Early morning ramblings....

...can you believe it? Summer is fading...well in some places it is fading.  Here it still seems to be going strong - high temperature today predicted of 106.  But the heat is such old news no one even wants to mention it anymore!

I will be happy for my "girls" when the heat does back off a bit.  This is the routine:  early morning refresh water with cold water, feed tidbits of veggies and leftovers from morning lunch prep, replenish crumble in feeder and throw out more scratch.  Everyone is happy in the morning - cluck, cluck...

Hopefully a few eggs will be on the way once it does cool down.  I am starting to think how I will put together nesting boxes and weather protection.  Right now the open run provides the best relief from the heat.  I have moved it where it is in deep "Johnson grass" (apparently a hardy Oklahoma weed!) but it provides shade and the roots hold moisture from the daily evening waterings to help keep the girls cool during the brutal part of the day.  They dig little dirt nests back in the tall grass and lay down in them all spread out and fluffed to take advantage of the moist earth's cooler temp...and who said chickens didn't have "smarts"!?

Last weekend we had an overnight visitor - Ivy.  Time with Grandma and Grandpa is more limited now with everyone working and Ivy going off to "big girl school" (kindergarten).  She loves to help - sweeping is one of her things to do.  The hairdo is for fun - she thought she looked like Belle from Beauty and the Beast - I thought sweeping was more Cinderella like but Belle thought it was a perfect photo opp.

...I know, I know - no more weather talk but I want to start turning on my oven and baking a little!  Keep yourself just right this weekend and have some fun!

Why we are here?...

...after having moved so many times in the recent past, we ended up in of all places, Oklahoma!~struggling through the hottest and driest summer on record.  Before moving here this is what I imagined:

1) Our horses grazing in an open green pasture, no longer boarded at places on the boundaries of a large city that cost a fortune for a tiny overhang and turnout.  That I would step out my back door and there they would be.  Reality - they are boarded, not at our house.  They have bigger turnouts but it's dirt and the apple tree that is in the middle of the space that was to provide shade has been stripped of all its leaves by the hoards of grasshoppers that showed up a couple of months ago.  There is nothing green left to nibble on.  We are paying more to feed them hay that has to be imported than we ever have in our lives.  I sometimes think they would really love to be back in San Francisco!

Yes, those are grasshoppers (I won't enlarge the photo!)

2) I would have a huge garden.  Reality - the soil is red clay.  I did not have the soil amendments (compost etc.) to ready everything for a real garden.  Many people use raised beds here because the soil is poor.  I planted a tiny corner next to the front porch with a butterfly bush, some pretty purple plant that I bought tiny starts of at the Farmer's Market and one watermellon plant that I grew from a seed.  I water like crazy and have one watermellon.  We estimate that mellon will cost well over $100 for water.  Our water bill is out of site and that is hard to imagine when our lawn is barren and brown (except for the watermellon corner!)

The watermellon has spread out over the grass so I can't mow (good excuse!)

3) I would sit on the front porch in the evenings and talk with friends (you know the images of folks in swings and rocking chairs out on the front porch?).  I DO have a nice covered front porch.   I have sat on my porch and talked with friends but not much - way too hot for that the past three months!!

4) I would have chickens - I DO have chickens!  Although they are on the small side and may not be laying eggs by September as anticipated.  Again, just too hot and they don't eat as much as normal.

But what I have found that I never imagined was the infinite sky, birds of all shapes and sizes singing, smiles and often a quick chat from strangers at the grocery store and a desire to tell folks about it here. 

When I first arrived I went to the laundromat to wash and dry clothes (not a fun task in my opinion).  One early morning there was a man there before me with all his clothes spread out on the table.  He was wet, the clothes were wet - he was obviously traveling sans vehicle.  I asked him where he was going and he said he was just passing through.  I asked him how he liked Oklahoma and he said he always enjoyed traveling through Oklahoma.  He said, "This is a sweet place."  So from that time forward, it has been "Sweet Oklahoma" for me.

My oh my...

...

I wish I could fill the page with this photo.  It was so lovely, and this is a sunrise!  Sweet Oklahoma...

 Ah but it has been hot...

Meanwhile I cool my heels going to garage sales as often as I can fit them in.  A week ago I made it out of town into the countryside and found an estate sale.  I asked if they had any sewing related items - YES!  A huge plastic storage container full of magazines, patterns, recipes and just a little of everything.  Sooo...that went home with me.  It actually had to be loaded into my car with a dolly - it was so heavy!  It was a total mess - things just tossed in and it has taken me over a week to sort and organize and toss.

But this is something that I want to share and will send hard copies to my family because I think it is hilarious.  It was hand written on a now raggedy and stained piece of paper.  (I bet someone else thought it was pretty funny, too, and read it more than once!) 

Some Times Life Is Tough

I've gotten used to my arthritis.  My dentures I've resigned.

I can manage my bifocals but, Lord I miss my mind.

Just a line to say I'm living and not among the dead

but I'm getting more forgetful and I'm mixed up in my head.

Sometimes I can't remember when I stand at the foot of the stairs

if I'm going up for something, or if I've just come down from their.

And before the frig so often, my poor mind fills with doubt

whether I've just put something in or just come to to take it out.

So if it's my turn to write or call, there's no need in getting sore

I may think I've already done so, and don't want to be a bore.

But nevertheless I do love you - and wish that you were here

but now it's nearly mailtime so I'll say good-bye my dear.

As I stood before the mail box, with my face so red

instead of mailing you this letter - I opened it instead.

But, hey, maybe that isn't so important as long as we remember to look up and still enjoy the beauty of life (as I am sure the author of this little peice did with such a wonderful sense of humor!).

The Sky Readers...

...uh oh, look at that sky..."Don't worry hon, them's friendly clouds," Dorothy says.

That is good news to me, here in the heart of Oklahoma, where the ever moving atmosphere could keep a person's attention fixed forever.  So pretty, so fierce, so fickle.  How can this sky happen at 7:00 in the morning? 

Dorothy has started arriving about 7 or 7:30 on Sunday mornings, pulling up in her little pickup truck.  I grab my bathrobe and dash out for her delivery of garden produce, it is a huge bag of beautiful yellow squash and tiny oblong tomatoes.  Today I finally asked her name after seeing her husband and she walk by my house twice a day with their little dog ever since we have moved here. It seems only right that I should know the name of the person who so kindly gives away the results of her hard work to a perfect stranger.

I know where they live a few blocks away and see that they have a greenhouse.  Already they have tomatoes at least five feet tall and it is only June.  I ask her if they start everything in the greenhouse and she said yes, they start everything in the "hothouse".  Why did we call it a green house in the Pacific Northwest and it is called a hot house here?  Perhaps the geographies make the words self evident...

Happy Memorial Day...

...and here is hoping you are all enjoying a 'take it easy' kind of day.

 
On this day I would almost always go back to the town where I was born and place flowers on all the graves of my departed family members.  My little daughter and I would pick any flowers available in the yard and then go down to the pasture and pick armloads of wild white daisies, as this was the time of year they bloomed in Oregon.  We would gather up the coffee cans I had been saving, tin foil to cover them so they would look "pretty", rocks to weight the bottoms down, some big jugs of water, the flowers and off we would drive for an hour or so to the "coast".  We had all the burial plot locations memorized and we would start the decorating.  We always brought extra for those lonely graves that didn't seem to have someone looking in on them.  In my memory it was always sunny and always windy!  Of course I am sure there were some wet and rainy Memorial Days too, but somehow one's mind just blocks those out!  We would spend time wandering around reading grave markers and wonder who were these folks and what were their lives like?  It was always so peaceful and gratifying and just a tiny touch back to my favorite people who I knew were watching us from above.

Clouds

...from my front porch.

Pretty huh?

Last Saturday was the 'city-wide' garage sale so three generations of garage sale shoppers (grandma, daughter, granddaughter) hit the road - it was an exceptionally fun day! 

We started in the country following signs - "4 miles south, 1 mile east"  - The address does not appear on many signs and you had better know your compass directions (but that is not too hard here as most of the roads are on a grid - north/south and east/west!).  A list of unusual items noted:  cow/calf pair - bantam chickens - burn barrels - no, we did not stuff a cow/calf pair in the back of the car!  but tempted! 

What I did get - cute chairs, candle holders, silver spoons, a Vera Bradley NEW wallet for $1!, toys for the little person riding shotgun...

The most precious find...memories built together with the people I love the most!

Idea of the week:  Don't worry if your head is in the clouds.  It is lovely up here!

Happiness to you until next time we meet on the airwaves!





Mothering...

...14 chicks.  Yes, I gave into my careless side and just walked into the feed store and bought 14 barred rock chicks.  They are supposed to be pullets (girls).  Time will tell on that one. 

Nest cleaning time allows for freedom!  They are already starting to get feathers and practice flying.  They usually have a little chicken wire cover over the nest.

Madge (the dog) and Ivy (the granddaughter) really like them, although neither quite know what to do with the little peeping, fluttering things!

If you are a mom, I hope your Mother's Day is one of soft remininsces.  Enjoy!



The Oldest Living Easter Bunny...

...made his famous appearance Easter Sunday, April 24, 2011. 

...or perhaps he can go on record as the oldest unfinished project bunny!  I calculate his age at approximately 12 or 13 years.  Each year I swear he will get done.  Each year a few more stiches are added...

Did you have a good Easter? 

Ours was swell with dinner shared with Holly and family...although it did rain HARD with thunder and lightening off and on all day.  But the Lord knows we really need moisture in this old dried up country...an Easter gift.

Have a happy week!...'til next time on the airwaves.



Iris...

...are blooming in my yard...so pretty.  They are delicate though and the Oklahoma winds don't give them a long lazy life.  Oh well.  I tried to capture them on camera yesterday.  Even in the early morning the winds were strong so after many shots at a high speed only a couple turned out respectably.  But since it has been awhile since my last post will put them up here anyway!

Remember Georgia O'Keefe?  She was always peering into the center of a flower.  Iris are great for that...just so delicate and beautiful. 

My latest news is the wind.  Wow, the weather is sure interesting here.  The wind is a constant lately.  The only thing it does is change direction.  When it comes out of the south it is usually moisture filled and warm.  When it comes out of the west or north is cools down.  But no matter what, it blows.  Right now this country is drying up and blowing away...no rain.  I think of Catcher in the Rye...dust rising from every step of a paw as the dog walks along. Hmmm...time will tell if we get that far.

Til next time...keep the faith and pray for rain.

Spring?...

...it looked like it for awhile but now it has a strong resemblance to winter out here in OK.  But you can't tell that to the hyacinth - they are wonderful.  Old houses have many secrets and it is especially true as we watch what starts sprouting up in the yard and garden patches.  The hyacinth were the first gift - little clumps all across the lawn.  So here they are - albeit a little blurry but brought indoors to brighten a small space with other favorite things...

...little simple joys.

Words can also bring me a lot of joy and hope you find this as sweet as I do, too!

May I a small house and a large garden have;

And a few friends, and many books,

both true, both wise, and both delightful, too!

~ Abraham Cowley

Wishing you simple pleasures this week!

Destination Dallas...

...not Kansas.  Quite the goof up on my part.  Thank goodness daughters have your back and double check on things!  The Kansas City Trader Joes is "opening soon".  NOT open now.  Quick change of plans and we headed to Dallas last Wednesday.  It was a girl trip, "no boys allowed", as Ivy said.  Our basic destination was the farmer's market.  Not exactly busy there in March!  But we did get some great produce, although not local, unless one consider's Mexico local...and in Dallas that is pretty darn close! 

The car is ready to roll.  The ice chest is for any perishable purchases.  (We put it to good use when we stopped at Costco on the way home.)

Undoubtedly the most fun was the beautiful nursery across the street from the farmer's market.  It took up an entire block.  The colors and scents of flowers were just heaven afer the grey skies of winter. 

I did not buy this flamingo but sure was tempted...isn't it cute?!...but I did buy one of the wonderful jasmine plants.  It now sits by my back door to the kitchen and it smells so good.  Gives me a power lift every time I walk by!  (Remember aromatherapy? - there just might be something to that!)

Goodbye Dallas, Love Ya! (except for the traffic)



A project...

...DONE!  Three completed shopping bags.

Wednesday is the big trip to Kansas.  A portion of the travel is on the turnpike with speeds of 75 mph allowed so we figure 4 hours one way allowing for quick stops.  Ivy is all excited.  She is counting down the days til we leave.

Regarding the shopping bags, Holly's is the bright pink with white piping dividing the two colors.  It turned out the very best.  Ivy's is cute, too.  On the other hand, mine is the muted honey florals with bright batiks separating the colors.  It was also the last one I did and I think I was getting a little too "know it all" as the lining and outside did not match perfectly in size...ugh so I just plowed on through and made some gathers.  I just wasn't up to ripping all the stuff out.  Hey, it is a shopping bag not a wedding dress!

Here is Ivy's bag in the making.

So will let you know how Kansas is this time of year next post.

Today Whitey and I are going exploring in Oklahoma.  When Whitey explores it is usually related to some body of water checking out the fishing opportunities...hmmm...I will grab my knitting bag, camera and go for it!

xxoo Have a safe and happy week til I talk to you next time on the airwaves!





Its been awhile...

...and a lot has happened between now and then.  Now is Purcell, Oklahoma, then was El Granada, California.  I thought moving to Alaska was our ultimate adventure but this ranks right up there.  But I am still me and I cook, cook, cook and sew, sew, sew just like always. 

Our first winter here and we had a record setting blizzard.

Take a look at my latest color combo.  It will be a Trader Joe's shopping bag for my granddaughter. 

Nearest TJs, 305 miles...why so far?!...so my daughter and I have a road trip planned to Kansas - I can't wait.  I am making new shopping bags for all of us.  More to follow.

Lastly, this is my latest project from Cinderberry Stitches designs with Lecien fabrics.  It is a dolly quilt (also to go on the road trip with a new baby doll - I am hoping to find one like the old baby dolls that drinks from a bottle and has diapers - Grandma has an old car and doesn't care if things get a bit messy!) Just need to finish the binding.

fyi - these are woodland fairies...

xoxo til I see you next time on the airwaves!