Monday Miscellaneous ~Family Farmhouse ~Missing Little Jack ~Mothers Day Report ~What’s for Dinner ~What’s terrifying ~Happy Ending to our Monday

We have had discussion about our family’s farmhouse 

on my Facebook page this week.

I appreciate all of your kind comments. 

Many of you remember our majestic farmhouse 

that was built by my great grandfather.

And then a few years ago, this happened.

The house was abandoned and for a few years, 

we did not have access to the farmyard.

And now, sadly, there have been locals that have 

trespassed onto our private property, 

vandalized our house, and stolen precious items.

What is wrong with some people?

On a much happier note,

I had a wonderful vacation with this little guy 

and his mom and dad.

Yes, I miss them tremendously!

Thank goodness for FaceTime.

Since I have been home we have enjoyed some

tasty home cooked meals.

This is my go-to meal, when we are short on time. 

Onion, garlic, mushrooms, red pepper, shrimp, herbs, and pasta.

While I was preparing the Shrimp Pasta dish, 

Hubby was grilling the asparagus.

We enjoyed some live music on Saturday night.

I still need to show you how our daughters 

spoiled me on Mother’s Day.

This from Amy, Nick, and Jack...

Perfect for pampering myself.

There was dark chocolate too, 

but I ate that already!

Emily ordered these pants for me.

I love the colors, they will be awesome for summer...

 they look great with denim, 

and I can wear them even into the fall with my black cardigan!

This was a terrifying 

moment today!

This is, by far, the favorite mouse toy at our house.

I hope you all had a Marvelous Monday!

Take care,

~Natalie

Things in my House Thursday ~The Little Things that Make Me Smile ~Farmhouse Stained Glass Window

This stained glass window

is not just any stained glass window.

It hangs above the fireplace in our family room.

This fall I found a small wreath to adorn the center.

The window was salvaged from our family farmhouse.

Here she is in her glory, 

see the small window near the center of the house?

Also pictured, my mom, her sister, me,

Amy and Emily.

Sadly, here is the farmhouse after it had been swallowed up

by the waters of Devils Lake.

And even more devastating, 

is that it has been vandalized by someone in our community.

The window was in the stairway.

Hubby knew it meant a lot to me,

so he struggled to remove it from its casing, 

all in one piece, so we could  bring it home.

We have had it hanging above our fireplace ever since.

Here it is with a spring and summer garland.

And now with a winter garland.

It is certainly a family treasure.

Take care,

~Natalie

What'cha Workin' On Wednesday & Things in my House Thursday...This Summer, It's All About the Wedding ~Preserving the Family Farmhouse

I have been gathering cake plates, vintage canning jars, 

faux flowers and lace table cloths.

In addition to the Wedding Reception, 

we will host family parties in our home.

We are fortunate that Grandma has 

a large stash of Mason Jars!

This week I ran them through the dishwasher so they now sparkle!

There are packages that arrive here on a daily basis.

I like packages.

I can't show show you what's inside now, 

because some of it is a surprise!

And what's been happening out in hubby's shop?

Remember our visit out to our old farmhouse?

We brought home some of those spindles from that impressive front porch.

They ended up in the woodshop,

just waiting for the perfect project!

Here's a sneak peak...

Can't wait for the finished project!

Take care,

~Natalie

Monday Memories ~The Family Farmstead, Then and Now ~~Possible Wedding Cupcakes ~~~Birthday Giveaway Reminder

Mom always took good care of the family's home.

This photo was was taken in the spring of 1994.

She had been freshly painted and the window frames were being repaired.

My dad had passed in 1988, but mom continued to live on the farm.

Mom hired someone to come to fix the roof after the slightest leak...

and repaired the foundation after the smallest crumble.

Those little people by this huge farmhouse are

Mom, her sister Enid, myself, Amy and Emily.

Did you notice the beautiful front porch?

Upstairs, you could go out onto that balcony to look over the country side.

When I was in high school, I would go out there to lie in the sun.

So much better than the modern day tanning beds, right?

And there's that shelterbelt I told you about.

My daddy made that investment in the early 70's.

I can remember going out there with a garden hoe 

to nurture those baby trees.

I have enjoyed the facebook messages from all of you 

about the house and all of the memories.

I also appreciate all of your support, 

as hubby and I work to salvage the precious keepsakes.

We have now brought back two pickup loads from the farm.

Here is the view from the smaller east porch.

You can see water on both sides of the road.

Here I am standing on the foundation of what used to be the barn.

Thank you GoPro for helping me capture the view.

And when I turn around...the old farmhouse.

You can see that when the lake was at it's highest level, this was under water.

And you also notice that hubby is gathering some barnwood...

He is building some flower boxes for our daughter's wedding, and this might be a good option?

Speaking of wedding planning...

We have a new bakery in town.

Grand opening is today!

Does anyone want to go cupcake tasting with me?!

Take care,

~Natalie

It is time for my annual birthday giveaway.

It started yesterday on my blog's birthday,

and will end on my birthday, the 23rd.

Just leave a comment on yesterday's post to be entered.

In this photo, (click here to see that post) our daughter helps draw the winner in 2011.

Remember, we were almost late for my surprise party?

And, you were so calm and cool!

Scroll down to leave and comment to make sure you are entered.

Monday Memories ~Visiting our Family Farmstead

This is our family's farmstead. It was built by my Great Grandfather.

It was such a beautiful home back in the day.

The barn was pretty majestic, too.  

Our Great Grandfather's picture is the fourth from the right 

on the bottom row.

We had the privilege to move to this beautiful home during the winter of 1969-1970.

My family always took such good care of the house and yard.

My dad died in 1988 and mom lived here, 

on her own, for another 10 years.

And then a few years ago, this happened.

If you have been a blog friend for years, you remember this photo.

The waters of Devils Lake swallowed up the land 

and farm homes of our small community.

This was as close as we could get in July 2013 

when we were home for mom's burial.

Our last visit to the house was in December 2012,

We could get in, only because the ground was frozen.

It is just so sad...

Someone had broken the window in the door and gone inside.

This is where the barn had stood...

We lost the barn to a wind shear.

The pump house...

And the machine shed.

We lost the roof to heavy snow.

It was so hard to say goodbye,

not knowing if we could ever get back.

This spring, we received word that the water has receded 

and we might be able to get to the farmhouse.

(Thank you for that news, Darryl)

That road made me a little nervous, but we had the big pickup, 

and hubby assured me that he has driven on much worse when they have been hunting.

You can tell, because of the reeds,

 that the lake water had been right up to the house.

It still laps up on what once was the barn's foundation.

The pump house was in the lake, but now it's drying up a bit.

The shelterbelt is now history.  

Through tears, I told hubby how my daddy had scraped enough money together to have that planted.  He considered it an investment for our farm.

I remember going in here many times to get water for our garden.

Now, it features skylights.

Again, it was so hard to say goodbye.

So many families have lost their homes to flood, tornadoes, and wild fires.

My heart goes out to them.

 This has been long enough already.

I will come back to show you photos of the interior of the home.

Take care,

~Natalie