CROSS OR HEART THEY STILL CAPTURE MY HEART!

When I saw this calf in the news a few days ago with the cross on his head it reminded me of a calf we had years ago that had a heart in the middle of his head. To me there is nothing cuter than a baby calf,those big ole brown eyes hook me every time. Last winter we bought some 6-8 week old calves,off the bottle,supposedly. However we had to put 1 of them back on the bottle when he developed contracted tendons in both front feet. I would feed him 3 times a day and hubbie would rub his legs trying to get the tendons to relax. We tracked up to the barn through the only snowfall we had last year,hubbies mother died during this time also,but we made the track 3 times a day,morning,evening and right before we went to bed everyday for a month. When the weather got warmer we made him his own little lot in the pasture so he could rub noses with the other calves but they couldn't knock him down.He walked around on his knees and we were beginning to believe he would always be that way,until one miraculous morning I went up there and there he stood on all four feet,
normally. God works in miraculous ways and this to me was an overnight miracle,and when I turned him out with the other calves,he couldn't contain his joy either,it was a beautiful sight to behold.With all that special attention he got he was quite the pet and seemed to love attention.Doing the petting is g-son,daughter and little sister Kate.
We woke to a really foggy morning today,this was the neighbors house actually above the fog for a little while but the next time I looked it was covered also,I would have hated to be traveling this morning.
Builders were here early and are finishing up today. Oh no when they came back from lunch the lead man jumped back in his truck and took off really fast.When we asked where he was going,they said his 8 year old daughter was going to the hospital having trouble breathing.
They didn't hear any thing the rest of the day but the 2 workers finished up all the work,hallelujah,hallelujah!!!!!!!! Now it's our turn,went out late this afternoon and picked up the flooring,not exactly what I wanted,but couldn't find old barn wood look flooring, so I settled for Brazilian Teak,which is darker and matches the knot holes in the pine boards.
#1 son came by to pick up g-son and said if it rains in the morning he will come and help hubbie put it down while I watch g-son.That's a deal for me,I'd surely rather watch g-son instead of crawling around on my knees helping put floor down! This is one time I'm actually hoping for rain!!!!!! Contacted the electrician,he's coming Wednesday to finish up,no gutter people set yet,but I can finish and furnish the inside without gutters.While all this was going on g-son played outside and helped his pawpaw clean off the garden and store the stakes in the dry.After he had dragged a number of stakes behind pawpaw he said "okay that's enough",I think he was tired and hungry so we came in for a snack and drink. These animated animals I have for Christmas sing and dance Christmas songs and g-son was entertained for quite a while listening to them.This has been one of those days when it's hard to remember just 2 days ago when it was so cold,it's been in the 60's today,we worked outside without jackets all afternoon in the warm sunshine. I'm glad the Lord gives us days like this every once in a while as they sure make winter easier to get through.
I'm excited tonight to think that by this time tomorrow night,I might have all my new furniture in my room!!!!! I have been so excited today,I actually forgot to take pictures,they'll come tomorrow. Daughter has baked all evening,tomorrow night is my turn!
Talked to sister-in-law tonight,we are planning a New Years family get together since every ones so busy all around Christmas.
D-in-love called and found out the builders daughter had to be transfered to Mission Hospital today,please pray!!!
Thank God for giving me the patience I've needed all through this construction and asking for devine intervention for his little girl,her dad is such a hard worker and a devoted family man. Good Night.

NEWS FLASH!! INTERNET INFO WRONG!!!

#1 son and g-son and I rode together to church this morning since everyone else was already there. I was disappointed in the Christmas program,it seemed hurried and the songs, although most I had never heard and the ones I had heard had unrecognizable arrangements.I'm a fan of the traditional hymns and love to hear them at Christmas so I was disappointed that there wasn't any more of them in the program.Although I still appreciate the work by all the choir members preparing this program.The church is usually full on this day but I guess the weather kept many people at home this morning.When we went in it was raining,when we came out the sun was shining,gotta love this mountain weather.
Had a full house for lunch,everyone had a busy schedule for the afternoon.Daughter had more volleyball clinics from 1-9 this evening, #2 son had to go to work from 2-6 ,#1 son's family went shopping ,hubbie and I went flooring shopping.
Funny thing when we drove to Lumber Liquidators that I found online and had a map to find.When we got there it wasn't there,hubbie called information and they gave him the phone # for the store at the address I had and when the man answered,hubbie proceeded to tell him where we were in an effort to get directions,the man says none of this sounds familiar to me. After a few more attempts,hubbie finally realized this man was in Charlotte and he said the store we were looking for wasn't even open yet!!!! We passed a sign that said GPS unreliable and I said we should make a sign that says Internet unreliable,why would there be a website for a store that isn't even there!!! We were close to the Farmers Market so we picked up a box of Lee's fruit and a bag of sweet potatoes so it wasn't entirely a wasted afternoon. Came home to do the chores before dark and had a light supper.It has been a beautiful sunny,warm afternoon almost 60 degrees,the cattle were taking their time getting up the hill to the barn as if they hated to get out of this warm sunshine.
It is really foggy this evening,there is supposed to be a meteor shower tonight with 120 meteors per hour at 2 am. Hubbie says he is going to get up,we'll see!!
To God all the glory!!! Good Night.

CELEBRATING 85TH YEAR AT MARKET

Market day again,so soon??? Had a customer come by at 7:45 to pick up a cake. Got to market early,don't know why,nobody else is here! Ended up having an okay day,I didn't have any orders today and that usually tells me it's going to be slow. I thought today what it must have been like years ago for farmers selling here. We are celebrating our 85th year of operation this year. There is heat now,but not great,it is a cement block building so if it's cold over night the cement seems to hold on to the cold during the day.On days that start out in the 20's,I always wear long handle underwear,and this year I already have worn it more times than most years. There is no air conditioning in the market so summer days get pretty warm in here,but I am thankful to be inside out of the rain and wind.I have been involved in outdoor markets and it is a challenge,
dealing with the weather,and no customers are going to shop in the rain. I inherited my table from my mother,some of the people in here are 3rd and 4th generations.My daughter is a 3rd generation for our family. This picture of hubbie and I was taken some time ago and is posted on our website.We were talking today about when he can retire and this will be a good thing to have when that happens,he enjoys coming out here and socializing with the other men.There is many interesting things in our market and depending on the time of year it can be full to the brim with fresh produce or plants,there is always canned and baked products year round as well as many interesting crafts,dried flowers and even eggs and frozen beef. I can't imagine myself ever just doing nothing and as I talk to some of the older ladies who come out here they mostly do it for the joy of getting out and having a purpose for the day.
That brings to mind a conversation I overheard Thursday between a 80 something year old man with some one he knew.He was telling them all the stuff he does everyday at his age he was building a shed for a small tractor he bought,he had chickens and went on and on about his little farm. When he was asked how he felt like doing all that,he said,"I wake up every morning at 5 am with a purpose for that day",the more I think about this the more I know I need to change some things in my routine. Some days are so hum drum,I need to find a purpose for everyday! God has been so good to me and given me good health to be able to work and do things,I need to make a point to honor Him more than I do,by concentrating on the positive aspects of life. When I don't wake up to several men working right outside my windows I have some ideas to start doing just that,I'll share later.
After market today daughter,who made it to market after lunch,and I went to Tractor supply to do a little more Christmas shopping. She came home and I went to Aldi and Walmart for supplies and groceries before coming home. After we put things away we had an earlier supper,daughter left to go with g-son to Hollywild to see the Christmas lights. Hubbie and I did our chores and vegged out for the evening waiting on the snow?,ice?, rain? you're guess is as good as any.Temperature is 32 so who knows what we'll wake up to in the morning. News is over,bedtime, Good Night.

LIGHTS FOR SUNROOM BOUGHT AND READY

Woke up early with a sinus headache this morning.Took the dogs outside and walked around,breathing in the fresh very cold air to help it go away and it worked,good enough anyway.
Builders were here early to my surprise,it is still 22 degrees at 8:15,I guess they are used to it,I used to be when we had a lot of animals and baby calves to feed,I was up and out no matter what the weather. I've always loved being out in the fresh air,it seems to make a difference in how I feel.
I baked cakes this morning and finished my Avon order while listening to the hammering and sawing right outside my kitchen window. Things are really looking good out there. After lunch they called me out and told me hubbie had gotten the wrong door knob and lock,so I went to exchange it and also bought a ceiling fan,it looked to dark hanging up in the store,but when I got a salesman to open the box,I think it will match just fine and I love the light.And it is the same lantern look of the outside light I bought the other day. I did a little floor shopping but nothing caught my eye so far.I just might get to put up outside decorations after all.I was amazed at the people at Lowe's picking out Christmas trees.The sun has finally made an appearance this afternoon and brought the temperatures up to 34,whew get me a fan,ha ha!!
Well construction is almost finished,they only have a few little things to do Monday and their gone. Now our part begins,decisions,decisions,at least they did it for the price they quoted,no more,that was good.I'll be glad to have my yard cleaned up and the driveway opened back up,instead of having to walk to the barn to get my van.The gutter guy never called me back with his estimate,maybe he doesn't want the job,I know he came out here yesterday.
After supper we went and finished work at church. I came home to icing caramel,chocolate and coconut cakes. I wrapped and labeled everything,I'm ready to go,I'll be on my own tomorrow as daughter has a volleyball all day tournament at a local college. I hope the ice forecaster's are wrong tomorrow afternoon. I'm watching the news and then off to an earlier bedtime. Thanking God for all my blessings tonight. Good Night.

EVENING OF CHRISTMAS VIOLIN MUSIC

Builders were here early this morning,ready to get started.I loaded and took off to market,brrrr,it's cold and windy.
Had a decent day today with quite a few orders,very few sellers showed up today in the cold. I left market and ran errands and shopped for a few supplies for Saturday baking.The wind is really making it feel cold,I hate being all bundled up but I also hate freezing! As I stopped in the drive to get the mail I heard splashing and looked out in the pasture that is standing full of water and saw a whole flock of mallard ducks frolicking in the icy water. They didn't seem to find the cold wind at all,not to mention the 30 degree temperature.
Hubbie came in shortly after me and we unloaded and put things away,he went out to do the feeding chores and I fixed some grilled chicken and broccolli and cheese puffs for a quick supper.We left to go to daughter's little sisters strings concert at her high school at 6:30. The concert started with the middle school,it was amazing to hear the difference between the 6th grade,7th grade,8th grade and high school,the high school group was really good. I was having a hard time enjoying the music as I had to get up about 4 times in the hour we were there to let the lady beside me get out. I wear a knee brace on my right knee and after the 2nd time up and down my knee started throbing with pain. I had forgotten how close these high school auditorium seats are.
We left soon after they finished playing and we congratulated Kate on a very good performance.
We went to work at church until almost 11:00. I worked on my Avon order when I got home and listened to the news. God bless all the kids in the Big brother/Big sister program,as I sat there tonight,listening to the music,thinking how lucky Kate was to get the experience she has gotten through this program,she's a special young lady.
Good Night.

LEGEND OF THE POINSETTIA

Poinsettias are lovely flowers,I love to decorate with them at Christmas. Although I use artificial ones mostly because of g-son and the 4-legged kids,I usually sneak a real 1 or 2 in a safe place for my eyes only! I have some single blooms stuck in my Christmas tree and when g-son took one out and was looking at it today I told him the story of the poinsettia,I know he is too young to know what I'm talking about now,I'm just brushing up my memory for the time that is coming to fast when he will understand and remember. Lazy like I am instead of writing the whole thing down I found this to place on line,sorry it's a little blurry.Click to enlarge and read........ This is a great children's Christmas story,with a very true meaning.
I have tried year after year to keep some of these alive from one Christmas to the next with no success.I know it can be done because I have an Avon customer that has one she has had for years,it blooms when she puts it outside in the summer but it is a beautiful sight at that time of year.Of course this is a lady who grows beautiful plants from pineapple tops,sweet potatoes and avocado seeds and well you get the picture!!! I love going to see her to see what she has growing.
Today has been a very windy day,but bright sunshine was a welcoming sight this morning after being woke up about 4 am from pounding hard rain. The creek was again at full level but didn't run across the road. It would have been a very nice warm 62 degree day to get outside if the wind didn't try to knock you over,blowing steadily at 30 mph with higher gusts.A lot of people lost their power due to fallen trees,we were one of the lucky ones who didn't.What crazy weather we are having,and it's not just here,makes me nervous!!!!!!!!
G-son and I stayed inside and had a boring day,I lined up a man to give me an estimate on gutters tomorrow,the builders brought more boards in this morning but couldn't work in the wind. I baked some cakes for an order that I received this morning and iced what I baked last night.I was hurrying in case we lost our power. After lunch I did some paperwork and worked on my Avon order that has to go off Friday.
Made a startling discovery tonight,hubbie has been looking for a product called "SeaBond Denturite" it is a lining he uses in his partial.He has looked in all the places he has been buying it but couldn't find it and tonight online we discovered why,it has been discontinued.But that's not the startling part,in my search I saw some e-bay ads for this product,so being an e-bayer myself at times,I clicked on over,believe it or not this product that sold a month ago for 4.95 in stores was going for close to $100.00,yes that's $100.00, I told hubbie you can have your partial professionally re-lined for not much more than that.
I'd like to know how you get the inside line on when products are being discontinued.
I waited for daughter to do all her baking tonight before I iced my coconut cakes.I am watching the news now and headed to bed shortly,I didn't sleep well last night with the pouring rain,this metal roof is going to take some getting used to!!!
God is good all the time,all the time God is good!!!!!! Good Night.

GOOD NEWS FROM DERMATOLOGIST

Rain,rain,rain this is the view out my window today. The builders were here early this morning and they got quite a bit done before the rain started,they moved inside and worked for a couple more hours.I think they ran out of boards for the walls. I did housework and laundry all morning,fitting for a day like this. I have a Dermatology appointment for a skin check today at 3:30,I have to go often since they found that melanoma cancer this past spring. 2 hours before it was time to go I got a headache,just from the dread of going.The exam is no big deal but the fear of him finding something else almost makes me physically ill. I'm trying to stay very busy to keep my mind off it,it's not working!!! Finally time to go,as I'm driving over there,I talk to God and by the time I get there I'm a lot calmer. All goes well with the exam,thank you God!!! In fact I got 2 nice surprises,)1 I don't have to come back for 1 year,
)2 the doctor asked what is the deductible you usually pay? I said $50, he said not today its Christmas,there's no charge. How about that,doesn't happen often,I'm impressed,maybe he could see the stress in my face and knew I needed a mental boost!!!!
I stopped at Ingles on the way home for a few things and was home by 4:30,daughter and hubbie were here.We did outside chores in the rain,again! It is raining harder and harder,we shut the gate on the cattle ,keeping them on the hill. There is no flood watches but there wasn't the other time we had to swim after them.
It felt good to get inside and relax after the nerve frazzling afternoon I've had. I snuggled with Bernie and Dolly for a while before it was time to go to work baking some cakes. Daughter coaches a 4th grade girls basketball team and she had her first practice tonight,then went to Bible Study,she'll bake tomorrow night. Hubbie had to get out in the pouring rain tonight and put up another tarp where we don't have gutters on the new room to keep the water from running in the basement of our house.Brrrrr,it's 35 degrees out here,it has been a cold day never got out of the 30's,at least what's falling is liquid!!
I'm glad to see days like this come to a positive end,if I'd just learn to fully trust God there wouldn't be days like this,that's easier said than done even though I know it's in His hands anyway. This is a nativity scene on a pillow from my couch that I rested my head on tonight,who couldn't relax with this under your head!!!Good Night.