Sadie goes swimming

Here you are, Tammy, by request. It's from last year 

Random Sunday

 

Beautiful view of our town taken by Nate Bottorf. Thanks, Nate for all the drone pictures which give us a unique view of out little city.

 

Sadie relaxing. You can see where she was shaved in order to do the ultrasound. We take her back to Buffalo on Friday for a checkup. She is back to normal. She loves taking a swim in our little pond which she thinks is her private swimming pool.

 

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A little video

In Pigeon Forge

 

Ryan and Jenny live near Knoxville, Tennessee and Ryan works in Pigeon Forge which is the playground of the south. It is a big tourist attraction and there is a lot to do down there. They have recently opened The Island. I haven't been there yet but it looks like a lot of fun. There is a Paula Deen restaurant there too.

It looks like a lot of fun.

 

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Sara

Sara and her girlfriends. Look at her long legs. I can't believe that she will be five at the end of this month.

 

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Purging

Sorry, I was so busy yesterday that I forgot to blog. It happens. For the past few days I have been on a mission to get my basement cleaned out. I don't even have a full basement just under part of the house. There is a room under the stairs, very small with shelves. A larger space with the furnace and laundry. And a storage room.

It becomes a space where things are put. Things that don't have a home elsewhere go down there. Hobby thing like all my art materials that I have collected. And there they sit...unused. What a shame.

Also there are all those kitchen items that are seldom used but needed..like large rosters, specialty pans, bread maker, fryer, etc. those I put in bins.

And paint storage, games for the kids, old jars...well you get the picture. We all...well maybe not Tammy...have places like this where things live but are not used often.

So I purged. It felt good to go through things and eliminate those things I know I'll never be using again..like the fondue pot. And take things to Goodwill to beloved by someone else...like old purses. And filling garbage bags with just trash or no longer wanted items.

Then the floor was cleaned to be painted as a winter project.

The greatest satisfaction is to look at it all cleaned up and smile. I seem to be happy when things leave the house.

 

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In our backyard

I love that we live practically in the woods. It is common to see wildlife (remember the bear stories?) It still thrills me when deer walk through our yard. Yesterday mama and two fauns were waltzing through. By the time I got my camera they were on their way to the neighbor’s.


He put up a salt lick and some food and that is a great attraction for them. In our town there are a lot of people who feed the wildlife. My friend Joan starting feeding birds and ended up with deer, chipmunks, and squirrels as well as birds.


Our winters are extremely harsh so once they start feeding they need to continue all winter long. We have many hunters in our area but we try to be as kind to the animals as we can. They know who they can trust.

Simplicity

 

The older I get the less I care about stuff. I still like to see pretties but I do not feel the pull to take home another arrangement or seasonal decoration. I want to use what I have and enjoy the things I've collected over time. I think Tammy at Peanut on the Table is rubbing off on me.

― Francine Jay, Miss Minimalist: Inspiration to Downsize, Declutter, and Simplify

 

 

Do you think the wren ever dreams of a better house?"

― Mary Oliver, Blue Pastures

"Own less stuff. Enjoy more freedom. It really is that simple."

― Joshua Becker

"Owning less is better than organizing more."

― Joshua Becker, Clutterfree with Kids

 

 

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Lace part two

It's dark this morning. We had a rainstorm last night with plenty of thunder and lightening. It was good for the flowers and yards since we've had a dry spell for a while. I love laying in bed and seeing the flashes of lightening and hearing the thunder roll.

It was a quiet day yesterday. I finished To Kill A Mockingbird. It is such a picture of rural south. Since my mother was from Georgia and we visited for two weeks every year I had a little experience there. As I was reading certain memories surfaced that I had completely forgotten about. There are things that you did as a child that get engrained inside of you. Just little things...like bread with butter and sugar on it or a song..Sweetly Sings the Donkey. Or the red dirt. I really loved this book and the picture that it paints of times like my childhood. Today I will begin To Set a watchman.

I found this article about Harper Lee to be interesting

Lee, today, finds herself in a place she traditionally has not enjoyed occupying: the news. That's because of the surprise announcement that To Kill a Mockingbird will have its long-awaited sequel: Go Set a Watchman, about the adventures of a grown-up Scout as she returns to Maycomb, Alabama, to visit Atticus. That a novel more than 60 years in the making would finally be published was the result, Lee said in a statement delivered through her publisher, HarperCollins, of some crazy serendipity: The book’s long-lost manuscript was discovered by her lawyer, the statement says, "in a secure location where it had been affixed to an original typescript of To Kill a Mockingbird."*

Which is all, almost needless to say, a very big deal. (When the new novel was announced earlier today, apparently, "a series of screams" could be heard in the offices of Penguin Random House, Lee's U.K. publisher.) To Kill a Mockingbird is beloved in ways few of its fellow curricular staples are. More than half a century after its original publication, it continues to sell more than a million copies a year; it's been translated into more than 40 languages. Not only has it proven itself, repeatedly, to be on the right side of history; it also captures, in a way few books are able to, that particular feeling, smallness straining against bigness, that comes with being a kid. For many American children—myself, and possibly you, very much included—Mockingbird offered an early, easy exposure to justice and the lack of it. It eased us, through the charming person of Scout, into a truth we were alternately warned about and protected from: that life can be, without at all meaning to be, cruelly unfair.

 

 

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Queen Anne’s Lace

It's five o'clock somewhere

Here it is five o'clock on Sunday and I'm just getting around to posting. I feel no pressure these days to get a post out early. I've noticed some bloggers are even taking a break during these great summer days. Life is for living. And if you can share it on a blog so much the better. But sometimes my days are just not that exciting. I've been relaxing all day. And reading. I picked up Harper Lee's new book but before I read that I am reading To Kill a Mockingbird again first. These days are absolutely perfect. Just warm enough. I took .sadie for a short walk and she loved it. She has been begging me for days. How does she do that you may ask. She stands in front of me when I'm reading my book and mutters growls and barks while backing toward the door. She is relentless. She is very strong willed and gets bored so easily. The vet said only moderate exercise. Sadie is so much better now. I hope that you enjoyed your weekend too.

 

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My August Garden

My flowers are beginning to perk up thanks to a dose of Osmacote. It's nice to see various flowers bloom as the season progresses. Showing up now are phlox, black eyed Susan's, and straw flowers.

 

 

 

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Around the lake

How could you not feel good when you are close to water. I don’t know what it is about it but whether it is a lake, the ocean or just a stream water has the power to take away all your troubles and put you in a peaceful mood. Yesterday at Chautauqua Lake I ate my lunch sitting on this wall by the water.
I was admiring the view with the docks and boats.
Occasionally taking a few pictures with my camera.
When who came swimming by but Mrs. Duck and all her ducklings. What a great photo op.
After they left another duck must have seen a mark because she hung around getting nibbles of my crackers for quite a while.
She preened herself while I finished my lunch.

That hour made me realize that I need to see water more often. It’s therapeutic.

Little noshes

 

Yesterday when I went to Bemus Point for my art lesson I took along a little picnic lunch and ate down by the water. Sometimes you just don't want to eat restaurant food...especially if you are dieting. I found these little picnic meals in Target. They are small bites and low in calories. There is enough variety that you feel you have eaten more. Very tasty.

 

The town itself is lovely...right on the lake with small shops. I looked a lot but didn't buy anything.

I found this sign for my sisters. I thought they would get a kick out of it.

I

 

 

 

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PuT A LITTLE MONET IN YOUR LIFE

 

I had the most wonderful day. I had signed up for a painting class to be held at Bemus Point, NY which is right along the Chautauqua Lake shores. It is about an hour from my house. Don's parent had a cottage on this lake and we spent a lot of time boating, swimming and skiing there when we were younger.

This is the first in a series of four classes. Today we painted Monet's water lillies. The class was four hours and we did it right on the deck of the Italian Fisherman restaurant overlooking the lake. WE were right out in public and people enjoying lunch could also see us in full view.

There was only one other woman taking the class so I got a ot of attention. It was really fun to learn different techniques and I'm proud of the finished project. It was ecnouraging to have a paint brush in my hand again

 

 

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