geez-time flies by!

Well, I WAS going to try to keep up with this blog. Guess what...

Anyways, a month later:

We spent the weekend getting most of the new kitchen settled. I love it..it is so light, scenic and clean!

It took us one whole day to get two appliances moved, set up and cleaned..but..tonight I was able to get crushed ice (never had the option before!) out of my CLEAN and relocated refrigerator and made Maple Pot Roast on my stove! What a joy to have light, running water and a dishwasher all in the same room!

The Mennonite company will be returning to finish putting up the upper cabinets and then we will only have cam lights, moldings and major unpacking of dishes to do!

Tonight, my legs ache from somethingorother and my eyes are going shut so I will sign off.

Here is the new pot roast recipe I tried. Yummy!

Maple Pot Roast

2 Servings
Prep: 15 min. Cook: 2 hours
Ingredients
3/4 pound boneless beef chuck roast (3/4 to 1 inch thick)
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup maple syrup
4-1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1-1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon grated orange peel
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 medium carrot, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 celery rib, cut into 2-inch pieces
8 fresh pearl onions, peeled
1 large potato, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
Directions
In a Dutch oven coated with cooking spray, brown meat on both sides. Combine the orange juice, syrup, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, orange peel, salt and pepper; pour over roast. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour.
Add the carrot, celery and onions; cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Add potato; cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. Serve roast and vegetables with pan juices. Yield: 2 servings.

New Kitchen

This week has been exciting around our house! After living without a kitchen since June 2009, we are amidst the stages of getting our new finished. After totally demolishing the whole side of the house, my h has carefully and methodically put together a new kitchen, breakfast area, pantry, small bedroom and cellarway. The painting is almost done, the cupboards are partially in, the flooring is picked and will be installed next week and the countertop person is coming today to give us an estimate. The big window looks down on Lake Wobegone (the biggest of our ponds). It is wonderful to gaze out at the pair of nesting Canadian geese, see the mallards and occasional visitng ducks who swoop down to spend a few hours swimming around. On sunny days, we see a multitude of "shiny" rocks which actually are the painted turtles coming up for some rays. The colors in the fall will be breathtaking not to be outdone but the delicate greens of spring. The most beautiful sight, to me anyways, is the dark night when the moon is coming up over the horizon light the landscape with its glow - reflecting the trees and the stars in the pond. It is as if God has painted his own landscape right on our picture window!



I will be thrilled to have cupboard space, a dishwasher and counter galore! The last time I had an adequate and modern kitchen was in the early eighties. The Mennonites did a meticulous and beautiful job of puting the quarter sawn oak cabinets together.



I could not resist putting a bowl of fruit on the table even though, the room is not finished. I will tempt you, bit by bit with images, to give you a hint of what it will all look like when it is completed.



As Julia would say, Grande Appetif!

Spring Has Sprung

Am going to attempt to continue this blog I started long ago. It might be sporadic but I have found, writing is good for the soul, so...

It is 5:57 am. I am on the couch with one dog snuggled up next to me and the other snoring at the other end. It would be so easy to shut my eyes and join them but, today is a working day so I will slug my coffee and get on with it.

Peepers are announcing the arrival of the morn. Such a sweet sound that I have enjoyed since childhood. I guess you have to be a country person

to appreciate a peeper concert. Those of us who did grow our wings in the rural surroundings are the ones who always comment and smile when they have heard the peepers rally from amidst the last cold of winter. It makes me have stronger bonds with the earth and instills thoughts that "hope SPRINGS eternal". I even crack the window open at night when it is still a little chilly. just so I can drift off to dreamland with the sound of the peepers in my ears.

Song birds are abound filling the air with their sweet music as well. I have heard a few warblers but haven't gotten up in the woods to check out their identities. Their chords sway in the pine trees in the front of our property but they remain a mysterious traveler because I can not locate them.

Oh to end the trek I make every day to the working world. I long for the days when time is my own and I can explore every bird call I hear, follow every fish ripple on the pond and head to the woods with my dogs as my guides.

"My" spring is now becoming my autumn quickly. I have to pluck every joyful moment I can.

a beautiful day

(found this old journal page I never got posted)
Good Morning Everyone!





I woke to the sounds of song birds and gently blowing wind through the pine trees. I love both of the sounds, music to my ears!





My husband had to go to an overnight conference yesterday. I called him from our porch to tell him how beautiful it was and that I was taking in all the nature sounds and views. He said he was sitting in an auditorium with three hundred people. Poor lad!





The dogs and I sat on the porch for two hours. I was able to hear a Cerulean Warbler which I identified though a web site, http://www.birding.com/. It sort of sounds like an upward whistle.

The dogs are restless on the porch, moving from place to place. The sun cooks them a little then they have to move to the shade for awhile. They love to be outside with us. They are such patient little guys to wait all day in the house for us during the week. (Garth just did an "over easy" maneuver.)

There are so many warblers and I am so ignorant as to all their songs. Every year I have to start all over again. As I was sitting on the porch I saw red wing blackbirds, a kingfisher, goldfinch, starlings, chipping sparrows, mallard ducks and one unidentified bird.



Today I am meeting my son, niece and husband for an Applebees birthday celebration (mine). It was this week. Nice birthday treats and surprises at work from staff and kids. My husband gave me cash for an upcoming stamping tradeshow I am going to. Yeah!

Deer Chatter

This week was a quiet week at work but I got so much done organizing and cleaning. Tomorrow when I go to my office, it will be easier to tackle the last few weeks we have before the end of school. I redecorated and fertilized plants as well.

Two of my sisters came yesterday and took me out for breakfast for my birthday. We had a great day! Did a little antiquing, riding the back roads, touring the cottage and then ending up on the Pug (our six wheeled vehicle) for a woods ride. I love when they come. We laugh ourselves silly and enjoy so much of the same things.

Honeysuckle is leafing out, ferns are springing to life after their long winter of being flattened out by the snow, adder's tongue is leafing out and coltsfoot is in bloom.

We did hear an interesting conglomeration of sounds in the woods when we had stopped for a few moments to take in the nature sounds. None of us could figure it out. It sounded like a baby crying, turkeys clucking, animals fighting, machinery---- it was such a puzzle!

When the noise had quieted down, we proceed on and to our surprise, we came upon seven deer that had been gathered together! Off they bounced through the woods with their white tails flagging! We were astonished! Never before had we ever know they make such weird noises. I looked up deer sounds on the web and to my surprise, they do make different sounds!

We saw only a few birds but the afternoon time is their quietest time of the day. Morning is when you can witness the most activity.

We have a blue-winged teal duck nesting in one of our duck boxes. Actually it is an old nail key nailed to a tree. I never knew that they nested in boxes. I thought that only wood ducks did. It will be fun to see their babies flop out of the hole when they are old enough. I hope we are home to see it.

Today I have to paint an old table donated by my sister for the cottage as a work table. The cleaning is done for the week, so after that I am a free spirit and will take my paper fingers to the cottage so they can get to work!

Happy Sunday!

Twit

Bunnies n' Bonnies

Happy Easter Everyone!

What a chill around Lake Wobegone this morning! You'd never know it was Easter. The bunnies had to be hopping very quickly to make their deliveries today in order to keep warm! (This little guy is tuckered out from his travels!)

Luckily I had made rolls and salad yesterday to take to my sister, Bonnie's home, for the holiday dinner so when I got up, I didn't have to rush around like I usually do.

We had a lovely gathering of some of my nephews and their families. It was good to see them all as I only get to visit with them occasionally. One of my great nephews presented me with a beautiful orchid. I have never had one before. It was such a sweet gesture on his part. 

After the meal, we drove to see where my nephew, Pete, would be building his new home. It was a beautiful sight with much area for planting new trees and gardens. Both he and his wife, Eva, are workers. It will be a show place for sure!

Then off we went to my sister, Mary's. Saw many of her family as well. She gave me an old table to put in the cottage for my card gatherings I hope to have. 

My son, Mike, had a good day visiting his dad. That is always nice. He has midterms this week. Wish him well!

Garth, our little black dog, is digging on the couch telling me it is time for bed. He can take just so much and when it's time, he lets me know he is ready for the sack!

Back to work tomorrow. My husband has the whole week off but, unfortunately, I have to drag my butt to work. It is always a rough week when no one is there. I miss the kids and staff and am always glad to see them rushing in the doors in the morning. Makes my days fly by with their entertaining hormonal escapades!

Twit

My Day Off

It was so nice to have the day off. I actually stayed in bed until 8:30! That is something for me. I love to stay home, especially in the morning. I can drink my coffee leisurely, curl up with the dogs and watch the goings on around Lake Wobegone.

My husband actually got up earlier than I did. He was busy doing his thing in the barn and racing around the property on our six wheeler. His latest toy is a new lift for the barn so he can work on his cars easier. He was very pleased with that purchase, for sure! 

I got a "conference" call from my friends, Beth and Mary, to plan a stamping trip to Buffalo next month to a trade show. I told them it was my first conference call and if I had known I was going to get one, I would have gotten out of my p.j.'s!

After cleaning up the house, I worked in the cottage for the afternoon. I shouldn't say "worked" as it is really playing. I have gotten a few stamp sets on Ebay lately and put together a few cards using them. The one I was most excited about was a set called, "Nature's Sketchbook", a retired Stampin Up set. It has a beautiful stamp of a black poll warbler so I quickly made a card using it.  I also experimented with my Big Shot machine and cardboard. I made flowers and painted and assembled them for a card. 

Tonight we opted for a fish fry takeout and both of us clicked along on our laptops afterward, side by side. It's too bad older people in nursing homes don't have laptops. What a great way to pass the time!

Twitter

Hi There!

Sorry - I have been lax lately about blogging because... 

In-laws 50th anniversary party last weekend, 45 people to cook for. As for my part of the meal, I did salt potatoes, four batches of rolls and a huge quantity of good old baked beans! My husband helped me - did most of the carrying and running errands. 

Shopping with my friend, Maria, one day after work.  We did the Michael's, Kohl's, B.J.'s route and then we had dinner and hopped over to Abbots for a yummy chocolate almond cone, my favorite! We were both still so tired from the surgeries, it took some of the joy out of shopping.

Cleaning - hadn't done much in a month. Just surface as that is all my healing body would allow me to do. I did the upstairs on Saturday and had plugged away downstairs all last week.

Helping my friend, Beth

get ready for her next card workshop. It was so much fun! She does such a nice job and is so gracious with everyone. She retired last week so I ordered a cake for her workshop to celebrate.

Resting, a lot of resting. 

Busy Day

Today was a day of fun and relaxation. 

My brother-in-law and four of his children (he has eight) came to fish and the kids also did a bit of crafting with me. They all made bookmarks which they decorated and fashioned other odds and ends of paper treasures which they toted home in their little zip lock bags. After pizza, we dashed back (I walked) to the cottage and finished up their projects then off they went fishing again until dark. I am sure tonight they are tired, little, crafty, fisher people!

Two of our neighbor boys

 showed up to fish also. There was a lot of turmoil in Lake Wobegone today. I am sure the fish will sleep well tonight also.

My husband and I started the day off going out to breakfast. We  had quite a bit of rain this morning. The wind was pretty hefty and blew the wood down  we had on the porch. It made such a CRASH we thought a big branch had fallen on the roof.

I made quite a few things today in the cottage before the my little crafters showed up. Tonight I am whipped and ready for bed. The little doggies in the picture are my own little babes who are tucked up next to

 me now on the couch sound asleep. They are exhausted after being outside today and with our company.

Nightie-Night!

New Blog Name

Yes, you are at the old Twitterinkings. I did rename it so it has more originality. What do you think?

Worked in the cottage today and came up with the name while I was working on cards and watching turtles bob up and down in Cottage Pond.

Got two sets of stamps mounted and did five cards and two card frames. I will get  a picture of what they are and post it for you. I have enjoyed doing them. I call them "card frames" for lack of another description. I came up with this idea after I had bought the wrong frames and was too lazy to return them to the dollar store.

Have a good day!

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SWITCH OFF YOUR LIGHTS!

GERM FREAK!

Having a rough time healing and now I have "the bug".  

Where I work, I am exposed to so many germs. I am the last stop on the train for the sickies who are sent home. 

If I know they are ill beforehand, I sign them out. Sometimes it is too late! After they have signed their name and laid the pen down, they say, "I am sick, I am going home!" Great! And you used your germy little hand on my pen and spread your germs in my area! (thinking to myself) But I say, "Feel better, get some rest." Then as soon as they are out of sight, I grab my germ killing wipes and feverishly scrub everything they have touched.  Some of the kids know what a germ phobic I am and tell me beforehand, "I am sick, can you call my Mom?" I respond: "Gladly and thank you." 

The worse part is I can't have the fresh air anymore. They changed the windows and now they don't open. Crazy! A public place filled with people and I can't throw open the window to cleanse the environment.  I have used every sick day they have given me. I have never taken a sick day unless I was really sick. I think jobs like mine, where I am the last stop in Germ Land, I should get extra sick days. Your job should be prorated by the exposure you have to the public. Makes sense but it will never happen. So all I can do is wash 50 times a day and scrub. I should have been a doctor. At least I could have prescribed meds for all the sickies!

spring signs

The first day of spring brought:

beautiful songs from the woods

two muskrats

wood ducks

two sets of quarrelsome Canadian geese

a smile to my husbands face

two little dogs with fresh haircuts

robins everywhere

sunshine

thawed ponds

less pain - finally

cluster flies, yuk!

Tomorrow we are going to try a "new to us" pancake place. It is only a few minutes away and run by a man who worked with my brother years ago. They are only open a few weekends so we have to get there. Last year we missed it.

Today I am hoping to get to my beloved cottage. I haven't worked there in so long the spiders will be making webs through my stamps! I have so many thank you cards to make for nice things my friends and family did for me after I had my surgery.

 Baby cards are on the "to do" list as well. People at work are popping out little ones. 

I hope someday I can have web access at Phoebe's Cottage. There are so many stamping techniques I want to try that are on YouTube but by the time I get down there, I can't remember them.

I am thinking about changing the name of my blog. When I first came up with the name, I had no idea "twitter" was a word used frequently in the web world of communication until my sister, "G" pointed it out. Since I have a thing about naming, I am pondering new names for my blog. I have always enjoyed thrashing about business names, home names, etc., in my head. I have often thought I should have started a business to help people name their businesses. It may not have been successful if I done it, but I would surely have enjoyed it. Anyways, getting back on track, you may see a new title on my blog one of these days.

Happy Belated 50th to my sister and her husband!

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Irish Love

Tomorrow is my "heart" holiday. I love Ireland and its people!

I could go back 100 times and never get bored. The country is definitely the most beautiful I have ever been to. With the lush greens, mountainous roads, breathtaking oceanic views, gracious people and SHEEP, who could ask for more.

The last time I went, I was accompanied by my three sisters, Mary, Sylvia and Bonnie. We had such a delightful time. We laughed from coast to coast and shopped from one town to another. It was the trip of a lifetime for all of us and we hope to do it again soon. 

I did all of the driving but was given no credit as my sister, Bonnie, was the navigator and consequently sat on the left side of the front. Given that in Ireland the drivers sit on the right side, my "back seat sisters", would forget who was driving and would marvel at all her talents to read a map, eat, rummage through bags and still be able to drive us through treacherous mountain roads without taking us off the edge of the mountain! Then they would remember and laugh, "Oh, that's right, Bonnie is not even driving!" (You can tell they are related to the Twit!)

Staying in farm bed and breakfasts was so comforting given that we grew up on a sheep farm. The hosts and hostesses were very gracious and each B&B was unique. The splendor of the bigger mansions was equaled no greater than the warmth of the smaller homes we stayed in.

My favorite county is Galway. Mountains filled with sheep, calling for each other from hill to hill, a little bit of isolation and beautiful views left me with a feeling of

 heaven and wonder. 

It is such a relaxing vacation to go on. I only wish I could stay longer. 

The time always flies by as 

does the money.

Hoping you and yours have a wonderful St. Patrick's Day!

"Top of the Morning to" You!

Twit

A Little Bit of Heaven

Today I had a visit from my oldest sister, Mary, the second in line of my family of seven children. Mary is quiet, kind and calming. It was good of her to visit me. I needed it.  Today marks week number two post-op. I am doing better but still sore and very tired. 

She took me on a ride today, the first I have been out for a non-medical reason. We went to what everyone around here calls "the flats". 

This time of year the flats are abundant with birding activity. Mary and I share that love. We are happiest with binoculars stuck to our eyes, heads swinging to and fro accompanied by an unending flow of utterances coming from out mouths when we see birds. "Oh look, see that oak tree? Look at the upper left side. WHAT IS THAT? I don't know that bird! Do you think it is a......"    and off we go with our speculations, comparisons and most times before we can get a good look, off the bird goes. 

Today we were lucky. We saw-

1. about 500 or more swan(tundra or trumpeter or mute?) Of course, I forgot one of my 15 bird books so we couldn't i.d. specifically. It was a breathtaking sight though. I have never seen so many together in my lifetime!

2. a horned lark (a very sharp, almost English looking butler type of bird)

3. an American Bald eagle (how exciting!)

4. gulls

5. many varieties of ducks ( couldn't i.d. most of them, no book!)

6. one nuthatch

7. robins

8. chickadees

9. one pheasant - a very proud cock looking for a mate I assume by the way he was strutting.

10. a multitude of Canadian geese

By the time we got home, I was very tired but it was a delightful time.

Our "sister days" go so quickly. I always remember something I want to show to them or tell them after they go. 

All of our times together are so precious. One of my fondest was when four of us went to Ireland together for a two week trek around the green isle. We laughed, had collective trips down memory lane and thoroughly enjoyed each other.

A Little Bit of Heaven

(Author Unknown)

Have you ever heard the story of how Ireland got it's name?

I'll tell you, so you'll understand from where old Ireland came.

No wonder that we're proud of that dear land across the sea,

For here's the way me dear old mother told the tale to me.

Shure, a little bit of Heaven fell from out of the sky one day,

And nestled on the ocean in a spot so far away;

And when the Angels found it,

Shure it looked so sweet and fair.

They said, "Suppose we leave it, for it looks so peaceful there."

So they sprinkled it with star dust just to make the shamrocks grow;

'Tis the only place you'll find them no matter where you go;

Then they dotted it with silver to make it's lakes so grand,

And when they had if finished, shure they called it Ireland.

'Tis a dear old land of fairies and of wondrous wishing wells;

And nowhere else on God's green earth have they such lakes and dells!

No wonder that the Angles loved it's shamrock bordered shore.

'Tis a little bit of Heaven and I love it more and more.

Have a 

good day lassies!

TWITTER

Eau de Printemps

Today I ventured outdoors - aah, the perfume of spring!

 It is a mixture of mud, crushed evergreens under my feet and the fresh scent of the wind whipping through the trees but above all, the hope in your senses of better days to come.

I saw two robins, two mallards, some juncos and heard a woodpecker, probably a hairy or downy. Also, I viewed much evidence of deer and the flattened out, but resistant fern, as green as ever. The creeks have sprung to life, sort of like when we used to step out of the old hated girdles.

 

The water ripples were chorusing freedom and excitement if you listened. The wind was a little extreme at times to show that winter still was hanging on by blue fingernails but the sun was showing proudly, patiently through the clouds as if to say, "just a matter of time, my friend, just a matter of time."

The best thing I like about spring before April 1st is NO SNAKES! I usually see them on that day but not before so I feel like I can enjoy traipsing about without fear of them slithering near me during the next few weeks. I have always feared them. I think because they don't bark, chirp or otherwise make any sound. You look down and THERE it is!

Over the years I have been kinder to them. I give them three chances by carrying them away on a shovel (if I can deal with them slithering around). If it keeps coming back, it goes to the great hole in the sky. I hate them in the flower bed! I get so into my flowers and happily working and digging around, pretending I am Martha and that's when, BAM!, there it lies amongst my perfectly poised posy. I realize it is helping me out with the bugs but I can't get the creepers out of my blood.

It doesn't help when you hear stories about the 4-1/2 foot python that recently found its way into a kitchen within our news area!

Spring is a contradictory time as well. Along with the first show of buds and creeks, is  the graffiti of disgust. When I ride in the car, the landscape that whizzes by the window displays scenes as if nature has not tidied up her dirty bedroom in a long time - garbage bags, cups, cast-off tires, dearly departed Bambi's and everything else imaginable. We have become a nation of waste and laziness. If the garbage is near your residence, why not pick it up. Even if you didn't put it there, it degrades your home and makes the surroundings look like you live in a garbage dump. It takes such little effort to beautify a home. 

Plant a few flowers, pickup, mow your lawn and take a trip to the dump then sit back and enjoy the view!

Enough said.

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back from lala land

Hi,

I am back from the brink. It will be awhile before I feel like being creative so here is someone to entertain you. You will love her!

ain't no mountain low enough...

This will be my last posting for a few days. Big doings ahead!

 For those of you that know about my upcoming event, I can't tell how glad I am that I made the decision to do it. Every day is getting harder and harder to get through. And when everything gets back to normal, it will be so much closer to spring and the joy of seeing my flowers popping up!

Happy Belated Birthday to my great niece, Catherin, who turned a big three yesterday. She is a sweetie!

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Adoption Day!

Today marks the 26th anniversary of the day that I received the best gift I have ever gotten!  My son!

The first picture I ever saw of him was a photo laying on my kitchen table. I was tired and had just gotten home after a busy day of errands. I still had to go to the barn to feed and bed down 18 horses. I asked Mike's father who the baby was thinking he had agreed for me to babysit for someone. Since I already ran a very small trailer park and a horse boarding facility, I was thinking to myself, "I can't believe he wants me to do more!"

At that moment, my world was rocked! When I heard they finally had a baby for us, my knees became weak! We had waited 11 years for this and finally, it had arrived!

He was the cutest thing I had ever seen. He had long black hair that floated on his head when he moved like palm tree leaves in the wind. His foster mom had dressed him in a little flannel shirt and matching lined overalls when we first met him. I spoke to her a short time afterwards and she said she knew we lived on a farm and wanted him dressed appropriately for his new home. She was a very sweet lady and though I never met her, I knew she loved him too.  When we first saw him, he had the biggest smile on his face as if to say, "Hey, I have been waiting for you!"  We fell in love instantly and the rest is history!

I have loved every moment, day, week and year that I have been a mother to him. He has given me such joy and happiness. I burst with pride thinking about his accomplishments and the goals he has for himself. He has enriched my life beyond what I ever could have believed.

Soon he will be graduating from college and moving off to start a career. He will always be my little, darling boy who with his charming smile can always make me laugh. He has brought to me a world I never knew existed. The bond between a child and a mother is an amazing thing.  It is something I thank God that I was given a chance to experience.

I love you Michael!

Twittermom

a few of my favorite things...and

Sometimes it is interesting when you get those emails of people's likes and dislikes, then you pass it on and put yours in, you know what I am talking about. I like to read them because even if you feel you know a person very well, they may surprise you.

Here are some of mine.  Feel free to comment and give me yours if you like.

Likes:

-Coconut cream pie

-Listening to rain on the roof, so peaceful to me

-Looking through clean panes of glass after I have laboriously washed them

-Seeing the first buds in the spring when you have lost all hope of having warm weather again

-The work ethic of my husband, he never stops

-Listening to my dog snore, only one of them does

-Hearing my husband whistle or try to, not his strong point

-Looking at freshly painted walls, makes you think differently about your surroundings somehow

-The smell of freshly picked lilacs in a home

-Anticipation of getting together with my sisters for a fun outing

-Clean sheets on the bed after having them hang outdoors

-Going on a stamping outing with Beth

-No dirty dishes on the counter

-A drive to the ice cream parlor in our old car, Sophie

-Breakfast out, I like it better than dinner out

-Hearing and watching creeks come to life in the spring

-Listening to the last bird singing before bedtime, it makes me feel as if I had just been tucked into bed

-sheep, birds, cows, chickens, cats, dogs

-The connection I have with my friend, Maria, sometimes we don't even have to speak to know what the other is thinking

-Going to Ireland!!

-Hearing my son's voice on the phone

Dislikes:

-SSSSSSSSSSSnakes!!

-Backstabbers, especially when you think you are safe around someone

-GERMS, everyone that knows me is aware of my phobia

-Mountains of laundry

-Hearing my husband lose his cool

-The phone ringing, someday I am going to count the number of phone calls I get at work in one day!

-Dry heels

-Leaving home because of another phobia I have, fire!

-A weed filled garden

-Lawns waiting to be mowed

-Smelly houses

-Dirty refrigerators

-Milk 

-Sci-fi

-People who are cruel to animals

Things I miss and can't get back..

- a slim figure

-my mother's voice

-my cat, Donald, my dogs, Missy and Pepper, my mare, Poetry and many other pets that  I have known and loved

-my son in his toddler years - His explorations and comments always made me laugh. "How far can you throw up, Uncle George?"

-Cheap gas

-Good vision without glasses

-Unending energy, I used to run everywhere, now I feel lucky if I don't fall down!

-Good shopping close by - "out in the boonies" shopping is for the birds!

-Weekend trips, if we can't take our dogs, we don't go!

-My memory

Twitterwho?

It's Sap Season!

One of our traditions is the annual trek to Cartwright's Inn.  It happens about the time you when the birds find their spring voices, the red osher looks really red against the snow and we've had a couple of days where we think 30 degrees is WARM!

For those of you unfamiliar with the place, it is THE place to go for pancakes when spring peeks it's sunny head around the corner. I have been going there since I was 13. I know because that is the year they opened. It was a one room shack and the first restaurant I ever went to with my mom that I can remember. It was very primitive, odds and ends of kitchen tables and chairs. Silverware that would have ended up in the garage sale by today's standards and lost plates from settings of eight.

The pancakes are awesome buckwheat, that melt in your mouth and the syrup is made on the premises.

It has changed over the years. Mr. Cartwright died but his wife, children and probably their children carry on. Now there are many dining rooms and it is run so efficiently, your pancakes are on your table in a flash. We always order the "unlimited" pancakes from the menu so there are as many as your stomach can hold. 

People come from all over to go there. When it closes for the season, it is kind of sad but then, that means that spring is definitely here and winter is gone. Who can shed tears over the loss of pancakes, when with it, comes the loss of snow!

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HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Remember how exciting Valentine's Day was when we were kids?  I can remember everyone bringing in a shoebox to school, decorating it and slicing that slot in the top.  Then we would put it on our desk and see who put a card in. I don't ever remember getting a Valentine card that sent me flying with heart fluttering, but I do remember how much fun it was to decorate that box. 

My mom used to make a heart shaped coconut cake (my favorite). It was so yummy! 

The first time I ever got candy from a boy, I think I was in 6th grade. His name was Lance Lefforts. His mom worked with my mom at W. T. Grant's. 

He had saved the wrappers from his Mallo Cups and sent to get me a pretty ample size box of Mallo Cups for a gift. I remember I was very embarrassed. I felt no attraction to him but I did eat the candy with relish. They moved away shortly after that. 

Today for Valentine's Day, I probably will take my heart down the hill to my cottage and play. I got up at 5 a.m. and did my work so I could play without feeling guilty. I did make Valentine cards this week but never sent them out. Time got away from me.  

Happy Valentine's Day Michael!

waitin' for the garden

Today Ma is anxious to git out in the garden. Can't hardly wait to git on her apron and jump in her galoshes!

Had rain on the hill overnight. So nice to hear when yur laying in bed. It even drowned out some of Pa's snoring! When it hits the metal roof, it's one of Ma's joy noises on earth!

(Pa was just criticizing Ma's writin'. She told him to mind his oon buzines! He's got no blogsay on her compooter!) Told him to git to that ther barn!

Pa and Ma got in one load of wood yesterday. Of course, just before, Ma had tooken a shower and prettied up her hair. She had to stand outside under the eaves and hand wood over to Pa. She looked like a drowned rat when she got dun. She might as well have never warmed up the water to take a bath. Could've taken in under the eaves!

Ma's just left in a hurry. Saw the neighbors coming down the lane...

For those of you who still are having trouble posting comments, I found these directions from the blog, "Freckled Nest":

1. Underneath the blog text (& every blog post), it says a number and "comments". Click that!

example: Posted by Freckled Nest at 10:07 AM 2 comments

2. It will open/popup a new window. You will see other peoples comments, then at the bottom of the popup, you can type your comment in the white box.

3. Then, click 'Publish Your Comment'. And you're done.

Hope that helps!

Ma seys, "Have a good Sunday!"

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my wrinkles are deepening

Home today with the bug. 

I always feel so frustrated when I get sick. Seems like that is the time when I can review in my brain the best, most comprehensive list of things that need to be done at the homestead. And me feeling so poorly and all, I haven't the strength to get them done. And so it gnaws at me and makes me feel even worse. 

When the evil bug has left me, my brain-list floats away likes leaves in a pile. I can only see the absolute essential things that need to be done and the rest of the time, my cottage calls me. I feel like I have lost precious time down there.

I can't imagine how women years ago coped with the endless drudgery of "chores". From sunup to sundown, every minute was filled with the essential things that they needed to do.  My grandmother was one of those women who seemed to relish in the things that she did around her home in terms of cleaning and cooking. Maybe if I didn't have to work outside the home, I would relish it more also. (NOT)

My mother, on the other hand, was the type of woman who would slave away at her chores but did enjoy the finer things of life when she could. By "finer things" I mean she would see things that would excite and beckon her, although they were not things of luxury. No movies, pearls or fun shopping trips for her. She was content wth the simple pleasures of life. She was an avid nature lover who would run out the door when she heard the distant call of the high flying Canadian act of geese heading south, one more time. When I was a child it was an awesome act of mother nature that happened only twice a year. Geese didn't hang with gangs like they do now here in the winter like members of the "hood".

When we heard their voices in the fall announcing their exit, we knew we'd have months coming soon of cold and snow, jaunts to the woodpile, cold bed covers at night, frigid trips to the barn to make sure the animals were fed and always a trek to the creek to break the ice so they could drink water. 

Cars stuck in the slush, cold seats in the church on Sunday morning and sometimes 

days when there was no school because the one and only county snowblower was busy freeing up another town. Mom would say, "The grator's coming up the road, we should be able to get out soon". The "grator' was a machine owned by our town whose normal job was spreading gravel in the road but in the winter it was a necessity to help clear the roads of snow and slush. It was exciting to go stand in the front yard and watch it do it's work.

Just in my lifetime, so much has evolved. Furnaces for 99% of homes and public places, electric blankets to keep your toes warm at night and all wheel, front wheel or four wheel drive vehicles, that sometimes, still get stuck but not like the olden days. Even as a child, I knew about rocking the car forward and back, to get you out of the snow bank. Everyone carried a shovel and there were always ashes to put around the tires to help you get out. If all else failed, someone would come with a tractor to help you out. How many times have you seen a tractor pulling cars out lately?  If a church has no heat on Sunday morning now, church is canceled for the Almighty would surely understand!

Yes, life is easier now but with the ease we have lost some of the fun times that only poverty and necessity can create. We did not have much money so we didn't get a lot of candy. One of the delights we experienced in the winter was watching my mom standing on the icy front porch making  molasses taffy!

She would make it from scratch on the stove and then, to get it to the right consistency, where it could be cut into delicious little morsels for her children, she would stay out on the front porch to fulfill our pleasures in the frigid cold. 

There she would twist and work the candy until it turned tan in color after what seemed an eternity to me. (She was the one in the cold but I was only thinking of getting that little sugar thing into my mouth!) We would press our noses to the long dining room windows and watch her twirl the long brown tendrails as if they were long thick locks of hair. She could work wonders with it. I have tried to do it as an adult, but never got the knack of it.

Perhaps because I was the youngest of seven, I may have had it easier than my sisters and brother but compared to how luxurious life is today, it seemed like hard times then, but sweeter, more loving days. Our family had fun together. My mother loved us for sure. I am sure my father did also but he died when I had just turned eight so my recollections of him are only those I can count on one hand and even then, I am short a few fingers of memories...

a poorly feelin' retch of a twit