Fall 2009 Crafts

Tona has been crafting this fall and since the gifts have been given I can now present them in this craft update.

But first ...

What Is It??

The black items are shelled black walnuts from Idaho,

The tan item is an egg from one of our Buff Orpington chickens,

but what are the round brown items in front???

(Hint - they are leftovers from Thanksgiving dinner preparation)

Button bracelets

Baby bibs

Casserole carrier and a couple of kitchen towels

One of the creative centers in our house

Quilted jacket

Winter Wallhanging

Fabric flowers for pins

Centerpiece with tiny apples

Baby shoes

Button belt

Quilted jacket

Casserole carriers and felted bag

Tona has really worked hard on making gifts this year and she has a talent and desire for crafts.

Makes for a great combination!!!

Now for the What Is It quiz:

We had guacamole so these are the avocado seeds. I had not seen these before so I thought you should see them too!

(FYI - Avocado's were peeled and mashed and were a very tasty addition to our Thanksgiving Dinner)

September 2009 GRAND Update

We have a granddaughter!!!

HIP - HIP - HOORAY!!!

Momma and baby

Father and daughter

The family of three

Tona and grandaughter

Granddaughter and grandfather

Wow, what a grand month!

One last picture of the little GRAND baby:

We pray God's blessings for this new life - may she grow up in faith, hope, and love.

August 2009

August 2009 Update

WhatIsIt???

This is something actually very common but not very often seen or noticed.

(Answer at the end of this blog)

The next two pictures are one of my favorite subjects - mushrooms on stumps.

Looking down from above:

From the side with a little Virginia Creeper thrown in for good measure.

The Clematis at the end of our front walk is a beautiful bloomer for late summer.

OK - did you guess what the first picture was???

Mushroom imprinted with a tire track.

Disclaimer: no mushrooms were purposefully squashed for this picture.

As you consider the life of a mushroom in the driveway...

Let's move on to September!!!

July 2009 - 32nd Anniversary

July 2009 - 32nd Anniversary

Tona and I got away for a couple of days for our 32nd anniversary. We went back to Seneca Rocks - the same area we went to on our honeymoon. This time we rented a nice little cabin.

Here is Tona sitting on the porch - lookin' pretty!!!

For supper we went to a restaurant that had a second story porch where we could look at Seneca Rocks while we waited.

We had driven through some showers that day but it was breaking up. The clouds gave a nice backdrop to the sunlit rocks.

This was a valley off to the right of the rocks.

This gives an idea of the beautiful view we had to enjoy!

On the way home we took route 250 into Virginia crossing the mountains. Here is one of the views looking down into the valley below.

We had a nice but short getaway.

I thank God for 32 years with a wonderful woman!!!

Trip to visit Chad, Angela, and Mia

Now that we are back safe and sound in Virginia, the yard is mostly mowed, we are mostly unpacked, and I found a little time here is an update from our trip to Idaho.

We had a good visit with our oldest daughter, her husband, and their cute little ball of energy Mia. Tona and Angela got in some crafting, Chad and I went on a little hike up City Creek trail, some friends came by for a visit, we enjoyed seeing everyone at worship service in Blackfoot, and plenty of good eating and coffee in between.

In between the periods of rain ( I understand it was record setting! ) we did get a chance to get out and enjoy the green Idaho countryside.

Here is Tona, Mia, and Angela taking a picture break on the Portneuf River trail (Chad was working). The river was up and had been flooding. In an overflow area Mia went to walk across on some sticks which gave way and she got good and wet. Tona has on her quilted jacket she finished making just before the trip and is sporting her new hairdo!

Here is Mia with the wind blowing in her ears!

Looks like she is enjoying herself. Kinda makes you want to try it yourself!?!?!?!

This rose hip was glistening after the rain.

I had to get Chad in here with Mia!

Here is something a little different - GEARS!

Chad took me out to the garage and he had the engine out of their old car. Over 90 pictures later I had calmed down enough to head back inside. So I thought I would leave you with a couple of pictures to see for yourself!

This dipstick handle was a neat element. I probably could have done a little cropping to come up with a more compelling image but I wanted to present the view I had at the moment and save the delay on getting this posting published.

We came back home to a few rainy days but it is clear and sunny today.

Whatever the weather we can rejoice that God has given us another day in His care to serve Him and enjoy His creation.

For more pictures of our trip please visit Chad and Angela's blog Cup of Tea

A little bit about Patrick Henry

We went on a local Civil War tour and got to see a new piece of history. This is the Shelton House where Patrick Henry's first wife lived and they were married in the parlor. The new part is the park service just came into possession of this treasure so it is not open to the public as they have a lot of restoration and repair to undertake to get it ready. We were glad to be able to get an early look in the downstairs and see what it looks like.

This is a picture (of a copy of a painting) of Patrick Henry hanging in the old Hanover Court House.

While we were at the Court House we got to see a reenactment of the Case of the Parson's Cause. In this case Patrick Henry argued in the settlement phase of the case concerning how much extra compensation the government should pay the parsons, i.e. preachers. What a strange concept for today, eh?

This is one of the actors who performed the part of the sheriff.

This is a picture of the recreated inside of the Hanover Court House where Patrick Henry argued the case of the Parson's Cause superimposed with a historical drawing of the real inside of the Court House.

History coexists with the reality of the present.

The Hanover Court House was built in 1735 and later expanded to its present size.

Patrick Henry was an advocate for freedom who spoke out even when it was not popular.

May voices continue to rise to the cause of freedom wherever tyranny abounds.

April Showers ...

... Bring May Flowers!!!

Bleeding hearts from the mound behind the house.

 

Iris bud in the morning light

 

Native 'mountain' laurel from behind the house will be in bloom soon.

 

Native azalea transplanted from a nearby ditch

 

Dwarf bearded iris near an old beech stump

 

Big beautiful iris along the fence

 

New spider wort that Tona just planted out next to the road

 

Orange azalea in the front yard

 

 

Clematis growing on a cedar fence near the sidewalk.  

It sure make a nice greater as you walk up to the front door!

 

Red azalea in front of the outbuilding with an unidentified guest.

 

Azalea blooms in the fern garden.

 

Spring brings so many wonderful flowers to view and enjoy.  I think they were splendidly designed by God with beauty in mind.  All the vast array of colors, sizes, shapes, and fragrances testify to their Creator.

O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! Psalm 8:9 ESV