MEMORY FROM CHRISTMAS

              A memory most of us share

My daughter, was explaining her Christmas tree dilemma .  
She will be hosting the family Christmas  this year but because they just adopted a kitten!!  Putting up the tree right now was not an option.

She was explaining  how in the old days 👵  the tree was not put up until Christmas day and then taken down the same day.  Not, sure if this is true but it was her explanation.

She went on to say "you remember"😒 well no!  not really.
What I do remember is the orange in my stocking.  It was a big deal!! 

  I don't remember getting a lot of gifts.  I do remember the stocking.  Filled with nuts and that wonderful orange.

WELCOME TO MY PITY PARTY

                           Welcome

 

I know, there are people holding it together that have a better reason for a pity party then I do.  
But, I thought maybe I would get off this merry go round of pity if I shared it!!

A few years ago, I was diagnosed with macular degeneration, in my right eye.   The treatment is a course of shots to the eye.  I know, when I was first told, I must have read the consent forum a hundred times.  You know, the one giving permission!!!    I just knew, they did not mean a shot in the EYE!!  Who does that????

So, for awhile the shots seem to be working, my eye sight was holding.  Over the past few months, the shot's have stopped working and vision is slowly decreasing in that eye.

Next month they will try a new medicine, no guarantees. 
it is effecting how I sew, sometimes it is funny as I reach for thread that is not there, other times it is frustrating.

This is just a set back, and like I said, there are people holding it all together, that are worse off then me. Thank you for letting me vent.  

MORE MEMORIES

                       Christmas memories from the past

      My little Lulu loved the snow.  Hated rain but loved snow                     I miss her so much.

                                      Grandbabies, waiting for Christmas

                         Ornaments that have a story

 

                Grandbabies that cut their hair, right before going to the nutcracker ballet.


 These are a few of my favorite things.   Maybe what I love the most about Christmas is the memories we make.

A BAG LADY

                  A bag for everyone

I really do love to wrap presents.  This year I have some strange size items and finding boxes was getting to be a chore.  So----bags it will be!!

                   Big bags and little bags-lots and lots of bags.

                Mr. snowman, is out of the box,  this is his favorite time of the year.  He gets to stay out for awhile because he is a winter decoration, not just for Christmas.  I love having my snowmen around in the winter months.

CHRISTMAS PAST

                                                  MEMORIES

Christmas is about memories.  It is as much about past Christmases as it is about the present one.
Every ornament I pick up has a memory attached, every decoration tells a story.
This year, is actually my first Christmas to decorate in our new/old house. Last year I spent in not the best circumstance.   As I have shared, we have down sized, so when the boxes of decorations where brought here from storage, I felt panic.  I am not the type of person that parts with things easily.  I knew, something would have to go---
That something, ended up being my Christmas village (insert tears).  I was so blessed to find out my son Tony and his family would be glad to take the village.  will have to share pictures of it all put together.
BUT!!!  there was a hold out, a little house I could not part with.  One Christmas, my granddaughter Zoe, came running in the house on Christmas eve and put this little house right in the middle of all the village homes.  I wanted to cry, how precious this little house is.  How it got to take center stage in the village.  How it is a hold out and is decorating my home this year.

SO, IT BEGINS

                             CHRISTMAS?

So, here we go.  The Christmas season has officially begun, or so they say.
I am not a black Friday person.  In fact, I love making my gifts.   I have been working on this years gifts since some time in April.  The biggest of all the gifts will go to my grandson.  

 I do not know why I didn't take a full picture of the top before it went off to the long arm lady.  A long arm person, is what we call people that have huge (long arm) machines that will quilt for you.
I have been thinking of maybe learning to do free motion quilting on my sewing machine, but, after a glass of wine I come to my senses and just send the tops out to be quilted.
Since the idea to make him a quilt didn't come until late, I think it was October!!  So I will not get it back until Dec.23rd. I do have to wait my turn. 

A WONDERFUL DAY

 Another wonderful Thanksgiving day, and I feel so blessed.

 We had our feast in the home our son built,  at a table that he built. The wood for the table came from a tree they had cut down to make space to build the home.

I must admit, this year I did very little kitchen work. My daughter along with both daughter in laws, did all the work. I did watch, so that counts for something.

 
 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

                           HAPPY THANKSGIVING

This year is so much better for me then the last year was. So I am very thankful.  I am thankful for family and the family that will be together tomorrow.

I pray your day is wonderful. 

 

OH BJ LOOK!!

   I just knew we are kindred spirits.

How could we not be, when we both fell in love with the same cabinet???

I kept looking at the cabinet you posted and thought wow, that could sure be pretty in the right hands.  Well, those hands were your hands and I love how you saved this wonderful cabinet.

Mine, is still in the wood finish, so it took me a second to realize that it is the very same cabinet!

 BJ"S cabinet








BJ"S CABINET after fixing. 

If you would like to see BJ's total transformation of her hutch, you can visit her here  http://bj-sweetnothings.blogspot.com/

  My cabinet, has the wood finish.  The very same rose.     
 Mine is not as well organized.
So that can be an upcoming project. 

SO MANY QUESTIONS

                        Do you ever wonder??

Our area was settled by homesteaders.  They left a few reminders that they were here.

 They left the fields, that are still farmed today by the ancestors. Homes, and barns , that once were full of life.

Homes sit empty but what story could they tell?  Did the family gather on Thanksgiving?  Were babies born here? Did they put up a tree and have Goose for Christmas dinner?  Were the times here, happy times?

 The old school is silent now, accept for when the wind blows through the missing windows.  what was the teacher like?  Was she one of the young girls that grew up in this area?  Did they use the school for church?  Was this the gathering spot for the socials?

Yes, I have many questions.  If you stand there, and listen you can hear the sounds of the past.  You can almost see the families that put in so much work to tame a wild land.

I LOVE NOVEMBER

Strange that I would love November so much, since it is usually the month we get our first snow fall.  
It is also family month, we all gather as much as time and space allows to celebrate and give thanks for being a family.
This year will be a little sadder as one family will not be able to make the celebration.  Of coarse we are the ones choosing to live on the 'other' side of the state and travel to get here involves a pass  covered in snow.
Still, we will miss them.  So here we go---count down to Christmas.

 

TEST FLIGHT

                       My Test flight

 I have to practice a bit more before the big night. My test flight didn't go very well, but. I am back and ready to get going with projects.  Have cooking to do, and of coarse more decorating.  
So, sorry for going missing.

THANK YOU FALL LOVERS!!

                       Learning to love it

Thank you to all the fall lovers, that have shared such beautiful fall stories.  I am seeing fall from a different view.
I have always seen fall, as the entry to winter.  I wasn't stopping to see how beautiful the colors are, how the wonderful cool air invites you to sit a bit outside and smell the fresh cool air.

So I tried my hand at some decorating:

                   I dressed a pumpkin

                       I added fall flowers

                                    Added some fall decorating
                                 To the hutch

Thank you friends, for sharing how pretty fall can be. 

IT SEEMS SO SOON

                              This can't be right

Walked into Lowe's and what do I spot??  that's right!  I spotted a holiday called Halloween which does not come for months yet.  Many months!  
To add to the insult, it was a 100 degree day.   I was just so thankful I did not spot a Christmas tree, that would have pushed me over the edge.
                                                        
                                                    Those little guys are kind of cute.

maybe I need to re-think this.  They would look cute on my porch.

IN NEED OF SOME ADVICE

                                        Asking the experts

I would really like to grow my blog.  I need advice from all of you who have such wonderful blogs.  I am not sure if I should respond to your comments, on the blog or by email? 
Love reading the comments, even if I am just reading them on your blogs.
I am so thrilled to meet you, and I would love to meet more. Now, this is a little hard for me as I am so darn shy.  For a long time people have said I was stand offish or thought myself better, and that's not true at all, I am terrified of people.  I like you a lot you just scare me!!
So, I think I am ready to expose myself and all my faults and short comings and to learn so much from you.  Do you know, I have lived in this new little community for a year, have talked to one neighbor once and the other neighbor, just moved away this week end.  Hope it wasn't from something I said.  I only spoke to her a few times.
so if you can spare a little advice, I would love it!!

                            our amazing valley
 

A LITTLE ACT OF KINDNESS

                                       So Tiny

Our human society raised funds for a brand new shelter.  When it was built, they became a no kill shelter.  I love animals so loved to hear that.  Before they were no kill, I was visiting with my daughter when a lady came in with a box of tiny little kittens.  The crew told her they could not take the babies, as they were to small to leave their mom.  The lady did not care, there was no way she was going to keep those kitties.  So with tears in her eyes, one of the staff, took the kitties to the back to put them to sleep.
Now, things have changed and they work through volunteers that will take the babies and give them a home, and loving care until they are big enough to go back and find a forever home.

                         If I remember right, they have 
                          to be three pounds before
                          they go back.
I am so glad there are people that will open their hearts and homes to lost dog's and cats in need of love.
        

RANDOM THOUGHTS

                                JUST THINKING!

Random thoughts  that flow throw my brain are not always good thoughts.  sometimes they are so jumbled I don't even know what I am thinking.
Right now, my thoughts are on those in Texas.  I check the computer often for any post by my Texas friends and hope and pray they are alright, so far they are all safe.
That leads me to think about the kindness of strangers, some risking their own lives for people they don't even know, and I think how kind and wonderful people are.  Then, of coarse the story is interrupted by someone looting or price gouging and I wonder why.

My thinking goes to the fact that we have so much, all the food we need, we live in a world where so much is just handed out to people and they are bored.  There was a time, when our very lives hung on the amount of work done. Each day was about survival.  There was no time, to even think about being unhappy with what we didn't have.   Not so these days.

I don't want to be a downer person, there is so much good and love in this world.  Let us pray each day, let us always find the good in others.

 Let us fill our cup with joy.  This cup is special and always reminds me to have a good day, it was given as a gift when I finished my last chemo. 

 

RELAX__SHE IS NOT COMING

I hate to be the one to break it to you but!  The Queen is not coming for tea.   I know, you have been cleaning, polishing and chasing every little crumb but she is not coming.

                     You have the tea set all ready.

                       your about as ready as you can be--
                             she still is not coming.
So, use your best china, that fancy tea cup?  use it!!  Use it today.   
In the morning, pour your coffee in the fanciest set you can find and treat yourself.  That special occasion you are saving all your fancy dishes for, well, that day is today.
Turn up the music and dance.  Name the dust bunnies and celebrate dirty dishes, they represent good food and a good time with family.
Never put chores before fun.  Those day's when the thought tries to over power you and you feel the urge to clean and polish, resist and spend your days doing what you love, with those you love.  Remember the queen is not coming!!

MY MAGNIFICANT SEVEN!!

                                      Seven members!!

I have seven, wonderful members who have joined my new blog.  I am so happy!!   Now, I feel like I am talking to you instead of my pretend people.
I also have met some wonderful new people, so giving and helpful in giving me a shove in the right direction.
I try hard to comment on your blogs, to let you know how much I appreciate all the work you are putting in your blogs.
I have learned more about gardening, finding plants I didn't know would grow in my area.  I have learned decorating on a budget, you don't have to be rich to have a rich look.  I have learned new recipe's.  Most of all I have new friends.  

 

LETS BAKE A CAKE

                                No Recipe 

This has got to be close to my all time favorite cake and you do not need a fancy recipe to make it.

 All you need is:  Yellow cake mix, although they make pineapple cake mix now.  some brown sugar, can of pineapples, some maraschino cherries, lots of butter.  

 A mixer would help and so would an oven to bake it all in.oh, yes, my favorite.  so yummy and moist and just plain good.

THE MIGHTY COLUMBIA

                   Our Amazing River

I guess I am what could be called a river rat.  I love spending time on the river.  One of the things I love the most is all the birds that also love the river.  I was going to say animals, but I didn't get the picture of the otter, I tried but he was to fast.
                    The Osprey are amazing.

I will do another post and tell you more about the Osprey. They are a protected bird and return year after year to the same nest.  Our PUD, has built places for them to nest, to keep them off of the power poles.  Along the river you will find these huge poles with Osprey nests on top.

By evening, they all seem to be home and ready to call it a day.












Another bird that we spot along the river is the Heron.

They really don't look like they should be able to fly, but they are amazing.  When they dive for fish it is really something to see.

It is time to call it a day, but we will be back soon. Nothing compares to the time we get to spend on the river.

 

BEES AND BUTTERFLYS

                                                103 is still to hot!

So I will keep planning my garden.  The good point now over the planning I will do this winter is-- in about two weeks the temps should drop and I will be able to do a lot of fall planting.

Big on my list is the white bombshell hydrangea.

 It will work perfectly in the spot I have chosen.  I will plant about 5 of them and make a hedge that will separate us from the neighbor.  It blooms in summer right when we need something new to bloom.
For my tiny patio area, I will concentrate on butterfly's and bees. 

 When I was at Lowe's this morning the bee balm plants were just humming away with bees, making the local honey I love so much.

 The colors were so pretty, but at 103 temps, now is not a good time to plant.

I will also be planting milkweed, and try to attract butterfly's.

 Also will plant a butterfly bush.  I had one in my old garden and it was planted by the patio, the smell was heavenly.  So one of those is also on my list.
Maybe staying in away from the heat and smoke is not such a bad thing.