Greetings, All:
It's really been a while since I posted on my blog, at least a couple of years. Actually, I've been so busy, I just forgot about it.
A lot's been going on in my neck of the woods, the Mid-Atlantic region. The last time I posted, I'd gone off the SCD diet. I'm actually on this diet, off and on, still, since I don't seem to have proper digestion. The reason for this, as I've found out, is that I don't have a gallbladder. ( The doctors don't tell you when they take it out that you need it for proper digestion. That would be one less boat, car, private school, house, etc., payment that they wouldn't have.) I really don't have a very high opinion of doctors, since I've never found one that could actually help me. All they offer are drugs, surgery, or drugs and more surgery. Forget it. I go on Google, type in symptoms, and diagnose myself. I've had more success with this than with any doctors' diagnosis.
I'm still making jewelry; if I didn't, I'd be even crazier than I am. Making jewelry is my therapy. When I put the needle into the bead and out the other side, I'm a happy camper. I can even calm myself by watching someone bead on uTube. I didn't get into sculptural peyote and I didn't enter any bead shows as posted before. I'm just not interested in having someone critique my work; if they had something bad to say about it, I'd get mad. Don't take criticism too well. As for sculptural peyote, it's just too complicated and I can't deal with that at this point in time.
I still suffer from depression, but try to overcome it with positive thoughts and actions (I don't do too well in this area), beading and reading. I love to read, which was my first passion. I have so many books, I don't have room for all of them. I did sell $2,000 worth of to-do books on Amazon, but have bought that much, and more, back, mostly beading books. I'm so thrilled when the doorbell rings and it's the UPS guy with my new beading book. I peruse it for a while then toss it aside and see if I can find another one on a different aspect of beading, or with totally different ideas and patterns. Some things never change.
This past winter was one of the coldest we've experienced in my area. We had several snowfalls and we're just not used to that here. I actually stayed in the house for two straight weeks and nearly went crazier. I swore that when summer came, I wouldn't say anything bad about the heat; so wrong. I've already been griping about the extreme heat this summer. It's been in the high 90's since the beginning of June, temps that we usually don't have until August. Of course, that means that I still have to stay inside, as the mosquitoes just love me. When I go outside for any length of time, I have to put on socks and make sure I have my arms covered. No fun, when it's nearly 100 degrees out there.
Our garden has been very strange this summer. We have tons of blooms on the cucumbers and squash but very little produce. We do have bees, a lot of them, but something else is going on that we can't figure out. I've gotten exactly three yellow crookneck squash, and it looks as though the vines are dying already.
My husband planted the tomatoes in hay bales this year, to avoid the destructive nematodes. There are 10 bales, in a row. In the top of each bale he drilled a hole, filled it with dirt and planted the tomatoes. Then, he put fencing wire around each tomato and also built a frame on each side of the wire, the length of the 10 bales, for added support. What a lot of work. The vines are very high and we have right many tomatoes, but they are small; tasty, for sure, but not that big. We still eat a lot of tomato sandwiches; YUM!
I pulled up my Iris plants as they were blooming mostly purple and they were supposed to be all different colors. I did learn, from Google, that if you don't cut the stalk once it blooms, the bees can cross pollinate and you'll wind up with mostly purple, which is the dominant color. It's been two summers since I pulled them up and I'm thinking I'll replant them as I do miss seeing them bloom and they do last quite a while in a vase, at least three days or more.
I did get in the pool this summer after a four-year absence swimming. The reason being that I was concerned about the chlorine soaking into my skin. Well, I swam with the great-grands for three days straight and the fourth day went to bed, for two days. I was so tired I could hardly function. I think it was a combination of chlorine and too much exercise, which I haven't been doing lately. I don't think I'll be going swimming again any time soon; it's just not worth it. I'll do something else, like walk on the treadmill and do yoga.
Haven't seen a snake for a couple of years but they're out there. They've been spotted by other members of the family, though. We have seen an abundance of other wildlife: 2 fawns, turkeys, bear, fox, rabbit, turtle, deer, and lots of birds, my favorite. We also had a mother opossum leave 4 babies in the recycle bin. When she didn't come back for them, I took them down to the edge of the woods and gently let them go. When I turned around, they were gone. We have an abundance of Cardinals, which are so beautiful. They come out at dusk and I recognize their little cheep-cheep song. Of course, the Wren, one of the smallest birds, has the loudest song. I don't see many Bluejays, which I consider one of the most beautiful birds. I need to ask Google how to attract more. We have seen, of course, lots of hummingbirds, attracted by the Echinacea and Periwinkle plants.
I have to admit, I'm ready for fall, which is my favorite time of year. My grandson is also ready for fall. He goes on a walkabout every day from two to three and then from five to six. He so enjoys the outdoors and comes in to tell me all of the different wildlife he's seen on his walks. My husband told him to be very careful if he saw any bear cubs, and to run the other way, as the mother would definitely attack if she sees anyone with her cubs. We do have a lot of Black Bear in our area. They've been seen walking down the middle of Main Street, downtown. A bear is something I don't want to see. My neighbor had one come up on his back porch, captured by his outdoor camera. The bear also destroyed his beehive he had at the edge of the woods. The deer have completely destroyed his summer garden and he's threatening to kill any future invaders; I hope not, I do love deer.
Well, I guess it's time to bring this post to a close. I didn't intend for it to be this long, and probably no one will read it anyway. To those of you that do, thank you, and I hope you have a wonderful rest of the summer. Be blessed, Nana
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Another Year Has Passed
Greetings,
The last time I posted I was just starting the SCD diet. I did the diet for three months and it really helped my digestive system. When I stay on it, I don't have any problems with gas, bloating, etc. Of course, I don't exactly stay on the diet. It's so boring I have to deviate once in a while. When I do, my system get totally skewed. Oh well, it just shows that I'm human after all, although some would argue that.
I've been busy with my usual household duties, cooking, cleaning, etc. and I've been selling some of my jewelry. Today I put on Facebook that my jewelry will no longer be for sale as it takes up too much of my time. I want to delve into sculptural peyote, which is making sculpture with beads. I'm tired of doing jewelry and want to try something totally new. I do believe I can do this, it will just take some patience, which I don't have a lot of. I'm also considering entering some beading competitions but have no doubt about my winning anything; I just want to do it to see if I can. I like to challenge myself.
I've been busy just living from day to day. Some days are better than others. I get very depressed some times, especially when it rains. I hate rainy days. They didn't use to bother me but it seems that the older I get the more they bother me. Just something else to have to deal with; there's always something, isn't there?
I had a very beautiful flowering season last summer and am looking forward to it again this year. My Dill and Fennel plants were over four feet high and the Swallow-tail butterfly laid many eggs on them. I did get to see one emerge, but always manage to miss most of them.
My Iris plants were spectacular last year. I had moved them a couple of years before and last summer they outdid themselves. I had so many I cut a lot of them and put them in a vase. They really did do well, I'm surprised to say. They bloomed for several days before I had to start replacing them.
I plan on having more herbs this summer. We use Basil a lot in Spaghetti Sauce and I need more of these plants. There's really nothing as wonderful as fresh Basil in Spaghetti Sauce. I use two large cans of Organic Fire Roasted tomatoes ( I order them from Amazon.com), olive oil, Basil and onion. Just cook it down a little and it tastes delicious. It's also good to use on pizza.
I bought some semolina flour, combined it with regular flour and made my own pizza dough. It is pretty complicated to make, with the kneading and all, but totally worth it. It is the best pizza I've ever eaten.
We now have curly Kale and mixed greens in the garden that are doing well. The curly Kale is yummy. I put it in some vegetable soup the other day and it really added to the flavor of the soup.
I can't believe my Begonias, that I put on the front porch to protect from the frost, are still blooming. I also brought my decorative lime green Sweet Potato Vine inside and it's growing like crazy in my kitchen where I have eight south-facing windows. I love having plants in the house in the winter time. It makes it seem much more cozy and keeps reminding me that summer is just around the corner.
I really hate the heat and humidity of summer but do enjoy the sunshine, flowers, swimming pool and garden. Can you believe it was 80 degrees here today? Too hot for this time of year.
Can you believe that after three years of not seeing a snake, my grandson saw one laying on the pine straw beside the fence the other day while riding his golf cart around. It was in the 50's but I guess still warm enough for the black snake to take a sun bath. I don't harm black or king snakes as they kill other poisonous snakes. I don't believe in killing anything that won't kill me.
I spent over two hours in Belk's today just looking and doing some last-minute shopping. They really had some fantastic sales. I'm glad it's going to be in the 40's Christmas day. I do hate a hot Christmas.
Well, readers, I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and please, do remember the reason for the season, Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, Bright and Morning Star, King, etc., etc., etc. Nana
The last time I posted I was just starting the SCD diet. I did the diet for three months and it really helped my digestive system. When I stay on it, I don't have any problems with gas, bloating, etc. Of course, I don't exactly stay on the diet. It's so boring I have to deviate once in a while. When I do, my system get totally skewed. Oh well, it just shows that I'm human after all, although some would argue that.
I've been busy with my usual household duties, cooking, cleaning, etc. and I've been selling some of my jewelry. Today I put on Facebook that my jewelry will no longer be for sale as it takes up too much of my time. I want to delve into sculptural peyote, which is making sculpture with beads. I'm tired of doing jewelry and want to try something totally new. I do believe I can do this, it will just take some patience, which I don't have a lot of. I'm also considering entering some beading competitions but have no doubt about my winning anything; I just want to do it to see if I can. I like to challenge myself.
I've been busy just living from day to day. Some days are better than others. I get very depressed some times, especially when it rains. I hate rainy days. They didn't use to bother me but it seems that the older I get the more they bother me. Just something else to have to deal with; there's always something, isn't there?
I had a very beautiful flowering season last summer and am looking forward to it again this year. My Dill and Fennel plants were over four feet high and the Swallow-tail butterfly laid many eggs on them. I did get to see one emerge, but always manage to miss most of them.
My Iris plants were spectacular last year. I had moved them a couple of years before and last summer they outdid themselves. I had so many I cut a lot of them and put them in a vase. They really did do well, I'm surprised to say. They bloomed for several days before I had to start replacing them.
I plan on having more herbs this summer. We use Basil a lot in Spaghetti Sauce and I need more of these plants. There's really nothing as wonderful as fresh Basil in Spaghetti Sauce. I use two large cans of Organic Fire Roasted tomatoes ( I order them from Amazon.com), olive oil, Basil and onion. Just cook it down a little and it tastes delicious. It's also good to use on pizza.
I bought some semolina flour, combined it with regular flour and made my own pizza dough. It is pretty complicated to make, with the kneading and all, but totally worth it. It is the best pizza I've ever eaten.
We now have curly Kale and mixed greens in the garden that are doing well. The curly Kale is yummy. I put it in some vegetable soup the other day and it really added to the flavor of the soup.
I can't believe my Begonias, that I put on the front porch to protect from the frost, are still blooming. I also brought my decorative lime green Sweet Potato Vine inside and it's growing like crazy in my kitchen where I have eight south-facing windows. I love having plants in the house in the winter time. It makes it seem much more cozy and keeps reminding me that summer is just around the corner.
I really hate the heat and humidity of summer but do enjoy the sunshine, flowers, swimming pool and garden. Can you believe it was 80 degrees here today? Too hot for this time of year.
Can you believe that after three years of not seeing a snake, my grandson saw one laying on the pine straw beside the fence the other day while riding his golf cart around. It was in the 50's but I guess still warm enough for the black snake to take a sun bath. I don't harm black or king snakes as they kill other poisonous snakes. I don't believe in killing anything that won't kill me.
I spent over two hours in Belk's today just looking and doing some last-minute shopping. They really had some fantastic sales. I'm glad it's going to be in the 40's Christmas day. I do hate a hot Christmas.
Well, readers, I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and please, do remember the reason for the season, Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, Bright and Morning Star, King, etc., etc., etc. Nana
Monday, December 17, 2012
Greetings: It's been a while since I posted, but here goes.
I started a new diet today, the SCD diet, specific carbohydrate diet. This diet eliminates ALL starches. I've been thinking about starting this diet for a while now but had to start really feeling bad to do it.
Most people won't do anything about their diet unless they're forced to. This is the case for me. I've been having problems with digestion for over 25 yrs. now. I was diagnosed with Candidiasis way back when and have been dealing with it ever since. If you read my previous posts, you'll see where I'm coming from.
To make a long story short, the SCD diet is very restrictive. I'd been eating mostly grains and veggies - no dairy, wheat, sugar, fruit or meat; I'm a vegetarian. Of course, I deviated from this diet from time to time and really messed up my digestive process. Digestion is everything. Improper digestion is the underlying cause of all illness; I do believe this.
I won't be eating any grains, but I will be eating some dairy in the form of home-made yogurt. I ordered a yogurt-making machine today and a small food processor to help with the kitchen work. I'll be spending more time in the kitchen now, which isn't making me too happy. Although I have trouble digesting the lactose in milk products, as do a lot of people, fermented organic milk can be digested by most people. I hope I'm one of them.
To begin with, I need more good bacteria in my gut and yogurt will provide this. Also, I can eat certain cheeses, such as cheddar, monteray jack, swiss and hoop, or farmer's cheese. I haven't eaten dairy for years, so this will really be a treat for me. The reason I went off of dairy is that milk products did a number on my sinuses. When I stopped eating dairy, all of my sinus problems disappeared.
I also will start eating a little meat. I really don't like meat, but I'll try it again, because I have to have something to eat. I've been hungry all day. For breakfast I had a fruit salad with orange slices, apple and very ripe banana with lemon juice on top. It was so good, but it doesn't stay with you.
I got on the computer this AM and found a recipe for pumpkin muffins. I made these, even putting organic raisins in the batter. Fruit isn't supposed to be eaten with anything else but fruit. I did notice a few twinges, but, all in all, they digested pretty well, as well as being delicious. (Update: I do feel a few twinges. I shouldn't have put raisins in the batter, but thought it would be okay - NOT)
For lunch I had 2 organic eggs cooked with chopped zuccini and 1/2 slice of cheddar cheese; this digested well, also. Now, at 4:54 PM, I'm still hungry even after eating another pumpkin muffin. Now, I've got to find a recipe for something to eat for supper. I do hate feeling hungry all of the time, but at least I don't have bloating, gas and stomach pain.
This diet isn't that hard for me, as I was already a vegetarian and had eliminated a lot of foods from my diet. Still, it's pretty hard to give up grains. I do not feel well after eating grains. I ate Quinoa pasta last night with a raw salad and pizza sauce (just a drollop) and three hours later my stomach felt tight and very funny. I could tell it wasn't digesting well.
We all need to listen to our body and it will tell us what to eat and what not to eat. You know what I mean, we'll be able to tell what we should and shouldn't eat by the way we feel after we eat it.
Enough about diet. I'm still beading and having a lot of fun doing it. Beading totally relaxes me. I think about the pattern I'm going to do and this keeps me from thinking about stressful things, and people.
I truly hope all of you have the most wonderful Christmas ever. I'll post a month from now and let you know how I'm doing on the SCD diet. Later, Nana
I started a new diet today, the SCD diet, specific carbohydrate diet. This diet eliminates ALL starches. I've been thinking about starting this diet for a while now but had to start really feeling bad to do it.
Most people won't do anything about their diet unless they're forced to. This is the case for me. I've been having problems with digestion for over 25 yrs. now. I was diagnosed with Candidiasis way back when and have been dealing with it ever since. If you read my previous posts, you'll see where I'm coming from.
To make a long story short, the SCD diet is very restrictive. I'd been eating mostly grains and veggies - no dairy, wheat, sugar, fruit or meat; I'm a vegetarian. Of course, I deviated from this diet from time to time and really messed up my digestive process. Digestion is everything. Improper digestion is the underlying cause of all illness; I do believe this.
I won't be eating any grains, but I will be eating some dairy in the form of home-made yogurt. I ordered a yogurt-making machine today and a small food processor to help with the kitchen work. I'll be spending more time in the kitchen now, which isn't making me too happy. Although I have trouble digesting the lactose in milk products, as do a lot of people, fermented organic milk can be digested by most people. I hope I'm one of them.
To begin with, I need more good bacteria in my gut and yogurt will provide this. Also, I can eat certain cheeses, such as cheddar, monteray jack, swiss and hoop, or farmer's cheese. I haven't eaten dairy for years, so this will really be a treat for me. The reason I went off of dairy is that milk products did a number on my sinuses. When I stopped eating dairy, all of my sinus problems disappeared.
I also will start eating a little meat. I really don't like meat, but I'll try it again, because I have to have something to eat. I've been hungry all day. For breakfast I had a fruit salad with orange slices, apple and very ripe banana with lemon juice on top. It was so good, but it doesn't stay with you.
I got on the computer this AM and found a recipe for pumpkin muffins. I made these, even putting organic raisins in the batter. Fruit isn't supposed to be eaten with anything else but fruit. I did notice a few twinges, but, all in all, they digested pretty well, as well as being delicious. (Update: I do feel a few twinges. I shouldn't have put raisins in the batter, but thought it would be okay - NOT)
For lunch I had 2 organic eggs cooked with chopped zuccini and 1/2 slice of cheddar cheese; this digested well, also. Now, at 4:54 PM, I'm still hungry even after eating another pumpkin muffin. Now, I've got to find a recipe for something to eat for supper. I do hate feeling hungry all of the time, but at least I don't have bloating, gas and stomach pain.
This diet isn't that hard for me, as I was already a vegetarian and had eliminated a lot of foods from my diet. Still, it's pretty hard to give up grains. I do not feel well after eating grains. I ate Quinoa pasta last night with a raw salad and pizza sauce (just a drollop) and three hours later my stomach felt tight and very funny. I could tell it wasn't digesting well.
We all need to listen to our body and it will tell us what to eat and what not to eat. You know what I mean, we'll be able to tell what we should and shouldn't eat by the way we feel after we eat it.
Enough about diet. I'm still beading and having a lot of fun doing it. Beading totally relaxes me. I think about the pattern I'm going to do and this keeps me from thinking about stressful things, and people.
I truly hope all of you have the most wonderful Christmas ever. I'll post a month from now and let you know how I'm doing on the SCD diet. Later, Nana
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Things That I Love
Greetings Readers: I hope this entry finds all of you doing well. I wrote a blog a while back discussing things that I hated and this entry will discuss things that I love.
There are many things that I love. Number one is spending time with my chidren, grandchildren and great-grands. Of course, family comes first. I do believe the number one thing that I love after my family is reading. I do love to read and spend several hours a day doing so. You may be asking yourself, at this point, how can she spend several hours a day reading? I can, because I really don't have the energy to do much of anything else. I arise fairly early in the morning, get my basic chores done, eat lunch, get a good book, go back to bed and read until suppertime, clean up the kitchen, go back to bed and either read or try to find something decent to watch on TV; usually, this is a fruitless effort, as there is a lot of junk on television. I finally have to resort to watching National Geographic or the Animal Planet; I love animal and nature shows.
I'm now rereading Luanne Rice's books and just ordered nine more from Amazon.com. This will complete my set of Luanne's books. I do love her books. A lot of her books have a beach genre and I love books about the beach. I live only two hours from the Atlantic ocean but really don't get down there too often. I don't like to swim, but love to sit on the sand and watch the waves wash ashore and, hopefully, see the sun set. The sunsets are just beautiful here in the Mid Atlantic region.
Right now, I feel the urge to see the ocean again, so maybe my daughter, grandson and I can take a trip to the North Carolina Aquarium at Nags Head. This is a very nice aquarium that houses lots of interesting fish, reptiles and mammals. It's such a fun place to visit and not too long a trip there and back.
Another thing I love is listening to good music, especially rock and roll! Yes, I'm a fifties girl and still love that style of music. I also love opera, classical, contemporary Christian music and some latin music. There's a lot of music genres out there that I haven't listened to yet but hope to. Just give me something with a great beat and I'm happy.
I love feeling good, but the older I get the slower I seem to be, ability wise. I'm trying to do more exercise and this has made me feel a lot better, plus I'm giving myself a B-12 shot once a month. As we get older, our bodies find it harder to assimilate B-12. Also, I'm going to physical therapy twice a week for pulled neck and shoulder muscles, which have caused me a tremendous amount of pain.
Even though I have had better health, I really could be a lot worse off, so I shouldn't complain so much.
Be blessed all, Nana
There are many things that I love. Number one is spending time with my chidren, grandchildren and great-grands. Of course, family comes first. I do believe the number one thing that I love after my family is reading. I do love to read and spend several hours a day doing so. You may be asking yourself, at this point, how can she spend several hours a day reading? I can, because I really don't have the energy to do much of anything else. I arise fairly early in the morning, get my basic chores done, eat lunch, get a good book, go back to bed and read until suppertime, clean up the kitchen, go back to bed and either read or try to find something decent to watch on TV; usually, this is a fruitless effort, as there is a lot of junk on television. I finally have to resort to watching National Geographic or the Animal Planet; I love animal and nature shows.
I'm now rereading Luanne Rice's books and just ordered nine more from Amazon.com. This will complete my set of Luanne's books. I do love her books. A lot of her books have a beach genre and I love books about the beach. I live only two hours from the Atlantic ocean but really don't get down there too often. I don't like to swim, but love to sit on the sand and watch the waves wash ashore and, hopefully, see the sun set. The sunsets are just beautiful here in the Mid Atlantic region.
Right now, I feel the urge to see the ocean again, so maybe my daughter, grandson and I can take a trip to the North Carolina Aquarium at Nags Head. This is a very nice aquarium that houses lots of interesting fish, reptiles and mammals. It's such a fun place to visit and not too long a trip there and back.
Another thing I love is listening to good music, especially rock and roll! Yes, I'm a fifties girl and still love that style of music. I also love opera, classical, contemporary Christian music and some latin music. There's a lot of music genres out there that I haven't listened to yet but hope to. Just give me something with a great beat and I'm happy.
I love feeling good, but the older I get the slower I seem to be, ability wise. I'm trying to do more exercise and this has made me feel a lot better, plus I'm giving myself a B-12 shot once a month. As we get older, our bodies find it harder to assimilate B-12. Also, I'm going to physical therapy twice a week for pulled neck and shoulder muscles, which have caused me a tremendous amount of pain.
Even though I have had better health, I really could be a lot worse off, so I shouldn't complain so much.
Be blessed all, Nana
That Time of the Year
Greetings, All:
Well, it's that time of the year, again. It seems that it's coming around sooner and sooner and that means birthdays are getting closer and closer, too.
Everyone anxiously awaits the arrival of Christmas, especially my little great grandchildren. They're so excited about Santa Claus. Isn't it a shame that they think of Santa before they think of that fact that we're celebrating Jesus' birthday?
I was thinking the other day about things we all should be thankful for. Of course, Jesus is the first thing. After Him comes the family, husband, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, etc. Next, comes the arts. My favorite is music. What would the world be like without beautiful music? When I sit here in my living room and listen to some of the music I've downloaded on my computer, I just marvel at the mystery that's music. How in the world did someone create written music? I am a musician so I know how long it takes one to learn to read music, and to understand music theory.
I took piano lessons for seven years when I was growing up and I've thanked my parents many times for the sacrifices they made so that I could learn how to play the piano. I always loved the piano, and when the preacher at my church offered an upright piano to the first person that called, I was thrilled. Of course, I got the piano and started taking lessons. I wouldn't take anything for my ability to play the piano. I think it's the most beautiful instrument, with the violin being a close second. Through the years I taught myself to play by ear as well and this has been a great source of joy and comfort to me as well. I can play almost anything that I hear, with a little practice.
The next thing I'm thankful for is nature. Nature certainly has the ability to soothe and calm and feed ones soul. I marvel at the change of seasons here in the Mid Atlantic region. I don't think I could live in a climate that never changed, like Florida. I love spring, summer, winter and fall. I think fall is my favorite season. I like cooler weather and love to watch the turning of the leaves. And, in the winter, trees have a beauty all their own without their leaves. Then one can really see the shape of the tree and their limbs.
Of course, spring is a favorite of most everyone. It's so nice to experiece warm breezes, watching the grass turn from brown to green, seeing spring flowers starting to bloom, having a longer day when we "step up" to spring, starting the flower and vegetable gardens.
Summertime is probably everyones absolute favorite time of year. Being able to go barefoot in the grass, going swimming, picnics, riding bikes, cooking on the grill, vacations. I could go on and on.
Another thing I'm very thankful for is animals. I love animals and have had quite a few around in my lifetime. We've had many types of dogs, a cat, an African Pygmy Hedgehog, a gerbil, a hermit crab and maybe some more that I can't think of right now. My favorite animal is dogs. They're so wonderful and loyal. We've had hunting dogs, a German Shorthaired Pointer, labrador, feist, rat terrier, beagle, springer spaniel, boykin spaniel and a Yorkshire terrier. Of all the dogs we've had, the Yorkshire terrier was the worst. This dog would wee on anything, anywhere. We finally had to give him away.
Be blessed, Nana
Well, it's that time of the year, again. It seems that it's coming around sooner and sooner and that means birthdays are getting closer and closer, too.
Everyone anxiously awaits the arrival of Christmas, especially my little great grandchildren. They're so excited about Santa Claus. Isn't it a shame that they think of Santa before they think of that fact that we're celebrating Jesus' birthday?
I was thinking the other day about things we all should be thankful for. Of course, Jesus is the first thing. After Him comes the family, husband, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, etc. Next, comes the arts. My favorite is music. What would the world be like without beautiful music? When I sit here in my living room and listen to some of the music I've downloaded on my computer, I just marvel at the mystery that's music. How in the world did someone create written music? I am a musician so I know how long it takes one to learn to read music, and to understand music theory.
I took piano lessons for seven years when I was growing up and I've thanked my parents many times for the sacrifices they made so that I could learn how to play the piano. I always loved the piano, and when the preacher at my church offered an upright piano to the first person that called, I was thrilled. Of course, I got the piano and started taking lessons. I wouldn't take anything for my ability to play the piano. I think it's the most beautiful instrument, with the violin being a close second. Through the years I taught myself to play by ear as well and this has been a great source of joy and comfort to me as well. I can play almost anything that I hear, with a little practice.
The next thing I'm thankful for is nature. Nature certainly has the ability to soothe and calm and feed ones soul. I marvel at the change of seasons here in the Mid Atlantic region. I don't think I could live in a climate that never changed, like Florida. I love spring, summer, winter and fall. I think fall is my favorite season. I like cooler weather and love to watch the turning of the leaves. And, in the winter, trees have a beauty all their own without their leaves. Then one can really see the shape of the tree and their limbs.
Of course, spring is a favorite of most everyone. It's so nice to experiece warm breezes, watching the grass turn from brown to green, seeing spring flowers starting to bloom, having a longer day when we "step up" to spring, starting the flower and vegetable gardens.
Summertime is probably everyones absolute favorite time of year. Being able to go barefoot in the grass, going swimming, picnics, riding bikes, cooking on the grill, vacations. I could go on and on.
Another thing I'm very thankful for is animals. I love animals and have had quite a few around in my lifetime. We've had many types of dogs, a cat, an African Pygmy Hedgehog, a gerbil, a hermit crab and maybe some more that I can't think of right now. My favorite animal is dogs. They're so wonderful and loyal. We've had hunting dogs, a German Shorthaired Pointer, labrador, feist, rat terrier, beagle, springer spaniel, boykin spaniel and a Yorkshire terrier. Of all the dogs we've had, the Yorkshire terrier was the worst. This dog would wee on anything, anywhere. We finally had to give him away.
Be blessed, Nana
Spring's Just Around The Corner
Greetings All: It's been a while since I"ve posted but am ready to get back into the groove of things.
There's been a lot going on here in the Mid-Atlantic region. Of course, hurricane Irene slammed into us in August; that was really a trip. We didn't receive any damage, other than a tree in the swimming pool, limbs and pine cones everywhere, but other neighbors certainly did. The clean up took a while and some folks are still dealing with insurance companies that try to weasel out of their responsibilities. There's just no accounting for the greed and dishonesty in this country.
Now, it's time to start thinking of approaching spring and all it entails. I love spring; new grass coming up, trees budding out, hyacinths, forsythia, dogwood, azalea, daffodills, all blooming, and presenting our eyes with their wonderful beauty and fragrance.
Of course, we've had some spring-like days all through the fall and into the winter season here in the Mid-Atlantic region; we always do. There's always a few days in February when one can don ones' bathing suit and sun bathe. I don't do that anymore, I quit sunbathing at thirty-five years of age. I'm so glad I did, too, because peopel are alway telling me what pretty skin I have, and I'm seventy-one years old. Of course, they can't see the skin that's either sagging, bagging or dragging. I guess that part of ageing is inevitable. That doesn't make it any easier to deal with, though. I really think that growing older is one of the hardest things that I've had to deal with in my lifetime. I have always been a vain person, caring what I look like and what I wear, and I always will be; it's just my nature.
Be blessed, Nana
There's been a lot going on here in the Mid-Atlantic region. Of course, hurricane Irene slammed into us in August; that was really a trip. We didn't receive any damage, other than a tree in the swimming pool, limbs and pine cones everywhere, but other neighbors certainly did. The clean up took a while and some folks are still dealing with insurance companies that try to weasel out of their responsibilities. There's just no accounting for the greed and dishonesty in this country.
Now, it's time to start thinking of approaching spring and all it entails. I love spring; new grass coming up, trees budding out, hyacinths, forsythia, dogwood, azalea, daffodills, all blooming, and presenting our eyes with their wonderful beauty and fragrance.
Of course, we've had some spring-like days all through the fall and into the winter season here in the Mid-Atlantic region; we always do. There's always a few days in February when one can don ones' bathing suit and sun bathe. I don't do that anymore, I quit sunbathing at thirty-five years of age. I'm so glad I did, too, because peopel are alway telling me what pretty skin I have, and I'm seventy-one years old. Of course, they can't see the skin that's either sagging, bagging or dragging. I guess that part of ageing is inevitable. That doesn't make it any easier to deal with, though. I really think that growing older is one of the hardest things that I've had to deal with in my lifetime. I have always been a vain person, caring what I look like and what I wear, and I always will be; it's just my nature.
Be blessed, Nana
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