A Little Peek of Sunshine!

What is this I see?

 It certainly has been a long time coming.

And, listening to the news reports, it may be short-lived!

What's Up? It's Wednesday!

What's up with you all out there in the world?

We are holding onto our little corner with all we've got.  I've been sitting at my desk a lot lately and watching the world go by outside the window. 

Things are starting to green up around here and I, for one, am so glad to see it!  I don't think I have ever been so tired of grey skies and rainy weather. 

After having a few days home, I've begun doing some spring cleaning.  Things around here were starting to look a little bit grey as well - grey with a coating of dust!  Shwew!  So, room-by-room I am doing some cleaning and straightening.  Maybe I will get done in time to start all over again!

I've also done some catching up on my reading.  Here are the books I've had my nose in for the past couple of weeks:

Beware The Past
This has been a good read.  I'm about halfway through it and I haven't figured it out as yet.  So, to me that is a good book. 

The Good Liar
I chose this one thinking it was the book that the recent movie was based upon but it is a different book.  It was a really good one, though.  Haven't we all wished we could just disappear from our lives once in a while?  This one set me thinking about that and what would be missed and who would miss it and all the complications it could cause.  It was a really interesting read but, more importantly, it was thought provoking.

The Vanishing American Adult
This book was recommended by one of my colleagues.  It is really thought provoking and I struggled with it at first.  Then, as I read more in small pieces, it really started to pull me in.  It hits so close to home and is something I see all around me and even inside me a bit.  I'd like to recommend at least parts of it to everybody I know - especially those who are raising children.

The Flower Farmer
I was promised a couple of rows in the garden this summer.  So, I ordered this book to get ideas about flowers that are easy care, good for cutting, and have long life after cutting.  It is a good read and I will probably have it nearby all the rest of this growing season.  I have always loved having fresh flowers in the house and have picked up a bundle each week at the grocery for years.  So, this summer, my intention is to cut a bundle or two and have them to enjoy instead of dropping money at the grocery.  I think the tilling and labor will be as good for me as the view of the flowers.

Home Landscaping
This is an old one that has been on my shelf for years.  I pull it out every now and again because it has such relevant information about landscaping and flowers and shrubbery and hardscaping.  We are thinking of doing some work in our yard this summer and I thought it would be good to give this one a look once again.  It will probably stay on the coffee table for a while so I can pick it up and look at it now and again.

A Place for Everything
I ordered this one after reading a Miss Mustard Seed post and finding a used copy of it for a good price.  It is a beautiful book.  It also has loads of good ideas about making storage beautiful and functional.  It speaks to me about having things that are beautiful but using them for every day life.  As I have been swishing away the dust and tidying up, I have been noticing things I have here with a different eye.  I will keep this one close at hand for quite a while because I am really enjoying the pictures as well as the suggestions.

I have also been reading news updates and posts by locals who have relatives in other countries where this virus has already impacted their lives in a big way.  I'm glad we are on the tail end of this one instead of leading the way.  I am glad to be learning from others who have experience on this one. 

One thing that being home and inside has not seen inspiration is cooking.  For some reason, I just am not enjoying being the kitchen creative lately - as in for the past several months!  Part of this stagnation is because we are so blessed that I can just drive through on the way home from work and that is what we've done a lot this past year.  Part of this is because I just like to eat and I'm not picky!  I have seen a few recipes that I want to give a try, though. 

This Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie looks tasty and easy.

I love a good casserole and might give this one a try.

I recently tried to create a California Crunch Wrap like Taco Bell serves. I don't know how they get all those ingredients in that tortilla and still get it folded up and easy to serve.  So, I'm going to go back to this recipe and enjoy it. 

We have used the waffle iron a bit lately.  I treated Mike to bacon, eggs, and waffles for breakfast one morning.  Then, one night this past week I poured the cornbread batter into waffles to go along with pinto beans for dinner.  Yum!

I created an Instagram account this past year and have been mainly stalking other people's posts.  I've truly been inspired to straighten and tidy after looking at some folks' posts from around their homes.  I also saw some other online ideas that I have shared or pinned to give a try.

I'm on the lookout for an assemblage of stuff that I could put together to make a cloche similar to this one.

I've been looking for reasonably priced topiaries for a couple of items I have here.  Maybe I will just make one. 

I know that I would never have even looked twice at this table in its original state but after the makeover, wow!

I pulled out a bit of my fabric stash to stitch up some spring-like pillow covers one day this week.  I've also been inspired by some recent blog hops I've followed.  I ordered some wooden eggs and hope to make them look something like these.  Wish me luck.

Well, that is pretty much what's up around here.  Quiet and lots of web surfing for us as we stay home more and enjoy the company.

Happy Saint Paddy's Day!

No shamrocks for us this year - at least not green-growing ones.  So, the greenery that we do have will have to suffice. 

On this drizzly, cool Tuesday, we hope you have all the luck of the Irish and then some!

May your wishes come true and your skies become sunny!

We are enjoying a low-key day and keeping dry and we hope you are, too.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Return to Writing

I took a hiatus from writing. I guess I had so many other things on my mind that writing did not seem like what I needed to be doing.  I'll be honest, this past year-plus-a-little-bit has been one of the most difficult on my mind that I have ever weathered. 

Work was the hardest that it EVER has been in my life.  I felt unappreciated, disrespected, like nobody cared, like nobody listened, like I was making no impact on the world whatsoever.  For somebody who has always loved her job as a teacher and looked forward to going to work each day, that was a bitter pill to swallow. 

After questioning and seeking answers and weathering the disrespect, I finally came to peace with what was thrown at me and I have grown to really enjoy working once again.  Many of the people at the school where I have been assigned as an instructional technology coach for supporting 1:1 learning have embraced me as a friend and have been gracious collaborators in work.

Family decisions and relationships were difficult and I felt even worse about that than I did about my work situation.  Plus, throw into the mix that neighboring communities just north and east of us experienced a devastating tornado forcing us to acknowledge how little control we have.  Mike and I took a big step back and did a lot of evaluating and pondering and we have just begun growing toward a new place with the world when the impact of the Coronavirus began its influence. 

Like everybody else in the world, we had been hearing about this virus and how it was growing.  Mike and I were somewhat concerned because we have both crossed over into that magical age to become senior citizens.  We have mothers who are in their eighties and are still active and healthy but the news of the virus still made us concerned for them even more because they are active.  Then, the virus became a reality we were forced to face.

A couple of weeks ago we were just moving along in our world like always and climbing the hills put in front of us.  I would go off to work and Mike was beginning to work in his greenhouse in preparation for spring vegetables and growing them.  For a couple of days I was in and out of classrooms supporting teachers and students like always.  All winter long I have been more aware of sniffling, coughing, colds, and flu-like symptoms and seemed to be washing my hands even more than usual.  I also made a conscious effort to do things like push open doors with my hip instead of my hands and wipe off the keyboard of my computer after somebody else used it.  I noticed folks sitting elbow-to-elbow or across the desk from me who were showing signs of colds and flu and wiped the surface of my desk off a bit more frequently.  And after enjoying a long weekend, I noticed that there was still a lot of these symptoms still lingering.

Then, on Wednesday of that week, several volunteer parents came into my office area to stash their purses and bags and often would just perch on a chair there in my office to chat.  They were there to set up for the school book fair and we were excited about students having the opportunity to get new books.  On Thursday, an entire grade-level of about 400 students came through the library and browsed through the options of books, posters, bookmarks, pencils, and sundry that was offered there.  Let me remind you that middle school children are not so conscientious about keeping their hands to themselves or thoughtful about not touching everything in sight or careful about sneezing and coughing and covering their mouths.

So, all this was going on, plus, there was a steady stream, as usual, of students and teachers who visited me to find out why an online program wasn't responding or allowing their login to work or asking me how to use an online learning tool or working alongside me or across from me as we collaboratively planned lessons or learned something techy and new.  All-the-while we were shoulder-to-shoulder in distance from one another and often touching the keyboard of a Chromebook or laptop simultaneously.

Then, about mid-morning we get word that our school district was shutting down the next day and would remain closed on the following Monday.  We were told not to plan on coming back into the building because all of the schools would have a deep clean during that time.  Later, we learned that a parent with student(s) at our school and the school next door had been diagnosed with this virus.  Suddenly, a whole new sense of awareness took over my brain.

I thought about all the activity and encounters I'd had for the past few days right there in my office or in and around that school building.  I began looking at all the people around me and wondering where they had been and who they had encountered.  Knowing that we had just enjoyed a long weekend before and fellow educators and students had traveled with their families, I wondered whether they had been on any of the flights where infected people had been and thus, had exposed me.  I thought about how I live with a husband with diabetes and other age-related health issues and have my 80+ year-old mother-in-law living under my roof and wondered if I had already exposed them to something.  I thought about how many classrooms I had entered right there in that school and how many of the 1300+ people there I had visited with and quickly provided assistance and support with their computers - and possibly passed along who knows what.  Truly, a skewed perspective suddenly overtook my thinking.  I pondered and worried.

It was later announced that our school district would be closed for the entire week last week and then was updated to be closed until early April.  We've watched the news and searched for reputable sources and I pondered and worried.  It sort of made me think about the book Code Orange by Caroline Cooney.  I became much like the main character with my ponderings.  Who had I encountered and, in turn, who had encountered me?

I have now spent a bit more than a week at home.  It was wonderful to catch up on some reading, do a bit of spring cleaning, sleep late, and just rest.  All the while I've been pondering and we've been thinking and discussing this new situation and all the questions which arise.  We've prayed together as we lift up others who are not as fortunate as we are.  We've done all we know to do to build faith, confidence, and security in one another and those with whom we come into contact. 

Then, for some reason I awoke this morning with the feeling that I need to write again.  So, I am returning to this blog and will be writing and sharing thoughts and ideas.  I hope you will come along for the read.

Happy Birthday, Corey!

Love you and hope it is your best year ever!

Leap Day!

Today is Leap Day, that day that only comes every four years during Leap Year.  I've seen various pictures around the web that show animals leaping or people leaping and it made me think of days gone by here on our little farm.  

Mike raised several calves by feeding them from a bottle and growing them to feeder weight and then, with a heavy heart, sold them to be fed out for beef.  It would always take him weeks or a month to build up his courage to take the calves off to the sale barn toward their new life because he had grown so attached to them, making them a part of his heart.

The calf shown above was one who had a wonderful 'personality' and we often laughed at him.  He LOVED to eat and when we would go to the barn and give a shout for the calves to come for their daily feeding of grain, this calf would come running, leaping, and bounding with all the exuberance of a child in a candy store.

That year, like this one, we had lots of rain and LOTS of mud.  So, these photos show the calf leaping through the mud to come into the barn for his grain.

I hope you embrace today with the same excitement and that it has the same satisfying opportunities that the grain feeding did for this calf.

Happy Leap Day!

Happy Birthday, Bridgette!

We love you and hope this will be your best year ever!