ONE MORE TIME

Okay.  Just one more post about my new car and then I'll spare you any further bragging!  May I just say that I love my new car?

It's a cell phone picture, so it's a bit fuzzy, but this is the beautiful blue Prius in person!  And that white haired person can't be me......naw.....I don't know who it is!

FIFTY TWO POINT FIVE

We picked up our new car yesterday.  I got to drive it home, all seventy miles or so!  We took it out for a drive today, just to see how it felt on a little trip.  We now have 222 miles on it, and we are getting 52.5 mpg!

Love my Prius!  And I have pictures on my phone, not on my camera.  I'll have to work on that!

BEEN PLAYING

I have been playing the last couple of days, and I've had a lot of fun.  Actually  my Big Brother joined me in the fun.  This is what we were doing:

Isn't it going to be pretty when it's done?  The outside borders on the sides are just laying there next to the top, and the top and bottom borders aren't done either.  This is Carrie Nelson's Open  Season pattern from the Schnibbles times two book , made with Bonnie and Camille's Cotton Blossom fabric, which I love, love, love!  Of course I pretty much love anything Camille does.  I just purchased Simplify, her first book.  Oh boy!  Am I  going to be busy if I make everything in both books!

Have you been having fun this week?

I'M LOVING MY NEW FRIG!

The appliance delivery guys came yesterday afternoon, only about a half hour past the two hour time period they had given us.  And they brought my new prize!  I was a little concerned when the driver got out of the truck.  He looked about 14 years old!  No kidding!  But his helper was much older, maybe looked 17 years old!   Oh my.  My boys didn't have those kinds of jobs at that age!  I guess they probably were a bit older, but I could have sworn they were still in high school.

Isn't she a beauty? 

I was so anxious for it to cool down so I could load our groceries.

Amd now look at it!  It is packed full!  A drawer of fruits, one of veggies, and then a whole shelf of veggies to boot!  Love that narrow extra drawer below the fruit and veggie drawers.  It holds odds and ends and lunch meat and bacon and cheese right now.  We'll see how it ends up being used as I get used to the space.

So far I love it!

WAITING PATIENTLY, OR NOT

This is my refrigerator this morning.

 Two regular coolers, a water cooler, a six-pack cooler, and an insulated Sam's Club bag!  All our food is in these coolers, including my treasures from the Farmers Market and the food coop that I purchased yesterday.  Dumb, uh, to shop the day before your new frig is delivered! 

When I got home from the Market, hubby told me he had listed our old frig on Craigslist and that he had already gotten calls on it.  As I was fixing dinner the doorbell rang, a couple looked at the frig and bought it!  I told them they had to leave it until today so I could get my stuff out!

So now I am not so patiently waiting for the new one to be delivered.  French door, freezer on the bottom, frig of my dreams.  Can't wait!

TOO HOT FOR OUR OLD VAN

We were notified that we should be picking up our new Prius  next Thursday.  I can't wait as we had a bit of a problem with our 15 year old van today.  It is usually very reliable.  We bought it used long ago, and it's taken us many miles and has always done what it's supposed to do.  However,  today it must have decided it was just too hot to run, because it keeled over and died.  In the Best Buy parking lot.  In town.  Five miles from home.

Ernie  took off walking to the closest car rental place.  I decided to just stay put.   Of course I had to sit with the doors wide open because the windows don't work so there was no breeze coming into the van where the temps registered 127 degrees and it was only 95 outside. 

He rented a car, we continued on our errands in town, and then notified the shop to go and pick it up and see if it's fixable.  I sure  hope so because he needs something to get around in.  You don't think I'm going to share my Prius, do you?

COTTON BLOSSOMS

Cotton Blossoms is the name of this Moda fabric line by Bonnie and Camille.

 

I love the blue, apricot/orangy and  cream squares with a touch of chocolate and green thrown in.

 

I decided on this pattern, Open Season

from Carrie Nelson's Schnibbles times two book.

I started on it last night.  Finally got the sewing room half way put together and could not leave my Big Brother sitting there alone any longer!  So I put him to work.  I only made 12 of the flying geese blocks, and I need 72, but the pieces are quite large so they go together quickly.  I think it's going to be a fun project.  I'll keep you posted on my progress.

I was trying to link these wonderful quilt sites but Blogger is giving me issues this morning.  Sorry.

 

COMPARISONS

I love to compare what I was doing six months ago, or a year ago, or even five years ago, with what I am doing today.  It's fun to see the huge differences in our life activities from one time to another.

Three years ago this week  we were spending our last hours with mom.  I miss her terribly but rejoice that she lives in Heaven with Jesus.

Two years ago this week we were in Alaska, visiting our son Chris, his sweet Amy, and grand dog Stella.  We were catching, eating, and canning salmon!

 Last year we were camp ground hosting in a Minnesota State Park (they are closed now for the state shutdown!) and I was enjoying quilting on my Big Brother! My sewing room is now put together and I am ready to start my first project in our new house.  A purse?  A tote?  A wall hanging?  A quilt?  I haven't decided for sure, but rest assured that I have enough fabric to do all of the above, 10 times over!

Six months ago  I was baking bread. Now I am eating gluten free.  Enough said about that, as that was the best bread I have ever eaten.

Also six months ago, the temps were hovering around 25 below zero!  Today we will again approach 100 degrees.

But the comparison that prompted this whole post is this one:  The only other spot in the Western Hemisphere with dew points in the 80's yesterday was the Amazon Jungle!  Unbelievable!

MEGA HEAT, MEGA HUMIDITY, MEGA LOVE

It has been a busy weekend, filled with heat and humidity, but overflowing with love.  Hubby's oldest brother's daughter, our niece and Godchild Tammy, has been busy for this whole year organizing a mini-reunion and huge benefit for cancer research, and this was the weekend that she successfully pulled it off!  Wow, Tammy!  It was awesome!  We are proud of you and all your hard work.  Love you dearly!

Tammy has been working all year, but things began for us on Friday evening when she and her parents hosted the reunion fun out at their farm.  Hubby and his 6 brothers were all there.

Here are the brothers.  Our host Arnold, James, Neil, hubby, David, Roy, and Gary.  Do you think they look alike?  This is the passing of the jug ceremony!  They have a Redwing pottery jug for each decade, and as each brother has a birthday they pass this jug filled with words of wisdom? from one brother to the next.  This is the decade of the 70's.  James is passing the jug to Neil who will turn 70 at the end of this year.  They continue on down the line, and once Gary turns 70, then Arnold will turn 80 and the whole thing begins again!  Crazy, but they have fun!

This handsome man is Uncle Milo, the family patriarch.   He loves family reunions, and is always in attendance.  And we love Uncle Milo.

This is the activity that keeps brother Arnold busy in his retirement.  He makes all kinds to things out of metal, signs, lawn ornaments, pictures, and other kinds of decorations and neat things.  You can see some of the lawn figures in this next picture.

There was a bean bag tournament the next day, so these guys were getting in some practice.  The second from the left is our son Chuck, who actually had to work the next day so he couldn't participate in the tournament.   

And this is another of Arnold's creations.  The younger generation sure had fun driving the car around the farm yard.

We had a huge hole in our celebration, though.  Gary's wife, my sweet sister in law Gail, is now living with Jesus in Heaven.  This is the first family get together since her death, and we missed her terribly.  In fact, the whole weekend was actually in her honor.  The ride part of the cancer cure  benefit is now named Cupcake's First Annual Ride for a Cure (Cupcake is Gary's pet name for Gail) and Tammy is a biker, and thus organized this whole thing in memory of Gail. In the extreme heat and humidity, with heat warnings crawling across TV screens and with cell phones receiving alert notifications, 85 riders took off on their 130 mile ride in great spirits, and returned several hours

later, hot, sweaty and sunburned, but safely and still enthusiastic.  The walk/run and bean bag tournaments had already taken place, and now it was time to cool off with a tall cold one and some excellent pork sandwiches and salads at the hog roast.  Dessert was cupcakes, of course.  Following this the silent auction results were announced, and then it was time for the big event,  the drawing for the motorcycle raffle.

Excitement hung heavy on the hot humid air as Gary pulled the winning ticket from the drum.  Our son Chuck was planning on his ticket being the winning one, so we took his picture with the bike ahead of time to avoid the crowds after the drawing!

He didn't actually win, nor did anyone I know win the bike, but there was a winner and he was excited and unbelieving when notified of his good luck.  Better luck next time, Chuck!

It was a fun weekend, full of family and love.  I am excited to hear the final total that will be sent for breast cancer research in honor of our beloved Cupcake.

Congratulations to Tammy on a job very well done!

SKOL MINNESOTANS!

When this news came out yesterday, everyone knew the state shutdown would be over soon.  You can take a Minnesotan's paycheck, his job, his wife, his children, fields and cattle, money and goods, but don't you dare take his beer!

The following is from an article by Eric Roper, updated July 13, 2011, in the Minneapolis StarTribune:
 

The MillerCoors brewing company landed in the cross hairs of Minnesota's government shutdown Wednesday when state officials said it would have to stop selling its beer in the state because of expired licenses.

The Department of Public Safety told the brewer it must stop distribution in Minnesota and devise a plan to pull its product from the shelves, including Coors, Coors Lite, Miller Lite, Miller High Life and 35 other name-brand beers. That would decimate choices for consumers. MillerCoors supplies 38 percent of the beer sold in Minnesota, and the state is one of the top five markets in the country for the brewing giant.   

Now this afternoon the news is this, also from the StarTribune:

Gov. Mark Dayton said Thursday morning that he is willing to accept Republicans' June 30 budget offer, which would close a $1.4 billion budget difference by delaying payment of school funds and borrowing against the state's tobacco settlement. 

He isn't happy, most of the officials aren't happy.  But you know what?  They can now have their beer!  All it took was for the expired license to come up for renewal, and there was no one to renew it.  Ooops, guess we'd best start up the government again, uh?  Thing is, delaying the payment of school funds just puts it off for two years when the exact same issue will come up.  Maybe Michelob will be up for renewal then!

So now my dear friends, you can vacation in Minnesota again!  Our highways will get their needed repairs, the rest stops will reopen, as will our state parks.  You will be able to buy a fishing license, and above all, you can now buy your beer again!  Skol!


*Just so no one gets confused.  The state is still in shutdown.  Nothing is signed or voted upon.  I just thought it so ironic that just when a major beer company's license is due, the talks are on again, and there is word of compromise.  We hope and pray things get settled, but they aren't at this point.  Just so you know!

I EMPTIED MY CAMERA

This afternoon I emptied the pictures from my card to my computer, and found I had a potpourri of things on there!  This is the patio right outside our kitchen door.  The lighting is bad because it was cloudy that day.  When the lighting is good on this spot, the planter is too hot, and the flowers are drooping!

 

This one is also right outside the door.  I love that I found three different flowers in the same shade of lavender and planted them together.

 

We have two trees in the middle of the back yard, and I hung plants in both of them.

 

The two planters on the left in the next picture have been a napping spot for squirrels!  They've kind of wrecked the plants.

Last night our daughter, Kari,  invited us to go for a boat ride with them on a nearby lake.  When we arrived the lake was nice and calm. 

And then Miss Attitude arrived!  Love her dearly!

And this morning this is what the weather app on my phone told me the weather would be for the next six days.  Oh, I sure hope that is wrong!  I don't want six days of thunderstorms!

4TH OF JULY TRAVELS FROM THE PAST

I am having fun looking back at the past five years and the July posts.  Boy, have I been blessed!  In 2006 we were on our retirement trip to Alaska with the two grandsons in tow.  The picture below is hubby and his 33 pound salmon, and son Chris with the big one, about 55 pounds I think!

In 2007 we were traveling with our friends Dick and Bev, and were in Nova Scotia, PEI, and New Foundland.  This photo is from PEI.  Oh, that was a fun trip!  Miss you guys!

In 2008 we were living back here and spending the last few weeks of mom's life with her. 

In 2009 we were in Glacier National Park, one of my favorite places on earth!  We were on our way to see Chris in Alaska again, but always stop in Glacier on the way.

Last year, in 2010, we were hosting at a state park campground. We were invited back for this summer, but decided to forgo the job this year.  Good thing as the parks are all closed!

We have no plans for this 4th of July!  Maybe we should clean the garage?

AFTER THE STORM

The last two days have been extremely hot.  Upper 90's and high humidity have been the days, and the nights were not much better.  We have left the house closed up and the air running.  But this morning we have all the windows open because it is so much cooler.  The humidity is sneaking up there again, but the temps are 20 degrees cooler than the last two days.  And the reason is a wonderful storm we had last night.  I couldn't shoot the storm itself because it was raining too hard to go outside and it was impossible to shoot through the rain and leaf splattered windows.  But after it was over, I wandered outside and this is what I found.

 Golden skies that a few seconds later had a touch of

pink in them,  then darker orangey kind of color,

and finally a little blue.

My grandpa, Baba, would have said that

this one was sky blue pink!

AND HOW DID YOU SPEND YOUR AFTERNOON?

I will venture a guess that you did not have as much fun as I did!  And I can also imagine how envious you will be when you hear what I did!  I had the joy and good fortune to spend three, yes I said THREE, hours in the dentist's chair!  Don't you wish you could have been there with me to have all the fun I did?

Long story.  Broken tooth.  Should have had a crown over a year ago, but I never got around to it.  I was in for cleaning two weeks ago and the dentist convinced me that I needed to have this crown put on the very broken next to the back tooth, so I made the appointment and then felt obligated to keep it.

It used to be that you went in one time for the crown prep and impressions,  and then they put a temporary crown on while they sent the measurements off to get the crown made.  Well, now our dentist, because of all the money we pay him, has bought this wonderful system where you can get it all done in one day.  But it does take three hours.

He came in first and drilled and formed the tooth stub, getting ready for the measurements for the crown.  His 14 year old assistant, who claimed she's been doing this for a couple of years after going to school in Texas, which I don't believe at all because she'd have to have started when she was 7, followed and sweetly said she would have to take a few pictures.  Few?  47.  Yup, 47.  And it's not Xrays with the camera thing on the outside of your cheek.  She stuck a full 35 mm camera in my  mouth (well it felt like it anyhow) and clicked away, taking pictures of every angle imaginable.  The photos were uploaded to a computer as she took them, and when she finally finished, she started playing with the images, moving, enlarging, smoothing edges, building side walls, etc, until she had a tooth looking thing on the screen.  It was bright blue.  She called the dentist in and he looked it over, straightening a margin here and smoothing a bump there, and then they pushed the button which makes the tooth in the image of the image.  Really.  I don't know how it works, but about 20 minutes later, the young teenager came back in with the tooth and she tried it on for size.  She called the dentist in, and he looked things over and said he needed to file something down a little.  But the tooth seemed stuck in my mouth.  Lots of tugging and pulling later, he got it off and exclaimed that it was snug.  Oh, really, do you think?  When they were happy with the fit they brought it to the oven downstairs to cook it.  At several thousand degrees for 25 minutes.  When it was finished, he popped it in, it fit, he glued with the evil tasting glue stuff, and sent me on my way with a warning not to eat caramels or chew steak for a couple of hours.

Caramels?  Steak?  I told him I was having a glass of wine and discoloring his pretty white tooth.

Now, don't you wish you could have had that kind of an afternoon?  I knew you'd be jealous.

WHAT'S HAPPENING IN YOUR FRONT YARD?

This is the street in front of our home this morning.  Across the street is a huge shed, which has for years stored lumber, tools, machinery, broken stuff, and antiques.  Today the contents and the shed itself are up for sale. 

 There are several trailers in the middle of the street filled with the smaller things.  Boxes of doorknobs, an antique plane, bags of cement, buckets filled with hammers and screwdrivers, electric drills and old saw blades have all been sold, and carried off to the backs of waiting pickups.

You notice there are tarps at the ready.  We've had a steady drizzle, and if the rain gets too heavy, they quickly cover the trailers and the boxes of treasures.

Leaning up against the shed are numerous ladders, long, tall, heavy duty ladders.  In the adjoining driveway are shelves, cases, cabinets, and other pieces of furniture.  I need to keep away when they get to the furniture, especially the shelving units and storage pieces, as I dream of becoming organized and think if I buy those kinds of things I will automatically become organized!

This guy has the right idea.  He brought along his folding stool and wore his yellow rain slicker.  He's set for the duration, no matter how long it takes!

LESSONS FROM DADDY

First of all, I know that yesterday was the day to honor fathers.  However, we were busy honoring the second of our grandsons to graduate this year, and by the time we returned from the party at our son and DIL's home, two hours from here, it was too late to write coherently.  Thus, a post to honor my father on the day after.

My daddy was tall, dark, and handsome.  He was humble, generous, hardworking, and intelligent.  He was my daddy (we always called him daddy, and do so to this day, twenty nine years after he moved to Heaven) and he was my teacher and my pastor.  Yes, I am a PK, preacher's kid.

The story of me begins in Wisconsin, a few years after daddy graduated from the Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri, and was assigned to a vicarage in Wisconsin.  It was there in the church, at least this is what we've been told, where he first saw a beautiful woman in a white dress with long dark hair, singing in the choir loft, and where he decided he would marry her.  He did, and a year and a half later I was born, and he became a daddy.  My daddy.

I learned many lessons from daddy during my growing up years, age two and a half until thirteen and a half, when he served two small country congregations in northeastern Iowa.  One of my earliest memories is of him laughing and carrying me on his shoulders across the huge green lawn of the parsonage where we lived.  It's about this time that I realized he was not just my daddy, but he was the preacher, too.  I vividly remember one Sunday in church when it dawned on me that the man in the pulpit in the black robe, the man with the deep God-like voice, was my daddy!

From these formative years, I recall one lesson in particular that was drummed into my head.  He who does not work, neither shall he eat.  It probably struck me most clearly one hot, humid, Iowa summer afternoon, when I was recruited to help him for a little while in our huge vegetable garden.  I'm sure I wanted to ride my bike, climb the tall pine trees, or play in the church cemetery just down the lane rather than pull a few weeds in the rows of peas or beans.  Daddy didn't yell at me.  He just told me that if I couldn't help with growing the food in the garden, then I didn't need to expect to eat the food either.  I'm sure I grumbled, but the lesson was learned and is in my head to this day.

Respect  your elders.  Honor your parents and all others in authority.  These lessons weren't taught on occasion.  They were lived daily.  We knew from little on that God had placed parents, teachers, government officials, and others over us and that they were to be obeyed unless they asked us to do something contrary to God's Word.  No questions asked or arguments permitted about those lessons, although I sure rebelled against them in my teen years. 

During those rebellious years in the early sixties, I also was taught another valuable lesson.  You are known by the company you keep.  Daddy didn't judge a person's heart, but he kept his eyes and ears open, and when their actions and words proved a bit on the wild side, he most definitely let me know if I should be hanging out with them or not!

I also learned that Pride goeth before a fall, and hard work never hurt anybody, and on the subject of wearing slacks to church, daddy's opinion was if you can dress up for your friends, you can dress up for God.  

A lesson that was taught not only to us, but to the whole church community, was contained in a small pamphlet that daddy wrote and published way back in the 1940's, I believe.  It was this truth:  You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.  We were taught that a portion of our allowance, babysitting money, job earnings, and even monetary gifts, was to be given to the Lord.  After all, nothing we have is ours.  It was all given us by God, and we are to be good stewards of our blessings, whether it is our time, talent, or money.

The most important lessons, those lessons for our eternal life, were learned around the dinner table each night, as daddy took the well worn devotion booklet off the window sill behind his chair at the table, and read to us the devotion for the day, followed by the Lord's Prayer, and then the singing of a hymn.  Those short fifteen minutes of every single night of my growing up years are among my most precious memories of my daddy.

Beyond being my daddy at home, he was also my pastor and my teacher.  As my pastor, he baptized me, confirmed me, and married me.  We moved to Minnesota when I was thirteen and my dad accepted the call to teach in our church body's high school, college, and seminary.  I had him as my professor for freshman in high school religion, and freshman in college religion. 

As his life neared it's end, when he was way too young, my daddy still taught me lessons daily.  I made his lunch for him at noon as mom was still working at that time, and towards the last days, I fed him his jello, the only food he had the energy to eat.  He was so patient, knowing the end was coming, but knowing it would come only in God's time.

Thank you my Heavenly Father, for giving me this wonderful man as an earthly father.  Thank You for the lessons he taught me daily.  Forgive me for failing miserably in learning those lessons, and in that failure, disobeying not only  him, but You.  Keep me strong in the lessons he taught me that point the only way to Heaven and eternal life with You.  In Jesus saving name.  Amen.

CONTRASTS

This morning I am lost in my blog from the summer of 2006 and the highlights of our retirement trip with the two grandsons in tow.  What a contrast!  This morning hubby is planning our two hour trip to a grandson's graduation party.  Five years ago, this was our trip, not two hours, but almost three  months, and this was our destination,  not a town just up the highway a bit!  Last night we had a cookout to celebrate Father's Day a little early and we grilled hot dogs, while five years ago this was our cookout!  Just a little difference there don't you think?   I would love to be back in our little campground in Seldovia, where these were the normal daily sights.   I love that little town, and would love to try living there for a year.  That's not happening as hubby wouldn't go with me, but I can dream can't I?

Then my mind jumps from from five years ago to three years ago.  Three years ago today we moved mom from the hospital to her last earthly home, the nursing home, where she died less than a month later.  And now she is living in a mansion, prepared for her by our heavenly Father!  Speaking of contrasts!  Do I miss her?  Terribly.  Would I wish her back on earth?  Not for a minute!

NOT FEELING JUNE 2011

We are in the middle of what has become the most difficult week of the year for me.  It's just three years since mom was hospitalized, had biopsy surgery, was diagnosed with a vicious fast growing brain tumor, and entered a nursing home for the last month of her earthly life.  To put it bluntly, I miss my mom.  I miss her a lot and I can't wait to see her again!

And right now I should be strong and supporting my daughter and many others who will be without employment and a paycheck if the state of Minnesota shuts down on July 1.  I must be pretty dense, but I do not understand how a state can just shut down.  Think of it:  pay checks and benefits for thousands, medical assistance, veterans hospitals, state mental hospitals, unemployment checks, adoption subsidies, PCA and other services, housing assistance, state parks, state safety and other public officials, etc.  The list goes on and on.  These services and programs are necessary.  How can a state just shut down?

It's been raining.  A lot.  Our gauge said two inches yesterday, while the weather newscaster reported some spots around us had up to three inches.  And guess what?  Tomorrow and Monday are the only two days out of the next week that are supposed to have sunshine.  The rest of the time?  Thunderstorms.

Meanwhile, I am patiently waiting for our new car.  Patiently?  We ordered it less than a week ago, and I'm wondering how much more slowly time can pass......they said two months or more!

So I guess this all means that I'm not really enjoying June 2011 and am hoping the rest of the month goes quickly and that July brings better things.  But then again, mom died three years ago in July, if the state shuts down we will be feeling the effects big time, the car still won't be here, and who knows about the weather.  Could still be raining, I guess.

WE NEVER BUY NEW!!!!

Guess what's coming to live in our garage in a couple of months?


A Toyota Prius!  Isn't she a pretty blue?  We sold the trailer last week and sold the truck today to the place where we ordered this beauty.  So we get to drive the 15 year old van for another couple of months as it takes at least that long to get the new car.  Then this is mine!  He can drive the van!  It's kind of scary.  We never buy new vehicles!