This picture was taken during my morning bike ride. Black and White OR color???

Let me try to post for a third time now!

Sleepy

It's that time of day again. My motor slows to a snail's pace, my eyes droop to my cheeks, and the couch is very lonely. After a couple of weeks of getting up early, last night was the first night that I crawled myself into bed at nine and went to sleep. I usually struggle to get my mind to shut off.

Today, I had company to come pick blueberries, swim in the pool, walk with me up to the spring, and eat grilled cheese sandwiches.

Now, I am waiting on my mail. Hopefully my pictures will be here today. I think I will set the timer for 30 minutes and take myself a nap.

Cookies and Friends

A special little girl and her grandmother brought me a small plate of cookies. They were delicious. I knew they would be gone fast so I hurried to get a picture.

She was very sweet to think of me. Children have a way of giving of their special treasures whether it is a special stick that they found in the woods, a bundle of spanish moss that they found in the sand, or baked goodies that they watch to perfection as the oven does its work.

ThAnK yOu! for making my day sweet!

Bikes and Blueberries

While I was on my bike ride, I was bitten by one of those aweful little sweat bees. It really is no big deal except the location was inside my mouth on the edge of my bottom lip. Regardless of how it managed to get there, it really hurt. It happened about 1 1/2 hours ago and most of the pain is all gone. The sweetness of the morning blueberries that I put on my breakfast cereal helps to distract me to the wonderful side of life.

Collages

I have learned how to make a collage which takes my photography a bit further. I love it and only wish I had the time to play. The blog is having a very hard time uploading my pictures.

What is a pool pond?

The basic idea is a hole in the ground with a tarp lining the hole. It is a red-neck pool on a really large scale. Our pool pond is approximately 45 feet x 15 feet. Our source for filling it is a creek that is higher than the pool pond. We filter the water as it enters the pool pond. When the water gets nasty we just empty the pool pond through a capped 4 inch pipe at teh deepest part and it drains into the lower creek. The pool pond is filled and emptied using gravity.

Hello, Sunshine!

Yesterday, when I thought about getting up earlier, I did not think it would be worth it. I jumped on my bike and down into the valley I rode. What a sunrise! What a sky! Billowing clouds were glowing white with the greeting of the morning makes wonderful fillers on the canvas. The sun rises over the valley a bit later due to the high ridge of mountains. There was a soft light fog that quickly burned off. I rode the whole six miles without walking, even up the grand hill to the house.

I promised yesterday that I might discuss graves, and what was that other thing? THe reason I am thinking of graves is our neighborhood cemetery will raise the price of a two burial plot on August 1. The costs of a plot which includes room for two costs $100. On August 1, the price goes up to $500. My husband does not like the idea of buying a burial plot, but I do not think we could go wrong. I will sit down tomorrow morning, look at the budget, and make one more plea.

Aside from graves, change is once again rising in our family. Our oldest son is seriously looking at a house. He put in an offer. They counter-offered. He accepted last night. Contingent on home inspection, the deal will probably close on his birthday in August. It is a huge house for one person, but it is a deal and only ten minutes from his work with only right turns on the way to work.

Another big change is that our youngest daughter and her husband . . . NO! They are not expecting a baby. Her husband is expecting a new job. He is waiting to hear back with an official offer any day. He started pursuing this job about a month ago. Yesterday, he received word that his present employer would no longer needs his services. Talk about change. And he no longer has the obligation to give anyone a two-week notice.

Today, I am excited because two little peeps are coming to visit me and get their pictures taken. I have a tuxedo and formal dress all laid out. YAHHOOOO!

Blessings for your day!

Ramblings

Again, my day starts kinda sluggish. What I mean by sluggish is that it took me 30 minutes of laying in bed before my feet hit the ground running. I made the bed, got dressed in my bike clothes, grabbed a bottle of water, and out to the bike. Helmet in place, I flew down the driveway on my bike. The first half mile leaving my house is all down hill. I took a right and climbed the short but steep hill. I made it to the top without walking my bike which I feel is a great accomplishment.

Along the ride there is a beautiful spot where I thought, "If I leave an hour earlier tomorrow I could possibly see the sun rising over the valley." That means I would have to start waking up and hour ealier. I don't think it will happen.

Once again, I had to push my bike up the last forty feet of the hill to my house. I park my bike and can see the pool-pond. Shall I tell you now about the pool-pond or save it for tomorrow.
I take a dip for about 20 minutes. It is refreshing, and I am happy to be awake this early.

Upstairs I look into the closet. What to wear, what to wear? Where will I be today? Who will I see? Will it matter if I look presentable or not? Oh first things,first. Before I decide anything, I might as well get my priorities straight.

THE PUSH-UP BRA! Any bra, even the granny style, that I wear automatically falls into the push-up bra catagory. Over forty, I find that any thing will help. My sister and I went for a brief visit to see my brother and his wife who we will call W for wonderbra. Our 10-minute visit turned into a 5-hour bra fitting/info class. At his point we were informed what bras were really for. "To make you feel good about yourself. The right bra with the right shirt makes all the difference." That was 1 1/2 years ago. She says we should throw out our granny bras. I say the granny bras are quite comfortable. I paid $20 a pop for my playtex. So playtex or not, anything I put on will help me feel better.

Bra in place, I can now choose the right outfit. Ah these jeans. They feel nice, but according to Stacy and Clinton on the style show, I should not wear faded thigh jeans. "They highlight the leg and add the appearance of bulk." I look in the mirror and guess what? Could it be that my thighs really are big? I think the jeans make me look better.

I must admit that occasionally I will watch the "Why do you wear that?" Show. Sometimes I think they are blinded by popular fashion and the show is more about what they think. And do you think that some of it is hype? Noone really dresses that bad. AND THEN YOU SEE IT.
Walking out of the Target store, right in front of me is a mother with her two daughters. All three are dressed in tight sweat kinda pants. The daugthers were okay but the mother should have never been allowed out in those pants. She was not that overweight but the pants hid nor did nothing for her. Wait, they did highlight every crack, crevice, roll and pinch that she had.
Most of the time, I am pretty good about not looking to the outward appearance but to the inner. Some people just make that very hard to do.

What was I talking about? Anyway have a great day! Tomorrow I shall try to talk about graves and pool-ponds.

Fond Friends

I went to a funeral yesterday. I could not help but notice the children and how they can be such a mirror of the adults. One child fidgeted and could hardly stay still. I thought of the young men on the front row who must feel just like the little boy, wanting to be anywhere but in their seat. Another child was crying for food, too young to even know why she was there. Another child had a quiet look about her as she laid her head on her mother's shoulder and went off to sleep, peacefully dreaming of another place.

It is hard to say goodbye to those we love. The last relative to leave the graveside was a granddaughter that could not quite give up but tried to hold fast in her heart the treasures that he left behind. We took comfort in knowing that he was purchased by the creator and we shall see him again one day.

I most every time I am at a funeral I think of how wonderful it is to have special people in my life that have chosen Jesus. I always shed happy tears knowing that Heaven is my eternal home and sad tears because my earthly father has not chosen the same eternal home.

I'm back!

Good Morning!

This morning, I shall venture to start my blogging again.

At 5:30, I woke up with a muscle cramp in my right leg. I laid there thinking about my resolve to start an exercise regiment this week.

At 6, my son shouted up the stairs, "Mom, did you want me to wake you up?"

I answered, "Yes, thanks!"

I heard him say "Bye," and he headed out the door.

At 6:30, I rolled out of bed and had to ask myself if I was really sure about an early morning bike ride.

At 7:30, I was pedalling up my driveway after riding 5 1/2 miles. Riding around our neighborhood, with all of its hills, has more challenges than riding on the Rails to Trails.

This is a barn along my bike ride.