Rhonda

Tuesday

I realized the other day that Pierre is getting fat and lazy! He still runs around and wreaks havoc once in awhile but he’s spending more of his time sleeping. He likes it here on the couch in the mornings (when Drew isn’t around!) and then gravitates to Drew’s bed in the afternoons. He likes to curl up in blankets if he can. He comes to life though when Drew is around – he will lie in wait for him and then attack. The life of a cat!

I love my tea mat. I even found Grandma Ward’s teapot to sit beside it. I love this teapot and need to keep it out on display more. I have so many things of hers and I love to keep them out around the house to remind me of her.

My new stitch is Harvest of Plenty by Tammy Black of Scattered Seed Samplers. After getting started on it I remembered why I had put this one in my someday pile. I love the design, the fabric, the colors and I love anything with an alphabet. But the alphabet on this is stitched one over one and I find that so challenging. My eyes just don’t work like they used to and it can be a struggle to stitch something so tiny. But I love the way it looks and I’m up for a challenge so I will keep plugging along. When I get it finished I will have a beautiful sampler ready to display this fall!

Winter Wonderland

We woke up to a white world this morning. It’s been awhile since we’ve seen snow on the ground and it’s so pretty. I love how it changes how everything looks and how hushed everything is. It reminds me of a blanket – soft and inviting. I remember in years past the huge snowstorms we used to get. Being snowed in for days, losing electricity, blizzard like conditions. We don’t get snows like that anymore. But with that being said, we also don’t get the ice storms we used to get either. I never liked the ice storms. Ice is scary! I’m sure we’ll see those kinds of storms again. Everything seems to cycle. This snowfall won’t stay long – not this time of the year and that’s okay. It’s time for spring to arrive now. I’m ready for warmer weather and to see everything come alive again.

Unfortunately we got just enough snow that my mom and I have to cancel our plans for today. My aunt is going through some health problems right now and we were going to take her out for lunch today and have a nice visit before she has some tests done later in the week. She lives a few miles away, in a remote area, and the roads to get there are not in the best shape due to the weather. I was really looking forward to visiting with her but we’ll just have to try again for next week. Something to look forward to!

I bet dad’s timber looks pretty right now all dressed up in the snow!

Time In The Timber

We spent some time in the timber yesterday. It was a beautiful day so Joe decided to head over and chop some wood. Dad had one dead tree down on the bottom he wanted taken down and hauled away before spring. Once it starts raining and the creek over flows its banks they won’t be able to get back there again anytime soon. Mom, Drew and I headed down for a little while to check out the progress. We didn’t stay long – it was just too cold! But it was nice to be outside and getting some fresh air for a little while anyway.

Heading for the bottom. It’s a good thing Dad knows which trees are dead and which aren’t – you can’t always tell this time of year.

I’m always amazed at how they know where to cut to get the tree to fall where they want it to.

Joe is back down there again today. Drew and I stayed home. I made a homemade strawberry pie and we’ll have a nice warm supper waiting for him when he gets home. According to the weather we may be in for some snow tonight and in the morning 4″ – 7″ is predicted for our area. That’s okay with me. I love the snow and in March you can enjoy it knowing it won’t be here forever as spring is on it’s way!

Connecting

Sweet prim bunny mounted on an antique oil can and little Easter cupboard tuck – both made by me years ago.

The kids didn’t have school today due to parent teacher conferences. A good day to run to Walmart. We don’t go very often but once in awhile there’s just something I need and Walmart is the place to go. I like going on a week day too – there’s a lot less shoppers around! Another reason I like to go to Walmart – I get the boys in the van with me and it’s a great place to connect! I’ve driven to Oskaloosa or Ottumwa many times throughout the years for a “necessary” trip to Walmart or Fareway to get one or the other of the kids to open up and talk. There’s just something about being alone in a vehicle with a nice long drive ahead of us to get them to connect. I’m not sure what it is. Maybe because I’m driving and so can’t really look at them. Or there’s nothing else to do and no distractions to speak of. Whatever it is, it works. I let Eric sleep in a little then got him up and away we went. A quick trip for chia seeds – definitely something that can’t be bought in town. Drew put his headphones on and watched The Land Before Time and Eric and I had a nice conversation. It was nice to connect with him. He’s 18 and it seems like he’s never home anymore. I miss talking to him. I learned a lot – what his plans are for prom. What’s going on with some of his friends. How he feels about President Trump and the state of our country. He’s a smart kid with very definite opinions of his own. I miss spending time with him! And we got home and he was off – heading to Iowa City with friends. I cherish the times I’ve had in the van with my kids and connecting with them!

When we got home I discovered the neighbor had dropped off some eggs. They have chickens and I love to see them out in their pasture. Once in awhile they cross the road and wander around our yard. They are so pretty and they are fun to watch. I love fresh eggs. There’s nothing better and there’s no comparison to store bought eggs. One thing I miss about working for the city – there was a local Amish man that made his rounds on Fridays selling eggs. I so appreciate Colleen dropping off these eggs today. I’ll have to do something for her – maybe drop off a couple crochet dishcloths to show my appreciation!

These strawberries are the reason for needing to get chia seeds. The high school Student Council sold these and Eric brought some home. We had some for supper last night – they were so good – and I’m going to try making Crock Pot Sugar-Free Strawberry Chia Jam. It sounds good and easy. I sure hope it works! Then a strawberry pie to use up the remaining strawberries. I’m hoping to plant some strawberries this year. There’s nothing better than fresh strawberries straight from the garden – unless it’s tomatoes of course!

Heirlooms

These dolls came from my dad. I cherish them so. Dad’s mom made the clothes for them. She was such a crafty person and the best grandma. She was always making something. I loved her Christmas gifts – they were one of a kind and handmade with love. Notice the doll in the middle – the bigger one dressed in yellow? I love this one because it is in the picture below that I’ve shared before! It was my dad’s doll and it looks like he and Aunt Konnie liked to play tea party with it! The doll on the right was my grandpa’s and the one on the left was also dad’s. Treasures for sure.

I’ve started on a new cross stitch project and I’m loving it. It’s called “Tea Time” Kettle Mat. It’s a kit from a Scattered Seed Sampler club by Tammy Black. I love all of her designs. I don’t drink tea, although I wish I did, but I still love this kit. The little tea kettles are so sweet. It’s a fun stitch! I worked on it last night while watching This is Us. I always cry watching that show. I think it’s one of the best TV shows on right now.

Stormy Night – Beautiful Morning

We had a little wind last night. Actually we had a lot of wind last night. But we are thankful – the only damage we had was to Drew’s swing set. We heard something hit the house with a loud bang and we could see during the lightening flashes that the swing set was down. We assumed that part of it hit the house. We’re not sure what actually did hit but it wasn’t any part of the swing set. Thankfully no damage was done to the house. A tornado warning and 60 to 80 mph hour winds were predicted so we consider ourselves lucky.

Our neighbor’s horses. I never tire of this view!

This is what we have today. Big, beautiful, fluffy white clouds. There’s a cold breeze blowing but the sun is out. A beautiful March day in Iowa.

Sunday Surprise

My springy kitchen window display. I finished this cute little pin keep by Tammy Black of Scattered Seed Samplers and wanted to be able to enjoy it so what better place – I see it everyday while doing dishes! It goes well with my quail eggs and sweet little nest from Gable House Goods

We had a nice surprise Sunday morning. Jeremy and Abby were out for a drive and brought Braxton over to visit! I love unplanned visits from my kids! The boys played outside for a little bit but it was just too chilly and windy so they ended up inside. Drew was so excited to get to see Braxton – he’s been so bored being at home now that he’s feeling so much better. We sat and chatted for awhile then went to town for lunch before they had to get back home. I didn’t get any pictures. I guess I was too focused on their visit!

Another finish – Ann’s Sampler Sewing Tray by Stacy Nash. I love how it turned out.

It’s nice to have Joe back too. Saturday we ran to Washington to pick up his deer meat. We tried to get Aaron to go out to lunch with us while we were there but he was at work and couldn’t get away. Later in the afternoon we ran over to my dad and mom’s to give them some deer meat. Since Joe hunted their timber and that’s where he got the deer he thought he should offer them some of the meat! He had it made into sticks, bologna and summer sausage. Perfect for snacking on. We ended up staying for supper before we headed back home. We didn’t get much accomplished over the weekend but we did get to see family and that’s what’s important!

A very quick stitch. I changed the colors of the birds to blue – my favorite color! Keep Song in They Hearty by Country Rustic Primitives – Jenny Hoffman.

Last night Joe grilled for supper. Our small town grocery store has changed hands and they have put in a full service meat counter and we have definitely been taking advantage of it. So far we love their bacon wrapped three cheese chicken breasts, their butterfly pork chops and their bacon wrapped asparagus spears. Yummy stuff! With Joe being gone last week and Eric being busy most nights, I hadn’t really cooked a big meal. Eric was home last night and he sure enjoyed his supper. I couldn’t believe how fast he ate a pork chop! We also had homemade macaroni salad and ranch potatoes and carrots. With plenty of leftovers for tonight – which always makes me happy.

We had a nice relaxing weekend. Nowhere we had to go, nothing we had to do. Just time with family and at home. Those weekends are always the best! And I had just enough time to get some finishes done to enjoy too!

Drew Was Here

He asked me where the clothes pins were. I should have known he was up to something! I have no idea why there is a white fox hanging on his “clothes line” along with some of his clean clothes – probably to torment Pierre since the fox is his toy!

Pops Concert and Photo #3

Eric’s last Pops Concert. It was, as usual, an excellent concert. This little school has so much talent. Mrs. Meier, the band instructor, does an amazing job with these kids and they love her. It definitely shows. She’s young. I remember going in with Eric in fifth grade for instrument night to pick an instrument and it was her first year teaching. I think she’ll stay here too. She married a local boy who works at the bank. They just had a baby. It is so wonderful to have someone like her who really cares, is so talented, and bonds so well with the kids.

The Pops Concert is for Junior High and Senior High students, band and chorus. I love how they perform separately and then together. This year the combined JH/HS Bands performed Highlights from GREASE. They sounded wonderful together!

Aaron and Eric both started out playing trumpet and then switched to baritone. It wasn’t necessarily the plan for Aaron but he enjoyed baritone. It was what Eric wanted to do from the beginning. He wanted baritone but had to start on trumpet and then switch. I have to say, he does a pretty darn good job on that instrument. Both him and Lindsay do. They will be missed next year as they are both seniors. I need to remember to sit on the opposite side of the gym for the Spring Concert so I can get pictures of their faces! I sat on this side because it’s always much less crowded so Drew has more room to fidget without bothering others!

Another fun performance. Every Pop Concert they have soloists. There is a group of girls that are extremely talented and I always enjoy their solos. This is Eric’s Abbey, as Drew calls her. That’s how he differentiates between his sister Abby and this Abbey! She’s a senior too and a very talented young lady. I love listening to her. This was a very dramatic performance and she looked and sounded beautiful. I didn’t take anymore pictures of the choir. Eric’s not in choir. He sings like his mom – which is not good. All the kids got my singing voice which is sad. Their dad can sing. I can’t! Mr. Stichter, the chorus instructor, does a great job too. I had him as a music instructor when I was in elementary school so that tells you Mr. Stichter has been around for a long time. You tell he loves doing this and he loves working with the students. We have been lucky to have him at our little school for all these years. It was a wonderful concert and sad and yet exciting to think there’s only one more for these seniors before they move onto their next adventures in life.

It snowed yesterday morning. The snow came down fast and furious and in big wet flakes. And then it was gone. I took this picture from the kitchen window. I wish we would get one more nice big snow before spring. I love the snow!

And my March picture, picture #3. It’s a frosty morning out there. Not cold as cold as I expected. Nothing much has changed over the last three months.

March 3, 2017 – frost on the ground today.

And one more day for Drew to stay home. He still wakes up in the night in pain and wakes up in the morning in pain. He went all day yesterday without any medicine until evening. He asked to take some before going to the concert in case his throat started to hurt. Now he’s refusing medicine and wanting to just get through the pain. He’s a tough peanut. He can’t wait to go back to school on Monday. I’m ready for him to go back to school on Monday too! It’s been a long week. Joe has been gone for work since last Sunday. Eric’s been busy. So I’ve been on my own with Drew. I have enjoyed the one on one and all the cuddling but he’s getting better and is so bored and needs to see his daddy and his friends! Daddy will be home tonight in time for supper – yeah!

One week –

One week after Drew’s surgery. It’s been a long week! He’s bored. So bored. For the most part he’s feeling pretty good but he gets tired and listless at times and just wants to sit and watch his Kindle. He’s been outside a time or two which helps but the past couple of days have been cold and windy so no going outside to play. He spent yesterday morning with Grandpa and Grandma which he thoroughly enjoyed. Lots of one on one attention there! He’s got his fort all decked out with a light, music and books. That has been a big help in keeping him entertained. I can’t wait to take it down though – I’m tired of seeing it in the living room!

Drew wants to do a lot of cuddling with me so while he’s cuddled up beside me I’ve been stitching away. I’ve finished a couple projects, printed off some new patterns, and started on Ann’s Sewing Sampler Tray by Stacy Nash. I need to sew I Carry The Key into a pillow tuck but first I have to dig out some fabric to back it with. I do enjoy stitching. Pulling the thread through the linen and seeing each design come into play. It’s so relaxing and enjoyable. I can’t imagine not doing some kind of handwork almost on a daily basis.

This evening we go to Eric’s Pops Concert. His last Pops Concert. I’ve enjoyed watching him participate in band all these years. Abby and Aaron were both involved in band but neither of them stayed with it all through high school. I loved band when I was young, especially marching band and I’m thankful the kids have all been involved too. There’s a different element to being in band compared to school sports that I think is just as important. Looking forward to tonight and then he will have a Spring Concert and that will be his last. It’s hard to believe he’s getting ready to graduate. Planning the graduation party is not my cup of tea but we’re getting there. We have the venue, most of the menu planned and my niece is making cake balls. It will be a small get together. Mostly family and a few friends. I’ve enlisted Abby to help – she’s a lot better at these things than I am!