Belle Is For Beautiful

wise mankind still seeks Him

2011-12-25T00:01:00.001-06:00

"....And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."
Luke 2:10-11

"....And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary His mother, and fell down, and worshipped Him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto Him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh."
Matthew 2:11

Just pretend there's no Santa in the photo! Saint Nicholas certainly wasn't present at Christ's birth, but a Santa was one of many lights at the Fantasy of Lights in Bartlesville, Oklahoma.

December moon

2011-12-10T00:26:00.001-06:00

Last night in our neighborhood.
Shortly before I took this photograph, the moon appeared to be resting on the roof of our neighbor's house, and I could reach out and grab it. Our back door faces east, so when the moon comes out, I often stand at the back door and gaze at the celestial lights. Since we live in a small town there is little light pollution, so it's easy to pick out the constellations from in town. I readily spot Orion's belt every cloudless night.

now that's scary

2011-10-31T22:28:00.007-05:00

This cartoon says it all. The Occupy... crowd is composed of whiners and spoiled rotten adult-size children. Parisienne Farmgirl's husband had a great Occupier costume the other day.

Here in Our Small Town, a handful of churches are having Trunk or Treat activities, but there's still a lot of trick or treating door-to-door. When I took CutieDog for a walk just prior to sunset, I saw three families sitting either on their porch or their pick-up truck gate waiting for the costumed beggars. No sense running to the door every five minutes!

an aviator's anniversary and a birthday

2011-09-20T00:26:00.009-05:00

Happy Anniversary, Mr. H. I love you times three! Since My Darling Husband is a pilot and our wedding reception was held at an airport facility, we were able to fly away from the reception three years ago. This photo is of us with our heads in the clouds and off to new adventures.

Our wedding anniversary is also my dad's birthday, so I must shout out "Happy Birthday, Dad!"

9/11 in Our Small Town

2011-09-13T08:22:00.010-05:00

For the past four years, Our Small Town has commemorated 9/11 by having a Patriot Day Jamboree. It consists of a local celebrity (this year it was the singer from a local blues band) singing our national anthem, the Pledge of Allegiance, updating of a memorial plaque for local veterans who have served in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, and an auction. The auction proceeds are given to a veteran for some need. This year it was for a local veteran who suffers from Lou Gehrig's disease.

This photo is of the local newspaper photographer's shot.

a molehill for Christmas in July

2011-08-01T19:39:00.005-05:00

Another item to cross off my mental to-do list. Two more pieces of fabric used! I bought the fabric when a friend and I were at a quilt shop in Humboldt, Kansas last October. My friend liked these fabrics very much but she doesn't sew. I decided to purchase it to make a tablerunner for her. The ladies at the shop had cut the fabric to size already for an easy tablerunner tutorial they created. My friend left the shop to take care of business elsewhere, so I was able to purchase it on the sly. It was meant to be a Christmas present; it became a Christmas in July present.

It's been six months since I posted the first molehills of my stash-busting project, but rest assured that I have begun other sewing projects in the meantime.

I remember your sacrifice

2011-05-30T02:01:00.003-05:00

Freedom costs.

what they think of their mothers

2011-05-08T22:36:00.009-05:00

Our southeast Kansas Small Town newspaper has a "Draw Your Mom Contest" every Mother's Day. There are entries from children aged two through 12. I remember that the newspaper in the small northeast Kansas town where I grew up used to have a similar contest for the children in that community.

There are so many entries that the contest gets its own section for the day. The children are very creative.

Sometimes you want to ask yourself "What was this child drawing...the family dog?"Then in other pictures you see that he really was drawing his mother.It's especially funny when you know the mother and what she looks like in real life!

Mostly we admire the childrens imaginations, artistic strivings, and their love for mom. Happy Mother's Day, Moms!

how I feel today

2011-04-02T14:08:00.005-05:00

This is CutieDog enjoying the warmth of the compost pile (soon to become a compost bin this spring). It's such a lovely spring day today that I want to just lay on a blanket in the warm sun and read a good book or knit until sunset. Alas, I hear the local garden center calling me; they're having an open house today, so I'm headed there in just a little while. Our Small Town has a Wal-Mart with a garden center, but the town is big enough to also support a garden center and one of the town's florist's seasonal garden shop. "Yes, I know I'm a handsome fella. Mrs. H, I'll miss this pile when it's gone."

time for the redbuds

2011-03-28T15:36:00.002-05:00

In southeast Kansas where My Darling Husband and I live, a sure sign of spring is the redbud trees. They are in bloom now. I see more redbuds in this area than in the Kansas City area where I used to live. Along with daffodils, crocus and muscari, the redbuds are a much-anticipated harbinger of warmer weather to come. An Even Smaller Town near us has a redbud tour. Hey, you have to make your own entertainment in small towns sometimes, and it's a joy for horticulture aficianados.

Take it inside, Buddy, this is my bathroom.

2011-03-26T10:46:00.000-05:00

True story. This might be more information than some of you want to know, so if it is I apologize for embarrassing you. However, I won't see your cheeks turn red and it's a funny story.

Recently, My Darling Husband needed to use the restroom like any normal human does. It was occupied by yours truly at the time and our house has only one bathroom. (Yes, families still survive with only one bathroom per house.) He really had to go. So outside he went, to a secluded area of our back yard.

CutieDog likes to follow us in and out of the house, so he did his normal following or maybe he was already out there. My Darling Husband is standing there doing his thing, and up saunters our dog, stands next to him and simultaneously turns another patch of grass into a second bathroom stall.

there's a hole inside the bag

2011-03-19T13:33:00.001-05:00

Have a laugh at our expense. I do hope this hole wasn't created by a mouse. My Darling Husband pulled this chip out of the he-just-opened-it newly-bought bag of tortilla chips. (No mice were bagged in the production of this photo.)

Ok, here's my St. Patrick's Day post.

2011-03-17T20:25:00.006-05:00

What do you get when you cross lime gelatin with orange gelatin? A sick-green gelatin side dish. I think that was crushed pineapple that I put in it. Don't try this at home. Looks gross but tastes okay as an accompaniment to a tomato pasta dish.Before I sign off, CutieDog wants to wish you Happy St. Patrick's Day!

the buck stops here

2011-03-12T13:08:00.003-06:00

Spotted at a stoplight down in northeast Oklahoma:Look a little closer....

I feel nutty, oh so nutty, I feel nutty and cocoy and chewy!

2011-03-05T22:07:00.003-06:00

Listed on the "good things on the net" section of this blog's sidebar is the blog Mennonite Girls Can Cook. Occasionally I check in with them to see what scrumptious recipe they've (it's a small group of women) posted for the day. Today was a day to check in. Glad I did!

This morning I had the hankering to have cookies in the cookie jar before My Darling Husband arrived home from an overnight campout with some men from church. Today's featured recipe, Coconut Crisps, appeared to fit the bill.In my version, I used unsweetened coconut, so I could've reduced the salt just a tiny bit, but the end result was still quite acceptable. I also used an ice cream scoop to produce uniform-sized cookies; mine were big and therefore yielded fewer cookies than stated in the recipe. These cookies are good. They are a mouthful of sweet, salty, coconut and chewy oatmeal all at once...a medley of sensations. They make an excellent companion to coffee.

hooked on chocolate

2011-02-15T21:27:00.001-06:00

There are many options for Valentine's Day presents even in our Small Town. There are two floral shops, not to mention a couple of grocery stores (one being WalMart) and a handful of gift shops. Even the local hardware store does double duty with gifts and housewares sections. My Darling Husband and I were frugal with Valentine's presents this year. He gave me a little heart box of chocolates. My gift to him was this:

What can I say. He likes to fish.

another happy

2011-02-14T23:13:00.003-06:00

Grandma H., Happy Anniversary to you and Grandpa!

One set of My Darling Husband's grandparents were married on Valentine's Day many decades ago...69 years ago, I believe. A sweet day for a sweet couple.

happy St. Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T01:10:00.000-06:00

molehills 1 and 2

2011-01-25T21:17:00.003-06:00

Rescued these vintage embroidered linens from the stash. Both towels were freebies from a colleague at my last job in The Big City. He had been preparing someone else's house for an estate sale and came across some boxes of fabric. These were in the boxes. Pretty lady with the flowers is now a fingertip towel for our bathroom...blue hand towel is in the kitchen.

make a molehill out of a mountain

2011-01-24T10:22:00.002-06:00

I brought a lot of stuff with me into our marraige. Fabric stuff. A mountain of fabric, to be exact.Yes, that is three plastic bins full of fabric. Plus some fabric on top of the bins, and even more fabric in a laundry basket not pictured. I learned to sew when I was a young girl, then I moved on to other things. Years passed. I became interested in quilting. I've always been fond of fabric and design. So I decided to start quilting and sewing again. First step was to gather some fabric (I was stuck on step one until this year). And gather I did. Fabric gathered from here and there. Fabric that took over the once less-croweded storage room. One of my goals for 2011 is to drastically reduce the fabric stash. So this year I am going to document on this blog the items made from the mountain.

Progress!
Found two towels in the stash...going to use them as is. January 25, 2011
Completed the tablerunner for my friend, L. July 20, 2011

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

2011-01-20T22:46:00.001-06:00

We have snow! It finally snowed in southeast Kansas last week. What a refreshing sight to see, after envying all the other snowfall in other parts of the US. After the dry autumn we had, we've needed this snow. And yes, I need to put our Christmas tree away. My Darling Husband's birthday is in December, but prior to Christmas. This time around I waited until after his birthday to put up the tree, just as his mother used to do when he was growing up. It seems like such a waste of time to have it set up for only a week or two, so I've waited until way past the New Year to take the tree down. It's going in the box this weekend.Or I could leave it up and decorate it with hearts for Valentine's Day. Just kidding, Mr. H.Cutie Dog is quite fond of the snow. First thing on his list was to eat it.
When he was a stray, it was winter. There was still ample snow on the ground when we brought him into our home. So I had been curious how he would react to the snow this winter.

My Darling Husband forwarded this funny email to me:

Why It's Great to Be a Dog

1. No one expects you to take a bath every day.
2. If it itches, you can scratch it.
3. A rawhide bone (or a rag in Cutie Dog's case) can entertain you for hours.
4. If you grow hair in weird places, nobody notices.
5. You can lay around all day without worrying about being fired.
6. You don't get in trouble for putting your head in a stranger's lap.
7. You're always excited to see the same people.
8. Having big feet is considered an asset.
9. Puppy love can last.

lights...camera...keep moving!

2011-01-02T20:21:00.015-06:00

New Year's Day was the last day to see the Christmas light display at Rhema Bible Church and College. So yesterday My Darling Husband and I left the warm confines of our house and drove down to Oklahoma. It was cold cold cold! Had to keep moving to stay warm, but we did snap some photos. Every year Rhema adds more lights to the display. The 2010 edition:"For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth."
--Job 19:25A Southwest Christmas.Gazebo by the fountain lake.Rhema's version of Noah's Ark!Bridge over peaceful waters.

and to all a happy Christmas

2010-12-25T00:01:00.004-06:00

Miss + Mister = Mr. & Mrs.

2010-09-20T00:01:00.003-05:00

Happy 2nd Anniversary, Mr. H. I love you.

sign of summer #1

2010-08-03T15:05:00.002-05:00

Cutiedog's tongue indefinitely hanging out of his mouth. He's one hot dog, thanks to his furry tuxedo.

don't get mad, get glads

2010-07-20T19:08:00.004-05:00

The gladiolis that I planted last year and thought had died have bloomed again this year! They are a hardy flower, which is great for neglectful gardeners such as moi. I used to dislike glads. That was until my father planted them in his garden a few years ago and I saw them return the next year after a hard winter. Another reason I like glads now is because white ones were included in mine and My Darling Husband's wedding floral arrangements. Glads are an old-fashioned flower which fit perfectly into the vintage decorating of our wedding.

The vase is an heirloom from one of my grandmothers. I think it is very suitable for gladiolus; the gaudy parrots compliment the gaudy glads.

Sunday scenery #3

2010-06-27T00:02:00.000-05:00

For God and Country. A couple of triple-windows in our church sanctuary are of a patriotic nature. They were made and installed in the late 1800s or early 1900s. They commemorate the American Civil War as far as I can tell. This is one of the windows.

oh, so that's what it is called

2010-06-17T22:08:00.001-05:00

This summer at work I am with the five- and six-year old children. I work at a daycare. I like the children best when they are being angelic, unintentionally make me laugh at something they do, and when they are quiet! So I relish leaving the DIN each day and coming home to ahhh!, a quiet house.
In the category of making me laugh at something they do, today my class and I were coming inside from eating popsicles out in the yard. While waiting for the other children to line up a couple of the girls were having a conversation together. One said to the other, "You know that stuff dogs get under their eyes? That's eyeball juice".

my dog is American but he can eat like a Chinese

2010-06-14T09:46:00.002-05:00

My Darling Husband is away on a business trip, so I thought I'd post some photos of what CutieDog and I have been up to while M.D.H. is away. He reads this blog so I'll add this to our forms of communication.
I was craving (not pregnant, Moms) Chinese food the other day so I bought some take-out. There are three Chinese restaurants in our Small Town. Two of them are Bad Dried-Out Hard Chinese Food restaurants, and the third is much much better. Not all the way up to Big City standards, but still good nonetheless. Mmmm, your food looks mighty tasty!
After using the fork for a few bites, I suddenly remembered these pretty chopsticks we have and what is Chinese food without chopsticks? These were bought from Crate and Barrel some years ago. Honey, the dog is well-educated in the area of international cuisine now.

Take a deep breath...this was after I finished eating. He got the scraps like a good dog anywhere in the world. I think he would order crab ragoons if he could.

Sunday scenery #2

2010-06-13T09:00:00.000-05:00

Inside that front window at our church.

Sunday scenery #1

2010-06-06T00:01:00.002-05:00

"Sunday scenery" is a series in which I post snapshots of churches, mainly in southeast Kansas. This one is our church.

sign of spring #5 or, this is dedicated to a niece I love

2010-06-04T19:17:00.034-05:00

Graduations. Alright...this is the last "sign of spring" for spring--er, summer--2010. I promise. It's already June 4, but I can't go through the rest of the year without posting about this great event in a special someone's life.One of my nieces graduated from high school! Congratulations, Sweet Pea. I'm extremely proud of you and the Godly, creative, vivacious, friendly, caring, funny and tenacious woman you are and continue to become.

Wow. My niece...a woman. You are so grown up, I think I am going to cry!!!

I wanted to write a poem here for you because you like literature and because this post commemorates a special occasion. Poetry is useful for commemorations. I looked through my books of poetry and chose to quote Rudyard Kipling's poem, "If". (I hope this poem doesn't seem pessimistic to you, as Kipling is sometimes.) This poem reminds me of your bright, positive attitude to life and your desire to keep on keepin' on.

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,

And yet don't look too good; nor talk too wise;

If you can dream--and not make dreams your master;

If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with triumph and disaster

And treat those two imposters just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,

And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch;

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run--

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!

-- Rudyard Kipling

in memoriam

2010-05-31T22:00:00.010-05:00

Memorial Day 2010 in our Small Town. The American Legion and the VFW sponsors a ceremony at the flagpole of the local cemetery. The Stars and Stripes on the main flagpole flies at half staff. A woman from a large city in our state reads from the diary of her late father who was in the battle of Okinawa during World War II. A World War II Navy veteran who is present is recognized for his time as a prisoner of war. The town band plays patriotic songs. The Ladies Auxilary lays flowers under the pole. A local pastor prays publicly in Jesus's name, thanking the Lord for our freedom and the brave men and women who have laid down their lives for it ever since 1776. Three volleys are fired. Taps is played.

My heart and tears say Thank you! Thank you! to those who died after defending freedom and while defending our freedom. War is ugly and should not be desired, but it is necessary sometimes. When I lived in Kansas City (I even saw it on a car at the cemetery today!), I would often see a bumper sticker that says War Is Not The Answer. That is soooo wrong. If it wasn't for war, then the Nazis would be ruling the world right now. The Muslim terrorists currently trying to rule the world do not stop their horrors when we simply dialogue and ask them to.

Sometimes war is the answer. It is necessary to defend oneself and one's country. Freedom is not free. Thank you, grandpa, Pvt. Long, and all the others...I remember often your duty, your sacrifice, your desire to keep freedom intact. May the rest of us be as brave.

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

-- John McCrae

America's Answer

Rest ye in peace, ye Flanders dead.
The fight that ye so bravely led

We've taken up. And we will keep

True faith with you who lie asleep

With each a cross to mark his bed,

In Flanders fields.

Fear not that ye have died for naught.

The torch ye threw to us we caught.

Ten million hands will hold it high,

And Freedom's light shall never die!

We've learned the lesson that ye taught

In Flanders fields.

-- R. W. Lilliard

the sister got hitched

2010-05-22T03:45:00.001-05:00

One week ago today My Darling Husband's sister was married on a bluff overlooking the Tennessee River in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
A Beautiful Southern Belle of a Bride.Please write on the picture frame. More practical than a guest book. (When My Darling Husband and I married, the guests signed a cloth, which I am embroidering and it is destined to become a quilt...very practical indeed.)The Georgian reception hall awaiting guests.These goldfish found their purpose in life: table decoration. Salmon was on the menu.We tried so hard to be secretive, but the bride and groom caught us decorating their getaway car! Apparently they were not blinded by love.

I could've sworn I heard a sheep

2010-05-21T01:34:00.000-05:00

This evening I heard it again...the same sound of a sheep that I heard coming from our neighbor's yard about this time last year.

This time I did not do what I did last year. I didn't scrutinize surrounding neighbors yards for the sheep I just knew they were keeping as pets in their back yard. I didn't start picturing in my mind which neighbors might have children raising sheep for a 4-H project. I didn't start wondering what restrictions on livestock within the city limits The Small Town has. I didn't ask a neighbor who was out for a walk if he had heard or seen the sheep. I didn't narrow down the location of the bleating to our back yard. I didn't follow the sound of the bleating to a certain spot near our back yard pool.

This year I did not take any of the above actions because this time last year, I did a search on the internet and read about sheep frogs.

We get a few different types of frogs and toads in our back yard every spring. There's an occasional bullfrog, and of course thousands of tadpoles in the water on top of the pool cover, but thankfully they are eliminated when we open the pool for the season. I find the sheep frog to be most curious. It is one of a group of animals that can imitate other animals. I think also of catbirds, mockingbirds and parrots. I'd rather have the pretty birds, and save just a frog or two for the garden.

sign of spring #4

2010-05-07T00:11:00.000-05:00

Wasps.

I'm quite sure there's more wasps around here than up in The Big City. Perhaps it's due to our more southerly location. Last summer, My Darling Husband advised me that he sprays the inside of the garage every year with wasp spray to keep them from building nests in there.

Wasps everywhere.

Ok, not plague proportions, but I've spotted at least three inside our house this last week. I never see them fly in when we're going in or out the door. I don't know how they get in, but they belong with their buddies outdoors. They meet their Maker instead.

Tonight I suddenly heard one buzzing (that's always how we spot them inside...suddenly buzzing out of thin air, as if poof! wasp abra cadabra!) two feet behind me in the office where I sit, innocently minding my own blog business. I cried for help, and My Darling Husband came to the rescue with fly swatter in hand, just in time for that wasp to fly to the next room.

That room happens to be our storage room that happens to have a lot of stuff in it, so I'll probably be looking for something in there one day soon and happen upon that wasp and poof! it'll come screaming at me at top speed, stinger first. Or hopefully it'll have met it's Maker by then due to natural causes.

sign of spring #3 or, a tale of three lilacs

2010-05-04T23:48:00.001-05:00

Lilacs. The word itself is pretty. Add the delicate yet stable physical beauty and the wonderful scent, and you've got yourself an old-fashioned charmer. They remind me of my childhood...grandparents...playing in Mr. & Mrs. Mace's (elderly neighbors I grew up next door to) yard that had no fence...and like Alicia, the scent reminds me of the Midwest--home.
One set of my grandparents always had a lilac bush or two in their yard (other grandpa would've mowed them down, so other grandma dared not plant any). When we went for a visit, I and/or grandma would cut some lilacs to decorate the house. The lilac bush in the Mace's yard served as a hiding place for frequent games of hide-n-seek with the neighborhood children. Sometimes we would just plop ourselves on the grass or cement wall next to that lilac and pass the time.

The lilac pictured above is compliments of a friend here in The Small Town. I'm currently trying to start a new lilac bush from a cutting off hers. The plan is to plant it near our bedroom window so when we have the window open during lilac season, a west breeze will send the scent into our nostrils at night.

The vase with the lilacs on it is an heirloom from my mother's ceramic-painting days.

The blue lilac in the painting on the wall was done by a friend of my other grandparents some decades ago. So even if other grandma couldn't keep plants alive thanks to other grandpa, at least she could see them on her walls!

sign of spring #2

2010-04-12T11:26:00.003-05:00

CutieDog's tuxedo coat.This guy sheds more than any other dog I've ever had in my life. So much loose fur that I could spin it into yarn and knit myself a BorDal Sweater if I ever had the desire to smell like a wet dog. BorDal Sweater, you ask? CutieDog is part Border Collie, part Dalmatian, and knitting patterns usually have a name. He shakes so much loose fur around the house that our vacuum cleaner is fast becoming a prominent feature of our home's interior design.

p.s.--Happy Anniversary to my parents!

purple inside and out or, sign of spring #1

2010-04-09T10:40:00.002-05:00

When there is a grape hyacinth bouquet inside our house, that is the signal that My Darling Husband is about to give our lawn it's first mowing of the year. Since I can't have these lovely purple heads just mowed down, I decorate the table with them when he says "it's time to start mowing". There were already some grape hyacinths planted in My Darling Husband's yard when I married him, then I planted more last year. I can see it now: a grape hyacinth and daffodil meadow in our front yard. Grape hyacinths are popular in this neck of the woods. There are many yards in our town where you can see these growing naturalized. Cheri has a lovely landscape photo of grape hyacinths on her blog A Joyful Handmaiden.

anouncing Easter in a small town

2010-04-06T22:35:00.008-05:00

My Darling Husband and I spent the Easter weekend with my family in The Big City. When we came home, I glanced at Sunday's edition of our local newspaper.My eyes immediately fell to the top of the front page and I was pleasantly surprised. You know you're in a small town when the local newspaper editor is unafraid to declare that He Is Risen!
I have an educated guess that the editor of The Big City's newspaper would never allow this.

CutieDog very truly likes going to his "grandparents" (my parents) house. He gets to play with his "Uncle Dog" (my parent's Jack Russell Terror)...

and he gets to be a spoiled "grandog". See, he's not allowed to put his paws on our furniture here at home. He soaks up the extra allowances there. The first time we visited my parents with CutieDog, he tried to get onto our furniture upon returning home. This second time, he surprised us by minding his manners when we got home.

Smart and cute. Good choice, My Darling Husband.

I am

2010-04-04T00:01:00.000-05:00

Thanks be unto the Lord for His gift of salvation! Wishing fellow believers in God's love and forgiveness a blessed Easter.

Lapel pin by Bob.

this would be funny if it wasn't true

2010-03-20T16:55:00.001-05:00

just call my name and I'll be there

2010-03-16T00:19:00.006-05:00

Dog training is...progressing. Sometimes Cutie Dog comes when called and sometimes not! "Stay" actually means I'm so cute you can't help but want me to come in his doggy brain.But if you need help with replacing the kitchen faucet, he'll be happy to lend a helping paw.

pick me! pick me! PLEEEASE!

2010-01-17T13:12:00.009-06:00

Yesterday and today are National Adoption Weekend. It's a pairing of the Petco store with local animal shelters to promote and sponsor pet cat and dog adoptions. Petsmart is having theirs next month.

A local animal shelter is where one of my Christmas presents came from. My Darling Husband surprised me with him. I'd been chirping on forever about adopting a dog, waiting for just the right time (the moment M.D.H. says yes) and just the right dog. "Right dog" to me = lap dog. I was thinking Sheltie, Schnauzer, terrier size. M.D.H. grew up with larger dogs, so we compromised and are now the pround "parents" of a medium dog. I planned on adopting a dog from either the local animal shelter or from someone whose dog accidentally produced offspring.

I like this accidental canine offspring. He is part Labrador Retriever and part Border Collie. Around blogland he is known as Cutie Dog. Although he isn't exactly lap size, he does like a lap to sit on occasionally. You big baby.

driven to knit

2010-01-16T00:01:00.005-06:00

My Darling Husband forwarded this joke to me via email. It's dedicated to all you fellow knitters and crocheters who, like me, are known to knit/crochet at all possible traffic lights and stop signs.

The policeman couldn't believe his eyes when he saw a woman drive past him on the freeway, busily knitting. Quickly he pulled alongside the vehicle, rolled down his window and shouted, "Pull over!"
"No!" the woman yelled back cheerfully, "Socks!"

Christmas lingers on my blog

2010-01-14T22:42:00.014-06:00

This is the official photographic essay of where My Darling Husband and I went for Christmas.

From the hills of Tennessee......to a place near Walhalla, SC.

Near, yet so far away.Tucked away in the woods.Is a cabin where one can peacefully and quietly enjoy visiting with family members after a long drive.And then, after a good night's sleep, awaken on Christmas morning to this view:An enclosed back deck invites one to sit in the great outdoors in warmer months.The deck beckons you down to a river. We hear that the fishing is good in this area.On the way out of town--

You know you're in the South when you spot a general store selling boiled peanuts.

Up here in Kansas and the rest of the great Midwest, we have snow-cone stands in the summer. Now that makes perfect sense to my always-lived-in-Kansas-mind: one needs a cool something to slurp in the sweltering heat and humidity. On our trip to South Carolina, I saw a snow-cone-and-boiled peanuts stand. I suppose that the snow-cone's purpose in Southern life is to wash down the peanuts.

the angels said

2009-12-25T00:01:00.000-06:00

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
~Luke 2:14

when they pretend to be doctors

2009-11-14T00:05:00.002-06:00

This work of art refers, of course, to the U.S. House of Representatives passing socialized (re: Socialist) health care. Our hard-earned and easily printed dollars, hard at work on another welfare program. In the land of the free & the home of the brave.

Just some highlights of this fairytale scheme:

Section 330--the House gave itself special permission to enroll in the same public health care they're forcing down our throats. Section 501--we the people would have to pay a fine, determined by the government, if the health care coverage we the people decide to enroll in is not acceptable to the government. Also, if you're one of those people who has up til now chosen not to pay for health insurance, well, cough up your dough, 'cause you're gonna pay, Buster! Section 2588--oh look! Job creation! "I'm from the government and I'm here to help you". Yet another new government department. Oooh, there will be many many new government departments with this.

Do you like your freedom and being able to decide what's best for you? Then tell all the U.S. Senators to vote against any government health care. Stay on their tails until this is defeated. That means a continuous watch and action. If you don't like your freedom, then move to Cuba. Or China. Or Saudi Arabia. Or Europe. And take your Socialism and Communism with you.

our home is free because of the brave

2009-11-11T22:13:00.007-06:00

Not our house (stimulus my foot) ...our home. "Oh say does that star-spangled banner yet wave, o'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave."
Veteran's Day in small-town Kansas. The photo is of the picture in our local newspaper today. We are free, so far, because of these brave fellow Americans. From our founding to Ft. Hood, freedom is not free. Thank you to those who served, and died, and are currently serving, to protect our freedom! Thank you to my granddads, their brothers, my dad and my Big Little Brother.
And by the way, there are 14 dead victims at Ft. Hood, not 13. One of the victims was pregnant.

we'll keep the light on for you

2009-11-06T20:46:00.004-06:00

They'll keep a bed for you too, if needed. This is the sign at the police department of an even smaller town near our Small Town. I tried to get a better photograph of the neon sign, but haven't taken the time to figure out the camera. Hopefully you can distinguish the letters. If not: it simply states "Police Dept" in neon lighting. It's very quaint for a police department to still be using their neon sign from the mid 1900s. I like it. The town is saying "we're not too proud to use a working vintage item. We don't need to spend money we don't have on a new sign."

The neon light blasting a hole in the night darkness reminds me of paintings by the American artist Edward Hopper. He juxtaposed light and dark. Ripple Effect has an excellent review of his works.

every day, life is peaceful in a small town

2009-10-31T22:46:00.012-05:00

sigh. faint. A celebrity read my blog! Well, a well-known local anyway. Mr. Wyckoff himself, whom I quoted here, saw that post and he promptly sent me this photograph of him and his bank staff dressed for Halloween. Even small-town bankers and accountants like to have fun.

It's a bird...it's a plane, no...it's SuperWitch! She flew smack-dab into the electric pole in the countryside. She almost made it to town. I've seen these witch dolls attached to chimneys, trees and other tall things in The Big City, but there was just something hilarious about driving home through farming country recently and suddenly spotting one fastened to an electric pole. As if the witch was flying cross-crountry and had a mishap almost in the middle of nowhere!

Friday football

2009-10-17T15:49:00.026-05:00

One option for Friday night entertainment in The Small Town is the local high school football game. We went there last night.
The admission charge is just a dollar or two cheaper than the high school games in The Big City. The concession food prices are about the same also. 1 mystery meat hot dog + 1 bag of popcorn + 2 cardboard pizza slices= $7.00. Whether there or here, two people can watch the game for the price of one movie theatre ticket.
The half-time show brought to us of course by the high school marching band. Throughout the game I think of my niece who is a trumpeter in the marching band at her high school back in The Big City.

Boy oh boy was it cold! (to me. My Darling Husband thought it refreshing.) It's time to bring out the scarves and heavy gloves.

Go team! Ours are the fellows in orange and black.

Sigh. Football is one of those things I'll just never understand. My Darling Patient Husband--and others in the past--explains some of the rules and technicalities of the game to me, but they've gone out my other ear by the time we watch the next game. But knitting I understand and it's portable. I once took my knitting to my niece's high school's football game. Probably I was the only knitter in the stands. But no matter. It made the minutes fly by until my niece marched with her bandmates on to the field.Even though I am usually totally oblivious to the wheeling and dealing of the moment (Where's the ball??? Which way are they running???), I have the uncanny ability to follow along the game. All I have to do is watch what the crowd is doing. When other fans clap and cheer, I know it is time to clap and cheer.

Of course, that works best when the section I'm sitting in is occupied only by one team's fans. It doesn't work too well at an NFL game where fans from both teams are mixed up like cookie dough in the stands. When My Darling Husband and I were on our honeymoon last year, I surprised him with tickets to a Denver Broncos game. We cheered for the Broncos that day. I remember accidentally clapping for the opposing team then slinking back down into my seat in slight disconcertment upon the realization. The Broncos won that game and even I was excited. I do enjoy going to football games.

Watching it on television is another story. That's like listening to someone talk in a foreign language I don't understand. A foreign language that's not pretty to hear. Once in a million quarters I can follow the ball and then I know what is going on. For a few moments.

Think I'll knit up an orange scarf to match my black coat. Darling Husband requests a manly black scarf. At least I understand color theory.

are you making this deposit into your savings, checking, or just on our lawn?

2009-10-06T19:01:00.009-05:00

This paragrah is so small-town life! (The complete article, written by Bill Wyckoff, can be read here.) Just nonchalantly ride your horse through town as if there's no such thing as a vehicle. You can do that in a really small town. In The Small Town you might receive a few surprised looks from motorists. In The Big City, a horseowner would have to drive over to the stables where the horse is boarded, and probably have to get a special permit for a one-time ride through town or participate with your horse in a parade.

"....I just received a cell call from Janet, a long time bank employee. She sounded distraught; I thought something was really wrong. She said a group of kids on horse back came by the bank when she was leaving the parking lot. I’m thinking one of the horses must have kicked her car, bucked off a young rider or something. I ask if she was OK, she said yes but one of the horses left a huge deposit of road apples right in the middle of our drive-in lane.
I broke out laughing, and she said, “I really didn’t expect that reaction from you."
So there you have it, the life of a banker in a small rural town. If the dogs aren’t leaving deposits on the front lawn then the horses are in the back. I must have had too much fun today so I’m headed out to check on my cows.
Hope you are having a great day also."

communication is key

2009-10-03T00:08:00.010-05:00

My Darling Husband and I have great communication skills.

He says things without saying a word and I get the message.

"Come to bed, Honey. You shouldn't stay up so late."

"Will you do something already with the giant squash that's been sitting on the kitchen counter for the last two weeks!?"And here the poor squash is crying out for help: Help me! I'm a vegetable.

you may have the Comforter also

2009-09-26T13:33:00.009-05:00

My Darling Husband emailed this joke (dedicated to all quilters everywhere) to me the other day. The quilt in the photo is an antique quilt top that I sold on Ebay a couple of years ago. A colleague of mine at the time was clearing out a deceased person's house for his friend, and he came upon a couple of boxes of fabric. I inherited one of those boxes, and this quilt top was inside. So here's a joke and a quilt idea for you!

You'll Get Your Quilt
Sunday after church, a mom asked her very young daughter what the lesson was about. The daughter answered, "Don't be scared; you'll get your quilt."
Needless to say, the mom was perplexed. Later in the day, the pastor stopped by for tea and the mom asked him what that morning's Sunday school lesson was about.
He said, "Be not afraid; thy comforter is coming."

fly our flag for Patriot Day

2009-09-11T00:01:00.002-05:00

In honor of those innocent lives lost to Muslim terrorists on 11 September 2001.

he had a centipede, but I have a Junebug

2009-07-21T20:55:00.019-05:00

Speaking of creatures, I'd like to introduce you to the stray kitten that adopted us a couple of weeks ago. Isn't she adooorrrable?! I christened her Junebug for the gold spot on her face. Her visage is like a golden junebug cruising in the night. Night is when I discovered her and her sibling seeking shelter in our back yard from the fireworks being set off in the neighborhood a few days before Independence Day. Junebug came to me right away. They left and I didn't see Junebug for a few days. Then she returned without her sibling. Junebug has been here ever since. There are lots of stray cats in The Small Town and even more in surrounding Even Smaller Towns. And because we have a swimming pool in our back yard, neighborhood strays always make a beeline for our yard. I usually don't feed strays, but when I saw this kitten, who didn't have her mother to depend on, well, how could I leave her to chance? No way.
She loves to be held and cuddled. My Darling Husband is allergic to felines, so sorry, Junebug, you have to stay outside. I'm trying to find a good home for her where she can be an indoor cat. She wants to come in. Just look at that face! So cuuute!

and you thought women have too many shoes

2009-07-11T09:09:00.005-05:00

In honor of the classic Saturday morning cartoons, I want to post something funny on Saturday mornings. I grew up with Tom & Jerry, Daffy Duck, Mickey Mouse, Wiley Coyote...those were the good cartoons! None of this new-fangled human/robot hybrids spitting lightning. Ahhh, bring back innocence.

These jokes that I post probably will all have been thought up by someone else, since my humor is more situational and impetuous than to just make up a joke from thin air as some lucky-duck people can do. Today's joke is just hilarious!

This guy was so lonely that he decided life would be more fun if he had a pet. So he went to the pet store and told the owner that he wanted to buy an unusual pet. After some discussion he finally bought a centipede, which came in a little white box to use for his house.
He took the box home, found a good location for the box, and decided he would start off by taking his new pet to the bar for a drink.
So, he asked the centipede in the box, "Would you like to go to Frank's place with me and have a beer?" But there was no answer from his new pet. This bothered him a bit, but he waited a few minutes and then asked him again,"How about going to the bar and having a drink with me?" But again there was no answer from his new friend and pet.
So he waited a few minutes more, thinking about thesituation. He decided to ask him one more time, this time putting his face up against the centipede's house and shouting, "Hey, in there! Would you like to go to Frank's place and have a drink with me?"
A little voice came out of the box: "I heard you the first time! I'm putting my shoes on!"

the taste of summer

2009-06-22T21:16:00.023-05:00

Lemon is a perfect summer flavor. It's light and refreshing, whether in a savory dish or included in a dessert. I made this Lemon Pudding Cake last night. It's great except for the hot oven, so I like to bake things at night during the summer, when possible. Delish!

It's from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book (1996). I really like Better Homes and Gardens cookbooks. They are basic yet have a wide variety of recipes, which is useful as I pare down my cookbook collection. I searched on the B.H.&G. website for this recipe, to no avail, so here it is:

Lemon Pudding Cake

1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel (I used all the lemon peel)
3 tablespoons lemon juice (used all the lemon juice)
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted (used butter)
2 slightly beaten egg yolks
1 cup milk
2 egg whites

Combine sugar & flour. Stir in lemon peel, lemon juice & melted butter. Combine egg yolks & milk. Add to flour mixture; stir just till combined. Beat egg whites till stiff peaks form. Gently fold egg whites into lemon batter. Transfer batter to a 1-quart casserole. Place the casserole in a large pan on an oven rack. Pour hot water into the large pan surrounding the casserole to a depth of 1 inch.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree (Farenheit) oven about 40 minutes or till golden & top springs back when lightly touched near the center. Remove casserole dish from the water bath & cool just until warm. Best served when warm.
Makes 4 servings.

Just look at that delectable pudding juxtaposed against soft crumbly cake. It's such a pretty pastel yellow.
My Darling Husband taste tested it last night.
This evening he was out, and I was left alone with the pudding cake.
I tried to save some for you, Darling Husband.
Really I did.
But my sweet tooth got the better of me.
Guess I'll have to make more!

swimmin' with the frogs

2009-06-20T02:15:00.025-05:00

This was my dream pool (no idea where the photo's from; have had it saved on my computer for a few years, along with other home idea pictures): flowers right up to the water's edge...chairs close by to sink into after a morning swim...clear, blue water.... When I started landscaping plans for our house last year, I envisioned swimming with the scents of roses and lavender wafting by. My Darling Husband had other thoughts--keep the plants as far away from the pool as possible. His reasoning for that makes logical sense, so I've compromised on the landscaping scheme.

Well, at least our chairs are close to the water's edge, and the water becoming clear and blue is not a dream, but reality. It's becoming reality. Cleaning out a (our) pool is arduous labor, especially when that pool is inhabited by the green reptilian set and is as gooey as the bottom of a muddy Midwestern lake. I'd almost rather pay a certain pool company the $1,800 they would charge to clean it. If we had the green monetary set, that is.

Instead we have started the cleaning process ourselves. I must commend My Darling Husband for donning some old clothes and venturing into the murky waters to scoop the goo. I was the one staying (mostly) dry by carting the goo in the wheelbarrow to the compost bin. Little black tadpoles and polliwogs in dark brown leafy goo, and marina stench x 100 = gag me with a spoon...and a fork and knife!

That was yesterday. A big, strong male friend with a stronger countenance than me has offered to help My Darling Husband turn our pond back into the pool it was meant to be. Whew, thank goodness for friends! He can have all the swim time he wants when the pool is ready for occupation by humans.

before next Tues

2009-05-23T10:51:00.002-05:00

These are not my words, but I agree with them. I have already emailed my comment to the NIH. Those of us who value life...we should all respond to this.

On March 9, 2009 President Obama issued an executive order that opened the floodgates for funding more human embryonic stem cell experiments. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has drafted guidelines for distributing these funds. These guidelines devote your tax dollars to experiments with embryonic stem cells, from destroyed human embryos. But the only successful treatments and cures come from adult stem cells, taken from bone marrow, umbilical cord blood, fat tissue, and other body tissues. Thousands of patients have had their health improved and their lives saved with adult stem cells. Dozens of diseases and injuries including cancer, juvenile diabetes, heart disease, spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson's disease have already been treated using adult stem cells, and more treatments are being developed.
The new NIH guidelines are poor science and poor health care policy, and would divert dollars away from real treatments. Any federal dollar used for embryonic stem cell experimentation is a dollar not used for adult stem cells. This will delay adult stem cell treatments and cures. This new policy puts the health of Americans in danger. We need to put the patients first, and put federal funds toward the real treatments and real promise of adult stem cells.
If you, your spouse, your daughter, your son, your mother, your father, your relative, your friend, your neighbor, or your co-worker suffers from a disease or injury, you need to make your voice heard against taxpayer funded embryonic stem cell experiments and in favor of adult stem cell research. If you have been treated with adult stem cells, your story needs to be told.
The public comment period on these draft regulations is 30 days, and we ask that you submit comments to oppose these regulations on or before May 26, 2009. To submit your comment, please go to this website and fill out the form with your comment.

this drives me nuts

2009-05-18T23:24:00.005-05:00

My Darling Husband and I were discussing this situation the other day...about GM and Chrysler closing dealerships across the country. We just knew it doesn't make good sense because the dealerships pay for the cars on their lot, they aren't loaned to them until bought by the consumer. And because it doesn't make any sense, we just knew that it had to be the fed's calling this shot.

This is just another opportunity for Obama, Geitner and their socialist ilk to control. This is just another bad business decision. It will just open more opportunity for foreign automakers to enter more of the American market...more foreign cars made by foreigners. I am not anti-foreigner. I am however, anti-removing American's jobs. It reminds me of Obama and his administration demonizing the automakers for flying to D.C. on private jets. Quashing American jobs. Did you know that thousands of Americans make a living building those private jets?

Liberty Opinion: 18 May 2009
Washington's plan to save union jobs in car factories will cost Main Street America hundreds of thousands of jobs. Bill Wyckoff has a hunch that's not a great idea.

How is closing businesses good for business?
I waited 38 years for the return of the Dodge Challenger just so I could own one.
Now that I have one, I get the pleasure of driving an hour to get it serviced. The only good news about this is I love driving that car. If this were a minivan needing service, it would be a long trip.
But it could be longer soon.
I read where the hot shots on the president’s “automotive task force," the people calling all the shots at General Motors and Chrysler, want fewer dealerships. These are the same people who don’t drive or own any American cars, but they have been anointed to tell the companies what to do and tell us what cars we can buy.
Seems they found out Japanese companies have more sales per dealer. Honda sells about 1,100 cars per dealership and Chrysler sells only 400. Their solution is to close a bunch of dealerships and that will increase the sales per dealer. Really makes you wonder if any of these eggheads ever traveled to the center of this country by means other than crossing it in an airplane.
If I owned a Honda, to get it fixed, I would need to travel to another state to see a service tech. This same group seems enamored by what the auto companies in Germany and Japan do. No one in the group is old enough to remember that the good old USA had to defeat both of these countries at the same time and then we rebuilt their economies.
So what is keeping us from doing that today, and just what is the reason the foreign carmakers can build products in the US and still beat Detroit? I guarantee everyone in the administration already knows the reason, but the politically motivated solution isn’t to fix the problem. It is to pass the card check bill so all Americans get to pay for built-in labor union inefficiencies.
The reason this group of “experts” gives for closing dealerships just doesn’t hold water. Dealers pay for inventory. Dealers must also buy all that marketing literature in the show room. They must lease expensive signage from the auto manufacturer. Every month they must buy specialty tools, parts and training material, plus they all share in the national advertising expense. So what is the reason for closing them? Maybe Suzie in Detroit has to keep a spreadsheet on all of them?
I also read where they have said that fewer dealers were going to reduce competition within the same brands, allowing the remainder to boost prices and profits! Just what is this task force smoking? I guess since these companies are now owned and controlled by our government, we can just think of it as a tax increase to help the greedy folks in Detroit and Washington, D.C. Can you believe that all this time we have been getting too good of a deal on car-buying and that’s been bad for the country? Wonder where that logic was when Wal-Mart rolled up the streets in almost every town. Nowadays it is quite all right to buy everything from China at the Wal-Mart near you, and count on it that China will be supplying most of the new cars to your grandchildren.
The government's plan to close dealerships will put 150,000 more people on the unemployment line along with an equal number of people supporting those businesses. Just how can this be a good thing?
Since the people operating government motors don’t know or care anything about the cities and towns that make this country great, I thought I’d share just a few examples. Hometown car dealers spend advertising dollars locally. They sponsor all kinds of activities and events. They contribute in every conceivable part of the community plus they employ people and collect billions in taxes for their communities.
The average number of employees at the dealers being closed is 50, so closing 3,000 dealerships will put 150,000 new people on the unemployment line along with an equal number of people supporting those businesses. Just how can this be a good thing?
You may wonder why I’m spending all this energy on something that the president has already decided. I’ll give you several reasons. These dealerships were closed because the bureaucrats said in their opinion

(1) they were too small,

(2) they didn’t have enough customers,

(3) they didn’t have nice enough facilities,

(4) there were too many of them so buyers could negotiate low prices

(5) plus, they didn’t fit the European or Asian model that everyone at the Capitol loves.
With that in mind, maybe we should all think about what our government will do with the local hospitals, schools or even banks in our communities. All of those statements said about the auto industry also fit the planned consolidation of this group, and all of them are already extremely over regulated by the government.
So when universal health care becomes law and that is followed by some new vision of education, don’t say I didn’t warn you about why Uncle Sam is boarding up your local school or your community health facility.

__________________________
Kansas Liberty columnist Bill Wyckoff is an occasional contributor to the Wall Street Journal and Fox Business News.

paper vs. lace

2009-05-13T23:52:00.006-05:00

Fellow American patriots:
tomorrow (Thurs., May 14) there is a telephone tea party. It works by you signing up here, then be at your phone number @ 8:30pm Eastern Time. Listen, then you can ask questions of the two governors.

I was perusing the new Country Curtains catalog that the mailman was kind enough to deliver today. On page three this scherenschnitte-style curtain screamed out to me for joyous admiration. How pretty.
Reminds me of cool spring evenings with the kitchen curtains fluttering in the breeze. It also reminded me of some papercuttings seen on Turkey Feathers blog and Allsorts.

there's room in this inn

2009-05-11T19:52:00.003-05:00

Have you seen this? A Jewish family was denied a hotel room because of the owner's racism. Amazing how it's happening again in Austria, the birthplace of that horrible man Adolph Hitler.

If you're ever in The Big City, a stay here would be nice (or this one is nice, but I've not stayed at this one. I went to this one to listen to jazz). The staff is welcoming and the location is superb...right in the heart of a scenic area. The original buildings in the neighborhood date from the 1920s.

mother may I

2009-05-10T16:42:00.006-05:00

...wish you Happy Mother's Day to those of you blessed to be such.

This picture is by Mary Cassatt, who is one of my favorite artists. I like her subject's tender poses, her soft use of color, depiction of everyday life and her maternal subject matter.

I like all of her works, especially her woodcut-style fashioned after Japanese prints, but this particular work I have on a magnet that I bought here. If you enjoy looking at art, the Wichita Art Museum is worth a visit. Take your mom, or someone else, or just you.

the difference between a man and a woman

2009-04-06T23:15:00.007-05:00

re: Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus. My Darling Husband and I both are in need of new eye spectacles, says the optometrist.

We don't just get our eyes examined and choose our new eyeglass frames simultaneously on one appointment. Well, I don't. My Darling Husband does. He came out of the examining rooms and went straight for the frame boutique. A mere 15 minutes and 8 frames later, he is the proud owner of new eyeglasses.

Me on the other hand? Eye examination...check. Into the frame boutique, spend an hour, select 5 frames to borrow (an advantage of our small-town optometrist). Go home, have My Darling Husband take snapshots of me in various frames, email snaps to family and friends for their wisdom, mull over their replies and the frames for a week. Repeat process twice.

One month later I am still wearing my current prescription. My Darling Husband just doesn't understand...choose one already! But I can't just choose the 8th frame I pick up. This is a very important decision that affects every day of my life with those glasses. I want an exact copy of my current glasses. They're like a pair of well-fitting jeans--just have to stick with what fits and looks good.

So I'm off to a different frame boutique at a different optometrist's office tomorrow. Maybe the 20th pair will be the charm.

and now for dessert

2009-03-17T23:07:00.009-05:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day! No parades here in The Small Town for this day, but individuals have decorated themselves and their houses in hopes of being Irish. Or to ward off pinching. When My Darling Husband was a wee lad, he tainted his family's new gallon of milk with green food coloring one St. Patrick's Day. Apparently, the sight of cereal swimming in green milk was unappetizing, so his mother went and bought a new gallon of milk. My Darling Husband was designated as the sole consumer of the green milk.

So, in honor of him and St. Patrick, here's some new green milk to go with the brownie and mint chocolate ice cream.

how fresh would you like your steak?

2009-02-24T21:10:00.007-06:00

Country roadkill. We sped by this on the way to church and back. Sorry for the udderly bad picture. I was hoping to snap it with the cow still on the shoulder of the road, but the creature had been moved over to the ditch by the time I returned to the scene. I'm guessing it escaped from the pasture and got hit by a vehicle. What a loss for the farmer. I've seen all the skunks, racoons, dogs, cats, coyotes, wolves, armadillos, turtles, and opossums for roadkill. Those are roadkill both in town and country. Cows?--only in the country.

it was a fine china kind of day

2009-02-20T12:06:00.006-06:00

Valentine's Day is a good reason (or excuse) to bake and decorate some pretty sugar cookies. Hearts, tulips and butterflies. The tulips must be red. My parents and grandparents always had red tulips in their gardens and yards, the kind with the yellow inner basins and black stamens. Of course now I believe that a tulip garden is incomplete without those specific red ones. Wish I knew the variety name. (If you think you know what tulip variety I'm referring to, would you be a dear & leave a comment saying so?) I'd love to plant some. Anyway, I baked and decorated some sugar cookies.

But grandma always said "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach".

Since My Darling Husband is a Meat Consumer of the First Order, I reused the small heart cookie cutter on the sausage. Heart pancakes and heart sausages baked with love for breakfast. The first use of our wedding china. My advice on the matter of love through body parts is thus--if you really truly want to reach his heart through his stomach, have breakfast ready prior to noon.

Then dinner at a historic hotel-turned apartment building/event space in This Small Town. A local school held the dinner as a fundraiser. We were impressed with how beautiful the evening was. The room's striking architectural features were highlighted by the school's frugal decorating: delicate pink balloons, red jelly beans in a glass hurricane to anchor a candle, vases of single red roses. The light dancing off the crystal was so pretty. All the servers, cooks and hosts were from the school: high school students, parents and staff. A couple of school personnel volunteered as entertainers by serenading with piano tunes all the evening long. Lovely.

um, please don't send the $500

2009-02-16T00:19:00.003-06:00

Oh! Our lucky day! My Darling Husband spotted this scam in his email today. It's just too funny so I had to share it with you. Wow, that's great. The FBI is allowing us to win this money. And these people verified themselves. so so so so funny

From: Federal Bureau Of Investigation
Sent: Monday, February 16, 2009 5:00:12 PM
Subject: Federal Bureau Of Investigation ( Atm Card Payment )

Anti-Terrorist And Monetory Crimes Division
FBI Headquarters In Washington, D.C.
Federal Bureau Of Investigation
...
Attn: Beneficiary,
This is to Officially inform you that it has come to our notice and we have thoroughly completed an Investigation with the help of our Intelligence Monitoring Network System that you legally won the sum of $800,000.00 USD from a Lottery Company outside the United States of America. During our investigation we discovered that your e-mail won the money from an Online Balloting System and we have authorized this winning to be paid to you via a Certified Cashier's Check.
Normally, it will take up to 10 business days for an International Check to be cashed by your local bank. We have successfully notified this company on your behalf that funds are to be drawn from a registered bank within the United States Of America so as to enable you cash the check instantly without any delay, henceforth the stated amount of $800,000.00 USD has been deposited with Bank Of America. We have completed this investigation and you are hereby approved to receive the winning prize as we have verified the entire transaction to be Safe and 100% risk free, due to the fact that the funds have been deposited at Bank Of America you will be required to settle the following bills directly to the Lottery Agent in-charge of this transaction whom is located in Lagos, Nigeria.
According to our discoveries, you were required to pay for the following -
(1) Deposit Fee's (Fee's paid by the company for the deposit into an American Bank which is - Bank Of America )
(2) Cashier's Check Conversion Fee (Fee for converting the Wire Transfer payment into a Certified Cashier's Check )
(3) Shipping Fee's (This is the charge for shipping the Cashier's Check to your home address and this fee includes Insurance )
The total amount for everything is $500.00 (Five Hundred-US Dollars). We have tried our possible best to indicate that this $500.00 should be deducted from your winning prize but we found out that the funds have already been deposited at Bank Of America and cannot be accessed by anyone apart from you the winner, therefore you will be required to pay the required fee's to the Agent in-charge of this transaction via Western Union Money Transfer Or Money Gram. In order to proceed with this transaction, you will be required to contact the agent in-charge (Mr. Benson Edward) via e-mail. Kindly look below to find appropriate contact information: CONTACT AGENT NAME: MR. BENSON EDWARD Telephone Number : +234-7080480970
You will be required to e-mail him with the following information:
FULL NAME:ADDRESS:CITY:STATE:ZIP CODE:DIRECT CONTACT NUMBER: You will also be required to request Western Union or Money Gram details on how to send the required $500.00 in order to immediately ship your prize of $800,000.00 USD via Certified Cashier's Check drawn from Bank Of America, also include the following transaction code in order for him to immediately identify this transaction : EA2948-910.

This letter will serve as proof that the Federal Bureau Of Investigation is authorizing you to pay the required $500.00 ONLY to Mr. Benson Edward via information in which he shall send to you, if you do not receive your winning prize of $800,000.00 we shall be held responsible for the loss and this shall invite a penalty of $3,000 which will be made PAYABLE ONLY to you (The Winner). ...
Please find below an authorized signature which has been signed by the FBI Director- Robert Mueller, also below is the FBI NSB (National Security Branch Seal)

Authorized Signature
NSB SEAL ABOVE
NOTE: In order to ensure your check gets delivered to you ASAP, you are advised to immediately contact Mr. Benson Edward via contact information provided above and make the required payment of $500.00 to information in which he shall provide to you

Calgon, take me away!

2009-02-08T01:20:00.009-06:00

That's what I might be saying soon.

My sub-heading for this blog is "Take the girl out of the big city--can't take the big city out of the girl". I lived in The Big City for many years until last September, when I married a man whose only drawback (how I saw it back then) was that he lives in The Small Town. I thought, "Aaahhh! No popping into the local yarn shops or Hobby Lobby to check out the clearance crafts or the mall on any ol' day. Too much quiet. And less visiting with my family. What'll I do?????"

What I've done is what everybody should do when they move to a new place, whether it's a sprawling metropolis or a self-contained little town. I have become involved. There's new friends added to the old friends, church and church functions, work, knitting group at the local library each week, and various local small-town events. I've learned to live with fewer shops and that's been good because I am actually finishing projects instead of just salivating over yarn and pretty home goods at the shops. I can visit the shops when we travel. And...My Darling Husband has become my family.

Last week My Darling Husband came home from his work with the news that he's been laid off.

Whuh?!

Mental thud.

Where did that come from?

I practically just moved here!

...and I like it here now!!!

I've pleasantly discovered that you can take the big city out of this gal. We might have to move because My Darling Husband's line of work is specialized and there's only the one company around here that could hire him. There's no market here for him to start a company doing his line of work. If we do move to a large city, I'll miss the quiet, the three-car traffic jams, the general politeness, the easily formed friendships, the quick drive to the countryside. I'll need lots of bubble baths. At least for a time.

The blog sub-heading has got to be revised.

a sample history lesson

2009-01-24T22:38:00.015-06:00

A man emailed me to say he didn't understand about samplers...what are they? I know it was a man because I personally know the fellow. Anyway, for all the uninitiated wanna-be needleworkers and anybody else reading this, here's a short history of samplers:

Samplers began as...samples prior to the 20th century. They were samples of a young girl's embroidery skills in mastering various embroidery stitches and patterns. They developed into embroidered pictures and commemoration pieces.

For additional history reading, go here.

Here are some of my favorites from the book Samplers, by Susan Mayor & Diana Fowle.

This is a fine example of an early sample. Definitely a conglomeration of the embroiderer's various stitches.
Moving on to the picture/commemoration style samplers of later years....

Do you have pictures of your own samplers on your blog or Flickr that we can see? If so, leave a comment with the location on today's post and I'll link to them.

Back to modern times. My Darling Husband and I traveled to A Nearby City for an event last weekend. The hotel we stayed at was quite charming. It was built in the 1920s in the Tudor style. The hallways were even a maze, just like a castle. It was so charming that each room has a balcony, and each balcony has a swing! Love-a-lee.

here, sample this

2009-01-19T22:29:00.005-06:00

Did you see Alicia's? Here's my sampler. I'm going to cross-stitch it. I mean, I'll add it to the list of crafty things I want to do. But I will stitch it...perhaps embroider it. Living in a small town means I'm close to the country so I can drive quickly to the rural areas for country inspiration, or walk through town for city inspiration for the sampler. Samplers are so easy to personalize. You can add your initials and date you completed the project, the names of the recipients or images from the life you know.

in honor of the cold snap

2009-01-14T15:49:00.005-06:00

Someone sent me this cartoon a while back. It's quite fitting for the frigid cold that is crossing the country today. The temperature dropped about 30 degrees today. I refer especially to the Great Plains. Now we just need some snow to go with it. In a nod to irony, the Northwest received the snow that the Midwest is supposed to get. Anybody up there save some for us?

It's a good day for sipping a hot drink in front of a fireplace in a cozy room. Hannah is having a hot drink-related giveaway. Take a peek and enter, then take a look around her blog. She takes lovely pictures and her goodies always look delicious.

be comforted

2009-01-09T08:14:00.004-06:00

This is today's posting from Crosswalk.com/Breakpoint.com. I wanted to share it because we need to be reminded occasionally that there literally is a spiritual battle occurring in people's hearts, even thought we don't see it sometimes. Sometimes we can't see it because a person keeps it hidden without hints. I hope this is encouraging to you.

"THE SLAUGHTER OF THE INNOCENTSThe First Attack on Life Chuck Colson

Yesterday, Christians around the world celebrated Epiphany, commemorating the visit of the Magi. Epiphany reminds us that God's salvation reached beyond the Jews. Christ would be, as Isaiah foretold, "a light for the Gentiles." He would bring "salvation to the ends of the earth," (49:6) as far as those very kings had traveled.
But things turned decidedly bleak after the Magi departed. Suddenly we see that the Christmas story is more than the stylized Nativity scenes we see on Christmas cards. The historian Josephus tells us how Herod murdered two of his own sons and his wife because they threatened his power.
The gospel of Matthew tells us that Herod also turned his eye to the male infants of Bethlehem. In the painting "The Slaughter of the Innocents," baroque artist Peter Paul Rubens depicted the horror: a soldier dashing a child against a Roman column, another lancing a mother who tries to hide her babe. The painting also shows a woman weeping over the body of her dead infant. It's a scene from the Bible none of us likes imagining. Matthew quoted Jeremiah to describe the atrocity: "A voice is heard in Ramah... Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted..."
Those who heard Matthew's gospel would have remembered Ramah was where Rachel died in the throes of childbirth before reaching the Promised Land. They also would have associated Ramah with the deportation of the Jews during the exile. In that vicinity, the Babylonians tore Israel's children away from their mother's arms and carried them off as slaves.
As Catherine Larson, one of my colleagues, writes in BreakPoint Online, "That evocative solo [of Rachel weeping] would have called forth the agony, the despair, and the tortured Why, of a people waiting in great darkness, of a people not yet home."
As I think about this aspect of that Christmas, I'm reminded that Christmas isn't the saccharine story we've reduced it to. It's more like D-Day.
Once Satan realized that God had invaded planet earth, he let loose a vicious counterattack. And where did Evil strike? It attacked life in its most vulnerable form.
The very first assault of Satan after the birth of Christ is against society's weakest members-infants. He attacked the "least of these." Even today, the Enemy's mode of attack hasn't changed much. We're painfully aware of the slaughter of the unborn, and the devaluation of the elderly, the poor, the disabled, and the prisoner.
But the good news is our Savior has come. He has established the beach-head. And He will have the victory.
So friends, as this New Year begins, we mustn't be deceived. There is a real battle with real casualties. We remember that we wage war not against flesh and blood, "but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."
We shouldn't be surprised at setbacks and assaults upon us. Of course the Enemy won't go down without a fight. But remember, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.
So lay hold of it, and don't let go."

Last night God kept bringing to my mind the hymn, "Because He Lives", and John 14 in the Bible. I trudged from the warm bed to another warm room where I could turn on a light & read. I encourage you to read it also.

an incident in economizing

2009-01-04T21:59:00.005-06:00

What to do with leftover fried chicken? Don't just eat it cold for breakfast, stretch it. I was puzzled what to make for lunch today, then aha! I just happen to have that packet of enchilada soup spice mixture.

the recipe called for:

a can of cooked chicken meat or cooked chicken breast meat

one can of cream of chicken soup

water

I used:

leftover fried chicken meat torn into bits (skin eaten separately)

some flour, milk, butter, tarragon, chicken boullion

water

My flourish: Cut whole wheat flour tortillas into strips & toast them. Sprinkle on the bowl of soup & serve.

Delicioso!

oh what a beautiful day

2009-01-03T23:41:00.005-06:00

Today's 70+ degree (Farenheit) weather...in winter...just begged for picnickers. We obliged.

It was the place to be, for folks of all ages.These tree seed balls reminded me of gum drops on a candy tree. Or glass balls on a Charlie Brown Christmas tree.

There were lots of tykes on bikes. I would be more comfortable allowing children to ride off by themselves here than in The Big City. I know things happen everywhere, but there's less crime to deal with here.

A vintage pathway.

A vintage train.

End of the line for this black beauty.

We even have a small zoo. Very small. The concession prices are small too.

Blessed Christmas

2008-12-25T00:01:00.001-06:00

night lights

2008-12-23T00:14:00.012-06:00

In The Big City and in The Small Town, Christmas lights are a sight not to be missed. After dinner, My Darling Husband and I drove around the countryside (Ah, peaceful serenity.)(A pretty country church, shining as a beacon in the dark.)(Something tells me Katy is getting a sparkly ring for Christmas and might need that church.)and The Small Town to see what our eyes would behold. This Small Town and the small town I grew up in both use the crossed wreaths to decorate the downtown. They're pretty. A lovely Victorian dwelling that I constantly admire from afar.

a little songbird sang to me

2008-12-19T21:50:00.012-06:00

Well...actually it was a choir of high school songbirds. Last night My Darling Husband and I were in for a treat when we attended the Christmas concert at the local public high school.

Ahhh, their voices! Especially the locally prestigious senior class choir could compete with a professional choir. And, they sang a cappella. I'd love to have them serenade me to sleep each night. Sweet dreams gare-on-teeed.

Another highlight of the concert is that the song selections included old Christmas hymns. Hymns, not just carols. Hymns that spoke the names Jesus, God the Father, Christ.... How refreshing that in this age of reality-denying political correctness that the high school choir director in this small town is not quivering in his boots at the thought of offending a single someone with accurate historical tradition. Take that, bully ACLU. Christ is in Christmas.

Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming was one of the songs.

Princess Calico

2008-12-18T15:59:00.007-06:00

The word calico drums up images of the calico cat my family had when I was a wee lass. I thought Princess was the cutest thing ever. I'll make today Word Wednesday, because I still think calico cats are one of the cutest things. Cute as a button. Perhaps we should change that phrase to cute as a kitten.

"A Word A Day
calico
PRONUNCIATION:(KAL-i-co)
MEANING:
noun:
1. A brightly printed coarse cotton cloth.
2. (Mainly British) A plain white cotton cloth.
3. An animal having a spotted coat, especially with red and black patches.
adjective:
1. Made from such a cloth.
2. Having a spotted pattern.
ETYMOLOGY:
From Calicut, former name of Kozhikode, a city in southern India from where this cloth was exported. Other words for clothes with Indian origins are bandana, cashmere, chintz, dungarees, jodhpurs, khakis, madras, pajamas, and seersucker (not all are toponyms). "
I still like a good calico, both feline and fabric form. Here's a good feline picture. I can just feel that velvet nose.

roses are red, roses on blue

2008-12-11T15:57:00.008-06:00

Look what I found in the mailbox today:

A Cath Kidston shopping bag from our blogging friend at Vintage Pleasure. I like her blog because we share a penchant for pretty and practical vintage items, she upholds family life in the traditional sense when posting about family, her blog is pleasing to the eye, and well, I have always been an Anglophile.

The bag was made for a good cause. Coincidentally it just happens to be one of my favorite color schemes which is red and light blue together. It's meant to be a shopping bag, but it's my new knitting bag. No more plastic bags from the stores for my knitting.Just in time for knitting group at the library tonight.

pleaching the yarn

2008-12-10T21:24:00.009-06:00

A.Word.A.Day
pleach
PRONUNCIATION:(pleech, playch)
MEANING:To interlace branches or vines to make a hedge, decorative shape, arbor, etc.
ETYMOLOGY:From Old French plechier, from Latin plectere (to plait). Ultimately from the Indo-European root plek- (to plait) that is also the source of plait, pleat, pliant, ply, apply, deploy, display, exploit, replicate, and perplex.
USAGE:
"Twenty years ago I planted a row of limes along the drive at the Mills, thinking only to pleach them so they could filter the wind."Germaine Greer; Lime Trees; The Daily Telegraph (London, UK); Jul 5, 2003.
"Limes are ideal for pleaching because they grow fast, respond enthusiastically to pruning, and have very long whippy new stems that are easy to bend and tie into position."Monty Don; Pleacher's Pet; The Observer (London, UK); Nov 3, 2002.

Just think, you could be wearing this lovely knitted vine scarf while pleaching your fruit trees.

I miss all the yummy yarn shops in The Big City. I would buy my yarn there and sometimes I would go in just to touch and see all the new yarns each season. There are none here in The Small Town. Unless you like the acrylic and cotton yarns from WalMart. The cotton ones are nice and acrylic is durable. There is a Hobby Lobby only 45 minutes drive. That's good because H.L. has a greater selection than W.M. There's always the internet available to order over, but there's no touching! I relish the thought of visiting the shops in The Big City. Meanwhile, since I can't just pop into the yarn shop any day it strikes my fancy, I actually am finishing projects before purchasing more yarn for the stash!

fair enough

2008-12-05T11:12:00.001-06:00

Shenanigans in small towns include parades. I've been meaning to show you these photos of a parade that The Small Town had at the end of October.

High school marching bands.

The Small Town really is a small town, but you'd never know it during this celebration.

Even doggies need a break every now and then. It's tiring having to avoid all those feet!

Political promotions.

Stand proud for The Stars and Stripes.

Even small towns have beauty pageants.

Love these vintage vehicles. Classy.

The usual suspects. Clowns, tractors and marching bands. Something for everyone.

This one's for you, Brother-In-Law-O'-Mine.

Stunt riders.

The end.

everyday thanks

2008-11-28T22:35:00.009-06:00

I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday. Thanksgiving rolls around. every. year. But we should not take it for granted. It is a blessing to live in a country where we still have an official holiday showing official appreciation for our blessings. It is the Lord who gives such blessings...freedom, food, shelter, clothing, family and friends, and eternal life in heaven if we so choose to accept it.

Psalm 68:19
Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation.

My Darling Husband and I are visiting some of his family in Texas. It's nice and warm down here, compared to the Midwest. 60s vs. 40s!

somewhere...someplace

2008-11-26T06:57:00.009-06:00

"A.Word.A.Day
whencesoever
PRONUNCIATION:(hwens-so-EV-uhr)
MEANING:conjunction, adverb: From whatever place.
ETYMOLOGY:From whence (from what place) + soever (at all, of any kind).
USAGE:"[Lizbeth, the dog] loves human attention and like Browning's duchess she is pleased indiscriminately whencesoever it comes."Jonathan Raban; The View From a Literary Dumpster; The New York Times; Oct 10, 1993.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:The race of men, while sheep in credulity, are wolves for conformity. -Carl Van Doren, professor, writer, and critic (1885-1950)"

Who knows the provenance of these melamine dishes, but they sure are pretty! Perfecto for a picnic in the park, pasture or whatever place.

In The Big City, there was this gorgeous park and this breathtaking one, and hundreds of others scattered throughout the neighborhoods. Here in The Small Town, there are at least two parks that I have seen with my own eyes. One is itty bitty. The other is the town gathering spot from spring through autumn. It contains the towns football and track arena, picnic areas, swimming pool with a slide, a small zoo, miniature train, miniature golf and a carousel that costs a mere 5 cents per person! Small time entertainment. Great for the pocketbook.

Thanks for popping in!

2008-11-22T16:53:00.007-06:00

Yesterday I went to the bank to deposit my first paycheck from my new job. I was quite proud of that check. It takes stamina to withstand temper-tantrum-throwing three-year-olds five days a week.
At most banks, the tellers can look up your account using your i.d. if you've forgotten to bring your account number. I've experienced being recognized by The Big City bank tellers, but only after many repeated visits. Yesterday was only the second time this particular teller had met me. She remembered me, although the first visit was a month ago and she's helped hundreds of other people since our first encounter. She didn't even ask for my i.d. Ahh! Small Towns are inviting sometimes.

I'll leave you with a Saturday funny. 'Tis the season for turkey talk.
"One year at Thanksgiving, my mom went to my sister's house for the traditional feast. Knowing how gullible my sister is, my mom decided to play a trick. She told my sister that she needed something from the store. When my sister left, my mom took the turkey out of the oven, removed the stuffing, stuffed a Cornish hen, and inserted it into the turkey, and re-stuffed the turkey. She then placed the bird(s) back in the oven.
When it was time for dinner, my sister pulled the turkey out of the oven and proceeded to remove the stuffing. When her serving spoon hit something, she reached in and pulled out the little bird. With a look of total shock on her face, my mother exclaimed, 'Patricia, you've cooked a pregnant bird!'
At the reality of this horrifying news, my sister started to cry. It took the family two hours to convince her that turkeys lay eggs!"

same here as they were there

2008-11-19T15:15:00.004-06:00

Squirrel. Tree rat. Nuisance. Target. Somebody would surely call them dinner. Although the latter is more likely in The Small Town than The Big City.

My very creative friend, Coconutto, snapped these two shots of a lazy squirrel basking in the fresh air a couple of weeks ago. It must have been counting the nuts in the grass.

This little guy had his mug printed in The Small Town's newspaper last Monday, Veteran's Day.

Got goat milk?

2008-11-18T02:30:00.010-06:00

Two days ago, Saturday, 15 November 2008, My Darling Husband and I took a road trip to The Nearest Large Town.

On the way we stopped for lunch at a gas station restaurant. In our parcel of this great nation, a gas station restaurant usually consists of McDonald's or counter pizza tasting like cardboard that pizza is normally delivered in or...scrumptious barbeque. The restaurant I write of was just a normal, family restaurant, and locally owned. The food was good. Much to my delight, My Darling Husband accidentally spotted a Big City versus Small Town difference. Even some Big City restaurants have community bulletin boards and "Welcome" signs.

Bet you won't find goats for sale in the city!

There is a missing child notice on the bulletin board in this picture, so if you can do so on your computer, click on the photo to enlarge it and take a look at the missing child, to help bring her home.

After some successful shopping (also very limited in The Small Town), we headed home. First we filled up the car with gas. Cheap cheap cheap! Below $2.00 in Bartlesville, Oklahoma on Saturday. Just thought I'd advertise the fact that gas prices have decreased lately. Have you noticed?

it's Saturday, so be amused

2008-11-15T13:36:00.003-06:00

Somebody else wrote this list, so "my hubby and I" are other people, not My Darling Husband and I. However, as the aunt of teenagers and having been one earlier in life, I can appreciate this.

"Teenage Rules

Raising teenagers is a challenge, so my hubby and I came upwith the following rules to help the kids understand whatwas expected of them during their pre-adult status.

Rules of This Household:

1. If you are not here for dinner, too bad. This is not a fast-food place where the cook is on duty at all times. The cook works full time {working at home can be a full-time job also--Belle} and does not need a second job.

2. If you make a mess, clean it up. The dishwasher is open 24 hours a day to service you as are the vacuum, broom, and sponge. Please help them to help you by using them. If you need assistance, ask the cook -- she will be happy to give you training on any of the equipment.

3. The taxi service for this household is not on call 24hours. You must make reservations at least 12 hours inadvance. You have two good legs, skateboards, and bikes that are somewhat operational; one of you has a vehicle that works. Use them. By the way, skateboards are to be used onthe outside of this house and are never to be used in theliving room just because the landing is softer when you fall.

4. We are not a bank and you have no collateral to offer us. Face it: We own everything you have and I have receipts to prove it, so don't ask us for loans. Get jobs! We have them. Try it and you might like it (not so much the work as the money).

5. Curfew is negotiable, but try not to be late too often because it could go either way.

6. Tell us where you are going. GOOD GRIEF! I am way older than you, and I still tell my mother where I am going when Iam at her house. Leave us a note or try to form words describing where you are going while we are in the room with you. Honestly, we don't bite unless provoked.

7. You know how to use a phone. Some of you even have cell phones. We like to hear your voice if you are going to be late. You can use a phone to find out what's for dinner, to let us know you made it to wherever all right, or just to let us hear your beautiful voice.

8. No food in your room, the living room, the bathroom, oranywhere in the house other than the kitchen or dining areaEVER! How many times do I have to say this?

9. You do not contribute financially in any way, shape, or form to this household, so try to pull your weight in other ways: Clean something, put something away, surprise us by doing it before we ask. Otherwise, you may find yourself financially supporting yourself on the OUTSIDE of this house."

country kittens

2008-11-13T18:51:00.012-06:00

A friend emailed this picture to me today. I don't know where it came from or who took it, or even if it's real. Looks genuine. Here is the caption that came with the photo:
"So, there I was . . . just relaxing and then the kids yelled, 'Hey Mom, come see the kittens'."

In the Big City, we called these skunks. Around here, these black and white creatures are country kittens, and their spray is "country perfume". I smelled the effects of one around the neighborhood the other night, when My Darling Husband and I were outside in the cool evening air. Runnn!! I'll take a bed of roses, thank you.

Can you imagine getting sprayed by one? Life would come to a temporary halt, as nobody would want to socialize with you. My father once ran into a skunk and came home wearing the evidence. My parents tried all sorts of ways to make dad's clothes like new again. Finally, mom buried his clothes in the ground. Either to erase them from dad's memory or to let the dirt absorb the nasal assault.

it is Veteran's Day

2008-11-11T12:19:00.005-06:00

The United States flag in this photograph shows fewer than 50 stars because it is one of the flags flown at Ft. McHenry. The National Park Service flies the flag that shows the number of states in the union at the time the U.S. defeated the British at Ft. McHenry during the American Revolution. Fort McHenry is also the birthplace of our national anthem.

I thank all the U.S. military service members, alive and deceased, for their part in creating and protecting this nation that God blessed us with. It is because of Him, and our military, that we have existed.

Take a moment to show your appreciation to the service members you know.

2008-11-09T17:22:00.005-06:00

Cartoon strip by Bil Keane.

The hymn, "In The Garden", was written and composed by C.A. Miles in 1912.

"I come to the garden alone

While the dew is still on the roses

And the voice I hear falling on my ear

The Son of God discloses.

Refrain:

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,

And He tells me I am His own;

And the joy we share as we tarry there,

None other has ever known.

He speaks, and the sound of His voice,

Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,

And the melody that He gave to me

Within my heart is ringing.

Refrain

I’d stay in the garden with Him.
Though the night around me be falling,

But He bids me go; through the voice of woe
His voice to me is calling.

Refrain"

it's about time

2008-11-06T10:16:00.011-06:00

This great little coffee cup was made by Circa Ceramics. They utilize appropriate use of today's word. Not only is the word circa in their identity, but their products are vintage-looking. And that, my friends, is extremely important to vintage-mad individuals. This cup is ggrr-ate! for sipping so slowly whle embroidering, or taking stock of one's fabric stash. I'm imagining the blue and white horizontal stripes holding a collection of vertical colored pencils.

"A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg
circa
PRONUNCIATION: (SUHR-kuh)
MEANING: Approximately.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin circa (around, about), from circus (circle), from Greek kirkos. Ultimately from the Indo-European root sker- (to turn or bend) which is also the source of other words such as ranch, rank, shrink, circle, crisp, search, ring, curb, ridge, and curve.
USAGE: "This translates into an annual average loss of circa 167 hectares (0.5 per cent of all farmland)."Alan Deidun; Keeping up the Momentum; The Times of Malta; Oct 19, 2008.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: When you battle with your conscience and lose, you win. -Henny Youngman, comedian and violinist (1906-1998)"

we have a duty

2008-11-03T20:42:00.002-06:00

From our church bulletin on Sunday:

Top 10 Predictions No Matter Who Wiins the Election
1. God will still have all the answers.
2. Prayer will still work.
3. The Holy Spirit will still move.
4. God will still inhabit the praises of His people.
5. There will still be God-anointed preaching.
6. There will still be singing of praise to God.
7. God will still pour out blessings upon His people.
8. There will still be room at the Cross.
9. Jesus will still love you.
10. Jesus will still save the lost when they come to Him.

Obama's change = socialism

2008-10-31T08:47:00.004-05:00

I can't take credit for this revision of "Twas The Night Before Christmas, but I very much find it to be true. While I don't agree with every little thing that the Republican party does and says, the Democratic party has become too controlling (ie: the proposed Freedom of Choice Act, the proposed act that would require "equal balance" when talking of anything (sorry, I've forgotten the name of that one) and there's another one that would limit what we could find and hear in the media.) Communist leaders and dictatorships limit free speech and freedom of religion. Our American Constitution guarantees it. Senator McCain would lead in protection our American constitution, freedom, government and way of life.

For more information on what the presidential and vice-presidential candidates believe about a variety of topics, visit http://www.nrlc.org/.

" 'Twas the night before elections
And all through the town
Tempers were flaring
Emotions all up and down!

I, in my bathrobe
With a cat in my lap
Had cut off the TV
Tired of political crap.

When all of a sudden
There arose such a noise
I peered out of my window
Saw Obama and his boys

They had come for my wallet
They wanted my pay
To give to the others
Who had not worked a day!

He snatched up my money
And quick as a wink
Jumped back on his bandwagon
As I gagged from the stink

He then rallied his henchmen
Who were pulling his cart
I could tell they were out
To tear my country apart!

On Fannie, on Freddie,
On Biden and Ayers!
On Acorn , On Pelosi'
He screamed at the pairs!

They took off for his cause
And as he flew out of sight
I heard him laugh at the nation
Who would n't stand up and fight!

So I leave you to think
On this one final note-
If you don't want socialism/marxism/communism, vote for Sen. McCain & Gov. Palin."

You say tuh-mey-toh, I say tuh-mah-toh

2008-10-29T17:43:00.009-05:00

Since I was married and moved away from the Big City, I'm finding more time catch up on email. Well, since I'm working only at home right now, not for anybody but myself and dear husband. I subscribe to an email list called A Word A Day. You too, can become wiser just by signing on. By doing so, I have learned words that I wouldn't know unless I read the dictionary. Which I have time to do now, in addition to reading the bookcase full of books I've been meaning to read the last few years. BOR-RING? Not at all. Words are the print equivalent of paint on a canvas. They're also the lacquered equivalent of a trinket box spotted on Etsy.

Today I am posting the Wordsmith's entry of cleave. I never knew this word and it's relatives had opposite meanings depending on which side of the Atlantic one is on. Read on--I assure you it's interesting!

"When you sanction a project, do you approve of it or disapprove?
Should one be commended for oversight (watchful care) or reprimanded for oversight (error or omission)?
When you resign from a job, do you leave it or re-join (re-sign) it?
When a proposal gets tabled, is it being brought forward for discussion or being laid aside?
Depends on which side of the pond you're at. If the former, you're in the UK; if the latter, you're in the US. I call them fence-sitters. They sit on fences, ready to say one thing or its opposite depending on which side they appear at. I'm not talking about politicians.
These are words, known by many names: autoantonym, contranym, self-antonym, enantiodromic, amphibolous, janus word, and so on. Sometimes it's a result of two distinct words evolving into the same form (cleave from Old English cleofian and cleofan) but often a single word develops a split personality and takes on two contradictory senses. All of us have a bit of yin and yang and these words are no exception. The context usually provides a clue to help us understand the right sense in a given place.

cleave

PRONUNCIATION:(kleev)

MEANING:verb tr., intr.:
1. To split or divide. (past tense: clove or cleft or cleaved; past participle: cloven or cleft or cleaved)
2. To stick, cling. (past tense and past participle: cleaved)

ETYMOLOGY:
Sense 1: From Old English cleofan. Ultimately from the Indo-European root gleubh- (to tear apart) that is also the source of glyph, clever, and clove (garlic). And that's also where cleavage, cleft palate, and cloven hooves get their names from.
Sense 2: From Old English cleofian.

USAGE:
"It now looks as though technology has cleaved the society into two." Isshaq Jumbe; Password Headache in A Fast-moving World; Business Day (Nairobi, Kenya); Sep 25, 2008.
"After that debate, those who loathe Mrs Palin will still loathe her; those who cleave to her will find no new reason to be repelled." Janice Turner; Why I Love This Candy-covered Ball of Granite, Sarah Palin; The Times (London, UK); Oct 4, 2008."

"Reader, I married him. A quiet wedding we had....",

2008-10-26T07:54:00.002-05:00

then I moved from a large metropolitan city to his quiet town. Now what? I knew the sidewalks would roll up at 5 p.m. since I grew up in a small town. However, sixteen years in a big city can spoil a lady!

After the busyness of packing my life and wedding preparations...after honeymoon traveling...here we are. What does one do with oneself when the cars involved in rush hour traffic can be counted on two hands, when one falls asleep to the tick and tock of a clock instead of police sirens, when an adventure has to be created instead of choosing from limitless events? A person finds beauty in the details of life and has time to find the beauty.