FIRST DAY OF THIRD GRADE

First day of school !!!   G-son looks ready to face third grade as his mom made this picture on their front porch as they headed off to school this morning.

As for hubbie and I the first day of school meant more time to sleep in this morning !!!
As I finished chores and we had breakfast we were planning our day all alone for the first time since school let out in the beginning of summer.
I got a load of laundry started while he went up to do some weeding in the garden while the coolness of the morning was still hanging around.
Re came by and picked up all her canned goods that she had stored in our basement. She has shelves made at her new house to hold all of them and now she can see what all she has.
Hubbie and I grabbed a quick bite to eat for lunch and made a trip to the Henderson county co-op.
I got some liquid vitamins and a couple new salad mixes they had.
I had a dermatologist appointment for 1:50 so hubbie dropped me off there while he went to browse the Good-Will just down the street.
I had a large bright pink spot on my lower thigh that has been there for a couple months. I thought it looked like the Squamous cell cancer that I had taken off the other leg a couple years ago. Dr. Highly agreed that it looked like a squamous cell to him so he cut it off to send to the lab.
Now I have a deep hole in my lower thigh were he cauterized the opening to kill any squamous cell cancer cells that were left behind.  He is a very good doctor and this didn't hurt at all and hasn't hurt even when the novacaine wore off that he deaden it with.

I was in and out of the office within an hour so that was pretty good with only calling for the appointment last Thursday.
We came home and I finished 2 more loads of laundry while hubbie worked more outside.
We have an abundance of Concord grapes on our vines again this year and the bees are starting to suck them dry so I decided I had better make some grape jelly while there are still plenty of grapes.

There is no better aroma than cooking grapes on the stove ,mmmmmmm !!!

We have a few jars left from last years bounty so I probably will only make one batch of jelly. I had 10 jars of very tasty jelly when I finished.

This jelly just taste so much better than what you buy in the stores it is mind boggling. I had a little bowl full left over for some toast tomorrow morning.
After chores hubbie and I sat out in the covered patio and watched the sun go down through the clouds. We had no rain today but the clouds showed up late this evening stopping hubbie from putting out the weed killer he was planning on.
As the fourth named storm of the season, Danny, fizzles out over the islands east of Cuba the fifth named storm is right on it's heels. This one was named tonight, it is Erica. This one maybe trouble as the forecast shows it taking a more northerly trek than Danny. Guess we will wait and see.

Our weather is going to be very nice for the next several days with the 50's temps at night so we can open the windows and listen to the frogs sings us to sleep.
Grateful for a good first day of school for g-son. Thankful that the spot on my leg is gone and prayfully won't require any more treatment. Most of all thankful for all the other small blessings that made up my day. Glory be to my loving God.
Good Night and god Bless.

RAINY BACK TO SCHOOL SUNDAY

Up late this morning to get chores done and get ready for church. I was so tired when I got in bed last night and must have slept through hubbie getting up this morning and my alarms, because I don't remember either.
I emptied 4/10ths inch from the gauge from a hard rain overnight that hubbie said work him up, but it sure didn't phase me !!
I made it to church a few minutes early so I could arrange some Zinnias that a friend brought. The recent rains have played havoc on the blooms but they are still pretty and made a nice arrangement for the communion table.
Today was "back to school" Sunday and all the kids and school employees circled the front of the church so we cold bathe them in prayer.

Hubbie is the man in back on the far left of the pic, d-in-love is in black in back row on the right side.
Daughter left after Sunday school to go to church at Biltmore with Josh and some friends.
The service was good today still working through 1st Timothy.
Got a secret sister gift today.

Our lunch bunch was #1 son's family, Aa, Re and the kids. #2 son is golfing and daughter and Josh were going on a hike.
We had grilled pork chops, corn, green beans, fried okra, mashed potatoes,rolls and sweet tea.
After everyone left hubbie and I went over to visit daughter and Josh at her house and hubbie put a new ballist in her kitchen light while we were there.
They were making sweet potato chips that looked really good.
When we got home we rested which is about all this cloudy, muggy afternoon is good for , just ask Bernie and Dolly !!!!

Just as we finished chores for the evening the rain began and out of one quick storm we got another 1/2 inch of rain in the gauge.
We are one of the lucky ones that haven't gotten any flooding rains in the last couple days.
After a front passes through tomorrow there is very little rain in the forecast for the next week.

Thanking God for a blessed Sunday or worshiping Him with my church family and family. Thankful for the thirst quenching rain .
Good Night and God Bless.

DINNER A SUSIE'S AND 2005 AUGUST

Off to market this morning right on time. I was met in the parking lot by two customers which always is a nice start to the day.
Hubbie was here to help get things set up. Sales started off brisk but slowed as the morning wore on.
I am very thankful for what I did sell as always. There is still quite a bit of fresh vegetables in market and that is always a great early morning draw.
Hubbie left to go by Sam's Club and then home to try to get rid of his headache he has had all morning.
There is a cold front pushing into our area and that has changed the forecast and I'm sure changed the pressure which usually messes with my head. I don't usually get headaches but have dizzy funny feeling spells when this happens and I have had those feelings a couple times this morning.
I ended up having a pretty good day thankfully.
After market I made a stop at Ace Hardware to pick up a replacement seal for my pressure canner. I used the new one I had earlier this year and always like to have a new seal on hand when I am canning. I had to laugh when I looked at the price difference , the old box that I had brought along to check out the seal number had a price of $6.99 on it , the new seal was $12.95.
I made stops at Aldi and Walmart to pick up baking supplies for next week.
Hubbie helped me unload when I got home and get everything put away then we rested for a little while.
The clouds hung low and it looked like it would rain any minute but never did.
We did chores early and went over to a friend of mine, Susan's , house to have dinner with her and a friend.
She has been a friend of mine for many years. She lives in Florida but spends a lot of time up here in her dad's house. He died several years ago. She has done some remodeling since I have been over there and she wanted me to come see it.
We went over at 6:00, had a very nice visit and dinner and the house remodeling was very nice. That house is full of antiques and treasures from her life.
My brother called at 9:00 saying Sadie was at his house and wouldn't leave. He said it had stormed and she was acting really confused. He put her in his carport until we got home and hubbie went up and got her to go in her crate downstairs. She has gotten so afraid of thunder and always takes off down the highway for some reason.
The rain didn't look like it was very much here but the air was very humid and there were flash flood warnings out for some areas around us.
Back in August of 2005 weekends meant lake time for our family.  We had a Bayliner ski boat.
D-in-love in the water, #1 and #2 son holding boat, hubbie in the boat.

 Hubbie waiting for the skier to get ready.....

 #2 son and daughter......

 Hubbie,daughter,d-in-love, #1 son........

Daughter getting ready to ski......

At our house this Elephant Ear plant got huge that year.

Our dogs at that time were Pepper and Dolly.

And guarding the front door  was faithful old Willy ......

A wonderful look back .........
Thankful for a blessed day and for the gift of wonderful friends.
Good Night and God Bless

MEET THE TEACHER FRIDAY

After chores I was having breakfast out in the sunroon watching the birds when g-son arrived. D-in-love has a 9:30 doctor's appointment so he was late getting here.
After getting him his breakfast I had my devotions and started baking. I decided not to walk this morning, although my knee does feel better I don't want to push it.  I'll be standing in the kitchen a long time today. I baked 12 caramel, 2 chocolate. 1 coconut/pineapple, 2 pound and 1 blackberry wine cake before having a late lunch.
G-son had already eaten his ramon noodles and bacon he asked for earlier.
The clouds have ruled most of the day today with only a few peeks of sunshine.  I went outside to pull weeds from my patios and steps and the sun greeted me briefly then hid behind a really dark cloud , but we got no rain.
Back inside I rested and watched a little hummingbird feast on the Geraniums outside the doors.I tried to get my long lens to focus on the moving bird but had to use my phone and its not a good picture through the screen door.

 Then he perched long enough on this tree branch to get some good pictures with the long lens. A rare opportunity for them to be still for this long.

And there he goes.............

I took g-son over to school at 4:30 so he would be there with his mom when their "meet the teacher" session began at 5:00. He was very nervous and talked all the way over there about how many butterflies were in his stomach. He said he had never been this nervous before and I told him that comes with age, that everyone is nervous when we are starting something new and it is a good thing.
I don't think he agreed , haha !!!
I left him with his mom so maybe he would be better before it was time to go to his new classroom.
Back home I watched the news and then did chores. I wanted to put my knee up a little while before I stood for all my icing duties tonight so I went outside to the covered patio for a while.
G-son came up and said he had fun tonight and thought he was going to like this teacher, Mrs. Thomas, and that a lot of his friends were in the same class.
The sun came out just in time to create a pretty sunset.

After I shut the chickens up just before dark, which now comes around 8:30, I started my icing.
I iced cakes and wrapped and got things ready for market by midnight. Seems this is my magic hour these days. It will be better for me when darkness falls earlier.
I thank God for another blessing filled day and ask for His grace for g-son as he starts his 3rd grade year in school, that it be all he hopes it will be.
God Bless.

BUM KNEE, MARKET SLOW DOWN, 1995 MEMORIES

As I lay in bed this morning I wondered why my right knee felt so sore and painful ?  When I tried to stand up I almost fell when the pain in that knee was so sharp when I put any weight on it. I thought ,oh my,  I am not going to be able to go to market today.  As I clutched chairs and what ever I could along the way to the bathroom I felt the knee getting a little stronger.
I gingerly put more and more weight on it as I started to get ready for market and finally worked through the pain and got it going.
I was reminded what probably was the cause of this when I did the morning chores and went into one of the muddiest chicken lots and my foot slid down the hill. Last night I almost fell when I slid in the mud and used this leg to stop my fall. It hurt when I did it but didn't hurt any more as I stayed on it icing cakes the rest of the night.
I made it to market on time even with the hobbling I was doing.
I got set up and sold slowly. Compared to the last few Thursdays this was a really slow day but I knew these days would come as soon as it got close to school starting time so I am thankful for what I did sell.
As I loaded to come home I hurt my knee again and couldn't get the pain to ease off so after doing the drive through at the bank and P.O. I headed to the nearest drug store to buy a knee brace.
I found one with metal stays in the sides to prevent sideways movement which is how I hurt it.
This relieved the pain enough for me to finish my errands of picking up baking supplies and groceries at Aldi and Walmart. As I left the bank at my first stop across from the Curb Market I noticed these mean looking clouds in the sky.

And sure enough without any warning when I started out of Aldi the sky opened up and poured rain. Luckily I had my little purse umbrella and kept most of the rain off my groceries and me. Before I finished loading the honda the sun started shining through the pouring rain. I looked all around for the rainbow but couldn't see one. Shortly after I left Aldi the rain stopped.
 I also made a stop at Granddad's apple house to get our first apples of the season. They have the best juiciest Honeycrisp apples. I also got some peaches that  need to ripen up and a cabbage.
Hubbie came in from work just as I got home to help me unload. After that I got out another brace that has a heatable pad in it to use on my knee while I watched the news.
We had supper and did the evening chores then sat on the porch awhile.
I am trying to keep my knee elevated all that I can. This brace I bought today helps with these stays in the sides but the tightness of it makes my leg swell.

With just the resting and heat and ice I have been using this evening it feels a little better tonight so hopefully it is just a strain and not a tear. I still remember from my high school sports playing days that the treatment for strains is R I C E  , rest, ice,compression, elevation .
We had clouds all evening here and just a sprinkle of rain. The first hurricane of the Atlantic season formed this morning when tropical storm Danny became hurricane Danny. Still to far out to make any prediction where he might go when he gets closer to the US.

The almanac predicts a hurricane in the last week of August around Florida and the gulf. Could this be that one ???
With nothing else going on tonight I will continue with the August decade pics series and these are from August 1995.
This is my nephew Mark that is moving into #1 son's doublewide. I took care of him much of the time during these years.

That year #1 son was starting his second season of football at Apply Valley middle school where he was in eighth grade.

These are some of our goats.

A young Snowball , our milk cow.

Hank , the farm dog, a blue Australian Shepherd.

And Pepsi our "6-toed" farm mouser.

The back yard has changed alot in 20 years !!!

 Great memories once again when I look at these old pics.
Grateful to God for the life He has allowed me to live and for all the wonderful blessings along the way.
Good Night and God Bless

EARLY SIGNS OF FALL

Up to greet g-son this morning with his breakfast and morning cartoons.
As I dawned boots to head out in the muggy morning I wondered how much rain I would find in the gauge this morning, only about 1/10th inch from the evening shower. I thought it had rained during the night but I guess I was wrong!
After my breakfast I took a walk and enjoyed the nice cooler refreshing air. The signs of Fall are starting to show up everywhere. These walnuts are ready to be stored in some little squirrels stash for the winter.

The persimmons are getting riper as they and these little Fox grapes wait for the first frost to improve their flavor immensely.

The Beauty berries and Elaeagnus berries are also getting ripe ready for the birds to feast before their long winter days.

Also these dreaded Poke berries with their staining purple are getting their color.

Another season of warm long summer days is getting closer each day to the shorter cooler days of Fall with all of nature's splendid beauty and the nice slower more relaxed time of year as Mother Nature sighs a complacent sigh and settles down for a rest from the energetic growing seasons of spring and summer and gets ready for a nice rest.
I too am ready for a nice rest as summer season slows with the start of school next week and I look forward to a more relaxing, restful time of year.
Back inside I was reminded that this isn't into my restful time yet as I get my baking started. I baked 18 caramel, 3 chocolate, 6 pound and 1 blackberry wine cake then had a late lunch.
G-son has been a trooper all morning, moving from the living room to the playroom to the outside swing to keep himself entertained while I worked.
He says he is ready to go back to school but today I have seen the apprehension that comes to all of us as we begin a new venture. I am hoping his little sister will hold off being born until he can get a good start in this school year knowing his mom is just down the hall in the office.
The rain started falling about 4:30 changing my bean picking plans so they will wait until another day.
As the rain slacked we did evening chores slipping and sliding around in the muddy lots for a rare things this summer.
I moved the 3 younger Silkie chicks into the big lot tonight so I can clean their box for one of the newly hatched broods.
I was reminded again of the changing of the seasons as this flock of honking Canadian Geese flew overhead in the misshapen V.

 Back inside with rain moving back in after only leaving 2/10ths in the gauge so far I did weekly paperwork and paid bills.
I was reminded by one of the bills that I needed to cancel the Norton antivirus on my old laptop. I called a foreign speaking man who took forever to understand what I wanted. He finally did get things done but it put me 1/2 hour late on getting my icing started, grrrrrrr.
I iced cakes until midnight then had to label and pack things up. I finally got into bed at almost 1:30am,whew !!!
As you can guess I am writing this on Thursday morning between customers and back dating it.
I am thankful each day that God blesses me with the energy and health to get everything done each day as I strive to glorify His name in all that I do.
God Bless

CLEANING AND CANNING TUESDAY

G-son arrived at 7:30 ready for his waffles and chocolate milk breakfast.  It had rained overnight so there was another light fog this morning, guess that means another snow for the winter !!
I emptied only 1/4inch from the rain gauge on my way to do the morning chores but the clouds are still really low so maybe we will get more today.
After chores and breakfast I took a walk in the muggy morning air.
 As I walked by the grapevines I marveled at the grape crop we have his year. This is the second year in a row that these vines have been totally loaded with grapes. I see some grape jam making in my near future.

The sun was trying it's best to peek through the clouds as I came inside. Dolly was determined to soak up every little ray that came through. I think with her age and arthritic joints she loves the warmth of the sun.

This is housecleaning day and my house surely needs a good cleaning. With all my extra baking, the canning duties and vacation time I have neglected alot of the cleaning I usually do each week.
Today with the cloudy skies and things pretty well caught up I got out all the cleaning supplies and started to work. G-son had to move a couple times from room to room to avoid the wrath of my cleaning frenzy.
Stopping only for a quick lunch I finally fell into a chair out in the sunroom to rest my back that was racked with spasms from all the vacuuming , sweeping and mopping.
I watched this squirrel visiting the quail in this cage. Wonder what this male quail was thinking as he watched the squirrel.

The clouds grew really dark as I sat there sipping a hot cup of green tea. Just as the rain started to fall my phone rang and it was #2 son. He asked if I could run up to his house and let the furniture deliverers in with a china cabinet he bought yesterday. They were supposed to deliver it next Tuesday on his day off but got their wires crossed. In the pouring rain g-son and I went up there and let them in with it. They tried to wait the rain out but when it didn't seem to be moving on quickly they covered each half of the cabinet and brought it inside without getting it wet.
It is a really nice piece of furniture and matches son's house perfectly. He has a very good eye for a man !!!!
By the time g-son and I headed back home the rain had almost stopped, leaving a quick 1/2 inch in the gauge this time. I like these type rains, no thunder or lightening , just thirst quenching rain.
I got the box of Roma tomatoes daughter brought me Saturday and the ones I gleaned from my garden last night and got them ready for canning.

I intended to make some nice thick salsa with all these Romas but when I looked into my supply of "Mrs. Wages" mixes I only had Pasta sauce mix left so these became 5 1/2 quarts of delicious thick pasta sauce.

Hubbie tasted it and declared it the best I had ever made !!!
I did evening chores and had a light supper while letting this sauce water bath for 40 minutes.
Even with the drought of this summer our garden has surpassed itself with furnishing us fresh produce to eat and some to put up for the cold days of winter. I am so grateful each time I can or freeze our extra produce that God gives us plenty.
With the fourth named system of the Atlantic hurricane season being named today I wonder what the coming end of summer days will add to this summer's weather pattern.
This is Danny who is expected to become a hurricane.

We complain about a "hot" summer here back in July when the temperature got in the 90's but these folks out west really have more right to complain with the heat wave they are seeing this month.

This heat wave is causing wild fires to run rampant in several western states, officials in some of these states are asking for help from other countries as fire fighting supplies and people in this country are exhausted. The smoke from these fires is covering  alot of the country.

Tonight I pray for all the folks out west in the paths of these fires and for the fire fighters as they battle these fires in triple digit temperatures. May God be with all of you and put His protective arms around you.
Thankful for my blessings of this day and everyday.
Good night and God Bless