Rhonda

Little houses …

I finished this little cross stitch yesterday. I condensed the pattern to fit into this frame I already had. Love grows best in little houses. After almost 27 years in this little house I like to think this is true. We’ve looked at different houses over the years but never found anything we thought would be the perfect fit for us. We’re not that picky – at least not where the house is concerned. Our pickiness is directed more towards location. We have to live in the country. In my younger years, I wanted someplace that was far far away – gravel road, long drive, no neighbors. Now that I’m older, I can appreciate the fact that we live along the highway. We can always get to town, no matter the weather. And very little gravel. You have to turn onto the gravel to get to our driveway but that is all. I would like to not even have that at this point. Gravel dust is not fun when it’s dry out. And neighbors are nice to have. We have great neighbors. They aren’t that close but it’s nice to know they are there!

This little house is where we brought all three boys home after they were born. Abby was two when we moved here. It’s where all our memories are. Three bedrooms, one bathroom, four kids. With the kids spread out in age we’ve never had all four living here at the same time so I suppose that helped. There’s two still at home now. Eric will be going to college in the fall so we’ll be down to one. This tiny house will feel like a mansion yo us then. In all the years we’ve never only had one kid at home. Hopefully Eric will come home for the summers – at least that first summer. He knows he’s always welcome!

I used to enjoy watching House Hunters. I had to laugh every time they would list their must haves – one bathroom was never enough. Two sinks in the master bath was a requirement. The bigger the house seemed to be the better. And yet, we’ve lived in this little old farm house with low ceilings, one small bathroom and small kitchen. We eat our meals in the dining room. We do our living in the living room. We always know where the other one is. You really can’t get lost in this house! And we’re cozy. We’re happy. We have everything we need.

We have three acres for the kids to run and play. We have a shop outside for the guys to build things and work on things. We have room to have a clothes line and a garden (which I’m hoping to have this year!). We have room for the dog to run. We have a fire pit. We have a nice big driveway for people to park their cars. We have room for the camper in the summer. We have everything we need and then some. We have so many memories in this little house. I’m happy here. I’m content. I do think love grows best in little houses!

Tonsils

Coloring and playing with stickers while patiently waiting.

Drew had his tonsils and adenoids out and tubes in his ears on the 23rd. He’s never really been sick, only one ear infection that I can remember, but he wasn’t hearing. The specialist said he needed to have all of this done. We trust this doctor – he’s treated all four of our kids at one time or another – so surgery it was.

Dizzy the Clown visited Drew before his surgery. She was quite funny and kept him entertained. Thank you Dizzy for making a stressful time a little easier for us all!

Drew thought it was funny for Daddy to look like a clown!

Drew did great. It’s really hard to prepare a five year old for what surgery means. He was great with everything that happened before the surgery. He was mad after the surgery. You can’t really explain to them just how much it is going to hurt when they wake up. But once he settled down he was a trooper. Lots of cuddles and snuggles and extra attention. Monday morning was a little rough but he got better as the day progressed. It’s hard to see your babies in pain but knowing this was necessary so he can hear makes it all worthwhile.

No worries here – the medication had kicked in right before taking him in to surgery.

He’s mad here but later said he loved the wheelchair ride!

Lots of cuddles and snuggles when we got home.

Early Monday morning was rough – snuggled up on the couch watching Magic School Bus.

Feeling much better Monday afternoon – a fort and dinosaurs. Two of his favorites!

We stocked up on juice, yogurt, Jell-O, popsicles, applesauce, and ice cream sandwiches. His favorites have been macaroni and cheese and ice cream sandwiches. Lots of ice cream sandwiches! And the movie Home Alone. Watching that movie four times in three days is a little much but he loved it. Glad this is now behind us!

Photo #2

My February photo. It’s a little more panoramic than January’s. Definitely not as green. I wonder what the March photo will look like? We’ve had cold days and unseasonably warm days this month. I’ve even hung clothes out and been outside with bare arms and bare feet. Very unusual for this time of the year. It was so nice to be able to open up windows and let the fresh air in. Today is a nice sunny day with a high of 55. Tomorrow is supposed to be in the 60’s with a chance of rain. Then Wednesday and Thursday looks like high 30’s and chance of snow. We could still be in for some cold, snowy winter weather. I never mind it so much this time of the year – we know that spring is just around the corner and I do love the snow!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

We don’t do anything special for Valentine’s Day. I used to make a special meal, set a pretty table with candles and hearts and surprise Joe and the kids with chocolates and cards. I haven’t been able to coordinate something like that for a few years. It’s amazing how busy our lives can become. Especially when you have children so spread apart in age. I was going to try for last night but Joe had to be unexpectedly gone overnight for work. Then Eric wanted to go to the basketball game after bowling practice. Tonight Eric won’t be home because he’s gone to support the bowlers who made it to sub state. So – I gave Eric his chocolates and card this morning before school and will give Drew and Joe theirs tonight. I am helping out at the Kindergarten party this afternoon so that will be a nice Valentine’s surprise for Drew. Hopefully I will have time to make S’mores brownies when we get home to go with our leftovers for supper. I’ll light a candle and supper can still be special. Joe will be home and the three of us can enjoy our evening together. I’ll give Joe and Drew their cards and chocolates. We’ll have fun picking out which chocolates we want to eat because I know they’ll share with me!

The above picture is my of Aunt Konnie on the left and my dad on the right. They are twins. Ronnie Rae and Konnie Kae. Aren’t they just the cutest! Grandpa and Grandma did such a great job of taking pictures of them and I’m lucky to have so many of them. This is one of my favorites. I have the doll too, which I cherish. They have a birthday coming up on the 16th. I’ll have to share more pictures!

Iowa weather

There wasn’t much to report last week. Just typical days. Kids to school, Joe to work, Eric to work and bowling practice and a bowling meet we couldn’t get to. I just can’t justify taking Drew out of school at 1:00 to go to a 2:00 bowling meet in a neighboring town although I hate missing seeing Eric. He understands and says we don’t need to go to any of them. But, we very rarely miss supporting the kids in whatever they are involved in. He has a meet this week in town – we will definitely be there for that one!

Joe and I did go to Coon Rapids Friday and stayed through Saturday. His dad decided after breaking his hip and being in assisted living that he wanted to stay there. He wants to sell the house and had a household auction Saturday. We went up Friday and helped set things up then stayed over to be there for the sale and to help with clean up. It went well. Joe’s dad is 91. He’s doing great – sharp as a tack and physically he does great with his walker – but he didn’t want to have the worry of a big old house to deal with. He’s living in a beautiful place where he can come and go as he pleases and has no worries. His meals are fixed for him and he has friends all around. No lawn to mow or snow to shovel. It’s perfect for him and he’s happy. Couldn’t ask for more for him.

A page from the Joe’s mom’s cookbook. I love the well used, handwritten pages. So much more personal than my three ring binder full of printed off pages. I’m going to start writing more down on recipes cards. Printing things off may be faster but there’s nothing personal there to cherish.

We didn’t come home with much. Joe bought a couple of tools. I bought an old stool that his dad used out in his shop. Old, chippy, colorful, perfect! A handwritten cookbook of his mom’s and an old glass jar – I think it held powder at one time. I’ll find the perfect homes for them here and they will be cherished for years to come. Hopefully the kids will cherish them someday too.

Drew was sick all day yesterday and he’s still not feeling the best today. You know he’s not well when he lays on the couch all day. Yesterday he wanted to be cuddled and loved all day. Today not so much. He didn’t want me around – so even though he’s not up and moving I know he’s feeling better when he doesn’t want his mommy!

We had ice last night – and rain today – fog tonight. You never know what kind of weather we’re going to have. This was our driveway this morning:

We have a few tree branches down I noticed. A layer of ice and then rain on top of the ice. Not fun. I was glad we didn’t have to go anywhere. School was canceled. Joe had a hard time getting up and out of the drive with the truck in four wheel drive. But – the highways were clear – thank goodness for that. I love living in the country and until recently I have wished we didn’t live along the highway but the older I get, the more I appreciate the fact that we can always get to town. If we can get out of the driveway!

Thanks for stopping by – Rhonda

Surprise visits are the best

Brrr – it’s been cold around here. For the most part I love winter, absolutely love it but I do struggle when it gets so darn cold. If only we would get some snow. I remember my childhood days – getting snowed in. Walking over the fences in the pasture because the snow was so high. I remember one year my dad walking to the highway and having a friend pick him up so he could get to work for days on end because we couldn’t get down our gravel road. Or riding home one night after a wrestling meet and dad getting the truck stuck and having to wade through snowdrifts in my cheerleading skirt to get from the road to the house. Brrrr – that was a cold night. But we don’t get that kind of snow anymore and I really miss it. I love the snow. I love how everything looks and sounds and smells when it snows. I keep hoping we will get snow like again sometime so my kids can experience it. Instead – we have cold. Even Drew, who loves to be outside, doesn’t want to go out when it’s cold like this. We still have a lot of winter left – I’m sure we’ll get some snow. Just not the amounts I remember from the past.

The truck windshield this morning – definitely had to let the truck warm up before we left!

The sunrise was beautiful this morning . This pic taken with my phone doesn’t do it justice. Everything was pink and the sun itself was a big beautiful round ball. It was breathtaking!

We had a surprise visitor this evening. My 25-year old son Aaron stopped by. He likes to stop by for surprise visits. He’s always so busy he never schedules anything but that’s okay. I love that he feels comfortable to stop by whenever he wants. We had a nice chat while his dad was out hunting. Then we had supper and he and Joe went out and changed the oil in his car. Now it’s time to get Drew in the bath and get settled in for the evening in my nice warm house!

I always know

I always know where Drew has been. He leaves a trail everywhere he goes! This one was easy – he’s finding places where he can use magnets. Apparently he felt the need to claim the dryer! (I glued magnets on old Scrabble tiles I got at the second hand store and he loves to play with them.)

I woke up yesterday with a tremendous headache. Not something that happens often – thank goodness. I started with a headache and then my neck started hurting. I had bought a pork roast the day before and thought it would be a great time to throw it in the crockpot. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about fixing supper. All day I kept thinking it smelled awful and blamed it on my head. Then when Joe got home I asked him if he thought it smelled right and he said it smelled awful. We decided it wasn’t safe to eat it. So much for trying to think ahead and save myself and my poor head. We ended up going to town for supper. A chicken sandwich and cheeseballs – not healthy but oh so good. And I didn’t have to do dishes after supper!

When we got home we settled in and I worked on my blanket. It’s coming along nicely and it’s getting just big enough that it helps keep me warm while I’m working on it. Perfect!

Did anybody have one of these when they were little? I loved making potholders when I was little and when Drew saw this in the store the other day and asked for it – I just couldn’t tell him no. Now he’s enjoying making potholders. So far he has given one to Grandma and one to me and this one is slated to go to his teacher, Mr. Kingrey. I’m sure he’ll love it! I do wish I still had my old loom. It was metal – these are plastic and have spots that snag. They just don’t make things like the used to.

The best part of the day – I got to start a new book. This is a series that I absolutely love. The Bellingwood Series by Diane Greenwood Muir.

The fun part about these books is Diane grew up in small towns in the Midwest and one of those towns was my little town in southwest Iowa. She was older than me but I remember her. Her series is based around a one wonderful character, Polly Giller, and her family and friends who live in Boone, Iowa. So when Polly visits Ledges State Park – I’ve been there or when she stops in Madrid, I have just visited my sister-in-law who lives there! It’s fun to read about people that remind me of my neighbors, friends and family and my little town life here in the Midwest. The covers of all of her books are beautiful photographs taken by Diane’s very talented photographer husband. The cover of Book 2, A Big Life in a Small Town, showcases the office building where I worked for approximately seven years. Book 16 just came out in December and it’s great to know that there will be another coming out in March, then June, September and again in December. It’s such a special series – every new book is like catching up with old friends. You literally feel as if these people are a part of your life. I love a good series but this one is just so special!

Days like this

This big guy enjoyed his day – first day back to school after Christmas for Drew so no little terror to interrupt his naps!

It’s been one of those days. You know it can’t be good when your five year old asks you why you’re so grumpy first thing in the morning when driving him to school. In my defense – he was a bear this morning – I had to jump through hoops to get him up and out the door without being late. Then when I went to pick him up from school – I have to sit for 30 minutes waiting for him to get out – I realized my Kindle hadn’t charged right and was almost dead, I forgot my phone at home, and I didn’t grab my yarn because I had planned to read and not crochet. So I got to sit for 30 minutes doing nothing. Then while making supper I tripled the amount of chili powder I put in the stuffed peppers stuffing and had to start over. Not good on the budget or on my time. Then Drew spilled his glass of milk all over the table and floor. It seemed like everything was against me today. But now, supper is over, the dishes are done. I’m in my jammies and robe, cuddled up with Drew who’s had his bath. Getting ready to work on my blanket because while I was gone picking Drew up from school, my yarn I had been waiting for was delivered. It’s perfect blanket crocheting weather – cold, cold, cold. It was a throw another quilt on the blanket night last night. Now all will be well once Eric gets home from a friend’s house where they are working on their short film for Speech competition. Days like this always end and tomorrow will be a fresh new day!

First stitch of the new year – I Carry the Key by Country Rustic Primitives – Jenny Hoffman

Soon to be a warm and cozy blanket – I hope!

Thanks for stopping by – Rhonda

Trying new things

Last day of Christmas vacation for the kids. Eric slept in. Drew enjoyed his day – he was loud, full of energy and into everything. He spent a lot of time this morning playing with his Legos and his Dinosaur Play Mobile. While he played away – I taught myself a new crochet stitch. Gotta love You Tube to learn new techniques.

He brought the cat bed and tower in with him in hopes that Pierre would come in and join him!

For lunch I tried out a new recipe – Honey Garlic Shrimp. It was yummy. Next time I’ll add some veggies and it will be a perfect meal to make for the boys when Joe is gone. I try to fix meals that the boys like and he doesn’t when he’s gone. Then I tried my hand at making homemade dinner rolls. I’ve never made homemade bread but have been wanting to try. I came across this recipe and thought it sounded good. I always remember my grandma’s homemade rolls. She brought them to every get together and they were so good. I surprised myself – they turned out great. Next time I’ll spend more time making them pretty though!

They aren’t very pretty but they sure taste good!

Eric had a bowling meet tonight. That kid – he’s always trying new things. He’s a senior this year and never really bowled and all of a sudden he decides to go out for the team. He’s on JV of course but does pretty good. He’s having fun and that’s all that counts. I know very little about bowling and am a little lost at the meets but that’s okay. I enjoy watching the boys compete and have fun.

So – a day of new things. New crochet stitch, new recipe, first attempt at baking bread, watching Eric bowl. I fun day of firsts!

Thanks for stopping by – Rhonda

Photo #1

It occurred to me one day that I get so used to seeing the same things everyday that I really don’t see them anymore. Does that even make sense? I walk out my back door every day and I don’t see anything around me. There are times I take notice but I’m usually so focused on what I’m doing, where I’m going, what my day is going to be that I just don’t pay that much attention to my immediate surroundings. So, I decided it would be fun to stand in the same spot outside once a month and take a picture so I could see how my immediate world changes around me. I’m going to mark my calendar so that I don’t forget and once a month I’m going to stand out on the deck and snap a photo. And here’s today:

Not the prettiest day that’s for sure. Your typical rainy, overcast, chilly winter day in southeast Iowa. Not the prettiest view either – but this is what I see when I get in my van and back out of my drive. I look forward to seeing the changes on a monthly basis!