October Days, Friday Fave Fives

 A new Day.  A new Friday.  And a new Friday Fave Fives (follow the link).  Last night, as I pondered what to post today for my five faves, I easily chose two things for which I am thankful.  The other three...well, I couldn't think of anything 'special'.  Then I realized, Blessings are often simply basic parts of my day.  A good reminder.

1.  I am thankful for Friday Fave Fives because this weekly 'exercise' helps me stay grounded.

2.  I am thankful that I can be out in my garden doing weeding and other jobs to care for my plants.  Currently, I am doing a big job of digging out more grape hyacinths from the bed in front of the house.  Weeds and bulbs and debris.  Even if it doesn't get all done this fall, I still enjoy having my hands in the dirt.  And no photos.  You really don't want to see what it looks like...

3.  My daughter-in-law's sister and a niece are here visiting from Arizona.  The main reason is PAL'S upcoming birthday party.  While they are here, they are doing many fun things.  I joined them on Wednesday for part of a 'coffee shop crawl' that they made up themselves.  It was so fun!

4.  I am thankful for reading time.  Currently, I am reading So Big by Edna Ferber.  This is a book that my book group Well Read Mom chose.  At first, I was not excited.  But as I read more, the more I have enjoyed it.  Set in Chicago area, centered around a young woman who ends up marrying a farmer and learning to love farming, it is so much more than that.  I won't give any spoilers, just that I am enjoying this book very much.

5.  I am loving the cool mornings and mild days of autumn.  The leaves are turning beautiful colors.  My favorite season!  I scrolled through my October photos from other years and remembered how I have loved October in Ohio for the past six years.

I hope you are finding beauty, rest and blessings in this autumn season, too.

First October Faves

 Now I'm convinced that Fall is truly here.  It's October!  And it's Friday.  It has been an active week and I have hardly even been on my computer much.  Time to hit a pause button and relax a bit and think about the blessings of this week.  Friday Faves Fives is my way to do that.

1.  I am thankful for sunrises and sunsets.  In a book that my Art Girls friends and I are reading, the author reminds us to notice how God shows us every day the beauty of His creation.  We have decided to share our sunrise and sunset photos with each other.  I sent them this one which I know I have posted here before.

2.  I am also thankful for rainy days.  Like today.  The rain replenishes our ground and garden so I don't have to water it.   There is something about rainy days that makes me feel it is okay to relax a bit.  Tea and a book and my knitting.

3.  I am thankful for my Art Girls friends.  Years ago, we all five lived in the same town in California and enjoyed our times together painting, knitting, discussing books, visiting art museums.  Then three of us moved away.  But we still maintain our friendships via texts and zoom meetings

4.  Two hikes this week with Mia and the dogs.  One of the hikes was at the county park Infirmary Mound.  The area is quite hilly and much is covered with forest.  There's a lake which we walked around.  Two or three miles here is definitely a workout.  This photo doesn't show just how high the hill was where we were standing.

5.  I am thankful that my daughter-in-law Jennifer  (PAL's mom) encouraged me to join Well Read Mom book club.  I am reading books that I would never have added to my list.  This month's read is So Big by Edna Ferber.  I am enjoying it and I don't think I would have ever read this book if the book club hadn't chosen it for the October read.

I hope you have found time this week to relax and remind yourself of the beauty around you.

Falling for Fall Faves!

 It's late Friday evening.  I'm late posting Friday Fave Fives.  (follow the link to join us!)  But it's still Friday...  we had another busy week here at Willow's Cottage.  Right now as I am writing this, the sun has set and we are sitting around our firepit enjoying our first autumn bonfire.

Here are my Fave Fives for this week:

1.  It's FALL!  AUTUMN is my favorite season of the year in Ohio.  What's better than a warm cup of coffee in a cup decorated for fall?

2.  I enjoyed a morning with Mia my nurse daughter at one of our favorite coffee shops.  Coffee and knitting.  That's the best way to spend a morning.  Eleanor joined us and convinced me to purchase her a yummy coffee cake.  I told her she had to take it home and share it with The Professor, which she did.

3.  Another wonderful way to spend a morning is to get  ourwalking exercise of three miles with Mia and our grandson Liam and the grand-dogs.  Liam had Monday off from high school and Mia wasn't working a twelve hour shift at the hospital.  And the weather wasn't raining.  And another morning, The Professor and I walked with Mia and the dogs.  All in all, the walks were great exercise and a great time with our daughter.  And a bonus was spotting a deer in the woods along the path.

4.  The house trim and facia painting is finished!  I really need to get a photo of the new blue shutters and front door.  We are very happy with the color we chose.  And our friend did a beautiful job.

5.  Last Sunday The Professor and I met our friend Thuy who flew in from Oregon to do the Walk for Sarcoma with other friends who have survived this horrid cancer although they have suffered the loss of one or both of their legs.  We know some of the women in the photo because they were members of the US Amputee Women's Soccer Team.  Our connection is that Thuy, who we have known for more than twenty years because she worked at the high school where Mia was a student, was one of the coaches for the team.  These women are heroes and we were honored to walk with them to help raise money for Sarcoma cancer research.  (Do you know what sarcoma cancer is?  If not, click this LINK to learn about it)

That's it for Willow's Week.  Was your week filled with blessings, too?  

Busy Busy Fave Fives

 I can't believe how fast this week whizzed by.  We were busy.  I hardly had time to sit down at my computer and check in on all my favorite blogs.  But.  Today is the first day all week that there is nothing on my calendar.  That doesn't mean we won't be busy at home, but at least our schedule doesn't require us to be somewhere.  Finally, I am taking a deep breath, drinking my coffee slowly, relaxing while I think back on my week and remember blessings from those busy days.  Friday Fave Fives is important to me to make me mark those blessings in writing.

1.  Work is being done on the outside of our home.  The paint on the facia around the windows and at the eaves and on the columns at the front door have worn away on this twenty-six year old house (although we have owned it for only six of those years).  A friend of ours who is a retired firefighter has a painting business now.  And he has the equipment to climb up on our second story walls and work up there.  We are so thankful for finding a reliable and thorough (and careful!) painter.  An added blessing to that is his daughter helps him some days and she is the girl who is married to one of our informally 'adopted' grandsons who we have known for more than twenty years (from our days living in Los Angeles) and they are now living here in Ohio just walking distance from us!

At his wedding, waiting at the front with the minister...

2.  I finished Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte just in time for the Well Read Mom meeting at my daughter-in-law's home.  I really enjoyed reading the book.  And the discussion opened up even more about the book that I had missed.  I understand more now about why Jane Eyre is my friend Sarah's favorite book.

3.  Have any of you my readers ever heard of the Nightbirde Foundation?  It is named after Jane Marczewski whose stage name was Nightbirde.  She auditioned on America's Got Talent in 2021 and got a Golden Buzzer.  However, she withdrew from AGT and passed away a few months later from breast cancer.  Her brother Mitch who attends the same church as we do founded Nightbirde Foundation in her honor.  The foundation gives Gift of Hope boxes filled with care packages especially designed to help and encourage women undergoing cancer treatment.  One item that is in the box is a knitted hat.  Off the Hook foundation provides those hats, and I have joined the local group to make hats (we use knit loop frames).  We meet once a month to bring the hats we've made during the month and to double check that we are making them according to the guidelines.  I am enjoying making the hats and knowing they are going to bless someone who needs the encouragement.

4.  The butterflies, bees and birds are busy in my garden.  I love watching them all stock up on their pollen and sugar calories as they face winter coming soon.  The hummingbirds and butterflies will be leaving soon on their flights south.

5.  We've had some amazing sunsets this week.  Just one evening we were able to take our neighborhood walk and it was beautiful.  Yes, that's a cornfield on the right.  The huge field just north of our dead end street is owned by a non-profit that preserves land for paths and reserves and will never be developed.  I am so blessed to live in a beautiful area.

Bonus:  one morning The Professor and I visited our downtown area called Canal Market to attend Veteran Stand Down which is an event to provide veterans with all kinds of information and to find whatever help is needed.  As a Vietnam veteran, The Professor always try to attend and encourage the groups and the other veterans.  As I was standing looking north through the alley, I noticed our county courthouse and a flag.  The whole downtown area has many murals on the walls of the old buildings.  I snapped this photo because it was just perfect for the day.

That's my week.  How was yours?

A Reminder to Be Thankful

Today is a hard day for Americans.  Twenty five years ago, the US was attacked.  Many people died.  Planes crashed.  Everything changed.  Nine Eleven.  Where were you?  It was one of those moments when you will always remember where you were.  I had just returned from a trip to Rome with my older daughter Deb (Rocket Scientist Girl) and was planning to fly home to Portland, Oregon from Los Angeles.  Obviously, my flight was canceled and I had to make other arrangements.  Two days later, I boarded a bus and rode it north on a twenty-four hour trip.  Thankfully, I arrived in Portland safely.  Where were you?

1.  I began this Friday Fave Fives with remembering September Eleventh Two Thousand One-- 9/11-- because I am reminded that I am so blessed to live in a safe country protected by a strong military.

2.  Deb's birthday was in August and we were in Alaska, so we celebrated her birthday on Saturday night with dinner at Olive Garden.  Presents.  Conversations.  Even a few extra guests.  It was a great way to celebrate her.

3.  How did you spend Labor Day?  We didn't do much during the day, and then at the last minute, we decided to have a bonfire and invite the family to join us.  The weather was perfect.  And we didn't cook anything (except s'mores) as we chose BYOD (bring your own dinner).  The Professor and I ran to the pizza shop but it was closed, so our second choice was P*nda Express.  An added benefit is that we managed to eke out THREE meals for each of us over the next few days.  I love sitting on our patio in the evening and watching the embers in the firepit.

4.  Tuesday evenings are always Trail Life.  The Professor is a leader and our grandson Liam is part of our local troop (Older grandson Nathan has aged out now that he is eighteen).  The troop met at Dillon Lake State Park which is near our city to play disc golf.  I joined them, not to play with them but to walk around the campgrounds and enjoy the beauty of this lovely park.

5.  Medical appointments.  Our dentist appointments went well.  Good news!  Also, I had an appointment with my dermatologist and she is happy with the progress I've made in managing all my allergies.  I am thankful for good health and for the excellent health care we have. 

September Has Arrived!

Friday.  First week of September.  Life is beginning to be back to normal.  Every week seems to surprise us with routines changed and unexpected happenings.  That's ok.  It means we are human and alive.  What's important is that we are thankful to be alive and be blessed in so many ways.  Friday Fave Fives helps me with that.

1.  The local brewing company where we sometimes played Trivia Night with other locals sadly shut down.  The couple who we had started playing with on their team and with our older daughter Deb who is the aero-space engineer (she really is a rocket scientist!) found another local spot that plays Trivia on Thursday evenings.  So we have started joining them there.  It's fun!

2.  Weather this week has been scorching hot and humid.  Several days, we were under a severe heat advisory.  Today is slightly cooler and we have had rain (and thunder and lightning).  I am thankful for AC and for a safe place to live.  I know that it may be boring to read this fave many times during the summer months, but a cool safe place to live is truly a blessing.

3.  My veggie garden is beginning to come to its end of giving produce.  But we are still having kale and tomatoes every day.  And the sunflowers are still blooming.  I will always be thankful for my garden.

Even the bees are happy we are home.

4.  My lovely next door neighbor has been removing everything from her late parents' home and preparing to sell it.  She had some furniture that she needed to pass on.  Nearly new couch, chair and ottoman, and another chair.  The furniture is now in our house awaiting us to rearrange our living room and family room.  I am so thankful for her generosity in giving them to us.

5.  Fifty-four years ago today, at his parents' thirtieth anniversary celebration, The Professor and I announced our engagement!  I am thankful for all the years we have traveled the world together!  We don't look much like those two young ones anymore.

Home Again, Home Again!

We are home!  I have been organizing photos and trying to 'catch up' on the four hour time change difference.  But I'm here to share my Friday Fave Fives before I jump into another day of 'catching up'.  I am always thankful for how Susanne is faithful to encourage us to focus on being thankful.

1.  I am thankful and very proud of our sixteen year old grandson who drove BY HIMSELF to the airport to pick us up on Saturday night after our long flights from Juneau and Seattle.  I have called him Warrior Boy here on the blog for many years.  His real name is Liam which means strong-willed warrior or protector and that is exactly what he is especially for his family.

One of the first photos of Liam, shortly after he came to live with Nurse Girl.  Oh my, how he has grown!

2.  I am thankful that I can sleep in my own bed again.  And have my own pillow.  We love to travel, but we love to be home again.

3.  I am thankful for friends and family here in Ohio who greeted us with love and excitement to have us back from our travels.

4.  I am thankful for lovely weather.  Every day I have been outside in my gardens trying to take back control from the weeds that grew in just two and a half weeks.  Nearly every day I have been out walking my two or more miles.  Yesterday, Nurse Daughter, The Professor and I walked three miles on the path along the river with the two dogs.  (A short note here about names:  I am going to start using real names for family.  Nurse Daughter is Mia, Liam's mom.)

5.  Coffee catch-ups with our friends and family.  Just time to talk about our time in Alaska and share some of the photos.  And find out what they were doing while we were gone.  I am so thankful for those hours to reconnect.

I hope you have had a wonderful week, too.

The Very Last Day of July Faves

I'm a bit late posting my Friday Fave Fives because I've been busy celebrating my daughter's birthday (see Fave #5).  But I'm here now to share five blessings from this past week.  I've been doing this for several years and it is important to me to stop and reflect on how blessed I am.

So here are my Faves from this last week and very last day of July 2026.

1.  What's more fun than a fairy trail in the local county park?  PAL and her parents joined us for a ramble at the park and we decided to visit the fairy trail.

Which one is your favorite?

3.  Tall Boy is getting everything in order to begin his freshmen year of university.  It's the local campus of the state university, and it's walking distance from our homes.  One evening, The Professor and I walked over to the uni and strolled around the campus to get a better feel for it.  We have walked past the campus weekly for six years and haven't really wandered around it.   So we did.  One of the interesting bits about the campus is all the statues placed everywhere.

Yes, those are statues, not human fishermen.

4.  Younger Grandson passed his driver's test this week!  So proud of him and his diligence and careful driving.  He's been dreaming of this day for years!

5.  It's Nurse Daughter's birthday today!  Happy Birthday to our youngest!!  We celebrated doing what she loves best.  Walking her dogs and having coffee.  No photos from today.  But here are a couple of her as a two year old, playing outside in our remote Indonesian village.

Some things never change...

And a bonus photo.  Cuz you can't have too many barn pictures.

Fourth Friday Fave Fives

 The month of July is beginning to fade.  This is the fourth Friday.  Soon it will be August.  How do the days move so quickly?  Unless I purposely hit the pause button, life just keeps rolling along.  That is why I am thankful for Susanne's faithfulness in hosting Friday Fave Fives.  Even if I don't post something here at Willow's Cottage during the week, I am still reminded to take the time to write my Five Faves.  Thank you, Susanne!

Here are my Fave Fives from this fourth week of July.

1.  As I am sitting in the chair in my family room writing this, I am watching the birds in my garden.  My favorite is the hummingbird.  Finally, all the bright colored flowers and the two red feeders have attracted two hummers here.  One of the bird feeders is about two feet from the window.  So I can sit here and watch it more closely.  Any photos?  Nope.  My window has a screen on it and it is impossible to take a clear photo.  So I just sit and smile when the hummingbird stops by to sip its nectar.  I am thankful for a back garden large enough to host all the birds.

2.  Another sweet thing about my garden.  I never know what is going to pop up where I didn't plant it.  Usually it's weeds.  But this week as I was wandering around checking to see how soon the next round of raspberries would be ripe, I discovered this:

A sunflower peeking through all the raspberry leaves~

4.  I always love my knit times.  Saturday was our monthly group meeting at the local coffee shop.  And one morning, I met my Nurse daughter for coffee and knitting just to hang out and chat.  

3.  This week T and S met us for our coffee date at a new place.  This coffee shop is fairly new in its town, but had been recommended by several people even though it is located in the county south of us.  It's in a hundred year old house and all the floors and woodwork are original.  And the coffee got a double thumbs up from The Professor.

5.  I am thankful that during the horrible wind and thunderstorm earlier this week that our family remained safe.  At my son's home, there was a several hour power outage, but electricity was back on by 9pm.  You may have seen on the news that the roof of a local church  (about 4.5 miles from us) was blown off and many trees and branches blew down.  That's how strong the storm was.  I am thankful that no one was killed and that my family is safe.  After that storm, our weather has moderated and we have been able to do some weeding in the garden and to take walks two evenings. 

How was your week?  Can you find five blessings?  

Mid July Faves

Hello, friends!  How has your week been?  I've had another busy week, but overall, it has been a wonderful one.  Here are some of blessings that I have noticed from this week.  I'm sharing as my Friday Fave Fives and posting them with others who share on Susanne's blog. (follow the link)

1. Friday and Saturday we spent with our friends from California.  We took a walk along the river and they marveled at all the green foliage everywhere (not much like Southern California in the summer)

Then we visited a favorite coffee shop/cafe.  On Saturday we showed them around Columbus and visited a book shop and then watched a play in one of the city parks.  They loved it!  Even the crazy rainstorm that flooded one of the streets where we were driving.  It was hard to say goodbye-- we will miss all the conversations and all the hugs from C and A.

2.  On Sunday afternoon, I attended a workshop to learn how to make hats for women who have breast cancer and are undergoing chemo.  Nightbirde Foundation hosted it as it is local to our area.  You can find out more about the foundation by clicking the link.  I am enjoying making the hats and learning to use a knitting loom and knowing that my creations will bless someone who needs encouragement (and a warm hat).

3.  Monday was shopping day.  I have to admit that neither The Professor nor I are big shoppers.  So we plan a trip into the big city and try to do all the shopping in one day.  Trader Joe's for food.  The shopping mall for shoes and clothes.  And a lunch stop.  It took us most of the day, but we got the shopping done.

4.  Tuesday was our anniversary.  We spent the day driving up to northern Ohio to visit Big Boy Steam Engine.  BUT.  That's not how the day progressed.  The traffic was so bad as we approached within about three miles,  that it took us three hours to move less than a mile.  Then, the area was closed down, so we weren't allowed to get in to see the train.  Oh well.  Because Nurse Daughter and her son were caravanning with us, we decided to just drive to a nearby town and eat dinner.  The restaurant was lovely and the food was excellent!  And one of the onion rings we ordered was shaped like a heart!

The day didn't turn out as we expected, but it was still an interesting way to celebrate our anniversary.  As our daughter commented, we did spend part of our honeymoon driving in our car up and down the Pacific Coast Highway in California.

5.  After our coffee date with our friends, The Professor and I drove over to visit an elderly man from our church.  We spent a couple of hours with him chatting quietly.  As we drove in and out on the driveway, we passed what he calls 'the gnome house'.  Yes, he built it.  It was a privilege to just sit and talk with him.

And now it is Friday afternoon.  Our skies are clouded over with smoke from the fires to the west of us.  I hope all is well with everyone and you are all safe from the fires burning across North America.

Time for Fave Fives

We raced through this week again.  I barely had time to catch my breath because we had lots going on.  That's why I like to join Friday Fave Fives and just pause and remember to be thankful for all the blessings that happened in the midst of the chaos of life.  Thanks to Susanne for hosting Fave Fives faithfully every week.

1.  Fourth of July!  We had a quiet day and then the family all arrived at our house just before dark to hang out and around the bonfire.  That was our 'fireworks' although we did enjoy watching all the neighborhoods around us light up with explosions of color.

2.  How many times have I mentioned that I am thankful for air conditioning?  It has been another humid and hot week, so I am so grateful that we have good AC.

3. We had an extra fun morning with our Daughter-in-law and her two sisters who are visiting.  Our Nurse Daughter had the day off so she joined us.  We sat in one of our favorite coffee shops for a long time and just chatted.  I treasure these days.

4.  Tuesday afternoon we received a text saying that our coffee date couple was at the hospital as he was having some health issues.  That certainly is not one of my faves!  But the fave part of it is that he was discharged that evening and is doing well.  In fact, we had our usual weekly coffee date with them and he is OK.

5.  We have special company visiting us!  A younger family who are part of the church we attended in Southern California arrived Thursday evening and we are so happy to spend this time with them!

How was your week?  How did you celebrate July Fourth?  Did you find blessings in the daily events of your life this week?

Hello, July!

 Wow. We are halfway through this year.  That's hard to believe.  Where did January, February, March, April, May and June go?  This week flew by, too.  And now we are getting prepared to celebrate Fourth of July!

I really needed to stop for a bit this morning and post my Friday Fave Fives, the weekly list of blessings from this past week.  Thank you, Susanne, for your faithful leadership for FFF!

1.  First and foremost.  The weather here in central Ohio has been HOT! Mid to high 90sF and high humidity! I am thankful for an efficient and stable working AC.

2.  We've been having to water our gardens since there has been no rain.  I am truly thankful and appreciative that The Professor has been watering our large back garden. I'm doing the front which is much smaller.

3.  Our county has published a "passport" program do encourage our residents to travel around the county and find historical information.  This week, The Professor and I enjoyed driving many back roads and searching for the answers to the questions.  We visited two of the many covered bridges in the county as well as several old cemeteries.  I am enjoying learning so much about my new home.

4.  Last Saturday, I enjoyed breakfast and a chat with a friend.  We have so much in common, but we seldom meet up.  It was a wonderful relaxing and affirming time with her.

5.  Yesterday was my brother's birthday!  I am so blessed to have an older brother who has always been a friend and protector for me.  I know that sometimes family aren't close.  But he and I are.  Happy Birthday to my Bus Driver Big Brother!

A few years ago...

And, to all my American friends, Happy Fourth of July!

Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence!