Tag Archives: Coblentz Reunion

Empty space when a child leaves home—even just for a vacation!

LovinaAndKevinKittenEdited
Lovina and Kevin are raising this kitten. It’s mother was killed on the road. It’s really doing well !

Oh my! I am running late getting this column out this week. It seems like one week after another goes by bringing us closer to Elizabeth’s wedding date. I am trying to not think of all that needs to be done.

Elizabeth, 21, seems to be slowly gaining her strength back from having double pneumonia. She is still coughing, so I’m hoping she continues to get better and not worse.

Yesterday she cut out Lovina’s dress and Kevin’s pants and shirt for the wedding. She also sewed Lovina’s dress. The day before, she sewed Verena’s dress for the wedding. She had already sewn Susan and Loretta’s dresses. The only dress we need to cut out now is mine.

I keep telling myself every day that I should get it sewn before we get closer to the wedding day. I surely don’t know what I would have done if Elizabeth didn’t help out with all the sewing. She is a fast seamstress.

JosephBlueGill
Lovina’s son, Joseph, caught a local blue gill.

Susan, 19, hasn’t been home since last Friday. She went with Mose’s family on a fishing trip almost 500 miles from here. We all miss her. It seems with only one of the children not home, it makes such an empty space. We talked with her for a few minutes several times when she called home. She said she is having a great time but misses home.

Since Benjamin helps Mose with his sawmill, he doesn’t have to work this week. Benjamin and Joesph, 12, have been getting things done outside that Joe wants done before the wedding.

Benjamin is excited for his upcoming birthday. He will turn 16 on Tuesday, July 14. At age 16 in our community, they join the youth group, so he’s extra excited for this birthday.

Verena, 17, and Lovina, 11, were helping watch a booth for a lady at the flea market yesterday. Loretta, 15, was home, deep cleaning her bedroom. That meant that only two of my five girls were home. As mentioned, Elizabeth was sewing and I did the laundry, and then helped Loretta clean. I washed the ceiling and upper walls with the wall mop. Overhead work like that is hard for her to do. She was really worn out last night. She doesn’t let her handicap keep her down, but she gets frustrated at times when she sees what the other girls can do that she can’t. God makes no mistakes, so we put our trust in Him.

A reader asked what we do with all the dresses we sew for all these weddings. We wear them to church or other weddings where we don’t have a special role to fill. Another wedding invitation is posted on our refrigerator for Lyle and Leah. Congratulations! Lyle’s dad is Joe’s cousin, Willis. He lost his wife to cancer several years ago. Leah’s dad, Ernest, is my cousin.

To all my Coblentz relatives that read my column—I hope you will have a nice day at the reunion on Saturday. We had hoped to come but it doesn’t look like we will have time. Maybe next year!

I’ve had numerous readers ask where they can send wedding cards for Timothy and Elizabeth. You can send them to the same address as my mail, but address it to them. Do not feel like you have to, but I do not want to take the joy away from those readers that want to personally congratulate them. God bless you for your thoughtfulness!

A reader from West Virginia, Mary, shared this recipe with me.

Tuna Casserole

1 small can tuna in water (drained)
2 cups macaroni (cooked)
1 small onion (diced)
2 cans diced tomatoes
½ cup cheddar cheese, cut up in small chunks
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup milk

Stir all together and bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

 

Amish wedding and Coblentz reunion highlight week

Such a lovely July morning. My wash and wringer machine is working again now, and it would be a great laundry day but we don’t have any hot water. A service man will come out this morning to look at our gas water heater. Hopefully after he gets it going there will still be time to do the laundry. Daughter Lovina, 10, said, “Mom why don’t you heat the water on the stove like Aunt Liz does?” We had just visited Liz in Berne, Ind., and Liz does not have indoor plumbing like we do. Lovina had noticed that when we were there and went to wash her hands at the sink, asking, “What happened to their faucets?” We had to laugh. Lovina was born here in Michigan and never knew how life was when we lived without indoor plumbing in Berne.

Last week was full. On Monday, sister Emma and I went to help bake pies for niece Irene’s wedding. Tuesday the 15th was Joe and my 21st anniversary and also brother Albert’s 50th birthday. Albert has two sons, Albert Jr., 22, and Andrew, 11, that also share his birthday along with a daughter-in-law born that day.

Wednesday was nice and cool for the wedding of Levi Jr.  and Irene. Three hundred pounds of chicken were grilled for the noon meal. Also on the lunch menu: homemade bread, butter, strawberry jam, mashed potatoes, gravy, noodles, dressing, mixed vegetables, lettuce salad, cheese, cheesecake, mixed fruit, along with peach, Bob Andy and peanut butter pies. Candy bars were passed around at the end of each meal for a later snack. The supper menu was the same except there was poor man’s steak instead of chicken, and ice cream.

My job was to help make the gravy. For each meal we made five 8-quart kettles of gravy. All the food was prepared in the wedding wagon. The wedding wagon is powered by generators so we have two sinks with hot and cold running water and seven gas stoves. It is so much easier than how we had to get things around for my wedding. The wedding wagon comes with place settings for 350, tables, and a walk-in cooler. Tables were set up in a big building and 350 were seated at one time to eat.

Saturday we traveled to Berne, to attend the Albert and Verena Coblentz (my late grandparents) reunion. Grandpa and Grandma had 13 children. My Dad and his three sisters have passed away and are greatly missed. There are nine brothers living, and we were happy that all nine were able to attend. Relatives gathered from at least six states: Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Wisconsin, Missouri, and Arizona.

We had a silent auction at the reunion. It was fun to see who won the bidding at the end of the afternoon. The last time we attended this reunion was 2004 so it was very good to be in attendance again. Sister Emma had her 41st birthday on Saturday so all the Coblentz’s sang “Happy Birthday” to her. One of the cousins had decorated a nice Swiss-roll cake with “Coblentz Reunion 2014” written on it. There was so much food that I won’t even try to list it. Aunt Frances and Uncle Joe’s house and belongings were sold the same day, which I can imagine was sad for their children. I remember the sad feeling when we had to do that. We attended the auction for a while before heading to the reunion. Cousin Jane and Greg bought the house so it’s nice that it will stay in the family.

photo 13

Yesterday we had dinner at sister Emma and Jacob’s house. In honor of Emma’s birthday we ate pizza, salad, veggies, ice cream, chocolate cake, and strawberry pie.

Try this recipe for zucchini nut muffins. Although my zucchinis aren’t quite ready, we are enjoying some from my sisters Verena’s and Susan’s garden.

IMG_2978
Zucchini nut muffins

Zucchini Nut Muffins

  • 1½ cups flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 1 cup unpeeled, shredded zucchini
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • ½ cup chopped nuts

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Set aside. In another large bowl combine sugar and eggs. Beat for 2 minutes. Gradually add oil and keep beating constantly for 2 minutes. Stir in vanilla, zucchini, and nuts, then fold in dry ingredients just until moistened. Spoon into greased muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until done.

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife, and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 or at Editor@LovinasAmishKitchen.com.