Tuesday, February 28, 2017

LAST DAY OF FEBRUARY A GOOD ONE

Up to greet g-daughter at 7am. She acted tired so we layed back down and she went right back to sleep and I actually had to wake her up about an hour later to have some breakfast before play school.
The same poor little guy that always is pitching a screaming crying fit not wanting to stay at the school was there again and took the smile right off g-daughter's face as she walked into her classroom on her own today.
I left before she got a chance to have second thoughts about what was going on !
As I drove home I couldn't help but think how the roadsides look so much like spring is already here with all the pretty blooms .

I finished chores and had breakfast then took a long walk in the cloudy but very warm morning. I also can't remember when all three of these plum trees have been in full bloom in February. I'm sure that means we will have no plums this season !
After my walk I had a cup of green tea and did some housecleaning.
I parked up the street again today and walked with the stroller to pick g-daughter up. She was ready to go as she ran and got in the stroller as soon as I rolled it into her classroom. They are completing the alphabet by making things from their hand and foot prints that begin with each letter and it is so cute.
G-daughter went right to sleep on the way home and slept for almost 2 hours after we got home.
I had lunch then did some quiet things around the house while she slept.
When she woke up she had some lunch and then wanted to go outside. She is so curious about everything it is fun to watch her explore.


She loves Pumpkin the cat  !!!
I didn't realize she was doing the same thing he was until I downloaded this pic.
Learning to do stairs from a cat could have its advantages !!
We ended our outside fun with swinging which she loves.

 Pumpkin looks like he wants to hop on and swing too.
As we say good bye to the month of February this year  I am very thankful to God for the blessings of the month.
This has been a good month with no major good or bad happenings in the family. We have watched g-son play in some of his rec league basketball games which his team has lost every game so far this season. #1 son has coached the team and the losses have bothered him way more than they have g-son.
Daughter is coming along nicely with her pregnancy and has gotten over being sick thankfully.
I have been pretty busy at market thankfully in part due to the very nice weather of the month and have been going both Thursday and Saturday.
February is always "tax" month for me and I successfully got all our taxes done with several days to spare this year.
Our church choose a new pastor to lead us this month after almost a year after the announcement by the previous pastor that he was taking another job.
#2 son ended the month with the flu bug and missed a couple days of work. Tif picked bridesmaid dresses this month and got her dress back from having alterations done.
The weather has been the main story this month and with many things blooming it looks like a spring month instead of the winter month February is supposed to be. The chart below shows the average temperature above 60 degrees and 24 of the 28 days with above normal high temps with one record high set.

With rain beginning tonight about choretime and lasting into the evening it looks like March is predicted to come in like a lion with spring like storms tomorrow.


Praising God tonight from whom all blessings flow and looking forward to what He has in store for the family in March.
God Bless and Good Night.








Monday, February 27, 2017

NORMAL MONDAY

7am Monday as g-daughter arrives revved up and ready to play.
Hubbie spent the morning entertaining her while I did the chores and then got laundry started.
We took turns off and on with her and laundry and hubbie had somethings to do outside at his work shop.
After lunch I let her go outside for a few minutes as it is only 55 degrees for the high today and cloudy so it feels damp and cool out here.
She got in a few games of peep-a-boo from her playhouse and got to pet Pumpkin the cat awhile so she didn't put up to bad of a fight to come back inside.

She and hubbie took a long nap together this afternoon as he is still feeling a little under the weather  but at least his voice has come back some today.
After d-in-love picked g-daughter up hubbie and I did chores a bit early and then headed over to daughter's house to get our treadmill that she has had for years back. It was in the room she is fixing up to be the nursery and she needed it moved.
We made it back in time to unload with the help of #1 son and then watched the UNC / Virginia basketball game which Virginia surprisingly won by 10 points.
Hubbie went to bed early and I blogged and then headed that way also as I don't feel up to par tonight either. Hoping hubbie hasn't shared what he has had for the last week with me !!!
Both the 4-legged kids seem to be slowly getting better of their stomach problems today thankfully and as I type this tonight both of the are sleeping deeply , one on the couch the other in the recliner I was sitting in earlier.
The temperature is still 50 degrees at 11:00 tonight with a low of 43 predicted .
With February quickly coming to an end it has not seemed like a February at all with the temps being so warm all month. As this snow cover map shows the absence of snow for many areas of the country that have been warmer than normal also this month.
Thankful for the many blessings of this day and for the love of the Lord.
God Bless and Good Night



Sunday, February 26, 2017

FIRST SUNDAY WITH NEW PASTOR

Hubbie is coughing and still is very hoarse this morning so he is staying home and I am going to church alone today. #1 son's family was there so I wasn't really alone . I was greeter today and had a nice talk with Robin who is just 2 weeks out from a complete hip replacement and is already walking with only a cane.
This was new senior pastor Craig's first sermon and he started out with a servants heart as he washed the feet of members of the church staff.


He did a great job on his first sermon and is off to a great start.
Back home #1 son's family and daughter were here for lunch of roast beef, green beans, mashed potatoes, corn and corn bread.
Before they left g-son got his aunt T outside in the  cooler afternoon to play a game of netless badminton.



After everyone left hubbie watched a nascar race and I relaxed out in the sunroom to just meditate for awhile .
Hubbie and I did chores along with the extra chores for Aa as he has been in Ohio since Wednesday. We put out hay in both pastures this evening.
Now Bernie the other 4-legged kid has stomach issues today, so as Dolly seems to be slowly getting better now Bernie is just starting.
This pretty much confirms our suspicion of the switched can of dog food since that is the only thing they both ate different than normal.
Hopefully they have settled down enough tonight for us all to have a restful night.
Thankful for all the undeserved blessings of this day and for the love of God in my life.
God Bless and Good Night


Saturday, February 25, 2017

MARKET DAY SATURDAY

Thankfully I got a very good nights sleep with Dolly seeming to be on the recovery path and sleeping through the night.
I got things done and we were headed out to market on time today. It feels like a summer morning today and these dark storm clouds were looming over town when we arrived.
Fortunately or unfortunately depending on how dry things are right now around your place it did not rain from these clouds but they blew away and were replaced with a few light clouds before noon.
These clouds look like a hairdo that is brushed and parted !!!

Market was pretty good today and I am thankful for all I sold.
Hubbie went home by way of Sam's Club to pick up some groceries and then went to help #1 son on his construction project in the upstairs of his house.
Daughter sent these pics of her and g-son's bike ride this morning. They couldn't have picked a better day to ride.

They rode the Swamp Rabbit trail in South Carolina around Furman University. Here g-son stands beside the "ghost" bike that  ID's the trail.
They had a fun day of bike riding and when they got home to daughter's house he got to ride his skate board on their paved drive way.

After I left market I stopped by a produce stand and got some nice Cranberry beans along with a couple other things.
These were some of the largest nicest beans I have seen in a while.
I cooked these in my pressure pot perfectly in 6 minutes. Our supper tonight was these beans and some Collard greens from our garden, yum !!!
Hubbie and I finished the chores in a much cooler evening with the winds getting higher by the hour.
Tonight we are predicted to have the coldest night at 26 than we have had in a long time.
I am tired tonight and looking for another nice quiet night .
Dolly seems much better tonight and we think an unnoticed different can of dog food probably caused her problems so she should be okay after getting it all through her system.
I am thankful tonight for the blessings of this day and I pray for all God's children as we all strive to be better people.
God Bless and Good Night





Friday, February 24, 2017

EARLY BLOOMERS ABOUND THIS YEAR

Up and out this morning to get this Friday started !!!
After chores, and breakfast I took a walk in the very nice already 50+ degree sunny morning. I noticed all the color already around at the end of February this year. There have been years in the past that we have had some of these early blooms but I can't remember anytime recently that all of these blooms and growth were this early.
Of course there is still some Daffodil blossoms that aren't spent yet.

The Forsythia is starting to really fill with bright yellow blossoms.
Speaking of yellow , there is many Dandelions poking their sweet little heads out of the warming ground.
Along with these bright yellow Shamrock dainty blooms.
The color purple gets a good start with this Periwinkle along the driveway banks.
And all three of our Plum trees are bursting with blooms.

Down in the edge of the pasture this tree is a beautiful bright spot full of blooms.

The Iris are more than 6 inches tall now and the roses are starting to leaf out.

 After my walk I took a break with a cup of hot green tea and had devotions before starting the baking for the day.
I baked 2 chocolate layer cakes, 4 pound cakes and 2 pans of brownies.
With this finished for the day I tackled out taxes for one last time and got them finished , YES !!!
With 4 whole days left in the "tax" month of February all my taxes are filed and we are awaiting our refunds !!!!  Another big YES !!!
When hubbie came home I was sitting on the front porch enjoying my extra 15 minutes before chore time . The warm sunshine feels very good today.
We did chores and then hubbie put a couple steaks on the grill for our supper tonight. While they cooked #1 son's family came by to pick up g-son's new bike. He is spending the night with Josh and daughter tonight so they all can get up really early and go riding tomorrow morning.
After we ate we gave Dolly some medicine for her upset tummy as she has had really soft stool for a couple days now and has had to go outside about every hour today. Bless her little heart she isn't acting sick and is eating and drinking so we have no idea what is going on. I gave her some medicine to hopefully combat an infection if she has one.
Daughter , Josh and g-son were having so much fun tonight playing this game !!!


It's always good for g-son to get away and be the only child every now and then !!!
I saw this on the news today and am proud of our county but I also wonder how long it will be before protestors will demand these words come down even though these words are on all the money they have been spending on the paper and ink to create their protest signs !!!
By the way this is the old historic courthouse !!
God is the Anchor that we need not just in our county but in the country and the entire world right now more than ever !!
God Bless and Good Night.







Thursday, February 23, 2017

HOW DID WE SURVIVE ?????

A  6:30 wake up call from Dolly (the 4-legged kid) who needed an early potty time today got my day off to an early start. After taking her outside and standing in the cool morning, thankfully it wasn't really cold but 50 degrees already, but I still got wide awake before I headed back to bed so there was no going back to sleep for me as I just dozed and waited for daylight.
It is a foggy morning and Cayenne looks ghostly against the foggy background.

After chores I got ready to head out to market for a little while. I have one order today so when that gets picked up if it is as slow as I think it will be I am running errands early and coming home to get hubbie and my taxes at least started.
I kept wondering why I was so late getting them done this year but then I thought I always use Thursdays to do them and this year I have been going to market on Thursdays .
When they announced the market would be open on Thursdays it was my plan to only go on the nice warm sunny days but haha so far all Thursdays along with most other days in January and February have been sunny and warm.
So far today as I sit here and type this beginning of my blog post for today the aisles have been totally empty today. I hope the order gets picked up early  but if it doesn't I can take it to the bank with me and deliver it as Jan ,who orders this caramel covered chocolate cake each year for her dad's birthday at this time works there.
I got a nice surprise when a friend who routinely comes to market about everyday we are open came carrying this up to my table saying her rescued it from the trash from a church down the street from market. I love these old wooden things and this is a wonderful old wooden rocking horse statue.
One of it's front feet is broken so maybe that is why they were throwing it away. I think hubbie can match the nice wood and glue a hoof back on. It is very heavy and I couldn't believe Joe carried this all the way down here just for me.  Thanks Joe Hill, you are an angel !
Jan picked her order up just before noon and I sold another caramel cake at the same time to another of the few customers that came through today.
I ate my lunch and then packed up and left market about 12:30, ran my errands and made it home at 2:00.  After I unloaded and had a snack I started our taxes. Whew , I was running everywhere looking for figures to plug in.
When hubbie came in from work I signed out and will work on them again hopefully tomorrow.
I get aggravated after searching for all the figures that have to be filled in and then in he end they don't make any difference anyway but have to be shown on the tax forms,grrrrrr !!!
Hubbie and I did chores and had supper then he watched races on TV while I caught up some paperwork and worked on the computer. I don't like to work on taxes with any distracting noise so I'll wait until there is no TV noise tomorrow.
Talked to daughter tonight and her basketball season is now officially over as her team lost in the second round of the state play-offs tonight to Kings Mountain.
I know she is really tired with all the everyday practices as she gets further into her pregnancy and will be glad to have free afternoons.
I saw this tonight and it reminded me of what a friend and I were talking about the other day about how in the world we survived our childhoods with all the scary things that are now banished.
I can't help but look back and think how much fun kids today are missing out  !!!!
Thankful for all the blessings of this day and for the gracious love of my Lord and Savior everyday.
God Bless and Good Night



Wednesday, February 22, 2017

BORING DAY OF HOUSEWORK

Ahhhhh !!!!  Listening to a gentle rain early this morning and getting to laze a bit longer in bed was soooo nice !
After chores in a light misty rain now I had breakfast and devotions then looking out at the still misting rain I did an inside walking tape today.  I like to do these periodically anyway because they cause me to use muscles I don't use when I just walk outside.
I was sweating by the end of this one, whew but I felt good .
I started housework and only stopped for a light lunch of salad then went back to work. I wanted to get the housecleaning done and get on to taxes today.
I got all the other info from the kids I needed this morning and finished and sent their taxes in just before hubbie got in from work. So now only our taxes are left to get done in these last 6 days of tax month !
After chores I watched this beautiful sunset as the colors peeked through the clouds.
After a bowl of tomato soup for supper I tackled the weekly paperwork and bill paying. I ended the evening watching basketball games. The first one between Duke / Syracuse which Syracuse won on a last second shot and then the UNC /Louisville game which UNC won handily but it was a very good ballgame.
Today's weather was cloudy and the early morning rain left 3/10ths inch in the gauge this evening. The temp reached the upper 50's and I kept a small fire going all day downstairs to combat the dampness.
The "Q" storm was named today as Quid comes into the western states bring lots of  snow.

Thankful for the undeserved blessings of each day and striving to glorify His name in all that I do.
God Bless and Good Night.