a once in a lifetime gift?

A few weeks back a fine gentlemen stopped Mr. Wonderful and I after church service, shook our hands and then turned to me and told me that he reads my blog. Rob is an author himself and so to know he finds my writing interesting enough to come back to read it is a real gift to me. While we were talking, Rob told me about an experience he once had and said that maybe I could write about that subject one day. After thinking about it over the next week or so I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be able to put it in quite the words that he could since he is the one with the experience, so I private messaged him and asked him if he would consider writing an article on the subject and allow me to post it on my blog. He agreed to write out his thoughts and experience and soon I had it in my email and I am finally getting it posted on here.

I have no doubt that what Rob experienced was real and wonderful and reading through it sure gave me food for thought. I don’t want to give anything away, so I will let you read for yourself in a minute. Along with Rob’s words, I have a few pictures in my camera that I thought I would share after his article which I think kind of go with his experience. I hope you enjoy this post as much as I have been enjoying putting it together with Rob.

*****

Cell phones, Fax, Email, Text, Blog, Google, Twitter, Facebook, Face Time, Skype, Blue Tooth, Sync, WiFi, Sirius, GPS. These are all terms used in today’s world of tech and communication to make our lives so called “easier.” Sounds almost more like a prison to me. My phone, which is not a smart phone, is still smart enough to call someone without me knowing about it. For some reason it dials the number nine a lot which is my sister’s speed dial number. It has called her so often that if I want to call her for real she won’t answer the phone. So if you have a smart phone, is mine a dumb phone? 

My phone has this sensitive little button on the side for voice recognition. Many times when I put it in my pocket it will activate and say, “please say a command.” So I have to pull it out of my pocket and tell it to shut up. Are we any better off than we were fifty years ago? Sometimes my memory takes me back to my boyhood days like when I first learned to skate or walked a mile to school in ten below zero weather only to find out that school was closed and I would have to walk back home again. 

Being the youngest of four boys I had to learn to skate with old worn out hand-me-downs, three sizes too big, stuffing some old socks in the front of the skates to make them fit or use the kind that you strapped some belts around the skates that strapped unto shoes, this kind must be somewhere on The Antique Road Show by now.

Maybe we have lost our innocence  as a society where we enjoy simple pleasures of life like a cow pie. My memory, again, takes me back to the down of an early autumn morning with the air crisp and clear, my breath floating like little clouds catching the first glint of the morning sun peeking over the horizon. My aim was not to just do a chore of bringing in our ten cows for milking but to see what kind of adventure this new day bring. There it was, a fresh cow pie with a steam from its fresh warmth streaming upward. This was my chance to warm up my feet in this pile of cow dung, feeling the warmth squeezing up through my toes is  a memory that still lingers with me to this day. 

Do we take time to just enjoy life? Last Sunday afternoon we went to watch our 8 year old grandson play golf. After a long hard winter it was such a thrill to watch him play with 80 degree Spring weather, riding a golf cart with our other two grandchildren. 

Today, though, I want to share with you something so rare that according to my memory I have found it only once in my entire life. Maybe you could find it some other places on earth like the South Pole but I’m not sure you could ever find it here in Ohio. I’ve wonder many times in our hectic, on-the-go, got to have it right now lifestyle world when do people find time to talk to God? Or is he someone we just use when we need him or are in trouble? You see God created us in the first place to have a relationship with him. God is our Father and he wants to communicate with his children and give gifts to them. 

This gift so rare was given to me from God himself on a Christmas morning about twenty years ago. Maybe it was the little boy in me anticipating the excitement of Christmas morning that woke me up around four in the morning? This particular Christmas morning, as I filled my lungs with the fresh clean air there was an anticipation and wonderment stirring within me that I had to be a part of. About a quarter mile behind our house is a woods called “Bear Hollow.” On this Christmas morning Bear Hollow was beckoning me to come and visit. Standing under the trees that had shed their leaves in the autumn and on a fresh blanket of snow,  it was here that I was given this gift so rare that all I could do was stand in awe. My heart and soul were so touched by this gift that my emotions could not contain it all so I just stood there and cried. 

So, what was this gift that was given me that Christmas morning that was so rare that this is probably the only time in my whole life that I will find it? The gift I was receiving that morning was the gift of total silence. There were no motors running, no cars, trucks or airplanes, no horses hooves clopping on the pavement, no kids yelling, no dogs barking, no wind blowing. It was like standing in the Cathedral of God with the snow tapping a gentle tune on the tree branches and a little brook rippling over the rocks below me. This is a gift I will have stored in my memory for as long as I live. 

My hope and prayer is that maybe you also will experience the sound of total silence just once. 

Rob Yoder

*****

As I was reading over Rob’s article I could feel his frustration with the cell phone issues and then to be able to go back in his memory to a morning where there was total silence except for the snow and the creek rippling. No one can ever take that experience away from him. 

A few Sunday’s ago we had what seemed to be Winter’s Last Hurrah and there were some crazy things going on in our lives and so Mr. Wonderful and I actually skipped church and we went out into the wonderful snowy world we lived in at that moment and got some fresh air in our lungs and basked in the beauty of God’s creation. I was able to capture some of what we experienced with my camera. What Rob was talking about, that gift of silence. Mr. Wonderful and I experienced some of that silence that Sunday morning we were out and about. Every now and then a car would pass us, but then once they were out of hearing distance it was silent again and except for the clicking of my camera it was pretty much a gift of silence. I will have to figure out how to do panoramic shots on my camera because the fullness of the forest and the snow that day left us totally in awe of the beauty that God had created. 

Click on the first picture to get a gallery view.

I loved how the sides of the trees were snow covered. The contrast of the bark on their sides were just what the doctor ordered. 

The rippling of the waters flowing through a snow covered forest was better than any beautiful song you would want to hear. 

Love.

Almost crystal in feel. I just stood there and drank it in with my eyes.

The creek looks like a giant hallway running through the great room of the forest. 

Even the treetops were singing glory to God that morning.

Reminds me of arms raised high in worship to my God. 

Serene.

The sun shining through and kissing the snowy ground.

Stop! Can you hear the silence?

So beautiful. 

More arms raised high and holy. 

The tree limbs almost remind me of crystal lace as I look at this picture.

The sun really started to appear and right before our eyes the snow was melting and it was noisy, the snow dropping to the ground. I felt heart sick that the moment was passing by so quickly. 

Let all creation sing of God’s glory and wonder!

Rob wrote a book called “Dying to Live”. I’ve not read the full of it, but from what I’ve read it is a quick read and rich in stories about life lessons he has learned. Choice Books sells it and if you are interested in purchasing it, but can’t find it, please let me know and I will put you in touch with Rob.

Here is Rob’s Facebook link, in case you want to connect with him. Let him know I sent you. 

“A book conceived in suffering and birthed through prayer, Rob’s story and his deep personal relationship with Jesus Christ will touch your heart as you contemplate your own spiritual journey.” 

ever notice…..

…those barns and houses, white in color with the candy apple metal roof over their head?  It reminds me of some of those celebrity types who have the pale, pale skin and makeup and the bright red lips. 

Kinda like ketchup on a ghost. 

….when you see someone being unkind to another person or animal, is when it brings out the unkind in you? You get those unkind feelings toward the unkind person you’ve just been observing. 

I hate that. 

…for the creative type you think of your best ideas when you are some place inconvenient, like driving a car, or taking a shower. I’ve lost tons of great lines and ideas because I was not able to write them down right away, thinking I would remember for later. 

Later. Never. Happens.

…when you get acrylic nails that your nail beds are no longer the same after you take the acrylics off. Punishment for vanity? And I was told it would happen before I had them done.

But I loved them while I had them! 

Kind of like sin…fun while you do it, but regret later on. 

….when you make up your mind to begin a new habit, let’s say, walking for 30 minutes every evening and then it rains, and rains, and rains that first night.  

I know it isn’t raining because I decided to walk 30 minutes beginning tonight, but still, it makes me feel like my plans have been sabotaged before they began.

….those folks out on social media making vague and/or sometimes very blatant statements, and you know they are really calling out someone specifically and especially the Christian folks seem to be so hard on their fellow Christians. 

I wonder why that is? 

On that same note, I’ve often wondered what a person would sound like if the only words in that person’s life were the words they put out on social media.

My mind goes too far some days, I acknowledge that. But I still wonder. 

 No “Pollyanna” tonight. Just sitting here with a somewhat restless heart, mulling over many things. My heart feels heavy tonight for a person near to me who is in the throes of some really hard stuff. I have no idea how to help this person, so the only thing I know to do is to pray. 

I wonder, do other folks get that restless feeling deep inside their souls, or is it just me?

Would you like to connect with me further? Here is my Facebook link. 

our outdoor space

Hello all my faithful readers and new ones too. 

I’ve been busy. 

Let me rephrase that. 

We’ve been busy. 

A few months back I had an idea that was swarming inside this pretty little head of mine and so one day recently I said to Mr. Wonderful. “Mr. Wonderful, I would like to have a porch swing in the front of the house so that this summer we would be able to have someplace to sit and enjoy our fantabulous view. I want just a nook and I think I know where that nook is. What do you think?” 

Mr. Wonderful is not a man of many words, but action. He likes action and so it took only my little idea to get him into action and so he announces to me one day soon after our little discussion that we were going “swing shopping” that Friday night and I was like, “serious?”. 

He was serious. 

By the end of that weekend we had a swing on order and it was coming in three weeks. 

That was two weeks ago, I think. 

After “Polly” the swing was ordered we then discussed where for sure to place her and if we placed her where I wanted her, what that foundation would look like. I mentioned I liked those “pavers” that folks are using. Mr. Wonderful and I also discussed how big we would make the “patio” for the swing and came up with from “shutter to shutter” on the garage. and that is it. We would still have a little bit of ground on each side of the patio for some flowers. 

That week we went looking for pavers and after a long and hard search, a swan chasing me, and some discussion with our children we found out that the more people in the discussion, the more ideas, and out of those ideas a project like this can grow in size and proportion. It helps when you have one person on the team who has “been there and done that” before. Our son in law did this kind of work for a long time and so his ideas are wonderful and his help even more wonderful. 

Our son in law explained to us about “sitting walls” and how they provide not only extra seating, but they also provide a certain look of being “done”. We were all convinced we needed two sitting walls and the whole patio had to spread out from there to there, rather than from shutter to shutter. 

So, with pavers and caps and sand and gravel and a packer ordered and everyone on one page that this weekend is “THE” weekend to to get this project done and finished, everyone stopped by to help on Friday night already and even one of our friends came to help as well. My dad was involved in picking up the pavers with his tractor and the neighbor’s trailer and somehow we ended up with most everything we needed for the project and so the fun insanity ensued. 

No, it really was fun. 

Really! 

Friday, late afternoon, our son in law and Mr. Wonderful started with digging out the foundation. It had to be precise and correct or we would not have had it level with the sidewalk that runs in front of that little piece of ground.

It was raining, raining, raining on Friday afternoon. I thought for sure they would cancel it, but I learned something about the menfolk in our family this weekend. When they say they are going to tackle a project, they mean just that. We don’t have “pansy’s” in our family! 

By 7:30 PM and five men working at it at various times the foundation was dug out and the gravel and sand was packed in and ready for Saturday morning. 

The only thing us ladies did was eat. And talk. I had made Mexican Haystacks for dinner. The girls had provided cookies and puppy chow for dessert and snacks for Friday night and Saturday. My mom brought a fruit dish along too, so there was plenty to eat. 

Saturday morning came a little bit quickly. I got up at 5:30 to finish cleaning up the kitchen and do my laundry and get my roast beef started for lunch. Mr. Wonderful got up a bit later and the fun began. By 8:30 everyone was back on the job and I’ve not seen so much teamwork in a long time, especially with folks who normally get together for social/fun functions, rather than big work projects. Our son, son in law and our friend were absolutely amazing in what they did to help Mr. Wonderful! I was just amazed with what they were able to accomplish in a single day. 

There are still a couple more steps to do before we can set Polly, the swing, on top of the patio. We have to water it down and take a brush to a couple of the pavers that have some mold on them. Once those steps are finished then we have to apply a sealer and then it is time to set the swing on top and there is so much room we can now purchase a table and chairs for the space as well. 

Us ladies provided a lot of food for the guys again on Saturday. Roast Beef Au Jus sandwiches, French Onion soup, and a potato casserole were the main dishes for lunch. And then once the work was all said and done and the clean up over with, we ordered pizza from our local little pizzeria and filled them all up again before they all made their way home. 

Mr. Wonderful and I were so tired out, we were in bed by 8:30 last night. I know I was asleep before 9 PM. It was a good tired though, but we both figured out we aren’t as young as we once were and we really do need our kids sometimes to help us with projects like this. Sure, we could have hired someone to come do this for us, but it ended up being a fun project for us all and the children and grandchildren and our family and friends will all get to enjoy this little outdoor room when they come over. We feel so blessed to have children and friends and family who are willing to help us out

So, now for a bit of show and tell. Here are some pictures. As we decorate and add things to our little outdoor space, I will try to add pictures on Facebook this summer so you can see what it really looks like in the end. 

The famous “before” picture. At this point the plants had all been pulled out, so it looks a little bit messy.

Another view of the before look. 

Our son and our friend posing for a picture. 

Digging out the foundation. Our son in law hard at work. Mr. Wonderful taking a break. I didn’t get many pictures of the digging part because by the time I arrived home from my 8-5 they were half way through with that little project. 

My dad supervising. 

The dumped the dirt in our pasture. I wish I knew how many wheelbarrow loads of dirt they hauled out to the pasture. 

We had many helpers, all arriving in various modes of transportation. My dad’s tractor and his neighbor’s trailer brought the pavers over from a local surplus store. They don’t deliver, so we did the next best thing we had. Dad and his tractor, or as my sister and I have dubbed the blue piece of machinery…”truckster”. Because dad uses it more like a truck than a tractor. smile.

The first layer of sand and gravel have been carefully placed and leveled out literally. Our son in law was very careful about the leveling part of the project.

Friday night when the fellows went indoors to eat Mexican Haystack, I slipped outdoors to take a few pictures. I loved this one with the wheelbarrows all in a row. 

Pavers lined up for tomorrow. (Saturday morning.) 

Saturday morning, bright and early, placing the second layer of sand and gravel on the foundation. 

I like our son’s stretched out look here. 

You can see just how thick this gravel had to be. I was amazed it took so much, but I guess that is how you do it. 

The border pavers have been laid down on top of carefully placed sand over the gravel and the inside pavers are now being laid down. 

Everyone is a busy bee. Teamwork to the fullest and a lot of joking around. 

Our daughter and “little guy” checking out the progress. Here you see a better view of the sand and the lines in the sand, everything was carefully done so there wouldn’t be crooked lines and dips in the floor of the patio. 

Since we have some downspout coming down on the corner of our garage they had to take some care with that. Here is they are taking care of things. 

Another shot of them working with the downspout.

Our son placing more pavers where the go next. 

Of course, on a beautiful day, I will capture anything that catches my eye. Our neighbor’s horses were out and about in their pasture. I noticed the green of that pasture more. No more dead wintry brown, but beautiful and glorious summer greens! 

The project is really taking shape. 

At the end of the patio you can see a sitting wall taking shape. 

And there they are, but sitting walls and pillars. 

This is the packer. It is noisy as all get out, but somehow pounds the pavers down into the gravel and sand and creates a sturdy floor. It was amazing to watch it. 

Our yard was a mess for a few hours. 

Little guy was having so much fun…he is always carrying something. 

Starting to clean up, hauling pavers out behind the barn for another project some day. 

Our daughter in law coming out to see how things were going. 

Little guy inside the garage looking out. Look at that grin. 

This picture should have been inserted before the packer. In this step our son in law spread a special sand all over the pavers and then swept the sand into the cracks. After the sand was in the cracks to his liking was when he did the packing with the packer machine. 

Little guy found the dirt and excess sand. 

He was totally in dirt heaven. 

Just nothing like sand to dig your hands into when you are a two year old. 

I like this picture. Brother in laws discussing something. Our son is already sitting on one of the sitting walls. 

There is the finished product. We still have to apply a sealer after we clean up a few of the white stones…they have some mold on them and need to be cleaned before we can seal the whole thing. 

Of course, if a cat is around, I have to take his or her picture. I liked Ace in this picture, her little paw in the air. 

Here is our mean girl cat, she is cranky as all get out but I love her anyway. I like this shot of her. 

One more view of the after. Can’t you just see Polly, the swing sitting there? And a nice table and chairs? I can! 

To think we initially had planned to just go from outside shutter to outside shutter and no sitting walls to what we have now leaves me feeling so blessed that somebody else knew better than we did. It is so pretty and I can’t wait to spend a few minutes on this little space before I start my days this summer and then to end our evenings on here as well.

So happy we did it! 

And to put a period at the end of the day, this glorious sunset! It was just beautiful! 

You can find me here on Facebook. 

my amish country

I love living in Amish Country. 

There is so much to see. Things might be dead in the little Amish towns on a Saturday night, but nothing compares to taking a Sunday afternoon drive through my Amish Country and allowing my eyes to feast on all that is available to my eye’s pleasure. If I could bring each of my readers on a real Sunday afternoon drive with me, I would. 

I carry my camera with me almost all the time, barring I have to keep it home because I am recharging the batteries. Some folks might say it has become an obsession because my camera is almost always nestled inside my handbag, I am almost always prepared to take a picture or two. 

This is my latest show and tell. 

Last week when we had a cold spell and some snow, it was so cold that when I came out of the store and wanted to open the trunk of my car I saw this icicle growing up. It is right in front of the “R” in Prix. (So, now you all know I drive a dirty black Grand Prix)  

You know that moment you feel like someone is watching you? Well, I was trying to get a good picture of this upside down icicle and it took some maneuvering and I am sure I just looked like a crazy lady taking so long to take a picture or two of the trunk of my car and sure enough when I looked around there was a young fellow sitting in his nice warm truck watching the show. He had this look on his face like, “lady, you are crazy and I can prove it.” 

I don’t care, I have nothing to prove to anyone. This is the part of life that I like, when I just don’t care what other folks think about what I am doing. There is so much freedom in that…and it brought me a chuckle imagining what he was thinking. heh heh

Okay, so, if I had to make up a story for the two men in the next few pictures, I would assume they were part of the Amish Mafia and a “transaction is about to happen.” 

See for yourselves.

See what I mean? wink wink

We had to drive behind these young chappies for a little while, long enough for me to get a shot through Mr. Wonderful’s truck window. An Amish pick up truck…hauling wood for their parent’s cook stove, I’m guessing.

Another Amish pick up. A smaller version. 

Recently Mr. Wonderful and I went to shop for a porch swing and we were told of this place a solid hour from our house, so we made the trek to this place of business and they had a lot going on. They were “excavating the ground with horses and some make-shift plow thingy. I didn’t get too many pictures, but I did get the laundry waving in the wind over a very dirty ground underneath. The elements in the picture didn’t seem to go together really well, but it was the reality of the day. 

This horse and buggy waiting patiently on his or her owner to leave. 

Finally the young lady and her little girl emerged from the business and here they are getting ready to leave. I wanted to take a more close up picture, but I can’t bring myself to get too close, I still try to respect them to a certain extent. If I totally respected their wishes I would never snap any pictures. 

Mr. Wonderful and I own three acres of land. Two of those acres are an actual field because we used to have sheep and raise lambs. Now it stands empty, except for our Amish neighbor now grazes his horses in our field. It helps us because we have less mowing to do and it helps him out with more pastureland for his horses. The other Saturday he and his brother were hauling manure all over the fields. I stepped out into our garage and got a couple good pictures for you all to see. 

I think the fellow in the read shirt is his brother. 

And here is our neighbor and I noticed he had his little girl with him. How cute is that? 

There they are again. 

If you click on this picture you will see the little girl on her daddy’s lap inside the bobcat while he is loading the manure spreader with another load of manure. 

Another angle. 

I don’t know, this is not so pretty or anything, just some laundry on the line. Maybe I should have omitted this one. Anyway, I uploaded it, so here it is. 

Another fellow plowing his field. I love the dark brown of the freshly plowed ground. 

All these pictures were mostly taken on a whim, just by stopping at the roadside, pulling my camera out of my handbag and clicking away. I have more pictures that I hope to share soon. It is time for me to hit the hay though. Tomorrow morning always comes way too soon. 

If you are new to my page, and you would like to stay connected, please go to my Facebook page and “like” it. I try to add additional thoughts and pictures over on Facebook. I enjoy getting to know my readers so please introduce yourself to me. I’d love to hear from you. 

Looking in my Rear View Mirror

not a cat in the hat, but a cat on a chimney

A few days ago I happened to look out our french door and I saw Alley Cat sitting on top of the little fireplace chimney we have on the patio. I quickly grabbed my camera and starting shooting pictures and then put the camera down and yesterday happened to come across those pictures and I laughed out loud at a few of the poses. 

I don’t know what he was thinking, but I think the moment must have been similar to when you find yourself in front of a mirror and you pause and make a face at yourself, and then try it in a different way. Do not deny that you have never made funny faces in the mirror, we all have.

Here are some of Alley Cat’s various positions on top of the chimney and what he might have been thinking.. 

“And then I said to myself, self, you could probably crawl up on that thing and hang out, I bet you could even see more from that vantage point. I crawled up there and I was right, the view from up here is phenomenal!”

“You could look straight into the house, I don’t even have to move a muscle from this position to do that.”  

“If I turn my head ever so slightly I can check out what is going on over by the barn. This proves to be right handy because my sister and my aunt like to sneak up on me and now, well, they can’t because I see them first.” 

“Hmmm, wonder what is inside this chimney.”

“Hey, I think I might smell a mouse!” 

“Nah, not a mouse, but, hmm, this thing tastes good.” 

“Wait a minute, are you watching me? Taking my picture?” 

“You know, if she is in there taking my picture, I’m just gonna ignore her, she might get the hint and meooove on.” 

“Okay, so you are going stand there and take pictures, let me sing you a song, “Three blind mice, Three blind mice, see how they run…” 

“schnarf, that spot is itchy again.”

“This really is a good spot to sit. So much to see.” 

“Hickory dickory dock…the mouse ran up the clock….” 

“Oh, time to do my neck exercises and it works just fine up here on the chimney, you can see and do so much from this perch.” 

“Kinda wondering if I could curl up on this chimney and not fall into the hole. Nah, don’t think so.”

“Is that milk down there in that dish, yum, that sounds so good!”

“Is this pose good? You did say to look away from the camera, right?” 

“I think I’m gonna make a leap for it.” 

“See ya bye!” 

our easter

A beautiful day in which to remember that my Savior is risen indeed. 

I woke up to sunshine and warmth on the outside and Mr. Wonderful getting ready to go to church. He had to be there early since he works in the cafe some Sunday mornings. He is becoming quite the barrister, making latte’s like he has been doing so for years. 

I attended first service by myself so I could go home and pull together an Easter dinner for our family. Both kids and their families came over after their church services. Our church service was amazing as always. Thought-provoking and inspiring. 

After dinner we took care of the clean up and then headed outside because our daughter had brought candy filled plastic eggs along for a little Easter egg hunt for Little Guy. We had a lot of fun tagging along watching him “find” another one. There were 24 eggs to be found and I think he dusted each one off and had to check the inside of the egg before we could move on to the next one. 

How fun it must be for him to have six adults following him around like we are his entourage.

Later this afternoon we had an hour or so of time to relax and then my parents, sister and great aunt stopped by for a few hours just to sit and visit. 

And now, it is quiet and I’ve just uploaded a couple pictures of Little Guy and his first Easter egg hunt. 

Little Guy didn’t know for sure what to do with the Easter basket, so he spread the grass all over the floor and on his uncle. 

And there was the sad basket on its side.  

Here’s one! 

Here’s another one!

Heading to his basket with another one. 

Picking up his basket. 

There he goes. 

Counting how many eggs now. 

Left alone. 

Uncles can be helpful.

Checking out the inside. 

His dad came to the rescue in closing the opened eggs.

And that is about it for this time. 

Happy Easter! 

amish country swan encounter

Hi my name is Lue and I can say I got chased by a swan. 

Here is the back story. Mr. Wonderful and I have decided to carve out a portion of a flower bed in front of our little cottage on the hill and make a patio with pavers and then place a porch swing and A Frame on the patio so that we can enjoy casual summer evenings outside in comfort. We have a view to be enjoyed and usually we do so from the stoop, or just standing or on lawn chairs. But now we really want a nook, a real spot that is always there, ready for us to pause in the busy-ness of life and just sit and take in the fresh air and enjoy the scenery that surrounds us. 

We always price shop for everything we do. We are stingy tightwads frugal that way, or at least we make a stab at it. So, after I got home from my 8-5 we hopped into Mr. Wonderful’s rusty old S-10 and we headed down the Amish Country Highway to the first “surplus store”. Not knowing for sure where it is at and after having asked my friend I was certain I was able to direct Mr. Wonderful right to it, Well, I directed him to a business, but it was not a surplus store, but some other business, I can’t remember because this is where I had the swan encounter and everything else faded into that black hole in my memory. This business had a sort of circular drive, it is actually at the home of the business owner, so there was the house, barn and store at this place and the circular driveway and in the middle of the circle was a glorious pond and a beautiful swan swimming. As soon as I saw him I was reaching back into the truck for my trusty old camera because I was not passing up such an opportunity. 

You know what? 

He,

was not friendly at all.

I was so incredibly disappointed, I wanted him to peacefully swim in his little pond and pose, but he had other ideas because his wife was over at the side of the pond in a little house that looks similar to a dog house, sitting on a nest of eggs. 

He was protecting her. 

I got it and so I spoke softly and tried to get him to relax. 

Yeah, no relaxing, he was not having any of that stuff. He would stretch his head and neck through the fence and tried to peck me. What a beautiful bird and I was not able to get any really good pictures of him. 

So incredibly frustrated, but here are some of what I did get to take. 

This is what he looked like for the most part. He would stretch as far as he could go to get to me.

I wish I could have gotten a much better picture of his very large webbed feet. They were gorgeous for a bird like that and when he ran and walked it made a “platt platt” sound. So cute! 

Here is is wife, how sweet and adorable, busy hatching her eggs. 

A shot of the pond. I love the background as well. Right smack dab in the midst of Amish Country. 

Here he comes running at break neck speed across the ground and as soon as he hit the fence he again started to stretch his neck out to peck me and by now Mr. Wonderful had driven the truck up to where I was and it was close quarters to the fence and I had to make a run for it and open the door and jump in before he pecked me. I was squealing and giggling and I could hear him right behind me when I made my mad dash for the truck. I know I’ve not moved that fast since I was a kid!!!!

We did find the surplus store and it was closed but we got out and walked around a bit, checking out the pavers in stock. I took some pictures. 

Landscape pavers all over the place, seconds that need to be picked through to find enough good ones to build whatever you are making. Mr. Wonderful thinks it isn’t worth the time and aggravation to save a few dollars, so he is going to go with our favorite DIY store and let them help us. 

Mr. Wonderful checking out the store hours. 

As I was waiting for Mr. Wonderful this scene just happened before my eyes. LOVE!

A lone biker passed me, smiled hello, and then he mosied on. 

After our adventure we drove around a bit, we found another surplus store, but it was more of the same thing and we weren’t really interested so we back tracked a bit and stopped at a new for us restaurant way out in the middle of nowhere. I think it was called Fire and Ice Pub or something like that. Mr. Wonderful said he coworker said it was a wonderful spot to eat at, but it is so busy on the weekends so it was a good time for us to actually go tonight. 

We walked inside and the only thing I could think of was “cowboy”. It was a little more bare inside than I thought it might be and it smelled a little bit like old smoke, you know back when the places were allowed to have smoking indoors and the smell kind of lingers. (My nose is very sensitive and I smell things other folks don’t.) 

The menu was small. We like that. That means they have fresh food, because the food they make gets ordered and moved out of the kitchen. Restaurants with massive menus always worry us a bit. 

We both opted for one dish meals. My dish was called The Hog Trough, I think. It had two baked potatoes on the bottom, layered with cheddar cheese, pulled pork, their specialty barbeque sauce, Fire and Ice, and a very yummy cole slaw on top. It was so delicious. Everything about it was just down home yummy and I can’t wait to go back and try other things, namely, “beer batter french fries”. How delicious does that sound? 

After we had ordered our meals, we sat there visiting and in walks a lady and I immediately knew who she was. I went a little bit weak inside because for me she has the same as “celebrity status” in my world. She is a local business owner and blogger and I follow her on Facebook and read her blog and I’ve even tried her wonderful granola bars. There she was, right there in the same room as me and I was a little bit “star struck”. 

Finally I said to Mr. Wonderful, “Lena, that blogger whose blog I read is over there.” I think I squealed just a little bit. After a minute of being star struck I was thinking to myself  if someone was in the same room as I and read my blog and wouldn’t come and introduce themselves to me, I would be so disappointed, so after we finished our very yummy meals, I mustered up courage to disturb this wonderful lady and her friend and I introduced myself and told her that I enjoy her blog and then I saw she was starting to recognize me too! It was a moment for sure! She reads my blog too! I knew she had been on my blog at least once, but had no idea she actually comes back and reads. It absolutely warmed my heart to be able to visit with her and her friend for a couple minutes. 

I almost missed the moment by leaving without introducing myself because I am so uncomfortable in such a situation. But, what a warm and friendly person she is to talk to and she put me right at ease. It felt like we are friends already and on the way home I was thinking back to our conversation and how I wished I had said this to her and asked her that. Hopefully our paths will cross again sometime soon and we can sit down for a real visit. 

If you are interested, you can go here to check out her blog. 

Lena’s Amish Granola

If you visit her and you like what you read, leave her a little message and tell her I sent you. 

to be a friend or not to be a friend, that is the question

The first thing I have to admit is that I make mistakes and when they are found out I just want to crawl in a hole and shrink out of sight. A few months back I made what I found out to be the unforgivable boo boo. My intent was not to hurt my friend, and I don’t think I hurt her, but made her angry with me and she shot a few angry text messages at me and I profusely apologized, over and over and over again, but my “friend” was not having it and since that awful night, we have not been in contact in any way, shape or form. This is not the first time this happened with her, nearly six years ago something else happened, we had been together one night with another friend, laughing giggling all evening long. We had long and loud belly laughs, the three of us did, and when we parted ways we were still giggling. The next morning when I checked my emails I had a lengthy email from this “friend” and she told me she had to quit our friendship and told me the reasons why and I was just stunned and shocked and reeling. We went from being best friends to not even getting a second chance for me to make things right. Our friendship was over and kaput. She was my very best friend at the time and it hurt for me to read her words and understand where she was coming from, for the most part it didn’t make sense to me at all and so for that reason I was just as hurt as I was confused. My daughter’s wedding was coming up that Fall and I so badly wanted her to be there, but the wedding came and went, life went on and for a few years I would think about her and long for our friendship to be okay the way it used to be. I missed my friend. so. much. And then a couple years later and on occasion she would email me and ask me things, usually questions about the Amish and we struck up a friendship again, never meeting face to face, but visiting with each other via the phone every so often and I thought things were good until my big boo boo a couple months ago. 

I apologized and asking her forgiveness. A few times. I really didn’t fully understand where she was coming from, but the bottom line was we had some serious miscommunication and I let her down and it was unforgivable. I felt defeated and confused yet again and so I made a decision that night and have not looked back. I can’t have folks in my life who make a drama out of every little thing and then can’t accept an apology. 

This took me back a couple years. I had another “friend” and one night we had a little bit of a debate about a subject and I came away from that night thinking she had “won” the debate. Two days later I find her railing about me on social media. I was appalled, to say the least, and hurt and feeling very misunderstood. It didn’t take me long to figure out what that friendship’s status was. Her friends on social media? Yes, they all chimed in and told her how awful this person was and how they had friends like that too and on and on. 

I. felt. about. this. big.

On many levels I don’t understand what happened in both cases. But as I usually do with all things in life I ask myself a couple of hard questions. What do I know about the situation? As I took a mental tally of both of my friend’s actions I was able to think about all their other friendships I knew about and they were always having drama with someone. The other question I ask myself often is “What is the truth about this situation?” The truth is that I tried to apologize to the one friend. The other friend, when she had gone to social media to make her point to me, I felt like she was saying it was all over and she held no value in our friendship. I just kind of washed my hands of that friendship right away. It didn’t even hurt, I saw her do it to others over the years, always and forever having drama with someone, always a fight going on, and I knew it was my turn now. I guess you could say, I knew her “by her fruits” and when she lashed out at me, I was done, finished, kaput. I don’t hate her, I feel sorry for her. It is my opinion that you can’t help that kind of person, you can’t be their friend. They don’t really want friends, they want people to be subjects in their lives who they can bat around and beat up at a whim. It is all about them. As I looked at what had happened between the two of us, we had a debate, it wasn’t a one sided thing and I don’t know what I did wrong. We were both in the debate, she won, hands down. I wasn’t sure why I had to apologize. 

Is it okay to “walk away” from a friendship?

At this point if you bring a certain level of “drama” into my life, I will back away from you. As I get older I  feel like I know what I can put up with and what I can’t. For quite awhile I wrestled with this because being a Christian, doesn’t that mean I need to lie down and allow others to walk all over my feelings and emotions and put up with their drama? I think so, on some levels, because a Christian has been taught about forgiveness and grace and mercy and where it applies. But then there are the abusers, the ones who are Christians and feel like these principles don’t apply to them, only to the subjects they have in their lives. They are the ones who get to make the rules and call other folks out in their shortcomings, and that doesn’t feel so good for me. 

So, today I walk this earth knowing what I look for in friendships, I know what I value and I know what I will put up with. Maybe some folks reading this will say I am coming across as unforgiving and I am very wrong in stepping away from these friendships. 

My ‘gauge” has been of how I felt since walking away. This last “episode”, after having asked for forgiveness multiple times and not really receiving any, it has been “freeing” to move on and away. I guess the second time around I finally got it that she wasn’t looking for a friend, but a person she could control and manipulate. I’m not an emotional punching bag that you can take a swing at when you please.

As far as I know neither of these ladies know I have a blog. Well, the one knows, but she told me she didn’t want to read it. She told me that isn’t the kind of “genre” she was into. At the moment she is “into” prayer and learning all about it. I’m glad she has an interest in something, don’t get me wrong, but when she said that she made me feel like she didn’t care, which is okay, she is allowed to do that, I’m just saying, I’m not posting this because I want to make a point to someone in a roundabout way. They don’t come here and read as far as I know. 

So, it is taking me awhile to get to my point here, but I’ve been thinking about friendships and have a little list of what is important to me in a friend. 

1. you have to be able to have fun.

2. be serious and have deep talks about whatever is going on in our lives at the moment

3. forgiving

4. caring

5. there should be a mutual “like” for each other

6. it ends up being a win/win situation for both people, you balance each other out in some way. If I look at each of my friends I can think of a reason why they are in my life and what they bring into my life that enhances it and I have a feeling they could say the same thing about me.

7. we know each others flaws and can still look each other in the eye and can still respect each other

8. if there is a problem, we can be honest with each other and work through whatever it is and move forward in the friendship

9. there is that level of accountability that comes with true friendship, we help each other make good decisions in life, we help each other grow 

10. we accept each other for who we are and how uniquely God designed each of us.

11.don’t “use” each other for monetary gain

12. the friendship is not one-sided, meaning both people will pick up the phone on occasion, or make plans for a get together

My takeaway from these situation has been that God allows us to go through things so we can learn from them. Having gone through walking away from/losing two “friendships” I kind of grew my list of what I want in a friendship. I don’t have to check off each item on my list before you can be my friend, but it is something to think about if there is a lot of drama going on and I start to feel like an emotional punching bag for someone to beat up on. 

I would love to hear what you value in a friendship. This subject is near to my heart, I value my friends and they have helped me grow and have enhanced my life so very much. Each one being a special blessing for sure. 

“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art…It has no survival value; rather it is one of those thing that give value to survival.” C S Lewis

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Looking in my Rear View Mirror

velveeta cheese and chef boyardee

I made lasagna today. A pan to share with a friend and a pan for us. I make a Bechamel cheese sauce to go in my lasagna. It really cuts the tomato and makes a nice creamy lasagna, so there were all kinds of things going on my stove top and kitchen counter early this morning. Bechamel sauce, meat sauce, ricotta mixture, lasagna noodles…you get the picture? 

While I was mixing and stirring and simmering I started to think back at some of the things we used to eat when I was a kid. One thing that mom always had on hand was Velveeta Cheese and we put it in everything. We melted it into soups and casseroles and toasted cheese sandwiches and used it for the cheese to top our homemade pizza’s. 

As I thought about those pizza’s, I also remembered where the pizza crust and sauce came from. A box, a Chef Boyardee box, to be precise. The crust was nothing like the crusts you get if you order from a pizza shop nowadays. If I remember correctly it was more like a spongy, sweet crust.  I’m surprised to see they are still able to sell them. Maybe the recipe is better than it used to be? 

At first thought my stomach was a little bit appalled that I would have ever thought that kind of pizza would have been good with slabs of Velveeta Cheese melted on top, but then I reined in my thoughts and applied some “mercy”, remembering that “back then”, 35-40 years ago we didn’t have the pizza shops around the corner ready to deliver pizza at our whim like we do today. If we wanted pizza we would have to make it and the Amish do not come from Italian descent, we aren’t born with olive oil in one hand and a garlic clove and a sprig of oregano in the other, rather we are born with a pound of  butter in one hand and a 25 pound bag of sugar in the other. 

After Mr. Wonderful and I started dating and I would be at his house for dinner, especially Saturday evening dinner, there was their version of pizza, the crust made with Bisquick. The pizza sauce was homemade and sweet, almost like ketchup in flavor. The toppings varied in both my mother and mother in law’s kitchens. Usually there was hamburger on top and maybe some onions and canned mushroom, and always the Velveeta Cheese. 

In today’s world, now that I have access to television in three rooms in our little cottage on the hill, I have been able to go to school via The Food Network and learn from top chef’s all over the world. They have opened my taste buds and eyes for what is good and what you let go by the wayside. The biggest thing I’ve learned from The Food Network chefs is about the cheese. Cheese brings flavor and there are more cheeses in the world than the Velveeta and Swiss cheeses that I grew up with. I used to have Velveeta on hand in my refrigerator at all times, feeling an almost apprehension if I used the last of a loaf and didn’t have a reserve to lean on by the time we went food shopping. Today, Velveeta no longer reigns supreme in my kitchen. I seldom use it. I always thought  macaroni and cheese wouldn’t have flavor and creamy texture without the Velveeta, but in today’s world I make 3 and 4 cheese macaroni dishes and then I bake it off with Panko crumbs and butter to crisp up the top and we end up with a very delicate and elegant entree. 

versus

My favorite cheeses are, locally, Steiners Swiss Cheese, and then I also like to keep chunks of Baby Swiss, Havarti, Asiago, Provolone, and Parmesan in my fridge, but don’t always have them all on hand at once. I like to use Sharp Cheddar when I need a more orange color for a dish, like a salad or appetizer. 

I was told that Steiners Swiss Cheese is made with the Saturday night milk. It is unseparated, so the cream remains in the milk and you get this amazing creamy swiss cheese and full of flavor. (I’m always looking for flavor, just ask my sister.)

Having said all that, I know Velveeta Cheese is used by many because I read recently there is a real shortage of Velveeta Cheese so I guess folks are still mixing and stirring it into all kinds of dishes, or there wouldn’t be a shortage, huh? If you use it and like it, don’t think I sit in judgement of you. Personally, I’ve moved on, that doesn’t mean everyone else has to. 

 I also know that some folks can’t afford to purchase more expensive chunks of cheese and if we were feeding a large family I am sure I would cook more like my mother and mother in law did, feeding the family on stretched out dollars.

I found this picture of a pizza that look similar to my childhood pizza’s. Only difference is the shape, we always made them in rectangular baking sheets.

My favorite pizza in the whole wide world is a light and pillow-y crust, a bit of olive oil on the crust, top it with some mozzarella cheese, sprinkle a few black olives, onions, fresh mushroom, cherry tomatoes – halved, fresh basil leaves, a few bacon bits and more mozzarella, with some Parmesan sprinkled on top and more olive oil drizzled on top of the parm. Talk about flavorful and delicate! 

Unsalted and Seasoned

I like healthy but with flavor. I watch salt intake and don’t use a lot of salt to season, only to enhance the seasonings I use in my dishes, but never to be the source of flavor. 

My favorite seasoning is garlic powder, not garlic salt, and then if needed I add some salt.

 I use all unsalted butter as well. 

Other favorite seasonings are cumin, rosemary, black pepper, onion powder, and scantily will use Lawry’s Seasoning salt at times. 

When cooking I also use a ton of onions and garlic. It is amazing what those two can do to a dish and I use them liberally. At times my kitchen smells like an Italian kitchen because of all the flavors I use. (I love to confuse people.) 

So, what are some ingredients your mama used, but you no longer use?

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Looking in my Rear View Mirror

for behold the winter is past…..

JOY TO THE WORLD…..

Oops, forgive me, I’m in the wrong season. It is Spring time! How do I know? Well let me count the ways. 

That smell.

Distinct.

Not so pleasant.

Manure. 

Wafting its way into our little cottage. 

I smelled it immediately when I turned on to our road this afternoon, and even more as I pulled into our driveway and there it was lingering in our garage. 

I don’t care. 

I love Spring and everything that goes with it. I am sitting here at our dining room table with the french door open wide, I feel the gusty wind now and then, the sun is perched on my shoulder, peering at my words on my laptop. All is so well in my world this moment. 

The farmers are in their fields plowing, another very sure sign that Spring has sprung. On my lunch break today I watched two teams of horses in a field laboring up and down the field turning the dead winter grass into straight coils of brown goodness. 

The field is nearly finished. 

There is nothing like newness of life to make folks smile more and to have a spring in their steps. I find folks a lot happier when I’m out and about. The drab and the dreary making its way into our past and the sunshine and all it holds in our present and future. 

I notice that the grasses are turning greener each day as I look out over the landscape. I know that in only a few short weeks, barring any kind of natural disaster, our landscape will have a nice emerald green carpet all over the ground and atop the carpet will be nice colors of other shades of greens and browns and flower colors and the sky will have a clear blue above our heads and the only thing left for me to do is be in awe of the beauty that has been provided for my pleasure. The only thing left for me to do is to stop and smell those roses, to pause and listen to the music of the crickets and the birds and maybe a cat fight off in the distance. (I mention the cat fights only because they are something very natural in my part of the world.) 

How are you enjoying this Spring? Are you stopping and observing its beauty? Are you taking in the wonder of the newness of life? I only wish I had more time in my day to take in more of God’s wondrous world. 

In light of the topic for this blog I’ve been looking at Bible verses about Spring or that can relate to springtime. I found these beautiful verses that say it just like it is in my heart tonight. 

Song of Solomon 2: 11,12

For behold, the winter is past; the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.

Beautiful Bible verses and so fitting! 

I’m so glad you are here. I don’t know what brought you here, my only “goal” is to make friends and to have fun with my blog and hopefully, possibly, inspire others to stop and smell the roses in their lives. God provides us each with special bits of beauty all around us. It is here for us to enjoy and behold in many ways. He has special things planned just for you….and me. 

If you are new to my blog and would like to stay connected, I invite you to skip over to my Facebook page and “like” it so you will get all my updates. I post extra pictures and words over there as I can. I love to hear from my readers, it is what keeps me inspired on some level and also encouraged. Sometimes…writers live in a lonely world. I love interaction. Also, if you know of anyone who would enjoy my ramblings and pictures, I invite you to share my blog with them. 

Love and Blessings to all! 

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Looking in my Rear View Mirror