Mid September Blessings

 Good Morning!  It is a lovely mid September morning here at Willow's Cottage.  I am sitting on my back patio enjoying a cuppa Joe and watching my hibiscus bush wave in the soft breeze.  This is the right time to ponder what blessings have come my way this week.  I do this every Friday and join several other lovely people in focusing on FRIDAY FAVE FIVES.

1.  A good laugh.  The New Boy (for those who don't know, that's older grandson) showed me something funny this week.  Go to google and type in askew (or click on the word).  Look carefully at the answer.  Trust me.  You'll laugh.  Then do the same with anagram.  Someone has been bored at work.

2.  A mother-daughter day with Younger Daughter.  We didn't do much of what we had planned because her lupus had flared.  But we did drop off Little Warrior (younger grandson) at Trail Life campout with The Professor, New Boy and New Boy's mom (they had a great weekend!).  We took a short hike in the woods, then we drove home along some beautiful country roads and filled our minds and hearts with all the peaceful scenery.

And of course I had to take at least one photo of a barn!

3.  On the way, we stopped at a yard sale.  Score!  She found a great deal on a recumbent exercise bike and an antique sled decorated for Christmas, and I snagged a well preserved 1940s style side table which will blend in well with my mid-century modern furniture.  And the man who was selling them was a delightful older gentleman so the visit was pleasant as well.

4.  Last week I met two of the neighbors who live across the street.  One evening this week, I was walking alone because The Professor had a meeting to attend, and they were sitting together on a front patio.  They invited me to join them and I enjoyed getting to know them more.

5.  I've started another sock yarn afghan.  Knitting is my calming activity.  I chose these colors from my stash because, well, I love turquoise! And it will be warm and snuggly this winter.

September Week Two

Friday night already!  Again, I am a bit late with posting my Friday Fave Fives.  But that doesn't mean I am not thankful and blessed!  Just busy.  Here is Willow's Week in Five things that blessed me this week.

1.  A book that reaches deep.  For Such a Time by Kate Breslin.  Even though this story of a Czech transit camp during WWII is heart wrenching at times, it is so well written.  I love a good story.

2.  The Professor finally bought his birthday present--a bbq!  AND it was on sale, had a second discount, and included The Professor's military discount.  So, he really scored on it!  Now, to get it up and running.

3.  Time in the garden.  The weather has been cooler which means I can be in my happy place.  Am I the only person on the planet who doesn't mind weeding?

4.   The Professor knows I don't do well with dentists.  After my dentist fixed a tiny cavity in one of my teeth this week, my sweet husband made me relax the rest of the day.  I truly appreciate his care and concern for me.

5.  Labor Day was lovely.   We ended the holiday with family dinner in the back yard and a fire in the fire pit where we roasted marshmallows.  Yum!

Bonus.   More tomato sauce.  Two more batches are in the freezer-- one for Younger Daughter from her tomatoes and one for us.

September means...

 Oh wow, it's September.  With all the heartache and unrest of this summer, I do welcome September.  Am I the only person who thinks that September is the real New Year?  Must be all the years of attending school and teaching.

As we head in to the fall season, I have so many things to be thankful for this week.  Here are my Friday Fave Fives which I am sharing to remind myself and to encourage others. (follow the link to join in)

1.  September means a break in the hot and humid weather (at least temporarily).  I truly appreciate the cooler temperatures we have experienced the past several days.

2.  I am reading through the Bible in one year, using a study guide that accompanies a chronological Bible.  This week, even though I am reading what some people might term as OT boring, I have been blessed and challenged to pray those Scriptures.

3.  I finished a knitting project!  I made this vest from yarn in my stash.  I love the colors!  And because the weather has moderated, I've already worn it twice!

4.  I love receiving photos of PAL!  She is on a road trip and her parents are sending us pictures.  AND...my new computer is not cooperating to download those pictures...  I will post them if and when they do download.

5.  We haven't been out hiking this week although we have gotten in several neighborhood walk.  We live close enough to the local grocery store (almost a mile) that one evening we decided to walk over and grab a few items we needed.  Win-win.  Grocery shop and walk.

THANKFUL

It has been silent here at Willow's Cottage for the past two weeks.  I had planned a few blog posts, but that didn't happen.  Why not?  Because my computer died.  It was not completely unexpected, so I did have plans in place to deal with data transfers.  Or rather, to be honest, The Professor did.

But I'm back now.  With a new laptop!

My first post on my new device is, appropriately, a Friday Fave Fives. Y'all know what FFF is.  Every Friday I write down five things that blessed me during that past week.  Susanne at Living To Tell The Story hosts this every week and if I am correct, this is the 377th edition!  (follow the link to join in)

1.  I am THN AKFUL for a new computer.  I have been without a laptop for about two weeks.  Although I tried to access and write a blog post via my phone, I couldn't do it.  So I am very happy to be back 'online'.

2.  Who do I have to thank for all of this?  Obviously, The Professor.  I am THANKFUL that he researched laptops and had a plan in place to purchase identical ones for each of us since we knew mine in particular was gasping its last breaths.  I'm thankful he isn't simply tech savvy, but he is a prof emeritus in computer science and can use his knowledgeable and magic fingers to do anything on such a device, including getting all my files onto a back up hard drive before my computer completely died.

3.  I'm THANKFUL I have a phone that allowed me to at least check my emails and communicate that way.

4.  OK.  Enough about computers and other electronics.  I am THANKFUL for an easy transition for grandchildren going back to school.  Two of them are transitioning to new schools--into high school and into middle school.  And two are continuing to homeschool.  Yes, New Boy is here daily with us as we are his teachers.

5.  I am THANKFUL for the abundant harvest of veggies (mostly tomatoes) from my first garden in my new home.  We've been eating lots of lettuce, kale and snap peas, too.  Also, I am picking herbs daily, mostly for drying.  I'm going to have some yummy mint teas to enjoy this winter.  I love that I can just open the back door and walk out to the back and have all those fresh foods at my fingertips.

Hopefully, I will have photos back up and posting within a few days.  In the meantime, let's focus on all the things that make us THANKFUL.

Mid August Heat and Humidity Faves

 Hello from Hot and Humid Ohio!  As I understand it, most of North America is experiencing this same weather, or worse.  Stay hydrated!  And those who are in southern climes, enjoy your winter weather.  And you may have noticed that I was able to change my header photo.  So.Much.Better.

I thought that this week would be quieter.  Nope.  The activities just kept piling up.  The posts I had planned to write didn't happen and here it is Friday already.  Friday Fave Fives (follow the link).  Here is Willow's Week.

1.  I love it when I finish some knitting.  This week I finally sewed the buttons on these two baby cardigans.  Done and Done!  Now I can move on to my next project without feeling that guilty tug to finish these first.

And a little hair band.

2.  Summertime also means Shakespeare (and other plays) in the Park.  This is a big city thing that we have been doing for years whenever we came to visit.  Now it is part of our summer plans to drive in and watch as many as we can.  This past Friday night, it was Euripides.  The Professor and all the children have acted in many plays (not me!) so they really enjoy this.  And the extra fun part for The Prof is watching the lighting.

3.  The New Boy and The Professor were at a local park for their Trail Life activity one evening, So Older Daughter and I took a walk along the river while they were in their meeting.  I love my walks even if they are just in town.

4.  The dentist.  Why oh why would this be a fave?  The fave part is that the dentist listens to me and understands my issues with deadening the pain (lots of meds don't work on me).  My visit was pain free.  Now THAT'S the fave.

5.  All the thunderstorms and rainstorms are keeping me inside.  That means (if I'm motivated) that I am able to get little projects done around the house.  I love thunderstorms anyway, so it is fun to watch the lightning as I read or work. 

And as a bonus,  just some green forest beauty.

Hello, August!

 Good Morning, friends!  It's August!  How does that happen so fast?  Wasn't it June just last week?

Here it is Friday already.  Here is Willow's Week for Friday Fave Fives.  As always, I am thankful for so much in my life.

1.  Two birthdays this week.  Younger Daughter's birthday was Saturday.  She wanted to celebrate by visiting a new to her local coffee shop and then taking a walk on the nearby lake.  (She has been dog sitting for the neighbors, so we had FOUR doggies to walk!).  Then Older Son, Chaplain Dan, had his birthday this week.  Although we couldn't be with him, we had a great phone conversation. And we had seen him two weeks ago.

2.  This has been a productive week.  I had gotten out of the habit of making a 'to do list', and it was evident by how little I was doing.  So I am back to using my 3x5" cards for making my daily list.  A few years ago, my friend showed me her method.  It really works well for me.  It was obvious this week.

3.  Bike ride.  We did six and a third miles one morning before it got too hot.  The Professor really loves riding his bike and I enjoy it too.

4.  Progress on finishing the pergola on our back patio.  Assembling and putting it up and adjusting its position takes more than two people.  Fortunately, we have strong daughters and grandchildren.  They joined us one evening and we are now working on the last step--drilling holes in cement to anchor the poles (The Professor may be having way too much fun with his new drill).

5.  How does one get helpers?  Feed them!  To gather our workers, we used the 'we buy, you work' method.  The overwhelmingly popular choice this week was Panda Express.  It's a win-win-win for me as I don't have to cook, I get yummy Chinese food, and we get (mostly)willing workers.  And of course the underlying feeling of thankfulness is always present when I realize that I am a phone call away from half my children and three-quarters of my grandchildren. 

What are you noticing in your life, events that push your attitude to thankfulness?

Closing Out July

Late again, but I'm here now on this next to the last day of July.  I spent quite a bit of time today waiting around for other people to complete medical appointments (I was the driver).  Then The Professor and I took the New Boy shopping for clothes to wear to a wedding tomorrow--nothing fancy, but Oh My!  He has been growing and growing and needed shirts and slacks and shoes that fit.  Now I'm home and enjoying a relaxed evening, some time to reflect on the blessings of this past week.  Here is Willow's Week in Friday Fave Fives! (follow the link to join!)

1.  My cousin and her husband visited and stayed for two days.  We haven't seen each other very often since we were early teenagers (her) and lower middle school (me).  Maybe a total of less than 10 times in all those years.  We settled right in to our childhood interactions with her bossing me around as the older cousin and me being snippy back at her.  It was great!  Since she is moving a (long) day's drive from me, maybe we'll see each other more often now.

2.  Good news from our uncle who is 94!  We were told he has been put on hospice care.  My brother lives fairly close and went to see him.  The news today is that he has rallied and is eating and drinking. (and is as grumpy as ever--heehee!)  I'm thankful for this news.

3.  So much yumminess from our garden.  The cherry tomatoes, those little mouthful bites of sweetness, the lettuce, snap peas and kale!  I can walk out my back door, take a few steps, lean over and pick our dinner salad!

4.  Air conditioning.  The heat has been getting to me.  When I walk into the house from outside, it's a welcoming coolness.

5.  Yesterday, we welcomed a rainy and stormy day.  After a week of high humidity, it felt wonderful to be cooler.  And the other reason to appreciate the rain?  I didn't have to water the garden.

These are five simple happenings in my life this week--I am thankful!

I did write a post about the fairy forest we visited last week.  If you missed it, you can click HERE to read about it and see the photos.

Oh Look!

 Another Fairy Trail!

This Fairy village seems to be in a bit more upscale area.  You will notice there are more brightly painted homes.  Also, this community does not seem nearly as shy as others I have visited.  Many of the residents allowed me to take their photos.

They even provided benches for the big people to use to rest if they were tired.  Evidently, they are used to having tourists visit this Fairy Forest.

I hope you enjoy your stroll through this fairy village.  (yes, there are more photos than normal.) Which home is your favorite?  It was difficult to choose, but I finally decided that I like the last one.  In fact, the owner stopped to chat with me a bit, and we talked about the flowers in her garden.

Quite a Week

 What a week!

One of Older Daughter's friends is visiting with her son, so we have joined them on some adventures.  And we have gone on an adventure ourselves, too.  Here is Willow's Week in Five Faves.  Here is the link to Friday Fave Fives.

1.  Our fence is finished!  There was a small section in the front that wasn't done but we ran out of fencing and had to order additional materials.  They arrived and the fencing guy came and put up that last bit.  Done!

2.  A day at the zoo.  When I say a day, I mean the whole day.  We arrived shortly after it opened, and we shut it down.  I should have worn a pedometer!  The exhibits were amazing!

3.  After that long and fun filled day, we decided that a 'resting day' was in order.  Resting?  Sort of.  We took a short hike around Flint Ridge State Park.  The background is that this area was the main source of flint used for arrows and tools from the Atlantic Ocean to the Rocky Mountains.  You can see bits of the flint and the pits where they dug it out even today.  Then in the afternoon we had a picnic lunch and strolled around Dawes Arboretum.  More woodsy areas because it was hot and humid.  It was wonderful to again stroll through God's beautiful creation.

4.  When we learned that our oldest, Chaplain Dan, was at Ft. Knox, KY this week for training, we figured an overnight trip was in order.  It was worth the drive just to have dinner and spend a few hours with him.  It is these times that I treasure.

5.  On the way home from Kentucky, we decided to get off the freeway and take some less traveled roads.  Serendipitously, we found a botanical garden which has reciprocal privileges with our local arboretum!  It was a delight.  AND, it had a fairy trail which deserves its own post (come back in a few days and enjoy!)  I love those unexpected hidden treasures.

And now we are home and relaxing a bit.  My own bed, my own shower, The Professor's homemade coffee which is the best in the world.  Maybe next week won't be quite the zoo this week has been.

A Very Important Date

I'm late, I'm late! Cuz of a very important date!  That date was Wednesday, our wedding anniversary.  We've been married nigh unto fifty years.  Yes, we were children when we married :)

Anyway, here are my Friday Fave Fives from this past week.  THIS IS THE LINK to join Susanne and the rest of us to celebrate all the little things which make us thankful every day.

1.  Obviously, I am thankful for my marriage and my husband.  He is faithful, loving, helpful, wise.  And he actually enters knitting shops with me!  See?  We really were very young.

2.  Knitting.  Yes, I am thankful I can still use my hands and head to create things from yarn. I've been trying to use up a bit of my stash.  Fun blankets work well for using up yarn.

3.  A Sunday afternoon drive, just for fun.  We explored a bit more of the counties south and east of us.  It's all small towns and country farms.

4.  A fun little event (like 3 seconds of time) made me so very happy.  As I was driving on a local street, my younger daughter drove past me.  The grandkids recognized us and waved.  That I can serendipitously catch sight of my family as I drive through town just made me so very happy that it made my heart hurt.

5.  OK, why am I late posting my FFFs?  For our anniversary, we took our little motorhome out on a camping trip for two days, and we just pulled back into the driveway about an hour ago.  There is a state park less than a thirty minute drive from us, so we booked two nights there in the middle of the week.  We call this  our 'shakedown trip' because we haven't actually camped with the motorhome since we bought it!  Blame the cross country move, covid and winter.  Now that we have stayed two nights in our tiny home away from home, we can better assess what we need and things we want to change.  We took our car, too, and our bikes.  One morning we biked for seven miles on the 'rails to trails' path; one evening we explored a bit of the hiking trails around the campgrounds.  Mostly we sat and enjoyed the sun, clouds, shade trees, wildlife and night time firepit.

Now we're home and so very thankful for all the wonderful things that we enjoyed this week!

Weekly Blessings

Hello Friday!  Here it is a warm and partly cloudy day.  And we're heading toward the middle of July.  Here are Willow's Friday Fave Fives.  Won't you join us for this weekly adventure in searching and finding blessings big and small?

1. You may have noticed the new header here on the blog, which shows a very very blurry picture of knitted stitches.  When I clicked in to change the picture behind my blog name, nothing worked.  I spent quite a long time trying to figure out why photos I have used before no longer worked.  As a last ditch effort, I simply wrote my name in a photo and adjusted until it looked right.  I am thankful to have figured that out even though it doesn't look great.

2.  We are making progress on home projects.  Last month we purchased a pergola to put on the back porch.  It's mostly set up now.  Then we can sit back there in the afternoons with shade above us.

3.  Also, we are working on a back garden project.  The place where there had been an above ground pool was just a sand and mud pit.  We have a plan to make it in to a fire pit and small patio with some garden beds around it.  This week we started laying the edging blocks around the perimeter!  Yay for progress!  (pictures later when it is finished)

4.  Produce from the garden.  Lettuce, kale, basil, parsley have all been on our plates this week, compliments of the garden.  Yummy!

Basil becomes Pesto

5.  The weather here has been frightfully hot and humid.  I could hardly make it for five minutes outside (all those outdoor projects have been done in five minute spurts).  Then Thursday (yesterday) the heat sort of broke with thunderstorms and rain.  What a relief.  I really am thankful for thunderstorms because they normally bring cooler weather.  And of course the lightning is amazing to watch.

Bonus:  it's summer.  I have to post photos of flowering plants!

Have a blessed weekend, my friends!  Be thankful!