60

How can it be that I am 60 already?  

I remember 5 years ago when my oldest brother turned 60.  

My mother lamented to me that NOW she felt old, to have a child that is 60!

This is my first birthday without Mom here to celebrate with me.

It puts a little pit in my stomach to think of it.

Last year, Mom, Uncle Bill and Aunt Betty and I went to the Breadbasket  

to celebrate Mom's and my birthday.  

I'd be at Dauphin Island for our birhdays so we had a little party early.

 And this year....

our family made an impromptu decision a couple of days before the real date to celebrate at the Bread Basket with their German buffet.  German food of our West Prussian Mennonite ancestors is THE BEST!  Sausage, verenika with ham gravy, potatoes, zweibach, bread pudding, bohne beroge (I'd never had this before.  It was a bean filled dumpling which was a dessert).

 Claire has learned to do bubbles in her cup.  Good photo bomb, Adam.

Claire decided for ice-cream instead of the German desserts.  

Did you know that ice-cream originated in China as early as 3000 BC??

 The children each gave me sweet cards!

We were so full after dinner that we decided to take a little walk to the train park.

 Papa pushed out his tummy to show the girls how much he had eaten; how full he was.


But Claire asked "Is there a baby in your tummy?"

"I have a baby in my tummy too!"

 What is everyone pointing at?

 Claire kept asking to ride on the train.  "It is stopped.  We can get on."

 One does not have to wait long in our town for a train to come along.

 

 The Old Mill - In 1886, Mennonite immigrant Bernhard Warkentin purchased the flour mill which was used to mill Turkey Red hard winter wheat. For this, Warkentin has been credited with making Kansas the "breadbasket of the world." In 1973, the site was saved from demolition and renovated by Lloyd Smith. Today, it houses several businesses and a fine restaurant.

 Another train came through and Claire loved it!

* * * * *

On my actual birthday, the girls came to town and we celebrated with the traditional chocolate pie.  Several years ago I told my family that I preferred chocolate pie to birthday cake so we've done pie ever since.

They put 6 candles on my birthday pie - one for each decade.

Thank you family, for helping me mark 6 decades!

And thankful to all my dear friends who sent cards or good wishes on Facebook!  How blessed I feel!