Life is Good - Smile

New Iron

2012-01-28T14:25:00.002-05:00

Wow, what a difference in temperature from yesterday! Only 25 degrees, that's a difference of 35 degrees. The wind has moved on and it was a nice crisp sunny morning, yet another great morning for walking. : )

I was up and out a little later than usual at 7:10 and walked along the sidewalk this morning to the end of Gray Rock and back again.
Quite a few others were out walking too. Every time I walk this way I see a women walking and we always say good morning. Once in a while I see her walking with a friend and today they were walking together. We stopped to have a little chat. Lots of people were out walking dogs and I saw a few people out riding bikes as well.
With such changeable weather and warm weather it has confused the bulbs because look here, I think these are daffodils starting to pop up through the ground. I'm pretty sure this is way too early for that to be happening.

I walked 6.2 miles.

Sunrise 7:18

Sunset 5:23

********************

Didn't get a change to read yesterday after all, just ran out of time. We went out to try to buy an iron. Didn't see any that I liked. They all look strange like things from outer space. My old iron was a Black and Decker which I liked and wanted to buy another.

I made us pancakes with strawberries for breakfast this morning and then we headed out to look for an iron again. I really needed to have one because now there are six shirts hanging over the chair waiting to be ironed. We had to stop in at BJ's and I looked there and what do you know. There was a Black and Decker iron for me. It is the most normal looking iron I could find. One nice thing I like about this is that it has a retractable cord. After I took the picture, posted it and saw it sitting here I realized that I have the Spanish side of the box showing.

So now that I have a new iron, I suppose I should go iron and check it out. Well, on second thought I think I'll just wait until Monday.

Well, now that we are home I have a few chores to do around the house and then maybe I'll find some time to read today. The cross stitch that I though I'd have done in a day or two will probably take more like 4 or 5 days.

Hope you're having a sunny day.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

Who being loved, is poor?

~Oscar Wilde

A rainy walk

2012-01-27T13:09:00.000-05:00

A rainy morning walk for me today but it was very warm with a temperature of 60 degrees!! Too warm even to wear my rain slicker and pants. Just wore my tights and shorts with a sweat shirt to help keep me dry. I had my big umbrella along but it didn't keep me all that dry because at times there were some gusty winds that just blew the rain on me and a couple of times my umbrella was almost blown right out of my hands. If I sound like I'm complaining, I'm not. It was a fun walk! I love to hear the rain on the umbrella and it wasn't freezing rain and there was no ice and I was able to walk. It was still a great morning for walking.
I didn't see any other people out along the paths. Today though there were plenty of deer about. I saw a group of a dozen all standing around together. Then later on I saw two together and then a lone one.
No special walking route today, just walked here and there and all about.
This time when I walked passed the liquor store there was a quarter sitting right there in a puddle just waiting for me to find. : )
I walked 6.7 miles.

Sunrise 7:19

Sunset 5:22

********************

I did meet Ken and his coworkers for happy hour last night and the hour turned into four hours. There were 15 of us there and it was a good time. Nice that I was invited too. : ) It was at Ram's Head and I had a Turkey Reuben sandwich which I think is the best place to get one around here.

Yesterday in the middle of ironing my iron just quit working so I'll be out looking to buy a new one in the next couple of days. I've had my iron for years and I'm sure even irons are completed things now a days with lots of options! : ) I have no idea the price of irons either so I am telling myself not to be shocked at the price of them either.

By late morning the sky was started to show some blue among the clouds and now it's sunny and the wind is still around.

I'm home today just doing this and that around the house.

Time for lunch now and then I'll do some cross stitch. It's coming along nicely and I should be done in the next day or two. I haven't read for a few days so I hoping to find some time for that too.

Enjoy your Friday.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness,

and the word happy would lose its meaning

if it were not balanced by sadness.

~ Carl Jung

John and Petey

2012-01-26T14:33:00.001-05:00

I thought it was going to be raining when I got up this morning but it wasn't so I didn't have to walk in the rain. It was cloudy, damp and felt like rain but it held off until later in the day. It was a warm morning with a temperature of 39 degrees and very still out. I started out walking over to the liquor store to see if I could find any coins in the parking lot, but no luck. So I then walked along my connect the path route. A couple of trees had fallen down along the path here, and as you can see they have been already been moved off the path.

The crossing guard was in a chatty mood today again so I stopped and talked with her for a bit. Some days she likes to talk and other days she barely says hello, so some times we talk and some we don't depending on her mood.

I saw John and Petey along one of the paths and today I asked them if I could take their picture for my blog. They both said, "Sure, go right ahead." which is what I thought they would say. : ) Here they are at 90 years old enjoying their walk together. They always have a smile and a happy word or two to say. They are an inspiration to me and I hope to be out there walking at their age too!!

A couple of other people were out along the paths walking dogs.
No deer around this morning, at least none that I could see. I heard a woodpecker but couldn't find him.
Three people stopped at the cross walks to let me cross the street. Wow, that is some kind of record for one day. As I mentioned a few times, people don't usually stop. Maybe they are getting used to seeing me walking around and stop because they feel like they know me. I've had people come up to me when I'm out NOT walking and say hello to me and say they see me every morning on their way to work.
It works both ways because I see a lot of the same cars driving around in the morning too.
It was good to be out walking and today I walked 6.9 miles.

Sunrise 7:20

Sunset 5:21

********************

It's one of those dreary cloudy days and I've been home doing stuff around the house. I've held off on doing cross stitch till later so I have actually gotten some things done today.
Not sure what's up for later or if I have to cook supper. Ken and his coworkers might be going out for happy hour after work today. I've been invited so if they decide to go I'll meet them.

That's about it for today so far.
Hope where you are it is a sunny day.
Happyone

Circumstances and situations do color life

but you have been given the mind

to choose what the color shall be.

~ John Homer Miller

Wednesday

2012-01-25T14:50:00.000-05:00

A great morning for walking. It was 31 degrees, very still and quiet around the lake this morning as I watched the sun come up.

I practically had the lake to myself. Only a few others out and didn't even see much wildlife - just the geese and a duck that I can't find the name of. He has a rust colored head, with a black and white body and dives under the water and stays there for a while.
I took a picture of these animal prints but can't seem to find out which animal they are from. I thought maybe a fox but no because they only have 4 toes as do dogs and the most other critters. I'm thinking maybe a raccoon but I'm not sure. Any ideas?

Yesterday I took a picture standing in one of the picnic pavilions looking down at the path I walk along. Today I took a picture from the path looking up at the pavilion.

I started walking in the dark but when I got home the sun was up and shining giving us a beautiful sunny morning.
I walked 6.5 miles.

Sunrise 7:20

Sunset 5:19

********************

No extra walking this morning because I wanted to get a relatively early start going to the commissary.
It was a nice sunny drive there, no lines to wait on in the commissary, and I got everything on my list. There were a couple of Army guys walking through the aisles with cameras taking pictures of a few cans here and and few cans there on the different shelves. Maybe for advertising? I could have asked but didn't want to be too nosy.
Back home I unloaded the car, put everything away, had some lunch, did a few things around the house and then settled down to do a little counted cross stitching.
Taking a break now to post this and read some blogs.

********************

We watched a movie last night from the library called Before the Devil Knows You're Dead. The start of the movie was a bit of a shocker and certainly not what I expected!!! I am surprised we watched the whole thing. I thought it was depressing, disturbing and NOT good!

On a more pleasant note, last night we stopped in at Mars (grocery store) and picked up some more ice cream. We got a brand called Greens and I picked out a flavor called Vanilla Brownie Blast, a flavor I've never had before. It is described on the container as, Brownies and Thick Fudge Ribbons in Vanilla ice cream. I thought it a great name and the ice cream was another new favorite for me. I have so many favorites that I really don't have a favorite any more!!

And now back to some more cross stitch.
Hope your day was a good one.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

How far you do in life depends on

your being tender with the young,

Compassionate with the aged,

sympathetic with the striving,

and tolerant of the weak and strong.

Because someday in your life

you will have been all of these.

~ George Washington Carver

Ah, walking once again

2012-01-24T16:23:00.000-05:00

It stayed above freezing all night and this morning when I left for my walk the temperature was 41 degrees. It was foggy and things were wet but there was no ice. Only a little bit of melting slush on some of the bridges.
I can't tell you how good it felt to be outside walking again. I sure did miss walking.
I walked around the lake, but not just around the lake. I walked up all the different paths around the lake. I took the path up to one of the park entrances which I rarely take. There are tennis and basketball courts there as well as baseball fields. There is also a picnic pavilion which I walked into and looked down at the path I had walked on earlier and snapped this picture.

I walked half way around the lake before I started seeing people. A few deer were around and the geese were very busy this morning. Some leaving, some arriving, and some just swimming around on the water. I love watching them come in for a landing on the lake! The heron was there too standing on the rocks at the waters edge.

It was one of those mornings when I didn't feel like going back home so I walked a little farther than usual. Finally I had to tell myself to go home. The sun had broken through the clouds by then and there was blue sky showing. : )

I am sure glad it is sunny today. I was getting pretty tired of dreary days.
I walked 8.3 miles.

Sunrise 7:21

Sunset 5:18

********************

On Tuesday and Wednesday the Body Electric workout I do is on PBS at 10:00 so if I'm home I do it then. I recorded other episodes years ago when I first starting doing this and other days I just do one of the recorded ones. It is nice having some others to watch on TV because I do get tired of doing the same ones over and over. I like the exercises which include light weights and really feel like it is a good workout.

Nice sunny days must be good days for doing counted cross stitch too because today I found myself sitting in the sun in the living room doing that again. Not enough of it done yet to get the picture of what it will be but here's what I've gotten done so far. Doesn't look like much when you consider all the time I've been working on it!!

I stopped stitching for a while to look up some new recipes and make out a shopping list for tomorrow. I decided to do that a day early so I don't have to do it just before I leave in the morning.

Hope your day was a good one and that you got to smile often.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

It is now how much we have,

but how much we enjoy,

that makes happiness.

~ Charles Spurgeon

A good day for cross stitching

2012-01-23T14:36:00.000-05:00

I woke up this morning to 30 degrees and fog. The temperature has gone up to 37 this afternoon, it is still rainy but things are melting. Thought briefly about walking this morning but figured there would still be icy spots around and with the rain it would be hard to tell where the ice was. Since I've already missed walking for these three days now and tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and warm, I'm just going to get back to walking tomorrow. I'll just walk a little extra the rest of the week. I did a couple of body electric workouts so got a little activity in.

I ended up knitting all afternoon yesterday while watching the football game. Well I didn't really watch it because I don't care for football but Ken was watching and I just kept on knitting.

I've spent a lot of today doing counted cross stitch. I'm sitting under the ott light which is very bright like sunlight. It's the only way I'm going to get any sun today. Any one who does needlework should have one of these lights. Even on a dreary day like today I can see all the different shades of colors without a problem.

Well, back to my cross stitch project again. Maybe by tomorrow I'll have enough of it done to post a picture.
Hope the sun is shining where you are.
Happyone

Whoever is happy will make others happy too

~ Mark Twain

Sunday

2012-01-22T14:25:00.000-05:00

Then God saw everything He had made,

and indeed it was very good.

So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Thus the heavens and the earth,

and all the host of them, were finished.

And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done,

and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.

Genesis 1:31 - 2-:2

********************

I sorry to say that there was no walk again for me this morning. Still icy like yesterday and it is still below freezing. A warm up is predicted for tomorrow and a day of rain. Maybe by afternoon I'll be able to get out there and walk. Hope so.

Today was the first day of a new Sunday School class at church. It is a ladies class and Christina the pastor's wife is teaching it. We are starting right at the beginning in Genesis. I very much enjoyed the first class and look forward to studying more in the weeks ahead.

After lunch Ken and I went over to the mall and walked around. It wasn't much of a walk but at least I got to walk a little. I wore my pedometer so knew we walked 2.5 miles.

Home the rest of the afternoon. I might read, knit, do counted cross stitch or a little of each. : )
Homemade pizza is supper tonight!!

Have a restful Sunday.
Happyone

An icy day

2012-01-21T16:31:00.000-05:00

It is as I suspected yesterday, ice and no walking for me. We got an inch or so of snow and then a freezing drizzle. Sidewalks too icy for walking.
Took the picture from my living room window.
We went to bed late last night and slept in until 8:00!! That is LATE for me.
I made French toast for breakfast and we have been at home all day. I read in the morning and after lunch we watched a movie. It was an old movie from 1956 called The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit starring Gregory Peck. I had always heard that it was a good movie but had never seen it. A movie with lots of story lines going on it and they all come together in the end. It was a long movie, 152 minutes but we both thought it was good.

Not much else going on around here. Stayed below freezing all day so nothing is melting.
I don't think I'll be walking tomorrow either.

Hope all is well with you today.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

Home and cleaning

2012-01-20T14:29:00.000-05:00

Quite a bit warmer than yesterday morning with a temperature of 31 degrees as I headed out the door for my walk. There was also a bit of a breeze out. I made my way over to the lake and walked around it. Not many people out but there were a few runners and I saw a few of the regulars. Friendly Runner was out and we exchanged a few words as she ran past me. I'll have to find out her name one of these days. As I've mentioned before she is the friendliest runner I've come across. She actually seems to enjoy running.
Very quite as to wild life, just the usual birds and geese. I took this picture standing on the red footbridge. The geese all started swimming away when I got to the bridge. If you look closely you can a crescent moon too. I think the clouds in the background look like mountains.

After walking around the lake and heading back home I passed up the street to home and walked down one of the paths a little ways. It was nice walking and decided to walk a bit farther to make up for yesterday's shortened walk. I doubt whether I'll be walking tomorrow because we are supposed to be getting freezing rain over night and icy conditions are times when I don't walk.
By the time I got back home this morning the temperature went down a few degrees to 27.
I walked 8.1 miles.

Sunrise 7:24

Sunset 5:14

********************

Well today I had no excuse and had to get that housework done so that's how I spent a good part of the day. Nothing exciting but still it makes me feel good knowing its done.

I still left time for some reading and counted cross stitching too which I'll be doing a little latter. I've been knitting on the baby blanket watching television in the evenings.

Hope all is well in your part of the world and that you smiled often today.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Thursday

2012-01-19T15:12:00.000-05:00

12 degrees when I got up and was going to wait to walk a bit later when it warmed up some. I waited till 7:15 but it only went up one degree to 13 and didn't feel like waiting longer so I bundled up in all my layers and went walking. It was cold out there. After walking a couple of miles my upper body was warm but I just couldn't generate enough heat to reach my legs and feet. My toes were cold and my legs started to feel like blocks of wood so after just over three miles I wimped out and came home.
I did a body electric workout when I first got home and that warmed me up and I didn't feel so bad about only doing half of my walk.
Sunrise 7:24
Sunset 5:12

Checked the mail and was surprised to find a package there for me from my friend Lin. The friend who calls me in the morning and we "walk" together while we talk on the phone. The last time we talked I was telling her that I had used up my last box of tinsel this year on the Christmas tree and couldn't seem to find any more boxes of it. What a happy surprise to open up the package and find four boxes of tinsel with a note. : )
I put one box a year on my tree,
so now for the next four years when I put the tinsel on my tree I will think of Lin.
Thank you my friend!!

I had to put off that housecleaning today again for tomorrow because I had something better to do. : ) I picked up Mary Jo and brought her to my house where we watched Courageous, a movie I got from Netflix. We almost went to the movies to see it when it first came out but never got around to it.

After watching the movie we walked across the street and had lunch at the Chinese restaurant. Afterwards we walked back home here, and I drove her home again. It was a nice day, much better than cleaning!!
When I got back home I thought about going for a 3 mile walk to make up for this morning but decided not to after all. There is always tomorrow.

So that's been my day. Hope you enjoyed yours as well.
Till next time......
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

If you want your life to be a magnificent story,

then begin by realizing that you are the author

and every day you have the opportunity to write a new page.

~ Mark Haulahan

Sarting two new little projects

2012-01-18T14:03:00.000-05:00

Up and out walking first thing this morning as usual. It was 38 degrees with a bit of a wind. I walked my connect the path route and was protected a bit from the wind on the path in among the trees.
I saw four deer and the red fox. The fox looked so pretty with his thick fur and his full lush tail. He didn't hang around long though and was gone in a wink running back into the woods.
Saw quite a few people out along the paths too and stopped for a chat with a couple of them. The crossing guard was in the mood to talk so I stopped for a short chat with her also.
One driver raced to get to the corner before I did so she didn't have to stop for me, went through the stop sign and almost got hit by a car coming down the street!
Then later a man in a van stopped at the cross walk to let me cross. : )
I reached the 100 mile mark walking for the year and with today's walk of 6.4 miles I've walked 105.7 miles. I'm keeping a running total of the miles I walk this year down at the bottom of my blog in case anyone is interested.

Sunrise 7:25

Sunset 5:11

********************

Thanks for all the nice words and compliments on the completed counted cross stitch yesterday. : )

We watched the other movie we got from the library last night, Get Low. We thought it was going to be a funny movie. It wasn't funny but we both thought it was very good. Its about a man who has been a hermit for 40 years and decides he wants to have his funeral while he's still alive. There is a mystery surrounding the man and little bits of it is revealed throughout the movie. The movie actually is a sad one and I cried a bit. Good though and worth seeing.

********************

Those gray roots of mine keep showing up again and again so off to the hairdressers I went today. It is nice going though because I get to catch up with Cheryl. I take some knitting along with me and do that while waiting. I usually knit dish clothes because they are small and easy and don't require much thought.

Started a new one today and this is how much I got done.

Came straight home from getting my hair dyed and had lunch. I am going to start the next little counted cross stitch later on this afternoon. I can't wait to get started on it. I'm putting off housework for another day. : ) I'll have a busy day tomorrow!!

Hope your day is a good one and that you're doing something you enjoy.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

Some people,

no matter how old they get,

never lose their beauty,

they merely move it from their faces to their hearts.

Counted Cross Stitch Finished

2012-01-17T14:16:00.002-05:00

What a difference in temperature from yesterday morning when it was only 11 degrees. This morning it was 40!! It rained last night but had stopped this morning when I started walking. It was cloudy but looked like it was about to clear up because I could see little breaks in the clouds. I stayed on the sidewalks and just walked down to the end of Gray Rock, crossed the street, turned around and walked back home.
A very quiet walk. Only saw two others out and they were both running.
I was about a mile and half from home and I started feeling a couple of rain drops here and there. A mile from home the drops turned into a light drizzle and a half mile from home the drizzle turned into rain. I was a bit wet by the time I got home, but at least I was on the way home and didn't have to stay wet for long.
I walked 6.4 miles.

Sunrise 7:25

Sunset 5:10

********************

It's Tuesday and my knitting group morning, but I didn't go today. I just wasn't in the knitting mood. I really wanted to get the cross stitch finished so I stayed home to work on that. It took me a lot longer to finish than I thought it would but I did finish! I hung it up in the kitchen near my computer.

I have another small counted cross stitch to do and then I'll be working on a large one that I started a couple of years ago and never got very far with it. It is one of my goals this year to finish it.

When I get off the computer I am going to do a little baking. Chocolate Chippers I'll be baking to bring with me tomorrow when I go get my hair dyed. I like to bring a little something for all the workers.

Hope all is well in your part of the world.
A happy day to you.
Happyone

Happiness is like a butterfly which,

when pursued,

is always beyond our grasp,

but, if you will sit down quietly,

may alight upon you.

~ Nathaniel Hawthorne

A chilly morning

2012-01-16T15:07:00.000-05:00

It was only 11 degrees this morning when I got up. That sounded a bit too cold so I decided to wait until the sun came up and it got a little warmer before walking. So this morning I did my Body Electric first thing and then did a few things around the house. By 8:30 it was sunny out and it had warmed up to 18 so I bundled up and headed over to the lake for a mid morning walk.

It seemed a lot of people had the same idea I did because there were quite a few people walking later. Some I had never seen before but a good many of them were regulars who I see early when I walk.
I didn't see any deer. Maybe because it was later and they had moved on to another place by then. There were a lot of geese though sitting out on the water or standing on the thin coating of ice out there.

I walked a little way with a man I met on the path behind the church leading away from the lake on the way home. As you know I prefer to walk alone but every so often it is nice to walk a little ways and talk to someone.
I'm glad I waited and walked later when it was warmer and sunny. It felt so good to be walking in the sun and to feel it on my face. By the time I got home it was up to 24 degrees.
I walked 6.6 miles.

Sunrise 7:25

Sunset 5:09

********************

Ken had the day off today for the holiday but he decided to go to work anyway. With no on else there he says he can get a lot more done without interruptions. He is working on something he says is fun and was looking forward to working on it.

I am home for the day and have been working on the little church cross stitch. I like sitting on the floor by the front windows because the light is so good there and I like sitting in the sun.

My eyes are not as good as they once were but I have some strong magnifying glasses that I wear just for counted cross stitch and needlepoint. They are huge black things and I look funny wearing them but I can see perfectly fine with them for close up work. They are so strong that I can't look up from what I'm doing or I get a headache. They were my fathers glasses for doing close work too. You can see the glasses there in the picture.

And that's about all I've been doing this afternoon. Had to take a bit of a break but will be back to it in a little while. I think I'll be able to finish it today but that may be a bit optimistic and will probably finish it tomorrow. It always takes longer than I think.

Till next time......
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

There is a privacy about it

which no other season gives you.

In spring, summer and fall

people sort of have a open season on each other;

Only in winter, in the country

can you have longer, quiet stretches

when you can savor belonging to yourself.

~Ruth Stout

Sunday

2012-01-15T15:24:00.000-05:00

One of the hymns we sang in church today,

was a new one for me and one I really liked.

I'll Tell the World That I'm a Christian

I'll tell the world that I'm a Christian;

I'm not ashamed His name to bear.

I'll tell the world that I'm a Christian

I'll take Him with me anywhere.

I'll tell the world how Jesus saved me,

And how He gave me a life brand new;

And I know that if you trust Him

That all He gave me

He'll give to you.

I'll tell the world that He's my savior,

No other one could love me so.

My life, my all is His forever,

And where He leads me I will go.

I'll tell the world that He is coming;
It may be near or far away,
But we must live as if His coming
would be tomorrow or today.
For when He comes and life is over,
For those who love Him
there's more to be;
Eyes have never seen the wonders
that He's preparing for you and me.
Oh tell the world
that you're a Christian;
Be not ashamed His name to bear.
O tell the world that you're a Christian,
And take Him with you everywhere.
~ Baynard L. Fox

Romans 1:16
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,
for it is the power of God to salvation
for everyone who believes.....
********************

A cold morning walk with a temperature of 20 degrees. The sun was out though and there was no wind. No special route again. Very few people out but I did see Petey and John.

A few deer were out along one of the paths and a few chickadees too. A cold morning but a clear, crisp beautiful day.

I walked 6.6 miles

Sunrise 7:26

Sunset 5:08

********************

You were right Vee, I still feel the same way about the movie, Being John Malkovich, a weird strange movie and one of the worst I've ever seen! Ken wasn't that crazy about it either.

Last night Ken made supper for us. He made chili dogs and they were sooo good. You just can't get a chili dog around here any where near as good. For that you have to go to Falls View in NJ!

Here's the one I ate.

Not that healthy I know, but it sure tastes good.

********************

A happy Sunday to you.

God loves you.

Happyone

When we put our cares in HIS hands,

HE puts HIS peace in our hearts.

~ Author Unknown

A new library

2012-01-14T16:42:00.000-05:00

I went to bed an hour later than usual last night, got up an hour later this morning so started walking an hour later too. It was nice walking all in the sun for a change. I was going to walk my connect the path route but when I walked out the door my feet took me in a different direction. I walked over to the liquor store and found a quarter and a penny in the parking lot.

The wind died down from yesterday and the sun was out but it was still pretty cold with a temperature of 24 degrees, but I was still nice and warm with all my layers on.

I walked down some paths and roads and then walked down this trail behind the school. New wood chips had just be added. They made a crunching sound as I walked because they were slightly frozen.

I saw five deer and a bright red cardinal but no people along the paths or trail. As I cut through the school yard I came across people out with their dogs. Every Saturday morning they meet here and let their dogs off their leads so they can run around and play.

It was a nice bright crisp morning and it felt good to be outside walking.
I walked 6.2 miles.

Sunrise 7:26

Sunset 5:07

*****************************

This morning when I got back home I realized I had forgotten my key. It was a good day to forget it because Ken was home to let me in. : )

I made us French toast for breakfast and then we went out and about doing some errands. One stop was the library. One of the libraries near home was closed for a while so they could build a brand new one right next store to the old one which just opened last month. We stopped by there today to check it out. It was huge, bright and warm with lots of brand new books and I just couldn't leave without checking a couple out. Here's the entrance to the library. Another good thing about it is that there is plenty of parking!!!

I live within five miles of three libraries!! This one is only 3.5 miles from home and the second closest.

Ken picked out a couple of old movies at the library and we'll probably watch one tonight. Get Low with Bill Murray and Robert Duvall. On the box it says, "Funny and Touching. Watching Murray spar with Duvall is pure pleasure." The other movie is Being John Malkovich. I saw this years ago and though I don't really remember much about it I remember thinking that it was one of the worst movies I'd ever seen. I wonder if I'll still feel the same way.

That's it for today. I'm going to go and do a little counted cross stitch now before supper.

Hope your Saturday has been good to you.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

There is nothing like walking to get the feel of a country.

A fine landscape is like a piece of music;

it must be taken at the right tempo.

Even a bicycle goes too fast.

~ Paul Scott Mowrer

A counted cross stitch day

2012-01-13T15:05:00.000-05:00

It sure was windy outside this morning!! The temperature was 32 but the wind made it feel colder. I was glad I wore all my layers. I walked around the lake. At times the wind gave me a push and at other times pushed me back a step or two depending on the direction I was walking. I walked down by the water to take this picture. No smooth like glass water today!!

The geese and ducks didn't have to do much paddling. They could just sit there and have the wind take them across the lake. A lot of deer around today. I counted 15 of them and that I think must be a record number in one day for me.
Only a few people out though.
When I got home the temperature had fallen a few degrees to 28.
I walked 6.5 miles.

Sunrise 7:26

Ah ha finally after 15 days the sun is not stuck at 7:27 anymore!!

Sunset 5:06

******************************

I thought today I'd have a fun day and do as little work as possible. So after I did the things that just had to be done I decided to do some counted cross stitch. I got a little cross stitch a while back from my secret sister from church. I barely got it started and haven't gotten back to it until today. I worked on it a few hours and the time just flew by. Here is my progress. The hoop I'm using is an old one, it was my grandmothers and the only one I have of hers and I use it all the time.

I'm taking a break now to write this and read some blogs. If I have time before Ken gets home from work I'll go back to my cross stitch.

I'm glad it's Friday and we are going out to eat this evening. Not sure where we will be going but I don't really care either because I won't have to cook! : )

Enjoy this day and make the most of it.
A smile from me to you.

Happyone

People say that losing weight is no walk in the park.

When I hear that I think,

Yeah,

that's the problem.

~ Chris Adams

A walk and then home

2012-01-12T14:59:00.002-05:00

It rained all last night and this morning when I looked out of the window it looked like it had stopped. A warm morning with a temperature of 44 degrees, so I left off a couple of layers of clothing and headed out the door to walk around the lake. There was still a mist coming down and I got a bit damp. But that only lasted about two miles into my walk and a bit of a breeze kicked up which dried me off nicely.
It rained more than I thought it did because the stream along the path on the way to the lake was pretty full.

The first half of my walk I didn't see anyone at all, but the second half there were quite a few people out. I guess they waited until it got light and the drizzle stopped.

I stopped to look out over the water and watch the geese on the footbridge at the narrow end of the lake. As I was standing there the heron flew out from beneath the bridge I was standing on. That was way cool!!
I counted seven deer run across the path in front of me and saw two more later on each on their own.
These two ducks always hang out together and I see them most days. They are far away but I finally managed to get a picture of them.

Today I walked 6.8 miles.

Sunrise 7:27 (OH NO NOT AGAIN)

Sunset 5:05

********************************

It wasn't long after I was home that the sun came out and it turned into a beautiful day.

Just home today getting some things done around the house.

I'll be making Salsa Beef Stew which is more like a chili tonight for supper. It makes a lot so what we don't eat I'll freeze and have two more meals for some other time. I've just put the recipe on MealsMatter but don't have a picture for it yet. I'll take one tonight and post it by the recipe. It usually takes them a couple of days though.

Hope your Thursday was a day you got to laugh often.
Happyone

I think everybody should get rich and famous

and do everything they ever dreamed of

so they can see that it's not the answer.

~ Jim Carrey

Strawberries, soup and bread

2012-01-11T14:28:00.002-05:00

Another morning walk where I just walked wherever I felt like going. No special route of mine. It was chilly out with a temperature of 23 degrees. Once again there was no breeze and the sun came out and warmed things up a bit and with all my layers on I was warm. By mid morning the clouds had moved in and by the afternoon it was raining. Nice that the rain held off and I had a nice morning walk.
Very quiet out walking this morning. I saw my walking friends Petey and John (the 89 year old couple - they must be 90 by now. It seems like they have been 89 for quite a long time). : ) Only saw one other person walking. I saw a man off the path with his tripod taking pictures. You can barely see him in the picture below. He is down a bit and to the left of the center of the picture. I see him all over taking pictures. He is often by the lake.

Walking along the path this pile of brush and sticks with dead vines over them caught my eye. I think it looks like a big lion lying down. Can you see a lion in that or is it just me.

Lion?

While walking through a parking lot I found a penny and a quarter. At first I didn't see the quarter because it was black with dirt and almost walked right past it.
I walked 6.8 miles.

Sunrise 6:27 (AGAIN)!

Sunset 5:04

*************************

I had Cocoa Krispies with strawberries on them again for breakfast. This time I took a picture of it to show you how good it looked. Nice and colorful too in my blue bowl.

Cocoa Krispies and strawberries

I'm making Smashed Potato Soup with Dill Bread for supper tonight.
It will be nice to have soup and bread on a rainy night. I got the ingredients in the slow cooker for the soup and got the bread machine going first thing this morning. I like when I make something for dinner and I can get it started in the morning.

Dill Bread

I did get that ironing done that I put off yesterday. I ironed seven of Ken's work shirts. I turned the TV on while ironing and watched a house hunting show on HGTV. A couple (English/American) were moving to England. They were shown some really neat old houses with lots of charm and they picked the house that I would have picked. Sometimes I think I would love to move to England or Scotland and live there. I love the villages. I also put in an I Love Lucy DVD to watch and saw one from the Fifth season where Lucy gets locked in an old trunk and she has the keys in her pocket. The shows made the ironing go much faster.

My kitchen is a mess right now and it's time to go and clean it up.
Hope all is well in your part of the world.
A happy day to you.
Happyone

I like her because she smiles at me and means it.

~ Anonymous

Walking, knitting, and lunch

2012-01-10T15:44:00.000-05:00

No special route this morning. Walked part on the paths, part along the sidewalks and just roamed around where I felt like going.
It was 28 degrees, no wind and once the sun came up it stayed out.
I saw a fox along one path and farther along heard a woodpecker. Stopped to see if I could spot him and did but he was way to high up in the tree for me to get a picture of him. Sometimes I wish I had a good camera with a long lens. I know I'm missing some good photos. But I like my little camera and it is nice to be able to easily carry it with me on my walks. I saw two hawk like birds sitting together on a branch.
Walking through the school yard I got this picture of the morning moon. Three kids were riding their bikes and stopped to see what I was taking a picture of. One of them said "cool" and they continued on their way.

I only saw one other person along the paths.
Today I walked 6.7 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 5:03

The same sunrise time AGAIN!

*********************************

No time to do much of anything this morning because I had to leave for my Tuesday knitting group. Tuesdays sure come around fast! There were 15 of us there today. Once again I knitted on the baby blanket. It is going to be 44 inches long and I am a little bit more that half finished as you can see here that I have 24 inches of it done.

No library again when I left knitting but I did stop over at my friend Mary Jo's house to pick her up and we went out for lunch at AppleBee's. We got there about 12:30 and we were practically the only people there. There is a Friday's on one side and an Olive Garden on the other and both of their parking lots were full. Makes me wonder if AppleBee's is on the way out.
We both got the half size Pecan Crusted Chicken Salad which is very good. We always enjoy our lunches out and did this time too. : )

So now I'm home and don't feel like doing anything constructive so I think I'll just sit and read for a while. There is always tomorrow to get that ironing done!!

A happy Tuesday to you.
Happyone

A smile costs nothing but gives much.

It enriches those who receive without

making poorer those who give.

It takes but a moment,

but the memory of it sometimes lasts forever.

None is so rich or mighty that he cannot

get along without it

and none is so poor that he cannot

be made rich by it.

Yet a smile cannot be

bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen,

for it is something that is of no value

to anyone until it is given away.

Some people are too tired to give you a smile.

Give them one of yours,

as none needs a smile so much as he

who has no more to give.

~ Author Unknown

A walk, something new and a book

2012-01-09T12:57:00.000-05:00

I walked around the lake this morning but stayed on the lower path and walked the opposite way around. Didn't get to see a sunrise this morning because it was cloudy. Monday's are usually quiet days around the lake and today was no exception. Saw a few of the regulars and that was it.
All the geese were around but didn't spot any other wildlife. It is dark when I start so it is hard to spot any. I hear things but can't see them.
After walking the lake I didn't feel like going home yet so I walked down the sidewalk a bit to the path and walked part of that before coming back out on the sidewalk again. Continued on to the parking lot by the liquor store hoping to find a couple of coins but no luck today. From there I walked home.
Ended up walking 7.6 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 5:02

Wish the sunrise would be getting earlier

instead of just the sunset getting later.

****************************

I cut up strawberries this morning and put them in my cereal which was Cocoa Krispies. I don't think I've ever had strawberries on them before but it certainly won't be the last time. It was really good.

My oven mitts had seen better days and thought it was time to replace them. When I bought these in Wal-mart I didn't look that close and thought I was just getting an oven mitt and a dishtowel. I couldn't find any mitts just on their own so just bought the set. I didn't look at them close and when I got home I realized that not only did the set include a mitt and towel, but it had three towels, an oven mitt, two pot holders, and a dish rag. I got two sets because I wanted two mitts so I got a real good deal here.

The dill and the basil that I planted has sprouted!! The basil looks great but the dill doesn't look so hot. It's early yet so it might improve. The chives haven't sprouted yet but they were supposed to take longer.

I finished reading The Walk West by Peter Jenkins. In this second book he is now married and him and his wife Barbara walk from Louisiana to the Oregon coast. They started out in New Orleans on July 5,1976 and their walk ended at the Pacific Ocean in Florence on January 18, 1979. This book is about their adventures. I thought it was a great book. You know I like to walk, but I could never do what they did!!!! That is book number 2 for this year. No goal involved this time just keeping track.

Last night the second season of Downton Abbey on PBS started which we watched. Really liked the first season and the second has started out good too. I look forward to watching the episode next week.

This afternoon I'll be home doing some routine housework stuff, nothing exciting but still it needs to be done.

Hope your Monday is a happy one.
Happyone

Every time you smile at someone,

it is an action of love,

a gift to that person,

a beautiful thing.

~ Mother Teresa

Psalm 143:8

2012-01-08T08:58:00.003-05:00

I saw another beautiful sunrise this morning

as I walked around the lake.

I have found a new spot to take sunrise pictures.

I walk down a little path to the water that comes

out on a peninsula of land.

I walked 6.4 miles

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 5:01

Cause me to hear thy loving kindness in the morning;

for in thee do I trust:

cause me to know the way wherein I should walk;

for I left up my soul unto thee.

Psalm 143:8

Have a blessed Sunday.

Happyone

Saturday

2012-01-07T14:53:00.000-05:00

I got started about 20 minutes later on my walk this morning than usual. Just slept in a few extra minutes. It was 30 degrees this morning but I knew it would be warming up again, so didn't wear my outer layer. I was a little chilly when I first stepped out the door but quickly warmed up once I got started walking. By the time I got home the temperature was already up to 43!!
I walked my route which goes past the school and over to Gray Rock Rd and then through the path back towards home. I saw a few deer but this one turned around to take a look at me so I took her picture.

A very quiet Saturday morning. I only saw two others out today. My walking friend from where I used to live called me this morning and we walked and talked. She is out of town a lot and when she gets back calls me and we catch up our early morning walks.
I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

sunrise has been the same for quite a few days now

Sunset 5:00

***************************

Ken was out this morning and I had plenty I could be doing around the house. I was just going to read for a few minutes before I got started and ending up reading for a lot longer than that. I'm reading A Walk West by Peter Jenkins, the second of his walking books.

After lunch we went out for a bit and now we're back home. Realized we forgot to stop and get ice cream so we will probably go out later again to pick up some. It's been a while since we had ice cream for our snack and I miss it.

Hope you're enjoying your Saturday.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone

A laugh is a smile that bursts.

~ Mary H. Waldrip

Friday- this and that

2012-01-06T10:50:00.000-05:00

27 degrees this morning when I left on my morning walk. There was no breeze and the once the sun came up it stayed out and warmed the day up quite fast.
I walked my connect the path route and just saw a few people on the paths. Stopped to talk to a woman who I see often on this route and also Petey and John who walk this way too.
I walk so many routes and see different people on the different routes I walk.
Three deer were in a back yard nibbling on some bushes.
I walked 6.9 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 4:59

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once in a while someone will ask how many miles I walk in a year. I have put a Ticker Factory exercise goal at the footer of my blog where I'm keeping track of my mileage each day this year. Those of you who wonder how many miles I walk can check it out once in a while if you want.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last night we watched a movie from Netflix, The King's Speech. It's a biographical drama about Britain's King George VI who has an embarrassing stutter and finds help from Lionel Logue, an unorthodox speech therapist. It was surprisingly very good and we both liked it!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By the afternoon it had warmed up to the low 60's and I took the opportunity to wash my poor dirty car. Don't get too many nice winter days like this. Now she is clean and shiny once again.

Hope all is well in your part of the world and that your day is a happy one.
Happyone

Smiling is infectious,

You can catch it like the flu.

Someone smiled at me today,

And I started smiling too.

~Author Unknown

To the Anonymous who donated to the American Cancer Society on my behalf today I want to say Thank You. For some reason my email isn't working right now and if you emailed me to tell me your name I can't get to it right now. I have put your tickets aside though. Thanks so much!! : )

Snow and ice

2012-01-05T14:39:00.002-05:00

No walking for me yesterday morning. We were up early and headed up to our land for the closing. All went well and we are now the happy owners of 16 acres of land. No snow at home but there was snow in western Maryland!! Amazing what a difference there is 150 miles away! We were early for the closing so we went to have a look at our land.

Here we are driving up our road.

Driving up our driveway.

The truck made it up the snowy hill fine.

We didn't do anything once we got there. Just wanted to see our land in the snow. I don't think we will be doing any work until spring. But Ken is already busy designing a shed and cabin.

It is always neat to drive through the Cumberland Gap on Route 68. We are on the way home here.

*********************************************************

Back to walking this morning and i went around the lake. It was 28 degrees and cloudy. The sun didn't come out until later in the morning. A very quiet walk. I saw more deer than people - four deer, three people.

The lake now has a thin coat of ice on it. This picture is taken down at the narrow end of the lake from the footbridge. Doesn't it look cold?

I walked 6.6 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 4:58

*******************************************

The pantry shelves were getting mighty low so i looked through a cookbook or two and figured out some meals for the week, made up a list and headed out to the commissary. It's nice now that all the renovations are done. I took my time going up and down all the aisles. Down in the meat department a man was having a good time telling people all about the new meat that is now being sold - alligator. He said it tasted like chicken but i told him I'd pass on it. : )

There were no lines to wait on in the store today, but quite a bit of traffic.

I finished reading my first book of the year. Desecration by LaHay. It is book number 9 in the left behind series. I read the first 8 a few years ago and just never got around to the reading the last few books. I have the next two in the series on my four shelves of books. Book number 12 I'll have to buy so I'll have the whole series. These are books I'll read again. They really make Revelation come alive.

Later I'm going to make Taco Bake for supper. It is very easy and a recipe i got off the back of a Bisquick box.

Till then I have a few things to get done around the house. I also have fallen behind again on blog reading a bit so I'll get caught up with that too.

Hope your having a day where your cheeks hurt from smiling. : )

Happyone

Everyone smiles in the same language.

~ Author Unknown

Donate for a chance to win this afghan

2012-01-03T15:08:00.001-05:00

I have made this weave-it afghan on a 4 inch weave-it loom.

There are 288 squares in it.

16 squares by 18 squares.

It is approximately 59" x 64".

For every $10 you donate to the

American Cancer Society on my page

HERE

I will give you a raffle ticket and a chance to win the afghan.

Once you get to my personal page click on

DONATE ON MY BEHALF

and follow the instructions.

It is very easy to do.

I will be able so see who has donated.

Or if you prefer not to leave your name there

you can email me.

I will then write your name on a raffle ticket for the drawing to be held in May.

The ticket will be drawn at the

Relay for Life Walk.

Remember for every $10 you donate

you get a raffle ticket.

$20 will get you 2 chances,

$40, 4 changes and so on.

My goal is to raise $800,

but i have no problem with raising much more. : )

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!
And God bless you.

Happyone : -)

Tuesday

2012-01-03T14:04:00.000-05:00

I walked around the lake this morning and it was 24 degrees with a bit of a wind. There was a brief snow shower too. That's better than a rain shower, at least you don't get wet.
I saw three deer on the path to the lake and a couple of cardinals at the lake. Only a few people were out and about this morning.
Two trucks with park workers were driving around the lake checking things out just making sure things were as they should be. One stopped to say Good Morning to me. Pretty quite out there this morning and a great morning for walking!!
I found my first coin for the year. Only a penny, but it's a start.
I walked 6.5 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 4:56

****************************************

The truck was parked in front of the garage on the side where my car was and i was too lazy to move it so i just drove the truck today going to my Tuesday knitting group.
Again this week i knitted on the baby blanket.

No stopping at the library for me today. So far i've been good about not getting library books out. I just may make a good dent on those four book shelves of books of mine to read.
I've started reading the Bible again and this year i'll be reading from the KJV. I'm not reading it straight through but have a schedule which skips around all over which i like.

Sunday the passages are from the Epistles
Monday - The Law
Tuesday - History
Wednesday - Psalms
Thursday - Poetry
Friday - Prophecy
Saturday - Gospels

This afternoon i'll just be home puttering around the house doing a little bit of this and that.
I'll also be publishing a post about the weave-it afghan and donation raffle.

Look for those bits of happiness scattered throughout your day and enjoy them.
Happyone : )

A smile is the light in the window of your face

that tells people you're at home.

~ Author Unknown

The tradition continues once again

2012-01-02T14:54:00.000-05:00

31 degrees this morning when i walked out the door for my walk. Radio said it was cold and windy but the wind hadn't came around my area yet and i put one too many layers on. That's what nice about layering, i just unzipped a couple of layers, took one of my hoods off and was comfortable.

I walked on my connect the path route. Was surprised to see school buses and kids going to school. I thought they went back tomorrow. There were quite a few people out along the paths. Walkers, runners, dog walkers and even a few bike riders. I spotted three deer off in the woods. Their white tails caught my eye.

Nice to be out walking and in the sunshine.
I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 4:56

********************************************

Yesterday i took down the tree, put everything away and vacuumed and now everything is back to normal and i'm ready for the new year.

Remember those red ball ornaments that Ken painted every year and stopped a few years ago? This year he continued the tradition again. He painted one ball for 2008, 2009, and 2010, The Dark Years. Those years Ken and i went through some tough times which is probably why he didn't paint a ball those years. Anyway they are behind us and this year was a good one!! The 2011 ball he painted Land Barons on it. : )

I made us pancakes for breakfast and after cleaning up from that we went for a ride the back way to Frederick to a huge used book store. It has row after row of books crowed in every which way. I was going to take a picture but once getting in the store and looking at all the books i just forget to take the picture. I walked away with buying only one book. Didn't i do well? I tried to find a few books by Jessica Verday but they didn't have any.

Home now catching up on my morning things that i didn't get done. Hopefully later i'll find some time to visit blogs and catch up with you all. As you know it doesn't take long to get backed up.

A happy day to you all.
Happyone : )

If you smile when no one else is around,

your really mean it.

~ Andy Rooney

Sunday

2012-01-01T14:38:00.000-05:00

I started out the new year as usual with a morning walk. Around the lake i went and only saw a few other people. Barbara who enjoys her walk as much as i do, a couple from my church and a runner. There were three deer that i spotted on the path to the lake.

I walked 6.3 miles.
Someone asked how many miles i walk in a year. I haven't added them up but if i averaged 6 mile a day that would be 2190 miles so it is around there somewhere.

I counted up the coins i found this month and it came to a total of only a 78 cents and only $11.42 for the year but a grand total in my glass banks of $215.28.

************************************

Cause me to hear the lovingkindness in the morning;

for in thee do I trust:

Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk;

for I lift up my soul unto thee.

Psalm 143:8

A blessed Sunday to all and may this new year be your best yet.

Happyone : )

A day on our land

2011-12-31T19:58:00.000-05:00

We left early this morning at 5:45 and drove up to our land. We had a couple of rain showers on the way up but it was supposed to clear up and be nice. It stopped raining but we never saw the sun.
Still we had a good time trekking all over our land. We found the borders for the second piece of land which we really don't even own yet. We go to closing this week!!
Picked out a couple sites where we would like to build our cabin and a shed though these might change again. But we are happy with our choices so far.
See Ken in his orange sweat shirt? He's marking a tree on our property line.

This one is looking down our driveway to the road.

And here i am walking up the driveway.

Here's a mini falls in our little brook.

In the middle of walking around and planning we took a break and ate lunch in the truck. I made chicken salad sandwiches on rolls and we had pumpkin bread for dessert.

Around 2:30 the fog started rolling in.

And we headed back home at 3:00. When we first started home the fog was pretty bad. I took this picture through the windshield.

Luckily it only last a little while and soon we were in the clear again.

So we are home safe and sound once again and enjoying a nice quiet evening at home.

Though i had no morning walk today we walked just over 4 miles on the land and i'm sure i used up more calories walking up and down hills and over rocks than 6 miles on a morning walk.

Hope you enjoyed your day!!
Happy New Year!!
Happyone : )

A beautiful sunrise

2011-12-30T13:44:00.001-05:00

I left my usual time today and walked in the dark. I figured i knew where all the ice was from yesterday. I'm glad i left before sunrise because it sure was beautiful this morning.

It was 26 degrees and i walked around the lake. No wind and it turned out to be a nice sunny morning.
Very quiet around the lake. I only saw a couple of people.
The heron was around again as well as the usual ducks and geese. I saw five deer. These three eating in the back of a yard which they have food for the deer and birds. They have made it an animal habitat. It is across the stream that i walk along on the way to the lake.

I saw two more deer farther along the path later on.
I walked 6 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 4:53

***************************************************

Had a good time with friends Jackie and Kerry while we all ate pizza last evening. It was nice to catch up. We plan to do this again soon.

Ken gave me two scratch off lottery tickets for Christmas and i won $15, so today i walked up the street to the liquor store to collect my winnings. I also entered Ken's Power Ball ticket again for the next five drawings.
As i was walking home i realized that i had forgotten to buy some more scratch off tickets with my winnings. I'm thinking that maybe i wasn't supposed to buy them today and when i buy them another day i will have a wining ticket with the big prize of $50,000.

All this year i have been keeping track of the books i've read. I joined the Library Thing Challenge to read 75 books. I didn't meet the challenge but i did read 59 books. You can see all the books i've read this year at the LIBRARY THING tab at the top of the page. The last one i finished this morning, which was the Bible. I read a bit of the Bible each day and at the end of the year read the whole thing. I've done this for many years and every time I read those last two verses it gives me the chills which reads:

He who has said all these things declares:

Yes, I am coming soon!"

Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ

be with you all. Amen.

Revelation 22:20 & 21

I'm not joining the Library Thing challenge for 2012. I'll still keep a list of all the books i read but i just don't want to have a number of books hanging over my head. Once i finish the first book for 2012 i'll take down the Library Thing Challenge tab and put up a 2012 Books tab.

Just doing a bit of this and that around the house the rest of the day. I'll probably read and do some knitting in there somewhere too.

We are hitting the road early tomorrow morning and heading over to our land. We just want to walk around on it and do some planning. We will pack a lunch to take with us and eat in the truck. It should be a fun day!!

A happy day to you!
Happyone : )

Before you put on a frown,

make absolutely sure

there are no smiles available.

~ Jim Beggs

Finished

2011-12-29T14:49:00.000-05:00

I left an hour later this morning for my walk. It was 25 degrees and i wanted to wait until it was light so i could see where the ice was. I walked around the lake. I'm just getting to the lake here when i took the picture. The lake is to the right and i will be turning right here instead of going straight.
The sun was out but then a few clouds came along so it was cloudy most of my walk. No wind though and it was really nice walking weather. It doesn't happened often when i'm walking but sometimes my toes get cold and today they were. I started running for a little bit which made me warm and my toes warmed up. Then i was back to walking. By the time i got home the temperature was already up to 32.
Just a few people about the lake. I thought there would be more because it was later but i must have been in between the early and the late people.
There were two male goldfinches sitting in the trees and i saw a few cardinals hopping along the ground. Of course they all flew away when i tried to take pictures.
Three lucky pennies this morning - all in the Giant parking lot.
I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 7:27

Sunset 4:52

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I didn't know it was supposed to snow today but as i look out of the window now the snow is really coming down. So far it isn't sticking and i don't think much if any of it will.

Just puttering around the house today. I've picked up some of the Christmas decorations and put them away. I still have the tree up though and will take that down Monday.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have finally finished sewing all the weave-it squares together and have turned it into an afghan. If you would like a chance to win this by donating to the American Cancer Society, check back here next week for the details.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We are meeting friends this evening at one of the pizza places we frequent. Haven't seen them for quite a while and it will be nice to catch up with them.

Enjoy this day and make a happy memory.

Happyone : )

A smile confuses an approaching frown.

~Author Unknown

Planting some herbs

2011-12-28T15:03:00.000-05:00

It was 40 degrees this morning but the radio said it was going to be very windy so i wore all my layers because i thought it would be cold with the wind. I walked out the door and there was no wind at all so it didn't take very long for me to feel quite warm. I took off my hat, unzipped my jacket and sweat shirt and felt better. There was a breeze kicking up by the time i got home but not the wind that i thought. It was a nice clear sunny morning, at least once the sun came up. I walk for about 45 minutes before the sun rises.

I walked my connect the path route. I saw a couple of deer and some kind of a big bird fly by with a huge wing span and land up at the top of a tree. I don't know what kind of bird it was and couldn't find it in the bird book. Must of been some kind of hawk.

Not many people out again. I saw two people walking dogs and my walking friends Petey and John were out along one of the paths. I walked along the way a little while with my son David. He called me while he was out walking too. So even though he was walking in NJ and i'm walking here we still get to walk together once in a while. : )

I walked 6.4 miles

Sunrise 7:26

Sunset 4:52

******************************************

One of my Christmas presents was this Chia Herb Garden. It comes with everything you need all in one box.
I got it started today.

It comes with six herbs but just three pots so i picked Basil, Dill, and Chives to grow.
I wet the sponges and put them in the pots.
Then added a little more water until there was about a half inch in the saucer.
The basil and dill seeds just get sprinkled on the top of the sponge.
Had to make a little hole for the chive seeds and then covered that up.
Then in went the plant makers.

It was suggested to put sandwich bags over the pots to encourage germination so that is what i did and put them on the window sill over my kitchen sink.

Now i just have to wait for the plants to grow.
The basil it says should take about five
days.
The dill should take eight days.
And the chives about two weeks.
Hopefully i can now look forward to cooking with some fresh herbs.
I'll be posting more pictures if and when they grow!

I baked some Snickerdoodles. Well, i really didn't bake them. They came frozen in a box and i just had to bake them in the oven for 15 minutes. They were bought as a fun raiser for school. I didn't eat any of them though, because each cookie is 150 calories and that just seems too much for one cookie. I'll wait and have my ice cream snack tonight. Perhaps i'll send the Snickerdoodles along with Ken tomorrow to work and they can eat them.

I'm still working on sewing the weave-it square strips finishing up that afghan. I've sewn two strips on today and only have one more to go!!! I'll soon have details posted how you can give to charity and get a chance to win the afghan.

It may not have been windy this morning, but it sure is this afternoon. But the sun is out shining brightly too.
I wish a happy day for you.
Happyone : )

Your success and happiness lies in you.

Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you

shall form an invincible host against difficulties.

~ Helen Keller

A rainy day

2011-12-27T09:09:00.001-05:00

A cloudy morning with no wind and a temperature of 38 degrees. I headed out at 6:30 as usual and walked around the lake. Very quiet morning. Only saw a handful of people out. I watched the heron flying low over the water and a few cardinals in the trees. The geese were all just waking up and making their usual racket! Once again there are so many of them on and around the lake. Their numbers vary quite a lot.
It was a dreary morning but still i was glad there was no snow or ice and i could be out there walking. : )
Nothing caught my eye to take a picture of so i thought i'd post an aerial view of the lake and surrounding area where i walk. You can see the lake in the middle of the picture. (ignore that red triangle) When i made the picture bigger it rain over into the sidebar so had to keep it smaller. You can always click on it to make it bigger if you like.

I walked 6.2 miles.

Sunrise 7:26

Sunset 4:51

**************************************

It started raining just as i left for my Tuesday morning knitting group. I forgot to take a count of the people that showed up but i'd guess around a dozen or so. I knitted on the same baby blanket from last week. I'll post another picture of it once i have a bit more of it done. Right now it is only a quarter of the way finished.

Still raining when i left and went to the library. This week again i dropped off a few items for Ken. I practically pass by the library on my way home which is why i usually stop there after knitting. I just dropped the books off and turned around and walked right back out!! Didn't even look around. I am really serious about finished some of those four shelves of books that i have at home.

I played around with a few different looks for my blog. I started out with one of the templates offered and then just changed around the colors and fonts until i ended up with this. I tried to go for a bright look that is easy to read. Hope you find it so. : )

Well it is still raining out and has been a pretty dreary day. I'm glad i got out for a bit to be with some friends. And now i am going to read some blogs and have a little visit with you too.

A happy day to you.
Happyone : )

A happy New Year!

Grant that I may bring to tear to any eye

when this New Year in time shall end.

Let it be said I've played the friend,

Have lived and loved and labored here,

And made of it a happy year.

Edgar Guest

Monday

2011-12-26T10:52:00.000-05:00

Didn't walk yesterday on Christmas but i was back to walking this morning. I slept in a little bit and didn't leave until 7:00. It was 38 degrees with a bit of a breeze kicking up but the sun came out and i had a great walk around the lake. There were a few other walkers and runners scattered around the lake as well. The main gates were closed so it was people who lived close enough to the lake who could walk there. I did see a few cars parked along the road by a couple of the entrances though.

I saw the heron standing at the waters edge when i walked over the red footbridge. A couple of mocking birds where flying about and i also saw a few chickadees.

There are many benches along the path around the lake and they have plaques on them honoring or in memory of someone. For the past three years that i have been walking here each Christmas a wreath like this one has been placed behind this bench on the little hill. The ornaments on the wreath are made of bird seed. It always touches my heart to see this and to read the plague.

I walked 6 miles.

Sunrise 7:26

Sunset 4:50

The daylight hours will now be starting

to get longer minute by minute. : )

******************************************

When i came home from my walk there was a little gift bag sitting in the wreath on my front door. Inside was a card that said Merry Christmas and these five mini candles. The card was not signed so i have no idea who it is from. A nice little surprise. : )

Ken and i had a nice and quiet Christmas.
I'm always glad when Christmas is over. I am not a big holiday person, and not sure why. Maybe because i expect it to be more than it is and it really is just another day. I prefer the ordinary every day goings on in life. With no expectations every day is great just in itself.

I took advantage of the sunny day and did a load of whites and hung them outside. There is still a bit of a breeze so they should dry fast. I've already done my Body Electric workout and a few other chores around the house.

Ken is off own his own this morning but we are meeting up later for lunch and then i'm not sure what the rest of the day will bring.

Hope your day is a happyone.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

People are so worried about what they eat

between Christmas and the New Year,

but they really should be worried about what

they eat between the New Year and Christmas.

~Author Unknown

A walk and Merry Christmas

2011-12-23T12:10:00.000-05:00

It rained last night but had stopped by morning when i left for my walk. It was another warm morning with a temperature of 47 but there was a bit of a breeze which made it feel a little cooler. Still, not cold and it made for nice walking weather. I walked my original connect the path route. It is one of the first routes i mapped out when first moving here. Haven't walked that particular route in a while.

We had more rained than i thought last night because the little stream has overflowed its banks here and has spread into the woods as you can see by these two pictures. This is the same stream that runs along the other path i walk that takes me to the lake but just up a lot farther away from the lake.

I haven't seen any deer for a while so it was nice to count five of them this morning. They didn't stay around for picture taking though.

A very quiet morning along the paths. Two people were walking dogs and i saw my friends Petey and John.

In places there was a coating of mud over the path and as i slipped i was reminded that mud can be as slippery as ice. Thankfully i didn't fall, only slipped. Not only would i be embarrassed, hurt or both, i would be very muddy too!!

Another lucky penny day. : )
I walked 6.5 miles.

Sunrise 7:24

Sunset 4:49

*****************************************

I'm all set for Christmas. Baking finished, presents bought, wrapped and sitting under the tree. Now we can relax and enjoy the next couple of days and remember why we celebrate the day.

A Christmas card for you.

May you all have a Very Merry Christmas! : )

Love,

Happyone : )

Taking the next couple of days off from blogging. See you on Monday.

Light show

2011-12-22T14:23:00.000-05:00

Another one of those warm mornings and this time the sun came out too. Temperature was 45 degrees. Today i stayed walking on the sidewalks and walked down to the end of Gray Rock and then turned around and walked back home. I walked on one side of the street on the way there then crossed over and walked on the other side back home. I don't usually like to backtrack but if i walk on opposite sides of the street at least i'm walking on different sidewalks!
A lot of people keep their Christmas lights on all night and since it was dark for the first part of my walk, it was nice looking at all the lights.
Only a few other people were out walking but there were a lot more cars than usual.
Looks like a lot of airplanes flying around too. Look at all the contrails up in the sky.
Looks like they made a tic tac toe game. Now i'd like to see them put the x's and o's in it!!

I walked 6.4 miles.

Sunrise 7:24

Sunset 4:48

*********************************************

Yesterday afternoon when we went to the movies we saw Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. It wasn't the best movie i've ever seen but it was good and entertaining. Lots of action which was totally unbelievable!! Not the Sherlock Holmes that Conan Doyle had in mind though. A cool thing i liked about the movie was that the camera shot around looking at all the details that Holmes saw and then seeing the options he thought of before taking the course of action he did.

We got out of the movie a little after 5 and then headed across the street and had dinner at Bertucci's.

Then it was time for a drive through the Symphony of Lights. It cost $20 a car (doesn't matter how many people are in the car) and all the proceeds go to the Howard County General Hospital. The road winds around quite a lot of displays and some are pretty elaborate. Lots of them have movement in them so it was hard to get good pictures but here are some that i took.

It was a fun time and things like this always make me feel like a kid again. We really enjoyed driving though it. There were only a few other cars there. But we saw plenty of cars when we left. Traffic was horrendous when we left, but that was to be expected since the mall is right across the street.

**************************************

I'm staying home all day today. All my Christmas stuff is done and i'm staying away from the crowds.

I finished reading Gulliver's Travels by Jonathon Swift. The first half of the book was good and that is what i remember the movie being about. I just remember from the movie that he was ship wrecked and spent some time with little people and then with giants. The book continues with him spending time also with people who live on a floating island in the sky and a place where horses are like people and the people are uncivilized. I can understand why the movie was just about the first part of the book because the second half of it is not very good at all. At least i didn't think so!!!

Spent the morning doing the usual house stuff - nothing too exciting but getting things done that need to be.

I'm taking a break now to write a post, read some blogs and then either, knit, read, or sew squares or maybe a little bit of everything!

Hope all is well with you on this Thursday, three days before Christmas!
A happy day to you.
Happyone : )

Unless we make Christmas an occasion

to share our blessing,

all the snow in Alaska

won't make it 'white'.

~ Bing Crosby

Another day in the life....

2011-12-21T12:35:00.000-05:00

Another warm morning like yesterday. 48 degrees, no breeze and cloudy. I walked over to the lake and walked around it but didn't walk on the upper path which is about a half mile less than if i took the upper path.
Not all that many people around the lake this morning. I'm sure it's because of Christmas and people are just busy doing other things. The people i did see are the regulars who have to get outside to walk. : )

I passed up my street on the way home and walked down the road a bit to one of the paths and walked down there a bit and over the footbridge in the picture. I didn't see anyone at all down the path. I actually like when i don't see anyone along my paths. I like being out there alone.
It was a quiet uneventful walk but i felt good to be outside walking.
I walked 6.9 miles.

Sunrise 7:23

Sunset 4:48

**************************************

I really enjoyed the cookie exchange last night. 18 women showed up each bringing 2 dozen cookies, the recipes for them, some extra food for us to eat, a gift for the gift exchange and a container to bring home a sampling of cookies. It was held at Rosemary's house who has a beautiful home and was able to accommodate all of us easily. I think she said this was the 5 year that the cookie exchange has been at her home.
We all voted on the cookies in various categories and the winners got blue ribbons. I ate too many cookies when trying to figure which ones to vote for. I mean how can you vote on a cookie if you haven't eaten it!!
The gift exchange was fun. One person at a time picked out and opened a present. The next person either got to steal a gift already opened or pick a wrapped one.
I left home at 6:30 and got home a little before 10:00. Ken was glad when i got home so he could eat a few cookies. : )
I had a great time and already look forward to next years exchange!!

********************************************

Ken took the day off from work to do his Christmas shopping. He was already gone by the time i got back home from walking.

While he was out, i wrapped up the few presents i bought for him the other week.
I did a few things around the house and now i'm about to have some lunch.

Later when Ken gets home, we are going to go to the movies this afternoon, pick up a bite to eat somewhere afterwards and then take a drive through the Symphony of Lights that is held every year at Merriweather Post. We went years ago and haven't been since so thought it would be a good year to go again. I'm hoping to get some good pictures.

Should be a nice afternoon and another nice evening awaiting me.

I hope you are enjoying your day as well.

A smile from me to you.

Happyone : )

Maybe Christmas, "he thought, "doesn't come from a store.

Maybe Christmas........

Means a little bit more."

~ Dr Seuss

Lots of books

2011-12-20T14:48:00.000-05:00

A cloudy and still morning and a warm one too. Temperature was 49 degrees!!! I was able to leave a few layers of clothing behind.
Didn't walk on any mapped out route of mine today, just walked here and there. Paths, sidewalks, and even a parking lot.
I saw a few people scattered around this morning walking, running and walking dogs.
I heard birds and saw squirrels. One of the squirrels had a bend about three quarters of the way down in his tail. Must have gotten it caught somewhere. I've seen squirrels with part of their tails gone but never with a severe angle in it like this one. It didn't seem to be bothering him at all.
Not much else going on, pretty quiet out there this morning. Still an enjoyable walk.
Found a couple more coins - a dime and a penny.
Walked 6.4 miles.

Sunrise 7:23

Sunset 4:47

*******************************************

Packed up my knitting and headed out to my Tuesday morning knitting group. There were about a dozen of us there. I knitted on the baby blanket i started last week. I have enough done now so that you can see the pattern.

It is nice to be knitting on this now because i have learned the pattern and can just knit without thinking about it much.

Made a stop at the library on the way home to drop a book off. Not one of mine this time (i'm reading a book that i own) but one of Ken's. I was determined not to check out any more books out of the library and this time i really DIDN'T!! I have a LOT of books at home here that have to be read. In fact i have four full shelves on my bookcase of books that i haven't read yet. I could go a whole year without ever going to the library and still not be able to read all these books.

So am going to try to read a good many of these this year. I probably won't keep most of them. If i really really like a book and would possibly reread it i'll keep it, otherwise i'll just give it away. Some of the books are a collection and have a few novels in one book. Oh yeah, and the 4 new ones i just bought, A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin aren't on the shelves.

Tonight i go to the cookie exchange. I have the cookies i made, a few copies of the recipe, a container to bring home cookies and a little gift for a Christmas game we are to play all ready to go. I'm looking forward to going and to having a happy time and maybe even make a new friend. : )

Hope your day has been a happy one.
Till next time......
Here's a smile from me to you. : )
Happyone

Somehow, not only for Christmas

But all the long year through,

The joy that you give to others

Is the joy that comes back to you.

And the more you spend in blessing

The poor and lonely and sad,

The more of your heart's possessing

Returns to you glad.

~ John Greenleaf Whittier

ice cream and cookies

2011-12-19T14:04:00.000-05:00

A nice calm morning with no breeze at all and a temperature of 20 degrees when i started out. It warmed up some once the sun came out and it was a beautiful morning for walking. I walked around the lake again. There were a scattering of people about and the usual geese, ducks and birds. Walked off the paved path a few times to walk down by the water.
A pretty quiet walk but a most enjoyable one.
I walk by the Giant every day and i stopped in there this morning before i came home. With being warm from walking and with all my layers on, walking into the store was like walking into an oven! A couple of layers got unzipped, hoods came down and the headband came off while i walked around finding the molasses and egg beaters that i needed for making cookies later on. It was nice to get outside once again to cool off. It is like that when i get home from walking too, but there i can just peel the layers off!!
I found another lucky penny. This one was brand new and shiny.
I walked 6.6 miles.

Sunrise 7:22

Sunset 4:47

*********************************************

The other day we got in a new supply of ice cream and i picked out a limited edition new flavor. Very good choice. It is the best flavor ever - Whoopie Pie! Bits of whoopie pie pieces and creamy filling swirl all in chocolate ice cream. This is my new favorite!! : )

I baked the cookies that i will be bringing to the cookie exchange tomorrow evening. I made Pfeffernusse Cookies. The store bought cookies i find hard, but mine are nice and soft. I will be bringing two dozen of them tomorrow. I have the recipe HERE on MealsMatter if you would like to make them. These are one of my daughter Debbi's favorite cookies. If your reading this Debbi, i thought of you today the whole time making them. : )

Its still early afternoon and i just have a couple of things that i need to get done and then i'm going to sew some more of those weave-it squares tegether. I never did get the afghan finished last week like i wanted to. I have all the four squares of four all sewn together in long strips, now i have to sew them together to make the blanket. Anyway, i'll sew a couple of rows and then maybe read. I'm just about finished with Gulliver's Travels.

Take the time to enjoy the small moments of happiness you find throughout your day and you will find that you had a happy day.
Happyone : )

Whatever else be lost among the years,

Let us keep Christmas still a shining thing;

Whatever doubts assail us, or what fears,

Let us hold close one day, remembering

Its poignant meaning for the hearts of men.

Let us get back our childlike faith again.

~ Grace Noll Crowell

More acres, a walk and a musical

2011-12-18T14:33:00.000-05:00

We left the house yesterday morning at 6:45 to drive to western Maryland to our land and to walk around and look over the 8 acres right next to ours. Earlier in the week we got a call from Amy, our realtor for the land we just bought. The 8 acres right next to ours just went on the market and she asked if we were interested. We said yes! After walking around on it yesterday we decided yes we really would like to have it and put in an offer. Things moved pretty fast over the phone with the other realtor and the sellers. They turned our first offer down but came back with a counter offer, we turned that one down and we came back with another which they agreed too. We go to closing the first week in the new year. So we will be the owner of sixteen beautiful wooded acres. What we get with this new land is a better road onto the property, electricity already there with a meter and the brook we discovered on the property line is now all ours and right in the middle of our land. Oh yes, and a better view! We are so excited to have all this land to ourselves!
Here i am walking on down along one of the roads on our land. It was only in the 20's and not long after it started snowing.

****************************************************

I walked around the lake this morning. It was a cold morning at 25 degrees and cloudy but it was very still without any breeze at all. Didn't see anyone at all until i was half way around the lake and then i saw quite a few people.

I'm on the way back home on the path here. If you look close you might be able to see a deer up ahead walking on the right side of path.

I walked 6.1 miles.

***************************************************

There was a special service at church this morning, a Christmas Musical called The Lost Star put on by the choir and other talented people from my church. I am always amazed at the talent of the people in my little church.

Jesus.....

the greatest story.

the most amazing gift.

the blessed hope

of all who believe.

Thanks be to God for is indescribable gift.

1 Corinthians 9:15

Have a very happy Sunday to all.
Happyone : )

Let's approach Christmas with an expectant hush,

rather than a last minute rush!

~ Anonymous

Red Christmas Balls

2011-12-16T14:33:00.002-05:00

Even warmer this morning at 46 degrees, but the temperature went down a few degrees by the time i got back home. Breezy with a few gusts now and then. Blowing pretty hard as i walked along the wide end of the lake by the dam, but then once i was by the trees i was protected. A nice quiet walk around the lake. Just a few people out. I left about 15 minutes later than usual.

The heron was standing on the rocks over by the boat ramp which is now closed until spring so i won't be seeing any more boats on the lake till spring. There are a few Mallard ducks who hang out at the lake but today there was whole lot of them around.

I've mentioned before that the park rangers drive around the lake checking things out. I just finished walking around the lake and was on the path headed home, when i turned around and snapped this picture of them driving in the truck.

As i say frequently it was a great morning to be outside walking.
I walked 6.4 miles.

Sunrise 7:20

Sunset 4:46

*****************************************

Next Tuesday evening a lady from my church is having a Christmas cookie exchange at her house. I've often heard of these but have never been to one so i am looking forward to going. Today i went for a ride to find her house to make sure i knew where it was. It was ten miles away and easy to find.

I spent some time in the kitchen this afternoon but i wasn't haven't fun baking. I was cleaning the appliances, washing the floor and giving all the counter tops a good cleaning instead of just the usual wipe down. Getting done the things that have to be done but that no one notices.

******************************************

Starting in 1972 every Christmas Ken has painted a red Christmas ball ornament with the year and something that made the year memorable. He was the one who decided what to paint and would surprise us with it. It was always fun to see what he painted on the balls each year. For some reason he never got around to painting a ball in 2008 and so the tradition ended then. 2007 was the last year and it was the year i started blogging and as you can see from the picture "happyone" got her own red ball. : )
Here is just a sampling of the red Christmas balls. I think you will be able to read most of them.

I still have some ironing to do for this week so i'm off to finish that up. Then it will be time for some fun stuff. Not sure yet what i'll decide to do.
It's Friday and i'm pretty sure it is going out for pizza night out.

Hope your day was happy one.
Happyone : )

As long as we know in our hears

what Christmas ought to be,

Christmas is.

~ Eric Sevareid

Glass Banks

2011-12-15T14:43:00.000-05:00

This morning was more like a spring day with a temperature of 42 degrees!! A big difference from a few days ago when it was 17!!! We sure have changeable weather. I didn't go to over the lake but just walked all over the place on no particular route. After walking about 4 miles i was near home and stopped there for a pit stop, then left again and continued my walk.

I walked along roads,

A few paths,

And over a few footbridges.

I took the left turn here.

I didn't see any wildlife except for birds. Not many people out along the paths but Petey and John were out walking and stopped for a chat with them.

A warm, still, but cloudy morning.

I walked 7.1 miles.

Found a penny and a dime.

Sunrise 7:20

Sunset 4:45

*****************************************

ArtyMarti asked me what i do with the pennies that i find. Some of you know as i've mentioned it before but for those of you who don't, i save all the coins i find in old glass banks. I've been saving them for years. These are all my banks lined up. You can see four more empty ones down at the end all waiting to be filled.

I got my cards written out yesterday and put them in the mail this morning when i was out walking. I didn't write out very many but it is still nice to be done with it.

Finished up a few chores around the house in the morning and then i had some time for some reading after lunch.

I'm reading Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. I've seen a few versions of the movie but have never read the book. I guess i should have realized but didn't, that this book was written in the 1700's!! It is a bit slow reading because of that but i am enjoying the book. It is my own book which i bought a while back with a gift card.

So that's been my day so far. I'm off now to sew some more of those weave-it squares together. There seems to be no end to them!!

Don't forget to take some time for yourself and do something you enjoy.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

You can never truly enjoy Christmas

until you can look up into the Father's Face

and tell him you have received his Christmas gift.

~ John R. Rice

Cleaning day

2011-12-14T15:21:00.000-05:00

It felt warm this morning at 32 degrees after the cold mornings we have been having. I walked around the lake again. There are short paths through the trees that the fishermen take walking down to the lake and this morning i walked down a few of these to go down by the water. A beautiful sunrise this morning through the trees.

I spotted a heron and took a video of him but can't seem to get it posted here, but here's a still picture i took of him.

The usual amount of people were out around the lake enjoying the early morning. A quiet morning around the lake but i enjoyed walking down by the water. I like to walk off the paved paths because i like walking in the woods and this way i can pretend that i am. : )

I found a lucky penny on the way home.

I walked 6.7 miles.

Sunrise 7:19

Sunset 4:45

********************************************

First thing this morning i got the sheets washed and hung outside on the line to dry and the bread machine going making a loaf of bread. Then got a body electric workout out of the way. Usually do it in the afternoon.

Then spent the rest of the day cleaning.

Just thought i'd take a break and post this. Still have to put the sheets back on the bed and figure out what to make for supper.

Hope all is well in your part of the world.

A happy Wednesday to you.

Happyone : )

Fail not to call to mind,

in the course of the twenty-fifth of this month,

that the Divinest Heart that ever walked the earth

was born on that day;

and then smile and enjoy yourselves the rest of it ;

for mirth is also of Heaven's making.

~ Leigh Hunt

Walking, knitting and eating

2011-12-13T14:31:00.002-05:00

A few degrees warmer today at 21. Not much of a difference that i noticed though. It was calm and a great morning for walking around the lake.

Down at the narrow end of the lake there was a light coat of ice forming. I'm sure it is melted by now though because as i type this, it is 46 degrees. Not a lot of people out but still enough so that i didn't feel like i was the only person out.
The geese sit here on the hill. Some eating, some sleeping.

A nice but uneventful walk.
I walked 6.4 miles.

Sunrise 7:18

Sunset 4:45

***************************************

I have missed my knitting group the last couple of weeks and it was nice to get back to that and see my friends there, for some knitting and talking. A few people brought in some Christmas goodies and most of us tried hard not to eat anything. I couldn't seem to pass up the sugar and cinnamon coated pecans. I consoled myself saying that nuts are good for me!! : )
There were a dozen of us at knitting. The knitting group is not only for knitters but for anyone who makes anything. One of the women is making a bear for her mom for Christmas. Here is what she has done so far. I think she is doing a fantastic job on it. To make it heavy so it can sit up she put a bag of BB's in the bottom!

I've started another baby blanket. You might remember that i knitted a yellow one a while back. You can see it HERE. The pattern is HERE.
This one i am using a cotton yarn and knitting it on size 8 needles. I've just started so just have a few rows done so far.

A close up of the stitches.

The knitting group breaks up at about 12:00. Ken had to go over to the bank on his lunch hour today and gave me a call at 12:00. My knitting group is at the mill which is where Rams Head Tavern is so he came over and we had lunch together there. A very pleasant diversion in the middle of my day.

Haven't done a thing around the house yet so i'll be busy this afternoon getting some things done. I never did write out those cards yesterday and don't think i'll get around to it today either. Well, there is always tomorrow.

Hope you are enjoying your Tuesday. If your busy working, don't forget to take some time for some fun too.

A happy day to you.
Happyone : )

Love came down at Christmas,

Love all lovely, Love Divine;

Love was born at Christmas;

Star and angels gave the sign.

~ Christina Rossetti

A couple of cold mornings

2011-12-12T14:30:00.000-05:00

A bit chilly outside yesterday morning and again today - only 17 degrees. Both days there was no wind and the sun came out so it didn't feel as cold as that, beside as you know i wear lots of layers to keep me warm.
Yesterday i walked around the lake. As it was the annual gathering of the Centennial Sunrise Walkers, i stopped by the pavilion to say hi to the other walkers there. From 7:30 til 9:00 you could get coffee, juice, water and donuts. One of the walkers and his wife organize this every year. I just had a chocolate donut hole. I stayed for about 10 minutes and then continued on my way.

This morning i walked around the neighborhoods along the sidewalks and some paths too. No special route. I didn't see anyone else out along the paths. The only people i said good morning to were people scraping the ice off their windshields.
Along one of the paths was a sign saying that it will be closed tomorrow to take care of the over population of deer. That must explain why i didn't see any deer today, they have all gone into hiding!
Took a picture of this C3 Corvette parked in front of a townhouse i walked past. If i didn't have my Corvette this is the generation style i would want. I'd like a red one but i like this blue too.

I walked 6.1 miles this morning.

Sunrise 7:18

Sunset 4:45

*******************************************

I drove over to the mall and got a few Christmas presents for Ken. Lots of people there already on a Monday morning. I wasn't there long. Just got what i needed and headed back home. I wore my pedometer walking around the mall and walked another two miles there.

I'm sending out very few Christmas cards this year!! Mostly just to family and close friends who i won't see to wish them a Merry Christmas in person. I guess i'll start doing that later on this afternoon or this evening. Do you still send out cards?

I finished reading The Help and thought is was a very good book. You can already get the movie through NETFLIX though it says a 'long wait.' I have it first in my queue. I'm sure i'll like the book better than the movie but i'd still like to see it.

Well off i go to read blogs and then get started on those cards.
Have a great Monday.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

Christmas gift suggestions:

To your enemy, forgiveness.

To an opponent, tolerance.

To a friend, your heart.

To a customer, service.

To all, charity.

To every child, a good example.

To yourself, respect

~ Oren Arnold

Manicotti and Blitz Cake

2011-12-09T08:59:00.001-05:00

Another bright, crisp, sunny morning but a little bit colder than yesterday. The thermometer showed that it was 24 degrees when i left at 6:35. Like i always say though, with all the layers i wear i stay nice and warm. No wind either, which makes it nice. Walked around the lake again today but i stayed on the lower path. Then passed up my usual path to home and continued to walk a quarter of the way around the lake and took the other path up to the road and home.
All the footbridges were slippery with frost and or ice so i walked slowly over those. Also over by the tennis courts the path was pretty icy. But i was careful and all was well.
I stopped to take this picture of the contrails reflected in the water. I walked down to the edge and it gave me the feeling that i was looking down a deep canyon. I found myself walking to the edge very carefully so i wouldn't fall down the cliff. I know you can't get that from the picture but it was really neat.

Not many people out but i did see some of the regulars. There are some of us who just have to get out for that morning walk. : )
Another great walk.
I walked 6.9 miles.

Sunrise 7:15

Sunset 4:44

**************************************

The cheese manicotti of yesterday came out very good. Being able to fill the noodles when they are hard was ever so much easier and faster. I'll be making these more often now knowing how easy it is.

I don't have a written down recipe but the filling is just mozzarella, ricotta, and Parmesan cheese, an egg and some parsley.
I mix that all together and then stuff the noodles.
You can use sauce from a jar or make your own. I usually just use it out of the jar.
A little sauce goes on the bottom of the dish and just lay the stuffed noodles on the bottom in a single layer.
I added a cup of water to the sauce and heated it up till it was VERY HOT in the microwave.
Then poured the sauce over the noodles.
Covered it all with foil.
Baked at 400 degrees for 40 minutes.
Then took the foil off and sprinkled some mozzarella on it.
Baked it for another 10 minutes until the cheese melted and browned a bit.
I ate two of the noodles and it was just enough.

***********************************

Today i baked a Blitz Cake to bring to Cheryl's annual Christmas party tomorrow evening. I got the recipe from my DIL's mother, Pat. It is very easy to make and tastes delicious. Reminds me of a pound cake. I've just added the recipe to my on line cookbook and if you would like the recipe click HERE. The picture always takes a few days to get posted so i've taken a few here to show you.
I've got it all mixed up here and ready to pour into the jelly roll pan. The batter is sticky and very smooth and i love licking the beaters and bowl.

All ready to go into the oven.

Out of the oven, cooling, smelling delicious

waiting to be cut into squares.

And here it is cooled, cut into squares and ready to be eaten.

Don't know why it's called Blitz cake! It should be called Blitz squares.

******************************************

I didn't get very many weave-it squares sewed together yesterday and still have quite a lot of squares to sew yet so i think i'll go and get a few more of them sewn together. I'd really like to be done with it by next week. I also have a book to finish reading.

Since it's Friday i think it's a good night to go out for pizza. I'm positive Ken will agree. : )

Have a happy day.

Happyone : )

It is good be children sometimes,

and never better than at Christmas

when it's might Founder was a child Himself.

~ Charles Dickens

Church money rebate

2011-12-08T14:44:00.000-05:00

The rain finally stopped last night and we woke up to a clear morning though it was still dark. Back to a more normal temperature of 30 degrees. When the sun came up it was one of those bright, clear, fresh smelling mornings. The kind that make you glad to be outside walking. The stream that runs along the path on the way to the lake was high after all the rain, was muddy and running fast.

It was a nice walk around the lake and saw quite a few of the regulars. Stopped a few times for a little chat with some of them. I'm surprised i didn't see the lady from yesterday, maybe tomorrow.
The only wild life today were the geese and birds.
I found another lucky penny.
I walked 6.6 miles.

Sunrise 7:14

Sunset 4:44

***********************************************

We never did go out last night when Ken got home. Rained really hard and was just a miserable night to be out, so i never did get my ice cream. BUT today's another day, well go out tonight instead.

Didn't post a picture of my haircut because i didn't like any of the pictures i took. It is hard to take your own picture!!

*********************************************

I have mentioned quite a few times about the path i walk along that leads to the lake. This path is right down the road from my house and starts out by the parking lot at my church. I am standing in the church parking lot to take this picture. I come across the wooden foot bridge to the right and follow the path to the lake.

35 years ago my pastor and his wife started the church and when the land was purchased to build the building the land where the path is on belonged to the church. About six months or so before i moved here the county bought some of the land behind the church to put the path on.

The part of the story that is interesting is that the price of the land when it was purchased all those years ago was the same amount that the church got for the land that was sold for the path!! So the church got their money back!! Pretty amazing!! Coincidence or God at work?! Somehow i feel it's God at work!!!

*********************************************

I've been home today just doing stuff around the house - just regular cleaning.

I'm going to make manicotti for supper tonight and was going to make it early in the day, put it in the refrigerator and then just pop it in the oven to cook at supper time. Boiling the noodles is the part i don't like to do and it is hard to stuff the tubes when they are wet and soft, and takes a long time. I was reading the package and it said that you could stuff the tubes without cooking them first. Only thing different was that you have to heat up the sauce to boiling first with some water added and use that when preparing the dish. It bakes in a hotter oven of 400 degrees instead of 350.
Since i don't have to cook the noodles first i decided to wait and make it later just in time for supper.
I'll let you know how it turns out.

So until it is time to do that i will be upstairs in my loft sewing some weave-it squares together making them into a blanket. It's the same one i finished last month, just didn't finish the sewing it together part. It is the one that i will be raffling off for charity that i mentioned a while back. I'll be telling you all about it next week or when i have a picture of the finished blanket.

Hope your enjoying your day.
A smile from me to you.

Happyone : )

A Christmas candle is a lovely thing;

It makes no noise at all,

But softly gives itself away.

~ Eva Logue

A rainy day walk and a new haircut

2011-12-07T14:18:00.000-05:00

I got to listen to raindrops on my umbrella throughout my entire walk. It was a very rainy morning but the temperature was warm once again at 59 degrees. At times the rain came down pretty heavy. I wore my rain pants but not my rain slicker. I would have been too warm so i just took the umbrella. I walked around the lake. Very few people out, in fact i only saw two people around the whole lake. One was a runner and didn't even say good morning back to me. The other woman i saw up by the parking lot at the main entrance. By this time i walked three quarters around the lake. I watched her get out of the car, walk a bit turn around for a few steps and then turn around again and started walking my way. When she got to me she said, "I almost got back in the car but then decided to walk when i saw you walking. I used to walk a few years ago and got out of the habit and decided to start again today." We talked a bit longer and she asked me all the typical walking questions. When we went our separate ways, she thanked me for stopping to talk and for the encouragement. I really think i'll see her again!

I spotted the heron down by the waters edge among all the geese. A couple of ducks were there too. There is only one white duck and i always see her with her friend the mallard duck.

It was nice walking and having the lake to myself. A rainy morning makes a fine day for a walk. At least once in a while. : )
I walked 6.2 miles.
********************************************
Once home, i did a quick few things, ate breakfast and left the house at 9:30. I had a hair appointment to get my hair dyed and this time i had Cheryl cut a few inches off. There is not enough hair now to put on a ball cap and have a pony tail. She cut it in a bob type layered look which goes to the end of my chin. She did a great job and i like it a lot!!! : )

Late yesterday afternoon i just sat down in the chair near the Christmas tree and was going to read when half of the lights on the tree went out. It was hard trying to find the ends and figuring which strands weren't working with all the ornaments and tinsel on it, but i finally managed to figure it all out. I really didn't feel like taking the ornaments and tinsel off to replace the lights and was thinking that maybe the tree just wouldn't have all the lights on this year. Just then Ken came home and saved the day. He said it was probably the fuses. We had some extra fuses that came with the lights, so he replaced them and the lights are once again shining brightly. : )

I have some things to do around the house yet for today, but then I'm hoping to get some reading in.
We are planning to go out this evening to do some errands when Ken comes home. One will be to get some more ice cream. We've run out of it once again. I'm hoping for some chocolate chip mint this time!

Hope your day has been a good one so far and you found lots of reasons to smile.
Happyone : )
The quote today is for you Cheryl. : )

Life is an endless struggle

full of frustrations and challenges,

but eventually you find a hair stylist you like.

~ Author Unknown

Trees and gift bags

2011-12-06T14:23:00.000-05:00

Temperature this morning was way up there at 59 degrees!! The roads were wet when i left for my walk but it was not raining. Not long afterward though it started to drizzle. I thought about going back home for my umbrella but didn't do it. It was warm and i didn't think the rain would last long. Besides i just didn't feel like carrying the umbrella. The drizzle stopped after about a mile and didn't start up again until later. By the time i got home i was half way between damp and soaking wet!
I walked around the lake. I saw the heron down by the water but when i went to get a picture of him he flew across the lake. Spotted ten deer - there were three groups of three of them and then one lone deer.
Not a lot of other people out but enough to say good morning a few times.
Even though it was rainy and i was wet it was still nice to be out there walking. I liked listening to the rain drip down through the leaves on the trees.
I walked 6.2 miles.

***************************************

I didn't go to my knitting group again this Tuesday. It was such a rainy dreary day and i had lots to do to keep busy at home.

Remember those scarves i knitted for the six women Ken works with? There is a picture of them in the post HERE. I bought white bags and decorated them with a few stamps, put a scarf in each bag with tissue paper and now they are ready for Ken to take to work. I hope they like them!

I turned the Christmas tree lights on, opened the box of tinsel and put it on the tree. Now the tree is finished!! : )

At my kitchen window i put up a mini tree with lights and a little tinsel.

I still have to clean up the mess i made making those little gift bags and I noticed my basket in the closet is filled with things that need to be shredded so i'll do a little shredding this afternoon too which i like to do. I'll end the afternoon getting a little reading in.

A happy day to you.

Happyone : )

I sometimes think we expect too much of Christmas Day.

We try to crowd into it the long arrears of kindliness

and humanity of the whole year.

As for me, I like to take my Christmas

a little at a time, all through the year.

And thus I drift along into the holidays.

Let them overtake me unexpectedly -

waking up some fine morning

and suddenly saying to myself:

"Why, this is Christmas Day!"

~ David Grayson

The tree is up

2011-12-05T15:25:00.000-05:00

Temperature back up to 35 degrees this morning when i walked. It was worth being up and out early to see the spectacular sunrise this morning. It was like the sky was on fire. The picture doesn't due it justice!!

I walked over to the lake and walked about a quarter of the way around it and then took the path that leads back up to the road through another entrance to the park. On the way along the path i saw this road and followed it to see where it went.

It led back down toward the lake to a picnic area which was just off the path around the lake. From here through the trees i could see the red footbridge i usually walk over.

I didn't walk back to the lake though, but turned around and walked back up the road and continued my way back to the side entrance and to the main road. Then i walked around the neighborhoods making my way back home.
The only wildlife that i saw was a few deer. I'm probably scaring it all away with my bright orange sweatshirt!!
A few people were out but not all that many. One lady i see running almost every day. Most runners i find are very focused on running and don't really like to talk much (not all but most). One of the exceptions is this lady. She is always happy, smiling and has a few words to say in passing. Sometimes we stop for a short chat. I don't even know her name but it's always nice to see her.

I walked by two middle school age boys waiting on the corner for the school bus. I don't usually say anything to kids because i just get a grunt in answer or nothing at all, so i was just going to walk passed when one of the boys said, "Good Morning, have a good day." I smiled and said, "Good morning, and you have a good day too and thanks." What a pleasant surprise that was. : )

I walked 6.1 miles.
Found more coins this morning. A quarter and a penny!

****************************************************

Here it is Monday morning again already. I feel like there should be one more day of weekend.
I got a loaf of bread started, did a load of laundry and hung out on the line, vacuumed the living room and cleared out a spot to put the Christmas tree.
Got the Christmas tree out of the back bedroom closet, brought it downstairs, put it together and put red and white lights on it. It is a small tree so it was easy to do. Here is the tree, with just the lights and the angel at the top.

Then it was time to put the ornaments on it.

I still have to put the tinsel on the tree. I just didn't feel like doing that today and will do that tomorrow or maybe this evening. I still always put the tinsel on because to me the tree just doesn't look finished without it. I like to see the tinsel flutter when i walk by. I'll take another picture tomorrow when the tinsel is on it.

I still have some other work to do for today, so off i got to get some stuff done. No time for relaxing fun this afternoon. That will have to wait until after supper. Which by the way will be cooked peppers and onions, rice and some sour cream all rolled up in a tortilla shell. Yummy i'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

Hope all is going well in your part of the world.
A happy day to you.
Happyone : )

Love is what's in a room with you at Christmas

if you stop opening presents and listen.

~ Author unknown,

attributed to a 7 year old named Bobby

The Reason

2011-12-04T15:45:00.000-05:00

Isaiah 9:6 - old testament

For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called

Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father,

Prince of Peace

Luke 2:11 - new testament

For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior,

who is Christ the Lord.

With all the decorating, shopping, gift giving, baking and celebrating of Christmas let's stop and think about Jesus which is the reason for the season. : )

***************************************

We had a nice dinner at The Corner Stable last night. They are known for their crab cakes and ribs so we ordered a meal that had both things and shared it. There was a lot of food and in that one order and i can't imagine anyone eating it all alone.
The crab cakes were very good. Lots of crab meat and just enough filler to hold them together.
The ribs were okay, but i've had better. I like ribs best at Long Horn.
We hardly ever get a dessert but decided to get some Bread Pudding to try and shared it. We didn't care for it. It was more like a cake and very dense.
The bottom line was that it was okay. I'd go back again for the crab cakes or to try something different.

*********************************************

I walked around the lake this morning. It was 27 degrees again. There was a mist over the lake which made things look dream like. Quite a few people out walking and running. I couldn't believe i saw yet another person running in shorts. Almost every day i see someone in shorts on these cold mornings.
I only walked 5.2 miles. Had to get home to give myself time to get ready for church and i wanted to make Ken and i French toast for breakfast. I found a dime and a penny.

Have a great Sunday.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

I will honor Christmas in my heart,

and try to keep it all the year.

~ Charles Dickens

Saturday

2011-12-03T15:20:00.001-05:00

Once the sun rose it was a nice clear, bright sunny morning and the temperature was 27 degrees.
I walked a route through neighborhoods along some streets and also on a couple of paths and along this trail i discovered last week. Only walked it one way this time because i now know where it starts over on the other end. As you can see it is a bit flooded here.

I saw a few deer along the trail, saw some kind of a hawk, and hear a woodpecker. No people along here but did see a few people walking along the road. As usual on these cold mornings i saw another crazy person running in shorts!!! and a long sleeve tee shirt. And there i am in 5 layers of clothes, and tights under my pants. I once again wore the bright orange sweat shirt. It really is nice and warm.
I walked 6 miles.

I got back home, changed and then walked down to church to help put up the Christmas decorations. I helped set up the tree in the gathering room as you first walk into the church. Then just helped out wherever there was something else to do. Everything looks so nice and now i'm in the mood to put my own tree up at home. I'll be doing that probably on Monday, or at least get started with it.

This afternoon after lunch while Ken and i were out doing some errands we counted 18 cars and trucks with Christmas trees on them. Trucks had them in back and cars had them tied on the roof.

Home now for a little while and we will be going out to dinner later. A new place has opened and we are going to try it out. It has the strange name of The Corner Stable. Sounds like a horse place!! They are supposed to have very good crab cakes there. I'll let you know tomorrow how they were.

A happy day to you.

Happyone : )

There has been only one Christmas,

the rest are anniversaries.

~ W.J. Cameron

The coldest morning so far

2011-12-02T13:44:00.000-05:00

It was the coldest morning so far of the season, 23 degrees, but there was no breeze and it really didn't feel that cold out. I walked around the lake. Everything had a pinkish tint to it and it was a very pretty morning. This picture is right when i get to the lake.

I had to walk carefully in some places because of the ice.

Just another picture walking along.

I saw only one deer and there weren't many geese about either. The ones that were there didn't seem to mind the cold water. Must be that nice warm down they wear.

There were quite a few people out around the lake which was surprising because of the cold weather. I guess it takes more than a little cold weather to keep people from walking. You might think that the topic of conversation around the lake this morning would have been the weather. But no, it was my bright orange sweatshirt!! : ) Almost everyone that i saw made some comment about it. Here's a sampling.

"I could see you all the way on the other side of the lake!"

"Great color."

"Now you really are the sunshine."

"Love the color and it will keep you safe."

"No one is going to miss you coming."

I should have asked someone to take my picture but i didn't think of it until i got home so i just took a picture of it then. It actually looks even brighter outside!!

Last night we were looking around Bass Pro Shop and spotted the sweatshirt. Ken said this would be just the thing for me to wear walking and up on our land. I think i might just stick to wearing it up on our land though. I feel so conspicuous wearing it around here!! It certainly draws peoples attention!

This tree is one of five along a street. No leaves just all these red berries. Thought the red looked pretty against the blue sky.

As you can see by the picture the sun was out and the sky was a pretty blue by the time i got back home and the temperature was up to 27!

I walked 6.2 miles.

It did warm up later on so i did get to hang those last two loads of laundry up outside.

Baked a batch of Chocolate Chippers, the most delicious cookie on the planet. Well, maybe that is a slight exaggeration but they are very good. This batch is for Ken to bring to work for their Christmas party next week. I'll put them in the freezer for now. There are some cookies left over for us too. : )

Just finished reading book number 55 for this year. There is not much of a chance that i will be able to complete the challenge with LibraryThing of reading 75 books this year. I will be able to read a few more, but 20 books will be pushing it.
The book i've just finished is The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. A lot of us at my church have spent the last 40 days reading it. The book is divided up so you read a little section of it each day. I thought it was a great book. The books goal is to help us understand why we're here on earth and what God's plan is for us.

I'm about to have some lunch now and don't know exactly what i'll be doing afterwards. There is that ironing to do so i might do that right after lunch before anything else.

Enjoy your Friday.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

He who has not Christmas in his heart

will never find it under a tree.

~ Roy L. Smith

Another day : )

2011-12-01T09:03:00.001-05:00

A chilly 32 degrees this morning for my walk today. The sun isn't rising until after 7 now so once again it is dark when i leave, but once it did rise the sun came out to warm things up a bit. It was really a beautiful morning for walking.
No special route, just walked wherever i felt like it. On these walks i usually walk a little farther than normal because i get to walking and not paying attention to the time and then realize i should be heading back home. Today i walked 7 miles.
Snapped this picture walking down one the streets i walked along.

A few people out here and there and a deer ran across the street.

I'm home today getting some laundry done and i have two loads hanging out on the lines now blowing gently in the breeze on a nice sunny day. : ) Tomorrow is supposed to be another sunny day so i'll do another two loads then. I only have room to hang 2 loads at a time.

I made another batch of pumpkin bread - 7 small loaves. I've put them in the freezer. They make great little gifts. I just wrap them in plastic wrap and put a bow on them.

Remember those TracFones i was happy to get the other day? Well, we haven't had good luck with them and have sent them back. Just couldn't work with the web site to get them working right. I guess for now we will just keep our old phones.

Hard to believe we are into December already.
Hope it is the start of your best one yet.
Happyone : )

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world,

and behold,

everything is softer and more beautiful.

~ Norman Vincent Peale

I completed the challenge

2011-11-30T14:04:00.000-05:00

Today is the last day of the Giving Thanks Challenge.

It sure wasn't hard to come up with things to be thankful for.

There are really too many to count.

I'm ending the challenge with being thankful for Each New Day.

Every morning is a brand new day to do with as we choose.

It is a gift.

Open it and enjoy it.

: )

************************************************

The temperature this morning was back to a more normal 35 degrees for November. It was a nice crisp clear morning and i headed over to the lake for a walk around it. I walked in the opposite direction just for a change. Funny how it seems so different just walking in a different direction. I see different people too. Going up and down the hills are just about the same in either direction. There were the usual amount of people out, walking, running, dog walking, and even a couple of bike riders.
Stopped to take this picture of these few geese on the lake.

I saw lots of them taking off in groups again heading south but there are still a lot of them around.
I walked 6.6 miles.

**********************************************

After doing my morning routine, i fine tuned my shopping list and headed out to the commissary. There were not many people shopping in the commissary at all and i was in and out without having to wait on a line. Many, many people out driving around on the roads though, and many didn't seem to know where they were going. I had to make a detour because of a traffic jam. It took a little longer to get home but at least i could keep moving. I was glad to get home save and sound.

I picked up some Clementine's at the commissary and had a couple with my lunch. I love these little things.

So here it is mid afternoon and after i finish here i'll be vising blogs.
Then i plan to do some counted cross stitch. A few weeks ago i mentioned in this post, HERE that the person who has me for their secret sister gave me a counted cross and i started it yesterday. It's a small one so i should be done with it soon.

So i guess that's it for today.
Hope your enjoying your day.
Happyone : )

Happiness cannot be traveled to

owned,

earned,

worn or consumed.

Happiness is the spiritual experience

of living every minute with,

love,

grace,

and gratitude.

~ Denis Waitley

New Phones

2011-11-29T08:42:00.001-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 29

I am Thankful for God's Love for me.

Whatever happens or whatever i do

i know Gods loves me.

Good days and bad days too

He is always there for me.

A love that never fails.

**********************************************

Once again a great morning for walking! Warm weather with a temperature of 58 degrees. It rained some last night and this morning it looked like more rain but i saw the sunrise and then the sun came out and stayed out the whole time i was walking. It seemed like it stayed out just for my walk because just as i got home the clouds came around and the sun went back to sleep.

I walked around the neighborhoods on sidewalks and some of the paths too. Not many people out, just a few walking dogs and a couple of runners.

Heard a woodpecker and saw a few Cardinals. A quiet and uneventful walk but a fine one all the same.

I found a penny.

Walked 6.3 miles.

**********************************************

It is Tuesday and my knitting group day but decided to stay home today. A package was due to arrive today and i had to sign for it and didn't want to miss it. It was for our new TracFones. Ken and i both got new ones. We've had the old ones for years and thought it was time for an update. Neither one of us talk on the phone much so we find the pay as you go TracFones ideal for us. There is no contract and for a year of talking we only pay about $100. Though you could text with old phones it didn't have a keypad so it made texting a long process. These new phones have keypads and cameras too. Now we just have to transfer all the phone numbers to the new phone and figure out how everything works. We still get to keep our old number which is a very good thing.

So i'm home again today finishing up some work from yesterday with some time for fun stuff too.

Hope this day finds you happy and content.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

Who does not thank for little

will not thank for much.

~ Estonian Proverb

My Clothesline

2011-11-28T10:17:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 28

I am Thankful for my Clothesline.

I enjoy hanging my clothes outside.

I love to see them blowing gently in the breeze.

And you just can't bottle that smell. : )

I am also Thankful and Happy that

we have won the Clothesline Battle.

*********************************************

A pretty mild morning for my walk today. It was 47 degrees when i started out and already 55 when i got back home. No wind at all and it was cloudy. The sunrise was beautiful today. It is amazing how fast the color comes and goes in the sky, changing from one minute to the next.
A nice walk around the lake this morning. More than the usual amount of people out walking and running for a Monday. Maybe they were trying to take off those few extra pounds from Thanksgiving!
I saw three deer, all males. One had only one antler. I wonder if it broke off or he was shedding his a bit early, but wonder also if they shed them both together or one at a time. I'll have to do a little research. Anyone know anything about deer and their antlers?

I was amused to see this on a tree trunk this morning.

The turkey that got away! : )

I also saw a couple of Blue Birds. They didn't sit still long enough for me to get a picture.
Great to be out early this morning and walking.
I walked 6.6 miles.

************************************************

Did i get you to wondering at the beginning of this post about the Clothesline Battle?

Those of you who have been reading my blog know i like hanging my clothes outside. I live in a townhouse with no back yard and the only place i can hang my clothes is on our deck. It is off the kitchen up on the second floor. I live on an end unit and there are sections of privacy fence on both sides of the deck. Ken has taken blocks of wood and put big hooks in the ends and attached clothes line rope to the other ends. The hooks fit perfectly over the top of the fence sections. I have three of these lines. I only put them up when clothes are out on the line. When the clothes are dry i take them in right away and then take down the lines. It works perfectly for me. I have been doing this the whole time we've lived here (almost three years).

A lot of neighborhood associations have rules about clotheslines being prohibited. I didn't think we had such a rule in our small townhouse complex, but apparently i was wrong even though no one has said anything for the years i've been doing it.

A few weeks ago we got a letter saying we were in violation of the clothes line rule which really pissed me off!!!

Now comes the good part!!! : )

Last year Maryland passed a law in October of 2010 stating that neighborhood associations CAN'T PROHIBIT the use of clotheslines. YAY!! So Ken wrote a very nice, calm, logical letter telling them this and enclosed a copy of the law that we found on line.

Then we waited. In the meantime i kept hanging my clothes out as usual.

Then last week another letter arrived for us stating that he was not aware of the that law!! So there is nothing that the association can do to stop us from having a clothesline. They can enforce restrictions but i can't think of any that i am not doing already. I take it up and down as needed and i always take in the clothes as soon as they are dried. I'm really glad that this worked out because there was no way i was NOT going to hang my clothes outside. So i guess you won't be seeing the crazy lady and her clothesline on the news!!!

I really just don't understand what some people find so offensive about clothes drying out on a line!! I even hang my underwear on the inside line so no one can't see it!! : )

So anyway, I am extremely happy to have my clothesline!!

I can't help but wonder who complained.

****************************************************

I'll be at home all day today getting some much needed housework done. Hopefully i'll get some fun time in at the end of the day too.

Hope your day is a good one.

A smile from me to you.

Happyone : )

The Clothesline Poem

~ Author Unknown

A clothesline was a news forecast

To neighbors passing by.

There were no secrets you could keep

When clothes were hung to dry.

It also was a friendly link

For neighbors always knew

If company has stopped on by

To spend a night or two.

For then you'd see the "fancy sheets"

And towels upon the lines;

You'd see the "company table cloths"

With intricate designs.

The line announced a baby's birth

From folks who live inside

As brand new infant clothes were hung,

So carefully with pride.

The ages of the children could

So readily be known.

By watching how the sizes changed,

You'd know how much they'd grown!

It also told when illness struck,

As extra sheets were hung;

Then nightclothes, and a bathrobe, too,

Haphazardly were strung.

It also said, "Gone on vacation now."

When lines hung limp and bare.

It told,

"We're back!" when full lines sagged,

With not an inch to spare!

But

Clotheslines now are of the past,

For dryers make work much less.

Now what goes on inside a home

Is anybody's guess!

I really miss that way of life.

It was a friendly sign.

When neighbors knew each other best

By what hung on the line.

Giving Thanks Challenge

2011-11-27T13:58:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 27

I am Thankful for my Hearing.

There are so many sounds that bring joy to me.

A babies laughter

Rain Drops

Leaves falling

Birds singing

Babbling Brooks

Church Bells

Wind blowing through the trees

The list could go on and on.

***************************************

Psalm 103:1-2

Bless the Lord, O my soul;

and all that is within me,

bless His holy name.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all His benefits.

Enjoy your Sunday.

Happyone : )

A grateful heart is one that finds

the countless blessings of God

in the seemingly mundane everyday life.

~ Anonymous

A trail through the woods

2011-11-26T10:14:00.001-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 26

I am Thankful for Comfortable Walking Shoes.

With all the walking i do i need shoes that fit well

and are comfortable.

My feet are very thankful.

**************************************

It was 30 degrees when i walked this morning but there was no wind and this is what i got to look at when i started. I'm sure it is God's way of saying Good Morning to me! : )

I walked along paths and sidewalks in the neighborhoods on no particular route. Walking down a path i travel frequently i saw a trail go off into the woods. I've seen it before but it wasn't defined like it is here.

So this time i followed it and it made its way along side a brook.

I walked along the trail until i came to the end of it which was by one of the footbridges i walked across earlier. It is not very far, only about 1/2 mile. When i got to the end i turned around and went back to the path and continued my walk.

I'd like to make trails defined like this with branches and wood chips between them on our land. I can just see me making trails all over the place. With 8 acres i could get my 6 mile walk in without ever leaving.

I know what i'd like for my birthday next May - a wood chipper!!! : ) I am not kidding either. I can't wait to get started making my trails. Too bad it wasn't spring coming up instead of winter.

The only people i saw out were a couple walking their two dogs and a man putting out bags of leaves that he raked the day before. All 30 of them.

I spotted three deer and heard a woodpecker but couldn't find it.

After the beautiful sunrise the clouds came along and covered it back up so i walked in a cloudy morning. Still it was a great morning for walking.

I walked 6.7 miles.

***************************************************

We are hanging around the house here this morning but will probably go out and do some errands after lunch.

A happy Saturday to you all.

Happyone : )

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don't know everything,
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.
Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations,
because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge
because it will build your strength and character.
Be thankful for your mistakes.
They will teach you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you're tired and weary,
because it means you've made a difference.

~ Author Unknown

An Unusual Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T14:15:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 25

I am Thankful for the Nice People in the world.

People who remember to say thank you.

People who stop to let you cross the street,

or give you a break in traffic and let you in.

People who smile back at you and say hi.

Friendly cashiers, servers, and sales people.

To all the nice people out there I say

Thank you!! : )

********************************************

Yesterday our Thanksgiving Day was not your typical one, but will be one of the most memorable and also one of the nicest. : )

It was just to be Ken and I this year at home eating turkey. Since Tuesday when we went to our land closing was a bad weather day with rain and fog, and yesterday was going to a sunny day, we decided to drive up to our land. We left a little before 6 in the morning. When we stopped for breakfast in a rest area, we ate pieces of pumpkin bread that i had made.

We were at our land at 8:30 and though it was only in the 30's it was sunny, clear and beautiful out. We spent the day walking around on our land, figuring out just exactly where our borders were and enjoying being on the land. I wore my pedometer and though we only walked 5 miles it was all hiking around and I really earned those steps!! : ) We hiked with a 300 foot tape measure and found all the borders, through sticker bushes, brush, over fallen trees, many many rocks, and up and down hills. Eight acres of land is more than you realize when you're walking around on it.

For our meal we ate turkey sandwiches, sweet potato chips and granola bars. Dessert was pumpkin pie that i made topped off with RediWhip.

On the way home we stopped in another rest area and were going to eat ham sandwiches but the ham had gone bad. We had already put lettuce and mustard on the roll so we ended up eating lettuce and mustard sandwiches. There was some pumpkin bread left over so we ate that up too.

We were back home again by 8:00 and we had another piece of the pumpkin pie.

Some pictures from yesterday.

Truck parked in the driveway.

Random land picture.

Another road we discovered up near the back border.

That's Ken up ahead making notes.

A pleasant surprise was to find this book.

It runs on and off our land near the side border.

We put these POSTED signs up along the back border.

Here i am in my new poka a dot boots which kept

my feet nice and dry.

In this one i'm holding that 300 foot tape measure.

I was happy to discover that our neighbor has some

cows and bulls. Here is a one that stopped to look at me

and i took his picture.

It was a most unusual Thanksgiving Day but one that i thoroughly enjoyed. Being with Ken and enjoying our land, and thanking God for it all. A great day for thanksgiving!!

********************************************

This morning i was back to walking. No special route, just a walk along paths and sidewalks through the neighborhoods. It was 38 degrees but got a lot warmer once the sun came up.

Only a few people out and about. I saw one couple walking a puppy and stopped for a little chat and to pet the puppy. He was an 8 week old golden retriever named Beau. Oh he was the cutest little thing and i wanted to bring him home with me.

Along the path i saw a red fox running up ahead and then run back into the woods. I haven't seen a fox for quite a while. This one looked healthy and well fed.

I walked 6.9 miles.

********************************************

I had planned on getting a lot done around the house today but so far i haven't been able to get much done.

I talked to a friend on the phone and then called my friend Bernice and we talked for an hour!! We had lots to catch up on!!

I did get a load of laundry hung up out on the line but that's about it. I have a story about clothes lines but will save that for another day.

I'm off now to try to get some work done.

A happy day to you.

Happyone : )

Blessings are oftentimes not valued

till they are gone.

~ Thomas Fuller

Giving Thanks Challenge

2011-11-24T05:31:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 24

Sometimes i wish that i didn't have to sleep,

thinking of all the things i could get done.

But then i remember how good it feels to

fall into bed at the end of the day.

And i'm thankful for a Good Nights Sleep,

so I can wake refreshed for my new day.

************************************************

To those celebrating Thanksgiving,

Have a wonderful day.

Don't eat too much, oh go ahead it's Thanksgiving!!

Happyone : )

Thanksgiving was never meant to be

shut up in a single day.

~ Robert Caspar Lintner

Wednesday

2011-11-23T18:14:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Challenge Number 23

I am Thankful for my Camera.

Since i've been taking pictures

the world seems even more beautiful and interesting.

I look at things a bit differently now.

********************************************

The land closing went well yesterday and we are now land owners! : ) The weather was just awful all the way up there and on the way home too. We had heavy rain or fog for most of the trip. We had planned on staying the night at a hotel up there and to start clearing out the driveway a bit more today but decided to come home because of the weather. We did go to our land and walk around on it a bit though.

A few of you asked if we are building a house or plan to move there. We are going to build a little one room cabin and just go there for a little vacation get a way. We will be building the cabin ourselves. That is part of the fun of having the land. We have no plans to move or retire there. We like the area we live in too much to move away. But then again, who knows with us!!!!

**********************************************

It rained a lot during the night but when i got up this morning the rain had stopped and it was pretty warm out with a temperature of 57 degrees. I walked around the lake. The stream that i walk along on the path going to the lake was very full. I took this picture standing on the footbridge.

It was foggy around the lake. There were lots of geese spread out all over the lake in groups. Some small and some large groups. Then they took off flying in groups making lots of noise. It reminded me of airplanes lined up for take off at an airport.

I saw a few deer in the woods around the lake.

There were quite a few people out too. More than i thought there would be on the day before Thanksgiving.

I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 7:00

Sunset 4:48

*******************************************

Ken and i were out most of the day doing errands and came home late afternoon.

I then made a pumpkin pie. Yes, i made the crust too.

Had a bit of trouble rolling it out the first time, but the second time it came out right. : ) Now we just have to wait until tomorrow before we can eat any of it!!

Tonight we will watch a movie from Netflix, Saving Grace and have a small bowl of ice cream.

Hope you all had a happy day!

Happyone : )

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it

is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

~ William Arthur Ward

Land Closing

2011-11-22T06:48:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 22

I'm thankful for our eight acres of land that we were able to find and buy.

We are leaving in just a little bit to drive out to western Maryland. Today is the closing for our land. Later today we will be land owners. : )

No walk today around the lake but i'll be able to walk around our land this afternoon!!!

Enjoy your day.
Happyone : )

Not what we say about our blessing,

but how we use them,

is the true measure of our thanksgiving.

~ W.T. Purkiser

A Foggy Day

2011-11-21T08:54:00.001-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Challenge Number 21

I am Thankful for the Comments
people leave on my blog!
Thank you all!!

******************************************

In Maryland we are back up to warm temperatures. It was 55 degrees this morning when i left for my morning walk. No sun though, just fog. I just about to get to the lake here in the picture below.

Another foggy picture. This time of the lake and a few geese swimming along.

I walked around the lake but kept to the lower path and passed up the path that i usually take to go back home. Instead i walked about a quarter way around the lake again and took the path up to the other entrance like i did the other day.
Only a few people out this morning. It's Monday and foggy and the beginning of Thanksgiving week. Probably be fewer people all week.
I saw the heron at the edge of the lake on some rocks. He was standing on one leg and i think sleeping! I took a picture and put it on my photo blog and you can hop over there if your interested in seeing it.

The fog makes everything quiet and mysterious. Fog is great walking weather too. : )
I walked 6.9 miles.

Sunrise 6:57

Sunset 4:49

*************************************************

I've been home today doing things around the house.

Laundry

Ironed five of Ken's shirts.

Made Pumpkin Bread - the recipe is HERE.

I made the small loaves - usually it makes six but today i got an extra one out of it and made seven. I love to lick the batter bowl. It's one of the fun parts of baking. : )

I've been putting off sewing the weave-it squares together for the afghan i finished and got some of them sewn together.

That's been about it today so far.

Hope you got a good start on the new week and you enjoyed your day.
A happy Monday to you.
Happyone : )

Reflect upon you present blessings,

of which every man has plenty;

not on you past misfortunes,

of which all men have some.

~ Charles Dickens

Giving Thanks

2011-11-20T12:05:00.001-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 20

I am so very Thankful for my Health.

I'm thankful so far that despite my age i really do feel young

and my body is still in good working order. : )

******************************************

Lamentations 3:22-24

Through the Lord's mercies

we are not consumed,

Because His compassions

fail not.

They are new every morning;

Great is Your faithfulness.

The Lord is my portion,

says my soul.

Therefore I hope in Him.

Have a blessed Sunday.
Happyone : )

New Books

2011-11-19T14:16:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Challenge Number 19
This may seem like an odd thing to be thankful for
but i'm Thankful for the Window over my kitchen sink.
I don't use the dishwasher
and when i have to do the dishes,
i like looking out of the window! : )

**********************************************

This morning was the same as yesterday but a couple of degrees colder at 25. Still with no breeze and the sun it really didn't seem that cold. It is really great walking weather.
I don't usually walk around the lake on Saturday because of all the runners, but i thought i'd give it a try because of the cold weather. The cold weather didn't keep the runners home though. I saw one of them in shorts and turned around and snapped this picture of him. That just seems crazy to be out in 25 degrees wearing shorts!!

I just walked a quarter of the way around the lake. I usually keep to the left here but today i took the path to the right.

Continued up along the path. I saw a few deer along this path, but they were too quick for me to get a picture.

The path leads to another entrance to the park and i walked there and then walked on the road towards home.

I walked along a couple different roads and then down this path that i frequently walk along. By this time the sun was all the way up, it had warmed up a bit and i was actually getting warm. If you enlarge the picture and look really close you can see two people up ahead. They are John and Petey, the 89 year old couple. I caught up to them and walked to the end of the path with them. They turned around and went back down the path.

I continued on and made my way back home.
I walked 6 miles.

Sunrise 6:55

Sunset 4:50

**********************************************

Ken was home this morning when i got back from walking so i made us some French toast.
Later in the morning we went out and about to do a few errands.

When we came home i was happy to see a package sitting on my front stoop. It was some books that i had ordered a couple of weeks ago. I got the first one, A Game of Thrones, from the library after waiting for it for a while on the reserve list. I liked it right away and knew i would want to read the whole series. So i decided to just buy them. They are books that i know i would want to read again some time. I had to return A Game of Thrones to the library because i hadn't finished reading it and couldn't renew it because there is a waiting list for it. Now i'll be able to read them at my leisure.

Ken dropped me off home and went out again. I'm at home puttering around doing a little of this and that.
A beautiful sunny day and the temperature has climbed from 25 to 53!

A Happy Saturday to you.
Happyone : )

If you hold up your head with a smile on your face

and are truly thankful,

you are blessed

because the majority can, but most do not.

~ Author Unknown

Friday

2011-11-18T15:07:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 18

I am Thankful for Pizza, one of my favorite foods.

When Ken and i starting going out his parents

owned an Italian restaurant

and he would take me back in the kitchen

and make pizza for me.

How could i resist him?! : )

I am thankful that

tonight we are going out for pizza.

***********************************************

A beautiful, bright, clear, sunny morning, though there was a nip in the air with a temperature of 27 degrees. I walked around the lake and came across some patches of ice here and there on the footbridges like here.

For a cold morning there were quite a few people out around the lake. All seemed to be enjoying their early morning exercise.

I saw the heron down by the edge of the water and a few deer here and there. I managed to get this picture of a deer in action.

Here's a Canadian Geese sitting out on the lake. This geese on the water and another geese farther away, out of the water and up on the hill, were calling out to each other. I'm thinking he was calling her to join him on the water.

It was a great morning to be out walking!!

I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 6:54

Sunset 4:51

********************************************

It warmed up during the day to the 40's so i did a couple loads of laundry and hung them out to dry. The clothes come in smelling extra good when it is cold outside.

I finished up a few things in the living room, like dusting the book cases. They have glass doors and i washed them too.
Then i started in on the kitchen. Have more to go but made a good start on it.

I received a very nice Thank You note in the mail from a friend who i knitted a scarf for. As many of you know i have a Thank You Note basket where i keep all my thank you notes. I have added this one to the basket. I like to read them every so often. : )
I have notes in there from people i don't even remember who they are!!

I like late afternoons when i've finished my work for the day and then can sit down and read, knit or do some other relaxing thing just before Ken comes home from work.

A happy Friday to you. Hope it was a good one.
A smile from me to you.

Happyone : )

In daily life we must see that it is not happiness

that makes us grateful,

but gratefulness

that makes us happy.

~ Brother David Steindl-Rast

Cherry Blossoms in Novenber?

2011-11-17T14:42:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Number 17

I am thankful for where I live.
I have it all here where I live.
Lots of parks and woods and places to walk,
when you need to get away from the crowds.
But near two big cities where lots of things are happening
when you need some excitement.
A pick of great restaurants to choose from,
and lots of stores when you need something.
A great church down the street,
and a lovely home to come home too.
*****************************************

Our nice warm mornings are gone again, though it wasn't cold just not warm. The temperature was 44 degrees. The radio said there were light rain showers around but i didn't see any and my walk around the lake was a dry one.
There are some cherry trees down by the water and i was surprised this morning to see the trees with blossoms on them. They must think it's spring because of this weeks warm weather.

I saw a few deer again this morning. There were lots of geese out on the lake but not in one big group like they have been. They were scattered in little bunches all around the lake.

Not many people out but i did see some of the regulars. I saw Shiraz and he handed me an invitation to the 6TH Annual Holiday Gathering which will be happening in a few weeks time. Him and his wife Andrea bring coffee, donuts and dog treats and set them up in one of the pavilions and all of us regulars meet for a snack and visit for a while. I stopped by the pavilion last year and look forward to it again this year. Shiraz has given us the name of the Centennial Sunrise Walkers. : )

I haven't been finding very many coins this month but today i found a dime.
I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 6:53

Sunset 4:51

*****************************************

A nice day out today. I picked up Mary Jo and we headed out to Savage Mill. We walked around the mill for a bit and then had lunch at Rams Head. She had a burger and i had the turkey Ruben. We talked a lot, laughed and had a good time together. Always nice to spend some time with Mary Jo. : )

Don't feel like doing much of anything now that i'm back home. I'll just putter around a bit until Ken gets home from work. We are going to have a quick spaghetti supper at home and then go out to Ram's Head Live in Annapolis to see Blood, Sweat, & Tears.
I'll be at both of the Ram's Head taverns in the area today! Funny how my lunch out and evening out are both at a Ram's Head!! Wasn't planned, it just worked out that way.

Did you ever smile so much that your cheeks hurt? Hope you had one of those days.
Happyone : )

The worst moment for the atheist

is when he is really thankful

and has nobody to thank.

~ Dante G. Rossetti

Rearranging the furniture

2011-11-16T15:29:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Challenge Number 16

I am Thankful for all the farmers who grow our food.

It is easy to take food for granted because

we can just walk in a store and buy what we need.

I am also Thankful that i have enough money

to be able to buy the food we need.

****************************************

Once again is was a warm morning for walking with the temperature at 55 degrees. The ground was wet but it wasn't raining when i left. After a little while of walking it started to drizzle so i went back home and got my umbrella and left again. It rained on and off the whole time so my umbrella went up and down quite a few times.
I just walked around the neighborhoods and on a couple of paths. Walked down some side streets that i haven't been on before and discovered a short path at the end of a dead end road. This footbridge is at the end of the path which opens up on a field at a school.

Not many people out but there were a few scattered throughout my walk. On a path i saw six deer, one of which was a male. This one stood still and looked at me and didn't stamp his foot when i got out my camera. I took this picture though it is not very good because it came out blurry.

I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 6:52

Sunset 4:52

*************************************************

I was going to go to the commissary but just didn't feel like going in the rain. It seemed like a good day to stay at home.
So i decided to tackle the living room. I've spent the day giving it a good cleaning and rearranging the furniture in the process. I enjoy changing around the furniture every so often just for a change. Everyone in my family does this except for my one grandmother (dad's mom). From when i was a little girl until the day she died, once something found a place in her house, it stayed put. It was kind of comforting in a way to know that at her house you knew everything would be the same. Gramma was the same too, a loving woman who never had a mean thing to say about anyone. I sure miss her!
What about you? Do things at your house get rearranged or do you like things to stay in one place?

Now that i did all that work, it's time for relaxing. : )

A happy day to you.
Happyone : )

Life just is.

But life itself is a gift.

It's a compliment just being born:

to feel, breathe, think, play, dance, sing,

work, make love, for this particular lifetime.

Today, let's give thanks for life.

For life itself. For simply being born!

~ Daphne Rose Kingma

A happy day

2011-11-15T14:40:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 15

I am Thankful for Libraries.
Walking into the library and seeing all those books

gives me such a happy feeling.

What a great feeling

knowing that i can pick out more books

than i can carry and take them home with me,

and not have to pay for them!

There are FIVE libraries

in my area that i visit!

****************************************

This morning was even warmer than yesterday. Today it was 59 degrees, though there was a bit of a breeze and it stayed cloudy throughout my walk. It was nice though for the middle of November!! No special route today, just walked around the neighborhoods along paths and on sidewalks.

I saw lots of people out, walkers, runners, dog walkers and even a couple of bike riders.

Lots of deer in the woods this morning. I counted 13 of them. One was pretty close to the path where i was walking and i stopped and was going to take a picture of him, but as i was getting my camera out, he stomped his front foot on the ground. I don't know if that was some kind of warning, but i took it as one and moved along.

Most all of the leaves have fallen all the trees now and it makes me wonder how long it will be before i'll be taking pictures of snow along my walk.

I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 6:51

Sunset 4:53

******************************************

Ken made it home in time for lasagna last night! : ) In fact he got home a little after 4:00 and i was just starting to make it. I don't have a recipe but i use the Barilla no boil noodles and don't put any meat in it. I just layer noodles, sauce, Parmesan, mozzarella, and ricotta, with the top layer just sauce and mozzarella. Not having to boil the noodles makes this meal super easy. We ate some and i froze the rest for another meal.

**********************************************

It's Tuesday once again so off i went to my knitting group. I finished the green cable square and gave it to the woman who is making the afghan for Warm Up America.

Here are the other squares she collected today. More people are making them, but haven't finished their square yet.

I didn't count all the people who showed up today but i would guess there were at least 15 people. A few of us were commenting about how well we all get along with each other. It really is a nice friendly group.

I had to stop at the library on the way home to return a couple of books and picked out a couple more to bring home.

Later this afternoon i'm hoping to sit down and start one of those books, but first i have a few things to do around the house, oh yeah and read some blogs.

A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant,

to enact gratitude is generous and noble,

but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven.

~ Johannes A. Gaertner

Colors

2011-11-14T14:35:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Challenge Number 14

Imagine a world in black and white.

I am Thankful for all the colors of the world.

We live in a world surrounded by beautiful colors.

Blue skies with White Clouds

Rainbows

Sunrise and Sunsets

Green Grass and

Flowers and Plants of every color

Animals and Birds

Mountains

Rocks

Look around and enjoy the beautiful colors.

*****************************************************

We certainly have changeable weather here in Maryland. This morning it was 52 degrees when i left the house!! I had a very nice walk around the lake. I saw five deer, four of them were males and two were very large with huge antlers. They were magnificent. No luck though in getting any good pictures of them.

I saw a lot of the regulars out walking and running today and some i've never seen before. The topic around the lake today was how warm it was.

The path that leads to the lake starts in the parking lot of my church and i cross the street right there. Someone stopped to let me cross and on a closer look i saw that it was my Pastor arriving at the church. : )

I walked 6.4 miles.

Sunrise 6:50

Sunset 4:54

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Yesterday i made some Apple Crumble and we had that for our snack last night with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. If you have some apples you want to use up this is very easy to make and delicious. I've added the recipe to my online cookbook on Meals Matter.

If you'd like the recipe, it's HERE.

As you can see i took the picture after we ate some of it.

**********************************************

Here is the latest couple of things i've knitted. Another blue scarf for my friend Mary Jo and another dish cloth for myself. Had to throw a few out that wore out so i'm making a few more to replace those.

I've been enjoying staying home today. Getting caught up on some house work. Doing a little knitting, a little reading and really just a bit of this and that. I like days like these.

I am going to be making Lasagna for supper tonight. If you've been reading my blog you know that the last three times i've made this, Ken has come home late from work and one time brought a coworker along with him who was stranded on the roadside. I've told him i will have it ready on the table at 5:30. I can't help but wonder if this meal will get eaten on time tonight!! : )

A very happy day to you.
Happyone :)

Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns ;
I am thankful that thorns have roses.
~ Alphonse Karr

Psalm of Thanksgiving

2011-11-13T11:59:00.001-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Challenge Number 13

I am thankful for my two kids

and my four grandkids.

They are all blessings from God.

*******************************************
A Psalm of Thanksgiving
Psalm 100
Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands.
Serve the Lord with gladness.
Come before His presence with singing.
Know that the Lord,
He is God,
It is He who has made us,
and not we ourselves.
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving.
***********************************************

Have a blessed Sunday.

Happyone : )

You simply will not be the same person

two months from now after consciously

giving thanks each day

for the abundance that exists in your life.

And you will have set in motion an ancient spiritual law:

the more you have and are grateful for,

the more will be given you.

~ Sarah Ban Breathnach

A New Jersey Visit

2011-11-12T20:21:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Number 12

I am thankful for sunny days and rainy days too.

I like those days when it's bright and sunny when

you look up in the sky and see blue sky and those

big white puffy clouds sailing by.

It feels so good to have the sun shining upon your face

on a chilly morning.

I also like rainy days every so often.

I like walking in the rain.

They are also good days for being inside

reading a good book

or baking something.

You need a mix of sunny and rainy days

to appreciate each of them.

************************************************

Only 27 degrees this morning but the sun came out and there was no wind at all. I saw a couple of deer, one on a path and one in a yard. Both were males. One with little antlers and one with a pretty big set. I walked along paths and sidewalks.
Saw a couple walking a dog and two walkers.
Only walked 5 miles this morning. Cut it a bit short because we took a ride up to NJ to visit our son and his family.

Sunrise 6:47

Sunset 4:55

************************************************

Left for New Jersey 8:45 this morning and 2 hours and 15 minutes later we were hugging our grandkids and their parents. : ) We visited for a while and then took a walk around their lovely old town and stopped in at the local pizza place for lunch. Then back to their house for a while and then headed back home about 2:30. We had a most enjoyable day.

These are our two youngest grandkids.

Granddaughter Scout - 8 years old.

Grandson Japhy - 5 years old.

Hope you found happiness in your day.

Happyone : )

When I started counting my blessings,

my whole life turned around.

~ Willie Nelson

Thanks, Walking and Food

2011-11-11T10:16:00.001-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Number 11

I am thankful for all the Veterans

who have fought for our country.

Thank you one and all.

A special thanks to Ken who

served 20 years in the Navy.

Other Veterans in my family are

my dad, grandfather, step-dad, father in law

and four of my uncles.

**************************************************

It was a beautiful morning for walking today. Though the temperature was only 33 degrees and it was quite windy at times, it was crisp, clear and sunny. I dressed in layers and was perfectly warm. I haven't been to the lake in a couple of days so i walked around there this morning. Quite a few people out and i stopped a few times to talk to my walking friends.

I saw the heron standing in the water and there were a whole lot of geese down at the narrow end of the lake. I took this picture. It is a bit dark because i took the picture into the sun.

A little red tree still holding on to its pretty read leaves.

I walked down to the water and took this picture.

Walking along a path in the sunshine along the lake.

The runner up ahead just ran past me.

Walking along it was nice to hear the wind in the trees and every once in a while a bunch of leaves would come falling down all around me. It was a perfect fall day morning!!!

I walked just over 6 miles.

Sunrise 6:46

Sunset 4:56

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Ken is off from work for Veterans Day. I made us pancakes for breakfast, then got a loaf of bread started in the bread machine.

We went out and did a few errands and picked up a sandwich at Subway and ate it in the truck and people watched.

Since i've mentioned breakfast and lunch i might as well mention supper too. We are going to make hot sausage and onions and peppers. Ken eats his on a roll with sauce but i just like to eat them plain.

I'm in the middle of making chocolate chip cookies now. So far i haven't eaten any, but have eaten my fair share of dough!!

Enjoy your day.
A smile from me to you.

Happyone : )

There is a calmness to a life lived in gratitude,

a quiet joy.

~ Ralph H. Blum

No title today

2011-11-10T09:14:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Number 10

I am thankful that i wake up each morning

and have the desire and the ability

to go on my morning walks.

It sets a happy and thankful mood for the day. : )

*************************************************

This morning was foggy but warm with a temperature of 48 degrees. I walked pretty much the same route as yesterday along sidewalks and paths through the different neighborhoods.

A few more people were out most of them walking dogs. I saw some kind of a hawk flying making a loud screeching sound. When it landed on a branch of a tree it was quiet and when it flew off it made that loud screeching sound again.
I saw three deer off in the woods and later on saw a lone deer laying down off to the side. I thought it might be hurt and started walking over to it. Then it stood up and i took this picture, and then she ran off into the woods. I guess she was just having a rest.

I walked 6.4 miles.

Sunrise 6:45

Sunset 4:57

*********************************************

Today i went to the MVA Express and turned the license plates in from the FJ. What a breeze that was. I hadn't been to the MVA for quite a while and it sure has improved. I walked in and there was a small screen with four choices where you touch on what you are there for. I touched return tags and a paper pops out with a number and letter on it. I took a seat and waited for a couple of minutes and my number was called and i was told which window to go to. I was in and out in a few minutes. Good news - we will be getting a refund of $90 in the mail!
I did a couple of other errands before coming back home.

All the townhouses where i live have decks and this week workers have been doing work on a lot of the decks. All of the decks look fine so i was wondering what they were doing. Our deck is perfectly fine. When i walked by i stopped to ask them what the problem with the decks were. No one could answer me though because no spoke English!!

****************************************************

We have been watching the Vietnam War Documentary on the history channel. It has been on the past two evenings for two hours an episode and there is one more tonight. It is a bit depressing to see it all again and i didn't really want to watch it, but i am glad i am because i have learned a lot.

It was horrendous to have lived through that war. What is so sad is that when our soldiers came back home how badly they were treated. They came home to people protesting, calling them names, and spitting on them.

A soldier with tears in his eyes tells of how proud he was to have served his country and wearing his uniform and was coming back home. When he gets on the plane there are two empty seats beside him. People wouldn't even sit next to him, they would rather sit on the floor than next to him. His feeling of pride turned to shame and he couldn't wait to get home so he could take off his uniform.

And most of the soldiers in Vietnam didn't ask to be there, they were drafted and had no choice!!

At least the military of today are treated so much better and people thank them!!!!

*************************************************

I hope you were able to find bits of happiness scattered throughout your day.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

The unthankful heart discovers no mercies;
but the thankful hear will find,
in every hour,
some heavenly blessings.
~ Henry Ward Beecher

My Day

2011-11-09T15:37:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Number 9

I am Thankful for Ice Cream. : )

Most evenings i enjoy a small bowl of ice cream.

I have many favorite flavors and usually

it is the one i'm eating that day.

********************************************

It was 31 degrees this morning when i left for my morning walk. A sunny, very quiet morning. I walked around the neighborhoods today along some paths and sidewalks. I heard a woodpecker off in the distance but never saw it. The only people i saw were my walking friends, the 89 year old couple, John and Petey. Stopped to have a chat with them. Both are doing great!!

It was such a pretty walk this morning and i took quite a lot of pictures. Here are some of them.

I walked 6.2 miles.

Sunrise 6:44

Sunset 4:58

**********************************************

I did a couple loads of laundry first thing this morning when i got back home and got them hung up outside.

Then i looked over my shopping list, added a few more things and then went to the commissary. Though i did enjoy driving the truck yesterday, it was more fun driving my car today! : )

No lines at the commissary and the good news is that the renovations are FINISHED. It's been well over a year but what a nice job they did. It is so nice with wide aisles and all stand up freezers so you can see everything at a glance.
Everything was all rearranged and in different aisles but i'll learn the new layout in no time. Sometimes i wish they would let me organize the shelves because they put things in some kind of crazy order that makes no sense to me. I think i could do a much better job of it.
I wore my pedometer while going up and down the aisle to see how far i walked. I was surprised to learn that i walked 1.3 miles!!

I had all the groceries put away by 1:15 and then ate some lunch.
The clothes weren't quite dry yet so i started ironing five of Ken's work shirts that were already in the queue. By the time i was done with the that other four from the line were dry and i ended up ironing all nine of them. I don't mind ironing but nine shirts was a lot for one time and i was glad to be done.

The rest of the clothes are now folded and put away and i think i've done enough work for now.

Next on my agenda is to read some blogs and see what you have been up to. : )

Enjoy the rest of your day.

Happyone : )

So often we dwell on the things that seem impossible

rather on the things that are possible.

So often we are depressed by what remains to be done

and forget to be thankful

for all that has been done.

~ Marian Wright Edelman

Friends

2011-11-08T12:44:00.000-05:00

Giving Thanks Day Number 8

I am Thankful for friends.

Old friends who have been my friends for years.

Friends who i've not known long but have

become good friends.

Blogger friends.

Casual friends.

Friends who have been in my life

and have moved on.

And the new friends in my future.

I used to be sad sometimes thinking of friends who have come and gone out of my life but i have realized that sometimes people come into your life for a short while but can still be good friends and you needed each other at that time.

I came across this written about friends.

Friends of the Road by Paula Spencer
Why do friendships come and go? How does a once-bosom buddy wind up erased from your address book? Is a friendship that fades away necessarily a bad thing?

My first inkling that some friendships are meant to be fleeting came in the spring of my senior year in college. My friendships there had been especially intense. We'd bonded instantly and tightly, with meandering all hours conversations about everything from the meaning of life to "What will we wear tonight?" Once I came across a line that seemed to express perfectly my 21-year-old angst. It was from the novel "Centennial: "God, he wished he could ride forever with these men... But it could not be. Trails end, and companies of men fall apart.

Of course! Some friendships are meant to be transitory. Like cowboys who had ridden herd together for miles, sharing dusty perils and round-the-campfire coffee, my college friends and I had come to the natural end of our path together. It was time to move on.

Absurdly obvious, the idea was nevertheless enormously comforting. It had once seemed like failure to me, to build a friendship only to have it squelched by sudden distance, either physical or emotional. You move across the country and struggle to replicate daily long walks with phone calls or letters. Or one of you has a baby, and the minutiae of changing diapers transform the bicycle built for two that was our friendship into a lopsided three-legged stool.

And that's okay. Because in addition to our friends of the heart - the traditional, everlasting ideal - life is rich with friends of the road who, like James Michener's cowpokes, herd with you for a particular stretch and no farther. These brief friendships are equally intense, equally necessary, equally worth treasuring as any other, and for the duration of that ride you can't survive without them.

*******************************************************

A couple of degrees warmer than yesterday morning at 33 degrees. No fog today and the sun was out!

I walked around the lake. Didn't see many people and only birds and geese were about. A very quiet morning. These quiet mornings are so still and peaceful around the lake. I love to start my day there. : )

I walked 6.2 miles.

Sunrise 7:43

Sunset 4:59

*******************************************************

I guess some of you are wondering what Ken and I did yesterday!! Well we traded in our Yellow FJ Toyota Cruiser for a Blue Ford Pickup!!!

We drove down to Waldorf, MD (about an hour and half from home) where they had the right truck at the right price.

There was nothing wrong with the FJ and i really liked it and so did Ken, but he just wanted something different. It must be a man thing because all the men in my family liked to change vehicles often!! Me i get something and like to keep it till i really need a new car! : )

Ken took his car to work today so i could drive the truck and see how i like it, so when i went to knitting today off i went in the truck. I really liked driving the truck. I'm up nice and high and the visibility is great.
I parked far away from everyone and took the truck pictures at Savage Mill before going inside with the other knitters.
There were 13 of us there today. Last week a woman in my knitting group who is making an afghan for Warm Up America asked us if we would like to contribute a knitted or crocheted square for the blanket. She is going to collect 49 squares and then sew them together to make the afghan. It can be any pattern but the square has to be 7 x 9. This is the square i'm knitting for it. It is a simple cable stitch pattern. I started it yesterday and it is 5 inches long so i'm already more than half finished. I will finish it this week and give it to her next Tuesday.

Since i was out all day yesterday and didn't get a thing done around the house, i'll be busy this afternoon getting some housework done.

Hope all is well with you.
A smile from me to you.

Happyone : )

People who live the most fulfilling lives

are the ones who are always rejoicing at what they have.
~ Richard Carlson

A foggy morning

2011-11-07T16:41:00.001-05:00

Giving Thanks Challenge Day Number 7

I am thankful for my car.

A dream come true car.

Isn't she a beauty?

My Red C5 Vette.

*************************************************

This morning was a foggy morning with a temperature of 31 degrees. I walked around the lake. The geese didn't seem to mind the fog.

The sun tried very hard to chase away the fog.

And by the time i got home it did and was shining brightly.
I saw a deer along the upper part of the path around the lake. It must have been a young male because his antlers were just little things about 2 or 3 inches long.
Only a few people were out. Probably waiting for the fog to lift before heading out.

A while back i mentioned a man that i saw walking almost every morning who always said good morning back to me but always seemed sad to me. Today i saw him and he said good morning to me first with a big smile. I said to him, "You certainly seem happy today." He said, "I am." That is all he said and we smiled and continued on our way. I don't know what changed for him but whatever it was it was nice to see him so happy.

I walked 6 miles today.

Sunrise 6:42

Sunset 5:00

**********************************************

Ken had another vacation day today and tomorrow he goes back to work. We spent the day together today and you will not believe what we did. I will tell you tomorrow because i want to have a picture or two and i haven't taken any yet.

Yesterday i received a gift from the person who has me for their Secret Sister. This little counted cross stitch kit. I haven't started it yet because i'm busy knitting but i'm looking forward to starting it soon. : )

I finished knitting the blue and white slippers for my Secret Sister and left them on the table at church yesterday for her.

We are ending Ken's vacation day by going out to eat at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants (we have a few). I plan on getting the Taco Salad.

Hope you had a happy Monday.
A smile from me to you.

Happyone : )

Let us be grateful to people who make us happy;

they are the charming gardeners

who make our souls blossom

~ Marcel Proust

Walking and Giving Thanks Day Number 6

2011-11-06T09:22:00.000-05:00

So nice walking early this morning in the light! I left at 6:35 and it was only 25 degrees, but it was light, the sun came out, there was no wind and it was great walking weather. By the time i got home it was 34 degrees. I walked down the street and turned right and walked down here

to walk over to the small Wet Land park where i walk around a little pond. I don't go here very often because of the traffic but on a Sunday morning there is no traffic. When i got to the park and started walking down the path to the pond i had to come to a stop here.

I turned around and started going back and came across a man walking his dog and i said i guess we aren't going to be walking around the pond today. He then showed me another way around the part that was closed. I thanked him and continued my walk to the pond this way.

I got to the pond and walked around it.

And walked back home again. No geese or ducks on the pond this morning and i only saw a couple of other people out.
I walked 6.7 miles.
Found a lucky penny.

Sunrise 6:41

Sunset 5:01

*************************************************

Giving Thanks Day Number 6

I am thankful for my church.

I am so glad God led me to this church

which is right down the street from where i live.

I am thankful for my church family

and our wonderful pastor.

**************************************************

And now it's time to get ready to go to church! : )

Have a blessed Sunday.
Don't forget to thank God for another brand new day.
Happyone : )

If you concentrate on finding whatever is good

in every situation,

you will discover that your life will suddenly

be filled with gratitude,

a feeling that nurtures the soul.

~ Rabbi Harold Kusner

Coming Home

2011-11-05T15:57:00.000-04:00

We ended up not spending the night at Punkin Chunkin after all. It was cold and windy and the sun didn't come out until late afternoon but still we had a fun time being there.

My friend Cheryl has a neighbor who participates in firing a pumpkin out of a cannon like structure out of an old school bus and their team is called Y Ask Y.

This picture is of a Knight who has a contraption that he uses to chuck pumpkins and i just took a picture of him because i've seen him on television on years past. This years event will be on the science channel Thanksgiving Day.

We enjoyed the launchers that were simple and people made and used people power to launch their pumpkins more than the cannon type. The cannon type went so far and fast that you couldn't even see the pumpkins. It was more exciting watching the simpler kind where you could actually watch the pumpkins being launched up and out.
There were many many launches. From one end of the fence to the other was three quarters of a mile and launches were lined up all the way.

We attached a canvas tarp to the FJ and was going to use that as our tent. We would have been able to sleep in the back of the FJ. It was so windy and as you can see from this picture how the wind billowed it out. Ken took this picture and we though it so funny the way i was just standing there looking at it, like i was waiting for something to happen. It was secure and wouldn't have blown off but the wind sure was noisy.
I'm sure you can compete up with some captions of your own!! : )

We were sitting in chairs inside our puffed up tent listening to the wind blowing after spending the day walking around. It was cold and we both looked at each other and then Ken said, "What are you thinking?" I said, "I will stay the night if you want too, but i'd just as soon go home." He smiled and said, "So would I." So we packed everything up and came home last night.
It was so nice coming home to where it was warm and sleeping in a nice warm bed.
I wore my pedometer yesterday and we walked just over five miles.

************************************************

It was pretty chilly outside this morning when i took my morning walk with a temperature of 33 degrees. There was a bit of a breeze too so it was really nice when the sun rose and stayed out. I just walked wherever i felt like it and didn't stick to any route.

Only saw a couple of people out and no wildlife except for a couple of robins.
I walked 6.6 miles.

Sunrise 7:39

Sunset 6:02

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This morning we unloaded the car and we're having a nice Saturday. Out to do some errands and also hanging around the house.

************************************************

Giving Thanks Day Number 5
After yesterday and last night.
Today I am thankful for a nice warm house
and a cozy warm bed. : )

************************************************

Hope your Saturday has been a good one.
A smile from me to you.
Happyone : )

Feeling gratitude or appreciative of someone or something

in your life actually attracts more of the things

that you appreciate and value into you life.
~Christiane Northrup

Punkin Chunkin

2011-11-04T06:39:00.000-04:00

Giving Thanks Day Number 4

I'm Thankful for fun weekends

where we do something different.

***************************************

We are about to start one of the those fun and different weekends today. Ever hear of Punkin Chunkin? It is held in Delaware and it's a contest to see who can launch a pumpkin the farthest on some kind of a launcher that people have made throughout the year. Check out the link to learn more about it.

We are leaving in a few minutes for a weekend of fun!! We will camp out in the FJ and tent Friday and Saturday nights.

I'm hoping to have some photos when we get back.

Enjoy your weekend.

Happyone : )

He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not,

but rejoices for those which he has.

~ Epictetus

Thursday

2011-11-03T09:56:00.000-04:00

This morning the temperature was 38 degrees as i started walking. No breeze at all again and when the sun came up and stayed out. I didn't walk on any of my mapped out routes but just walked wherever i felt like it. I walked down roads

and down paths.

I saw four people along the paths and all were running. Walking along the roads i saw three deer. I watched them walk across the street from one front yard to another. I smiled because you would think i'd see the deer in the woods and the people along the street!
One thing i like about walking in the fall when the leaves are on the ground is walking through them. I like the sound it makes and it always makes me happy. : )
Another great walk and today i walked 6.4 miles.
I found a dime today too!

Sunrise 7:37

Sunset 6:04

***************************************

Giving Thanks Day Number 3

Today is my husband Kens' birthday

and i am so thankful to have him

beside me as we go through life together.

He is my best friend.

*****************************************

The other day when i was driving around trying to find the little something i wanted to get Ken for his birthday was a bamboo plant that he could take to work. Here it is.

Ken has the day off from work today and i already gave him his plant and card this morning. For breakfast we had the cheesecake!! It was soooo good!!

I'm posting early today because i don't know if i'll get a chance later on. I'll be spending the day with Ken.

Hope all is well in your part of the world.

Have a great day and don't forget to take a smile with you.

Happyone : )

Be thankful for what you have;

you'll end up having more.

If you concentrate on what you don't have,

you will never, ever have enough.

~ Oprah Winfrey