Marching In

 It's March!  I'm excited!  Are you?  And it's Friday.  And time for Friday Fave Fives.  Here are the five blessings I am choosing to share from my week.

1.  One evening when I was climbing into bed, I thought, "I am thankful for a warm bed."  Snuggling under my cozy blankets is something I don't take for granted.

2.  The weather has been very very rainy this week.  Finally, yesterday, it was mild and dry enough to take a walk around our neighborhood.  A bit more than two miles.

3.  We spent Sunday afternoon with a young mom at her place.  We've known her for a couple of years and adore her fourteen month old daughter.  Spending that time with them was a delight for us.

4.  This afternoon, my daughter-in-law and PAL drove down to the next county with me to a used book store that supports a local nonprofit.  We might have found a few books we want to read...  and then we stopped by a 'country store' where there is lots of yarn and fabric as well as used goods.  I only purchased two balls of yarn and a pair of needles.

5.  And it is almost Spring!  To prove it, the plants in my garden popped out some indications that Winter is winding down.

The crocus is blooming!

Daffodils are getting ready.

The forsythia hasn't begun to bloom, but it is setting out many buds.

Even the bees were busy outside of their hives.

That wraps up my first week of March.  I hope you had a great week, too.

Flowers In My Garden

 All those April showers?  They brought May flowers to my garden!  Most of these flowers are blooming in our pollinator gardens.

We finally got the rhododendrons in the ground.  Now we just need to mulch around them.

The white peonies have such a sweet fragrance.

Most of the red clover has already bloomed, but I did find one.

I hope you enjoyed all the spring time color.

Last of March Faves

 I am still having a hard time reconciling the fact that the calendar states that the month of March is nearly over and April will begin.  But here it is, the last Friday in March.  Fridays mean Fave Fives.  Here are my five blessings from this week. (follow the link to Susanne's blog)

1.   My son, Chaplain Dan, is a military chaplain and also writes poetry in his spare time.  Last week, he published another poem on Amazon.  His poetry is written in an unusual old style-- Anglo-Saxon Alliterative Verse, like Beowulf was.  Can you imagine reading the story of Joshua and the Battle of Jericho like that?  I am always in amazement of his creativity.  

2.  I donated clothing to a resale boutique in a nearby town.  The owner is so sweet, and I have purchased clothes from her store before, and she has sold my knitted hats there.  It makes me happy to support small businesses.

3.  Speaking of small businesses, we had our coffee date with T and S this week at a town south of us.  After our fun conversation time, the guys went one way to a model train (and other stuff) place and we girls drove to Peddler's Junction Vendor Mall and wandered around looking at all the fun things for sale.  The guys met us there and found a couple of things they wanted.  Our outings with T and S always bring me joy.

4.  This fave is both happy and sad.  Younger Son, Dr. Mike, has been living with us for a few months, working remotely hours and hours every day.  This week, he moved back to California, to San Jose, where the co-owners of his company are living.  We are happy for him but really miss him.

5.  Finally the weather has moderated (at least for a few days).  I was able to take a walk in the sunshine today!  The forsythia is blooming!  It really is Spring!

What blessings have you found in your life this past week?

March 20

March Photo a Day.  March 20.  Spring.

Nothing says spring like beautiful yellow daffodils.  Happy Spring to everyone! (and Happy Autumn to those in the southern hemisphere!)

Pie Day Fave Fives

 Happy Pie Day!  Are you all eating pie today?  It's also Friday, so it's Friday Fave Fives time.  The link takes you to Susanne's blog where you can read more about all the Faves in other bloggers' week.

1.  Finished!  I knitted this afghan for S, our coffee couple friend, for her birthday.  It was a fun knit.

2.  Family dinner at Olive Garden.  Usually, we have family dinners at our home and have everyone bring whatever they want to eat.  But last weekend, we decided to enjoy all the yummy food at Olive Garden.  One thing we did around the table was everyone telling one thing they did well during the week.  Better grades.  Work bonus.  Things like that.

3. We survived the time change.  I'm not a fan of changing our time and clocks.  It's been an interesting adjustment, but we are surviving.  We do enjoy the light in the evenings.

4.  On Monday we drove north to the town of Bellville and enjoyed lunch with our long time friends who we first met in Oregon through our church.  I worked with L at the same private Christian school.  She was secretary of the elementary school and I taught high school US History classes.  The four of us enjoy each other's company and we always have so much to chat about.   I'm thankful for long time friendships.

5.  Is spring really going to come?  Our weather this week has been warm and sunny.  And now there are more crocuses hopping up.  It looks like I may have daffodils within the next week or two-- if the weather cooperates.

I hope you are having a good day and have some PIE to snack on.  Did you get up in the night last night and watch the lunar eclipse?  We did!  And yes, I'm a bit sleepy now.  In a few hours, I will be posting (not so great) photos I took of the eclipse.

Marching Along

 I'm late!  I'm late!  For a very important date!  Friday Fave Fives!  But at least I'm here now to share my five blessings from this first full week of March.

1.  The weather has been moderate all week.  Although we have had rainstorms blowing through, most days have been walk worthy.  We even had time one day to move three wheelbarrow loads of mulch and drop them on the raspberry bushes before the rain returned.

2.  As I mentioned, the days were walk worthy.  We managed three good walks with the granddogs.  Four miles.  Three miles.  One and a half miles.

Deer frolicking at the edge of the creek

3.  The best thing about walking with the granddogs?  We walk them, and when we are done, we give them back to their mommies and don't have to take them home, feed them and clean up after them.  We do love them.  Two of the three:

Sawyer

Athena

4.  Signs of spring.  Daffodils everywhere.  Forsythia starting to bloom.  (and would you believe it?  I got no photos.)

5.  Coffee meet ups with new friends.  One lady is a weaver and we had a great time talking about all things fiber.

Marching In

 Wow!  We are now in our third month of 2024.  I kinda like March because it is my birthday month.  And March is when spring begins.  At least on the calendar.

And since it is Friday, here are Willow's Friday Fave Fives for you to enjoy.

1.  We've been lazy about updating our wills.  This week, we finally met with our lawyer and finalized everything.

2.  I got my hair cut.

3.  On Sunday, we met a couple from our church for lunch.  It was a new place for us and we so enjoyed the food and the fellowship.

4.  I finished this sweater.  It's a button down cardigan hoodie that is going across the country to a little one whose mama we have known since she was five.  He outgrew the smaller one I had made before he was born, so of course I had to make him a larger one so he can cuddle up warmly and remember his 'extra grandma'.

5.  Signs of spring!  TWO crocuses have popped their bright yellow blooms out.

Earlier this week, I posted a picture of some daffodils that had been covered by a bag of mulch but were doing their best to find sunshine.

I took the photo below a couple of days later.  The plants are turning more green (thanks, chlorophyll) and you can see more buds, too.  Watching these plants grow and flourish is a good reminder to me of resurrection and new life.

So these are my Five Faves of gratitude from this week, as we said goodbye to February, celebrated an extra day, and now greet our new month of March.  Enjoy any sunshine you can get.  Drink lots of warm coffee and tea.  Watch for new growth to pop up from seemingly dead dirt.  Be thankful!

A Lovely and Warm Week

Friday Fave Fives are short and sweet this week. (will life ever calm down?)  Even in the midst of busy lives, it is important to slow down, focus, and remember to be thankful for all the blessings of the week.  The link above will take you to Susanne's blog page and you can join FFF or read what others are sharing this week.

1.  A quiet Easter Sunday. Lovely morning service.  Then in the afternoon, Younger Daughter brought the grands over to help us begin working on some garden projects.

2.  Very quick and easy dentist visit.   I do not enjoy visits to the dentist although my dentist is truly one of the best.  Since I had developed a small chip in a tooth, it was a simple procedure.  I am thankful for dental health care and a wonderful dentist.

3.  Beautiful weather.  I am so ready for spring, and this week spring was really and truly here.

4.  The man who has been cutting our lawn for us the past two years, mowed for the first time this week.  Our yard looks so nice now.

5.  The Professor and I had the opportunity to share lunch with a young woman who is a missionary nurse in a Latin American country.  We thoroughly enjoyed getting to know her and find out more about her ministry.  I am thankful that people are continuing to focus on bringing help and the good news of Jesus to people all over the world.

Bonus:  This morning as the Art Girls (all five of us this week!) were chatting on a zoom call, one mentioned how important it is to recall how God has blessed and changed us through the years, not just the days and weeks.  So true!

Fave Fives in Spring

 It's SPRING!  It's really SPRING!  It may be raining and there may be thunder and lightning outside, but, according to the calendar, it's SPRING!

Every week I focus on five things that have blessed me this week.  Susanne calls it Friday Fave Fives and hosts a bunch of us to post our five blessings we have chosen and written about in a post for the week.  (follow the link to join)  Here are mine---Willow's Week in Five Faves.

1.  Obviously, I did a spoiler in the first paragraph---it's SPRING!

2.  Saturday was the day we celebrated my birthday.  We decided to invite family to a local coffee shop/cafe for brunch.  This place has a loft area that people seldom use during the day, so we took it over.  Mostly, we just hung out and talked.  Instead of cake, I chose pie.  Triple berry and apple.  Yum!

3.  On Sunday, The Professor and I woke early and drove to Ft. Wayne, Indiana to attend a funeral/memorial service for a man we knew many years ago when we were in college.  This man was our choir director and the director of The Reflections, the small singing group I was part of for three years.  He left a large legacy of music in churches and colleges all over the US.  These photos were taken in 2016 at a Reflections reunion at the college.

Director Peter Kobe

Three of the original Reflections singers with Pete.

4.  On the way home, we stopped at the highest point in Ohio, Campbell Hill, to add this state's high point to The Professor's list high point places we have visited.

5.  This fave may seem like a small thing, but it was important to me.  I have a favorite tea that I drink almost daily.  Herbal Cold Care tea from Traditional Medicinal Teas.  I ran out last week.  All the local stores were out, too.  Finally, this morning, The Professor happened to be passing a grocery store in a nearby village where we seldom shop, and he popped in just to check for the tea.  The store had ONE box.  He bought it.  I am thankful for two things:  he thought about my wanting the tea and there was a box available.

Bonus:  I did write up a more detailed but short description of the cashmere sweater I finished knitting and posted it yesterday.  LINK for it.

It's (almost) Spring!

 Friday Fave Fives.  Here is Willow's Week in five little peeks into my life.  Are you looking forward to spring as much as I am? 

1.  Most the days this week have been sunny and almost warm.  That makes me so thankful!

2.  Mystery plants popping up in my new front garden area.  Maybe hyacinths?  And tulips?  Stay tuned for identification when the flowers bloom.

3.  We found an off the paved trail hiking (and mountain bike) path.   And this was sitting on the side perched on a downed tree.  I love finding those hidden trails!

4.  A knitted sweater has been sent to celebrate a new baby boy.  Of course I forgot to take a photo of the finished sweater before I popped it in to the mailing box.  Just imagine a 6 month sized cardigan with a hood made with the darker grey and stripes of the lighter grey.  And another two year old green sweater has been started.  Hopefully, I will remember to take pictures of that one.

5.   Do you ever do this?  Lately, I have had to drive about twenty-five miles each way for some physical therapy appointments.  Driving on the highways is boring.  So I've been  returning home via alternate routes. I love taking the country roads and learning about the area where I am living.  What makes this a fave?  I can explore and I have gas in my car to do it.  And it's even more beautiful because it's ALMOST SPRING!

Bye, April

Last week of April.  The end of self isolation is Not in sight yet.  How have you spent your week?  I have been focusing on the beauty around me, on blessing others and appreciating how they are blessing me.  That's a whole lot better than grumping about not being able to get out or not having what I want at the store.  Right now we must all focus on what we are thankful for--I'm thankful for FRIDAY FAVE FIVES!

1.  SPRING FLOWERS.  Super bloom is happening!  The poppies are growing wild!  How I love California's state flower.  We walk around the neighborhood, peek out our back window, gaze at the mountainsides.  Poppies everywhere!!  (warning:  poppy picture overload below)

poppies all over my garden

even 'popping' up in my lavender

cream colored poppy

two toned poppy

ruffled poppy 

2.  SKILLS.  More masks made.  Oops. I didn't take  a photo of the five masks I dropped off at the gathering point on my friend's porch this morning.  The call for masks hasn't slowed down.  I've lost count of the number of masks I've made.  It doesn't matter.

3.  KINDNESS.   I made masks for several couples/families in our small group at church.  Some sent me notes to thank me, one gave me flowers and oranges, another shared some homemade carrot cake.  One of the things I am loving about all this crisis time is that I am seeing the KINDNESS of people.

4.  HUMOR.  This made me laugh.  Even the topiary bunny in our neighborhood is maintaining self isolation and social distancing.

5.  LIFE!  The baby I made this kimono for was born this week.  She is a preemie, in NICU, but thriving.  We've prayed her and her mama through all these months of stress and uncertainty.  Soon she'll be home and wearing this little sweater.

What KINDNESS, BEAUTY, or HUMOR have you experienced this week?  And here's hoping that May will be filled with more positive changes.

Bloom Time

It's bloom time at Willow's Cottage.

The sun is shining.

The sky is blue.

California poppies are popping up everywhere in my garden.

The calendula plants are self sowing.

I love their cheery faces.

Potted plants are proudly showing their colors.

Spring always means camellias.

Frilly light pink ones.

Dark pink camellias.

Variegated pink blooms.

Even the pansies are showing up in their pots.

Oh how I love Bloom Time!