Monday morning Olivia and Samantha came to stay for three nights! It was like a mini-Camp Sonnystone: we painted birdhouses and signs, went to the zoo, played games, swam, and had ice cream every night before bed!
I had the best time with the girls. I hope they can stay with us every time their mom has to go out of town for work.
The rains have been quite rainy, so we waited until today to head up to New Harmony for their annual antiques fest. A lot of the outside vendors had not even set up due to rain and the usual crowds were non-existent, but we were there.
I’m still getting caught up with the info that my distant Mayne cousin mailed me. It is intriguing. My goal is to get some blogging done over at All My Ancestors this week… But I have some musings to share with my fellow Sonnystoners, too, so expect a tick-up in posts as we creep on toward summer… Hope you’re having fun!
We’ve thrown ourselves into the Garden work–my Favorite time of Year! We’ve cleaned all of the garden beds, the garden shed, and the back porch. Casey added 4 feet of space to my squash bed and made another 2’x4′ bed to connect two rows…
Ronnie’s Fruit Stand, aka Variety Village, has started their weekly truck deliveries of plants. The ladies who work there are like old friends and we’re always so happy to be seeing each other again. I brought home some liatris, garden phlox, echinacea, marigolds, pinks… I just had to buy Something!
We put a lot of time into our Outside Space and it’s a joy, but it is beyond joy–it’s veritable Awe!– when I walk down toward the Thoughtful Spot and marvel at Mother Nature’s Garden…
I’ll be posting weekly over at Growing Every Season now. In addition to our usual gardens, we have Big Plans for a garden using only native plants that nourish our bird friends (not the Turkeys, though). I hope you’ll visit when you can!
Every January I sign up with the Goodreads book challenge and Every November and December I find myself frantically reading books to meet the goal. I was up until very early doing “easy” reading, stories that are sort of romantic mysteries. I have searched for Kindle singles and have hope that I can get these last 6 –yes, six– books read. I read from a kindle or a nook, mostly, but since I need to catch up quickly, I’m heading over to the library to find some nice mystery series that will keep me interested…or that’s the plan, anyway.
We didn’t get any snow, though I understand that the State was on alert for flurries. The rosebushes are ready for anything, though…check it out…
We’re doing some experimenting in the conservatory. When the sun is up, the temps stay about 10degrees above the outside. At night, there is little difference between inside and out, so with lows in the 20’s, I want to add some heat. We have a couple of space heaters for now, but I don’t want to see my electric bill go crazy, so we’re thinking a kerosene heater would be nice. So far, everything is doing real well out there…
Those low temps bit the leaves right off the trees that were so beautiful just day-before-yesterday…
It feels like a day to make some soup and curl up with a book, or two… I hope you are warm and cozy this lovely Sunday…
Here’s a quick wrap-up of the Porch Project that morphed into the Porch-and-Patio-and-Gate Project. I think it’s pretty impressive, even though the 6 weeks it took was 2 longer than the 4 I had allotted.
I learned peaceful patience, but that’s a project that never ends…
The garden is transforming from summer to fall. I brought in the last of the tomatoes and made a big greek salad. Today I’ll bring in the last of the bell peppers and chop them for freezing. Meanwhile, the broccoli is burley and the cauliflower is,um, climbing? calling? where’s my alliterative skill? It’s all growing…
Watching the hurricane slowly wreak havoc on the east coast, I feel very grateful to have a beautiful week ahead to finish up summer.
The sun returned yesterday, revealing a layer of dust covering the Sonnystone interiors. I have to keep my eyes on the screen to avoid pangs of guilt, but I’m going to ignore it and go play outside.
Successful Rummage Sale-ing yesterday…
Drum and Rain Stick — $4
!!! Complete, hardly-used Disney Trivia game!!! $1
The best yet…we spotted this little ensemble sitting at the curb with a sign reading “free”… uh-huh, into the sedan it went. I need some cushions and a little touch-up of the table, but doesn’t it look snazzy? Did I mention Free?
The rains have been tough on the pool, but my pool-boy is preparing it for my barge…
Oldest grandie, Emma, will be participating in the Irish Dance National Competition on the 4th of July in Orlando. We are taking Olivia along to meet up with the entire Jose’ clan and spend a couple of days at Disney World. I mean, we’re there, right? No way we’ll pass up a chance to ride the new Slinky Dog Dash and Space Saucers. Melissa, Emma, and Eliza will then ride back to Eville with us.
We’ve made a first draft of plans for Camp Sonnystone 2018, coming up July 9-14 with closing ceremonies the 15th. There are going to be some exciting new additions to our usual Fun. You will definitely want to stay tuned…in fact, you might want to come and visit!
Whew! The summer-like weather has kept us Outside mingling our work and relaxation. I’ve been away from the keyboard more and more as I rely on my phone for my internet fixes.
Just as the humidity was becoming unbearable, the rains have arrived. I awoke to the rhythm of a straight-down-pour, almost invisible to my sleepy eyes. I’ve spent the last week watering the gardens first thing every morning, so this was welcome. As I was checking my a.m. routine folder, I heard a pop–or was it a plop? I am the worst at following sound, always swearing it’s over there when it’s really over There, but it picked up speed and I was able to spot it about 9 feet away: a leak from the roof. Casey was still snoozing, so he got a rude awakening. I put a pan under the leak and he went upstairs to check it out and place a pan up there. Nothing can be done until the rains stop in a few days. It’s always something, ya know?
The roses have obsessed me. I think they will be all right (next year), but it has driven me crazy that they sit right in the front of the house, a testament to my poor gardening skills; they also look rather dead, no leaves at all. Last year I experienced a similar Rose Disaster and so I had 4 “extra” over in the north garden that were unaffected by the slugs. I angsted and angsted, hampered by my sick need to keep things symmetrical, and finally came up with a solution. It involved moving all but 2 of the uglies, putting the 4 extras in, and filling in with daisies. I’m Still not happy with the 2 that I left, but not nearly as obsessed.
Oddly, the one off by itself on the south side is just beautiful, no doubt due to my superior gardening skills!!
We had the Jr. girls over on Memorial Day, which just happened to be Michael and Jessica’s 13th (!!) wedding anniversary. The grandies and I went to the zoo in the morning. The afternoon was spent in the pool. The happy couple joined us for supper.
When I get too anxious over my gardens and responsibilities, I like to take a walk down to the woods, sit in my thoughtful spot, and admire Mother Nature’s work…it’s definitely not symmetrical, but its chaos is beautiful…
Wow! This has been the longest spell of not-blogging that I have had in 6 years… Why? you ask? 4 days of travel, 7 of Disney World, and all of the activity that goes with vacationing, including the work, plus the nasty allergy-type coughing, snottiness that I picked up somewhere in Alabama.
We had a wonderful time at Walt Disney World with the Jr family. We’ve been busy cleaning up and catching up, so part of the problem is that I’ve not taken the time to download anything from WDW and I’m still extremely challenged with uploading the phone stuff–they are in google pictures and wordpress cannot find them.
I took the Nikon along on the first day when we visited Animal Kingdom, but took only a half-dozen or so shots. As I’ve mentioned, it is a done-for camera and most of the pics I took were out of focus. This is what I’ve got to share.
We were the “Family of the Day” at the Satu’li Canteen…(our server took the picture)
Rivers of Light and the Tree of Life
I Loved the Rivers of Light Show because it is My Theme, My Mantra, My Faith…
It’s our rite, it’s our call Every creature great and small
If We stand alone We stand to lose forever
Raise your hands to the sky On this journey you and I
We’ll grow stronger than we knowif we stand together
Feel the Rain Face the Wind Touch the Earth
And take it in…
Touch the Sea Feel the light Live the fullness of this life
Sand and stone Flesh and bone We are one
We are One, with the Oceans
Free to run, through the sunlight
Everyone, pure as water
Flowing in the wilderness
We are one in elation
Sound the drum, a celebration
Touch the earth Feel the sun
We are One
Touch the earth Feel the sun
We are One
And that’s it for now… I’m all caught up around the house now—laundry, gardening, cleaning up the trailer—and I’ve re-stocked the fridge. I caught up with the mail and received my Medicare notice, immediately going into a funk of feeling old. Old, I tell you.
Still, when I look at all the fun we had, even with the weather being ungodly hot and humid down there, I’m pretty satisfied that I can keep up with the youngsters.
This is just a tease. I’ll be back soon with the Real Pictures and True Stories…
This winter has sure been whimsical…we went from snow to tornadoes to sunny and warm all in one week. Those of us who live along the Tornado Highway learn to live with the terror of the Tornado Warnings. Our area got hit with an F3, on the ground for 45 minutes. It stayed about 25 miles away from us, so we’re very grateful. The snow was flimsy, but I managed to get one picture before the melt…
The week-end arrived, all sunshiny and warm… We took a walk down in our Woods (which we call Solla Sollew) to plan a work/clean/prune day. Foliage is just starting to green, so it’s time.
Sunday after church we drove over to Audubon State Park, just across the money-savin’ bridge and hiked a short trail…
The place was packed with people out enjoying the spring-like day. The park is small, but has a very nice museum about John James Audubon, who lived around there for many years. Naturally, there was a lot of bird information, too, so we enjoyed it a lot.
Just down the road, under the north-bound bridge that spans the Ohio, is the Audubon Wetlands. Just before you get to the wetlands, there is a pullover that looks out on the nest of a bald eagle. It, too, was packed with people, as were the wetlands. There are some great blue Herons that are heronizing in the wetlands, and we were quite keen to see them, but decided to wait for another day.
In fact, we’re excited about sneaking over in the early mornings through the week and watching the nesting of both the herons and the eagle.
Unless there are tornadoes or hurricanes, we’ll be traveling at the end of the month, so I’m deeply steeped in the planning. We want to get away for the Solstice and return ready to get the New Garden going. Must be patient.
Even though it was Thanksgiving, we didn’t buy the buffet tickets at Churchill Downs because we would have had to get up and out of here too early to suit us. Instead, we lazied around and watched the Parade before we drove over to Louisville, arriving in time for the 7th of 12 races. I made some of my trademark $2 show bets first, then grabbed some excellent BBQ from Smoky’s in the Cafe Court. The crowds were sparse, so there was plenty of room in our box to spread out and chow down while I watched my horses fight it out for 3rd…only one made it, but it was the one with the longer odds…
Bellies full, we wandered back downstairs to get some drinks, make some bets, and take some pictures. I love the Grey Goose Lily cocktail that comes in a souvenir glass with discounted refills…try it if you’re ever at Churchill. I forked over another 80cents on wagers, then it was out to the paddock area—but we just missed the horses going out to the track. Kentucky loves horse sculptures and they do it well…check out the life-size statue of Pat Day in the background…
Then we went trackside…
I didn’t know I was doing this, but I got shots of the gates closed, then jut as they opened…kinda cool…
It was a 1 1/8 mile race…here’s the field starting..
and here they are streaking for the finish…(my horse, Bird Song, eeked it out to win)…
We stuck around for just one more drink and race, then cashed in my $6.40 winnings and drove home…
This could get to be a Thanksgiving tradition… Hope you had fun, too!
We took The Coach for a longer ride, leaving Wednesday afternoon and traveling to Kentucky Horse Park Campground in Lexington. It was perfect weather, all sunshine and blue, with temperatures that flew right up the thermometer to the 80’s by the time we left on Saturday. Camping at Kentucky Horse Park campground, we had a central location for our planned activities: the bourbon trail, the Horse Park, and Keeneland Thoroughbred Racecourse.
Driving the Bourbon Trail, we made it to 7 of the required 9 Bourbon Distilleries. We had taken the Trail several years back, 7?, and it was a smaller deal then. It has gotten so popular that both Jim Beam and Wild Turkey have built fancy new Visitors Centers.
The trail took us down back roads lined with stone walls and fences framing the acres of green bluegrass, dotted with horses. Driving back to Woodford Reserve is especially nice, taking us by brand-name horse farms. Redbuds and dogwoods are blooming brightly among the leafing trees…check out the pictures…
Maker’s Mark
Makers Mark
Maker’s Mark
Heaven Hill
Jim Beam
Four Roses
Wild Turkey
Woodford Reserve
Wild Turkey made the mistake kind gesture of leaving us alone in the tasting room…now it is
My New Favorite Bourbon…particularly Kentucky Spirit…
Wild Turkey
I want to share more pictures of the trip with you, but it is Really! Really! Spring Now! I’m getting out to divide some daisies, plant some herbs, amend the soil; in short, I’m going out to the garden!!!
I’ll get by here to post the Horse Park, and Keeneland pictures tomorrow, I promise.
