GOOD BYE MARCH AND HAPPY #7 TO EL

As this last day of March comes in cloudy and dreary I am glad to see this historic month behind us but don't really look forward to what a new month might bring. I am surely happy that I have a wonderful Savior that is ultimately in charge.

As I did chores this morning this bright spot of the first blooming Azalea lifted my mood.

I keep getting behind on my blog post with no excuse at all in these trying times. And I remind myself repeatedly that I need to be blogging each day because this is a historic time in the history of this country. With the continuous spread of the Covid-19 virus and more bad news day after day it is imperative that I document this time in our family for the future generations to read about.
Hubbie and I got some house work done this morning and then daughter and d-in-love came up to have lunch here with us and the kids.
The girls enjoyed getting to play with each other for the afternoon while both daughter and d-in-love worked from home on school work.

After they left hubbie and I got into our old door stash in the barn and found covers for all the raised beds that have vegetables growing in them since the temperature is headed into the 30's overnight.

At times like these I am glad we hang on to old things that appear to have to use anymore. We got everything covered up and got chores done in a still misty rain that only left 2/10ths inch in the gauge for the day.
We came inside and I did paperwork and paid bills for the week.
Daughter got the unsettling news this evening that a teacher at the school she teaches at had tested positive for the covid virus. Thankfully it has been 2 weeks since she was at the school and she hasn't had any symptoms so we feel we dodged a bullet in her insisting that they left her teach from home.
Our county schools are the only school that we know of that didn't have all teachers stay home and teach. Instead they told the teachers and staff unless they had under school age children or under lying health conditions they had to be at work from 8-3 everyday.  Hopefully after this scare they will join all other counties in trying to keep their teachers and staff safe.
Hubbie and I spent the evening relaxing in the warmth of a woodstove fire once again.
Happy 7th birthday to this sweet girl who won't get to have a party but will still get lots of presents. Happy Birthday EL we love you so much and you are growing up way to fast.

Saying good-bye to March like I said isn't hard and this month seemed to last longer than usual but what is coming in April probably will make that month seem much longer.
The officials are warning now that the virus may peak in a couple weeks but during that couple weeks and maybe more there is going to be so much sickness and death that it will be like nothing we have ever seen.
The stay at home orders aren't working as well as they had hoped and a lot of folks are still not taking this seriously.
God is our only light in the darkness of this world right now and I am so glad He is holding my fate in His wonderful hands.
I am so thankful for the blessings He sends my way each and everyday.
God Bless and Good Night

NICE WARM DAY TO BEGIN THE STAY AT HOME STATEWIDE ORDER

Woke up late this morning to make for a hectic morning to start his week. The animals are always over ready to be out of their overnight houses when I'm late getting to them.
I had breakfast then got weekly laundry started.
Hubbie was working on getting daughter's lawn mower she had stored in the barn through the winter out and ready for mowing season.
When I looked out g-son was driving it around the driveway holding his sister.

Hubbie also got g-son to help readjust the round swing he put up the other day. It is much easier for a 13 year old to climb a ladder than a 64 year old.

Hubbie drove daughter's lawn mower over to her house with daughter driving behind him.
After d-in-love and the kids went home we had lunch then I did more laundry.
I also cut some of our remaining sweet potatoes up and placed them in water to hopefully start some potato slips for planting.

Hubbie and both spent the afternoon doing little odd jobs and enjoying the last warm day for a while as temps are going to become for in the normal range for the rest of the week.

The governors state wide stay at home order went into effect at 5pm this afternoon and closed down many non-essential businesses all over the state.

Thankful for the blessings of this day and praying for our country as we navigate these unknown waters of this pandemic .

God Bless and Good Night

RESTFUL SUNDAY AND 2010 MEMORIES

Another lazy Sunday morning feels good. I put a turkey from our freezer in the oven before I went out to get chores done.
After chores we had breakfast then fixed coconut rice, green beans, corn and biscuits to go with the turkey for lunch.
Daughter's family and #2 son and Tif had lunch with us today.
After they all left hubbie and I spent a very lazy Sunday afternoon just relaxing after a pretty busy week.
I took the turkey bones and added some onion and celery and some herbs in the crockpot filled with water to make some turkey broth for the freezer.

There was a beautiful sunset this evening to end a very restful thankful day.

I need to continue the decade series with March 2000. This was a very busy month enjoying this little boy and the first warm days to get outside and play and explore.

 When Bernie one of our four-legged kids hopped in g-son's jeep and rode around with him I remember making the comment that there would never be another Bernie and I know that is true.

The governor of North Carolina ,Bev Perdue, visited the Curb Market that month and bought one of my little girls jean aprons.

Hubbie and I bought hay from a neighbor to finish the season out.

We had quite a few cattle back then.

That was the month I found the dishes I use now at an estate sale.

Also that month I cleaned and organized my sewing shop.

We also had a pretty deep snow that month.

My four-legged kids back then Bernie and Dolly.

My three grown kids.....

Thankful for the memories of happier times tonight.

Thankful for the blessings of the day and praying for the Lord to protect us from this Covid-19 virus that continues to ravage our country.

God Bless and Good Night

POTATO PLANTING DAY

Got to sleep in today as there is nothing on our menu for early today.
I got chores done and then had breakfast of scrambled eggs and spinach.
I went outside in the beautiful sunny warm, another mid 80's temperature day. Hubbie was getting ready to put the big round swing back up for the season so I helped with that and then got to enjoy the first swings in it as I enjoyed this beautiful day.

I was watching these little hula dancers on this Box Elder Maple tree above the swing put on a performance in the breeze that was blowing.

This is just a gorgeous spring day.

RL wanted to come up and check out the new chicks.

After hubbie and I ate lunch we went to work in the garden to get our potatoes planted as this is the first day the moon signs calendar says is suitable for root crops. I layed off the rows, hubbie tilled, I dug the rows out with a hoe, hubbie crawled and planted the potatoes and I covered them up. 

We also got turnips and kale planted today.

We had to get the garden fence put back up as some of the onions and peas are coming up that we planted last week.

We came inside and had a cold drink and rested until chore time.

After chores we walked down to the mail box for our mail and then sat in the outside patio to watch the sun kiss the day good-bye.

Thankful for a wonderful day of following the stay home orders and praying for all the folks who have this terrible virus right now.

God Bless and Good Night

STAY AT HOME ORDER GIVEN BY GOVENOR

Up on this Friday morning to another busy morning.

Got a pleasant surprise when I looked in on this first setting Silkie this morning with these 4 little chicks peeking out from under her. She had one more hatched chick and 2 more eggs under her that hadn't hatched yet.

 After chores hubbie finished loading up his truck with all our trash and recyclables and then we stopped at daughter's to pick up her recyclables and trash on our way to the landfill.
After emptying the truck at the landfill we drove to Blantyre to see if the plant house we usually buy our garden plants from had plants ready yet, They only had flowers so far and she said it would be at least another week or so to get the vegetable plants big enough for sale.
We headed home to have lunch.
After we ate hubbie and I both spent the afternoon of this record breaking temperature day outside.

The old record set back in 1907 was 80 degrees, if you notice on this thermometer the higher temp earlier was 85 here and this 83 temp was at 4:00 this afternoon.
We got several things done, we planted the red climbing rose out of the big pot it has been in the last couple years and  planted 7 blackberry plants hubbie had dug up and kept in pots since last year and got the 2 grape vines we purchased a while ago planted.

Hubbie then got on the lawn mower for the first time this year and I always love the freshly mowed lawn.

I trimmed bushes and cleaned up the yard while I admired all the colorful flowers starting to show off early this year.

Had no idea this ground cover even bloomed.

All the new Hostas I bought last year are popping up .

I had to admire this old apple tree that has been devastated by wood peckers for years and just keeps coming back year after year and has the delicious old rusty grimes golden apples on it.

My chives and some of the other hardier herbs are coming back strong this year.

I felt sunburned for the first time this season across my shoulders but it felt good to spend a day outside soaking up the vitamin D.
We did chores early this evening and went over to visit #2 son and Tif to see their new house with all the furniture and décor in it. They have a beautiful home.
While we were gone there was an accident on the road and d-in-love called to tell us to take a detour to get home.

By the time we got here they had the road cleaned up and the car towed away.
We relaxed for the evening.
The governor put the entire state under a stay at home advisory today to hopefully slow the spread of the covid virus.

This news made me feel a new kind of grateful when I looked down into my egg bucket this evening and when I noticed all my lettuce coming up in this cattle feeder as well as all these little chicks sticking their heads out from under their mom.

So blessed to be able to watch new life still coming into this crazy world right now.
We are thankful for our health so far and for the blessings of this day.
God Bless and Good Night