Strawberry and Softball Season

We have been eating strawberries often lately. This is the second year that Gerald's garden has produced all the strawberries we can eat. He grew them and picked them and sometimes even burred them; but unlike the little red hen, he shares them willingly with me. Once again we have several bags in the freezer for next winter.

I make strawberry shortcake the way Gerald's mother taught me. Instead of using pie crust or the little sponge cakes from the store, she always used crackers in her shortcake. I started out using pie crust or the little cakes, and once I even make the plate-sized shortcake from my bridal cookbook. But I found I liked Mom Glasco's best of all, and that is what I still do today. Except now instead of sugar, I use Apriva and I use wheat crackers which weren't available when I began. I did use sugar for the shortcake that I fed granddaughter Leslie when she and Mike dropped in briefly on their way home from Cecelie's high school graduation. The beautiful Mother's Day plant that they brought me from Jeannie is definitely the highlight on our front porch.

This is the first year for the asparagus that Gerald planted in his garden, and he brings in a cutting of it almost every other day. It tastes so good and fresh. After I wash it, I stand it upright in a narrow pitcher with water in it just the way Mom Glasco taught me years ago. We eat it sparingly,however, because the Vitamin K interferes with our blood thinner meds, so I've put many meaks' worth in the freezer.

As always, we have watched a lot of college softball this season usually on the computers in Gerald's office. We watched on his bigger screen but turned off the sound of the announcers. That was so we could hear the radio announcers on his other computer because our granddaughter Erin was one of them. The two programs were not always in sync, but we did not care because we liked hearing Erin's sweet voice and laugh. Our thoughts are with her and Josh because in the morning, baby Caroline is to be born.

For the last three days, we were able to leave the computers behind and watch softball on the television screen. Texas A&M played Tennessee in the super regionals at Knoxville with fourteen other teams battling it out in their supers across the nation. The winners of two out of three games advance to the Nationals in Oklahoma City starting Thursday.

Friday evening's game was a big disappointment because A&M played poorly and lost.8-1, a lopsided score that should not happen in the super regionals. Then we thought we had lost again yesterday when Tennessee got ahead early. But seeing A&M come back and win that second game 6-5 set the table for an exciting game today.

I tried not to be too optimistic lest I be disappointed; and when Tennessee quickly got ahead again this afternoon, it looked like this would be our last game of the season. Then the Aggies came alive and pulled ahead. Then behind. Then ahead. There was one rain delay and there were the frequent delays that Coach Karen Weekly is known for. Katherine and I watched together in her bedroom. With the rest of the entire softball nation, we could not help but marvel and be inspired by A&M's pitcher Trinity Harrington, who had missed their regional tourney to spend the last days with her father as he lost his battle with cancer. Her team had rallied the best they could to show her support last week, and they knew how she wanted to win this one for her father, who had been a great supporter of her softball career. And with the help of her teammates, she did. The camera frequently flashed to her mother in the stands, and it was hard to stay dry eyed.

When Tennessee made their last out, the A&M tears were tears of happiness as they became one of the eight teams heading to the Women's College World Series, something little girls playing softball grow up dreaming about.

What is so rare as a day...

We have a family wedding coming up on June 23 in our village church, and everyone is quite excited about these nuptials. I expect to have lots of comings and goings here at Woodsong in preparation for the event. In fact, when the Leslie, the bride-to-be, arrived early this afternoon, I was surprised since I had forgotten she was due in—although I looked for her car when I woke up yesterday, when I originally thought she was coming. She was delayed a day because her photographer friend had a photo shoot with her in the park.

As I explained to Leslie, I haven’t been able to keep up with who is in the house. Brian had brought Brianna over and walked through the kitchen as I was preparing noon dinner. I thought he was still downstairs when I called everyone up to eat, but I found out he had left an hour earlier out the front door. So there was still an extra plate on the table when Leslie arrived, and I hadn’t put the food away yet.
Daughter Jeannie and granddaughter Cecelie arrived while we were sleeping yesterday morning. I think around 3 a.m. We enjoyed the day with them. At Katherine’s house in the afternoon, we added Sam; and on the way home from there, a call came to pick up Brianna at the farm on the Pittsburg road, where she had been helping her daddy farm.

From then on, there was lots of chatter and giggling. Brian later picked Brianna up to go to their newest home—the house came with the farm acreage the Taylors bought. Brian and Mary Ellen have already graciously offered it for the bridesmaids’ lodging. Their family is bunking up there on couches when any of them are down here, and they’ve brought down a fridge from their basement in central Illinois. Mary Ellen is trying to get some painting done since she is looking forward to having a chance to redecorate the house, but she had an open house in central Illinois and wasn’t able to come down for her birthday weekend. Brian and Brianna came down after they went out for a family dinner together.

Last night I went to bed with two teens still up chatting. This morning was quiet since Jeannie was already out on her bike when I woke up, and the late night owls Sam and Cecelie were sleeping in. Gerald was taking advantage of the much too dry weather to mow at the Pittsburg farm. Jeannie was in and out as she had an 11 a.m. appointment with our village florist, and she came home all thrilled about their wedding flowers. Soon she and Leslie joined me at the dining room table where I was trying to clean up a scrapbook project mess.

Gerald had a spur-of-the moment opportunity last week to meet up with Gerry and Geri Ann in Memphis and go on to Oklahoma City for the first four games of the Women’s College World Series on Thursday. With no meals to prepare, I decided to get rid of a box of stuff I had saved for years to make Southern Illinois Writers Guild scrapbooks, which are about the only archives we have. I had completed earlier ones years ago, but this box just sat on the floor of my office daring me to throw the contents away. I figured I could complete the project easily before Gerald got home late Friday night, but as those things have a way of doing, the ephemera just seemed to grow and scatter. However, I also had other things to do during these days. After taking most of Saturday and all day yesterday off, I wanted to clear that dining room table. So I finally did today.

Jeannie had finally found her wedding veil safely stored in a very deep hallway closet and it brought down hoping Leslie might like it. Leslie had her mother’s wedding dress remodeled, and she had it with her. We had the privilege of seeing it on her as she tried on the veil. She is going to be a beautiful bride.
The TVs at our house have been turned on to the Women’s College World Series a great deal of the time the last five days, and everyone in the house watched the first game of the championship finals as Oklahoma beat Alabama. The winner must win two out of three games, so tomorrow we will know whether or not a third game as to be played.

Jeannie and Leslie came in from Carbondale, where they had gone to pay for the ordered wedding cake and whatever else they needed to do over there. Brian came to pick up Brianna. I hear noises upstairs now in the kitchen where the youngsters are fixing themselves a bedtime snack. That does not necessarily mean they are about to go to bed, but I am. Sam says there has been some lightning in the sky outside, so I hope the needed rain finally comes tonight.