I did a bit of decorating at the front door.
My best friend Susie was making Christmas Swags again! We had a good visit a week ago. She and her husband are fishermen so they sent a mess of walleye home with us...really yummy! I have known her since before our oldest children went to kindergarten...and those "kids" will be 50 in the coming year.
I put up a few decorations on my other wreath...Fall became Christmas!
No lights this year. Just some Santas and a couple of snowflakes.
Far Side
We had a small get together with some Grands and our two Great Grands. So good to see them all again!
Great Grands are growing like weeds.
These are busy little kids. Hey Mikey loves chocolate milk and celery. Cee Cee or Miss Sassy Pants has found her voice mostly to command her mother's attention with a loud MOM!
Hey Mikey is playing Hockey now and his Mom reports he is skating better than last year. He is 4 1/2 years old.
Cee Cee is 20 months old. I told her she needs to go potty in the big girl potty..she said NO. However she laid real still when I changed her poopy diaper after her parents were going to do rock paper scissors for the honor.
Maddie and Cee Cee
Savannah and Cee Cee
Adam had to work. Noah was not feeling well. Paige was celebrating Thanksgiving with her Beau.
We appreciate all our Grands and enjoy spending time with them. We played the game Splendor and of course played with the littles and watched the Hockey game...and had a marvelous spread of snacks.
Far Side
Winter Wonderland is the name of the latest CAL (Crochet A Long).
The yarn finally came! It was released from the hostage situation within the Postal Service. Who knows why it was held nine days in West Fargo ND.
Far Guy is busy winding already. I always wind my yarn into balls because otherwise I might encounter a join (where two different pieces come together) or some inferior thread or a big horrid tangle while I am crocheting.
The pattern has rows of trees, hearts, reindeer, snowmen, snowflakes etc...you get the picture. I may add in some blue and perhaps even a dark burgundy...time will tell.
So this is the third CAL that I am working on. Sooner or later I am bound to finish one! I am absolutely smitten with mosaic crochet...it is like drawing with yarn.
Far Side
You can only see this lake in late Fall after all the brush has lost its leaves. Not sure why it is call Cranberry Lake....maybe there are some Highbush Cranberries nearby. Come Spring I will have to watch for the blooms.
We had a really nice ride in the hills the other day.
As you can see we still have snow. Imagine that!
We finally emptied the deep freeze...the last thing in there was ice cream so we just had to finish it off....must be the reward! Now to completely defrost it!
Far Side
I finally saved all the photographs on my old computer, photos were copied to flash drives and the HP Simple Saves were wiped clean. Simple Saves are awesome if you use Windows. They are not compatible with a Mac.
Kind of bittersweet as I had that old Windows 7 Desktop since 2011 and it had great photo editing software! AND it still worked a bit slow but it worked...they no longer did updates to Windows 7 so the writing was on the wall. ... the hard drive will be smashed and the rest recycled. I did run into some great photos...they still need to be organized...a good project for the winter! I may even order some prints over the winter. Added bonus is the table that computer sat on is now all cleaned up...one area looks less cluttered!
I have been busy with lots of projects. I am finishing up a Christmas gift and spent some time upstairs organizing stuff...one thing leads to another to another.
130 Christmas Cards were mailed. One last ornament was mailed to someone special!
Here is part five of my afghan.
I am still waiting for the yarn for the Winter Wonderland afghan to get here. It is being held hostage in West Fargo ND, I finally had the Post Office nice gal that has a working brain track it down as it has been in West Fargo for eight days. In the meantime I began working on part six of the afghan pictured. It has one more part and then the border.
My fever blisters( from the fever I had after the Covid Shot) are just about healed up. That is a relief!
We had a quiet Thanksgiving Day.
Far Side
Today we are thankful for shelter from the cold, enough food to eat, reasonably good health and our family.
We had lunch with my parents yesterday... Mom made Sloppy Joes and we brought Sour Cream and Raisin Pie for three of us and Far Guy had Oregon Berry Pie. The pie was delicious!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Far Side
The barn at the farm where I grew up has seen better days. Soon it will be a pile of rubble and a new barn will be in its place. We had a good visit with Roger when we went over and petted Annie the Border Collie.
Yesterday I took a few photos. It had been on my list of things to do since early Fall and we just didn't get around to it.
I learned many things in that old barn. Never trust Banty roosters would be number one on my list. How to lock cows into their stanchions, how to feed and brush them. How to get rid of lice and how to spray them with fly spray in the summer. How to feed calves milk replacer out of a bucket with a teat and not spill the whole bucket all over because baby calves are aggressive drinkers. How to milk cows by hand and take care of their udders because a cow with sore teats will be a kicker and difficult to milk. How to use a milking machine and a cream separator. That cows peeing will splatter a long way...same goes for poop. Everyone knows their place in the barn except for a new cow. While hand milking you can squirt milk into the mouths of waiting in the aisles kittens or your other baby brother. How to clean out gutters, how to lay down a bed of straw for the calves in the calf pen....how to give sick calves shots of antibiotics. When it is cold in the winter the barn is warmer than being outside. Barns have their own unique smells.
The barn was built by the Lemons most likely in the 1930's... they were relatives of Far Guys ( a brother of Far Guy's Maternal Grandmother). Loren Lemon and Florence Graham Lemon lived there and raised their three children there until they moved to Washington sometime before 1949 when Loren died. My parents bought the farm in the Spring of 1952 when my Dad returned from Korea.
Far Side
Baxter belongs to my baby brother and his bride. Baxter is 16 months old now. This is his first Fall at the lake. He is a busy Mini Aussie boy, his nose is always working. He found deer guts to bring home but that is a different story.
Here in Minnesota we get ice that freezes near the shore of our lakes...then depending on the current and fish activity it can have thicker ice in places and thin ice in places. Fall ice can be treacherous.
Baxter walked right off the dock and onto the ice....well before long the ice broke and Baxter was in the water...he found a ledge of ice to get his paws up onto and hung there. When Baxter is in trouble he does not bark. The time he got a couple of fish hooks caught in his foot he just held his paw up and looked pathetic....that was on a Saturday and finding a Vet to remove them was a problem...my brother finally located a Vet 60 miles away that would stay in the office if they hurried to get there. Fish hooks were removed successfully and Baxter was just a little loopy from the anesthetic.
Anyways Baxter was hanging onto a shelf of ice. My brother was nearby putting away some things for winter. I think he probably called his bride for help as soon as he saw poor Baxter clinging to the edge of the ice with his paws and the rest of his body submerged in the icy water...anyways...my baby brother got a kayak on the ice/water and was busting the ice breaking a trail to Baxter...his bride was calling for Baxter on the dock...eventually after about twenty minutes in the water...Baxter swam to the dock and was pulled out!
Talk about some excitement! I asked if Baxter was cold and shivering... "No, he was happily running around. " said my baby brother.
Good thing Baxter can swim. I wonder if he has learned his lesson about ice. Good thing my brother was there and it was a good thing he had not put all the kayaks away. Possibly he should put an ice chisel near the dock!
I remember when we lived at the lake we had a cat that must have chased something out on the ice...probably chasing a mouse... came back to the house looking like a big old icicle with ice covered hair standing out in all directions. So cats can possibly swim a bit if they absolutely have to.
Baxter during one of his visits to our house.
Far Side
Bailey lived next door. We would hear her barking; she barked at deer, raccoons, squirrels and just about anything that moved. Including us as we walked by her driveway. If her bark changed in tone Far Guy and Chance would walk over to see what was up. She liked Chance and would visit him...then she got a collar that beeped and she would only come to visit when the battery wore out. She loved her people and they loved her. In the past few years she has been going downhill...she would never allow me to pet her until the last year or so...senility I guess.
This is Bailey and one of her people. Her youngest people are now 15 and 16. They were just little when Bailey was a puppy. ( A Beagle)
Bailey and Chance in 2009.
Perhaps she is running with Chance again. Bailey crossed over the Rainbow Bridge in her sleep one night last week. She had been barking less and less and then the barking stopped.
Far Side
We left on a mission with Ranger Blue to deliver a couple of ornaments to my cousin.
We were not sure how the trails would be...but they were good.
The Ornaments were delivered. I still have one for a cranky neighbor...he hates 4 wheelers or anything that is not a car...so we didn't dare drive in his yard.
The skies were blue and the sunshine warm.
The river has ice along the edges. It was good to get out and about.
Back at home I made Rhubarb - Raspberry Jam. Trying to clear out the big freezer....it really needs to sit and completely defrost for a few days. Far Guy did some odds and ends outside....before we knew it...it was dark.
Far Side
Wow I got a package in the mail!
Such beautiful work and so many butterflies!
I know how much time is put into the embroidery....it is beautiful handwork. These came from my long time blog friend Linda in Colorado! I shall treasure the pillowcases...they are almost too beautiful to use...but I will use them! Thank you Linda!
Far Side
Most of the 2021 Christmas Ornaments have been delivered.
Far Guy did all the carving this year. ( My thumb was just not up to wood carving) I did some touch up work and sanded them all in preparation for painting.
Meet the 2021 Gnomes!
Welcome to the dining room workshop. The peanut butter jar stand should be patented, it works so well! I can work on 12 carvings at once.
The carvings this year are various sizes, shapes and colors. There is ONLY one orange Gnome and that goes to special friends in Wyoming.
Some have beards and some have smiles. Each one is unique and one of a kind. I used acrylic paint, sanded some paint off and did a brown wash and then added a sparkly glaze to the Gnome hats.
We are very pleased with them and hope that everyone on our list enjoys them. 110 carvings were made. It is truly a labor of love.
Far Side
It was snowing and blowing around...the wind was moving the tops of the Oak trees and an occasional snownado came through the yard ( tornado shape wind picking up snow). The wind chill was near zero so it was a tad chilly out there.
Yup sure enough there was a ground blizzard happening out there.
We went for a ride in the woods down to the river. Far Guy said "It might be an adventure! " We made it there and back safely.
No sun now for days...typical November days ...cloudy and dreary...we use our special light most mornings when we are reading emails and news.
Far Side
That would be me... the idiot. When I ordered yarn for Winter Wonderland I did not double check the order...so I have no cream color...well you need cream or white to make that blanket.
I have lots of green.
I quickly made another order...it probably won't be here til next week. Oh well in the meantime I need to do a yarn inventory and work on the other mosaic crochet blanket.
All the Christmas Cards have their words and I signed them all...next comes address labels and stamps.
Far Side
I am working on words.
Peace, Believe, Noel and Joy are the words I chose to use on the Christmas Cards. I used the Gemini and dies to cut out the words. Then I had lots of poking out to do the centers of all the a, e, o, l's etc ...it was putzy work. I got rid of a number of paper scraps that were accumulating in the paper drawer in my desk.
One more afternoon and I will be done with those words! My fingers get all sticky from the glue I am using.
Far Guy entered all the addresses one by one on the Christmas Card list...he was a trooper and hopes he never has to do that again. ( Windows to Mac was a nightmare) The address labels have been printed. He is working on the Christmas letter.
The last of the Christmas Ornaments were mailed Monday afternoon...so I will reveal the ornaments at the end of the week. Brain Dead Postal Lady had no Internet so she could not weigh packages or print out postage...I didn't know the scales were connected to the Internet...I wondered what they did in the olden days? She told me to come back tomorrow...ya right. ( I may have said bad word bad word under my breath) I went to a different Post Office that is open from 12 - 2 and she was more than happy for the business.
Fever Blisters are no fun...I get them when I have had a fever for a couple of days...and guess what the Moderna Vaccination Booster gave me a fever. In a couple of weeks they will be gone...it always takes time. The ones inside my mouth are a bit better...but I am still cranky.
Far Side
Yup it snowed again overnight on Saturday night/early Sunday morning...
It must have been about four maybe five inches...and it was good heavy wet snow like you make a snowman with. I was tired after shoveling so no snowmen were made.
The glass flowers were all covered with snow.
I rescued the bird feeder, it had lots of ice in the tray...poor birds were struggling to find seeds. Then I shoveled in front of the garages.
Then I went to the couch and sat with my feet up feeling sorry for myself because I have fever blisters inside and outside of my mouth....I suppose there could be worse side effects from the booster shot.
Far Side
Not sure how much more is out there...enough. Our big excitement yesterday was almost getting stuck in a snowdrift with Ranger Blue....we took recycles to Osage. We were ditch riding until the snow got too deep.
It was nice to get out of the house. It is nice and warm in Ranger Blue, after awhile you wouldn't even need a coat.
I rested most of the day just doing a few things, I crocheted and watched a couple of Movies...Silver Linings I give it a 4 and Begin Again I give that one a 6 out of 10. I watched The Holiday a few days ago and I give that one an 8.
My yarn for my new project is stuck in West Fargo ND since Thursday morning at 8:34 AM...hasn't moved at all in days. Buggers.
I felt better yesterday and hope today is even better. I need to get back to normal...I must have been making antibodies to beat the band.
Far Side
It is white here and more white stuff is supposed to join this white stuff. We have had snow before but it melted, so this is the first snow of the season that has stayed on the ground.
It was a rough day Friday with the after effects of the 3rd shot; headache, joint aches, chills and being tired. I hope today is better..if not I will resume my spot on the couch watching and sleeping through Norsemen on Netflix.
Far Guy is taking good care of me.
My baby brother came over and shoveled the walk.
Far Side
Grocery Day was eventful, now they are substituting when I requested no substitutions. Buggers...this is at the "other" grocery store in town...not at Wally World where I would expect some shenanigans. Wally World seems to have their poop in a pile for a change.
I got the booster shot for Covid...the booster is 50 % of the normal shot. They would not give me the third full strength vaccination.
We had a bunch of errands to do in town. On a good note Ranger Blue is back at home after its first service call.
I am going to Bingo with my Dad and hope I get home before I feel rotten from the shot.
It snowed during the night Wednesday night then it turned to rain and it rained most of the day on Thursday.
I finished a bit more on my Mosaic Crochet CAL (Crochet A Long)
Week Three
Week Four..it is getting more colorful every week! The mustard color was a stretch...but after the next part I think it will all make sense...or not.
Onto week five out of seven while I am waiting for the yarn to arrive for my next project!
Update: Back from Bingo safely, we are getting rain and snow and the roads are getting slippery. I had one bingo for 24$ ...no Bingos for Dad but he was one number away many times. Shot report..my arm is sore and I am tired.
Far Side
Sometimes family history retold by others needs to be backed up by facts. For years we all thought that my Dad's brother Hugo recuperated in California.
Here are the facts from his Honorable Discharge paper.
Inducted April 16, 1942 at Fort Snelling, Minnesota. He was 28 and 2/12 years of age and was a farm laborer, blue eyes, brown hair and a ruddy complexion. He was 5 feet 9 inches in height. He completed 2 years and 20 days service.
He was a Rifleman qualifying with the M 1 Rifle
He was in the Sicilian Campaign
Decorations EAME Medal, Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal
Wounds received Shrapnel wound in buttocks, left leg and ankle
Hospital Tuscaloosa Alabama dated 2 May 1944
Left U.S. 8 June 43, arrived North African theater 22 June 43; left North African theater 5 July 43; arrived European theater 10 July 43; left European theater August 43; arrived North Africa theater August 43; left North African theater 15 Oct 43; arrived U.S. 24 Oct 43
Honorable discharge button presented at Northington General Hospital Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He spent 193 days in the hospital.
He was part of Company K, 157 Infantry in the United States Army.
My Uncle Hugo was a quiet man, who only spoke when it was necessary ...and when he spoke it was important so you better be listening. He limped especially in the winter. I have many memories of him. He married Aunt Mia and they raised Mia's Grandson together. Hugo had no children of his own but Grandson Joe was like a son to him.
Uncle Hugo 4 Feb 1914 - 25 Oct 1987
Thank you Veterans!
Far Side
I had a busy morning, I raked the leaves from under the back deck, cleaned the leaves out of the two grates out front, checked out solar lights and replaced a few, vacuumed up those darn old Japanese Beatles out of the sauna again.
Far Guy rolled the patio table away. The important windows have been washed.
I still have one hose out but not connected....I would like to wash the Ranger but it is off getting its 25 hour service appointment. I should sweep the garage floor one last time....that is on the bottom of my list. Of course I could add some brush trimming to the list.
Then we went to the Dentist, I had a fine checkup...Far Guy has to return.
Far Guy is going crazy trying to work on the Christmas card address label list...Windows to Mac...oh my. I told him to just start all over again entering them one at a time...that met with resistance.
I made the appointment for my third shot....Thursday.
I ordered yarn. That was great fun. I needed to order yarn for a new Crochet Along that starts Thursday....it is called Winter Wonderland and will be shades of Ivory and Greens...all shades of greens....and I might put a little light blue in there too. It has snowflakes, snowmen, reindeer...all things winter...there is no escaping winter so I may as well embrace it.
Far Side
I spent about 25 minutes in the Post Office mailing off ornaments to family and friends...you know who you are so be on the lookout! The postal lady is practically brain dead and kept exclaiming how many packages I had (16) and wasn't it fortunate that no one else was coming into the Post Office to stand in line. It is first come first serve brain dead lady. I seriously thought about going in there five minutes before she closed just to irritate her...and even though I am daylight savings time cranky I figured I would be nice. On our first trip of the day to town we bought bird seed, and paper to print out the Christmas Letter. Last of the big shoppers.
We had a leak under the kitchen sink. That drain has always been a problem...we fix it every couple of years. This time we may have fixed it for good... crossing our fingers. I was just the plumbers assistant...we had to go to town for new parts and fresh plumbers putty. Far Guy was the plumber in charge.
I took down the flags in the yard but didn't get new ones put up yet.
I suppose I should take this scarecrow gal down for the winter. She makes me smile.
The S word is in the forecast....bummer.
Far Side
I will share their stories about their favorite Christmas gift!
My favorite Christmas gift was a doll that I received when I was when about 5 years old. She had curly hair and was just about the same height that I was!
I am pretty much done with the leaves in the yard. The last mulch (10 1/2 times) was completed yesterday...I could rake a bit out back when I have the energy...maybe. I raked in front of both garages....one of my pet peeves is the leaves that blow inside the garage when the door is open. If there are none there they cannot blow inside!
It was a fine weather day yesterday...it was 56 F or 13 C eh for a high...practically summer like.
The old lawn mower was put up for sale and it sold within a few minutes. Yeah!
The new lawn mower is sitting in the garage...after it gets its mulching blades and kit it will be ready for next spring. I drove it around the yard a bit just to make sure that it was working. It steers much easier than the old one.
I have a few things yet on Fall work list...but it is coming along.
Deer hunting season started yesterday. What a beautiful day to be out in the woods! Great Niece Olivia got a deer!
Baxter is all set!
Far Side
Phoebe belongs to our youngest grandson Adam. But then again who really owns a cat.
Phoebe is vocal...sometimes she sounds downright sad. If something isn't to her liking she whines.
They lock her in a series of three rooms for the night...craft room, laundry room and bathroom...because otherwise she caterwauls at 4 AM.
When you open the door in the morning...she is out of there like she has been shot from a cannon! I know this from first hand experience.
She is a beauty! A Calico beauty. Adam rescued her from the animal shelter.
Far Side
Two skeins of yarn later and my Blaithin Blanket has a border! The pattern for this blanket came out in September of 2019. So what the heck it only took me a little over two years to finish.
Pay no attention to the quilt on the bed....I had to find someplace to spread it out!
80 squares all different colors, the pattern was supposed to be a stash buster! It is a very heavy warm blanket....I was very cozy when I was finishing the border.
So nice to have something finished!
Far Side
Seems like we were busy everyday so far this week. A couple of windows have been washed. Grocery day had to happen early...one substitution that did not make me happy...again ...when I said no substitutions. We got a loaf of non moldy bread....it is practically a miracle.
Far Guy's Godmother Marge died on Halloween. That is "Marge Grass" in the photo. She gave us a start of that plant about 20 years ago. Services will be held at a later date... Marge was 88 years old.
Psalm 23 Verse 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
A very nice young man...age of 60 died last week from Covid, he worked at the place where we used to take Chance to be groomed. He was always so cheerful and happy to see Chance...one time when we picked up Little Elvis from a grooming he hollered "Elvis has left the building! "
Far Side
3PM Monday afternoon I finished the ornaments for this year. I was very happy to put the paints away and get the dining room table back to "normal"...is there really a normal anymore? 110 ornaments were finished.
How about an ornament giveaway?? I will draw at least three people names on Sunday night ( November 7) and then get them off in the mail. Well lets see...IF you want to be entered please leave a comment that includes your favorite Christmas Gift as a child. You can also email me. I will mail packages to the United States and Canada...all other countries are just too expensive to send packages to....sorry.
My favorite Christmas gift as a child was a pair of ice skates. I wished for those Ice Skates for a whole year and got a pink radio...then I wished for them again and finally got them the next year. I loved those ice skates and wore them for about 10 winters...a Christmas gift that kept on giving and giving!
I was feeling guilty that no one won the Snow Stick contest last Spring...so I drew some names...Congratulations Karen at Wildflower Adventures and Pauline Persing at Pauline Persing Art, Writing and Natural history! Karen I need your address, you can email me at captainconnie2001atyahoodotcom Pauline I have your address. Something will be on the way to you soon. There I feel better now!
Far Side
We ordered something for Tilly.
Do you have a guess?
Now is it familiar?
I can bet that some of you know what it is...
*****************************
Here is the answer!
Remember going to a Drive In Movie? This is the speaker that you took from the post and hung it in your window...some were real staticky...then you moved to a different spot. Some people used to drive off with them before returning them to their post. I wonder how often that happened. It seemed like as soon as the movie was over everyone was in a hurry to get out of there.
Far Guy cleaned the old speaker up and he is looking for an old cord for it...he has a blue tooth speaker inside and from his phone he can play music...he intends to use it during car shows. We picked music from my phone and from his and made a playlist...all 1950's music. One of our favorites...Teen Angel ..........you are welcome for the earworm:)
Far Side
Yesterday we had a weather event. Snow/sleet fell on Sunday afternoon. Our first snow this Fall.
If I had been napping I would have missed it. It melted quickly.
Maddie sent me photos of our Great Grands on Halloween!
Pebbles and their Dad and a Dirt Bike Rider (Hey Mikey)
We put our outside light on to welcome anyone that might wander by last night.
Far Side
