Happy Father's Day Captain!...

...lets remember this one.  First of all, we are on the mark with weather - looks like it will be clear and warm, with a little breeze...no rain in sight - a miracle!

Secondly, it is going to fun!  (After you get your truck's air conditioner fixed..but that's the only real chore of the day.)  We can work on stocking the pond...shiners and blue gill, maybe even a bass.

And now this is the way to Grandpa's house...and who will be there?

Madge and Annie looking out on the lake in the early morning...

Madge, in a classic McNab pose...(with her milk jug)...

Annie, being sweet, and staying cool in the moist Oklahoma clay...

And we can't forget the biggest Friskie's eater of all!...Cassius...back in the winter...

Now onto the people that visit!

Precious granddaughter Ivy and Grandpa...

Can't forget Ivy and her chickens!...

Grandpa's little redneck, baby grandson, Devlin Alexander...

And last but not least, the daughter who made a lot of happiness in our lives, Holly Elizabeth...

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY KAROL ROBERT MARX AKA WHITEY AKA CAPTAIN OF THIS SHIP WE CALL HOME!

Farewell sweet 2014...

...you are ending as you began...cold and a skiff of snow.

But that is what winter is supposed to be all about, at least on the plains! This was the best Christmas ever.  Not about the gifts (well, if you were 8 years old, it WAS about the gifts!) but for the rest of us, just being together and enjoying one evening ~ 























...maybe...a little about the gifts, even for the adults, come now, it is a beautiful sacred holiday but it is also a celebration, isn't it?  We spend so much time crafting or selecting our gifts that we give in love, I do believe it is also about the gifts. 

Speaking of gifts, guess what I received from Holly?...a hand drawn picture of Pope John Paul II - drawn by Sister Helena from the Carmelite Nuns convent in Oklahoma City.  The convent was closing so they had a giant estate sale and Holly got this for me plus two music books.  The 'singers edition' and the music for the Kyriale - Missa pro Defunctis - Published with ecclesiastical permission in 1937 ~ all in Latin...very cool.  But isn't this drawing just lovely, especially the eyes...

I need to get it framed right away so the wood smoke from our stove doesn't destroy it.  

Next project for winter creative endeavors ~ a few new clothes!  

(Another Holly gift!) Not sure which one - I love the upper right full skirt - but know it is not stylish now!  But it was the style in the 1950's and my Grandmother Glass wore that look to work everyday.  She favored dark colors with small polka dots and contrasting white colors.  (Or at least that is what I remember!).  The lower right short sleeved version could be really cute for spring and the way my sewing progress moves that is about the right timing!

But ending on a note of what is even way more special to me:

...til next year!  

Dear Santa...

...

...from my desk to yours.  No snow yet - but I know your reindeer can make it through the fog if they have to...one of the multitude of miracles this special time of year.

I have tried to be good.  I don't know if I succeeded but my goal was for over 50% of the time to be good.  You be the judge.

Therefore, I will make my list modestly ~ including only the top 50% of wished for items, as follows:

#1 - Milk Cow Kitchen by MaryJane Butters ~ available on line @ shop.maryjanesfarm.org/Milk-Cow-Kitchen, $35 + shipping ~ (hint: top item on list!)

#2 - fuzzy socks ~ Dollar General store

#3 - a plant - Boston fern would be great to hang in the bathroom ~ (Note: no orchids.  I don't think they would do well in our house ~ too drafty.)

#4 - another clay garden pot (lemon trees are saying "help! we need separate pots" - can you believe they have grown this much since last Christmas?!)

That's about it ~ I might have to add a post script when something else comes to mind.

P.S.! #2.a. (>second in importance!) - a postal scale for my Etsy startup business ~ available at office supply stores (Office Max, etc.) or online at usps.com (probably the best buy) either 5 lb. digital or 10 lb. digital ($24.99 or $49.99, respectively) at the usps web site (usps.com > postal store > shipping supplies )

Thank you Santa.  I love you.  Kate

(I'm getting ready to bake you some cookies...promise.)