dive bombing the pile...