Oh My Time To Ketch-up....

Wow.. It's almost the end and Feb. and I haven't blogged a single thing since Jan. 10th. Yep, you guessed it, My life is really boring. I will Ketch you Up   :-) 

 1. This has been the weirdest winter I can remember. 6 inches of snow one day, 3 days later so warm it all melts. We really haven't had much in the way of snow here, but it's been a lot colder. 

2. The squirrels are doing well. They have a routine set up. They come in for breakfast about 9 ish. The birds stop by on and off throughout the day. Scrappy and Scruffy squirrel have grown back all their fur. They're still a little skinny, but seem to be doing great. Tank (the humongous squirrel) seems to have lost a little bit of weight, I'm guessing he is trying to get in shape for the coming spring. 

3. Husband is having a bit of a time with his Diabetes. His sugar has started running high. He's been following the Diabetic exchange diet closely and has upped his dosage of insulin and started taking two shots a day. It looks like he will have to change to regular insulin and take more shots. He was hoping to avoid that. We'll just have to see what the Dr. says next week. 

4. Husband had a "pimple gone bad" aka: a pre-cancerous place on his lip. We were very happy to discover it was NOT cancer. the treatment was done and he's good to go. 

5. We are planning the garden. I'm hoping to get a raised bed made for some carrots and onions. 

6. Our great grandson A. will be celebrating his first birthday March 4th. It doesn't seem possible that he will be one soon. Wow time flies. 

7. I am keeping up with the picture "out my kitchen window" taking the photo once a week works much better. 

8. I actually sat down and read a book this past week. Stephen King's "The Dome". I thought it was going to be a summer movie, but I see now that it will be premiering on CBS as a 13 week show called "Under the Dome"  you can read more info. here..  The book was good. I hope the show is good too. 

That's all the excitement I can think of now. I'm ready for Spring. I heard from a friend in Ky. that the Easter flowers are starting to bloom. I'm ready to see some green and those bright beautiful flowers of spring. 

I'm ready for warm breezes and sitting outside in the swing. I'm ready to open windows and air out the house. I'm ready spring. I know it's only Feb. but I don't mind if you hurry your entrance up a bit. 

I'm Thinking...

I'm Thinking... I'm Thinking that the "photo a day" thing is cool, but not very practical for me. Two Old older people are just not that exciting. When I caught myself taking photos of my Chili cooking in the pot I knew something had to change. 

I really like Cousin Sharyn's way of taking photos and making a week with them. So I'm thinking I can do a few photos a week and make a month page out of them. Wow I'm smart. So all those photos I take every day can be weeded down into a couple or a few from each week and then the best most interesting ones *COUGH *COUGH uh the ones that strike my fancy, can be put in a cute little scrapbook. Voila. a wonderful way to make memories of the Year. 

I'm sure there will be fab. photos of all the graduation festivities. There should be some great photos of any vacations, visits, the garden, canning, Holidays, Birthday Celebrations, my clean back porch, etc. That will work for me. I even have a place this summer where I can put up a real table and sit and work on creating some things.

 I have a couple of scrapbooks I'd like to make for the grandkids that are graduating. I'm not sure I'll get them done before that, but hopefully I'll get them finished before they get married. I won't tell you how I'm still working planning on finishing Sue's Quilt for Graduation. *cough.. her son is one that is graduating so I'm not thinking I'll get to her quilt any time soon. As a matter of fact I think I may have sold, oh my Yes I did, sold the material and stuff. Well a nice new tied fleece blanket for her 50th Birthday will be just fine. If I shoot for her 50th I should probably most likely get it done. 

This Is Kind Of Fun..

Otis Jan. 4th. 

I didn't sleep well last night so I was up at 5:00 am. Unheard of if you are retired. I watched a couple of TV shows and laid back down around 7ish. I woke up it was almost 9:30.. horrifying. My wildlife crew were waiting for me. I'm usually out and have filled up the feeders and bowls by 8:30. 

Otis is a funny thing. He isn't as hungry as scruffy and scrappy. He decided this morning to take the peanuts and bury them in the snow. I tried to snap a few photos of that but with the digital and the time delay I just couldn't manage it. It was funny to see him bury each one in the snow, then sit and wipe off his face. I never realized until the last few weeks how much squirrels wipe their faces. They use both front paws/hands and rub from front to back several times. LOL Almost as though they are slicking back their hair. Hmmm maybe they are.. anyway. Otis spent his peanut time burying them. 

Scrappy Jan 4th

On the other hand, Scrappy, ate everything he found. If you look closely you will see that Scrappy is missing some fur. The fur around his back end is longer. Scruffy has no hair except for tufts here and there and his tail. At first we were concerned this was mange. Nasty and very contagious. When I realized that Scruffy was not the only squirrel with the condition it really made us concerned. I was hoping for a severe flea infestation, and only for the reason that with the cold the fleas would die and the squirrels would get back their coats and be normal looking again. The hair seems to be growing back well. So we are hoping Scruffy's is also. I've not seen him for a day or so. He is smaller then the other squirrels and they chase him constantly. I wish I could make him a little squirrel sweater so he would be warm. I know, I just think stuff like that sometimes. I'm hoping to see him later today. He shows up after the other squirrels leave. 

This is Tank.. 

As you can see Tank has ample fat supplies for this winter. He was the first squirrel I saw at our feeders. I haven't seen him lately. I think because he's so fat he can't waddle over here through the snow. I took this photo of him in Nov. I'm not worried about him a bit. He fits right in with this family for sure. 

I think I see Milo, Otis' brother/maybe sister, he is a tail waver. His tail waves a mile a minute. I'm sure it's some kind of communication system. I know squirrels will chatter at you when you tick them off, or irritate them. Milo seems to be irritated a lot. He may be the main guard squirrel. 

Hmmm I've been watching "Amish Mafia" I wonder if there is a Squirrel Mafia.. Tank is the head guy, then Milo and Otis are the security team. Leaving Scruffy and Scrappy to keep other intruding squirrels away from the peanuts. LOL  I'll leave that all for you to mull over. Squirrel Mafia or Not, I really enjoy watching all the birds and squirrels come in and enjoy the snack. I know Scruffy sits and eats till it's all gone. He is so hungry. I'm glad we decided to feed them this year. You may want to make one of your "photo A Day" ideas some of your local wildlife. Family pets, birds, livestock. all would make a great project for a week or a month of photos. It's great fun and relaxing to watch them too. Hope you have fun and relax today too.. 

I'm Going Try This.. Photo A Day

Out My Kitchen Window... Jan 1, 2013

I've been following my Cousin Sharyn's Blog for a couple of years now. She is a wonderfully creative mom. If you check out her blog you'll see that she not only scrapbooks, but she designs pages and cards and even has online classes from time to time. She also is a very talented photographer (exclusively for her own family these days) Each year she takes us through the latest scrapping/photo project. I have noticed the last couple of years she along with another one or two of my friends have done a "photo a day" project. I've decided to give it a whirl. 

Now if you are laughing, believe me I am rolling. I really can't imagine what in the world I could possibly photograph about my life that even my own family would want to sit and look through. Then I thought "I'd like to see what my year looks like in photos". that was all the encouragement I needed. 

The photo above is really "out my kitchen window".. I thought taking a weekly photo here would be kind of fun. I would love to see all the seasons through my kitchen window. I was going to try the photo a day thing out the window, but that would even bore me to tears. 

Squirrel-Lee Jr. Jan 3, 2013

I was trying to think of a few things that might work for a daily photo. LOL Jan 2nd photo was of our "spit up bowl" and a bottle of Vernor's ginger ale. Hubby was sick. I'm not sure how interesting that really is, so I have spared you that photo..  LOL   Squirrel-Lee is one of about 6-8 squirrels that are feeding in our back yard this winter. I have placed a hanging bird feeder, suet feeder, and assorted Tupperware bowls around our back patio so I can watch the birds and squirrels eat. It's a great show. 

My computer faces a huge window (It use to be the back of the house, then hubby built a back porch on) directly at the back of the porch is another window, so I have a straight shot to looking out back. If I squirm around in my seat just right, I can see most of our back yard. kind of cool. Hubby was concerned about the lack of nuts and the extremely dry summer and our squirrel friends surviving the winter. SO we have purchased bird seed, squirrel feed, black oiler sunflower seeds, and peanuts. Each morning I fill all the feeders and pans and spend the day watching all our wild neighbors make their way to our patio for a snack, or Meal. 

I'm hoping the activity in the back yard will keep the "photo a day" interesting. I wish all this kind of stuff had been known to me when we had the kid at home. Now that would have been a hoot photographing her every day. Our days are not nearly as exciting as they once were. 

You may want to give this idea a whirl with your family. Cousin Sharyn has great ideas on her blog. She has 4 kids and a husband. plenty of fodder for photos. Lucky her. I'm following this bunch http://www.peasandcarrotsstudio.com/  I found them on Pinterest. They are sending emails to help make suggestions about what and when to photograph. They are on facebook too. I'm sure if you google Photo a day or something similar you can find a place to start too.. As for me. I'm hoping Scruffy stops by early tomorrow. He is our scruffy looking squirrel. A real cutie. I would love to hear his story. 

If you hang out with me drop by. I may need your picture to make my "photo" for that day.  :-) 

Celebrating The New Year With A Cheesecake Toast...

The girls and our Cheesecake toast to the New Year... 

The girls surprised us and came over to celebrate New Years day with us. Susan brought her Beau T. 

We met T. late last summer when they stopped by the "Hoard Sale". I would have liked to have heard that conversation. "Uh T. how about we stop by and meet my parents. They are having a huge Hoard Sale"  I have to give the man kudos he had guts enough to meet people who would need to have a Hoard sale. T. joined us for Christmas. He fits right in. I knew he would. When I asked for a photo of him and Sue he did a quick "let me fix my hair".. then did a head flippy thing. He's in. I'll say just between you and I. He is wonderful. Not wonderful because he's witty, or has a great personality or because he has a great sense of humor. Nope He's wonderful because he treats our daughter like a queen. I like that. I'm hoping there will be some fun things to write about T. as this year unfolds. 

This past year has been great and difficult for our girls and our family. Their Daddy was diagnosed with Prostrate cancer. Their mom was diagnosed with advanced and untreatable Uterine cancer and passed away 7 days later. We welcomed our first great grandson into the world as we watched our oldest become a new grandmother. She has taken to the role well. We have seen our oldest grandson become a wonderful father and provider. I've watched our granddaughter come into her own as she prepares to graduate this year. With a bit of longing I've wished for a bit more time with our grandchildren as children.. but when our Tim turned 18 I see that I'm getting more use to the thought of all our grands being adults. Our youngest grandson Matt is taller then me now. He's also driving. I'm gonna hang on to his teen years pretty hard. sorry dude. It's a grandma thing. 

So us women stood in the kitchen and toasted this year with slices of cheesecake in hand. 

I'm looking forward to the upcoming graduations Tim and Marisa I can't wait to mark those special days. Tim told me about his hopes after graduation to give time to Mission work overseas. Marisa is looking into Collages and possibly work in the medical field. We are looking forward to Jon coming up for a visit around graduation time. I'm hoping for a New Family photo it's been way to long since we've all been together at the same time, so that is definitely one of my plans. I'm hearing of engagements so I know there shall be weddings and births to celebrate. I'm hoping for a chance to visit our place in Ky. I am anxious to see our friends there, and I long to just sit on my front porch and look out over God's beautiful hills and quiet my soul. Ky. has a hold over my heart and I feel the need to be there and be quiet. 

So with cheesecake in hand we toasted the new year. We look forward to it and all it holds. We are all old enough now to know that it may hold a few tears and possibly some loss. But we also know it will hold joy and laughter. We all know that together as a family and with God, we can face anything. 

We wish you and your family a New Year full of Love, Joy, Laughter, and Family.... 

And Then It Was Christmas....

Marisa helping grandma make fudge.. 

Wow, Time has blown past me the last couple of weeks. I have a few things to share, but I'll do that later. It will give me something to write about over the next week or so. For now I want to talk about Christmas. 

Marisa and grandma

It was great this year to have our only granddaughter come and help me make fudge. We plan on making a few things this winter. One of my Cousins sent me a Baklava recipe years ago. We are going to tackle it  sometime this winter in between her classes and job.

 I hope we can work it in before graduation. That is the plan before graduation we WILL make baklava. 

Our Lisa with her first grandson and our first great grandchild Aydin

Our biggest Joy this Christmas was having our dinner/present opening with almost every family member this year. We only had one grandson, Jon, missing. He is saving his vacation time for when his sister graduates this summer. I can't wait to see him. His absence was felt. 

We had our Susan's boys too. That was great having them here with the rest of the family. 

All of us at one time. That doesn't happen often now that the older ones are off living on their own.  

Grandson Tim Celebrating his 18th birthday at our Christmas party. 

The Day was great. Lots of Eating, laughing, story telling, and eating, with present opening and eating. 

The most awesome ice cream cake ever (Baskin Robbins) was brought out to Celebrate Tim's 18th birthday. He ate a ginormous piece. LOL  It was great. We have lots of December Birthdays. Lisa, Bryan, Tim, and other assorted relatives. We all celebrated and it was grand. 

This photo was taken when I was putting up the decorations... 

This one was taken after Christmas. 

and well, as you can see it pretty much looked the same when I started to take them down 

and pack them away. (yes it's the same photo) 

All that preparation for one big huge day. Then it's over. I don't mind saying that after all that getting ready, I really would like to have Christmas last a few days. Like maybe a week long extravaganza. 

Hmmm then again maybe not. 

 I have all the decorations packed up and put away. I bought some cool new Christmas stuff at the after Christmas sales. I'm packing that up today. 

It's New years Eve and I'm having friends over for dinner. I'll be starting to ribs soon. It's time to think about the past year and the New year that lies ahead. I have received some sad news about a family member and a dear friend who will be facing this New Year with Cancer diagnosis and all that entails. I'm already praying. I have again been reminded that the Baby Jesus, whose birth we just celebrated was the same one that made blind men see, lame men walk, and the dead rise. I'm putting my trust in His perfect will for these precious ones. Christmas came again. I love that it is born again each year in my heart. I hope it is in yours also. The time of Miracles is not past. The same God who gave the first and the best gift still desires to give us more. 

I look forward to beginning a New Year with all it's unknowns with the One who knows all. 

A Day Of Great Loss...

Today was a quiet day. A reflecting day. I was preparing to attend a memorial Service for a friend from our VFW auxiliary. I was participating in the Auxiliary memorial Service. It was an honor to remember her and her long life of unselfish giving to all those she met, especially our Veterans. 

Before I left to attend the memorial I heard something about a school shooting and my heart sank. I thought "not another one". I went on to the memorial. 

When I returned home it was all over the news. I sat in shock as I heard it. 26 people were dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School -- 20 of them children. I still can not wrap my mind around it. 

As I sit here now. The tears will not stop. My "mother's heart" is breaking. I don't know any of the families, but I feel like those children were mine. I've prayed and will continue to pray for those families and all those who were touched by that horrible tragedy today. someone posted a prayer that Max Lucado wrote today. It says what my heart feels. You can find it here. 

I wondered how I could pray for those families, then I knew in my heart  what God has shown me. When we can't find the words to voice our prayers, God hears our heart's deepest cry. He hears our groans of pain. His word says He counts each tear. We know He heals our broken hearts. He gives us strength to go on. He Heals our physical and emotional wounds. He gives us Comfort in the way only He can. God is big enough to Trust even when we don't understand.