It's getting lighter each morning when I walk. Soon I'll be starting out when it's light. :-) 40 degrees this morning with a bit of a wind but it was nice to see the sun come up.I walked my usual 6 miles around the lake. Saw a lot of familiar faces and stopped for a moment to talk to Barb. She was the first person I talked to at the lake when I first moved here last year. She is a very fast walker and even passes me up. A few deer were about and I'm starting to see more and more rabbits. The geese have all seemed to pair off and I'm looking forward to seeing some babies some time in the future. I'm also starting to see lots of green in the undergrowth of the woods. Things are sprouting up all over. I'm liking this spring weather.

Sunrise 6:54
Sunset 7:30
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last night we made a run through the drive through window at Chick-Fill-A for supper. We both got the spicy chicken meal and it is nice and spicy! We got there a little before 7 and I couldn't believe all the people that were there. The line for the drive through went around the whole building and out onto the road. I thought there wouldn't be many people there so late.

I went to the commissary to pick up a few things. On the way there I realized that it was the last day of the month and it's usually crowded then, but not today. Maybe I got there early before the crowds. I saw my friend Jackie there checking out the chicken. So I pulled my cart up alongside of hers and we had a short visit. I'll be seeing her again tomorrow night when we meet with our husbands for dinner. When I got home I put some chicken in the slow cooker with some BBQ sauce. I let that cook for hours and then shred the chicken up. It's good on rolls with some extra sauce.

I've been watching some H&G television shows. I like to see the renovations done on the different houses but I also like to see people looking for new houses to buy. What I find amusing is that when you go back to see the people in their new houses, if they are in the kitchen they are always cutting up vegetables. Like they always eat healthy. I'd like to see some one baking cookies or something!

It was a nice sunny afternoon so I sat outside on the deck and did a little knitting.
Looking down at the bird feeder and bird bath from on the deck.I had them on the deck at one time but it got to be a bit messy. Then I put them in the front, but I didn't sit out there and couldn't see the birds, so now I've put them down there by the garage. Now I can look down and watch the birds. No birds have arrived yet but I'm hoping they will soon.

Just a regular night at home. Some television, a snack, some knitting and later reading.
No Bible study group this week. It was canceled because of Easter. A practice is going on tonight for the Easter Musical.

Hope you all enjoyed your Wednesday and that you had some sunshine in your day.
Happyone :-)

If you don't think every day is a good day,
just try missing one.

~Cavett Robert

Back to blogging

I'm back. I got a few emails asking if things were okay with me because I haven't been posting. All things fine here with me. Just took a few days break from blogging. I sure have a lot of blog reading to catch up on too!!!

I've walked every morning. One morning it was cold again, Brrrr.... 30 degrees. It was sunny though. I've walked in clouds and two mornings it rained. Walked around the lake, paths around the neighborhoods and just on the roads. A nice mix of walks and enjoyed them all. I've heard of people getting a runners high, well I get a walkers high. It happens when I get to that 5 mile point. After that I feel really good and energized and I could keep on walking all day long! :-)

A cloudy morning lake

A misty morning lake

Sunrise 6:55
Sunset 7:29
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Saturday we finally brought Ken's Vette to the house. It had been in the garage in Savage because he couldn't use it much with all the snow. A few times when it was nice he would trade vehicles. I dropped Ken off and came back home in the Toyota, FJ. I haven't driven that in quite a while and it was fun to drive it again. Such a big difference from my car. I'm up real high and it's an automatic. I kept trying to push in a clutch that wasn't there. :-) Ken stayed at Savage because he was meeting a man there who wanted the old carport. Remember the one that collapsed from the snow. It was nice to get that out of there. When he was done there he just drove his car home. It's nice to have His and Hers together in the garage again. :-)
We went to a drum and bugle corps show Saturday in Baltimore. They are usually held outside but this one was indoors and boy was it LOUD. Very good show and we really enjoyed it.
We almost didn't get there on time. Traffic was stopped for a while because of a car accident up ahead. It wasn't that far up ahead from where we were. The driver lost control of his Viper and slammed into the guard rail and took down a light pole. It appeared to be a one car accident but the Viper was totaled. Not sure about the driver, but an ambulance took off.

I've been eating French toast for breakfast lately. One of these mornings I'll just get tired of it and then start eating something else. I do this with different foods at times.
While cleaning the house yesterday I ended up moving a few things around which took up a lot of time so I never did finish cleaning it, so I did some more of that today. I was going to go to my knitting group this morning but got busy doing other things and when I thought about it again, it was after 10 so I didn't go.
I gave my kitchen window a new look. I put up a dark blue swag curtain which is recycled from my mom's house and put a few cobalt blue Fiestaware pieces and two Polish pottery pieces on the window sill.

This is the old look.

I've finished reading U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton. This book was a bit different than usual for her but very good. At first it seemed like a lot of unlinked stories and then it all started coming together. I liked it a lot and it was another hard to put down book for me. I've started another one by Dean Koontz.

No plans for dinner yet tonight, but I'm thinking going out to eat somewhere when Kenny gets home sounds good. He is in a class the first part of this week for work and he's been getting home on the late side, not real late just latter than usual.

In the meantime I'll spend some time getting caught up on some blog reading.

Hope all is well in your part of the world and your Tuesday was a happy day for you.
Happyone :-)

Wherever you go, go with all your heart.
~Confucius

I had to wear my rain gear this morning on my walk. A rainy cool morning as I walked 6 miles on my connect the path route. A bit on the windy side too. When it is windy the paths are a good place to walk because the tall trees provide some protection. The wind is whistling up high above me and I'm down below. I walked the paths alone today, didn't see anyone at all. There were a couple of deer about and lots of worms. One worm decided to come along for a walk with me, I found one crawling up my leg. It was on the outside of my pants but still it was yucky! No pictures today, too wet to take out my camera. Still it was nice to get out this morning and I enjoyed my walk. :-)

Sunrise 7:01
Sunset 7:25
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For my breakfast I made French toast with some stale homemade bread. That makes the best French toast ever. With a touch of syrup it was delicious.
I made another loaf of bread in the bread machine. This time I made French bread.
Stayed in the kitchen a little longer and made Welsh cookies. I haven't made them in a quite a while. I put a few mini chocolate chips in as well as some dried cherries. What I like about them is that they aren't real sweet and don't have a lot of calories but are still delicious.

After being in the kitchen all morning I was ready to do something else. I started another book, knitted and before I knew it Ken was home from work. He actually came home a bit on the early side. :-)
Supper time rolled around and we went out for pizza. We talked about going out for pizza for supper in the morning and I looked forward to it all day. I was really hungry when we finally got there and felt like I could have eaten the whole pie. But I was full after my usual two pieces.

We watched a good movie from Netflix last night called An Unfinished Life.
Watched a bit of nothing on television this evening, and finally just turned the thing off. I'm here now, and in just a bit I'm going back to reading my book.
Hope your Friday was a happy day for you.

Happyone :-)

May you always have work for your hands to do.
May your pockets hold always a coin or two.
May the sun shine bright on your windowpane.
May the rainbow be certain to follow each rain.
May the hand of a friend always be near you.
And may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.
~Irish Blessing

My walk was a little bit different today. I didn't walk down any paths or one of my many routes but just kept to the sidewalks. There is one main street I walked down and off this one street there are streets that don't go through to anywhere. They just wander around and then you come back out in the same place. Lots of courts off of these streets. Very easy to get lost in the maze! :-) So today I just kept walking to the right to every street I came upon. It amazes me how many streets there are back there off the main one and how many houses there are. It was nice to look at all the houses and yards and to see spring bursting out. The birds were singing their morning songs, squirrels digging up nuts and chattering, other people out walking saying good morning, it was just great to be outside! The miles and time just slipped by and I ended up walking 7.2 miles.

Sunrise 7:03
Sunset 7:24
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A while ago I mentioned that my step-dad had cancer and he would be having hormone and radiation treatments. Well the hormone treatments have done a little good but not enough and now he will start on the radiation treatments on Monday. He will have 5 treatments a week for two months. He's one terrific dad. I know he is in God's hands and God will take care of him. I thank you for all your prayers and good wishes and I ask you to please continue to pray for my Dad. Thank you!!

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

Today was one of those days that I had planned on doing a lot and I picked up my book and was just going to read for a little while and ended up finishing the whole book. I read House of Reckoning by John Saul. A haunted house, a boy who hears voices and sees visions, and a girls whose father is in prison for hitting her with his truck all make for a book that was hard for me to put down.

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

I did a bit of knitting also. Another late night for Kenny. He's taking a 4 hour evening course for CPR and first aid yesterday and today. So tonight for supper I just had a baked sweet potato and a salad. It wasn't just tasty, it was also good for me.

I got a call from my friend Lin and we had a nice chat. She travels a lot with her work and today she called me from NYC. Always nice to hear from a friend.

This day went much too fast for me. That happens when I read. Time flies!!

I hope your Thursday was a good one for you.
Happyone :-)

Attitudes are contagious.
Are yours worth catching?
~Dennis and Wendy Mannering

Another one of those great spring morning walks. I walked over to the lake this morning and got half way around it and saw my friend Jeannie. We walk the lake in opposite directions so we have to stop walking to chat. Today I turned around and walked the way she was going for a change. We got to talk more that way. We both prefer to walk alone but every once in a while we like a bit of company. This works good for both of us. I saw lots of deer around today and lots of people too. The birds were all out singing merrily, the sun was shining in a bright blue sky, and some of the trees are getting buds and some are even opening. What a wonderful start to the day. I even found a lucky penny again.

Sunrise 7:05
Sunset 7:23
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later in the morning it got pretty windy. I tried to hang my clothes out on the line but it was just too windy so I ended up bringing the clothes back in side. I hang the clothes out on the deck which is on the second floor of my townhouse and if something blows off the line I have to go and find it! :-)

I read quite a bit today of a John Saul book I just started and I'm liking it. I also did the last lesson for my Bible study group tonight.

Kenny won't be home till late so I had a late lunch/ early supper today. I made myself nachos. Though they were good, they taste much better when Kenny makes them. I'm not sure if they really are better or just taste better because I don't make them!

I walked down to church this evening. The Bible study is very good and I enjoy the company of the women there too. I'm finding I really enjoy being part of a community church. :-)

Here it is mid week already. Hope you found some happiness scattered about your Wednesday.
Happyone :-)

A stiff apology is a second insult....
The injured party does not want to be compensated because he has been wronged;
he wants to be healed because he has been hurt.
~G.K. Chesterton

Tuesday - a good day!

A beautiful morning for walking and I walked my usual 6 miles. I walked the paths through the neighborhoods today. I must be turning into a country girl walking through the paths in the woods because today as I was walking I smelled something and thought, that smells like a deer. I looked to the side and sure enough there was a deer! They have a kind of woodsy musty smell. I saw 6 more deer along a different path, but they were too far away to smell. :-)
You would think when there was no ice around that you wouldn't have to worry about slipping and falling but the mud that is on the sidewalks is just as slippery.
Not many people out this morning on the paths, only a couple of people walking dogs. Maybe everyone was walking around the lake today.

Sunrise 7:06
Sunset 7:22
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Had breakfast and quickly did a few things around the house and then left for my knitting group. About 15 people showed up this week and we enjoyed a good time knitting and talking. I met a new friend there today named Kathy. :-) We were the last two people to leave.

I had a late lunch once I got home and then did a couple of lessons for the Bible study group which meets tomorrow. I have one more to go and will finish just in time again this week. I always say I'm going to do the lessons right away, but I always wait until the last minute. Reminds me of when I was a kid doing homework on Sunday night when you had the whole weekend to do it!

We went out for supper today at Red Robin and had some delicious burgers. I was too full to eat my French fries. On the way home we stopped at the library so Kenny could pick up a book that was on hold. It was on my card and while I was there they told me another book that I had on hold was there waiting for me, so I came home with yet another book to read.

I'm about to go and watch a Netflix movie, have some ice cream, knit some more, and then read a bit before going to bed.

A happy Tuesday to you!
Today I'm thankful for meeting a new friend.
Happyone:-)

A friend is one of the nicest things you can have,
and one of the best things you can be.
~Douglas Pagels

Pocketbooks

After so many beautiful sunny days I'm not going to complain about a rainy one today. A rainy walk around the lake this morning. A break in the rain when I took this picture. Trees starting to bloom here! Pretty and pink - they will look better with sun shine and a blue sky!
Quite a few people were out in spite of the rain. I saw 6 deer and two heron, although it may have been the same one in two different places and the geese were more noisy than usual.

Sunrise 7:08
Sunset 7:21
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stayed home today and did the usual house chores.
Finished reading The Unbearable Lightness of Scones By Alexander McCall Smith. It was the newest book in the 44 Street Scotland series. I really enjoy this series and this book was another great one. The book ends with a poem that the character Angus writes which was a perfect way to end the book.

You know how we all have something that we like to buy even though we know we don't need it. We have too many of this item but we keep buying more anyway. The thing for me is pocketbooks. I have quite a few and yet it is so hard to walk by them in the store and not buy one. I like ones with pockets inside, leather ones, cloth, colorful, plain, shoulder bags, small ones that barely fit anything in them, or big ones which hold all of my must have with me stuff. I like them all! I didn't buy one today but I did move out of one and into another one today. That is almost as much fun as buying one. :-) What your ITEM?

I found out today why the line was so long the other day at Rita's. Every year on the first day of spring the ice cream is FREE!! That would certainly explain the long line!!

Talking about ice cream, I'm going to have some in a little while. :-) I'm also going to start reading another book.

I hope your Monday was a good one.
Happyone :-)
Always be a first-rate version of yourself,
instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.
~Judy Garland

Happiness Award

I am happy to say that Val has chosen my blog to receive a Happiness Award. Thank you Val for thinking of me. :-)
I don't really don't like putting awards on my blog because I feel a bit uncomfortable receiving them, but I thought I'd do this one.

The rules that come with this award are as follows:
1. When you receive this award you must thank the person that awarded you in a new post.
2. Name 10 things that make you happy.
3. Pass this award to other bloggers who make you happy.

Here are 10 things that make me happy.
1. Knowing God loves me no matter what!
2. Having Kenny's love
3. Walking around the lake early in the morning.
4. Eating ice cream
5. Driving my car especially when it's shiny and clean
6. Sunny days
7. Giving away an afghan that I've knitted
8. A shelf of unread books waiting for me to read.
9. A single Red Rose
10. When Kenny winks at me.

I am supposed to pass this award on to other blogs that make me happy but I just can't pick out a few from the blogs I read. I enjoy all the blogs that I read so I pass this award on to all of you!!

I thank all of you who read my blog and all the kind things you have to say. Blogging is great and I consider you all my friends!!
Have a happy day!! :-)
Happyone

My morning walk

Good Morning

I had a bit of an adventure on my walk this morning. I followed this clearing where new sewers are being put in. I thought it went straight through to another street where I walk, but as I walked I came across a steam which was in the way. You can't tell by the picture but it is quite a hill to walk down. I walked to the right of the stream and went up here. Walked along the road here for a bit. Then made my way back down, getting tangled up in a few sticker bushes and came out on the road where I thought I would. The road is on the other side of the traffic barrier.I then walked over by the school again like yesterday looking for Gertie (Spelling mistake yesterday when Gertie was Bertie) and I am happy to say that I saw her and we had a nice 15 minute chat. She is healthy, fine and just as happy as usual. She had a big hug for me. I found out where she lives and asked if she would mind if I stopped by once in a while to say hi. Her answer was, "Karen, you can come over anytime you want to, just don't expect a nice clean house." :-)

I saw a couple other people out walking and all the dogs were back in the field by the school again like yesterday. A nice sunny morning and perfect for a walk.
I only walked 5 miles because I ran out of time.

Sunrise 7:09
Sunset 7:20

I'm going to go sit out on the deck now.
Happyone :-)

Beauty

Proverbs 31:30
Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,
but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

Physical beauty all too quickly fades away; all one’s efforts to keep it are doomed to fail.

From The Daily Bread this week.
"Some years ago, a friend of mine told of a conversation he had with a lovely, self-assured teenager.
“You’re very self-confident,” he observed. “Can you tell me why?”
“Yes,” the young woman answered. “It’s because I’m so pretty.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” he said with extraordinary wisdom.
“Why?” she asked in surprise.
“Because,” he replied, “you may not always be pretty.”

Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me—
All His wonderful passion and purity!
O Thou Spirit divine, all my nature refine,
Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.
~ Orsborn

Have a wonderful Sunday.
Hope your day is filled with sunshine.
Happyone :-)

Happy Spring

I left an hour later this morning on my walk. Not on purpose this time I just slept in for an hour. I walked paths and streets to the school and then around over in that area. I was hoping to spot Gertie but no luck. I haven't seen her for about 4 months now. She is 87 and I'm a bit worried about her. I wish I knew where she lived. I don't even know her last name. I asked a couple of people if they knew her but no one did. When I see her again I'm going to find out where she lives. In the field by the school on Saturday mornings people meet there with their dogs. The dogs run around free so they can visit with their dog friends. Three of them came over to say hi to me too. :-) On this first day of spring I saw lots of daffodils blooming for the first time and tulips that have popped out of the ground but haven't bloomed yet. Another sure sign of spring is yard/garage sales and I saw a few of those this morning too. I'm so glad spring has arrived.
I walked 6.4 miles and it was a cool but sunny morning. It warmed up quickly though.

Sunrise 7:11
Sunset 7:19
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ken made us breakfast today. We had egg sandwiches on toast with a slice of cheddar cheese. :-) Then later in the morning we went out and about doing a few errands. Ken is trying to get the garage space neat and tidy so we bought a couple pieces of plywood and put it up on one wall of the garage. I helped as needed. It needs to be painted next. We bought strips to be nailed on the wood and then hooks slide on to the strips to hang things on. I haven't explained it just right but I'll take pictures as we get things done so you can see what I mean. Didn't have time to go back and get the umbrella we saw yesterday but we will soon.

I've had a hard time picking out a paint color for the kitchen but have finally found a color I like. It is called water tower which tells you nothing right. It's a blue/gray color and goes great with the counter tops. Don't know when this project will get started but it's next on the list. I'm still not sure what I want to do about the black splash.

While driving by Rita's today we were glad we went there during the week because today the line was ridiculously long. I had to take a picture as we drove by. As much as I like their ice cream there is no way I would wait on a line that long!!!Today on this first day of spring the weather cooperated. It was sunny, warm and very spring like. Today I am thankful that it is spring and we have said good-bye to snow!!!
Happy Spring!!
Happyone :-)

The day the Lord created hope
was probably the same day he created Spring.
~Bern Williams

A boat on the lake

I left on my walk a couple of hours later than I usually do because it was dark and only 32 degrees. I knew it would be sunny and warmer in just a little while and I wanted to walk in the sunshine. It was so nice out there this morning walking around the lake. Lots of people out, way too many to even count. Most of the people I'd never seen before, but I did see a couple of familiar faces. I stopped to talk to one of them who I haven't seen for months. He is a bird watcher and has binoculars as well as a camera. I also saw a lot of mothers pushing strollers and when I passed the playground I realized why so many were out, they were making their way there.
I didn't see as many animals at this time of the morning. I think they go into hiding when too many people are about.
It was the first day this year I've seen fishermen out by the lake. There was a little boat out on the lake as well. I zoomed in and took this picture. I thought you weren't supposed to stand up in a boat. If you look close you can see a couple of people walking on the path.After I had walked around the lake I stopped to sit on one of the first benches coming up to the lake just to enjoy the sunshine and the view. It felt so good to be sitting in the sun!

Sunrise 7:13
Sunset 7:18
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Since I walked later, I did my morning chores around the house and my exercise CD before walking. I didn't eat anything before walking so was pretty hungry by the time I got home. I had a combination lunch/breakfast. I made a pancake and in the batter I sprinkled some mini chocolate chips. It was all topped off with syrup, banana and a bit of whipped cream. It was like having a dessert as well. All I can say is it was delicious and well worth the wait. :-)

With another gorgeous sunny day I spent a good portion of the afternoon out on the deck. I read, knitted and brought my lap top out.

We have been thinking about getting an umbrella for the deck. The deck gets the afternoon sun and although it is nice right now, in the summer it is a bit much. After supper we went to see what we could find. We found one that we like that has the umbrella pole on the side instead of in the middle. We will probably go back and get it tomorrow. If we do I'll of course take a picture. We wanted to come home and measure the deck to be sure it would be big enough.

In a little while we are going to watch a movie that we got from Netflix today and my snack for tonight will be Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Today I'm thankful for the lake and paths that I walk along.
Happyone :-)

Sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry,
but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.
~Author Unknown

A good day

Another cold morning with a temperature of 30 degrees. I went back to wearing my coat with the hood. As I was walking it was hard to believe that later in the day it would be near 70 and I'd be sitting out on the deck in the sun! Today's walk was on the paths around the neighborhoods and I walked my usual 6 miles. I only saw 2 other people out, both walking dogs. A few rabbits were having breakfast along the paths edge but they all scurried away as I passed. No one wanted their picture taken. By the time I got home, my hood was down and coat unzipped and the sun was shining.

Sunrise 7:14
Sunset 7:17
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the morning I went to drop a book off at the library and then to the bank. It was so nice out that I ended up going for a little ride. Three different times I had to pull over to let an emergency vehicle pass. Two fire trucks and a police car!

I made a good start on cleaning out my closet and dresser. I don't have that many clothes so the job isn't as big as it sounds. I've thrown out clothes that were way too worn to give to any charity. I have a couple more drawers to go through. Then I'll be able to go out shopping to replace what I've thrown away. :-)

Another beautiful sunny day and I was out on the deck this afternoon. I had a some flower pots out there that I left through the winter and they didn't survive. They were ceramic and had cracked so I had to throw them out.
I did a little knitting while sitting out there too.

I made the Eggplant Parmesan for supper tonight. I haven't made it for a while and it was really good. I don't have a recipe for it and in fact when we first got married Ken taught me how to make it. :-)

Ken got a noticed from the library saying the book he had on reserve was in, so I made another trip to the library today with him after supper. I was so good when I went earlier to just drop off a book and didn't check any more out. I was just going to look at the new book section tonight and ended up checking two more out!! So you know what we will be doing later.

In a little bit I'm going to have ice cream for my snack. A two tone flavor tonight. Chocolate Chip on the bottom with Chocolate Cookies N Supreme on the top. My mouth is watering just thinking of it!!

Today I am thankful for libraries and ice cream.
Happyone :-)

Never write a letter while you are angry.
~Chinese Proverb

On the line

I was so surprised when I walked out of the door this morning and it was only 32 degrees and I saw frost!! The radio said it was 45!! The cold temperature didn't last long though and when the sun came up it warmed things up considerably and it was in the upper 40's when I got back home. I walked around the lake again and saw lots of wildlife. Deer, Mallard ducks, the Heron, Red Winged Black birds, a fox, and the usual geese. A beautiful morning out around the lake and a great morning for a walk!! Not that many people out but I did see Jeannie and we stopped for a chat. We decided that we should meet somewhere for lunch some time so we can have a longer chat!
I found a lucky penny. :-)

Sunrise 7:16
Sunset 7:16
Well, there it is!! 12 hours of daylight!!

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

Since it was such a nice day I decided it was time for hanging the wash outside once again. I sure have missed that wonderful clothes line, dried clothes smell. I did whites and here they are hanging on the line soaking up that smell!!

Another shot from where the snow pile used to be.

We are not allowed to hang clothes up outside but since I take my lines down when not in use there is not much they can do about it.

Cupboards were getting a bit low again so off to the commissary I went. It was a great day to be out and driving around. I didn't even have to wear a coat. Hardly any one was shopping today so I was in and out pretty quick. Then home to unload and put things away.
Lunch came next which was left over pizza I had in the freezer.
I got Ken's white shirts ironed and did a few other chores around the house.

It was so nice and warm out this afternoon that I sat out on the back deck and read for a while in the late afternoon.
I picked up a couple of eggplants at the commissary and was just getting everything out to make Eggplant Parmesan for supper when Ken called to say he wouldn't be home till late. So I put everything away again, and will make it tomorrow instead.

I ended up skipping supper altogether and at 6:30 I walked down to church for the Bible study group with the ladies. Enjoyed my time there, met a few more women and when I got home Ken was home. Though I did skip supper I still had 4 cookies and milk for a snack. I know I should have eaten something better but they sure tasted good!!

So here I am at the computer. Later I'll do a little knitting and reading.

Though I'm not Irish a Happy St. Patrick's Day to you.
St. Patrick's Day brings back wonderful memories when we went on our walking tour with The Wayfarers around the Ring of Kerry. If you feel like looking at pictures of Ireland and our walk, the link is on the sidebar.

I wore my pedometer all day today to see how many steps I took . 20,062 was the number.
Today I'm thankful that I got to hang my wash outside on the line.
Happyone :-)

Ever felt an angel's breath in the gentle breeze?
A teardrop in the falling rain?
Hear a whisper amongst the rustle of leaves?
Or been kissed by a lone snowflake?
Nature is an angel's favorite hiding place.
~Carrie Latet

No more snow pile

It was cloudy this morning on my walk but by the time I got home it looked like the sun would be coming out later. I walked 6.3 miles and walked around the lake. The deer have come back from where ever they were hiding because today I saw 6 of them. It was a warm morning with no breeze and tomorrow I'll be taking off another layer of clothing and start wearing my ball cap instead of a hood. From all the rain the lake and streams are all muddy. Quite a few people out walking, running, and walking dogs.

Sunrise 7:17
Sunset 7:15
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We had sunshine today and I even had the windows in the car down as I drove to Savage Mill for the Tuesday morning knitting group. About 15 people were there. I worked on the baby blanket which should be done in the next day or two. I had to take this picture on the sly because no one wanted their picture taken.My computer desk has 4 drawers in it and they were all a mess. They started out nice and neat but somehow things just get tossed in every which way. I dumped all four drawers out on the table and went through everything. I found things I didn't even know I had! A lot of things got thrown away and what was left went back in nice and neat. Now if I can only keep it this way. :-)

There is another sign of spring around here. Rita's has opened for the season. After supper we went there and both of us got a Chocolate with Black Cherry ice Gelato. Life is Good isn't it?

No snow pile today - Its all gone!!!
I am thankful today for blue skies and sunshine.
Happyone :-)

Be an angel to someone else whenever you can,
as a way of thanking God for the help your angel has given you.
~ Eileen Elias Freeman

A day of reading

Another rainy morning walk but this time I got to walk the whole 6 miles. Yesterday I only walked 4 miles because I slept later because of the time change and I had to be back home by 8:30. Today I was back to walking in the dark. It was raining pretty hard when I fist started out but at least today there was no wind. After 2 miles or so the rain was just a drizzle and another couple of miles it had stopped altogether. I only saw two other people out and they were walking dogs. I walked around on the neighborhood paths and walking over one of the wooden bridges I stopped to take this picture of the deer. She blends in pretty well with the scenery.I heard that if all the rain we have gotten in the last few days was snow it would have been 40 inches!! So I certainly am not going to complain about the rain! :-)

Sunrise 7:19

Sunset 7:14
Maybe tomorrow the times will be the same!

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

It was a cloudy, rainy, dreary day. I did some laundry and then it seemed like a good day to finish reading my book, Under the Dome by Stephen King. And that is exactly what I did. The book had 1,411 pages and I'm finally finished. It was a good book but as with all of his books I think he could have trimmed it down considerably. Parts were dragged out and were boring at times but all in all I enjoyed reading it. It takes place in Chester Mill, Maine. The town is suddenly cut off from the rest of the world by an invisible force field. No one can figure out what the cause of it is and the story is about how the people in the town react to it.

I did take some time out for lunch but I read just about the whole day and finished the book at 3:15!!
The book now sits on the table beside Ken's chair all ready for him to read it next.

Didn't take a picture of the snow pile yesterday, but here's the picture for today. It is just a little thing now!
In just a little while I'll have a few chocolate chip cookies, watch some TV and knit.

Hope your day was more productive than mine was today. :-)
Happyone :-)

A good book should leave you....
slightly exhausted at the end.
You live several lives while reading it.
~William Styron

Happy Sunday

2 Corinthians 9:7

So let each one give as he purposes in his heart,
not grudgingly or of necessity;
for God loves a cheerful giver.

Another day that God has given us, make the most of it. :-)
Have a blessed Sunday.

A mild but rainy morning and very windy!!! I put on my rain gear and took my umbrella and out I went for my walk. I didn't even walk a mile and my feet were already wet. I put up the umbrella but not for long. It was so windy that it would have blown inside out. I hated to do it but I headed back home and ended my walk. I'm just glad that all this is rain and not snow!!

Sunrise 6:22
Sunset 6:12
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had planned on stopping at the Giant before coming home from my walk to get milk but forgot so I couldn't make pancakes for breakfast. We had toast instead made with the homemade bread. Good but not as good as pancakes would have been.

Next we got started right in with our project of putting the stone up on the fireplace walls. Thanks to Bonnie loaning us her wet saw the job went smoothly and pretty fast. Kenny did all the cutting and putting the adhesive up on the wall. I took all stone pieces out of the boxes and helped stick them up on the walls. It was fun to do and I love how it turned out. I think it goes terrific with the paint on the walls.
We were 8 pieces short and had to go out and buy one more box. Here are some pictures of the job.

BeforeAbout half way done8 stone short
A couple of close up of the wallAfterWith all this rain we are having I don't think the snow pile out back will last much longer so I've taken this picture today. I'll take daily pictures until it is gone. This might be the last one though.

After a day of work we like to get cleaned up and then go out to eat. We started doing that years ago when Ken's dad used to come over our house to help us with one of our projects. He would always take us out to eat after working. :-) Ken learned so much from his dad about fixing things around the house and we always think of him when we have a project to do. We sure miss him!!
Tonight we went out for pizza.
Then stopped at Weis and got some ice cream which we will be having for our snack later while watching the movie Old Dogs that we got from Netflix today.

I hope your Saturday was a good one for you.
Don't forget to turn your clocks ahead for spring.
Happyone :-)

None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm.
~Henry David Thoreau

A busy day at home.

Very mild this morning with a temperature of 50 degrees. It rained through the night and was misting out this morning but that stopped too and I got to walk rain free. I thought I'd get rained on so I donned my yellow rain slicker and rain pants and started walking. Kenny took this picture of me starting out. I start walking when he leaves for work. A few people out this morning. Most of them runners. I walked on one path and then stayed on the sidewalks. I wasn't paying much attention to where I was walking and I ended up walking 6.7 miles. I saw more signs of spring along the way. Some ground cover with little yellow flowers (maybe they were weeds but they looked pretty) and more daffodils popping through the ground.
The warm weather and rain has brought LOTS of worms out this morning. There were worms all over the place. I also saw a frog in the gutter. I tried to get him out of the road but he just wouldn't cooperate and I didn't want to pick him up so I just left him there. Hope he hopped the right way and not in the street.I really enjoyed my walk this morning and to top it all off, I found a lucky penny too.

Sunrise 6:24
Sunset 6:11
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Though it didn't rain on my walk it has been a dreary rainy day all day. But I had lots to keep me busy in the house during the day. This is how I filled my day.

• Doing Body Electric
• Baking Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Ironing
• Vacuuming
• Dusting
• Cleaning a bathroom
• Being on the computer
• Doing a Bible study lesson
• Reading
• Knitting

While baking the cookies I listened to a video book, Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.

Then it was time for Kenny to come home from work.
The last time I made Chicken Enchiladas I put half in the freezer and we ate that tonight for supper.

The pile of snow by my driveway is melting fast now. I've taken this weeks picture (Number 5) down in the street. It's been raining all day and is supposed to continue for the next couple of days. It just might be completely gone by next week at this time.
In just a bit Kenny and I are going to have a few of those cookies I baked today.
We'll watch a little television and I'll knit.

Yay ! It's Friday once again. Hope you enjoyed it!!
Happyone :-)

Some people, no matter how old they get, never lose their beauty - they merely move it from their faces into their hearts. ~Martin Buxbaum

A nice warm day

This morning was the warmest one yet with a temperature of 40 degrees. It was a sunny morning as I walked along the neighborhood paths. I saw quite a few people out and they all had smiles today. There were 8 kids out riding their bikes to school and 3 of them even said good morning to me! and two people stopped for me to cross the street in the crosswalk! I saw and heard the beautiful colored Blue Jays, Robins, and Cardinals. Spring is in the air. :-)
I walked 6.3 miles.

Sunrise 6:25
Sunset 6:10
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today my car is 8 years old. 8 years ago today I was driving it home from Kerbeck's (the dealer) in NJ in the pouring rain.

I haven't made bread in a while and Kenny has been having a yearning for toast with homemade bread so I put the ingredients in the bread machine and made a loaf. The house smelled wonderful.

For a while in the afternoon before the clouds rolled in, it was sunny and warm. So nice that I sat out on the deck out back and knitted. Once the sun went away it was a bit chilly for sitting outside, but it sure was nice to be able to sit on the deck again, if only for a little while. :-)

After supper we did a few errands and then came home to watch a little television. I had a few cookies for my snack but Ken wanted some of the homemade bread so he made toast.
I knitted while watching television.

Did you have a good Thursday? I hope so!!
Happyone :-)

The key to successful aging is to pay as little attention to it as possible.
~Judith Regan

A new blog look

I decided not to walk around the lake today and walked my connect the path route around the neighborhoods. A cloudy morning but no wind and the temperature was in the mid 30's. I saw a promise of spring in some daffodils that were popping out of the ground - only the green of them but the yellow is soon to come. I heard birds singing their morning song and a woodpecker making a racket on the aluminum siding of a house. I walked passed geese who honked at me and I was happy to see a couple of deer in the woods too. The only people I saw were the older couple in their 80's who walk the paths most days. We stopped and chatted for a while. They too are glad for warmer weather and cleared paths. :-)
I walked a little over 6 miles.

Sunrise 6:27
Sunset 6:09
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I took a picture this morning of the ramp that I helped Ken with yesterday for an easier ride up the driveway for the Vettes.
I think its made up of recycled tires. Since there is still quite a step up from the road the 2 x 4 will be there until the final layer of the road is done. I'm hoping that time will be soon.

Well I did stay home and got some of that cleaning done, not all of it but I made a good start!

As you can see I've changed the look of my blog again. Doing that is quite a time consuming activity for me. It takes me forever to decide on exactly what I want to change!! I just know I want something different.

Ken and I went out for a bit to eat for supper. I was telling him about the little oranges that were so good that I had yesterday at the knitting group so we stopped at Trader Joe's and bought some. Ken dropped me off at church for the ladies Bible study group on the way back home but we got there a bit early so we sat in the parking lot eating oranges until it was time for me to go in. I walked home afterwards.

Ken waited until I got home and we had ice cream for our snacks.

Hope your Wednesday was a good one.
Happyone :-)
Forty is the old age of youth;
fifty the youth of old age.
~Victor Hugo

A warm sunny day

What a beautiful morning for walking. Each day it seems to get better and better. The weather was sunny, no breeze and the temperature was in the mid 30's when I started out and it warmed up considerably by the time I got back home. I have now retired my outer layer coat with the warm hood for the season. The last couple of days by the time I got home I was hot. It is nicer walking not being so bulky. I walked around the lake and went just a bit over 6 miles.

Just another walking path around the lake.

I haven't seen any deer for quite some time now. I wonder where they are all hiding. Lots of geese and mallard ducks and I saw a couple of ducks that where black and white but don't know what kind they are. Quite a few people out again too. Now that the weather is nice more people venture outside in the morning.

Sunrise 6:28
Sunset 6:08
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I left for the Tuesday Morning knitting group at 9:40. It starts at 9:30 but I never make it there until 10:00. People come walking in at all times though so its not like I'm late. About 20 people showed up and we all had a good time talking and knitting. Someone brought the cutest tiny oranges from Trader Joe's that were so sweet they tasted like candy. Thanks to Lin I'm kind of on my way to knitting a pair of socks. Working with 5 DPN needles I have needles hanging all over the place. I find it hard to keep them all straight. I'm giving this the good old try but I just might not be cut out for knitting socks!!

I had planned on doing some cleaning today when I got home but again something better came along to do. I really had to read because that due date is looming ahead again. :-)

This morning before I left I put supper in the slow cooker. I have a big slow cooker but with just the two of us I usually make way too much and even though I can put the left overs in the freezer sometimes I just don't want to make so much. So I bought a small one and used it for the first time today. I really like it. It was just big enough to put in a few potatoes and a couple of pork chops, just perfect for the two of us.

After supper I helped Ken put together some ramps to put at the end of our driveway so there is not such a big bump for our cars to go down. The wooden one Ken made was destroyed by the snow plows. There is not much clearance with the Vettes. I was going to take a picture but it was getting dark. I'll post a picture tomorrow.

My friend Bernice called me tonight and we had a nice long talk. It's been a while since we've seen each other and are planing a visit. She lives in NJ. She has been my friend my whole life and she is like a sister. :-)

Tea (chamomile & mint) and cookies for snack time tonight.

I hope you had a nice bright sunny day like I enjoyed!
Happyone :-)

How old would you be if you
didn't know how old you were?
~Satchel Paige

A clean car

I started out my day with a nice 6 mile walk around the lake once again. It was only 30 degrees but the sun was out and the temperature was on the rise. By the afternoon it was in the mid 50's. Quite a few people out this morning. Most commented on the great weather we have been having.

Sunrise 6:30 Sunset 6:07 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I washed my very dirty car this afternoon and have taken a before and after picture.

The dirty one doesn't show up how dirty it really was, but you can tell how dull the paint looks and the tail lights look dull too.In the clean picture the car looks shiny.

If you enlarge the pictures you can see it a bit better. Anyway it sure feels good to have a nice clean car again. I didn't go anywhere today but I'll take her out tomorrow! I tried knitting my first pair of socks but couldn't seem to get the hang of knitting with DPN's so I'm bringing it along tomorrow to my knitting group. I hope someone will be able to help me. After supper we did a few errands. Then home for the evening. A little television and I ended up having ice cream for my snack. Two cookies just weren't going to do it tonight. I had chocolate chip mint. :-) Hope your Monday was a good one. Happyone :-)

Do not regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many. ~Author Unknown

A special Sunday

Romans 6: 3-5

Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized
into Christ Jesus were baptized into His Death?

Therefore we were buried with Him
through baptism into death, that
just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
even so we also should walk in newness of life.

For if we have been united together in
the likeness of His death,
certainly we also shall be in
the likeness of His resurrection.

Back in September I started going to a church down the street from me. I liked it from the moment I walked in the door. Everyone was welcoming, friendly and truly seemed to care for one another. I liked the way the pastor preached and how he took the time to talk to all of us. The next week I went to Sunday School too and I knew that this was the church for me. I asked about joining the church.
Two things were required to join.
1. You have to be saved.
2. You have to be baptized.
You can attend the church without joining of course because the goal is to save people. The first one was no problem but I had not been baptized. The church I grew up in just didn't believe in being Baptized. I've attended other churches throughout the years when I became an adult but never found one I really liked. Though I haven't gone to a church in years, I have read my Bible and I pray every day and always thought that was enough. Now that I have found this church I knew it wasn't enough. I just hadn't found the right one. So a few weeks ago I decided to become a member of this church and today I was Baptized (full immersion). I believe as does this church that you don't HAVE to be baptized to be saved and go to heaven but it is a symbol to the world that you believe. Today I made God smile! :-)

Kenny was there with me today and my parents drove down from Pennsylvania and they were there also. Kenny said I had a big smile on my face and looked I extremely happy. I am so glad God lead me to this church.

Happyone :-)
What we are is God's gift to us.
What we become is our gift to God.
~Eleanor Powell

Up and out first thing this morning for my walk. I went around the lake once again and walked 6 miles. It was 30 degrees but the sun was out and there was no wind. A beautiful morning!! I don't usually walk the lake on Saturday because of all the runners. A running club runs then and there are LOTS of runners. Today I walked in the opposite direction that I normally walk which was the same direction of the runners. That turned out to be a good idea because I could just walk to the right and let them all pass me. When they come at me they have a tendency to take up the whole path and I end up on the grass. Here is one of MANY groups that passed me this morning. As the runners pass me I hear snippets of their conversations and its fun to make up stories from that one sentence. Here are some of snippets I heard today.

• I told my neighbor there was no way I could do that.
• I wonder why she would even want him around.
• He was pissed at me because he knew I knew.
• My son is great.
• If they would only go by the rules.

Here's a couple of Mallard ducks. The picture is grainy because I used the zoom. It kind of looks like a painting.

Sunrise 6:33
Sunset 6:05
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When I left for my walk Ken left to go to the old house and took the collapsed car port apart now that the snow has melted off it. All the pieces are piled up and ready to be hauled away. He was finished by lunch time. He also got both of his cars washed. Mine is still dirty. I'll probably wash mine Monday.
I spent most of the day at home reading, knitting and being on the computer.

We had pizza subs and a Greek salad for supper.
Hope your Saturday was a good one for you.
Happyone :-)

Age does not diminish the extreme disappointment
of having a scoop of ice cream fall from the cone.
~Jim Fiebig

An afternoon visit

The temperature was 30 degrees when I walked this morning so once again a little bit of ice here and there. I walked 6.1 miles and went around the lake again. Instead of taking a picture of the sun, today I took one of the morning moon. This was taken on the path going to the lake. Good to see everyone out walking this morning and almost everyone had a smile. We are so lucky to have this lake and all the paths to walk along. The birds must think spring is here because they were singing and chirping and sounding happy.

Sunrise 6:34
Sunset 6:04
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The morning I got some work done around the house - just the usual chores.

In the afternoon I walked over to Lillemor's house, which is only one mile from my house. Adding those two miles to my morning walk I walked a total of 8 miles today. She is a friend I met at the Wednesday night knit group. It was supposed to be an afternoon of knitting and tea and though we did drink tea, and showed each other what we were knitting and talked about some future projects we didn't get any knitting done. :-) That's okay because it was a very nice afternoon visit. Lillemor, who is from Sweden made a Swedish cake from a family recipe. The cake tasted exactly like the brownies I bake. Turns out that it is the exact same recipe. Her cake she makes in a round cake pan and is a flat cake. My brownie recipe is double the size and I bake it in a 9 x 12 inch baking pan. I got the recipe from a friend years ago and the recipe came from her grandmother. I wonder now if her grandma was Swedish too!!

I was back home just before Ken came home from work. We had supper at Red Robin (fish and chips) and after wards stopped at a couple of stores.
Once at home we watched an episode of The #1 Ladies Detective Agency. I finally did some knitting :-) and had a couple of cookies.

Here is picture number 4 of the snow pile out back by our driveway. It's looking more like a dirt pile now, but its shrinking every day. This next week a lot of it should melt, because its supposed to be sunny and in the 50's for the next few days.

I hope this Friday was a good ending to your week and you enjoyed your day.
Happyone :-)

Once you begin looking, you may be surprised to
discover just how much joy your world has to offer.
~ Thomas Kinkade