Class Reunion

Next Saturday is my ---- class reunion. I will be going up to MI with my son. The reunion is in Dowagiac at Zeke's. I can't wait to see some old friends, Laura and Shirley are coming in from Phx.; Judy is flying in from Jonesboro, AR; April and Margaret live in MI and a whole bunch more will be there. It should be nice to see everyone after so long.
I will get to see my niece, Amanda, and spend the night with her, since she is in Dowagiac. Where we will stay the other two nites is still up in the air. I got a few days yet to decide, will try to take photos and post when I get back.
Pray for our safe journey and for a fun time getting reacquainted with old friends.

FFA National Convention

What a delightful time I had at the convention in Indianapolis this past week. I went as a chaperone, we were there for 4 days. We did a lot of walking, watched some competitions, opening ceremonies (which were awesome), Josh Shipp (motivational speaker... very funny... and a goat!), Easton Corbin and Lady Antebellum. The talent show on the last night we were there was outstanding. Here is a photo of me at the convention... I told you it was fun!!

No new kitchen here!

OK, so today is the day after the DIY Worst Kitchen in America contest was decided. No one came to my door or called me on the phone or even emailed me that I was the winner so I guess we did not win. I went on the website, the winner will be aired on January 18th, 2011. Yay for them!! I think I am going to have to win the lottery in order to get a new kitchen and since I very seldom play the lottery.....

Worked on the carpets in the living room... always be ready for plans to change. We got them clean and drying outside, I decided to scrub the wooden floor, I was about 3/4 way done when the school called for me to come in ASAP, one of the teachers was sick. I quickly finished the floor; took a shower; dressed; packed a lunch and made it to the school within an hour of being called.

Weather was cool this a.m., warming up slightly with a nice cool breeze, but by the time I left around 11:00 it was already warm. The drive home was bearable, thank goodness.

Well, better get back to the living room floor, so we can lay the carpet back down before the dew gets on it and we have to wait until tomorrow for it to dry out again.

OK, so... it was not cooler last week, as predicted, if anything it was hotter! I feel like I'm back in PHX!!!! over 100 everyday, heat index of 110 - 115... that is just too d*** hot! I felt so badly for my bus kids, 50 kids crowded in a HOT bus, I could have had some real problems, but they did good. One more hot day and we should be in the 80's after Tuesday.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Well, that was yesterday, today was much cooler. It did get up to 96 this afternoon, but most of the day was nice with a nice breeze. Came home this morning to see my black hen dead on the road. This afternoon one of my bluegrey hens was killed on the road. People just drive too fast on this road. Right in front of our house is a bit of a straight-a-way, so they just really speed. Plus, some people think it is funny to hit a chicken, all the feathers go flying everywhere. It isn't funny to me and certainly not to the chicken!

Got my fridge cleaned today... I hadn't gotten to it since before I left for MI. That was too long. Everything is back in its place and all shelves etc, are clean and shiny again. Tomorrow is bathroom, kitchen and clean the living room carpet. Thursday I hope to get the living room cleaned and dusted, then the bedroom on Friday. Rosalie will be here on Friday, sometime. When it is cooler, I feel like doing more and do get more accomplished.

Well, I want to get this posted and I must head for bed now, so all for now, will write again later this week. Hopefully with some more photos.

Busy Monday!!

Yesterday was a busy day for me. I had a school meeting at 8 a.m., that lasted until 3 p.m.. Then a fair meeting at 1:00 (I had to leave the first one after lunch). Right after the fair meeting was our Master Gardener meeting. I got home around 4. Jim had a grilled lemon basil chicken breast salad ready when I got here. IT WAS GOOD! A little poppy seed dressing and a glass of ice tea. ..... YUM!
The weather was wonderful. We went down to the lake in the evening, it was perfect, not too hot, nice little breeze. We fed the fish, I decide to do a little fishing, but only got a couple of nibbles. Gave that up and just watched the fish feed. Very nice, peaceful, a needed refreshment from a long day inside.
School starts in 2 days. I don't think I am ready, but .... I will be by Thursday, like it or not. I love my job, it just feels like I need a couple more weeks. Especially since the weather will be cooler (90's) than the last couple of weeks, and I could be doing things outside. Well, I probably won't have to sub-teach for at least a week, so I should be able to do a lot from 8-2:30.
Got up early today, good practice for the upcoming days!, decided to catch-up on reading my emails that I have neglected. Answered a few, have read several, now writing on here. I think I have put in enough time on the computer for a while, today.
Jim is out bush hogging the field, finishing up what he started yesterday. The tractor got hot from all the mowing, so he had to quit. But, it is cooler today, still only about 60/64, so it is perfect for mowing out in the field.
Well, all for now.... I may get on later today and write a little more about my summer.

Geranium Survivors

Last November, while in MI with family, my sister decided to get rid of her 3 year old geraniums. Now, mind you these things have been trying to hang on to life for the past 2 years. (She is not much of a gardener and readily admits it). This is what they looked like when I got them home. There were three pots of them and they allllll looked like this.

After a good long shower, a little fertilizer and a couple of weeks in the upstairs, here they are putting on new leaves. It wasn't long after that that some blossoms came out.

By January we were honored with several blooms.

Come Spring we took them outside, I separated them and put them in different pots, giving them fresh dirt and more fertilizer... they love those worm castings... This is what they looked like a couple of weeks before I left for MI. Knowing I would be gone for a few weeks, I went ahead and dead headed them (the blossoms were spent by then) They still looked so healthy. Well, we had several weeks of drought and by the time I got home... they looked terrible. Once again, a good watering and off they are going again. They are blooming and putting on new leaves. This fall before we bring them in I will cut them back, then next year they should come out a lot fuller. These poor things struggled a long time to be healthy and are still struggling. Hopefully, life for them, is getting easier!!

Long time no Post... Sorry!!

WHOA!! I am really not good at keeping up with this sorry. I do however, have lots of photos to share, so I will attempt to get those up here real soon, if not sooner. My problem is that I am not too efficient with downloading the photos from the camera, so I don't blog as much as I would/will when I get that mastered. It's getting there.

Here is a photo of my cute great nephew in the sweater I crocheted for him. This was taken last December. He is almost 2 years old now and the apple of his Grandpa Ron's eye.

My tulips in March this past year!! I really need to dig them up now as they are crowding each other. It doesn't look like it in this photo, but that entire hill eventually was covered. I plan to dig them up this fall and spread them around some, the colors are so beautiful! I am thrilled each year.

This has been a busy summer. So in a couple of days I will write again and fill you in on some of it. Until then..... stay cool!

Catch-up Time!

January 16th, Saturday; Jim and I decided that the water pipes ran directly under the two large trash barrels that we use for storing dog food and potting soil. We moved both of these, the ground was solid. Oh, did I mention that it had been in the 50's for the past two days and all around these cans was mud that was at least 3 inches deep and in spots 6 inches? Well, it was.
January 17th, Sunday; We left the water on the rest of the day Saturday with no results, because we weren't sure if the pipes were broken or not Jim turned the water off before we went to bed. He got up early and went in to the office for a few hours, was home around 9 so he turned on the water. At around 9:30, the water started gushing into the sinks and shower. YAY!! I was so excited. I didn't even care that it was chocolate brown for the first 15 minutes. I just let it run until it ran clear. And Miracle of Miracles... no broken pipes.
I did 6 loads of laundry that day, Jim cleaned out the filters to the washer. Well, guess what... on
Monday (the 18th); I put a load of sheets in the washer, left the house around 8:30 (a.m.), Jim got home around 4:00 (p.m.) to the sound of running water. The water intake/shutoff had broken. The washer had finished washing etc. but the water never shut off. So, it was coming up over the top and out the bottom of the washer and had been doing so all day long. Fortunately, this house is still a fixer upper and the spaces between the floor boards and the hole in the floor (that is covered with a piece of plywood at the moment) allowed the water to flow right on out of and under the house, without causing any damages to anything in the house. Whoo Hoo!!
It has now been a week and a day. The water is running perfectly. Jim has ordered the new part for the washer. He found out you are not suppose to take the filter screens out and leave them out. Hmmmm. The new part should be here in another day or two, then I will be doing laundry again. Yay! I must say, though, if it doesn't get here by then, I will have to go to the laundry mat to do a load or two. LOL, not the end of the world, just inconvenient.
Well, it is Monday evening, I am tired and have to teach tomorrow, so I am off to bed. Next time I want to tell you about the new water heater. Exciting news!!!! Maybe even a photo!

Hello, followers!!

Well, here we are, it is Friday night, we are still without water. The temps have been in the 40's day and night, misty rain yesterday, sunny today. Can't figure out why we still have no water, other than there is just one spot underground that is still frozen. Hopefully, it will stay nice and we can get this thawed out.
I did all the dishes tonight except for two baking pans. Jim has been filling up milk jugs with water at his office. That is what we have been using. Well, I used all but 1 of the 6 gallons to do the dishes. I am telling you the kitchen was a real disaster. Both sides of the sink were full and the stove was a mess. I feel so much better getting those all done. Once I got started I didn't want to stop, although Jim had suggested I do the rest tomorrow when I was 1/2 done, I just wanted to get it done and get the sinks and stove cleaned up. Looks a whole bunch better.
Thought I would catch you up on the water report. We know the pump is working, because the neighbor up the hill is getting their water without any problem. (We pump water to them). So it is somewhere underground from the pump house to our house.
More tomorrow. Maybe the water will be flowing and I will write about something else. Wouldn't that be nice!!
Thanks for your continued prayers.

Still No water for us

It did get up to 40 degrees yesterday. We are back to school today, which means I had to get up at 4:30 to go to work... Wooo Hooo!!

The sun is shining, Jim came home to check the water, nothing came through. It is working at the pump, just not getting through. Hopefully, in a day or two we will have enough warmth to warm up the ground and unfreeze the pipes. I am so ready... you should see my dishes.... No you shouldn't... very embarrassing!!

Got my Master Gardener Meeting tonight, you'd think with having 2 months to write the minutes and having nearly 3 weeks off of work, I would have had those things done.... Well, I do now! I am so grateful for the computer, so much quicker than retyping everything. Just a change here and there, type in the new info, the format stays the same and in a matter of minutes the 'minutes' are done.

Well, off to my next project. Have a great day!!

Warming?! Maybe!?

It's Monday, 8:00 a.m. still only 20 degrees out there.
Ok, it is now 11:00, we are up to 36 degrees and I saw water dripping off the front of the house... wooo hooo!!
Jim will be home around noon for lunch and will try to get the well back up and running. Doesn't mean the pipes are thawed but, if we can at least have the well going again that would be a start.

No church, today

No church today at my little church. Most of the members (about 20-25) are older and live down the back roads. The bigger churches and the ones in town are all open, tho. This is the second week in a row that they have called church, because of the weather.

Yesterday it snowed in tiny little flakes that glistened in the sun like little specks of glitter. It looked like the snow in a snowglobe. It was so pretty. Today that same snow is glittering on the ground. The temp was 18 when I got up, I must admit I didn't get up until 9:00, oops! Who knows what the temp was earlier. When I went to bed it was about 8.
All for now....

Day 2, no water

Here we are, day two of no water..... Jim went down to the well house yesterday to discover that the water is frozen all the way down to the pump house and the water was gushing out of the hoses feeding to our house, Nick's and the neighbor we supply. So he turned the whole thing off, we will need to wait until the temps go up and thaw out the ground before we get water from the well. Predictions are for next week to be in the high 30's to mid or high 40's. Sounds good to me right now. Still no photos, but I am working on it.
All this time off of work has given me the opportunity to get some cleaning done in the house. Not that I have taken advantage of it as much as I should have, but the opportunity is there *~*
Seriously, I do have a bunch done, just have so much more that needs doin'. Does it ever really get 'done'. Hmmmm......

More broken pipes

-4 degrees when I went to bed last night. The water pressure was really low, so I turned all the faucets on full, but within an hour they were completely stopped. That means the water is frozen under the house and maybe under the ground. Welcome to global 'warming'!!?

The sun is shinning and the wind is blowing, I can feel it when it is gushing. I am in the house by the way. This was and still is a fixer upper house. We have a lot of fixing up to still do. Sometimes I want to write in to HGTV to see if any of the shows would come and fix a room or roof or add a room on.... anything. The good thing about these cold winds is that we can find the next place that needs sealing up and we can tell if we did a good job or not, of the previous sealing up job.

Jim left really early for work, seeings how he can use the water there to get cleaned up etc. I will probably go down there in a while, I did fill some bottles with the water last night before the pipes froze all the way, so I can wash up. The coffee was already ready to brew, so as soon as it is done, I will have a cup of coffee, get dressed and head down to Jim's work. He will come home early to check under the house and check on Nick's pipes. Then we will know,hopefully, what is going on with the water.

Well, on a higher note.... the sun is shining, it looks absolutely beautiful out there, lots of bright light coming in through the windows, just gorgeous! I have a warm house and lots of food, the propane tank is full and the electricity is still on. All good things!

Another Day Off

Well, they called school for tomorrow. The road conditions are pretty bad. Temperatures aren't going up high enough to melt the snow and ice, especially on the back roads.
Tried to do laundry yesterday but the pipes to the washer were frozen. Later in the day, after running a small heater next to the washer for 3 or 4 hours, the water started flowing again. However, coming out the sides of the pipes was not what I was hoping for. I pulled the washer out from the wall, turned off the water at the washer, but that did not help. I had to call Jim to come home, turn off the main, then he proceeded to replace the broken pipes. He ended up fixing one of them twice, as the break was all the way down and under the floor. My poor honey. I guess we will be moving those pipes come spring to a warmer spot in the house. We can run water in all the other areas, sinks, showers but not the washing machine. It usually freezes at least once a winter. Hopefully, this will be the one time and we will see no others. Weather today was nice and sunny but the high was a mear 18 degrees. We are really loving our new gas fireplace!! Write more for ya later.... Love to all.... B

Long time no news

Oh, my goodness, I have sure not kept up with this blog thing!
Well, here we go, it is January 5, 2010 (can you believe it? Just 10 years ago people were preparing for 'y2k'. 9 years ago 9-11 happened, we have a African American/White President. Many of our relatives and some friends have passed on, but oh my goodness we are into another decade. Wow!!)
Here in the Ozarks when it snows it usually lasts about 3 days, at the most. This year, however, it started snowing on Saturday and did not stop for at least 24 hours, accumulation of about 3". Now for those of you reading this in the north, that isn't even enough to get out the snow blower, however, with only a few snow plows in the county, we don't go anywhere. School has been called now for the past 2 days and one more tomorrow for sure. We are predicted to get another snow/ice storm on Thursday. The ice here is really bad. I only remember being in an ice storm when Jim was in college in Olivet, MI. The ones here are bad, the one last year was especially bad. I would much rather have snow.
So, I will not be working tomorrow. Kind of nice not having to go to work, but the paycheck suffers as well. We will have to make it up in the spring.
I have much that has happened since August, but will have to catch-up another time. Hopefully sooner than 4 months. Have some photos as well, and maybe I will post a photo or two of our snow. The temps have not been warm enough (-2 this morning) to melt much of it. The chickens are spending a lot of time on my front porch. What a mess. Oh, well in the spring I will just get out the hose, soap, bleach and scrub brush, to clean it all off.
Love to all.... I'll write soon.....