Family!

Both my sons are married now! A year ago I spent a wonderful time in Seattle re-exploring the Space Needle, the Science Museum, and having fun with my family. Then my younger son was married and we added a lovely talented daughter to our family.

My younger son and his bride with most of the family.

Now a few short weeks ago the entire family met in Florida for a wonderful time at the beach, fresh grapefruits off my son's tree in his front yard, and awesome street dancing.

My oldest son & I dancing the Mother-Son dance!

Then my older son married a beautiful talented young woman and we added another daughter to our family. Their wedding took place at Disney World where we had a lovely time exploring what the area had to offer. This was the first time in over 10 years that our entire family was able to all meet together. With the exception of one son-in-law.   I was able to meet my youngest grandson for the first time and to see how 2 other grandsons had grown. It was wonderful to see the eyes of the 4 grandchildren who live close to me as they experienced the wonders of another part of our country.

My whole family, minus one son-in-law.

There is nothing like family!

Snow!

Winter is definitely coming. The snow is coming down in tiny streaks. At least it looks that way when I tried to take a picture when it was dark and the flash went off! No pictures today, maybe I'll get some tomorrow.

The horses sure do like their new pasture with belly deep grass. Since the grass is brown and dead they aren't that thrilled with it, but they prefer like the swamp grass. We've had such little rainfall this year that my swamps have dried up. It's given me the opportunity to pull up the fence posts through the swamp, re-set them, and string another wire through there. And at this time of year, there are no mosquitos!

Fence posts waiting to be planted.

If I leave my door open, company comes calling. If my friend hadn't of been standing there Surprise would have walked right in the house.

Who needs a watch dog when one has a watch pony?!

Remembering Dad

On this day 23 years ago I got a call that my dad had died in a fall out of a tree. I've been thinking of him lately as I've been working on a fence for my horses. Dad said he wanted to wear out, not rust out. Same here. Even on days when dad had nothing to do, he found something to do. I found him once sitting in the middle of a field pulling weeds by hand. So I'm pulling up posts and pounding them in again. Working on this land Dad loved that I inherited from him. I sure do miss him.

Love you Dad.

Blog? what blog?

It's been 5 months since I've blogged. A lot has happened in my life in that 5 months. I've got a new job, I have a new friend who feels like the sister I never had. I have a garage. I have 4 gold medals and 2 silver medals. Lots of blessings in my life. Small things and large that I am grateful for.

I was working with physically and mentally disabled adults at a place that teaches them job skills. I really didn't see much of a variety of skills, but the few jobs our people did, they were happy doing. For the most part. They enjoyed coming to work. They enjoyed earning their paychecks. They enjoyed the bean bag game in the communication class. I enjoyed working with our clients. For the most part. I didn't enjoy getting pooped on or beat up. In every life a little rain must fall, must happen in every job too.

I interviewed and got a job working in my chosen field at an Assisted Living. I love it there. To round out my hours so I have benefits I work a 12 1/2 hour night shift every other week in the nursing home run by the same company. Since I work 2 or 3 shifts a month in the nursing home, every time I go to work there is an adventure. There is always something new, or someone new. And the worst that can happen to me, has already happened. One gentleman decided he didn't want the medication I had just given him and he spit them into my face and swore at me. (I sure am glad I wear glasses.) And I've been pooped on. The tenants in the Assisted Living are like an extended family. They are such wonderful loving people. When I get up in the morning to go to work, I am eager. And not just for the cookies always sitting out. I am eager to be of use. I am eager to make a difference. I am eager to show love and bring joy to those I work with. I am even eager to do all the paperwork and phone calls that are part of a nurse's day. To find an outside job that is a joy and not work is absolutely wonderful!

And with my new job I have found my sister I never knew I had. We don't share parentage, or blood, or history. We share the love we feel for our tenants at work and we share the love of animals- horses and dogs in particular.  E. had never lived on a farm and had always ridden horses in an arena. The first time I took her riding I nearly lost her in the trees. I've since gone out and cut the low hanging branches that threatened to sweep her off of Roy's back.  E. has a piece of land her dad has given to her that she wants to eventually live on with her own horse and dog. So she and Hector come to my place and help me build fences.

I feel like Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn watching her dig those post holes while I smile and say how much fun we're having! She's learning how to put up a proper fence and we're both getting a lot of exercise to boot! And the horses will be so happy when we turn them out to graze in my newly fenced off yard. I'll be happy not to have to mow the lawn so much anymore.

Tomorrow E. and Hector are coming over and we'll grill our lunch outside and enjoy the sunny weather before it turns too cold to be out for very long. And then we'll get our exercise digging more post holes to get the last pasture secure. And if it rains, we'll sit in my new garage and have our picnic and still go out and dig those post holes afterwards. I am so blessed to have a friend like E.

Curious about the gold and silver medals? I hesitate to put up a picture of myself wearing them, because I don't like people to see me in a swim suit. My mother, who is in her mid- 80's, talked me into competing in the Silver Games held in Missouri where she lives. Mom competed there last year on a whim and won gold medals in every event she entered- swimming. So this year we both competed. Mom won 8 gold medals swimming and I won 4 gold and 2 silver medals in my first ever swim competition. It was exhilarating and exhausting. I think I want to do it again next year! I also went to my High School Reunion. It was wonderful meeting up with classmates I graduated with and haven't seen in 39 years. I renewed old friendships and made new ones. Those 'kids' had some influence on who I am now. It was wonderful to see how we all had grown and matured and aged and have become better people.

The leaves have turned bright colors and have fallen off the trees. The pines are shedding the old brown needles while retaining the vibrant green needles. The geese have already filled the sky with the sound of their honking and have fled south. The deer are venturing out onto the roads making driving hazardous. Soon deer hunters in their blaze orange with be tramping through the woods and the deer will find some hidden spot- away from the roads I hope- to hide from the hunters. Many deer with be tagged and tied to car roofs and truck beds and taken south to the Cities. And more will be wrapped in tidy white packages and stacked in freezers to nourish us through the winter. That's the way life is in the country.

Roy and Polly both wanting attention

And I love the north woods- mosquitoes, rain, sun, snow and all.

Beauty and color can be found wherever one looks.

My mom and me with our swimming medals.

Polly and me on a trail ride

E. with her new best friend, Cassie.

The trees were bright with their last hurrah before the cold weather starts.

Happy May Day!
The only flowers that would survive this snow are the fake ones. We really didn't get much snow, but it hasn't melted and will probably stay around for a day or two.

Yesterday my oldest daughter and her two boys came with me to marching the March of Dimes march for babies. The night before my daughter went to see a play a friend of her's and her daughter were in. So I got to have the boys for an evening! They fell asleep and stayed the night. I love it when the grand-kids can spend some time with me. When Phineas was told that we were going to the March of Dimes March for Babies, he got all excited, "We're going to get a baby?!!!" It had to be explained. He is adopted and knows it, and his family has fostered babies. Babies come from different places. The g-kids keep life interesting and keep me on my toes!

This past week has had some glorious weather. I even tilled up my garden. It'll need a few wheel barrows of horse manure tilled in yet, but the itch to dig in the dirt is  getting to me. Some days I'd like to have a greenhouse so I could grow tomatoes and other goodies year round. I do have a few small tomatoes setting on a plant I dug out of the garden last fall and have kept alive all winter growing in my living room. I have plenty of time to get my garden planned since winter seems to be hanging on. But the 80 acres is starting to green up!

Just poking through the ground.

My irises are getting bigger!

And now the ground is all snowy again.

Roy and Surprize

Molly walking the fence line with me

One of the sloughs on the 80. There was a pair of Blue Herons dabbling in the water here.

Another view of the slough

Some years this is all dry and grows very tall swamp grass

The horses have a large round bale of hay to eat at will. They prefer digging in the snow to find the tender shoots of new grass. I worry about too much fresh green at one time because they can founder on grass, but the horses are kept in small pastures. They'll be rotated to the next one when the grass has aged a little.

Spy Paulette's LadyHawk- (Polly) registered American Morgan Horse

You may have noticed that I now have 3 horses! Spy Paulette's LadyHawk is a half sister to Roy out of the same dam. Polly was born on my farm. When she was young I had to sell her to some friends- I turned down a higher offer just to keep her local. I had a verbal agreement to first refusal if they decided to sell her. My friend died and her husband sold Polly at auction unbeknownst to me. Those people sold her again and that new owner just recently had her listed in an auction catalog which one of my daughters happened to see. I went to the auction and bought her back and brought her home to stay. I'm very happy to have her home and she even remembers me. I have a certain whistle to whistle the horses up. Other people have tried to whistle the same tune, but they are ignored. Polly remembered my whistle! Roy and Surprize never learned that as they were always followers of the herd. But Polly is her mother all over again. This is the best Mother's Day present I could ever give myself!

More family to love

Mr. & Mrs. Wade Claypool

My son Wade married a lovely girl- Jessica- in Washington State earlier this month. It was a beautiful wedding! I really missed the Washington weather, mountains, friendliness, weather, and moss. Can one be homesick after 40 years? We visited the Science Museum, Space Needle, and rush hour traffic. I didn't get out to Whidbey Island where I grew up. It was a fast but enjoyable trip.

Talented daughter JB made the wedding cake

Wade's cousin Patrick, whom we haven't seen in years, came to the wedding

Nephew and Uncle

ooo-kay ...

me- my son- & my mother

My oldest daughter and her two girls

Happy sisters, my granddaughters

Jessica & Wade getting hitched

Part of Jessica's new family

4 of my 6 kids

       My first visit up the Space Needle was in 1962 when it was opened for the Seattle World's Fair. The skyline has changed a bit.                                   

 

The misty rain made the Space Needle all that more wonderful.

My mother, 5 of my grandchildren, and me in the Butterfly house at the Science Museum in Seattle.

A wonderful view from the air flying back to Minnesota.

Ready for Spring

I'm ready for Spring. Nuff said.

Molly romping in the snow

I'd like to see a thaw so I could put in a fence for my dogs. I left my big dog outside today while I was at work just to see how she'd do. Molly has a nice insulated dog house that is carpeted and full of hay to keep her warm. I guess she thought she'd part-tay while I was at work, because when I got home she had chewed up my live extension cord, don't know how she avoided any live wires. There were also 2 crushed beer cans and an empty brandy bottle in my yard. And I thought the frozen horse turds she hauls in from the pasture were bad enough!  Silly girl. Wonder what sort of trouble she'll get into tomorrow.

Molly's Dog House- the Party Place

Salt block for the horses

I haven't been doing too much with all the below zero weather and since I keep my house at 60 degrees I need to keep warm. So I've been finishing some crocheting projects that have been in the works- some of them for years. The faster I crochet, the more of my legs get covered, the warmer I am! And of course the cats have to be in the middle of everything. Melon decided she likes to be on my lap under the afghans or in my bag with the yarn.

Melon hiding in my crochet bag

Afghan for Wade and Jessica

Afghan for Colin & Mai

Afghan that's been in process for a couple of years. Finally done.

Sometimes Melon decides when I should change colors by chewing through the yarn I'm working on.
I have another that's for me that I haven't taken pictures of yet that's all done in a basket weave pattern. It's large, heavy, and very warm. And another in the works. When summer comes I'll have to go back to crocheting stuffed toys again.

And finally- a picture of a Valentine from my 80 Acres to all my friends!

Happy Valentine's Day from all of us on the 80 Acres!

New Year's Eve

Whoa! Christmas flew by and it's already my oldest grandson's 9th birthday- er New Year's Eve. I left my gallbladder behind in 2010, but the bill follows me into 2011. The insurance is claiming it was a pre-existing condition. According to them, everything is a pre-existing condition. So what on earth do I have insurance for anyway? The bill is nearly my entire income for a year. I guess that's what payment plans are for.

Setting that aside, more pleasant memories. Both my sons stayed with me during Christmas- and their fiancees! Colin proposed Christmas morning to Mai. They haven't set a date or venue yet. Hopefully I'll be surprised to not have to travel very far. Wade and Jessica are getting married in March in Seattle and it'll be nice to see my old stomping grounds again. 

My youngest grandson and his first visit with Santa

We had a lovely Christmas. Our church choir sang the cantata we've been practicing for months and it went off without a hitch. Family was together. What more could I ask?

One of my daughters made me a quilt mostly from my own fabric stash

Today it took me an hour to dig my way out of my driveway. I stopped at a store on the way in and got some good 75% off deals. I was first at work so opened up and got the sidewalk shoveled. Later after the snowplow had cleared that area of town, I went out to shovel the ridge away the snowplow had left. While I was busy a very nice gentleman drove by in a pick-up with a blade on it. He motioned for me to move and then he plowed the parking lot entrances for me. The kindness of a stranger. How wonderful to see it! Maybe it's a Minnesota thing. But I'd still like to know who he was to properly thank him with a plate of fresh homemade cookies!

We're supposed to get more snow tonight, but I have 3 days off and plan on enjoying this time.

Happy New Year!  

In the New Year, may your right hand always be stretched out in friendship, never in want.     ~Irish Toast

Snow again

This time of year brings the bragging weather. Deer season went by with just the last weekend with a little snow on the ground. It's easier to track a wounded deer with a little snow for the tracks to show up in. Not that I have to worry about that. Last year I shot my deer while it was drinking out of the stock tank. I shot it with my camera. This year I could have gotten one again, but I had 4 little kids with me. No worries, a co-worker who has been hunting on my land is sharing some venison with me her 11 year old niece shot in my back yard. And I found out that I have neighbors who have been giving permission to people to drive over my land. That'll have to stop. But with the snow and the cold weather I'll have to wait until spring to put the fence back up they tore down.

Yesterday and last night we got 12 inches of snow here. I was able to get in (from work) and back out (going to work) of my driveway, and in again ( home again).

 

And then my drive was plowed out and winged way back to make room the next 6 inches that is supposed to dump on us this weekend. Being Thanksgiving weekend, I have a long weekend to stay home and enjoy myself outside. I suppose I'll have to cook the turkey, but the kids are coming on Saturday to eat so I'll have a couple of days to play outside and clean house before I have to put the apron on. The wind is supposed to come up and the snow is supposed to blow. I've got my kerosene lanterns and candles ready if the power goes out. I just don't have an emergency backup heat source. However the dogs do keep me warm if I allow them on the bed.
























I have a confused Christmas cactus in full bloom right now. The bright red does add a bit of joy to the house.