Installation Delay

INSTALLING SPRING...
████████░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
33% DONE. Install delayed....please wait.
Installation failed. Please try again.

(Saw this on a friend's Facebook status and couldn't resist copying. Problem is it's so true here.)

Is it Spring Yet?

I don't care what he claims when he makes his prediction today, spring is just around the corner. I think even I'll be glad when it comes.

Today we were spared. A storm came through and the second half is coming through during the night (early hours of Feb.2), but they say it will be hard rains with some freezing rains. Many of you other folks got lots of snow, I hear. Hope you're enjoying it; we've had our share. Somehow the Lord will see us all through.

I made turkey soup today and it really hit the spot. I saved the bones from Thanksgiving and Christmas, so I had lots of them. I simmer them for three to four hours in 10 to 12 cups water, with lots of celery and a little onion. I throw in a couple of bay leaves and peppercorns. Smells great cooking. Then I take out the bones (takes forever), bay leaves, and try to find the peppercorns (always miss a couple which my daughter Neesie always gets in her bowl as she hates pepper the most), after which I add mixed veggies and noodles. I prefer noodles but some folks like potatoes I hear. It's best to make the broth the day before so you can skim off the fat, but I never seem to get around to doing it. I can't wait once I have the broth. It felt so good going down and was most tasty, I must say. I've had a scratchy throat and chills much of the day, but feel much better after eating that soup! Also, I've been overdosing on liquids all day. I think it's working!

With all this bitter cold and snow, my little birdies outside are giving my feeding station quite a workout. A hawk has been hanging around and I keep hoping he won't get one of my patrons, but I guess it's just a matter of time. Well, hawks have to eat too, as they say. I just don't want to see it.

Well, that's all that I have to say for today. Blessings to you all. Stay warm. We'll get through this.

Lovely Weather

It's been a while since I posted a picture of my two girlies, so here it is. I think they're the only ones in the family who are enjoying this weather. It's been unbelievable. The photo above was a couple of weeks ago. We have had much more snow since then.

I think I better remind myself of some reasons why I dislike summer. I don't want to forget it while we're going through this particularly difficult winter. . .

Mosquitoes
Sticky humidity
Mosquitoes
Thunderstorms
Mosquitoes
heat
Mosquitoes

Well. Now I feel better. I'll not start pining away for July.

And about the granddaughters. I just saw the sweetest prayer at a friend's blog. Go here to read Karen's prayer, because I echo the sentiments.

Just a Coating

See this picture? Just a little bit of snow, right? No problem, right? No, you're wrong. It brought a TON of problems to this area for the rush hour! I know all you folks who are counting the snow in feet are probably chuckling at our little half inch. Well let me tell you: It started snowing late in the afternoon with a rather wet, not powdery, kind of snow which immediately froze on the very cold surface due to the low temps of the past few days. This combination turned out to be murderous for the commuters coming home from work, AND my poor husband trying to get to Neesie's place of work to pick her up. He left a half hour early and was at least a half hour late getting her. A long story, but she and he and I were back and forth on the phone his entire ride. THEN, they had to come home, which took twice the normal time. In some instances, it was taking people an hour to go one mile. Sometimes, going 15 miles per hour was too fast. Five to ten mph was safest.

Unbelievable! The road crews hadn't prepared for this unexpected turn of events, I guess. If it had started earlier in the day as forecast perhaps it wouldn't have frozen so solid, or if it had snowed more than a coating perhaps there would have been some "crunch" for the tire wheels, but wow, this was unreal.

Well, thanks to the Lord, my folks made it safely home without an accident. Unfortunately, there were many who did not make out so well.

So, guys, I think I'd rather have your two or three feet. No I don't mean that.

Just reporting in.

A Wonderful Savior

Hallelujah. (And my darling sweet cardinal is an added treat.)

Don't Ask . . .

. . .because I don't know. However, I felt compelled to post it. lol

Natural Remedies

Hi there. Long time no talk to. How's the weather there? It's cold, damp, and shivery here, especially nice weather to be home baking bread and drinking tea. Well, I'm doing neither, but will soon be going out to run some errands rather than stay in and be cozy. It's fall, which is the favorite season for me, but unfortunately, cold and flu season has started and we're already seeing that first hand in our family and among the people from church.

Now don't make fun of me, but when my daughters were young, they got lots of colds and flu illnesses with high temps. Oh, how I hated those days. Once, when Bev was five or six she got a really scary virus, which made her lethargic and with which she was running a particularly high fever. Somewhere in an old beaten up medical book which we had rescued from my husband's family home we read that putting onions and garlic in the sickroom would cause the fever to break. So we said why not try it, and try it we did and her fever broke that night, never to return. We've tried it on occasions since then and it just seems to so happen that fevers aren't quite as bad or last as long with garlic or onion in the room, even though not the most pleasant aroma to greet you when you enter.

Now, that has been of course poo-pooed as an old wives' tale, etc. etc. by the moderns of today but I say, what's it hurt? So last year with all the swine flu scary talk I kept an onion in Neesie's room all winter in a pretty little dish. When one would shrivel up, I would replace it. I figured it wasn't hurting anything and she just lived with it as she has had to do with many of her mom's weird ideas. Now I am not saying I necessarily believe all that, but as I said, I felt it wouldn't hurt anything. I do know that eating a few cloves of garlic when you have lots of chest congestion, will clear things out nicely if you don't mind what goes along with it. :)

And I do feel that the Lord can use whatever He wants to heal us and however He wants, so why not an onion or garlic? After all, He gives "herb for the service of man" as it says in Psalm 104:14.

With all that said, my purpose for this post is to pass along a link to an article on the Old Farmer's Almanac website which has lot of suggestions for natural remedies to help you when you get a cold. Please note fact number 4. When you get to the OFA site, also check out the link to the article on cold and flu prevention. I already practice a lot of the suggestions in that one and I really do believe doing so makes a big difference. So, read it all here and take or leave whatever you want from it. Oh, I just saw a link to cough remedies there too! Have a blessed day.

So Refreshing

If I could place an order for beautiful weather, today's would be exactly what I would choose. We've had the hottest summer ever!!! This is so refreshing. Seventies, low humidity and a wonderful breeze. Thank you, Lord. "He restoreth my Soul."

My dear birdie friends are so happy outside and it's so nice to have the windows open so that I can hear them.

How is it with you, dear ones? Please forgive your neglectful friend. I promise that I haven't deserted you. Blessings to you all.

Havin' a Heat Wave

It's one hundred plus degrees here. We are surely having a heat wave! What's it like where you are? I just got back from the post office and all I can say is "Whew!"

Increased Strength

For more encouraging and uplifting Word-Filled Wednesday posts, visit Susan at Forever His.

He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Isaiah 40:29

We have loads of critters exactly like this one in our backyard, always scampering about trying to get at the birdseed. Actually, we like them. The other day when my daughter let our dog out, a fairly young squirrel like this one tried to escape via a dead limb which broke, dropping him with a loud banging sound atop our outdoor grill. He fell onto the ground, lying there limply whereupon our dog Fro hurried over (of course) and picked up this poor helpless creature in his mouth. Neesie , who was horrified, hollered at Fro to "drop it" (he's been trained to drop whatever he has at that command), which he promptly obeyed, and Neesie dragged him (Fro, not the squirrel) inside and then locked our bewildered dog in his crate. She came and got me and both of us stood at the back sliding door with sad hearts, watching this poor little bushy tailed animal trying unsuccessfully to lift itself up. We thought perhaps it had injured its spine or something. Finally, I did something: I prayed for him. Agree with me or not, that's what I did. I asked the Lord to either take him out of this world and end his misery or help him to get out of our yard. About 30 seconds later, he turned on his stomach and inched forward a bit; then, after another minute or so, he began to scamper at a pretty good pace across the yard and through the fence! A few minutes after that, we saw him heading up one of the bigger healthy trees in that yard!

I don't know what happened to him after that, of course, (they all look alike you know), but what a beautiful lesson this little critter was for me on Matthew 6:26 and the above Scripture. There have been and certainly will be times in my life and yours when we are physically, emotionally, and spiritually sapped of all strength. But the wonderful Creator God of this universe, who cares for the smallest of His creatures, won't He care for each one of us and increase our strength for yet another day in the journey?

Happy Spring

Well, folks, it appears that we've made it. On this first day of spring we can rejoice that we got through one of the worst winters that I can remember. And oh, how happy everyone is. The birds are, of course; we've been talking much about their singing, but I think most of us are feeling it a bit more than is usual for the coming of the season. Everything is still pretty bare outside, but the temperatures are wonderful! Low seventies for today; now you can't get much better than that!

Enjoy the day where you are! Summer is on it's way. Which, by the way doesn't necessarily make me happy, because as you will recall, I dislike summer, with it's mosquitoes, humidity and other discomforts, but let's just enjoy each as it comes.

And have a nice Lord's Day tomorrow! Don't let this health care legislation get you down--The Lord is in control. If He doesn't answer our prayers in the way that we desire, we can rest assured He is doing what is absolutely His will for this country. And His will is always best. And remember all the more: our citizenship is in heaven; this world is not our home.

Oh! This may be a treat for this first day of spring. Apparently, the sky is going to be putting on a show tonight in honor of the equinox Go here to find out more. (Please excuse the references to the age of the universe.)

Praising My Savior

Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. Psalm 150:6

Look what I found. My wonderful birds and my mom's favorite hymn together! What a blessing. Are the birds singing his praises where you live? They sure have been around here. Especially early in the morning! We should be more like them...Praising our Savior all the day long!

Here We Go Again!

We haven't completely dug out from the last one, but another huge storm is headed our way later today. The guy on the radio just said these exact words: "For the second time in less than a week, the area is about to be clobbered with a big, nasty, snowstorm." I just got back from a visit to WalMart to get more bread and milk and something else that's important: Valentine's Day cards and gifts. I should be well stocked with food from last weeks gigantic shopping trip to our local supermarket, so we're all set for another day or two of seeking shelter in our home. We maintained our power the last time, so pray that the same happens again. School closings are being read over the airwaves and most planned activities are being cancelled.

Well, it's supposed to come down heavily overnight, so I'll probably be getting up again at the crack of dawn to go out to clean off the feeders so that my little feathered friends can get to the seed and suet at the various stations in our yard. The above picture is of our poor little dogwood tree which never did quite make it after it was planted in the spring of 1996, the Mother's Day following the death of my mom. It was planted in memory of her; she loved dogwood trees. Unfortunately, it gets very few blooms during the time when it should bloom (around Mother's Day). But it is a popular spot during winter storms because it always holds a square of suet which the birds particularly like during cold and harsh weather. Suet is beef fat and I understand it's quite good for them. I put it up at several places during the heart of the winter. You can see the one starling eating while a couple of others are waiting their turn. I wonder why they were being so polite--usually they aren't! The puppy with the rose in his mouth is a window cling on the back sliding door. He and all the other little critters in these Valentine clings help to cheer up the place and look quite pretty against the backdrop of the snowy backyard.

So, that's what's happening here. How's the weather where you are?

Huge Storm Warnings

Remember my post last Saturday? Check out this video (very short).

By the way, we have a HUGE winter storm warning in this area coming tomorrow. Supposedly, one of the biggest ever. My poor birds, they're going to be frantic. If I'm able, I'll be out there in near blizzard conditions on Saturday trying to help them out. From the sounds of this storm, driving is out of the question, and going outside period will be questionable. Well, we'll see . . .

Bird Forecast

A little while ago, about an hour or so before sundown, I looked outside and my yard was COVERED with birds, especially the little juncos. This picture is of just a few of them. Now, this said something to me, even though all day long I've been hearing on the forecast that we were supposed to have "snow showers" with little or no accumulation. I've also been reading on the news that folks who live in the southeast were being bombarded by a huge snowstorm. This made me suspicious because usually when storms come up from the south, we get hit really hard. Also, I went out earlier in the afternoon and saw that the feeders were more empty than usual for that time of day, so I refilled them. When I got back two hours later, I had to fill them again! The birds were really eating. Do you think they know something that the forecasters don't know? The weather people have been saying all day that the northeast would miss anything of any consequence. Now I'm starting to get nervous because I'm looking outside and see the ground covered with what looks like a couple of inches and it's still coming down! Whose forecast would you listen to--the birds or those with all the education and equipment?

Well, I'm due for a hymn post and looking out at the little creatures today made me think of a children's hymn which I particularly like. It was written by a lady after my own heart, because she had a particular desire to teach the truths of God to children. And she did so in poems, many which are now favorite hymns of the church, particularly for Sunday School, which was also dear to her heart. This delightful little song would be a great one to teach to your children and grandchildren if they're still quite young. There are several tunes, all perfect for sweet little youngsters, and they are learning some important things about our great God when they sing the words! We include this song in our children's cassette (a little plug for Speakable Gifts!), and our three year old granddaughter loves it.

All Things Bright and Beautiful

Each little flower that opens,
Each little bird that sings,
God made their glowing colors,
He made their tiny wings.

The purple-headed mountain,
The river running by,
The sunset and the morning
That brightens up the sky.

The cold wind in the winter,
The pleasant summer sun,
The ripe fruits in the garden—
He made them ev'ry one.

The tall trees in the greenwood,
The meadows where we play,
The flowers by the water
We gather ev'ry day.

He gave us eyes to see them,
And lips that we might tell
How great is God Almighty,
Who doeth all things well.

Refrain:
Yes, all things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
And all things wise and wonderful,
The Lord God made them all.


~ Cecil F. Alexander

Ahh, Fall

What an absolutely gorgeous day we're having in my area. You've heard me say it before and no doubt will hear me say it again: I love October. Neesie and I just got back from our daily walk and I said to her that for me, it's perfect fall weather. My husband thinks it's a bit "nippy," but that's the best part about the season, in my estimation. However, remember that you are listening to a person who intensely dislikes summer, with the heat and humidity, and BUGS! You know about my recent battles with fleas and mosquitoes, and I'm wishing for their soon to come demise. My poor doggy is still suffering from the effects of something. Even with the flea medication, he's scratching and biting himself terribly, so now I'm fearing he has some type of allergy. The vet had told me once that some dogs are allergic to flea bites and that they keep scratching long after the flea is gone. We're keeping our eye on him.

At any rate, I just wanted to mention some of the pleasant autumn things that filtered through my senses today: On my skin was the feel of the crisp, cool air; through my eyes was the sight of the oranges and reds displayed by the trees and squirrels, many of them babies, scurrying about gathering the many acorns all over the yards; through my ears came the sounds of the leaves crunching at our feet and the blue jays making their harsh noisy calls to each other; and there was the smell of the Swedish Apple Bake which I made early for breakfast, and best of all, the yummy taste of it which I enjoyed with my morning coffee. Apples--one of the best features of autumn!

It's hard to believe that the month is half over. I wish I could hold onto it and slow it down. Oh! And one of my favorite aspects of the month is the baseball playoffs. They are REALLY exciting this year. The Phillies and Yankees both made it through the first round and each team is about to face their respective opponents for the league championships. There is no way they can both win and end up facing each other in the World Series--right? Nooo, that can't happen! What would I do? Since the Phils are the current defending champs from last year, the odds are against a repeat. At least I think that's how it works. Oh well, whatever. We're having lots of fun and nervous breakdowns along the way!

Hope you're enjoying your fall days. How's the weather there right now where you are? I was reading on the Yankees website that before they left Minnesota on Monday it was snowing! And Saturday's Phillies/Rockies game was called Saturday because of cold and snow. Any friends in the South? How's it down there?

Rooting for the Underdog

If you are like most folks, you tend to root for the underdog is most matters of life. I think we all do. As many of you know, one of my great joys is bird feeding. But one thing you have to realize if you are going to be an ardent feeder of songbirds is that you are also going to attract hawks, who want to make a meal out of those darling little feathered cuties coming to your yard. All during the fall and winter months, this is a common occurrence in our backyard. Even though I've been told on many an occasion that "the hawks have to eat too" and "this is the way God made them," I always, ALWAYS cheer when the little guys escape when the enemy rushes in. And I always, ALWAYS am sad when a hawk gets his dinner from among my clientele.

And of course, there's sports. Unless, of course, it's one of the teams that I'm a fan of, I usually am pushing for whoever is not favored to win. Now in baseball, it looks as though there is a good chance that both of my teams, the Yankees and the Phillies, are headed to the playoffs, and if either is favored in a particular game, you can be sure I won't be rooting for the underdog in that case. Now, please don't ask me what I will do if they face each other in the World Series! Red shirt when they're in Philly maybe and blue shirt when they're in New York?

This brings me to the point of my post. One of my very favorite journalists, Thomas Sowell, wrote a great article today. It's all about underdogs, starting with an interesting synopsis of the career of baseball catcher Ernie Lombardi of the former New York Giants. I really like the way Mr. Sowell ties this all to himself personally. It's unusual for him to talk about his own life and he makes such a good analogy to what many of us believe politically, that I thought it was good reading to help us keep our perspective on all these things.

I'd like to add that first we look to God to take care of us. Then we pray for a strong initiative, and lots of determination. Just like Mr. Sowell had after his rough beginning. Read his article here.

Then I was thinking about the many underdogs among us who could really use a helping hand. I sure wish more of the many churches of our country would step up to the plate. Maybe that would help to get the government out of the batter's box.

Ouch

Sorry to bring up this unpleasant topic and to display this photo, but this little lady shown above (and her sisters) is driving me batty. Unfortunately, late summer and early fall around here are made quite unpleasant by these critters. And now, they're coming into the house every chance they get. Let the dog in, and usually at least one seems to get a free ride inside. We usually kill at least about three mosquitoes a day somewhere in any one of our rooms and today, while getting my lunch, I killed one on my face! And she had blood in her!! Probably mine, as they LOVE me.

Just wondering: Do you have a mosquito problem where you live? Also, do they bite you and do you get whelps like I do? They don't seem to bother my daughter and I know a few other people like that. I wonder why they prefer certain folks over others. This is one area of popularity I could do without. Another question. It's my understanding that only the females bite. Could someone tell me why 99.5% of them are women?!

Oh well, waiting for the first frost.

Summer Eating

My day was considerably brightened following my weekly visit to the supermarket. The fresh corn at ShopRite was delicious-it was sweet and tender, rather unusual for so early in the season, wouldn't you say? Not only that, they have watermelons at a great price; only hope I got a juicy sweet one. This is the time of year when we often try to shed a few pounds, and summer eating really does help out. And think of all the good nutrition we're getting in the summer fruits and vegetables! Following are my favorite food items which are in season during this time of year into the fall. I look forward to their arrival every spring and summer:

corn on the cob
watermelon
cantaloupe
strawberries
zucchini and yellow squash
fresh garden tomatoes
blueberries
fresh green beans

later on, peaches

I live in the Garden State and many of these foods are grown in abundance around here. A trip to the road stand is a favorite activity for us to get fresh corn,squash tomatoes, and other goodies during the hot weeks. If the birds and squirrels (which I feed) were not so ornery, I would attempt to grow some tomatoes and cucumbers in my little garden patch, but those days are gone. I've mentioned before how those critters have shown their appreciation for my winter feeding by including anything that I grow in their summer menu. So I gave it up, and have resorted to flowers. They even bother my poor helpless marigolds sometimes, so I may just give up gardening altogether and resort to hanging flowers only. Actually, I'm not the best gardener anyway.

What do you look forward to for your summer eating?

Well, Hello!

Guess who I think I just saw? Let me tell you, it's been ages since he showed his face around here. I was beginning to think he was mad at us about something. Did you guess who? Yes indeed, it was Mr. Sun! I just saw him. At least I think I did. Lately, it's only been that weepy Miss Spring Rain who's been showing up. Now, it's not that I have anything against her, as I know she has her good points, as everyone does, but she's been making somewhat of a pest of herself. You know what I mean: some people don't know when enough is enough. And it's one thing when Spring Rain drops her sweet little showers of blessings on us, but for the past few days she's been, well now, how can I say this? She's been pouring it on, I'd say. Also, unfortunately, when she hangs around for the number of days that we've been seeing her, she tends to let Mr. Gloomy and Miss Down in the Dumps slip in and hang around too.

Hopefully, Mr. Sun is making a gallant attempt to chase these folks away this afternoon. I really do think I'm seeing him. Even though those folks who think they're prophets are telling us that the aforementioned lady is determined to return this evening, I'll wait and see if she does make a comeback. So what if she does? One thing we all need to remember around here is that if she comes, or if Mr. Sun stays, or whoever makes an appearance in the coming days, the dear Lord sent them, meaning we should welcome them and ask Him to chase away that other guy and gal who often show up with the weepy lady.

The other day, when Miss SR was having quite a day, Neesie asked me about this soup that our pastor's wife had made last week, a soup which we all loved. I checked it out with Wendy (pastor's wife) and checked online and realized that this Chicken Shaker Soup, while great for company, was much too rich for our family to have on a regular day. So I went searching for a recipe that I could "adjust" to my liking, that is cut down fat and calories, and sure enough, I found one. I made it on Monday and absolutely love it! I thought I'd do my good deed for the day and pass it on to you. I'll give you the ingredients for my version and then give you a link to the original recipe, for any folks who'd rather not make the changes I did. And another tip: make it plenty ahead of time because it's much better after it sits awhile. We liked it even better for yesterday's lunch than we did for Monday's dinner. And you HAVE to have homemade bread with it!

Bev's making it today, but we enjoyed it so much better when Miss Spring Rain was around!

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

1 Tablespoon butter; 1 Tablespoon canola oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 Tablespoon dried parsley flakes
3 cups chopped cooked chicken (breast)
1 can cream of chicken soup, undiluted (Healthy Choice)
1 can cream of mushroom soup, undiluted (Healthy Choice)
5 cups chicken broth
1 scant teaspoon of poultry seasoning (or sage)
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables (peas,carrots, green beans & corn)
1/2 cup evaporated whole milk, undiluted
1 cup evaporated skim milk, undiluted
4 oz. whole wheat linguine, broken into thirds (cook first if you want)

In a large pot, melt butter and oil and saute celery and onions until tender. Add the parsley, broth, soups, chicken, and seasonings. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium low and simmer for approx. 20 minutes. [Next time I may simmer longer on low.] Add the frozen veggies, cover and simmer for ten more minutes. Stir in the milk and cooked noodles. [I would say you could put the pasta uncooked into the soup and add milks when the pasta gets done. May try that next time.]
Heat through after adding milk and serve. [They say salt to taste, but I didn't need any salt. I used Goya bouillon to make the broth-two packets for five cups- and it was just right.] ENJOY!

The link to the recipe I used: About.com Southern Food

Uh-oh, while I was typing this Mr. Sun took off again. Is he showing his face where you are today?