Dackel Princess

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. What question do you often ask yourself?

The question I most ask myself is, “What am I making for dinner?” as I cook nearly every night.

On a cosmic level, I wish I understood why things happen the way they do. That is probably my biggest question.

2. Do you grow roses? What’s your favorite color of rose? Ever been given a dozen roses? Where was the prettiest rose or rose garden you remember seeing?

No, I don’t grow roses and I never have. I’m not sure why. My favorite color rose is YELLOW. Yes, I’ve been given a dozen roses before. I think the prettiest rose garden was on Cape Cod. My Uncle Billy had a splendid garden and I loved walking through there.

3. Do you read the freshness dates on grocery store products? Will you use eggs past their ‘use by’ date? Take medication that’s expired? Buy a dented can?

Yes, I always check expiration dates in the store. If I have eggs that are just past I’ll whip up something and use them. Medication? Well, it depends on how far past, a month or two I do not worry, but if they are years past then I toss them. Buy a dented can? I try not to, but a tiny ding isn’t going to make much of a difference.

4. Should athletes be role models?

You know what? I think that for the money these people are paid (both athletes and actors and actresses) they should try very hard to lead good honest lives. After all, to those who have been given so much, they really should give back, even if it is just by being a good example for our kids.

5. Edmund Hillary of New Zealand and Tenzing Norgay of Nepal became the first explorers to reach the top of Mt. Everest on this date (May 29) back in 1953. What’s something you hope to achieve in your lifetime?

If I can grow to be an old lady and be known as loving and caring all the days of my life, I will feel that I have accomplished something very important.

6. What would you do if you had twenty acres of land and the money to develop it any way you choose?

I would have fruit trees, a lovely vegetable garden, and a safe place for my dogs. Wait! That’s what I have now, but on a smaller scale!

7. If I invite you to a party with a 7 PM start time, what time will I actually see you there?

Oh Joyce, I’m terrible! You’d see me right at 7:00! It might even be 6:58, as I fear being late for anything! I blame my father for this quirk!

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I got my peas and beans planted. Now this was big work. I did a full row of peas, a full row of green beans, a full row of wax beans and a full row of purple beans! It meant a lot of bending and kneeling and stooping. So tonight my back is sore, sore, sore! But phase one of the garden is in!

It’s Getting Close

On Monday afternoon I planted my peas. A nice full long row. I was careful about it and I got it all done in a nice straight line. At the end of that I was planning on doing the beans, green, wax and purple, but my back gave out and I came in. I have promised myself that I will finish this tomorrow.

I want to wait until next weekend to plant my seedlings. We’ve had such weird weather (they had snow less than an hour north of here!), that I’m being cautious with planting them in the big garden. I’d also love to get some chicken wire to run along the back wall of the garden for the pea plants to climb.

Savannah’s first birthday is on Friday! Can you believe that? The year has flown by! Last year at this time I started to sleep with my cell phone next to me at night, and then, before I knew it, she was here!

Now I can’t imagine life without her in it. It’s like I have known her all of my life. One thing I know for sure, she can brighten my day, just by being in my world.Her smile, the smell of her sweet hair, and the touch of her chubby little baby hands.

Yes, my dear friends, Savannah brings sunshine to my life!

Memorial Day Weekend

Our host is Gattina. Come join us and tell us what YOU did this past weekend! After all, you never know when you will need an alibi!

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I had the nicest time this weekend because my cousin Janet and her fiancee came up to spend the day with us on Saturday. This is a holiday weekend, (America’s Memorial Day) so our little town has become filled with tourists. It wasn’t too bad yesterday, because we had awful rain, but today it is bumper to bumper traffic. Not nice at all.

In any case, I digress.

Janet came up and we had such fun. She is a year older than me, and so I quite literally cannot remember a time in my life where Janet wasn’t a part of it.

All of our lives we have been like sisters and best friends. As we’ve aged the years have passed, we have grown even closer and I really count on her always being with me.

Yesterday, we sat talking and looking at our life lines, and we noticed that we both have very long life lines. Good thing! I plan to grow to be an old lady with her by my side!

Sunday was a strange day. Sort of lazy, but then sort of good too. Hubby and I decided to pull out the fridge and clean behind it, under it and on top of it. Now or fridge fan does not appear to be running constantly.

It’s cool up here, and we actually are under a frost warning! So before dinner I went out and I put all my tomato, eggplant and pepper plants and I put them into the green house. Now I can sleep and not worry about my baby plants getting frozen!

Tomorrow is also a day off for our country. Many people will get together for cook outs and family times. Hubby and I are just staying home and clearing our the camper. I cannot believe all the stuff that is in there. Unused and forgotten for the last few years. Now, time to figure it all out and then the camper goes to a new home.

Oh The Rain

Rain. Slowly falling most of Saturday. Despite the mist, and fog and wind, my cousins Janet and Dave came up and we went to a Street craft fair. We were armed with umbrellas and jacket, and we were lucky enough to walk through, buying a few items, before returning home to my house, to warm up.

I had started a pot roast in a slow oven, and as it cooked the house was filled with delightful smells.

We weren’t back too long before the skies opened up and we were getting fairly heavy rain. But, it didn’t matter as we were safely inside with fresh hot cups of tea!

We all talked and laughed and even saw the last 20 minutes of the movie, “Babe” about the pig who becomes a sheep herding pig boarder collie.

Dinner came out amazingly well, and I had a fresh layers of strawberries and creme cake and additional strawberries over the top. It was yummy!

It’s later in the evening now. Janet and Dave have gone and the rain is pouring down. The dogs are quiet, Hubby is reading his email and I’m thinking how very lucky I am to have so many loving people around me!

Grape Salad

Grape Salad

Ingredients:

2 lbs green seedless grapes
2 lbs red seedless grapes
8 ounces fat free vanilla yogurt
8 ounces fat free cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup Splenda granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract, to taste
Topping Ingredients
1/4 cup splenda brown sugar, packed, to taste
1 cup crushed pecans, to taste

Directions

Wash and stem grapes.
Set aside.
Mix vanilla yogurt, cream cheese, white sugar and vanilla by hand until blended.
Stir grapes into mixture, and pour in large serving bowl.
For topping: Combine brown sugar, and crushed pecans.
Sprinkle over top of grapes to cover completely.
Chill overnight.

Memorial Day

On Thursday I was busy, busy, busy. I had a lunch date with a friend at our favorite local coffee house, I did some shopping, picking up incidentals for Hubby’s diabetes management, and got the mail. Doesn’t sound like such a big deal, but it’s Memorial Day Weekend, and I live in a tourist area. Traffic was bad!

In fact my little corner of New Hampshire has become a destination for Bostonians and New Yorkers, as it is close, and you don’t go broke buying gas to get here.

The Lakes Region of New Hampshire also offers an abundant list of things to do or get in the summer. You can fish, or hike, or go to local tax free Outlet Malls. The State sells cheap liquor and discounted cigarettes, making Maine, Vermont and Massachusetts residents, border jump for the cheap deals.

We also have craft fairs, chowder fests, and Highland Games. Zip Lines, camp grounds, and State Parks. Yes, New Hampshire is a great place to vacation!

In any case, as I drove up town, in the bumper to bumper traffic, I recalled why I love Labor Day Weekend, more than Memorial Day Weekend…After Labor Day, the tourists go home and we have our Town back again!

Oh well, our local merchants need the business to keep them going throughout the year, and I am lucky enough to live in a town with several Mom & Pop businesses. I want to see them succeed, so I’ll just have to be patient and share my little Town for the summer!

Even if that means crazy bumper to bumper traffic!

Chippies!

Lately it seems that when I go out with the dogs into my yard I am surrounded by nature. Now I am not a big fan of chipmunks, but today I turned scanning the yard, and there he was, sitting quietly in my lilac bush. This is a late in the season lilac, so it has not blossomed yet.

So anyway, there he sat, completely still. He watched me, and I watched him. I knew if I ran to get my regular camera, I would miss the shot, so I took my cell phone from my belt clip, and set up the shot. He never even blinked. Just sat there completely still, hoping the dogs wouldn’t see him.

I walked slowly, closer and closer and I was able to get about 3 feet from him, before he scurried down and dove under our screen porch.

Now this little bugger better not eat my garden when I plant it! Last year we had two fat chipmunks that lived in our stone wall, and wiped out my garden a couple of times!

I have been enjoying all of the critters that have found their way into my yard this year. It brings an easy smile to my face.

Life is good!

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. It’s National Bike Week…do you own a bicycle? When did you last ride a bike?

I do own a bike, but I live in a really hilly area and I’ve never been able to adapt. When we lived in Florida I tried to ride 5 times a week. In fact, I had a basket on my bike and I would take Shubi (my first dachshund) with me and ride all around. It was wonderful!

The last time I rode a bike was a few years ago at the gym. It was a stationary bike, and while biking I watched the TV.

2. What’s something you learned in school that wasn’t part of the curriculum?

School wasn’t a great place for me and I was not always happy there. I met my first husband when I was 15 in school. I suppose that I learned about love. Not real grown up love, but first, puppy love.

3. What’s a food you’ve never tried, but want to try? What’s a food you’ve tried and will never try again?

Real Soba and Udon Noodles. They look wonderful and after seeing Anthony Bourdain go to Japan eat them after he watched the making of the noodles, I want some!

Let’s see, a food I’ve tried and never will eat again…tripe. All I can say is yuck.

4. Have you been more demanding on yourself lately or less? Why? Do you think that’s a good trend?

I’ve started to be a bit more demanding of myself. When I started to feel depressed I found I was sitting around doing nothing. Now I am working with my plants, cleaning the motor coach and keeping up with the laundry. Busy, busy, busy! But oh so good!

5. Who is your favorite book, movie, or TV show villain?

Favorite Book and Movie villain is Professor Snape from Harry Potter. TV show villain, Red John from the Mentalist!

6. How concerned are you about identity theft?

Pretty concerned. I do what I can to protect my privacy.

7. I saw this last question on Dawn’s blog a couple of week’s ago and asked if I could share. Everybody hop over and say hi, but first answer this…would you rather have an ordinary home in an extraordinary place or an extraordinary home in an ordinary place?

I will answer this way. I would rather have any home anywhere that my loved ones are. Houses are simply sticks, stones and empty shells. It’s a family that makes it a spectacular home!

8. Insert your own random thought here.

We had a visit from some people we met recently. I do not know these people well at all. The woman is elderly and frail, but when we sat down to talk she took my hand and spoke softly to me, telling me about my life.

She would be the first to say she is not psychic, but as she read my palm she was so accurate that the hair on my neck stood up. I listened with rapt attention as she went from one thing to the next.

Once she had gone I came to the computer and wrote down everything she said.

My question to you all is this…do you believe in psychics, mediums, etc.? Have you ever had a psychic reading?

Our Boy Fritz

There are the days in the life of your dog, where you celebrate all the little things in their life. For us, with Fritz, it was when we got his first baby picture.

We just fell in love with his little face and his fluffy white fur. I remember we could hardly wait to go and get him when he was eight weeks old.

Hubby flew out to Oregon then, and brought back our little bundle. He seemed to do well on the trip to his new home, riding in first class.

I remember when they reached us and I got my first chance to hold him. It was a milestone in his little life and mine.

I taught him to do his business outside. We went to class so Fritz could learn all about being a well mannered dog. He did so well graduating at the top of his class.

He became Hubby’s shadow, and followed him all around, even into the woods and down to our favorite lake, where he learned to swim and fetch sticks!

Or help him with our garden.

He has been a marvelous dog, with so much warmth and sensitivity. I think, perhaps the best White Shepherd that we have ever had. Not only is he handsome, and perfect in every way, but we both fell hopelessly in love with him.

I think this is why we are both having such a hard time watching Fritz slowly descend away from us with canine dementia.

He wanders off, and we now have to watch him very carefully. Where once, he would not leave Hubby’s side, he will disappear. In the evening, when we settle in to watch TV, he used to lie on his doggy bed and sleep, waiting for me to go to bed. Now, he finds the smallest place possible and hides away in there.

But for now, we will hold him, love him and care for him, until his time comes to leave us. It is so difficult, this long good bye, but then I think back to all the wonderful memories that we have shared, and being here for Fritz in his golden years is the least we can do, for a doggy that has given us so much.

What I Did This Past Weekend

Our host is Gattina. Come join us and tell us what YOU did this past weekend! After all, you never know when you will need an alibi!

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Hi Everyone, welcome to Monday. My weekend was a good one. It’s the first time since this whole skin cancer thing began that I actually stopped thinking (negatively) about myself, and started to see the lilacs, the sunshine and yes even a wonderful Pileated Woodpecker who has taken up residence in our yard!

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This is Woody Woodpecker! A male Pileated Woodpecker!

I knew he was in our area, because I could hear his incessant tapping on the trees, but until today I had never seen him. This morning I had gone outside with Anneliese to get the paper, and I heard the tapping. I looked up and there he was!

Now these birds are pretty large. 12-15 inches in length! When they are in flight their under wings are white, despite their black tops!

I stood there, snapping pictures, and I forgot all about myself! Isn’t it amazing how when something happens to us, like cancer, or a severe trauma, often times we get so lost in ourselves that we forget about all the wonderful things happening around us.

So here I am, in my nightgown, in the back yard snapping pictures, of this marvelous creature, and suddenly I felt the world had opened back up to me!

Our lilacs are blooming and when I walk through the yard I am overwhelmed with their sweetness.

Lilacs are my favorite flower and I have them all over the edges of my yard. The sight, the smell, reminds me that there is a God in Heaven, for certainly no mere mortal could have thought up something so very splendid!

In the afternoon on Sunday I did the re-potting of the patio plants (tomatoes, eggplants and peppers), and made a venison stew.

And because I wasn’t busy enough, I also did laundry and made biscuits to go with the stew. I just told Hubby I am nearly done for the day, he just smiled and laughed. I think he is happy to see me living life again!