Diamonds

We woke to Diamonds on the Deck,

 

 Beautiful and warm Blue Skies Above,

 Perfect Scenic Blankets,

 Snow drifted Barn and Trike,

 Feeling all Warm and Fuzzy,

 Grateful for Moisture and Greens,

 Just a Happy Day!

Smile and Thanks for Stopping

Turning It Around

Sooo, you're having a bad day.....

 so, the engine blew.....

so, he decides to take ' The Beater '....

but......

 at least it's only flat and off the rim

on one side.

 so, lift it, change it, and roll it in the garage....

and fix it!

So, you had a bad day....do as the song says,

put one down,

sing a sad song just to turn it around,

so you had a bad day.

So much for our son taking part in the fisheree  today...

it is not in his cards.

He has ' The Beater ' to fix,

and the car doesn't run....yet~

but

he remains optimistic.

Soon, he will get new-to-him wheels

to get him from point A to point B

while he works on his car....

Ya gotta love it.

He's one that will not take kicking while he's down

and of that, we are proud.

He's taking his bad day and turning it around.

Have a great weekend

and

Smile 

Rainbow Moon

There has been a pink ring around this icy, waning moon the past couple of nights.  The temperatures have plummeted to the minuses, as much as -30F with the winds., and waking to -20'sF without the winds...

 Reason enough for extra blankets at night, more snuggling, and even afghan warmth while evening reading and knitting.

My dishclothes are looking pretty ragged, so I'm knitting and crocheting a couple of new ones out of cotton yarn. Beautiful stuff, making into lasting products. 

Quite frankly, anything to keep my hands from becoming idle.  Those ' itis ' brothers, Burt-itis and Arthur-itis seem to love this cold weather we are having.  They kick right in and lock up the joints, knitting seems to help.  So does warm dish water~~~

 While I'm sitting, I've been skimming through the seed catalogs.  Three of my favorites arrived today...it sure makes me yearn for green grass, black composted gardens ready for seed.  Even Bill got excited to see them.  He passed them to me saying, "Here ya go, these will warm you up."  That's my guy!

 Until spring does show it's beautiful head, I will have to be happy with the bright sun daring to shine on this ice cold day.  

~~Thank God~~

Thank God for a bit of sunshine.

Stay warm wherever you may be,

Grab another blanket because this arctic blast is not over yet~

Say your prayers and

BlessYa

Mr. Bob and Eagle Eye

I need to thank Mel's guy one more time...for without his donation last week of a beaver carcass, we would not be seeing all of this extra activity in our back yard.  Look who wandered in late this afternoon, it's.... 

Mr. Bob, the bobcat, and he has grown.

He was here last year too.  Now we wait, we wait to see if his mate shows up.  She is more identifiable with her missing leg.

 This fella does make me a bit nervous.  He is not a bit afraid of us as we can walk out the door, talk to him, and he keeps on eating, keeping his guarded eye on us the entire time.  These are not the most clear pics, cuz, me? I did NOT step out the door,....yet~but  maybe tomorrow.

Also, much to my delight, Eagle Eye the Bald Eagle returned.  He faithfully shows up around noon and stays a couple of hours. 

 Today was an extra treat, as a couple of the grandsons were here and got to see Eagle Eye and Mr. Bob for the first time.  They could not believe how big they were.  They thought they were both pretty cool.

((Click on any photo for a closer look))

My camera wasn't quick enough, but at least I got a pretty good shot of him taking off.  What a powerful bird.  This picture is blurred but I can almost count his feathers.

Did I set the camera up yet, you ask?  No!  I've had a cold and just feeling a bit 'off' still, so I haven't set up the trail camera.  It's supposed to be minus -20 to -30 below tonight, but I still plan to step out tomorrow and set up the camera at the corner of the woodshed to get more clear and closer looks at these wonders of the forest and sky., just for you.

Stay Warm, Safe, Dry and most of all

Blessed

Eagle Eye

A few days ago, I asked my BIL, Slim, (sister Mel's hubby from Up North With Mel), if he happened to have a beaver carcass from his trapping ventures, just lying around that he wanted to share.

I love to watch the Eagles feed and they are scavengers for winter food and road kills.  The beaver carcass must be like a delicacy in the eye of the great Bald Eagle.

It didn't take a few hours and there he was, sitting in the trees just beyond where his feast lay.

(sorry for the lack of clarity in these shots.  Some were taken through a screened window and some just too far away as I still do not have the trail camera set up.)

Old Eagle Eye watched the crows and starlings for quite some time before deciding to check out his feast.

 Even, once he was on top of his claim, he still constantly is checking~~~checking to see if a predator is sneaking up on him, or watching while he eats.

 I see, he's watching me, watching him...

The Bald Eagle is such a magnificent bird, so worth the watch, if you ever get the opportunity. 

 Whether feasting, soaring high above or taking flight, each movement represents strength, power, agility, a means to an end.

 And away he goes., off into the wild blue yonder,

until it's safe, once again, to return for more.

God Bless You this Weekend

~Soar~

(now, I really MUST go set the trail camera up to share more)

Keep It Simple

Those of you who have been reading my entries this past year, know that we became farmers of the land again, this time growing organic potatoes for a seed company...well, we have plenty left in our root cellar, so we decided to use some of them making a family favorite.

 First, Bill and I peeled 15 lbs. of potatoes.  About a third of the way through, he asks, how much do we have so far....My guess was between 5-6 lbs.  He says, "No way, there's at least 10 lbs. there."

The first bowl weighed in at 5 1/2 lbs.  HeeHee!

 Next were the onions.  3 lbs. of  ' cry my eyes out ' onions.  There was grinding to begin., adding pork and beef hamburger, spices like nutmeg, allspice and the old reliables.

 All was thoroughly mixed together, by clean hands, then put into casings, tied into rings, soaked in cold salt water until ready to eat or freeze....of course we boiled then browned one, just to be sure they were as tasty as we hoped.  OH MY, what a success.

sorry if the picture of the finished product looks like it's floating in bad water....the spices brown the water in the waiting process....nothing bad.

 After we finished stuffing the rings, we packaged in double wrapped freezer paper, added a P.S. for Potato Sausage, and the date the sausage was made.  Into the freezer they go for a quick, easy meal any time we want.  Bonus: It's healthy!  

 Since Bill was in the mood to dig around, rearranging the freezers, he comes up the stairs with 25 lbs. of pork roast and venison hamburger to make into Breakfast Sausages and Brats.

Didn't he notice I was tired?

 Breakfast Sausage making is really no big deal...it's quite simple really.  Just mix the ground meats together, add seasoning, put on cookie sheets, score to break easily once they set a bit.  ( What do you think of my make-shift freezer?  It was colder outside than the freezer could quick freeze, sooo ), then break apart, put in freezer bags or freezer paper the number of pieces you wish, (we put 6-9 per package), and into the freezer for later use.

Also, don't forget to date these also.

 Finally, another couple of days of domestic chores are behind us. At least these were ' us ' projects.  I ' could ' do them alone but 

 ' Why ' I ask, when Bill is so willing.

Homemade Chicken Soup to hit the spot and

Orange Raisin Cake for dessert.  Dessert is OK, isn't it?  

 Oh, I have to tell you one more thing.

My son and his two business partners came while we were making the Potato Sausage.  The three of them are from mid-WI, south WI, and Boston.  Of course, I had not met Boston before so I was a bit upset with my son for bringing these men in the middle of my messy kitchen during such a project.

  

The instant his friend walked through the door, he says, " What's that wonderful smell?" You must be making some kind of sausage...it smells great.  He was  amazed to see us making our own.  " People just don't do that anymore where I live."  I told him, I'm sure they do but he just hasn't met them yet.

  

It left us with a good feeling.  We were providing for our family from our own field and gardens, from the neighbors hogs and beef.  Life can be simple or difficult.  It's a personal choice.  What makes us feel good is knowing ' what ' goes into the food we eat.

I think it's that time of year to look through my heirloom seed catalogs and get my lists ready to order.  

Life Is Good

Keep It Simple

BlessYa

JUMP

So, do you remember when You could do this? 

 That's my granddaughter on the far right, as are the rest of the pics, with her sister.

 Who says we oldsters cannot beat the inevitable and do this again?

Just because the sun is slowly setting on my years,

does not mean I cannot beat the odds, does it?

 OK, so maybe I won't be jumping 'that' high,

but who says I cannot try...it isn't like I plan on 

jumping out of an airplane or doing that bungee thing.

I haven't ' completely ' lost it.

 Now, don't go getting all skeptical on me, kids.

Your Grandma hasn't gone totally off the deep end~~~

YET!

Yeppers, I'm working at getting some

spark back in my bones....

are ya with me?

Thanks for stopping and joining in on the laughs

and

BlessYaAnyway

Believe

It's been 'such' a gloomy day today, I thought I'd share another piece of sunshine...

This sunflower was grown over 20 ft. tall by my barn several years ago and it still is one of my favorite photos to brighten a dull day...

As for the travels a couple days ago, the 5 hr. trip turned into 6, but the roads were dry, no fog and home before the rains and icy side roads.  They actually canceled school today because of it.

My check-up was a ' bust.'  No relief from the nerve injections but still waiting on it.  It's not looking good.  I guess it isn't in the good Lord's plan for today.  That doesn't mean I've lost hope...yet, even after loosing two nights sleep.

House is clean, laundry is done, basement floors look good, measurements for a new bathroom floor are tabulated, flooring is picked out, pricing is done, breakfast, lunch, dishes, done.  Cards, done.  More pictures have been safely stored from the demise of my computer glitches.  Nearly done.  (That was long overdue...a sigh of relief.)

Nothing for dinner is planned.  Do you think someone else can cook tonight?  Floors are scrubbed, again.  I've gotten over 900 steps in today, adding to the agony of de-feet...since they feel about the same as my leg and back, numb, painful and stabbing, that is.  And I'm one of the lucky ones.  LOL

May you all have a perfect weekend doing whatever it is that you are going to do.  May the Lord shine His Sunshine on your backs.

It does feel good.

Believe

Frosting For the Trees

Looking clear across the field, the trees were gorgeous this morning, fully decked out with frost'ing.  A closer peek at the evergreens out front, I could see each tiny flake of frost as it began to disappear as quickly as it appeared, glistening in the morning light.  God sure knows how to kindle a good feeling that lasts all day long.

 Tomorrow is supposed to bring more morning fog and frost with this January thaw we are having.  My hope is that it will leave the  roads safe for travel, as another 5 hour round trip,  is about to begin.

Stay Safe and Warm

and

BlessYourHeart

JUST BE-CAUSE

 Just

Bee- 

cause 

I wanted to share a little sunshine.

May GOD bless your week.

Over and Out

For a while, about 24 hrs. worth, I felt like my head was being tossed around in one of these antique butter churns.

Not no more...it's over and out!

Feeling much better, and praise the Lord,

Cuz

I wasn't looking forward to the full 10 days of this, 

whatever it is that's floating around the county.

Speaking of the butter churn,

I have one of those dandy's.

Oh, mine is not quite so pretty as the one above. 

Mine is missing one of the clamps on the top,

I'm sure Bill can fix that,

and

the grip on the handle is missing.

My guy can turn one of those on the lathe,

ya think?

Oh, wait, he doesn't have a lathe...

Oh brother, oh brother,

I'm calling on you!

My house is going to be full of youngsters, 

Grandsons and cousins, 

waiting to go ice fishing and sledding

with their Dads.

Me?

I'm staying inside with a good book 

while the house is quiet.   Maybe, just maybe,

I will mix up a batch of good old-fashioned cocoa

on the stove, for them, when they all return~

with marshmallows.

Have a great weekend!

Stay safe and warm. 

BlessYourHeart

Ahh, Ahh, Ahh, Choo

( I love this inspirational picture my dear friend from afar sent me.  She knows it carries such a special place in my heart. ) 

Even tho it's been icy cold out,

There is no doubt,

This is the day the Lord has made...

Let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24

I have been feeling crummy as in achee,

sneezee, snifflee, headachee...

I think I have a ' code ' in my ' node.'

Everyone, please keep your distance.

I would not want you to feel the misery.

Enjoy the sun that shines through your windows

and seek out the moon's glow.

Pour me another cup of tea,

Pop me a piece of toast,

Applesauce would be nice....

or maybe a banana.  

Baby me.

I knew I should have made Chicken Soup.

Blankee, where's my blankee?

I'm going to bed.

  Ah, Ah, Ahhh, Choo

GodBlessMe

and

You