No Foolin’…It’s The Wednesday Hodgepodge…

Can you believe it’s almost April already?  Me either!  However, my calendar says it’s Wednesday, and I know that means it’s time for The Wednesday Hodgepodge, so let’s get started!  As always, thanks to our wonderful hostess, Joyce, for another great set of questions.

1. What are two or three expectations you have of yourself?#1 To live my life in a respectful and pleasing way.  #2 To be the best wife, mother, grandmother, and homemaker I can be. #3 To enjoy each one of mine and Ed’s remaining days, together, as much as possible.

2. In what way does your outdoor space need sprucing up this spring?

Ed and I have already done some ‘sprucing up’, by cleaning out flower beds, scrubbing porches, fertilizing the grass, and planting some hanging baskets.  However, our front walkway needs some attention, and there are still several holes (where stumps have previously been ground off) that need more dirt added to them.  There’s always something that needs to be done!

3. According to this site (Roadtrippers), six of North America’s most wondrous waterfalls are-Webster’s Falls in Ontario, Upper Whitewater Falls in North Carolina, Havasu Falls in the Grand Canyon, Multnomah Falls in Oregon, The Lower Yellowstone Falls, and Niagara. Have you seen any on the list? Which one on the list would you most like to visit? Prettiest waterfall not on the list that you’ve seen in person?

Sadly, I haven’t seen any of the places on this list, but I’ve always thought it would be fun to visit Niagara Falls.  I’ve only seen two waterfalls, and both of them are small ones in Georgia.  Of the two, I’d say Anna Ruby Falls is the prettiest.

4. Looking back, what’s something you wish you’d done as a teenager?

I wish I’d gotten my driver’s license, at age 16, like everyone else did.  I didn’t get driver’s license until I was 26, but better late than never, like my mother and grandmother, before me.

5. Ham…yes please or no thank you? If you said yes please which of the following do you like best-baked ham with all the trimmings, a ham and cheese sandwich, prosciutto with melon, a ham biscuit, a bowl of split pea and ham soup, or a slice of pizza topped with ham and pineapple?

Yes, please!  I’ll take some baked ham with all the trimmings!

6. Are you typical of your generation? How so?

I’m not really sure anymore.  I used to think I was typical, but, as time goes by, I’m beginning to wonder.  So many of my generation seem to have turned liberal in their thinking.

7. April rolls in at the end of the week, and in keeping with that theme…’act the fool’, ‘nobody’s fool’, ‘a fool’s errand’, ‘could have fooled me’…which foolish idiom most recently applies to you? Explain.

I can’t say that any of these have applied to me, recently.  However, ‘could have fooled me’ would be most appropriate, in general.  I’ve always been an easy target for a practical joke to be played on.

Random:

Last week was a difficult one.  First of all, Ed and I worked hard to get the first half of our garden planted before the rain came. We stopped on row six, not because of the rain, but because I was exhausted.  We don’t want all of our vegetables getting ready at once, either.

Next, our old dog, who was blind and deaf, and had been ill for quite some time, finally crossed the rainbow bridge, on Thursday.  “Morris” was eleven, and was the last of my ‘shelter dogs’.  The following night, one of our older cats apparently had a heart attack and died, after eating supper, because we found him dead the following morning.  “Big Red” was one of my older ‘shelter cats’, who was also eleven.

One of our black hens got ‘egg bound’ and became ill, on Thursday, too.  I had to wait for Ed to bury the dog, so he could help me with the hen!  Ed managed to help her lay the egg, but she sat around and wouldn’t eat, so we’ve had to put her in isolation and treat her with medication. She’s doing better, but not quite out of the woods, yet.

Easter finally arrived, and the rains came pouring down about the time the church services got over.  This meant everyone had to brave the rain in their Sunday clothes, and we had to post-pone our annual family egg hunt!  If it hadn’t been such a stress filled week, this Mimi would have hidden some of the eggs in her house, but she just wasn’t up to it, this year.  On a scale of 1-10, I’d rate this Easter a 5.

I’ll be a bit late making my rounds to visit everyone’s blog.  Today is the day for my yearly exam at the gynecologist’s office.  See ya’ when I get back!

 

 

Springing Into Another Hodgepodge…

Happy Wednesday and Happy Hodgepodge, everybody!  The stars have aligned for me, today, and I’m able to see the ‘linky’, so I can ‘officially’ join in 🙂  As always, thank you to our kind and gracious hostess, Joyce, for keeping the Hodgepodge going.  Here are my answers to this week’s questions:

1. Has spring sprung in your little corner of the world? Other than the calendar how would I know? What’s your favorite thing about spring?

Yes, spring has definitely arrived in our little corner of the world!  The grass is green, has already been mowed once, and needs to be mowed again.  Our azaleas have been blooming for so long, I’m wondering if any blooms will be left for Easter.

My favorite thing about spring is seeing all of the trees sprouting new buds and leaves, plus enjoying all of the beautiful spring flowers. Then, of course, there’s all of those glorious, warm, sunny spring days to enjoy outside.

2. Besides the weather, what’s put a spring in your step recently?

Spring is a time for “sprucing up” around our house.  We’ve waxed floors, shampooed carpets, scrubbed porches, cleaned out flower beds, added some new garden decor to the yard, and even planted some of our vegetable garden.  “Sprucing up” makes me happy, and puts a little spring into my step 🙂

new decor for the hen house…because every hen needs a rooster!

3. How does Easter impact you?

On Easter I will be cooking lunch for our family of twelve.  Ed and I don’t attend Easter services,  we prepare lunch, then hide the eggs for an afternoon egg hunt.  Everything is ready when our family arrive from attending their church services.  That being said, as a Christian, I do understand and appreciate the day for what it is really all about.  It’s not about a big meal, new clothes, Easter baskets, or hunting for eggs.  It’s about Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, through which he paid the penalty for our sins, so we can have everlasting life, if we believe in Him. I’m a believer.

4. I saw this somewhere on Facebook and thought it would make a fun Hodgepodge question. Which of the following would you find most disappointing…

a just stuffed taco shell breaking open and spilling out before you take the first bite? dropping a just-purchased Starbucks/Dunkin Donuts coffee? opening the peanut butter jar and finding it empty? upending onto the sidewalk a just-purchased ice cream cone? a burnt bagel popping up in your toaster when you’re rushing breakfast? or cutting into an avocado and finding out it’s rotten?

I think I’d be most disappointed if I upended my just-purchased ice cream cone onto the sidewalk!  We usually only buy ice cream cones when it’s hot and we’re on vacation somewhere.  Those cones are expensive, and my anticipation of eating the cold, creamy delight is quite high…so naturally, I’d be very disappointed if I dropped my ice cream cone!!!

5. What’s something held together with tape at your house? Or a paper clip? Or a wing and a prayer?

Ed has everything in good working order, since he retired, so I can’t think of a single thing at our house that needs repairing.  However, a while back, I noticed the drain pipes, under the kitchen sink, at Ed’s parents’ house, were being held together by duct tape!

6. Do you feel underappreciated? In what way?

These days, I can thankfully say, I don’t feel underappreciated, and what a blessing that is! There have been days, in the past, when this has not always been the case.  When you’re raising children, they never fully understand or appreciate the sacrifices you make for them. However, children grow up, and become parents themselves. These days, all of our grown children have expressed their appreciation to us, at one time or another, and we love it!

7. What’s something you’d build if you knew how?

Recently, I saw [on Facebook] where a friend and former co-worker of mine has learned how to build wooden porch swings.  If only I knew how, I’d love to build a comfortable, wooden swing for our porch!

Random:  A Funny story

Every year our family hides plastic eggs on Easter.  I’ve collected plastic eggs for several years, and we now have several hundred eggs.  I store the eggs in a large trash bag.

Recently, I brought the white trash bag full of eggs, out of storage, and placed the bag near Ed’s recliner until I could make time to stuff them.  I didn’t think anymore about them that day.

The following morning, when I got ready to stuff the eggs, I noticed the bag was gone!  I asked Ed, “What did you do with my eggs?”  to which he replied, “I haven’t bothered your eggs.”  Well, it turned out that Ed, being the dutiful husband he is, had picked up the bag, thinking it was trash.  He’d promptly taken the bag [of eggs] out and tossed it into the bed of his truck!  Thank goodness, the bag hadn’t been taken down to the trash dumpster, yet, or we might have had a crisis on our hands!  Scheduled egg hunt will go on, as planned 🙂

Below is an Easter memory from the past, that includes some of those plastic eggs.  That’s little Alex, whom our daughter used to babysit.

 

May you all have a blessed and happy Easter!

Spring Is Here…

Spring officially arrived yesterday, under cloudy skies.  However, it turned out to be a beautiful day, in the end, as the clouds cleared out in the afternoon. After over a week of temperatures in the 80’s, our overnight low bottomed out at 40 degrees, last night!  Whoa!  What in the world happened to our spring weather?

early blooms of spring (a $5 bargain, at Lowes)

Since spring is here, that means lots of time is being spent outside.  There’s been a lot of clean up to do around the yard, as well as flowers waiting to be repotted, and garden soil waiting to be prepared for the rest of our 2016 garden.  We have a few plants needing a permanent home…

tomatoes, lettuce, peppers

Our new Transit Connect has come in quite handy over the past few weeks, as we’ve hauled huge bags of potting soil, lawn fertilizer,  and ant poison.  We’ve also hauled several large plants and shrubs, as well as a peach tree.  We love our van!

our van, aka the “short bus”

Ed and I enjoyed another nice (and busy) weekend.  We took our weekly shopping trip, on Friday, then enjoyed some family time with a couple of our children and their families, on Friday night. That’s always a great way to kick off the weekend!

yard signs in front of the house

On Saturday morning, Ed and I finished up our weekly shopping, then later in the afternoon, Ed helped our youngest son work on a riding lawnmower that had been sitting up for a while.  When I saw that dusty, dirty lawnmower, I didn’t have a lot of faith, but, by golly, they got that sucker running, and have already mowed some grass with it!  Ed is the man 🙂

one of several azaleas in the yard

Saturday turned out to be a pretty nice day, in spite of the clouds hanging around.  One by one, our grown children and families showed up, then gathered outside in our daughter’s yard.  All had been to the church egg hunt, earlier in the day.  We sat there for the longest time, just watching the four cousins playing and enjoying each other’s company.  It was one of those moments when I wished I could stop, or at least slow down, time.  Why can’t they stay little longer?

the Easter bunny (and Dixie chick)

Eventually, the adults decided to order pizza for supper, so I came inside to make some salad, dessert, and drink to go along with it.  Once again, my kitchen was noisy and crowded with family, but it was so good to have everyone together under one roof again!  That makes two weeks in a row–and since Easter is this coming weekend, we’ll soon make it three.

the egg tree (and Dottie chick)

Ed and I have been busy, the last couple of weeks, getting ready for spring/Easter. I went outside, yesterday, and wandered around the yard, admiring our ‘touches of spring’.  I’ve scattered a few of those ‘touches’ throughout this post.  I hope you enjoy them.

a new pair of garden gnomes

Have a great Monday, and a great second day of spring!  Ed’s already outside, riding his tractor in the garden 🙂

Thursday’s Thoughts ~ Thirty-nine Years Ago, Today…

Thirty-nine years ago, today, Ed and I moved to Ed’s parents’ farm, after living in the city for almost five years.  It was the best move we ever could have made!

I’ve told the story before,  of how Ed and I moved away from our hometown as soon as we got married.  We were so happy to be on our own, and loved the big city life…for a while.  I also told the story of how our car and our home had both been burglarized, during our years of living there, and how we knew we were getting ready to start our family, but had no desire to raise children in the city.

The years passed, one thing happened and then another, and before we knew it, Ed’s daddy offered to give us [our choice of] a plot of land, if we’d move back home to the farm.  It was an offer we couldn’t refuse.  We chose the ‘back field’ for our new home, and planned our move on St. Patrick’s Day, 1977.

1977 – our mobile home sitting in a former cow pasture

Of course, our “Bacon luck” came into play, and our move didn’t go smoothly.  We didn’t realize, until we were already in the actual process of moving our mobile home, that we would not be able to have access to electricity for another three weeks!  Since we’d be the only ones coming off the main power lines, a ‘reducer’ was necessary.  There was nothing else to do, except move in with Ed’s parents until our new transformer arrived and could be installed on a power pole close to our home.

To this day, I still remember sitting in the front living room of my late mother-in-law’s house, crying because we couldn’t stay in our home.  I also remember how Ed’s mama sat with me, and tried to console me. I remember the ten gallon aquarium of fish we had to set up, temporarily, in Ed’s old bedroom of his parents’ house!  His mother never said a word, but was probably dying a little inside, as we set up the aquarium–on top of Ed’s dresser!  I tell you, she was a special lady.

our former remodeled home, as it looks today (our daughter lives there now)

Eventually, the power company did get our ‘reducer’ installed, and we were able to finally spend the night in our home.  We had the entire back section of the family farm to ourselves.  Our only neighbors were some goats and a few cows!  We’ve always considered our place to be a little slice of heaven [on earth], and many who’ve visited have commented on what a beautiful place it is.

A lot of things have happened since that fateful day, thirty-nine years ago, when we moved back home.  Ed and added on to our mobile home twice, then, finally, remodeled the structure and removed the mobile home entirely–one piece at a time.  We became parents three times, then raised a daughter and two sons.  Ed worked at four different hospitals.  I stayed home and raised our family, with the exception of the sixteen and 1/2 years that I chose to work.  We built a game house next door to us, then, decided to add on to it and make it our new home, in 2007.  We lost all four of our parents, but gained a son-in-law, two daughters-in-law, and four grandchildren.  I had three surgeries. Ed suffered a heart attack, and had cataracts removed from both eyes…  We both now require several daily medications to control chronic health issues…  and life goes on.

our current home – the former game house (remodeled)

Ed and I are the patriarch and matriarch of the family, now. We have no idea how many more years we’ll be blessed to enjoy our little slice of heaven, here on the farm, but we’re sure trying to make the best of the time we  have!  We have some chickens and we grow our own food.

We’re SO grateful to Ed’s daddy for offering us the opportunity to share his farm as our home.  We’ve paid it forward  by extending the same offer to all of our own children. Two (out of three) children, and their families, currently share the farm with us.

Happy moving day anniversary to us!  For now, life is good.

 

The Luck O’ The Hodgepodge…

You know, I didn’t decorate for St. Patrick’s Day, this year because it’s so close to Easter.  Therefore, I actually forgot that it’s the week of St. Patrick’s Day!  That’s a first, for me.

It’s also Wednesday, and that means it’s time for The Hodgepodge.  Unfortunately, I’m not able to see the ‘linky’ today, so I can’t ‘officially’ join the party.  I guess last week’s luck didn’t last.  Sigh.

As always, thanks to Joyce for doing such a great job as hostess.  Here are this week’s questions, along with my answers.

1. What do you think about luck?

I find myself referring to ‘luck’  a lot, during every day life.  When things go wrong in our family, I often refer to it as ” Bacon luck”, or when something good happens to somebody, I find myself saying, “You lucky thing!”  However, I really don’t believe in luck, I believe in God.

2. Not counting your own backyard, what’s a favorite green space in your town, city, or state?  

The Village – St. Simon’s Island, GA

3. How do you make your life more complex than it needs to be?

I make life more complex than it needs to be by wanting to be ‘in control’ of things, when I can’t. I’ve always had difficulty delegating responsibilities, too, but as I’m getting older, that’s becoming a little easier. Last of all, I worry– a lot.  Need I say more?

4. I read here the three places you should visit with friends. They are-New York City, Hawaii, and Amsterdam (rent a bike, walk along the canal, visit one of their world class museums). I felt the need to expound on that one. Moving on…Of the three places listed which would you most like to visit with friends? What’s one place not on the list you think should be visited with friends?

I think I’d most like to visit Hawaii, not just with friends, but with anybody!!!  Anyone who knows me, knows I love the beach!  If I had to choose another place, not on the list, it would probably be the Florida Keys.

5. What’s the last live performance you saw? On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being best) how would you rate it?

I don’t know if this counts, but the last live performance I saw was either ‘Disney On Ice’ or the ‘Ringling Brothers’ Circus’, about 3 or 4 years ago.  I’d give both shows about a 7.  Now that I think about it, I may have been to see ‘The Nutcracker’ since then, and I’d give that performance a 7, as well.

6. March 14th is National Potato Chip Day. Are you a fan? Your favorite flavor? Besides potato, what’s your favorite chip type of snack?

I like potato chips, but I don’t love them.  My favorite flavor [of chips] depends on what I’m eating them with.  If I’m eating just chips, then I prefer Bar-B-Q flavor, but if I’m eating chips with a sandwich, then I prefer plain ones.  Cheetos are my other favorite ‘chip type’ snack, but, these days, Ed and I only eat baked potato chips because of being on ‘low fat’ diets.

7.What rule is most important in your home?

“Always kiss me goodnight”

Random:

So, I went back to the dermatologist for my 3 months follow-up after Moh’s surgery. She wasn’t completely happy with my plastic surgery results, because the surgical site still looks a bit “puffy”. (I guess this is just another prime example of  that “Bacon luck” I spoke of earlier.)   Anyway, she really wanted me to go back to the plastic surgeon to get a steroid shot in the wound to help shrink the tissue, and make the wound flatter.  I told her “No, thanks.  I’ve had more than enough shots in the face!” Finally, she suggested I could try massaging the wound, in an effort to break up the hard scar tissue.  I told her, “I can do that!”  So, that’s what I’m currently doing–pressing firmly on the scar with my index finger, and massaging it, six times a day.  Now my face is sore, once again, but perhaps this will help. If not, “old puffy” can join the lines, wrinkles, and other things growing older is doing to my face.

Catching Up On Monday…

Lately, this blog seems like a long, lost friend that I need to visit more often.  More and more, I’m finding it more difficult to make my way over here to blog. Sometimes, I’m just not feeling it, and then when I am, I have other things to do.  Such as the following…

The past week went by in a whirl of activity.  There’s something about the arrival of warm, sunny days that makes me want to clean and spruce up the place!  Therefore, the beginning of last week found me stripping old wax off the kitchen floor, and applying new wax.  I know, waxing floors is a dying activity, but my floors aren’t the no wax kind–yet!  It took both Ed and myself to get the task done, but we made it!  We were so inspired by having a clean, shiny kitchen floor, the following day we began shampooing carpets, and spent the next two days doing that!  Unfortunately, I think I hurt my back, in the process, so it’s been aching for several days. Live and learn.

In addition to cleaning floors, all week, I was trying to get ready for a yard sale, on Saturday.  I’d spend a couple of hours, here and there, working on that.  Meanwhile, Ed finally got started building a small shelter to store his lawnmower under. I worry a bit about him, it’s his first real project since his heart attack, in October.

Ed and I had our yard sale, on Saturday, along with our daughter and her husband.  We held the sale at Ed’s parents’ house, and could not have asked for a prettier day!  The weather was cool and foggy, at first, but that soon gave way to glorious blue, sunny skies.  We didn’t make a lot of money  because we had our stuff priced cheap, but we got rid of a lot of stuff!  At one point, we gave a chair away, and when the chair wouldn’t fit into the lady’s car, our son put the chair in my van and delivered it to her house!

Prior to the yard sale, I worried about “Trouble”, the cat who lives alone at Ed’s parents’ house, because  I was afraid she might get hit by a car, with all of the traffic coming to the sale. However, I think all of the yard sale activity was more than “Trouble” could stand, so she quickly disappeared until the end of the day. “Trouble” did have a close call earlier in the week, though,  when she ran onto the highway to greet Ed as he was coming to feed her.  My blood runs cold just thinking about it!

Speaking of “Trouble”, she was in “hog heaven”, on Friday night, when Ed and I took a break from pricing stuff, and shared a pizza at his parents’ house.  We let her in the house with us, and she sat at the table and begged for scraps from our pizza, which we gladly shared.  Then she wandered all around the house, looking at the boxes sitting all around.  The whole situation makes me sad. Four years is a long time to live alone, at an empty house, but, at least, she has the visit from “the man with the can” to look forward to each day.

In other news, Ed and I were tickled pink when we discovered that our garden peas have sprouted!  There’s a beautiful row of little green plants now decorating the row!  We’re hoping they will soon be  joined by some potato sprouts.  Our seedlings, growing in cups, are doing quite well, in spite of the fact that I dropped one of the trays, last week.  What a mess that made, but the plants all seemed to have survived, believe it or not.

We managed to have some great time, with family, on Saturday, when all the rest of our gang met up following the yard sale.  The weather was so nice, the adults sat outside and watched the grandchildren all playing together.  Actually, our oldest son, and perhaps the biggest kid of all, was pretending to be the wrestling announcer (complete with a karaoke machine), while each child took a turn strutting up the steps and getting onto the trampoline they were using as a wrestling ring!  If I hadn’t been so tired, I surely would have taken some video of “the show”.

As suppertime neared, our youngest son volunteered to go to town and pick up some food for supper.  Praise the Lord for him, because this woman sure didn’t feel like cooking!  I think everyone enjoyed the food and the fellowship, I know I did, even if I had to enjoy much of it from my spot on the couch!

The rest of the weekend passed, and all too soon, it was time to change our clocks–all twelve of them!  Yes, Ed and I actually have twelve clocks!  Oh, how I dislike this time of the year, when the time changes!  In addition to adjusting all of those clocks, I’ll spend the next month trying to get my body clock readjusted.  On that note, I’ll just say “Have a happy Monday” and get ready for my appointment at the dermatologist’s office.  Fun times–not!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday Hodgepodge # 258…

Hello Wednesday, and hello Hodgepodge!  Lately, I’ve been experiencing some ‘technical difficulties’ and haven’t been able to see the ‘linky’ on Joyce’s Hodgepodge post, therefore, I couldn’t join the party. Not only couldn’t I see last week’s ‘linky’, I couldn’t see ANY of the previous week’s ‘linkys’ either!  Our son, Brad, tinkered with my computer, last weekend, and finally got the linkys to show up–but he doesn’t really know  how he did it.  Here’s hoping I will be able to see today’s list of Hodgepodge participants, and join in the fun!

1. March is National Women’s History Month. In that vein, who are three women who’ve been influential in your life? How so?

The first, and most, influential woman in my life was definitely my maternal grandmother.  I spent a lot of time with her, as a child, and she definitely helped mold me into the wife, mother, and homemaker I eventually became.

The second influential woman in my life was my mother, but not in the way you might think.  My mother had some problems, and made many mistakes in her lifetime.  I recognized those problems and mistakes, early in life, and vowed not to travel that same road.  Praise the Lord, my life has been very different than mama’s was!

The third most influential woman in my life was Ed’s mom.  She was the mother of five sons, and I was her first daughter-in-law.  She was so happy to finally have another female to spend time with, we did everything together!   We shopped together, we cooked together, and we just plain enjoyed each other’s company! My mother-in-law treated me like the daughter she never had, and taught me many things during our forty-three years together.  I also thank my in laws for setting a great example of what a good marriage looks like.

2. In what ways do you think women have it easier than men?

I’ve always thought I had it easier than Ed because, fortunately, I’ve never had to work outside the home.  The years I chose to work, I did so because I wanted to, not because I had to.

I could never keep up with Ed, physically, either.  Back in the day, the man was a workhorse!  Eight or nine years ago, Ed made a two-hour commute to work, held down a full-time job, and a part-time job, plus spent every extra waking hour actually building the house we now live in.

3. What do you need most right now: faith, love, hope, or peace?

I have plenty of faith, love, and hope, but, often, find myself lacking peace.  It’s always been my nature to worry, even though I know I shouldn’t.  I’m trying to work on that!

4. Do you have a collection? If so, what do you collect and why?

I’m almost embarrassed to answer this question!  Yes, I do collect several things.  I collect “coca cola” items (our home is decorated with various “coca cola” decor  throughout), I also collect [resin] frogs, I collect [stuffed] teddy bears, and dolls.  My doll collection is my largest collection, but my “coca cola” collection runs a close second.

Chatty Cathy collection

some of my older Barbie collection

5. Plaids, checks, polka dots, stripes…your favorite?

For some reason, I’ve always been drawn to polka dots, but, these days, I’d choose stripes.

6. In what ways are you the same as your childhood self?

I’m still shy and unsure of myself, just like I was as a child.  I also still have the same dark brown eyes, and crooked teeth.

7. You’re a contestant on the TV game show Jeopardy. What category will you ace?

None!  Ha!  Jeopardy is NOT my kind of show… My best chance would probably be in a category having to do with music from the sixties or seventies.

Random:

Praise the Lord, my mammogram results came back normal, last week!  What a relief!

In other random news, yesterday, I rode out to the city cemetery for a few minutes. While I was there, I was reminded of the following music video by country singer, Cole Swindell.

Why you ask?  Because Cole Swindell is originally from our little town, and so was his dad, Keith. Unfortunately, Keith was killed in a freak accident  a couple of years ago, when the car he was working under fell on top of him.  The accident happened about the time his son, Cole, got his big break and record deal. Not long ago, Cole came back “home” to make this music video for the song [Cole wrote for his dad], entitled “You Should Be Here”. Those are Cole’s brothers (and their families) in the video, as well as our little downtown area, and, of course, the city cemetery.

A Simple Woman’s Daybook Post…

For Today…

It is still very early in the morning, so the sun isn’t shinning , yet.  It’s still cool (43 degrees) outside but our temperatures are supposed to reach the high 70’s.  It’s almost time to go outside and feed our cats and chickens.

Outside my window…

our chickens are gathered by the door of the chicken coop.  They’re impatiently waiting for someone to feed them!  We also have several cardinals and sparrows taking advantage of the food in our bird feeder. The plants [from last fall] in my hanging baskets look pitiful!  I’m ready to buy (or plant) some new baskets for spring!

I am wearing…

a nightgown, housecoat, and socks because I haven’t been out of bed for very long.

I am creating…

some Easter decorations around the house.  I decorated the ‘year round’ tree, on Friday, and I plan to put an egg tree and some other Easter decorations in the yard, this week.

I am going…

to visit my dermatologist, next Monday morning.  It’s time for my 3 months checkup, for the basal cell carcinoma I had removed from my face, in December.  The doctor is planning to do another biopsy, as well.  I’m praying this new biopsy [of a second spot on my nose] comes back benign!

I am wondering…

how Rory, the male half of the country duo, “Joey + Rory”, is doing since his wife, Joey, passed away, on Friday.  I’ve been following the story of Joey’s battle with terminal cancer, for the past four months, through Rory’s blog.  The internet has been flooded with stories about her death all weekend.

I am reading…

The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks.  Believe it or not, I began reading this book a year ago, but never got around to finishing it.  The book is good, but I got distracted by other things.

I am hoping…

to feel better in the coming days ahead.  I haven’t been sleeping well for a while (even with the help of sleep aids), and, as a result, I have very little energy during the day.  My rheumatoid arthritis has been active, as well.  I’ve been relying on Ed to open jars for me.

I am learning…

how to adapt when things don’t go according to plan.  Change doesn’t come easy for me.  It never has, but I’m learning, as I grow older.

In my garden…

we have planted onions, garden peas, and new potatoes.  The peas and potatoes haven’t sprouted yet.  We also have 80 seedlings of various kinds growing in cups in our laundry room.  I will be happy when we can transplant them because my laundry room is very crowded at the moment!

In my kitchen…
we have some of last night’s Taco Soup.  I used Paula Deen’s recipe, and it’s very good.

One of my favorite things…

is spending time with our chickens.  We have nine hens, and they are so funny to watch!  Some of them are quite friendly, and will sit on our laps, occasionally.  The old picture, below, is our newest flock of chickens, who are currently 18 months old.  The two remaining hens, from our first flock, just turned four.

A peek into one of my days…

since the weather has been milder, I’ve been trying to split my time between cleaning house, and doing a few things outside.  I’ve been preparing for an upcoming ‘yard sale’, as well.  It seems a shame to waste a warm sunny day inside.

A favorite quote for today…

In honor of the passing of Joey Feek– “God rest high on that mountain…your work on earth is done… Go to heaven a-shoutin’ love for the Father and the Son” (Vince Gill)

Plans for the rest of the week…

Scrubbing the floor of the front porch, wiping down the white banisters surrounding the porch, and putting up some Easter decorations outside.  Ed and I will also take our weekly shopping trip, at some point during the week.  I refer to these shopping trips as ‘road trips’ because it’s, at least, a 30 mile trip to get to a Wal-mart.

The weekend…

Our weekend was nice, weather-wise. As mentioned, earlier, I wasn’t feeling my best, so we never left the house, all weekend, but I enjoyed myself the best I could.  I spent most of Saturday in the front porch swing, reading. I was tickled when my nine-year-old granddaughter walked over and joined me, with her book in hand.

We spent some time with family, and were entertained by the new things our youngest grandson, Evan, had learned in the two weeks since we’d seen him. I was tickled pink when he finally said “Mimi”, as plain as day 🙂

I’m linking my daybook post, with others, at The Simple Woman’s Blog.  Thanks to Peggy Hostetler for being such a gracious hostess.

 

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Marching Into Another Hodgepodge…

It’s hard to believe we’re already into the third month of the new year!  What better way to begin a new month than by joining “The Hodgepodge”?!  As always, thank you to our gracious hostess, Joyce, for giving us a place to come, and for furnishing us with seven new questions each and every week!  You can visit Joyce, and other “Hodgepodge” participants by clicking the button at the top of this post.

1. February ended with an extra 24 hours in 2016. What did you do with your bonus day?

First of all, I did some ‘deep cleaning’ in the bathroom, then I vacuumed a little bit.  After that, I went outside and did some light yard work because it was such beautiful day.  (It was much too pretty to waste cleaning house all day!)  Last of all, I did something I rarely do, these days, I baked some chocolate chip cookies.  I think baking the cookies was the best thing I did all day 🙂

2. What’s something in your life that’s grown by leaps and bounds in recent days, weeks, months, or years? I’m giving you lots of room to come up with an answer here, so no fair passing on this one.

Gratitude!

In recent months, (four to be exact) my appreciation for the wonderful life I’ve been blessed to share with my husband, Ed, has grown by leaps and bounds! Also, after having our normal life totally disrupted for the better part of 2015, (due to Ed’s job loss, serious health issues for both of us, and house issues, as well) I have a much greater appreciation for ‘normal’or ‘uneventful’ days!

3. Do you read reviews about a film before deciding if you’ll see it?  Did you watch The Oscars this year, and if so your thoughts on the program? How many of the Best Picture nominees had you seen prior to the broadcast? (Spotlight, The Martian, The Big Short, The Revenant, Mad Max: Fury Road, Room, and Brooklyn)   If you watched The Oscars who gets your award for ‘best dressed’? 

 Sometimes I’ll read reviews, but not often.  The movie trailer is usually what catches my attention.    No, I didn’t watch The Oscars, but then, I rarely do, these days.  I haven’t seen any of the Best Picture nominees, but I would like to see The Revenant, eventually.

4. When did you last have overnight houseguests? Give us your top three tips on being a good houseguest.

We had house guests, weekend before last, when our youngest son and his family fell asleep on the couch, but I’m not sure that counts.  They got up and went home before Ed and I woke up on Saturday morning!  Before that, I think my brother and his wife last came to visit back in October, before Ed had his heart attack.

My top three tips for being a good house guest would be: (1) Clean up after yourself, (2) Offer to help in the kitchen, and (3) Don’t overstay your welcome.  Our house guests always do these things.

5. March 2nd is Peanut Butter Lover’s Day. Will you be celebrating? If so, would you prefer a home made peanut butter cookie, a Reese’s peanut butter cup, an old fashioned peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or shall I just hand you a jar and a tablespoon?

Ed and I will probably be celebrating with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for  lunch, today.  We usually eat one about once a week.  A Reese’s peanut butter cup sure would be better, though!

6. Why is failure important? Or isn’t it?

I think failure is important because we learn from our mistakes, and that helps us to grow.  Failure is also a good way to keep us humble.

7. Share with us one fun thing on your March calendar.

Easter is early this year, so it falls in March.  Fun times!  It’s always fun to hide those 250 eggs, then try to find them all!  We never do, by the way.  Hopefully, none of the grandchildren will suffer any broken bones, like our granddaughter did, last year!

Random:

Ed and I needed to plant a row of garden peas [in our garden], this week.  It was a challenge trying to figure out how to get those seeds into the holes in the ground, without me having to bend over so many times! (The repetitive bending motion can lead to sciatica, and I certainly don’t want anymore of that!)  So…Ed came up with the idea of dropping the seeds down a piece of small pvc pipe, so I could remain standing up while planting the seeds!  It was a little slow and tricky, but it worked!  The garden peas are now planted and I don’t have a backache 🙂