History

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Signs of time past.  We see quite a few signs of it around our property.  Broken bottles, metal cans, rubber, old bricks, license plates, and piles of rubble .....

Recently on a walk out back, after hunting season was over and before the snow starts to fly, pile up too deep and STAY, we found this .....

what?!  A car?! or is it a truck?

How is the world did this vehicle end up 3/4 mile behind our house, near a creek, half buried in swamp bush?

Did some neighborhood boys take their father's car for a joyride late one night and get carried away?  Did a Grandpa give his young grandsons the old derelict to tinker with and they were able to bumble along until it was permanently stuck and was unable to be moved?

Closer inspection shows signs of the vehicle being stripped, stripped of mirrors, wires, gauges,  parts that were probably used on another derelict that was in better shape .... maybe the other car was faster, more reliable.  Isn't it wonderful to imagine what happened?

This car/truck has been here for a while ... a loooong while.  Notice the trees and brush have wormed their way through any available space?  The branches have grown, wrapped around the steering wheel.

The tires look a little worn ..... perhaps racing along country roads?

A two seater?  Hmmm, must have been a truck.

It looks like this truck had a good life.  A fun life.  At least that is what I like to think.  If it could talk, the stories it might tell.  History ... I love it.  I love the possibilities, I love the stories, I love that I can find it in my own back yard.

Look around.  Do you have history close to your home?  How about a museum?  Or an old church?  A building?  Or maybe even an old oak tree in your backyard.  I would love to hear about it.  I enjoy learning about the past but remember to live in the present as that is all we are promised ..... and remember to give your loved ones a hug!

Fiddling around on Friday

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The day was sunny and bright yesterday....just perfect so I thought I'd fiddle around my Mom's yard and get some things done.

She lives in a small town and I always joke with her that her yard is the size of a postage stamp.....at least it seems like that compared to our 20 acres!

She needed a new lawnmower so we had picked one up and I had the job of putting it together....

for those men who might be reading this.....NO, there was no oil or gas in the new mower yet!  LOL

I gathered some tools.....well what tools my Mom happened to have.  Luckily she had a vise grip and a pair of pliers!

Notice the phone is right there just in case I have to give hubby a quick call for an explanation!  LOL

Sir Humphrey, my Mom's cat laid back in the shade and I could have sworn I heard him chuckle a few times while watching me fight with the mower.

Done!  Now on to the next project....

My Mom has a real cool bike.  It is an electric bike.  It runs by battery and she can travel 35 mph with it!  It helps her to get around without a vehicle but as you can see she has worn out her bike seat!!!!

Well she picked up a brand new one at a yard sale last weekend...it was still in the package for $3.00 and it was a Schwinn seat which is the brand of her bike!

Changing the seats was easy peasy compared to the lawnmower and in a matter of minutes, it was done.

It is a wide seat to accommodate her wide butt (according to her!) and it fits the bike perfectly.  

Pretty cool bike, isn't it?  Now where is that glass of iced tea?!

Remember to give your loved ones a hug!

Sixty-Five Degrees in Minnesota in March?!

Pin It The temperatures the last few days have been amazing.  Can you imagine 65 degrees in March?!  I want to pull out the shorts but something keeps holding me back ..... it just doesn't seem right ..... something is wrong .... either that or Mother Nature is playing a really mean trick on us and will plunge us back into winter soon.  I sure hope not!

Since she has decided to treat us kindly, I have been enjoying the days outside.  I have been picking garbage that always seems to pop up in the spring .... where it comes from, I have no idea ..... checking the flowerbeds, garden for winter damage and dreaming of when I can get my hands dirty again, and sitting on the deck with a cup of coffee soaking up the rays.  What a treat!

I took the following pictures of our old garden tiller two days ago and then again today.  See how fast the snow has melted?! 

These flowers were a gift from my Mom and they are enjoying the warm sun ... they love it when I place them on the windowsills in the morning.

Whatever Mother Nature's plans are .... I have decided that I am going to enjoy the amazing weather she is giving us.

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What a beautiful day today! The temperatures warmed up to a balmy 32 degrees with sunny skies. Such a nice treat!

As promised yesterday, I would like to direct you over to another friend's blog. This friend is only known as Madhen...and she is a real treat! This lady is one of the most dedicated people for animal rescue that I have ever known. She lives on a beautiful mountain in California raising goats, donkeys, chickens, birds, dogs, cats and whatever else that might catch her fancy.

Her blog is a real treat so pop on over and say hi! Madhen can be found here...

http://mad-hen-creations.blogspot.com/

I am sure you will enjoy it.

I snapped this picture early this morning while out on my morning walk....the sun was just coming up.

Tomorrow is Saturday....usually Saturdays are a very busy day for us with company that likes to pop in for a cup of coffee and a cookie or two. I cannot believe how fast the weeks fly by!

Remember to give your loved ones a hug!

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Not much to report today. I cruised through a local craft show before I picked up some groceries. There were many lovely things for sale....I forgot my camera or else I would have shared some of them with you. I am so sorry. LOL, I need to attach that thing to some part of my body!





Once I browsed through the fair, I grabbed a few things at the local grocery store and headed home. The weather has been horrible.... snow, rain, wind and cold.

Luke was busy winterizing the boat and motor and fixing the duck pen so they can stay warm and dry. I think even the ducks are beginning to dislike this weather. Bob was busy in the shop so I took the time to make a banana cream pie and then started dinner.

This evening I will spend some time working on some crafts and curling up a good book.

Have a great night and give your loved ones a hug! =)

Snow Day!

Pin It A snow day! Yep, the kind of dreary day where the clouds hang really low in the sky and you can almost see those flakes dancing around inside them waiting to drop on unsuspecting people....us!



The flakes were huge and what a mess that type of heavy snow makes. We had to dig out the insulated coveralls (a must around here), winter boots, hats, gloves...everything.

Look at the size of that snowflake...right in the middle! They were soooo big.

The roads became slick and dangerous as it had rained for hours before the temperature dropped and the snow began to fall.

Then Bob and Luke just had to take out the four-wheelers to slip and slide around like the crazy guys that they are!

I could just envision broken bones, flipped wheelers and lots of mud.

They did arrive back safely though....while dragging in mud, grass, snow, wet clothes... just in time to eat a hot dinner.

Off to clean up the mess they made when they walked in the door....now to find enough registers to put the boots, hats and gloves on. It is going to be a loooonnnng winter.

P.S. Give your loved ones a hug! =)

Cold and Christmas

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Today was nasty, nasty. Cold, windy, raining, the clouds looked so heavy with snow it got me thinking about what was to come.

I found this article from the New York Times (December 18, 1898 edition) interesting and wanted to share it with all of you.

The weather prophets of all ages have done full justice to the Winter season. Some of the forecasts have been thrown into rude rhymes which the country folk have learned to rely on for generations. Some of them remarkable for their brevity and curious reading.

In Scotland, the writer says, that the snow of the coming Winter first makes

its appearance during the harvest in the large snow-looking

clouds that rise along the horizon;

and there is an old saying that,

"If the sun falls on the snow,

there will be snow, snow and snow yet again."

Pliny tells us that,

"a fair and dry autumn

brings in always a windy Winter,"

while a Greek proverb has it that

if the early Autumn is mild,

the sheep generally suffer from famine,

and also if the late Autumn is

unusually bright,

the Spring is cold as a general rule.

A Latin manuscript of the seventeenth century says that,

"a wet Autumn followed by a mild Winter,

is the forerunner of a cold, dry Spring."

A short jingle claims,

"Clear Autumn, Windy Winter;

Warm Autumn, Long Winter.

We are also told that

a wet Autumn indicates a cold and early Winter

and again,

"Much fog in Autumn, much snow in Winter"

In the farming populations,

If the leaves hang on in late Autumn,

"If on the trees, the leaves still hold,

The Winter coming will be cold."

and

"Onion's skin very dry,

Mild Winter's coming in,

Onion's skin, thick and tough,

Coming Winter, cold and rough."

In Scotland, if a robin redbreast appears

early in the Autumn,

a hard Winter is looked for.

I am not sure about all these old beliefs and sayings. I do remember my Mother always telling me, "if the squirrels tails are bushy, it is going to be a long, cold winter". The squirrels have been running around here (with bushy tails) frantically grabbing all the acorns and nuts they can for the coming winter. Will it be a long, cold winter as my Mother tells me? Time will tell.

With this cold weather, my nesting instinct has kicked in. I dream of long, dark evenings knitting a warm blanket with a cup of tea beside me in the glow of the light, and with this instinct comes Christmas! My favorite time of the year.

I have been working on 19 Christmas ornaments the last few days. Why 19 you say? Over at Frugal Village we are having a Christmas ornament exchange. There are 19 of us, each making our own designs. It should be interesting to see the 19 different ornaments that I will get back! Everyone is keeping it a big secret but I will share with you my design. So shhhhh, don't tell anyone!





They are miniature hats and mittens.




I used Christmas colored yarn and attached my name tag, along with the year.

It will be so much fun to see what the others are making. I might just need another tree in the house just to accomodate them all!

My Christmas tree is traditionally decorated with all Luke's ornaments and my snowmen. He has received a different one each year since he was born from both me and my Mom. He will take them with him when he has a home of his own. I love snowmen so hence the reason why they adorn my tree each year.




This is another design I was experimenting with. It is a metal shape of a Christmas tree and the beads are to represent the lights and decorations. I think that one is going to need some tweaking yet.

Cold and Christmas. Two words that go so well together and the anticipation of how cold and gifts at Christmas keep me all toasty inside.

Remember to give your loved ones a hug! =)