If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.

Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Rain, Rain...

The ground here is dry, dry, dry.  We have dust and cracks in the earth.  The weather forcasters have predicted rain and the conditions of high humidity and high temperatures are just right for the rain but somehow it just seems to keep missing us.

That has been a good thing for the hay Mike is working to get rolled up and out of the field but we could use a really good soaking.

Things are not quite the same a couple of hours west of here where Bryan and Jessica are trying to get going with their house.  The dozer operator came by mid-week and leveled off a place for the footing to be dug.  They were on go to get started on Friday or Saturday of this week.

Then, Friday afternoon Jessica sent me this photo:
An ominous looking sky.  The leveled dirt is there to the left of the driveway.  A couple of hours later, we got this photo:
They got a downpour of a bit over an inch.  No footer digging is going on this weekend.

Monday, May 30, 2016

A Day of Honor

Honoring the ones who made our day of freedom and celebration possible.

Softball Games

Last Saturday was opening day for a couple of our granddaughters' softball teams.
Lydia's team played the early game.  Doesn't this little lefty have style?
She is an eager batter!
The ding of the aluminum bat and down the baseline she went!
Did she make it?
Safe!  And ready to run to second base.
At the ready and watching the next batter!
Leaning in the right direction!
And here she is playing defense.  Doesn't she look like she's going to stop any runner coming home?
Then, it was big sister, Lillie's, turn to play the next game.  Number six plays second base.
Well, at least that is where she stands when her team is playing defense.
Down and ready to catch anything that comes her way!
Coach Corey stands at the dugout gate ready to pass along instruction if it is needed.  Then, when the team is batting, he stands in the coach's box and sends the base runners down the baseline to steal second base!
Deep concentration at the plate because batting is serious business in this league when the girls are pitching for the first year.
Eye on the ball...
...swing of the bat...
...ready to steal the next base!
And there she goes!  Both girls played well.  Lillie's team made it to the championship round before losing a game.
They had a perfect ending to the day, though.

Sunday, May 29, 2016

Birthday Party!

A couple of weeks ago our Lydia celebrated her seventh birthday.  She had an outdoor movie birthday party.  

It was loads of fun!  We roasted hot dogs and made S'mores over an open fire.  There was popcorn for snacking and movie-watching and Bridgette had even made the tops of the cupcakes look like popcorn.
She enjoyed reading each and every card and was especially pleased with the one her friend had made.

She had a big time and certainly got some great gifts!  Some were great surprises but many of the things she had written on her 2016 Birthday Wish List - like a guitar, rings, new rings...
There were bangles and sparkly hair-bobs...
The exact necklace she had requested on that list...
...and books to read, since she likes to read.
It must have been the perfect birthday party because Bridgette found her like this within five minutes of shoo-ing her off to bed!

What a sweet one our girl is!

Saturday, May 28, 2016

Full of Surprises!

One afternoon last week Mike looked up the hill toward our son, Stephen's, house and could see that this was going on.
Levi bouncing and chasing a ball on his trampoline.

So, we just got in the truck and headed up the hill to watch at closer range.  When he saw Mike and Stephen out in the yard together, he sort of wanted to follow along with them.  (After all, what little fellow doesn't really want to follow Daddy and Grandpa?)

So, I decided to try to encourage him to show us his tricks on the trampoline and joined him.  He realized then that his afternoon was full of surprises.
I climbed up into the net with him and bounced on my knees a bit.  Then, acted as if I was worn out and flopped down.  (The act was an easy one for me!)
As expected, he thought that was so funny.
Then, he decided to really bounce around and show us what he liked to do.
He would just run and bounce.
He had such fun!
The entire time his face was full of happiness.
Running, jumping, bouncing...
He would giggle and laugh...
...and bounce some more...
...and watching to make sure Daddy, Mama, and Bay (Grandpa) were watching all his antics.

It is a memory to treasure and we certainly do!

Monday, May 16, 2016

Mom's Flower Therapy

While we were at Mom's last weekend, I wandered round noticing how so many of her flowers were at the height of their blooms.  Here is the little spot wherre she had sent me a quick shot last week and I used the waterlogue app on it.
Some of the peonies were starting to fade but they were still full and glowing alongside some Dutch Iris, two-toned Iris, and Knock-out Roses.
On the other side of the gate are a few soft pink peonies mixed in and the vision is just too beautiful to me with all three of my favorite colors of flowers growing in abundance.
This pretty Iris partner set was growing along the side fence near the red house (a storage shed).
With the plank fence and the tool shed as a backdrop, her Red Hot Poker bloms were certainly warming up the side yard as well.  Look at that yellow Iris that was also a ray of sunshine.
Just a couple of days before there was a soft blue Iris that was mingled amongst these warm flowers and a bloom or two can still be seen in the background.
On around the corner of the carport were several Poppies.  They were so heavy with blooms that some had tipped over onto the ground but this frilly lady and her companion pod looks like a seed packet advertisement to me.
The original seeds for these Poppies came from my grandmother and Mom has kept them perpetually re-seeding and growing year-after-year.
Their frilly blossoms look like happiness and brilliance to me!
Mom's roses are starting their first full blooms and this one is one of my favorites.  I love pink flowers and the different shades that this rose holds looks like perfection to me.
These Knock-out Roses brighten up the picket fence that surrounds the heating and cooling unit and they have Day Lilies that grow as a skirt around them.  The Day Lilies haven't started blooming as yet but when they do a bit later in the summer, the whole area is alive with color.
At the gate-post she also has some Coral Bells and they were full of blooms.  Their soft feather stalks of blooms looked beautiful with the peony backdrop.
Mom's therapy has always been to dig in the dirt and nurture her flowers.  She grows perinnials so that she doesn't have to replenish her beds each year and can just mulch where needed, deadhead, and also has flowers to share with family and friends.
I think here years of hard work have paid off in many ways - she's grown a peaceful hobby that brings her and others lots of joy!