MAY 2012 RECAP

The bright sunshine shining through the bedroom windows woke me before the alarm this morning. I really miss waking to the bird songs outside these windows but with the air conditioner on the windows are shut.
I hurried through chores and got ready for market before the heat of the day sets in.
On time for market but the customers were slow to come in. I did have a decent day after about mid morning.
But now it is 1:00 and I'm looking at empty aisles and most of the sellers have called it a day.
Some folks are really getting discouraged with the low sales volume but I'm just thankful that I sell what I do and am happy with the free time not baking so much gives me !
After market I ran weekly errands and headed home to rest before chore time.
This is the last day of May and it has been an up and down month.
We had a wedding of a dear friend and cousin's son at the beginning of the month and then had her funeral at the end of the month to remind us just how precious life is and how in an instant it can be taken away.
The wild weather of this month proved to be a point of conversation almost everyday , as the heat keeps everyone guessing what the summer is going to be like. We had hail storms, torrential rain storms, 2 named tropical storms already in the Atlantic,one just short of a hurricane by 4 mph wind speed.Hurricane season starts tomorrow and we are already to the "C" on the name list !

#2 son looked at several houses but hasn't found anything he likes yet. However he did find some renters for his house and is going to move somewhere by July 1st so they can move in. He continues to work long hours at the PO, often 70+ hours a week.
#1 son really likes his new job and with his new shorter hours he put up a storage building and built a new deck on the front of their house this month. He went from being a groomsman at his cousin/friend's wedding to being a pallbearer at same cousin/friend's mom's funeral.
D-in-love is job hunting and has had some disapointments and good news in her search but ends the month the same as it began.
Daughter broke up with her boyfriend after their 4 month relationship and is working steadily at her regular job along with dog sitting and baking. She got some more yard work done at her house and finished a lovely flagstone walkway.
Hubbie has had a routine month this May, went to the foot doctor with a painful heel and found out he has plantar facitis.
I have had a pretty routine month also, baking, cleaning,taking care of g-son, watching chicks hatch,enjoying spring flowers and eating early garden vegetables. Market has been slow but okay.
Humbly thanking God for the blessings He has given me and my family during this month of May 2012 and look forward to what He has ahead of us in June 2012.
Good Night and God Bless.

LOOKS LIKE A BOUNTIFUL HARVEST SO FAR

Today has been one of those days that went by so fast it left me wondering why I didn't get some things done ???
As the day started with chores and a walk I said a thankful prayer as I walked by all our fruit trees,bushes and vines.
Despite the cold weather and the hail it looks like barring any other devastating weather we will have bountiful harvest.
These are plums that I thought were surely gone with so many of them falling to the ground after the late freeze. But there are still plenty on all three trees.

We have two different types of pear trees,this is a delicious eating pear.

And we have 2 Keefer pear trees which are better for preserving.

The grape vines are loaded also with bunches and bunches of fruit.

The blueberries are starting to ripen.

And there will be plenty of blackberries for bread making and freezing.

This old fashioned Golden Delicious apple tree that blooms later than the usual apple bloom escaped the cold snap and is loaded with apples.

With a little searching among the peach tree leaves I was able to find a few peaches but they all had black marks from the hail and will probably rot before they ripen.

And the apple trees on the driveway that I thought had all the blooms frozen have some apples on them although they are pot marked from hail and misshapen from the buds being frost bitten.

And last and the least far along at this time are the many muscadine vines we have and they are also loaded with these tiny grapes which won't get ripe until late September.

So far so good but we have a lot of summer weather to go before many of these are ready for harvest so we'll see what happens !!
I spent the morning doing 2 loads of laundry while vacuuming and changing the furniture covers. I also put in an Avon order and managed to dry both loads of laundry out in the bright,warm sunshine.
I ate lunch before tackling my baking for today, 6 caramel, 2 chocolate,2 coconut, 4 pound and 2 wine cakes. I took a short much needed sunshine break out in the 86 degree afternoon while waiting for the last cakes to come out of the oven.
It is already 4:00 ,wow how did that happen ? !
Daughter came to pick up a box to bring a chick hatched in a kindergarten class home tomorrow. Hopefully the hen that hatched the last chicks will make it one of hers.
After a quick fruit supper of orange and watermelon salad I went to work on weekly paperwork and bill paying.
Then it was cake icing time.I barely got all the cakes iced and wrapped in time to listen to the news while I blogged.
Where did this day go ???
Grateful to God for the strength He gives me each busy day.
Good Night and God Bless.

ANOTHER SICK DAY FOR G-SON AND 2002 MAY MEMORIES

Deja vu from Sunday again today..

D-in-love had an early job interview this morning and g-son wasn't feeling well so he was back on the couch today. The red marks on his face are from a fall on the mat yesterday at karate lessons. He tried to eat a waffle and had to throw it back up but after eating a bit more and drinking some iced sprite he dozed off to sleep and slept 3 hours.
While he slept I did 3 loads of laundry and cleaned house. The sun and clouds kept fighting today but I did manage to get bed sheets and a comforter dried on the line.
Tropical storm Beryl's rain bands fizzled out before they reached us today and we stayed cloudy until this evening after chore time and a cold front heading east brought rain as darkness fell.
When g-son woke up he felt much better and when mom and dad came after him he wanted cheese pizza and bread sticks so I think he was over his stomach ache.
We think he just over did things yesterday as he got over his sickness from Sunday. He played hard all day and went to swimming and karate lessons.
Today has been an inside day for me as I watched g-son and I got some cleaning done but I feel like a caged animal that has been set free this evening and just stood for a while in the garden and enjoyed the fresh moist air.
At our house the schedule is getting ready to undergo some major changes as school ends. Hubbie switches his day off, instead of his regular Monday, he has Friday's off all summer. D-in-love hopefully is getting a new job and with that my g-son watching hours will change. Life is a constant state of change. I always wonder what changes each day will bring in my family's lives.
May is always a month of  changes and new beginnings with each graduation. In May 2002 we didn't have any children graduating but daughter's long time b-friend graduated and daughter was a Marshall at his ceremony.
This is daughter with then b-friend Nate.

And here is daughter with best friend Andrea.

This is #2 son chatting with one of his high school class mates from last year's graduation.

This year one of my nephews is graduating from this same high school .

Thanking God for the blessing of recovery for g-son and for the constant blessings I receive from His love.
Good Night and God Bless.

MEMORIAL DAY 2012 A BUSY ONE

Today is a  day of grateful thanks to all the brave fallen soldiers who have made our freedom possible.
We take so much for granted in this country and even with the recent 9/11 attacks that changed our country forever we are still more free than any other nation in the world because of our war fighting heroes.
This 2012 Memorial day has been a busy one for me. After chores ,a walk and breakfast I went to work catching up some much needed outside task.
I gave my huge Oregano patch a nice haircut and now have boxes of it drying all around the basement. I also cut some Rosemary, Sage, Thyme and Tarragon to dry.
Hubbie spent the morning in the garden.

These are our potatoes in front of him.
I planted Basil and Bee Balm I bought Saturday as well as the Moon Vine and purple Wandering Jew.
(oops, forgot to take pics)
I used a weed slinger and cut all the weeds along the drive way. I got to brave and while hanging precariously on the side of a bank lost my footing and my shin landed on the just sharpened weed slinger blade. Not good, I finally got the jagged cut to stop bleeding and ended my weed slinging for the day !
After I doctored my leg I helped hubbie re-open all the driveway ditches that he closed while scraping the driveway.
This little guy watched us intentedly .

With temperatures in the 80's and hot sunshine I got sunburned,especially on my back where my tank top bared skin not usually open to the sun.
Daughter came by after working 1/2 day and we walked over to check out how the guys were coming along on #1 son's new deck they are building.

It is really looking good and by this evening they had it finished.
After daughter left and I finished evening chores the skies quickly darkened and the outer bands of tropical storm Beryl made an appearance here in the mountains with gusty wind and over 1/2 inch of rain in about 20 minutes. The fast moving rain caught hubbie in the shed and #1 son on the lawn mower.
I am thankful for the rain but unfortunately it fell so fast that most of it ran off but at least it sure cooled the temperature down tonight.
As I yawn at 10:00 tonight and my cut leg aches I think this would be a good night to get to bed extra early.
Tomorrow we will get more "Beryl" before he moves on out to sea hopefully.

Thankful to God for a wonderful day and the blessings of a wonderful family and a world full of His wonderful creations.
Again I humbly thank our fallen heroes.

Good Night and God Bless.

TAKING CARE OF A SICK LITTLE BOY

#1 son called early today to see if g-son ate anything yesterday that could have made him sick. I didn't have to even think about that question,I already knew the answer was yes. We had gotten him some fries and he had to have ranch dressing to dip them in. The bottle of ranch dressing was sitting out in the heat and I felt of it to see if it was cool and it was not. I should have insisted he not eat it but caving to the wants of g-son I let him eat it. So he is throwing up this morning.
#1 son stayed home from church with him hoping he would get better before funeral time,which is 3:00 while the rest of us attended church service.
The plans were for him to go to a friends house to play for the afternoon. After church he was no better so I decided since I was responsible for his sickness that I would stay home with him.
#1 son and hubbie are pallbearers at the funeral of hubbie's cousin and d-in-love is playing music with her father at his restaurant today.
Daughter offered to stay with g-son but she was already dressed for the funeral so I stayed. Brother in law who is also a pallbearer and sis-in-law came over and they all took 2 cars because there isn't much parking room at this small church.
G-son hasn't thrown up since he's been here and is feeling better so now he is hungry and I'm trying to keep him from over loading a sensitive stomach with to much waffle right now. He has been sipping sprite and I heard him burp a little while ago so I figured he was getting over the upset.
With g-son on the mend I spent some time house shopping for #2 son and came up with several more for him to look at.
When hubbie got home from the funeral he said it went well as could be expected. I pray that the family can began the healing process now.
Hubbie ,#1 son and #2 son made this a workday Sunday and worked on #1 son's deck while they are all off work they can finish it tomorrow.
I ran to Ingles for some groceries at their BOGO Memorial day sale.
Watching the news tonight I'm glad I'm not planning a holiday beach trip. Tropical storm Beryl is playing havock all along the east coast.

Looks like a lot of rain coming on shore and as it turns north I wonder where it will go ?
They are predicting it will head north along the coast all the way to New England making for a miserable week all along the coast.
With g-son here sick today I turned on our air conditioner. May is very early for us to need the air on but it will make it easier to sleep and with the coming humidity from the storm it will feel nice.
I miss laying in bed listening to the crickets and tree frogs and miss waking up to birds singing outside my bedroom window each morning. Maybe the temperatures will become more seasonal and I can turn it off later in the week.
I am grateful for the recovery of g-son and that he was no more sick than he was and for all the other blessings that came my way today.
Good Night and God Bless.

2012 GARDEN JUBILEE

WHEW!!! Another hot day on tap by the feel of the sun and air at 8am as I hurry through chores to get ready for market.
Made it to market a few minutes late and there were several customers waiting. It's so hectic when that happens but I'm glad for the business. We finally got everyone what they wanted and then finished setting up.
#1 son brought g-son by and left him so he and hubbie could work on his deck today without interruptions.
G-son loves market and made a new friend right away today at a neighbor's table.

Jake just turned 3 years old and g-son was talking to him a mile a minute while he just took it all in with a smirk.
Daughter came and took g-son to Yogurt World and brought back a veggie wrap for her's and my lunch.

He is serious about his yogurt filled with M&M's and Skittles !!!

After market  the three of us headed up on Main street to check out this year's Garden Jubilee.

The heat of the day contributed to the not so crowded streets I'm sure,but we were lucky enough to have some cloud cover by the time we got there.
This cougar fountain is in one of the planters on the street.

G-son did not want to take time to stop for pictures ! Can you tell,haha !!!!

Even when he asked for pictures to be made he wouldn't smile.

We saw violin playing chickens.....

And lots of giant insects......

And finally we found what he was looking for. He saw a little boy carrying one of these when we were on the other end of the street and searched every booth for them until we finally found them.Can you tell he is happy, he's smiling now !!!!

And now we rest those little legs and have some fries dipped in ranch dressing,yummy !!!

While we rested daughter walked back and got her jeep. She had bought a long old chicken feeder  and she had to bring her jeep up to load it so g-son and I got a ride back to our van.

I will take some pics of the things I bought later. The plants weren't good prices this year so we didn't get very many of them but we did find some other interesting things.
One plant I will show you tonight is this Venus Fly Trap. I've always wanted one of these so today was the day I got one !!

On the way home g-son and I stopped at Aldi and Walmart to pick up baking supplies for next Thursday. With g-son's pre-school over I probably won't be back in town until Thursday after market.
When we got home and unloaded we walked over to check out the new deck at his house. They got the framing up tonight and will go get decking boards Monday morning and hopefully get it finished.
I left everyone there and came home to the evening chores and a snack supper to replenish my energy level a bit .
The bird feeders were empty again so I filled them all up and put out suet cakes for all the young birds that are enjoying them.
My knees are telling me tonight just how much walking on pavement I did today. Funny how I walk around our farm all the time but when I walk on pavement or cement  it is a different story of painful knees and feet.
On a weather note tonight after our lovely day even with the clouds passing over we stayed dry. But the second named tropical system in the Atlantic may cause trouble for us later if  it continues the northerly turn they are predicting .

A second named system and we aren't out of the month of May yet,wow !!
Thanking God for a wonderful day and a safe work day for hubbie and son.
Good Night and God Bless.

NINETEEN AND COUNTING

I could tell it was going to be a hot day early as I did chores and took my morning walk.
 As I walked by the upper pasture I snapped these photos of our old retired milk cow "Snowball". She celebrated her 19th birthday on May 9th. We got her from a local dairy as a 2 day old calf on May 9,1993 , raised her on a bottle and then milked her for years.

I was also glad I didn't hear the pecking of any of my Pileated Woodpecker friends under the outside patio. Yesterday I bought some of these wind whirlies to try to scare them off,they seem to be working.

G-son arrived and I went in to get he and I some breakfast. He spent the morning carrying all his "pets" back into the living room and then built an almost life size friend from some snap together blocks. I was impressed !!

I baked 12 caramel, 2 chocolate,3 coconut,and 2 pound cakes before lunch. 
During the afternoon g-son and I practiced his phone answering while I cleaned the bathrooms, washed the windows , swept the porches and patios and cleaned the outside tables.
While I was outside he was on phone answering duty and did okay for his first times except waiting to long and then having the answering machine interrupt him. He'll get it with a little more practice.
It was 86 degrees today and sunshiny ,I got my vitamin D while I pulled weeds in the garden for the chickens who always look forward to a green treat each day.
After #1 son picked up g-son hubbie and I made a trip to town to look for a short sleeved white dress shirt for him to wear as a pallbearer  in cousin Connie's funeral.
On the way home the sun set was just gorgeous. This first pic was in town and I thought it was neat how the sun actually looks like it is in front of these power lines.

As we got closer home out of town I had hubbie stop so I could get a picture without power lines.

JUST BEAUTIFUL !!!!

Got all my cakes iced and ready to go tomorrow and finishing this post at 11:30 tonight.
Grateful to God tonight for the blessings of health and wonderful family  and praying for Connie's family as they start this next chapter in their lives without her.
Good Night and God Bless.

TRIBUTE TO A DEAR FRIEND AND COUSIN

UHHHHH!!!! I hate to wake up nauseous,especially when laying back down to wait for it to pass is not an option. As I did chores and got ready for market this morning I kept wondering if I was going to make it and if I should just call the day off  for a while. I kept trying to push through the yucky feeling because I had several orders and didn't want those folks to make a trip to market for nothing so on I went.
As the morning wore on and I munched on crackers and hot tea I got steadily better,thank you Lord !
I had a pretty good selling day at market so I was glad I plugged on this morning.
I left market a little early to make a couple Avon deliveries before running weekly errands and picking up baking supplies for tomorrow. I got a large cake order today for Saturday.
I am whipped tonight from fighting the nausea of the morning plus not eating anything all day but crackers. I had a grilled cheese sandwich for supper with more crackers and plan on an early bedtime.
All through the day today I received updates on cousin Connie. Hubbie checked on her husband and kids around lunch and found them still just waiting by her bedside at Hospice House.
Finally around  5pm this evening we got word that she had passed. I am thankful that she is out of her sickened body tonight but my heart goes out to her family who will miss her so much.
I took time to search through my photos for memories of her.
As I said before we were friends in school.Here is a 7th grade pic of her.

And in 9th grade.

We had different interest in school, I got interested in basketball and she focused on boys a bit earlier than I did. She got married while still in high school and switched schools for the last year. I remember at one time she wanted me to go out with her husbands brother, but he wasn't my type so we drifted apart busy with our own lives for several years.
Life has a way sometimes of reuniting us with people of our past from time to time and that is exactly what happened with Connie and I.
When I met hubbie in the late 70's I had no idea that he was Connie's first cousin until I went to meet his grandmother. All his mother's family gathered each Sunday after church for lunch at his grandmother's house. Connie's mother and hubbie's mother were sisters.
After hubbie and I were married Connie and I were pregnant at the same time, we each delivered a baby boy within a month of each other in the fall of 1981. These 2 boys became great friends, stayed friends all through school, worked together after they graduated, stood up for each other at each others weddings and hopefully will remain friends for all the future.
This is Connie with her 2 children by her second marriage at her daughter's birthday party in May 1984. She is holding onto her son while helping daughter blow out her candles.All the young cousins always celebrated birthdays together.

Our boys were in Cub Scouts together and Connie and I took them to scout camp at Camp Daniel Boone in the summer of 1988. Here she is in a boat with her son and another mom and scout teaching the boys to row.

There were about 14 small cousins in our family at that time and Sunday's were always a special time to get all of them together at Granny's.  This is Easter 1987 at our annual Easter hunt in granny's yard. Connie is in the red shirt.

Here she is again at Christmas that year still in a red shirt.

This is a birthday party for my #2 son on his 6th birthday in March of 1989. She seemed to always have a smile on her face.

I remember this photo, in December of 1992 daughter had begged me for a camera before Christmas, so she was snapping pictures of everyone that would let her on that Sunday and of course Connie gave her a big smile.

 As I said she was not only my friend but hubbie's first cousin. They were  very close in age so they spent a lot of time together growing up.
Unfortunately there are no dates on these photos. This is hubbie and Connie celebrating someone's birthday.

Here they are with Connie's older sister and hubbie's younger brother with Granny.

And this is another photo of the cousin's with their granny celebrating granny's and little brother's birthday which is on the same day. Connie has a new puppy !!!

This world has lost a loving daughter, wife,mother, grandmother ,niece , aunt and friend tonight but God has gained another special  Angel.
In the days to come we will be doing what we can to comfort the family and praying that they find peace in dealing with the loss. It doesn't seem fair that someone be taken away at the age of 58 but tomorrow is not guaranteed for any of us.
Only God knows the timing of our lives and I can live with the comfort that He has a plan for me.
Good Night and God Bless.