Day Thirty One 2013

If I can put one touch of rosy sunset into the life of any man or woman, I shall feel that I have worked with God. 
~Gilbert K. Chesterton
Here is my rosy sunset to share with you just in case you didn’t have one today.
Goodbye, January! 

Day Thirty 2013

This was the extent of damage at my house from the storms that raced through Middle Tennessee early this morning. They say the tornado sirens went off, but I never heard them. This limb landed right under the kitchen window. Glad it didn’t fly through the window.

Sunset. I think the sun is under all that gray somewhere. Winter returning. Maybe some snow? Maybe?

I took this snapshot yesterday of beautiful buttercups blooming in the backyard. All of our buttercups have buds. Hope they can survive the freeze that’s coming. Makes me sad when they bloom too soon.

He’s thinking, Will it ever snow?

Day Twenty Nine 2013

Daffodils blooming in January in my backyard, It is 67 degrees at lunch time. Storms heading our way tonight and tomorrow. I can't complain about the warmth, however I wouldn't mind at least one good snowfall before winter is done. It is winter, isn't it?

 





Day Twenty Eight 2013

I haven’t made meatloaf in, like, forever. So I made meatloaf for supper tonight (here in the South, we call it supper, not dinner). I know. It kind of looks like dog food because apparently I didn’t give it enough time to ‘set’ in the pan before greedily and hungrily shoveling it onto our plates, but it was pretty tasty, the second helping was more loaf-like, and the carrots and baked potatoes (microwaved, actually) weren’t too shabby, either. Plus, I get a kick out of using our square Fiesta plates. It’s about as festive as a Monday is going to get around here.

Here’s a fun fact for you (not about meatloaf): A ranch owner in Fort Keogh, Montana, discovered the largest reported snowflake on this day in 1887. It measured 15 inches wide and 8 inches thick.

Day Twenty Seven 2013

Our weekend with grandpeeps Shelby and Elijah came to a close this afternoon, but not before we indulged ourselves in a tasty frozen  treat at Cream City Ice Cream and Coffee House (I really enjoyed my frozen hot chocolate), and of course we climbed around on the trains at the depot just across the street from Cream City. Good times with the kiddos. It was a fun weekend.
Happy 12th Anniversary to my daughter Holly and son in law Jerry!
We love you!!

Day Twenty Six 2013

Grandpa’s Saturday morning homemade blueberry waffles with the grandpeeps, Shelby and Elijah.

In my waffle world, there’s no such thing as too many blueberries, but Elijah begs to differ. He picked out a lot of his.

His Vision Basketball team, the Blue Panthers, won their game this afternoon 30 ~ 18. Elijah is on the far right, waiting to see if his shot drops. It did. He got the Team Work award after the game. Both teams played really well.

Tonight we pigged out at Panda Garden for supper. Snapped their picture looking through this cardboard cutout frame the restaurant has set up for Valentine’s pictures.
It was a good day Saturday. Hope yours was, too.

Day Twenty Five 2013

Grandpeeps Elijah and Shelby are hanging out with us this weekend while their mom and dad are away celebrating their anniversary. The kids had an unexpected ‘snow day’ today, minus the ever elusive snow. We hit KFC for some Colonel Chicken for supper tonight before the streets started to freeze over.   

And then we hit Ralph’s Donut Shop before heading home. (I couldn’t even think about a donut after stuffing myself with chicken.)

That’s what makes you beautiful. Shelby’s got moves like Jagger, or maybe One Direction, playing Just Dance 4, right after pigging on KFC. Only a very young person could pull that off without losing her dinner. This should be a busy weekend.
Happy TGIF, everyone!

Day Twenty Four 2013

I envy people who can just look at a sunset. I wonder how you can shoot it.  
~Dustin Hoffman 

When I admire the wonders of a sunset or the beauty of the moon, my soul expands in the worship of the creator.
~Mahatma Gandhi

Day Twenty Three 2013

Grand daughter Shelby noticed this bird sitting in my back yard this afternoon. It caught her attention because it was so large. She thought it looked like a hawk or falcon. We both did some research, and she was right. From what I can tell comparing my picture with pictures of falcons, it looks like a Peregrine Falcon and would have migrated here. This one was surrounded by a cloud of feathers on the ground, and he was tearing at and eating a fresh kill. By the looks of the feathers, we figured the meal was a dove. It feeds primarily on birds which it takes in midair after a steep, swift dive from above them. Which means that poor dove didn’t stand a chance. He eventually flew off with what was left of his dinner. We have lots of doves in the yard, so he may turn up again sometime. Here’s some fun facts about this bird.

• The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest bird on record when in diving posture, called a stoop, at 175 mph or more.
• The Latin name “peregrinus” means “coming from foreign parts” which is fitting because they have one of the longest migrations of any North American bird.
• These falcons were given Endangered Species status after decimation of the population from exposure to DDT in insecticides. A successful recovery effort resulted in removal from the U.S. list in 1999.
• A group of falcons has many collective nouns, including a "bazaar", "eyrie", "ringing", "stooping up", and a "tower" of falcons

Don’t say I never taught ya nothin’

Day Twenty Two 2013

Squirrel finds comfort food on a cold day in January.

Comfort food for hubby Neil and me on a cold January night. Thanks to my sister Jane for the veggie beef stew recipe. It was totally delicious! And much better than peanut butter.

Day Twenty One 2013

Duct tape is a man’s best friend. And only a man would do something like this. Hubby Neil had the day off and planned on doing a little crawling around under the house, cleaning out our nasty basement. His equally nasty jeans have huge holes in the knees, and it was cold out, so he covered up the holes with duct tape. Nice insulation, but I’m sure it made for some sticky knees.

Such a gorgeous day! Not a cloud.

We decided it was a good day for a walk. The sun was out. The sky was blue. We didn’t realize how cold it actually was when we set out around four. Sun was going down by then. Long shadows. Short walk.

Chilly night = chili night! Oh yummy!  Happy Monday, everyone!

“We must accept finite disappointment, but we must never lose infinite hope.” 
~Martin Luther King, Jr.

Day Twenty 2013

  A snowman is the perfect man. He's well rounded and comes with a broom. 
~anonymous snowman saying

Day Nineteen 2013

Grandson Elijah bounced back from feeling down and out puny yesterday and was able to play with his Vision Basketball team in their double header today. Thanks to his sister Shelby for taking this picture of him just after he made his shot and got another two points for his team. They ended up losing both hard-fought games. Well-played, Elijah! And thank you, Shelby, for letting me use your photo!

Day Eighteen 2013

Grandson Elijah is not feeling well today. Coughing, sneezing, congestion, runny nose. He left school and came to stay with me this morning and seemed to magically get better. We ate lunch at Ocha with his grandpa and mom, and Officer Mike stopped by our table to say hello and give him a police badge to wear, which he happily wore all day. But when we got back home, he quickly slid downhill into fever and chills and aches, along with the congestion, runny nose, coughing and sneezing. When this kid doesn’t feel like playing video games, something is not right. He was pretty pitiful. His mom took him to the doc. They say it isn’t the flu, but it may be too soon to tell. He may have the beginnings of bronchitis. He’s fighting some sort of infection and got meds for that. Not a great way to spend a long weekend (school is out Monday for MLK day). And he probably won’t get to play in his Vision Basketball double header tomorrow morning. Hope and pray you feel back to your old self ASAP, Elijah! I hate it when my kiddos are sick!
Wishing everyone a healthy TGIF!

Day Seventeen 2013

Those white streaks are tiny balls of ice that fell for a few minutes today around lunchtime. Not sleet and certainly not snow. Almost like hail. So much for 1-4 inches of snow. I’m pretty sure all the school kids and teachers enjoyed their ‘snow’ day.

And then the sun appeared late this afternoon. I could almost hear the heavenly angels in chorus, singing Praise the Lord! It was a glorious sight indeed. Looks like a nice weekend ahead, sunshine-wise.

Day Sixteen 2013

Wednesdays are like Mondays in the middle of the week. ~Lee Fox Williams

Another soggy day. Snow in the forecast for Thursday—1 to 4 inches.

Neighbor kitty Lily wants inside our house but settles for the cushion on the wicker rocker by the front door.

Sky, road, truck. Can you say gray?

Dropping off and picking up hubby today. Our (old) car is in the shop again, needing a new (expensive) compressor. I told Neil by the time we have all the parts replaced, we’ll have a new car.

Wednesday is ‘senior’ day at Fazoli’s, and we are happy to qualify (55+) so we can get this yummy meal (drink included) for $2.99. You can also choose pasta Alfredo (heart attack on a plate). Fazoli’s is the only spaghetti sauce I like besides my dad’s recipe. We ended up eating supper right after Neil got off work at 4:30. I think this completes our geezer-hood.

No such thing, ever, as a ‘speedy checkout’ at Wal-Mart, especially when everybody is there buying milk and bread for the impending blizzard. We wouldn’t have been in here at all if I hadn’t been out of my allergy med, and Neil figured he’d buy some ammo for his dad’s old rifle or shotgun, I forget which. (He says the bullets are called ‘shorts’ and did manage to get a couple boxes.) Why am I telling you this? I have no idea. Happy hump day!

Day Fifteen 2013

Randomness

I got this in my Christmas stocking~~a dark chocolate orange. I finally broke into it today and wondered why/how could I have let it sit there for three weeks?? Two slices~~that’s all I could eat. Very rich.

Got these in my Christmas stocking, too. Santa knows what I like, even though I tell him every year not to bring me stuff like this because I’ll eat it. Pistachios are supposed to be good for you/me. [Like dark chocolate.]

We recently got a big old bag of naval oranges at Sam’s. They are so huge I can hardly get my hand around one. They are sweet and juicy. These are mine. Neil’s are in the fridge. He likes cold fruit. I don’t. Plus he eats more fruit than I do. I’m too busy eating dark chocolate oranges and pistachios.

“Oh that I had wings like a dove; then I would fly away and rest!” ~Psalm 55:6   I like this Bible verse. We recently refilled our bird feeders for the winter, and the doves have been all over them, which is odd. These birds are usually pecking around on the ground under the feeders. Maybe they don’t like having cold wet feet.

Today was the 100th day of school this year. Grandson Elijah has been talking about this day for weeks. His class celebrated by making these cool crowns and bringing 100 of something to class to show and tell. He brought a hundred Legos. Others brought things like cereal and gummies. It was a fun day for him, especially after going in two hours late because of potential icy road conditions this morning.

He played with those Legos most of the time he and Shelby were here this afternoon, building stuff, instead of playing video games on his 3DS. By the time he started with the video games, mom came to pick them up. Aw, Mom!

I leave you with a little visual warmth on this cold wet winter evening. We are toasty. Hope you are warm and safe and dry. (Or maybe cool and safe and dry if you happen to live in the southern hemisphere )

Day Fourteen 2013

Angry Bird. This momma cardinal was not happy about sharing the sunflower seeds at the feeder this morning. She scolded the little bird next to her, and he/she took off. (Been a while since I took any bird shots~~forgot to change the camera to sports setting~~the birds are a blur.)
God gives every bird its food, but He does not throw it into its nest. ~J.G. Holland

Day Thirteen 2013

Fresh out of the Pizza Hut oven, a hot gooey personal pan supreme hit the spot for supper—comfort food on a rain-drenched evening. A huge storm blew through our town, lots of rain and wind and lightning and thunder and flooding and tree limbs everywhere. When Neil and I got to Pizza Hut, the outside temperature was 64 degrees. When we left, it was 60, and on our way home, less than two miles away, we watched the temperature drop to 46 degrees on the truck thermometer. So the forecasted cold front blew into town after the storm. Monday is going to feel like winter again.

Day Twelve 2013

Neil and I visited grandson Knox and his mommy and daddy this afternoon. Stopped by Babies R Us for some little people food. Knox likes this brand the best. Elmo is on the box.

Elmo caught his attention on Sesame Street a while back, so he was thrilled to get a stuffed Elmo to play with, just his size. Knox calls him ‘Melmo’.

Cookie Monster—not so much. What little kid doesn’t fall in love with sweet Elmo?

Back at the house it was time to ride the turtle, but only for a second or two. He likes to dance to the music the turtle plays (seems most of his toys play music he can boogie to).

Bath Time!

We had fun with you all today! Miss that cute face already.