ALL VEGANS BEWARE….REMEMBERING OUR PIG ROAST…

  Perhaps some of you have heard of a Pig Roast.  Maybe you have attended one, or even had one.  (NO, this is not a gathering where everyone makes fun of a Cop.)..We had one at our home 5 years ago as a reception /party for John and Chris after their wedding.  They had a “destination” wedding at Long Boat Key, Florida, and a lot of our family and friends here were unable to attend…..Sounds like time to plan a party in Sandwich IL, eh????

Yup….that would be McGuyver lending a hand to the professional “roaster”, on the right…and that would be the poor unfortunate “roastee” layed out on the table…. “Porky” was put on the roaster about 6AM and taken off about 5PM….

 

 

WAIT!!! COME BACK!!!! I DIDN’T MAKE THE PICTURE THAT BIG!!  IT’S A PIG, FOR GOD’S SAKE!..YOU KNOW…PORK CHOPS, HAM, SHOULDER ROAST??….

 

Let me just say that it tasted heavenly…and yes, a pig WAS injured for the good of the party…And he will be remembered  fondly, with a big juicy smile on our faces….

 

There were also a couple dozen cases of beer and a few boxes of wine that were badly damaged and ended up “in the drink” at this crazy Cave pig roast….This took place in mid September, so the seating was bales of hay in many areas…It was tons of fun…and lots of work…but we had never had a pig roast before..You know us goofy Cave people, we just gotta try everything!!!!

Right now , Dennis is playing in the corn and soybeans…He tells me how hard he works at the farm…But I know that the combine has air conditioning and a radio, so he isn’t breaking MUCH of a sweat….

There is just something about men and their toys….This “toy” looks like something I should definitely NOT be allowed to maneuver around..I could do some serious damage to just about anything I came in contact with!!!

Welcome to our new followers Cruizin2some…..love the name..Hang on, we can get a little rowdy!..and thanks for taking time to read my drivel…

SLOW COUPLE DAYS….WITH SOME FABULOUS NEWS!

It’s been a quiet spell here in Cavedom….not much going on except…..WE ARE GONNA BE GRANDMA AND GRANDPA AGAIN!!!!!!! .

  Our youngest daughter, Chris and her hubby, John are expecting next April….Another Wolff Cub is on the way (Wolff is their last name…)  Look out, Aiden..somebody is gonna steal your thunder for a while!!!

There’s gonna be a new sheriff in town…..But don’t worry, Aiden…Mimi (that’s what he calls me) and Papa will make sure you don’t get your nose bent toooooo badly out of shape!!

 

As for any other excitement around here, it’s been a pretty slow weekend….Unless you count some disgusting 24 hour labwork I am “collecting” for my Urologist….No, I didn’t think that counts for much either…

I want to thank you all for your concern for my sister .  To update you, she is out of Critical Care (again), and in a private hospital room.  Next week sometime, she will be transferred to a Nursing Home in Elgin.  I am going up to see her on Tuesday..and I hope she can stay out of the ER for a while now…Thanks again for caring…

 

 

 

LOOKS LIKE MIMI  AND PAPA BETTER KEEP THIS CRIB, AND MAKE ROOM SOMEWHERE FOR A “BIG BOY” BED FOR AIDEN….AS AL SAYS, “IT’S NOT JUST THE SEASON THAT’S CHANGING”…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here we thought our cup was full of grandkids and we might have to put the lid on and call it a day…NOT!…Congratulations Chris and John….Mimi and Papa cannot wait to meet the new little Wolff Cub next spring!!

 

As for now, we are looking forward to plopping our fannies in these rocker-recliners pictured below….We need brush up on our rocking skills….make sure we haven’t lost our touch!!

With a little practice…..we will surely be able to lull that new sweet babe to sleep….

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TAYLOR….HAVE A “BILLY” KIND OF 12TH BIRTHDAY!!

   Yesterday was our oldest grandchild’s 12th birthday…HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAYLOR!!!!

Her Mom and Dad had a surprise planned for her birthday, and  I was “in on it”…..Yesterday when Taylor got home from school,  I arrived.  Her birthday surprise was a train ride into Chicago to see the Broadway Hit musical, Billy Elliott…and Grandma was going too!..It was a “girl’s night out”…Tim and the boys dropped us girls at the Metra Train Station in Aurora about 10 miles from their house…and we road the commuter into Union Station, downtown Chicago…. It costs about $30 to park anywhere in Chicago, and only $6.00 to ride the train in….such a deal.

This was Taylor’s FIRST train ride too!..And yes, I know…I actually met my nemesis head on..the dreaded train. Hey , this was one way of not having to hear the whistle…

We left the Metra Station at 5:20PM and arrived in Union Station Chicago at 6:40PM.   We walked from Union Station about 1 mile to the Ford Oriental Theater .  The performance time was 8PM, so we had time to grab a quick (and I DO mean QUICK) sandwich on the way…Let me tell you a little about the place we ate..Most of you are probably not familiar with the history of the Billy Goat Tavern, and the “curse of the Billy Goat” that is associated with it, so here is a little history lesson about it…

From 1876 to 1945, The Chicago Cubs were one of the most successful baseball teams in the country. They would post a 5475-4324 (.559) record, with 51 winning seasons, 16 first place finishes, and 16 pennants and World Series appearances. They would win two World Series titles and six Championship titles in that span. This would come to a screeching halt in game four of the 1945 World Series. 1945- "Who Stinks Now?"
October 6th, a sad day in Cubs history. The Cubs entered game four of the World Series leading the Detroit Tigers 2 games to 1, and needing to win only two of the next four games played at Wrigley Field. A local Greek, William "Billy Goat" Sianis, owner of the Billy Goat Tavern and a Cubs fan, bought two tickets to Game four. Hoping to bring his team good luck he took his pet goat, Murphy, with him to the game. At the entrance to the park, the Andy Fran ushers stopped Billy Goat from entering saying that no animals are allowed in the park. Billy Goat, frustrated, appealed to the owner of the Cubs, P.K. Wrigley. Wrigley replied, "Let Billy in, but not the goat." Billy Goat asked, "Why not the goat?" Wrigley answered, "Because the goat stinks."

According to legend, the goat and Billy were upset, so then Billy threw up his arms and exclaimed, "The Cubs ain't gonna win no more. The Cubs will never win a World Series so long as the goat is not allowed in Wrigley Field." The Cubs were officially cursed. Subsequently, the Cubs lost game four, and the remaining series getting swept at home and from the World Series. Billy Goat promptly sent a telegram to P.K. Wrigley, stating, "Who stinks now?" For the next twenty years, throughout the remainder of Billy Goat's life the Cubs would finish each season at 5th place or lower, establishing a pattern that would reverse the Cubs luck and term the team "The Lovable Losers." The World Series would become a dream, and "wait 'til next year" would become the team's motto. From 1946 to 2003, the Cubs would post a 4250-4874 (.466) record, have only 15 winning seasons, finish in first place a mere 3 times, have no pennants, no World Series appearances let alone wins, with only four post season experiences (1984, 1989, 1998, 2003) resulting in a complete reversal of their fortunes. The Cubs were and are a cursed franchise. ..

…And so we went to The Billy Goat Tavern, made famous  for the  quote “cheeseburger, cheeseburger, cheeseburger!!….Coke, no Pepsi.!.”  For those of you old enough to recall,  Jim Bulushi made The Billy Goat Tavern nationally known in the 1970’s, on the TV show Saturday Night Live , with his comedy routine based on the real Greek cook at the Billy Goat Tavern….

 

 

….What did we have, you ask???…Cheeseburgers….of course..

After a short walk through downtown Chicago we arrived at the theater…I have to say that Chicago is a beautiful  lakefront city , especially at night.  I just couldn’t handle the bustle day in and day out…Give me the cornfields any day!

 

 

 

 

There was a line outside the theater, and when we arrived they were just beginning to let people in.  This is the same theater that we saw the Broadway hit, “Wicked”, a couple years ago…(which, by the way, was FABULOUS!!!)  I remember it VERY well..I almost had my digital camera confiscated by the “camera police” at that performance…They are VERY strict about NO PHOTOS, even before the performance begins..and they have NO sense of humor.  Having Grandma thrown out of the theater would not have made a good memory for Taylor’ s birthday, so I tucked my camera safely away in my purse.

I did, however, manage to take a few shots inside the theater  lobby BEFORE we went to our seats, (hey, that is perfectly legal!) …It is a lovely old theater…

 

…The performance was so good I cannot even begin to describe it…They have 4 different young men to draw from for the starring role of Billy Elliott.  The young man who played the part last night was the oldest of the four.  His name is Tommy Batchelor, and he is 14 years old.  He started dancing at age 4, and was in Miami City Ballet’s The Nutcracker…I have never seen a more talented kid….

…Now here is how GREAT of a father and son-in-law Tim Heiser is….He came all the way into downtown Chicago (a 45 minute drive) to pick us up outside the theater… at 10:45PM!!…..He did this so that we girls didn’t have to be in Chicago alone that late and take the train back…If we had ridden the train back, we wouldn’t have gotten back to Aurora until about 1AM……Terrie called Tim on her cell phone from the theater when the show was over.  He was circling the block, waiting for the call to pick us up…..When we walked out of the theater, there was our chauffeur, double parked right in front of the theater….What a guy!!!

 

 

 

 

 

The traffic was pretty bad, but Tim drove all the way up the Eisenhower Expressway into the snarl of Chicago Loop Theater District insanity to retrieve us three lucky ladies!….(and he had to haul  Taylor’s little brothers along!!)

Peyton and Campbell slept all the way, and never even knew when we crawled across them into the Ford Explorer.  Bless their sweet tired little hearts….

 

 

 

So, that was our very exciting evening in the Windy City….It was a “Billy” kind of event….We saw “Billy Elliott”, the musical…and ate at The “Billy Goat” Tavern …..When we arrived at the Heiser house in Sugar Grove it was 12;10 AM this morning, and I still had another 20 mile drive to Sandwich…I jumped the GMC, left their house,  and was pulling in our drive at 12:35AM…(I had 3 deer walk across the road in front of me on the way…luckily I saw them in time to slow down!)

WHEW!!  BOY AM I ONE WHIPPED OLD GRANDMA THIS MORNING!!!!

I should be good as new in a few days…no worries…

BEFORE…..AND AFTER…..

 

  Remember the garage sale chandelier I snagged before anyone else could get their hands on it????

…BEFORE, WORKING ON IT IN THE BASEMENT…..       ….AND, AFTER..HANGING OVER THE TABLE……

JUST FLIP THE LIGHTSWITCH, AND TRA DA!!!!!

AN UGLY DUCKLING CHANDELIER BECOMES A SWAN….

   It looks fabulous hanging over our kitchen table…As our neighbor, Deb the Chandelier Queen, says….”It’s a touch of elegance in a country kitchen, thus making my kitchen décor “country french”…(I thought our kitchen décor was “early garage sale” myself, but I’m willing to go along with Deb’s description….it sounds nicer…

I rode my bike past the train car today and it is progressing nicely…

….They left the oval windows, to my joy!..and they created a beautiful front end of windows.  The place is due to open in October, so hopefully we will be able to “experience the ambiance” before we head South.

There is a house in Sandwich that starts getting their Halloween up very early…I am sure it’s because they have a gazillion trillion zombies, gravestones, ghosts, witches, skeletons, coffins, bats and lots of fake blood to put on display.  I drove by this morning and got a couple photos of the gore….

   

 

 

This stuff has been up at least 2 weeks….On Halloween, there is a line to get to their front door.  If there had been a house like that in our neighborhood when I was growing up, NO WAY would I walk through that bloodbath just for candy..They better be giving away money or something like it!!!

 

 

McGuyver got our new TV all trimmed out in the Hiker.  He built a new “frame” for around the opening because the old TV was fatter and taller. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that)…  These new HD televisions are not as tall, so you can see back into the cabinet…

I think the oak frame looks even better than the original stuff that was around the old TV….

                      GREAT JOB, MCGUYER!!!!

Short blog today….Lots going on with my sister…She has been in and out of Critical Care, taken to the ER 3 times, and been intubated with a ventilator at least 3 times…..So I have been going back and forth to Elgin lots….But with all of these set backs, Darlene manages to maintain her great sense of humor….She’s one of a kind!….

Thanks to all of you who take the time to read my drivel…..And now….for me…it is “wine” o’clock….

Goliad Texas Is Another of Our FAVORITE Campgrounds…

  First of all, I was in shock and awe that we have another determined follower in the group…Welcome to Kathie B. and thanks for coming into our crazy world….Hang on, it can get rough!!

Another travel log from “we who are NOT traveling”…But, this place is one to keep in mind if you like history.  Goliad Texas State Park, which is in Goliad Texas (DUH),  1 1/2 hours North of Corpus Christi on Rt. 183..(I’ll give you a minute to dig out the Atlas..) If you are at all familiar with Texas history, you have heard of the  Battle of Goliad.  It is not as well remembered as the battle of the Alamo, but the people who live in Goliad make sure you know all about it before you leave…

..The Goliad State Park was built on the grounds of the Mission Espiritu Santu, and when you camp there you can tour the mission anytime for free.  And it is a fabulous old mission.  Parts of it have been restored, but some of the old walls are still there, and the stone fence around it is the original.

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…You can take a walkway that goes from the park about 1/2 mile to another beautiful and historic place called the Presidio La Bahia.   The first Texas Declaration of Independence was signed in the chapel at Presidio La Bahia. Goliad is also the site where Colonel James W. Fannin and 341 of his men were executed in 1836 on orders from Mexican General Santa Anna.  The presidio was restored to it’s present state in the 1960’s.   Below is the Presidio La Bahia…

 

 

The photo on the right is the chapel of the Presidio La Bahia…Man, oh Man…I was touching anything they would allow me to,  so I could channel some of THIS history!!  The really wonderful thing about Goliad State Park is the fact that is so close to the town of Goliad, and the town is really quaint..

 

 

….Above left is the wooden walkway that takes you into Goliad..about a 1 1/2 mile walk, and through some gorgeous trees., many labeled so you know what they are.

Above right,  is the old Goliad Courthouse.  They have a lovely historical town square like many old Texas towns.  The courthouse has recently been restored…On the left, and below,  is the famous “Hangin’ Tree”, right outside the courthouse…And trust me, it was used PLENTY!  NOW…I’M CHANNELING SOME SERIOUS HISTORY!

The last time we were in Goliad was in the spring of 2009.  Every March, around the 27th or 28th, they have a re-enactment of the occupation of the fort by Col. Fannin and the following Goliad Massacre.  I might add that they have church services in the missions, but I don’t know the schedules…It is so fabulous, because when they ring the mission bells and you are camped right on property, the beautiful tolling of them gives you chills  just thinking about the history..Well, maybe not everybody would , but I CERTAINLY DO!!!

There are 2 different campgrounds…One is on the lower side of the park ,and that is the one that is down a hill and not near the mission.  It is electric and water only, I believe , and is like camping on a huge parking lot .  I think those sites were $16 a night…The other ones, where we were at,  are in the Live Oaks on the upper side, and right by the mission…Those were full hook up , if I remember correctly, and ran about $20 a night…(If I were you, though ,and were even remotely interested in staying here, I would definitely NOT take Dementia Donna’s word for these prices)….Enough said. As I have said in previous travel blogs, I apologize if I posted this before….CRDT disease…

OK, well, thank you again for letting me relive another of the Cave Dwellers 5 star historical campgrounds…. I feel much better now…(But, God, I can’t wait to haul butt outa here!!!!)