Christmas mood....

We were coming home from Sarah's today, and happened to have the radio on and this song happened to come on...

I so would love to be home one more time in my life when a few inches of snow is on ground....the photo below is of our childhood home. I can remember wishing we had ornaments to really decorate that blue spruce out front for Christmas. We were lucky to have any to go on our Christmas tree....let alone to decorate outside. We had a strand or two of the big multicolored lights and a few of the shiny ball ornaments...I don't ever remember getting to buy any new ones.

However, I can remember cutting a star out of cardboard and wrapping it in aluminum foil to put on the spruce...I think about this every year...and I never fail to think about how we saved wrapping paper from year to year. And I think of gathering pine cones and painting them with gold and silver paint. Thinking about that now, I would love to know where the paint came from and why we had it. It was in little bottles...maybe a couple inches tall. I wonder if they had been model paint...but even if they were, that still does not explain why we had them.

But don't feel sorry or sad for me...having a childhood like this has made even simple things so much more enjoyable. I buy a few new Christmas ornaments every year, and probably get twice the enjoyment from it that most people do.
Anyway, all that is going through my mind, and thinking how I have lived in the small town I live in now for 30 years...even with living here that long, Tennessee is still home.

And I would love to go back to Tennessee to live, but I could never willingly move farther way from Lorelei....nor her mommy either. It is bad enough when the kids move away by choice or with work and jobs...but I don't think I could willingly move away from them. Our one daughter lives on the west coast, but at least we have hopes of her someday moving back closer to home.

Right now I get sort of teary-eyed after leaving Lorelei...she is such a bright part of our life. She is always so glad to see us...right now she is at the age where Mamaw and Papaw can do no wrong...and honestly she can't either;-)

Every picture tells a story....

For the first time in a long while, Roger and I went on a rambling drive today...I kind knew where I wanted to start out at, and in fact most of the time gone was on roads we have been on before...with a few new ones thrown in.

However these below, and the ones I am going to show on Time Stand Still are probably not ten miles from home, and certain not longer than a 10-15 minute drive...if even that. Be sure and check out the photos there....
You need to click on these to see them...specially the one above. There had been this little kestrel on the power line and every time I got near enough to even think about taking a photo, it would fly. Usually just past the next pole, but it skipped one and went on...I wondered why. Then gave a second look and there was this big hawk sitting on top of the light pole...it took off before we could stop.

In just a second here came the kestrel and looks like it was trying to knock the hawk right out of the sky! Just click the above picture...it is a tad bit blurry but there was no time to focus. I can't help but wonder if what the hawk thought, or if he had a head ache.
They proceeded to fly on; it was as if the kestrel was escorting the hawk away from its hunting territory....
In the end the hawk was fine and no worse for wear...

Laughter and tears....

For several years, with the exception of last year, I have listened to the unabridged version Rick Bragg's book, All Over but the Shoutin', sometime during the holiday season...either on the day before Thanksgiving or Christmas as I mess around in the kitchen fixing this and that. But last year, it was no longer available at the library. I know I ended up with something to listen to, but whatever it was did not impress me because I don't remember.

This year, I just happened to start listening to Oogy, the Dog Only a Family Could Love by Larry Levin....
I tell you I have found my new holiday book! You can click the badge to be taken to Amazon's page....or you can watch the video below about the book. Oogy was used as a bait dog for fighting dogs, but was rescued in a police raid. His ear is chewed off, and lots of other damage...but he never holds a grudge against human beings, nor other dogs for that matter.

I have cried and I have laughed while listening to this...the bittersweet sort of tears. Though Lorelei's Otti Doddi was not abused, there are so many of their traits that are the same. The destructiveness in puppy hood--that was oh, so familiar. Then the barking at people, not because of aggressiveness but because he can't get to them...in Otto's case he wants to lick them to death.

In Otto's case, other than once or twice showing aggressiveness towards strays, he usually drools with anticipation if he thinks one of their friends might be bringing a play date for him...that is the only time he drools. Since they have moved away, he no longer has play dates, but a neighbor behind them has a little dog that runs up and down the outside of Sarah's fence and he enjoys running back and forth with it.

Anyway, I am not being paid for this...I am just really, really enjoying the book. It is one of the better finds I have made. Sometimes I check out a book at the library thinking it will be good, only to be disappointed....I have had two or three animal stories that while not bad were not as great as I thought. So, I checked this one out thinking well, it is free...if it isn't good it is nothing lost. I didn't want to be disappointed again. Now, I am thinking I would not mind owning it.

I will leave you with a picture of our Lorelei...this is the other thing that makes me smile, when I think of this picture.
I will leave you a picture of Lorelei...
Sarah was at her sink, which is where the bright spot is in the photo...she heard this "I found you mommy" and looked around and Lorelei had rolled the chair over from their computer and climbed on it and was looking over the counter at her.

I haven't got a new picture of Otto...Lorelei still uses him for everything. Sits on him, uses him to climb places, gets her blanket and lays down beside him, and generally loves him to pieces. I would say they are both lucky to have each other...the only thing he don't like is for her to get his tail and pull on it. He don't get mad or anything, he just pulls away....other than that he takes it all and kisses her every chance he gets.

As this holiday season begins, I am so thankful to have the husband I have, and to have two daughters that are ever a source of love, joy and might I add pride, a son-in-law that could not be better, and cute little Lorelei to hold and love...I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving...and may it hold for you all the joy your heart can hold.

Edited to add:
I have listened far enough to learn that Oogy is not a pitbull, as the vets first thought but is a Dogo....a breed that was developed in Argentina for big game hunting. To me, they still look like pitbulls.

Here is Lo....

Just thought I would post a picture of Lorelei with her new quilt...but I will tell you that her Elmo fuzzy blanket will probably always be her favorite. It isn't a quilt...just a fuzzy little blanket I picked up at Walmart.

at long last...

I did take this outside and take photos of it before washing, but it is in the dryer as I type this. We are at Sarah's for the night, so I just brought it on till Lorelei can have it.

Above is the back of the quilt...I generally don't use/don't like white but it was what I had enough of for the back so I used it. And here is the whole quilt....when I thought to bring it out for Lorelei, I spread it out and she said, "LOOK!" And proceeded to tell that it was Olivia and then she got down on it and really examined the pictures.
I did take photos of her and the quilt, but that will have to wait till I am at home and can download them on my own computer...

A slight change in plans...

I had every intention of getting photographs taken of Lorelei's Olivia quilt today, but instead I did almost totally nothing. I did get the loose threads picked from it...there was not near as many as I had thought. I had wanted to photograph it outside because when I use flash, very little of the quilting shows.

Not that the quilting is all that great, but I do like for it to show enough to see how it is quilted. We were supposed to have warmer temps today...I even got an update from one of the local news channels in my afternoon email....it said:

Saturday Sunny
High 58º

That was sent at 2:00 p.m. in the afternoon. There had not been one single ray of sunshine so far the entire day, and I will say here that we never got the first hint of sunshine before dark. And though I didn't check my thermometer, I checked the weather on line and the high was 48º.

Anyway, I just didn't feel like being out in the chilly wind to take photographs. So instead I am showing you the courthouse over in Paris, Illinois....it appears to be getting a face lift of some sort. This was taken yesterday. To see what it looked like previously, go here.....it is a picture taken in 2009. Both are drive-by shots.
I will tell you right now, I am glad I am not the one working up there...I want to go back when I have time and take some pictures of the entire courthouse. It is really a beauty.

Fall decorations...

We drove to Arthur, Illinois today. I wanted to get out. It was all drab and dreary here this morn, so after checking the weather in a couple other places, Arthur seemed to be the one that promised to be sunny. And by the time we were there, we were in bright sunshine.

We ate at my favorite restaurant...Yoder's Kitchen....or is it Yoder's Country Kitchen...I honestly cannot remember. I for the longest time called it one thing and it was the other and now I can't remember which is correct and which isn't. They have the best chicken, best dressing, and vegetable soup! They are served on their buffet, which we always get. I always get those three things..sometimes I try a little of something else, but I always choose those first.

I ran by Stitch and Sew to pick up a couple things, then by an Amish shop out in the country where I got Lorelei some coloring books. They have coloring books more along the lines of what we had as kids...not based on some TV cartoon or character. These have all kinds of nice pictures of animals, and kids playing doing things.

We headed on home from there, sticking to back roads for about half the way.
We passed this place after we left the previously mentioned shop....I liked the door area, and I liked the fall decorations.
**********************
I set and finished the binding on Lorelei's quilt. I will wash it tomorrow, and try to clean up all the strings, etc....and hopefully I will get photos taken to show tomorrow night.

A little bit of humor...

First watch this video...I may have shown it before. If so forgive me; I think when you watch the next one you will realize why I show this one.


Then just take a few more seconds and watch this one....



I am not sure if Sarah got 'how an elephant goes' from the Tim Conway/Carol Burnett thing, but every time Lorelei does it, she reminds me of the them.

*****************
I had another night of no sleep...at least not till it was about daylight. I was going to bed about the time the local morning news came on. I slept 2 or 3 hours before I started the day.

We had to go to Terre Haute and get a new water heater...ours has had a leak. I was afraid I would come home someday to a foot of water in the basement. So we picked up a new one, came home, and I helped Roger get it down in the basement, and left him getting ready to put it in. I had gotten some new birdseed and wanted to fill my feeders...then got into something else.

I went down there in a bit, to find a big puddle of water...the 'faucet' that served as the drain at the bottom of the old water heater had broken off when Roger put the hose on it and tried to turn it on. So ended up helping him clean that up before he had to go to the hardware store and pick up a couple fittings.

Anyway, it is in and working fine...and I no longer have to think about coming home to a flooded basement.

Cotton: the fabric of my life

When we were in Georgia in September, I finally had the opportunity of seeing fields of cotton. I have always wanted to have a few seeds to see if I could grow it up here. I know I would have to start it inside in very early spring or late winter. But that has never happened...but at least I got to see it growing and got to take these photos.
There were occasional blooms, even though the majority of the field was about ready to be picked...at least I think it was about ready. When picking apples in the fall, I would occasionally find a few blooms scattered here or there in the orchard...so it did not surprise me to see these cotton blossoms.
I always thought growing tobacco was a hot job, and sort of nasty with the way the tobacco would tar up my hands...but I am thinking nothing I done with tobacco would hold a candle to the job of picking cotton by hand.
The cotton we seen was low growing--maybe two feet high. So most adults would have to stoop to pick it...then it would be rough on the hands...and dragging that bag behind would have really been tiring when it was full and probably aggravating even when it was empty. But I would still like to grow a few plants just to see it grow.

I love cotton...I prefer clothes made of cotton. I want sheets made of cotton. It is the fabric I use to make my quilts with. So it really is the fabric of choice for my life.

An update....

The above is a Lorelei while daddy is beatboxing for her...



And this little video was waiting on me when I got home today. Lorelei loves her Otto...if you listen closely when Otto walks out view you can hear him 'sneeze', and Lorelei copies him...then says 'Bless you, Otti!' She loves her Otto...and I must say he loves her.

Anyway, as to why I haven't been involved in blogging for the past month or so, our daughter had major surgery last month, so we went to help her, and to help with Lorelei while she recovered. We came home late Oct 31, got here about 11:00 p.m. (She only lives about 2 hours away.)

Anyway, I had things I had to do, and her hubby was going to be home with her. She caught a cold right before we left...I came home and caught it about 2 days later. Meanwhile, back at her house, both Lorelei and her daddy also caught it. I ended up being home about a week more than I had planned.

Sarah is doing great, and we are all about recovered from our colds except for the occasional coughing. I just have to tell this...I don't think Sarah will mind. After we left that first night we came home, Sarah had to get up with Lorelei....then Sarah got sick at her stomach. Lorelei was standing in the door of the bathroom while Sarah was being sick...Lorelei stood over there and laughed and laughed at her mom vomiting. Then she started trying to spit--I suppose she thought her mom was having all the fun!

I am not sure how regular I will be in blogging, but maybe I will get to do a few posts.