Relaxing and Resting.

 So the china cabinet is placed in the north corner, the china returned to its shelves, and the kitchen floor has been cleaned of paint and other dirt. Yes, time to relax and rest for the rest of the day. Besides, the wind is blowing and it is pretty cool outside. No sense doing today what can be done another day, right?

The bird for the day is a hummer--the Tuffed Coquette. Don't expect to see it in the U.S., however. It looks as if it has been dancing down in Brazil or Central America. But they have the a sweet nature that allows some people to get close to them. They lay two little eggs in a cup lined with plant fuzz. Their food source is primarily nectar. Living off the land! 

Hummingbirds are always fascinating. But almost any bird can be if one takes the time to pay attention to the details. Just like people, they have personalities.

Have been reading while sitting in my desk chair with the heating pad on my back. Not really hurting so much as just feeling stiffer than what is comfortable. The heat seems to help. The book has caused me to laugh out loud a few times. The dogs think the old woman has lost her mind. Oh well. A good book is good for what ails ya.

One of the hens laid a rip roaring wrinkled egg again today. It is twice the size it should be, so it will probably have a double yolk. Breakfast most likely. Jenn thinks that hen should visit a proctologist. At this point, the damage is likely already done! A hen that can't lay an egg because it gets caught up inside her will die an excruciating death. Sad, but true. They may lay weird looking eggs, but at least the ones that get laid are no longer a threat to the hen.

My friend Carla Beard mentioned the price of an apple to me a couple of years ago. Since then noticing the price and the kind of apple has become a thing for me. Bought an apple at Market Street recently that was called "Opal." The price per pound was $1.47, but that one apple cost 78 cents. Not a bad apple at all, it is firm and sweet. Would not want to try to buy enough apples to feed a family those things for a healthy snack. No wonder poor families buy cookies instead of fruit--when fruit is even available. Feeding a family today takes on a new kind of mission impossible when considering what calories can be healthy and what is cost efficient. One onion was 49 cents! It would pay to grow your own!

Saw a container garden on FB the other day. Someone had planted several stalks of corn in a container that yielded eight ears of decent looking corn. At Walmart, four half ears are $2 a container. Good stuff like cucumbers were nearly a dollar each! Guess who will be planting those out in the buckets this spring!

My phone has a weather app on it that showed a massive tornado in Alabama and Mississippi. Not that Covid has not been bad enough, now we get tornadoes that make the '79 mess that hit here in WF look like a dirt devil!

Speaking of Covid, Connie went to Trott's Drug to get her Jansen shot yesterday and the pharmacist wants her to wait until the middle of April to get the shot because she has already had Covid. They think waiting 90 days will give the body more of a chance to not have any reaction. Sounds reasonable to me. But he also reminded her that this particular vaccine can cover more of the variants of the disease. That is encouraging.

It seems the IRS can't keep up with all the backlog of returns this year, so the deadline has been moved to sometime in May. Must mean a bunch of folks are getting money back after this last year has hit everyone and every business so hard. But what do we know? The government has to come up with $1,400 for a lot of folks pretty soon. Hmm.

One of the sites for strange people who like to read asked the people to write a line that the person knew without having to look up the source. One person quoted a poem (incorrectly) that yours truly memorized while in college. The poem itself is called "On His Blindness." The line is "They also serve who only stand and wait." John Milton was a wordsmith who inspired my poetry reading. Not exactly a Robert Frost who worked with his hands and felt the rhythm of nature, Milton worked with words and thoughts in a changing society. He wrote Paradise Lost, and it makes me wonder what he would think of this crazy counter culture that exists today. Sometimes watching and listening to young people makes me fear for the future, but the ancients probably felt the same way back before this nation was ever conceived.

All day yesterday felt like Wednesday to me. Even took the pills allotted for that day. Had to correct that one this morning. How an internal calendar can get off should come as no great surprise when the stupid hours are so messed up! Oh well.

Absolutely know nothing of real interest to speak of, much less relate to anyone with any sense of humor. The stupid wind is blowing the cold air across the lake, so the hens are not exactly thrilled either. The dogs have been content to stay inside as well. Dogs are nobody's fools!

Had to put a pin back into the hinge on the metal coop door this morning. THAT was interesting. How it ever came out in the first place is beyond me, but putting it back in line with the other side of the hinge was tricky. WD-40 helped. But ended up on my rump on the floor with all the diatomaceous earth all over my pants. The oil and the earth was not necessarily the best combination, but it mostly shook off my pants. In case you ever wondered, farmers have good reasons to get dirty!

May your prayers be answered in a way that is best for you and yours. May you all rest well and be healthy in mind and soul. You are loved.

Chicken Scrathin' Gardening.

 You simply have not lived to garden until your hens are out there helping in the way that only chickens can. One has to be very careful not to step on a head or worse, stick it with a spade fork! But the girls will tear up each clod and check it out thoroughly for worms or grubs. They are not particular. No rake is needed when they finish their job, by the way. Now it might end up as a very deep hole if they are left to themselves, but it is not that difficult to fill in the hole because every speck of dirt is free from grass and rocks after they get through with it. Love my hens!

So almost ready to put chicken wire around the large area where sunflowers are going to grow. Will plant the other stuff inside after the weather gets a wee bit warmer. Cucumbers will climb sunflower stalks with a little bit of encouragement. We will see how it goes.

Lance asked how the old woman was feeling today. A bit sore in the shoulder where the shot was administered, but other than that, good to go. Drove over to the Smith farm and dropped off a sock, some change, and a container left here by Tim. It looked like Stephen must be making fire pits or something special out in their front patio. Will have to ask Cindy--if she even knows. She made the "meat rolls" that she gave to Tim to eat while he was here. DE licious! Bought pizza and hot dogs thinking that he would eat that kind of stuff. Pffffttt. What guy in his right mind would eat that kind of stuff when his grandmother made these rolled up meaty things! Anyway, unless he sampled the ice cream, don't think he ate anything left here for him. Oh well.

Took eggs over to the doctor's office and then hit Market Street for a few things. Got a honeydew melon and thought about whether or not it would be worth planting a vine of them. Really prefer cantaloupe. Oh well. Have some containers to fill with dirt and fertilizer tomorrow--maybe. Still have not put the chicken wire fence up around where the sunflowers will grow. Slowing down in my old age.

Have a good funny book to read tonight. This author uses old folks like me as his main characters--with a double dose of humor. Kinda fun. Mysteries are nearly always interesting, but putting attitude into the situation makes it even better.

The bird for the day is the European Golden Plover. We have some plovers here in the U.S. still, but many of the different species have become extinct. Daddy stopped the car just inside the gate going down the lane to the Grandparent's farm and told us to look and learn. He said, "You probably won't ever see those birds again in a year's time. Folks kill them and the Meadowlark to eat. God knows they are too small for a meal, but some people just kill things and say it is for food!" 

The Meadowlark always made me think of a professor wearing his vest and jacket. And they are such very friendly birds with a song to make your heart joyful! Great-grandmother Camp used to feed a Meadowlark every morning from her leftover toast. He never did come eat out of her hand, but he got right up under her feet. He had been injured and had only one leg, but Mimmie said that she knew just how he felt: she had only one good leg to stand on.

Have read a bunch of posts on FB today. Probably should not have done so as so many were asking for prayers for sad situations. But others were celebrating the spring and flowers, trees, birds, and sunrises. When things are in proper perspective, we know that we will have good, bad, terrible, and wonderful--and we just need to be grateful to God for all the blessings He gives  us.

Will ask you all again to pray for Joe Malay. He is still one sick puppy with infection in lungs and right leg. High dose oxygen is still ongoing, but he may get to go to another hospital soon and then maybe to Clay County MH before going home. Right now Michelle has her brother-in-law to help her with the dogs and whatever needs to be done, but that all changes when Tim and Mother Malay go home in April. Maybe by then Joe will be better and able to come home. Just remember that Michelle is just ONE of the many who are dealing with hospitals and family with sickness. We know her personally and love her to pieces, but she would be the first to tell you that all of those who are dealing with the healthcare system right now are pretty frustrated. 

Two of my grands are off on spring break this week and headed to San Antonio to visit relatives. About all some of us can do is pray for their safety and protection. Traveling on I-35 is a trial all its own! But at least they know how to get there and not get lost. Every time Lewis and his navigator went to Ft. Worth to see Lance while he was at UT Arlington, we ended up in the parking lot of the Salvation Army. EVERY TIME! Jenn says she has been there, too. giggling Nothing like going down Lancaster to the wrong exit. sigh

Still have not even thought seriously about putting things back in place in the kitchen. Will have some cleaning to do on the floor where paint was dropped. Oh well. It does not have to be perfect. The next sprinkle will provide another layer of dog prints. And if it does not sprinkle, that is ok, too. Fresh water in the water bowls requires dogs' feet to be inserted to test the water or whatever. THEN they can track dirt back inside the kitchen door. deep sigh

Lost another pocket knife. Can't figure out how they are getting out of my pocket, but have thought about Granddad Pollard several times. He always thought that Sterling had moved his tools or lost one or more. Daddy once said that if wire pliers and fencing tools could sprout, that old hill above the farmhouse would have so many sprouts that a truck could not take them down. And not to say that my brother never moved the tools, but you can almost bet that any lost tools were strictly Granddad's disposal system. Clay County has many a canyon that sweeps through with fast, high water during a downpour, but the ones in the valley near the farmhouse were the best for taking out sections of fencing while the water ran high. Danged cows KNEW where to find a place to get out, too! Had to go chase in five heifers and the bull one day. The heifers were not too difficult to herd away from Doughitts herd, but if they had mixed in, we never would have got those heifers back! Anyway, headed the heifers toward the farm and the bull suddenly turned on me. My horse was no dummy. She knew that bull could get her. But Daddy saw the bull turn on me and from across the pasture, he flew in that old International pickup truck. He got the bull turned and bumped him all the way back to the top pasture. Granddad sold that ornery bull that year.

Old memories make me wonder how much of life we missed at the time since the memories seem so full of good sense now. My parents and grandparents trusted me and my brother to take care of stock the way they always did. Nothing was put into words that serve my memory now, but we watched and did things the way Granddad did them. The funniest time was when Granddad bought some sheep from some dude out toward Electra. The sheep were supposed to be very calm and had been penned and handled according to the seller. Well, hello! Granddad got home with them and put them in the sheep pen. The next morning we got a call from someone in Byers telling us that our sheep were over there--about five miles from the farm. Granddad got Grandmother up and told her to go herd sheep. We got in her little brown Chevy and herded sheep down a back lane toward the farm. Don't remember now how Granddad got those danged ewes corralled, but they were gone the next day. From then on, he only bought Suffolk or Ramboulet ewes. When the grandparents left the farm, they still had one of each kind of ewe. They gave them to the man at the telephone office in Byers to keep the grass down around the building. Guess they lived out the rest of their lives there. Not too shabby for some real pets.

My childhood was probably one of the best in those days. We did not have money or anything flashy, but we had some good love to share. And my parents did their best to have fun with us. One of my favorite memories is sitting on the ice cream freezer while Daddy cranked the handle and made home-made ice cream. Great stuff. 

Well, have a few things to do that include folding the laundry and putting it away. Never ending tasks. May you all enjoy each chore in your days. Rest well and take care of yourselves. You are loved.

Spring and Company.

 

Spring and Company.

A particularly sticky type of weed grows so very well in my front flower bed. Today some of the larger ones found themselves deposited in the trash bin. Getting them to come out of the ground was accomplished with one of those four pronged tools that looks a bit like a spade fork with tines. Punch it into the center of the weed and turn the handles that look a bit like those on the water meter handle. Anyway, it is the easiest way to remove the danged weeds without hurting my back or other body parts. Let’s hope that they stay out of my bluebonnets!

Got the Johnson & Johnson Jansen vaccine today. It takes at least two weeks to be effective—with an effective rate of something like 64%. Just have heard horror stories about reactions to the other vaccines. But the pharmacist did say that the Jansen vaccine was much more effective against the variants of Covid. They started using this one first in South Africa and found it to be quite effective there. Whatever it takes.

The neighbor who has a nine-year-old grandchild must be back at home—at least the child and his friend are over there playing on some kind of four-wheel thing. My dogs do NOT approve.

The hens have found a new hiding place—to the far side of the regular nests. Found well over a dozen eggs in the nest. No wonder that hen refused to move! She was very happily sitting on a bundle of eggs.

Wore one of the tee-shirts that Michelle got for me: I’m Nuts for Fuzzy Butts. The pharmacist said that he and his wife used to have a couple of hens, but she does not like chicken poo on her deck. Silly lady. Fresh eggs as opposed to sweeping a few piles of poo! Different strokes for different folks.

Michelle Malay says that Joe is still one sick puppy and is still fighting the pneumonia and an infection in his right leg. He is on high dose O2 and is moving sometime this week to Promise Hospital and stay there until he is off the high levels of oxygen or can go to Clay County MH or is discharged home. Please pray for him and for Michelle. You know this has to be tiring her.

Connie said that she is getting a key to her sister’s apartment. Then she told me about the problems she has had with the plumbing in her own apartment. Lukewarm water for a shower. ACK! A non-working sprayer on the sink one could ignore, but leaky anything is not a good situation. Her icemaker leaks. And they keep putting her off. Guess there are all kinds of advantages to having a decent landlord.

The weather channel shows nothing but clear skies all around us and gives a decent forecast as well. Think 37 is the lowest it is to be in the near future. Even the dogs can’t complain about that.

If nothing rips, rears, or ravels tomorrow, have several packages of seeds to sow in flowerpots. Then some fencing needs to go up around my little cherry trees to keep the hens out of them. They are dwarfs. Then the sunflower garden will have to be arranged so that the hens can remove the seeds before they even get a chance to sprout. We are talking chicken wire and steel slats that push into the soil around the bed. Not difficult. Just time consuming. So why should that matter? An old woman has nothing better to do with her time, right?

Every noise in the neighborhood makes my dogs bark. Guess that is a good thing. Heard voices across the street today over at Jerry’s place. Almost wish his privacy fence that hides all his crud was not there so it would be easier to tell if someone is over there and why. Oh well. As long as they STAY over there and don’t come near my place . . .

Really don’t know much worth talking about. My friend Sue Ballard may have had another heart attack. She just can’t seem to get a break. The older we get, the more things fall apart. Maybe we should all just praise God that we get to enjoy as much as we do. His blessings never cease no matter what else happens.

May you all rest well this night and awake with determination and a good attitude in general. You are loved.

March Winds in Texas.

 Just finished sealing up a letter to send to a friend in Kansas. Told her that it would not have surprised me to see part of Kansas blowing in over the lake this weekend. Maybe it is really not too bad, but when the hens have their tail feathers spread out over their backs pointed toward their heads, it does, indeed, feel as if the wind is pretty strong. But it is March, in Texas.

It's pretty strange to wake up and feel good. Had no idea that the pain had been so dominating my life. Dr. Jensen needs to have a whole bunch of eggs next time we go see him! Now to find a way to persuade Dr. Blackwell to go ahead and get the imaging done so he can see whether or not his diagnosis was on track. Obviously it must have been since my feet are no longer asleep. 

Think Jennifer and her friend Andrea have gone shopping at something called "Funky Finds." Not sure exactly where it is, but she has to drive awhile to get to it. And some of the things she finds are so funny and neat! But Andrea is the teacher who finds things that will make her classes even more interesting. She teaches kids with learning disabilities--dyslexia and that sort of thing. Anyway, she must be doing something right because her students go on to succeed in higher classes and college. That is an accomplishment.

Jenn was standing out in the side lot on the east side of the house and just shook her head and said it felt so strange to have that opened up. It really is quite different from when they were kids. No houses at all, and lots of open space for the dogs and hens. It pleases me every time my feet take me across the spaces. Lots of mowing, but the zero turn takes pretty good care of that situation. Would love to have some more fruit trees to plant down there, and maybe a couple of pecans. Yes, the old woman is well aware that she won't be around when it is time for the pecans to bear fruit. But that is beside the point. It's the idea that apples, pears, peaches, and pecans are going to grow up there. We will see what happens this year. May even try for another fig tree!

Cindy Jones made some pocket sandwiches for Tim to have to eat while he was here. Guess who kept them! Will return the container and see if she will give me the recipe. Mighty tasty! It did seem to have been wasted effort on my part to have bought wieners and pizzas for him and his brothers, but the twins did not stay here anyway, just Tim. The dogs apparently loved having him.

Got a message from Michelle Malay about her husband Joe. He is on antibiotics for pneumonia and is in some pain. Please pray that God will give him the strength to come out of this ok. And it has to be hard on Michelle, his brother Tim, and Mother Malay. It is so good that Tim and his mom are here to help Michelle. But still, that is the man she loves up there in that bed away from home. May God bless them all.

Ronnie Talley is hanging in there, but they still have not been able to take him off the sedation. My guess would be that the extra pain along with the fight to be able to breathe is hard on him. This covid mess is just the absolute pits!

Hoping to hear from Trott's Drug sometime this week to get my Johnson & Johnson shot--one dose situation. Would like to get it over with, ya know. Jenn said that the first shot of the kind they took made her arm pretty sore. Still, that beats the wazoo out of being ill with the flu. Their family pretty much depends on Jenn for so many things. Saw her do two weeks worth of laundry because she is the only one who does that stuff. Thinking a grandson or two needs to learn how to do that kind of thing as a matter of weekly work! But then, my kids had to leave home before they did their own laundry!

Hear a hen out there bragging for all she is worth! Thompson sometimes decides to commiserate with them and howls when they carry on. It is pretty funny. But there was no egg in the nest. Hmm. They may be hiding them. Would figure.

Sitting here looking at a painting that Augusta Metcalf did for me back in 1954. She was visiting my grandmother and decided that she liked the little girl hanging around. An almost six year old child is pretty easy to please, so she asked me what was the prettiest thing that appealed to me. Pointing to the hills above the farm, my finger also pointed to the little draw down from the kitchen door where the sheep would feed every morning. All that was needed was a mare and foal and maybe another horse. She filled in the blanks, and that picture has been with me because Grandmother kept it for me for several years. The pond, the mare and foal, the hills above the house--they are all there. That woman never would know how much that picture meant to me. Sometimes we touch other people's lives that way and never know it.

Grayson is a good audience. We were talking about the humongous houses being built for a family of two or three. Back in the days when folks had to travel by wagon or at least horseback, it made sense to build a large house with many rooms for family to come visit. After all, they did not just come for an hour and then go about their merry business. So when the family came for a wedding or whatever, all the rooms would be occupied and the neighbors came to help cook. One of my great aunts got married in Oklahoma years ago when the house was full to the brim and folks stayed for a month. Imagine trying to feed an entire household of 20 to 40 people and just keeping the sheets washed, the lamps filled with oil, and someone out to shoot a few head of deer or turkeys. Wonder how many outhouses were needed in a situation like that!

Really don't know much this afternoon. Jenn made me promise not to move any furniture for a few days, so will wait and turn the china cabinet around one day later this week. And then all the dishes have to be returned to the shelves. At least all the wine glasses and other crystal is at her house now! But still, each shelf is going to be pretty full. Just want to have the table turned toward the kitchen window instead of down the floor toward the oven. More dancing room, ya know. Not doing any dancing, but the idea is the same. Will sit down on the floor and scrub up the few spots of paint that got on the boards. Then, at least, the floor will look better until we can decide exactly what to do with it. Think it is going to stay as is at least until we have time to mess with it. Jenn said that she knows that the underlying stuff will be stapled to the floor with a gazillion staples if it is anything like the living room floor. No doubt Lewis wanted that stuff to stay in place!

Please remember to pray for Kimberly, Sharon Dickerson's niece, for quick healing and a pain free recovery. Then she will be able to go back in a month or so and get the rest of the surgery finished. Amazing what they do!

Let us remember to pray for this nation and especially for those on the border of Texas and Mexico. Things are NOT getting any better. Pretty scary that it is not just a matter of folks not wearing masks, but these children have every disease known to man and are pouring across the border into towns that have no place to put them and no medical facilities to care for the ones that are so ill. God help us do what needs to be done.

May you all rest well and stay safe from the storms. BillyeRuth does not need anything blowing away the sand out in Paducah! You are loved.

Home from the Hills!

 So we got home before noon today, so that Tim could gather up his stuff and go to his own home. The only thing he was not allowed to take home were the little sandwich buns his grandmother Cindy Jones made for him. Guess who just had one for lunch! Anyway, it did not appear that he ate much of anything around here. He was told that whatever was here was fair game, so it was his choice.

Sitting here wondering if I should go ahead and get this flooring replaced or just throw a rug over it--or not. Will talk to Jenn and Lance and then decide. Lance just suggested that we could buy enough planks to replace just the six-foot area that buckled! That sounds like a winner idea to me. Of course, it will be April before we can get it done, but that is ok, too.

Stupid Daylight Saving Time is supposed to start tomorrow. Can never adjust before it is time to change things again. Wish to heck they would change it to chicken time. That even makes sense: early rising, late going to bed while making eggs with the sunshine!

Right now it just feels strange to be able to walk around without hurting! Good, but strange. Gave Dr. Jensen a carton of 18 fresh eggs. His wife and mother-in-law thought that was great! He does not cook, so not sure he understood that these were worth their weight in gold! So astounded at the price of groceries in that area!

Jennifer put an app on my phone called Life 360 that shows her where my phone is at any given time. Not that it helps when the phone is misplaced here in the house! But anyway, it helps me see where she is while she is driving. Kinda neat!

Nicky Hobbs just came over to ask me to call the police if these people did not leave Jerry's house. Jerry is back in jail in Archer City. Sheesh. Now his mom will have to have someone come in a clean up the property again. The house is pretty much a wreck on the inside, has no electricity, and needs to be bulldozed in my estimation. But someone who had some idea about how to build things could make a nice place out of it. Or not. Just wonder how long Jerry will be in jail this time. Nicky said the police seized his [Nicky's] truck because the guy that rode to a convenience store with him decided some guy owed him some money, pulled out a gun and killed him over on 32nd Street. Drama queens! It did not make sense to me why Nicky's truck was seized, but what does an old woman know? Just feel sorry for JoAnn.

The bird for Friday was the Altamira Oriole. It is a bird that spread from Mexico and Central America into the lower part of Texas. These birds are not migratory, so they stay in one area and eat insects and berries. Both male and female are beautiful and fully colored. They build a long sack like nest for their eggs and babies.

The Saturday and Sunday bird is the striated Heron. It might be found in the southern part of Texas, but not likely north of the DFW area.

Adults have a blue-grey back and wings, white underparts, a black cap, a dark line extends from the bill to under the eye and short yellow legs. Juveniles are browner above and streaked below.

These birds stand still at the water's edge and wait to ambush prey, but are easier to see than many small heron species. They mainly eat small fish, frogs and aquatic insects. They sometimes use bait, dropping a feather or leaf carefully on the water surface and picking fish that come to investigate.

Generally speaking, a water bird is about the prettiest common bird around in my estimation. Whatever else they do, they eat up the garbage fish and insects around the edges of the water.

JoAnn just left. She has her hands full. Some of us just do not realize how blessed we are to have good kids, good jobs, and a good marriage.

Just downloaded an app called WeatherBug. Hope it helps me keep up with storms this spring. It figures that the weather goes from freezing to stormy. It's Texas. It's springtime. Now to hope that my fruit trees do not get frozen out this year. And for rain in due season. 

Don't know much of anything this evening except that home never looked so good. And it is wonderful to feel good and not hurt. 

Have not spoken to or heard from Michelle Malay. Prayers would not hurt a thing for Joe Malay. Think Ronnie Talley continues to improve, but Sharon's niece was able to go home from the hospital. She still has a long row to hoe.

Let us be grateful for all things. We are so very blessed.

May you all rest well tonight and awake refreshed. You are loved.

Snap, Crackle, Pop!

 So early this morning, Dr. Jensen worked me over like a branch of firewood. He popped the right knee that has not been working properly in ages. He put my shoulder blades back where they belonged. Then he worked over the hips and lower back. DADGUM! When he was finished, walking out was so much easier than walking into his office. Will be seeing him again at 8 a.m. to see if things can be improved. At least maybe the pain won't come back for a while. He also said which disc he thinks is ruptured and told me what could be done to help it. Come to find out, Gary has had the procedure done three times by his back surgeon. Apparently it is not that big of a deal. They put steroid in the disc area to reduce the swelling so that the nerve can move around like it should. Anyway, have to see Dr. Blackwell and get the images from xrays or MRI or both sent to Dr. Jensen. Here is hoping this can be done quickly so that things won't get any worse.

Michelle Malay would appreciate our continued prayers for Joe. She is blessed that his brother Tim and Mother Malay are at the house for her right now. At least she is able to go see Joe if she is allowed to go in.

Saw number one son at H&O this morning. He was happy because he said he could come visit now as soon as he got his second shot. It does not matter that mine is still hostage to "the list." Who knows when or if it will happen.

Jennifer prepared something called "sliders" for supper with French fries and fried onions. Mighty tasty. Grayson asked why she did not do this more often. Her answer: When am I ever home long enough to cook full meals? Think Grayson is going to have to learn to cook! 

Plan on going to the feed store when we get back into Wichita Falls so that Grayson can unload the feed for me. Yes, that is one of the no-no's for now--no picking up anything heavy. Actually have plenty of feed for right now, but having a strong backed guy to unload and put the feed in a bin is a biggie.

Trott's Drug just called to see if I could come in and get my shot tonight!!! At least my name is still in the top ten on their list. They just had one dose left tonight and were trying to get it used up now. Really hope to get this over with. Jennifer says her arm is still hurting! And that is just from the first shot. The Johnson and Johnson is a one dose deal. 

Love these kids. They really had it bad down here during that freeze. At least their pool things did not break with the freeze, but they have dead birds everywhere! Grayson said he saw dead birds behind the hen house. Guess they just could not get enough cover to protect them. That was one heck of a freeze! Jenn said that their natural gas bill was $700! Yikes!

Reece is in Colorado with some of his friends on a ski trip. And they may get more snow up there. Hmm. Think if it does not snow the rest of the year, it would just make me happy. Yes, we need rain, but we don't need any more deep freezes.

Let me explain about the dogs at Jenn's house: Osiris [f] is a big hunk of fluffy Malamute; Marty McFly [m] is a Husky; Luna [f] is a smallish Black Lab mix. Now if anyone wants a conversation around here, just hit Marty McFly up. He talks in rororouh language, but it is understandable! Jenn will ask him if he did something and he will say, "Ruhor--no." Honestly, Scoobie Doo could not talk any better than this dog!

Got Jennifer to get an address for an old friend whose son died in January. Our kids grew up together, but we never see them any longer since they moved to Kansas. Anyway, Jenn saw the obit on the Rider HS page and let me know about it. It is not easy to keep up with folks anyway when they move away, but we really cared about this couple and their kids. 

Hoping all is well with Tim and the twins and two dogs and twenty hens! Looking forward to seeing them all.

Have to go Monday morning and pick out flooring, so let's hope something will look good with what is down in the living room. Will take a plank of the kind in the living room and see if something can match it up. Still very happy with the color and how neat the kitchen looks in grey. Nodding my head here.

Jenn was looking through my dad's baby book with me. Seems Daddy got a new pair of shoes, but Grandmother had him wear the old boots the second day. He fell down and said, "My new shoes would not make me fall down like these old boots!" Grandmother said that he was a conniving little guy!

So glad there has been time and opportunity to show Grayson and Jennifer the family pictures. My cousin Sister sent me some old pictures before she died that she said were given to her mother. That was some convoluted, round about way to get pictures back down the genetic path!

Let us all be grateful for all blessings and pray for those whose health is so precarious. God hears our prayers.

May you all rest well tonight and awake with a sense of purpose. You are loved.

The Aftermath!

 Both Grayson and his silly ol' grandmother are SO very sore today. Told Grayson that my butt muscles hurt, and he didn't think his did--until later. Now he is complaining almost as much as the ol' woman! Let's face it, one of us is NOT a spring chicken and the other one has spent two years studying and trying to work full time and go to class part time. So he is out of shape. But he seems to enjoy playing with the hens and gathering eggs. And the two of us whipped that 20 by 14 room out in one day except for the tiny bit of touch up in the corner behind the dryer and the strip across the ceiling that he had bed and tape and let dry. It looks so nice! And believe it or not, it does not have a bad odor like some paint does. 

Finally got all the left over paint, brushes, trays, etc., taken to the workshop and put away. Now have to make a list for the Smith boys so they will know what to expect while taking care of the dogs and hens. Not much to it except to keep clean water inside the hen house and outside in the pans. The mash feeders are already full, so all they have to do about feed is give them a couple of scoops of scratch in a flat tray each day. Then, of course, they have to know where to look for the eggs and gather them at least twice a day to keep the hens from breaking them. These are things that just develop as one takes care of animals, but each family does things differently.

We went over to Market Street and picked up Dr Pepper and pizzas for the boys. Grayson found some really good cookies that are covered in a plastic wrapper that says, "Mmmmmm." And that is totally accurate. It is like an Oreo cookie wrapped in soft milk chocolate. Tasty, mighty tasty.

So three fried eggs were not quite enough, and a cheese pizza might just fill up that vacant canyon in my grandson's body! Think he has stopped growing upwards, but he has this incredible metabolism that allows him to eat without gaining weight. Can almost remember those days! My old body just keeps growing outward in certain places. Oh well.

The bird for today is the European Bee-eater. But we have bee-eaters in this part of the world as well. These from Europe are very pretty with soft colors. They have a yellow throat latch that makes them look as if they are wearing a bib. 

As a migratory bird, it sees lots of territory in Asia and South Africa and Europe. Must be interesting to travel that much.

If it were not so important to me to be able to walk around, getting ready to leave home for a couple of nights would bother me even more. But it is SO wonderful to have a place to stay and a daughter who will get me up and get 'er done! 

 

It occurred to me that it might be a good idea to "call the roll," so to speak. As little or as lot as it pleases you, let us know where you are, weather, and an encouraging word? There's plenty of room in the comments.

Thinking of my friend Michelle Malay, but she may be busier than a cranberry merchant during harvest season. Let us pray that Joe will recover and regain good health. And may Michelle have peace of mind as well as the strength to do all she has to do.

Ok, the pizza is good. Honestly, Grayson asked me, "What?" He thought the "sigh" he heard indicated disapproval of him. Sigh. Give him a few years, and he will hear this at his house--or with his parents. Wherever! The point is that we make noises as we age. Some are semi-voluntary and some are totally involuntary! 

Just got a message from Michelle Malay. Joe's numbers are too low for some reason, and they have determined that he has an infection. Anyway, please continue to pray for them.

This ol' gal is pooped. May you all rest well and awake refreshed. You are loved.