Halloween Tricksters

A Trick for a Treat by Benji the Garden Knome
A Spooky Halloween Eve Sky ooooaaahhhheeeeooo
Good Little trick-or-treaters!!

Mario the Thinker by Syrus
Austin the Ironman 2 with his 4 yr. old haircut
Christopher the Ironman 1, the chocolate king
More of our Benji
Mario, oh Happy Mario
More of Ironman 1 & 2
GGrandma O. with her trick-or-treaters

We had a houseful of little 'trick-or-treaters' last night, 4 of our babygrands. They had come for a visit but had to return earlier today, so we tricked and treated our neighbor and their GGrandma O on Halloween Eve. They had a blast dancing around and singing the whole time. GGrandma was so happy to see them and to have them sweep her hardwood floor with their sliding knees and bodies. Enjoy the pictures of our two little Ironmen , Mario, and Benji the Garden Knome.

God Bless Your Evening with lots of Halloween Fun...

TeddyBearLove

This little teddy bear 'bearing' the same name, Teddy Bear, has been a part of our family for 27 years. I made him for my son, Andy, for his first Christmas, at which time, he also wore a velvet bow around his neck. He since, has been loved and hugged by many children and their parents. In the past 6 years, he has been loved by Andy's 3 sons, who spend lots of time at Grandma's house.

Today, however, he sits quietly in the children's library and reads to his friends of the forest.

Have a Blessed Day and wonderful, memory-filled weekend.

FungusAmongus

There is fungus amongst us by the creek resembling Crowded ParchmentsSnow covered
Just a cool picture
These ladder all the way to the top of this dead wood and are beautiful to see having a buff underside, perhaps from the polypore family of 'shrooms'
A lone fern defying the cold weather
We have quite a cluster of mushrooms growing on the dead trees by the creekside...it was a nice surprise on my walk to find something besides the early snows in the woods...

Have a Blessed Day Til our next visit...

Yesterday

Sit a spellHome Sweetness
Waiting for Dinner
First water in our creek since spring thaw-fish are jumpin for joy
Cutting our way into the cabin
Beautiful 1st snow of the season-Oct.24.09
Our road to the cabin non-drivable til we cut our way in
Still cutting our way in but it was such a beautiful drive
The garden fence needs to be taken down before more damage
Ya gotta love it
We got our first snow whether we wanted it or not. Although it was much too early in the year for this, it was a gorgeous ride into the cabin. We spent 2 days, ate well there and slept better., and they were only naps...leave the window open a bit so we could hear the creek tumbling...awwww...wonderful what God has gifted us with. We really do live in a beautiful part of the country, and so fortunate to experience all 4 seasons...we truly are blessed...

Even if it is a bad day, find at least one thing that makes you smile.

Have a Blessed Day.

Oct. 23, 09 Snow

Snow and iced spruce boughsSnow-covered rubber boots that are supposed to be drying
Iced lilacs anyone?
Footprints in the snow
Oct. 23, 09- our first snow of the season

The snow has started to fall about an hour ago....already it has covered the field and trees with heavy, wet stuff. The few pictures I took show the ice forming, so, with what we are supposed to get yet tonight, about 4 inches, if the ice continues, the trees could show some damage as well as the roads and the folks traveling them, by morning. It is not that cold out, not quite freezing at 32.4 F. and the wind calmed. We can only hope for the best this first round. Tracking weather, my son says, as he just come in from bow hunting...he says all he got was 'cold'.

So it goes here in God's country....we are getting the double-edged sword with the moisture and the beauty for it IS beautiful to see the first snows of the season.

God Bless your night....just had to share these pics because, in spite of the snows coming early this season, I DO love it.

Fall Clean-Up

It's amazing, all that has to be done in the fall to prepare for 5-6 months of winter weather. We had a couple of productive days doing just that. While listening to the flocks of geese fly south to warmer climes, we loaded the 4-wheeler trailer with deck furniture, emptied and cleaned the planters to be stored, lifted everything into the haymow for storage, put the last of the covers for the last of the ripened crops away and cleaned the tools.

Next we will pull the last of the debris from the gardens and get them plowed and tilled once before winter freezes the ground. It always gives such a nice start to spring. It dries faster in the spring so I can plant early crops without waiting for the mud to clear.

Finally, I will put up my Christmas lights up at least around the decks. I know this is early for that but it sure beats doing it in the bitter wind and cold like the last couple years.

Oh, we also put up another trail camera to watch the deer activity for the grandkids that will be hunting this fall. It is exciting for 2 of them that are doing this for the first time. We will see if this is something they will want to follow up on in the coming seasons.

So much for what has gone down in my past couple of days...

God Bless your day

God Bless

God Bless Your Fall Day

Harvest 09 Complete

My Grandson Syrus-look closely and you can see he wrote his name in dominos


I've been putting up the gardens all fall and after one more bushel of tomatoes today, I'm done.

The shelves are full of beautiful canned goods from maple syrup, sauces, relishes, veggies, juices, salsas and fruits, our 106 yr. old basement, as it is, has been cleaned 90 %, and we are feeling a healthy satisfying exhaustion. Our grandson, Syrus, helped to fill the shelves as well as the jars as he was the one squeezing applesauce, stomping saurkraut, picking tomatoes, and licking the foam from the jelly spoon. He is going to be quite the gardener some day. He sure loves to help and does such a wonderful job. We wish you all a glorious sunshiny day and God's Blessings be yours.

Phew...

It has been a trying week....still working on the last of the harvest....late ripening tomatoes and of course, more apples....when the spare refrigerator that holds produce and meat, decides to bite the dust...I am so glad I did not peel and core that 5 gallon bucket of apples yet, because they would have had to go in the freezer....WHY?my chest freezer is full to the top with veggies, fruit, and 1/2 a piggy...

Also, since we dug our well a week ago, we have very iron-filled water to the point of rusty, smelly water....not something I wish to can with or put into my jars of carrots, potatoes, and apples....so, so much for those spiced apples today....I will, however, make them with cider instead, and who, knows, I may be onto something fantastic because of the natural sugar in the cider, I will not have to add any extra, healthier, right???

I did manage to make 6 qts. of the best tomato juice that is thick enough for sauce and, WoW, tastes sooo good...all it consists of is a little salt on the tomatoes, run them through the mill after cooking for 20 minutes, lemon juice in the jar at processing time and that's it. I can taste it already amongst a celery stick in a glass with ice, a shot of vodka, a little tobasco, abit of Worchestershire, celery salt around the rim.....mmmmmm, sure gonna make a mean Bloody Mary Morning.

All that's left to do, is to get rid of this cold....I give it another day or two, take a Menard's run for a filter system for the iron in the water, and enjoy my visit with the grands this weekend....5 of the 13 will be home so we will carve pumpkins, decorate for Halloween for them, and bake something yummy for the tummy and the soup for the soul.

Have a great Blessed weekend my family and friends.

WHAT???

I'm not posting a pic today, too dismal a day...we got SNOW last night like lots of the country, but I am nowhere near ready for the white stuff to cover our grounds...It's God showing us His unbelievable sense of humor again...Not funny.

Today I will count on 9 more days of this miserable cold in my head along with some actual work...we still have carrots and sweet potatoes to dig, clean and put up for winter...I feel like a little mouse scurrying around to get the wood in, crops in, blankets ready, windows done one more time before winters blast...

But...it's only October, come on...

Better get my chores done, the weather is not going to wait for me...

God Bless your day with humor and colored leaves...NOT SNOW...

Another Glorious Fall Day

God's Framed PaintingFun in the Leaves with Dad
Beautiful, Just beautiful

Plum Good Plum Jelly

It has been so beautiful with the colors of fall, that while taking pictures, just gazing at the bright trees, I sometimes forget to breathe......

Besides the beauty of the day, I made yet another batch of jelly, this time it's Plum Jelly and oh, so good. As I was skimming the foam layer that forms from the boiling of the jelly, my grandson is peeking into the kettle and wandering what it is. I told him how, when I was a little girl, and his great Grandma O was making jelly, I could not wait for the foam to be scooped off and put on a piece of bread, and that it was one of the best tastes in the whole world. He could not even wait for the bread as his finger dipped into the cooled foam again and again and again. He said I was right, it really WAS the best taste in the whole world. He went home with a belly full of goodness today as he helped make and devour an apple tart with his Daddy too. And, of course, there is always time to play in the leaves.

Another fine fall day in God's Country. We are truly blessed :)

Farewell Dear Friend

Dear Little 'Tootie' has been with us a very long and pleasant time. Her heart of gold was contagious, not once did I hear her complain, even when she was ill, and always, she found the good in each and every one of us. She left us a few days ago, at the wise age of 90, just shy of her next birthday.

Most recently as my grandson, her great grandson of 6 yrs. visited, she smiled the entire time. She was always so delighted with company and particularly, the youngsters, as she called them. As she gave Sy permission to take a mint from the candy bowl, she told him how proud she was of his good manners. She smiled, saying, "You like that bird on top of that bowl, don't you." He said, "Yes, I do, Grandma Tootie, it's beautiful." She laughed and said, "Well, then, that can be yours someday." That bowl now will hold mints for his table as it was given to him. Isn't it funny how the littlest gesture holds the fondest memory. He will never forget her because of her genuine kindness.

Tootie was a comedian...at least to myself who shared vertigo. She would stumble a bit one direction or the other each time she rose from the chair because of the imbalance the vertigo caused and Every Time, she said the same thing, "Oops, there we go, tipsy without the party!" You couldn't help but laugh.

Grandma 'Tootie's' love of her family was always first, and then her gardens, flowers and her little dog, Tara. She will continue to be treasured in our memories. I will remember her each time I sew on her sewing machine or cook something in her little pressure cooker. She taught me how to make the best saultz, I pray I can only begin to own up to her perfection of it., as well as her onion bread. The graceful bird figurines that she always displayed on her stairs will be displayed in our home. These are only material things from our material world, yet, somehow, they seem important today.

Little 'Tootie' , I will miss our visits, the laughter and the tears. You are loved.

Signs of Fall

God Bless Our Country on this fine fall dayA Spider's Web
God's Framework...
FireWoods...looks like the woods is on fire but it is the sun hitting colored leaves at sunset
Looking Up
Readying for the fall bow hunt
More Looking Up at the breathtaking beauty of fall in WI
There's a Nip in the Air...look at the frosty ground in the corral

And what's fall without Pumpkins on the last of the vines before frost

The trees have been vibrant, the scent of fall is overwhelming from wet falling leaves, the smell of applesauce and pies filling the house, to moss in the deep woods and plentiful mushrooms. The last of the harvest coming inside fills my counters and shelves with gourds, sunflowers, houseplants back in place coming in out of the cold. The garage sales are quickly ending, too cool out. The birds are congregating, readying for their flight to warmer climes...I should like to join them. The smell of a wood fire burning to keep us warm is a good smell and feel to those of us who know and love it. Thus goes in the northwoods which many of us here refer to as God's Country. May He Bless You All