A Few Randoms

I think I am joining Kim's Random Finds on Friday since this post will be filled with bits of randomness.  But before I begin my ramblings I would appreciate a hop over to our collaborative blog Focusing On Life where I am musing on "When Is Too Old".  I think some of you may appreciate my thoughts on the matter.

OK, can't start without a couple of more pics of my great-great grand.  I find it extremely difficult not living closer to this bundle of joy.  I want to capture her as she grows and changes but being almost 2 hours (and that is fast driving) away, I will have to restrain myself to occasional visits.  I won't even be around for Thanksgiving (going to California to visit my son and daughter-in-law).  Rather excited considering I haven't seen them since last Fall.  They have bought a new house and have a new dog which adds to the excitement.

Her hands can't be constrained....must be that artist in her.

Well, nothing is going to compare to that sweet bundle, but I did go to Trader Joe's this week and came home with pumpkins.  I love this green one.  Remember the days when pumpkins were just orange?   Now we have orange, light and dark, almost red, green, white, variegated reds & oranges and probably more and then there are the gourds that come in every size, shape and color.  Maybe some of those odd color pumpkins are really gourds and then again aren't all pumpkins part of the gourd family. Who knows, I am certainly not a pumpkin connoisseur.   I just enjoy them and take their picture.

I also came home with a bundle of beautiful flowers that were picture worthy. 

The crab apples are in abundance this year as well as the acorns.  Had to have been all that moisture (snow) from last winter, but then I read where the apple crops around here have been decimated by that same winter.  Some crops are down 60% which does not bode well for apple pickin' in these parts.

And finally a shot from my trip to Ohio with a little added word art...

So just a few of the "finds" from my week.  Hope you had a marvelous past week and that the week ahead will give you joy.

"May every sunrise hold more promise, and every sunset hold more peace."  ~  A Blessing

Until next time....

A Triple Bonus

It's over, done, complete and the only evidence remaining are the leftovers.  And who doesn't like leftover turkey day nibblings.  And yes, it was a near perfect day.  Cold, but sunny....the aroma of turkey baking in the oven, a football game on TV, lots of loudness from both humans & animals...Cinder definitely did not like Mac (the Huskie) and she let him know by her growls that she wanted absolutely no part of him.  The little princess's kingdom had been invaded by not one but two strange dogs....and no amount of growling or barking convinced either of them to leave.

My daughter was a godsend in the kitchen, helping me with the remaining cooking, and my son & daughter-in-law and grandson & granddaughter-in-law...did the clean up. If you dislike (HATE) cleaning up the Thanksgiving dinner mess as much as I do, then you know what a blessing that was.

Family pictures were taken and I don't know what in the world I was thinking (I am blaming it on the excitement of having my entire family with me and the stress of my sweetie being in the hospital....I just have to place blame somewhere) but I guided everyone right out into the middle of the sun, in the middle of the day.  Now how smart was that???  I think I was also worried about the temperature since it was hovering around 30 degrees and no-one had their coats on.  I am disappointed in the pictures because of the brightness, but it's all my fault, dang it.  Bright spots, shadows, and squinting oh me oh my....but I love every uncooperative dog, every squint, every blink, every bright spot and shadows because this is my family, this is love.

My sweetie was released from the hospital today returning once again to the nursing home facility. He was in much better spirits and I even got a smile, a hug, and "I love you" from him today.  That makes my heart sing when I get a smile, a hug and a "I love you" a triple bonus.   For all of this I am grateful.

Hope your holiday weekend is filled with joy and left-overs....!!

"Expressed affection is the best of all methods to me when you want to light a glow in someone's heart and to feel it in your own,"  ~  Ruth Stafford Peale

PS  If you hop over to my collaborative blog Focusing On Life, I shared one of my favorite Thanksgiving recipes today.....

Sharing with

Until next time.....

Lordy, It's Friday Again...

Lordy, it's Friday again.  Thanksgiving month has arrived and Christmas is literally just around the corner.  Yesterday I was in a quandary over if or how much Halloween candy to buy, today I am thinking ahead to Thanksgiving and the fact that my whole family will be here at the house to help in giving thanks for all of our blessings.  And btw, I never left the house yesterday to buy that candy, convinced that there would be no Trick or Treaters because it rained & rained & rained...but then just about 4:00 PM the clouds began to clear, the rains stopped and with that this woman grabbed her purse & literally ran out the door to get to Walgreen's to buy candy for those I knew would be coming. And come they did, it was like the flood gates opened (in more ways than one).  Big kids, who I thought were a little too old to be going door to door with their hands out, and the cutie little ones. It happened quickly and was over quickly.  Another Halloween gone and done with.  I guess many towns postponed their trick or treating until the weekend due to bad weather.  Sure hope those towns aren't any where near me, because I have very few pieces of treats left.

Tuesday was a gorgeous day with temps in the 60's and lovely blue skies.  I really thought that by the time I came home from Tennessee all of our color would be gone, but this year we have been pleasantly surprised.  The trees are just now peaking, with many still filled with green.  Usually by Halloween the trees are bare but this year we have enjoyed longer color.  I walked around the neighborhood and captured some glorious colors....

And to top it off I found a heart shaped apple on my neighbor's tree.  I do believe I am turning this into a canvas for the wall in my family room.  I think I will do 2 other "red" finds and make 3 8"x8" square canvases.

And Wednesday before it started raining I went to the Arboretum to grab some more color with my camera, you can't have too many pics of this wonderful time of the year.

 

And quickly 5 random stuff...

• Snicker's is my favorite candy so that was my back-up bag in case I ran out of M&M's. Never had to open the back-up bag, so guess what....it's all mine now. (followed by a wicked laugh)
• I am shooting a small wedding on Saturday, my first wedding but it will be VERY small, just immediate family attending and it is 2nd marriages for the "mature couple".  Wish me luck!!
• The kids (aka the dogs) are getting along so much better now.  I think it was the week they spent so much time together alone in the house while I was in Tennessee.  The kid across the street came over 3 & 4 times a day to let them out and feed them and then my granddaughter, Bailey came Thursday, Friday and spent the night both nights.  So they were alone together for quite a bit of time.  
• I am reading a creepy book, "Help for the Haunted" by John Searles recommended by one of my blogging friends, Karen at Away for the Weekend.  Figured it was that time of year for a scary book. 
• There are 2 TV shows that I watch without fail....I am totally addicted to "The Watchlist" and "Scandal"...they leave me hanging each week, wanting more.  

And please, if you could hop on over to my collaborative blog "Focusing On Life" where I am talking about "watching your back(grounds)"....it would be much appreciated.  Hope you have a wonderful weekend and a grateful filled month ahead.  

Joining Nancy & Kim....

Until next time....

Drinking It All In

It's Friday....when I worked this was absolutely the best day of the week.  Now as I grow older, it means that another week has flown by, another week gone from my life.  Funny how your perspective about a day of the week changes as you grow older.  I love this time of the year, but it also makes me feel a little nostalgic, knowing that another year is coming to a close and not knowing what the next year will bring. Having a husband with Alzheimer's and almost losing him this past summer, has truly awakened the reality of endings and I guess that is why I am feeling somewhat nostalgic, especially this year.  I want to drink in everything, I don't want to miss anything.  I drive down the street and see a row of trees turning red and I want to stop the car and figure out a way to get thru that industrial park to take that picture, or capture that single bright red leaf, or the apples hanging on trees, or that misty fog when it rains, or the berries....oh those berries.

or berries with a bird's nest...even sweeter!!

Or finding a lady bug on a drying Queen Anne's Lace...

or the gourds with their curly stems....you know I do belong to the Pumpkin Snob Society....

or finding a field full of black eyed susans all still in bloom...

So even tho I am feeling a bit nostalgic at this time of the year....the beauty is astounding, and I am trying to drink it all in before it too shall be gone.

If you have a moment, hop on over to my collaborative blog Focusing On Life, where I am musing on the beginnings of my photographic journey.

Linking with Nancy & Kim....

                                                          
Until next time....

I Need You to Hold Something....

To all those who stopped by and left me some lovin' yesterday when my chin was drooping and the tears were dropping, thank you from the bottom of my heart.  You all were just the medicine I needed to get out of my funk. I slept well last night, but just before I settled in for the night I started reading our bookclub book for this month...."Where'd You Go Bernadette" by Maria Semple.  I haven't laughed out loud reading a book in many a moon, but this one is making me laugh and smile with every page.  It is cleverly written and easy to ready, just what I needed after the tear jerk day I had.  It's good, put it on your list of books to read.  Our original choice for this month, way back when we picked out the books for the year, was "The End of Your Life Book Club".  That one was dropped like the proverbial hot potato....too many of us in the group had experienced too much sadness as of late, and didn't need a book to drag us down anymore.  Thus the birth of "Bernadette"...good call.  

So this photo represents some of those things that I love about Fall...reading a good book, the delicious fruits of the season and the charismatic colors of the Autumn leaves.     

As I was fiddling around with shooting this photo (you know, turning it this way, then that way, then up high, then down low....you know, fiddling, you do that, don't you??)  I looked out the window and saw Kellie riding her bike.   Kellie is a sweetie, whenever I need her to hold something so I can photograph it, she is more than happy to be my hand model.  I don't know about you, but there is no way I can hold something and take a picture of it without getting out the tripod, setting up the timer...blah blah blah.  It is so much easier to just say, "Kellie, I need you to hold something."  She is my hand holding honey.  Today, Gabby wanted to get in on the action, so I was delighted to have two hand models and they even posed to let me not only take pictures of their hands, but of themselves. Both are such cuties.  

5 Random Things -

On Monday I took the train into Chicago with a friend to attend a Printers Row Event sponsored by the Chicago Tribune.  I have never been to one of their events and it was quite delightful.  Mary Schmich a Pulitzer Prize winning columnist for the Tribune interviewed Jhumpa Lahira, another Pulitzer Prize winner, on her new book "The Lowland"....you may remember her earlier book, "The Namesake" which was made into a movie. It was such a pleasure to sit and listen to a conversation with 2 Pulitzer Prize winners.  They use words in speaking  that I only read on a page.  Understand that....I ain't that smart.
 
Dairy Queen's Blizzard flavor of the month is pumpkin with real pieces of pumpkin pie crust mixed in....you need to try this, but just order a small one or maybe even the mini...they are super rich, a little pumpkin heaven in a cup.

Watched "Once Upon a Time in Wonderland" last night's premier...have to give it a 2nd shot, some of the "special effects" looked a little too fake for me and with all the high quality digital technology there is today, it certainly doesn't have to look fake.

My good friend, and fabulous chef extraordinaire, Ruth presented a few of us with mini pumpkin/cranberry loaves of bread last night.  The coffee is made and the belly awaits this taste treat as soon as I complete this post and send it into the blogging world.

My sweetie has been moved from the 2nd floor (intense skilled nursing unit) back to the 3rd floor (the Alzheimer's unit).  He continually improves, smiles lit up his face the last time I was there, which may not seem like a lot to some, but there have been times when there were none the entire visit.  A smile from him makes my day.

Linking to Nancy's Random Five and Kim's Friday Finds....

"As we awake to a new day, most of us think of the same old things. It's a new day, so think of new things. New things to do, new ways to do them, new ways to make things interesting, new things to make life better, new ways to help your dreams come true. If you wake up every new day thinking of the same old things, then you set yourself up for the same old fall." 

 

-- Unknown 

Until next time.....

 

It Would Soon Be Clearing....

Am really likin' my new camera....images seem to be sharper and more in focus.  But some of the buttons have moved and I am still trying to get used to that....sometimes it's hard teaching this old dog new tricks, but I am a tryin'.  Ofcourse what better season to get a new camera than the Fall and better yet, October...that glorious, colorful month.  Our leaves are beginning to turn quickly and now that we have had a little rain, oh wowzer it's going to be a technical 3D spectacular time to get out and about with camera in hand.

Today was no exception.  I have been so busy this week when the skies were gorgeously blue and the sun was shining like diamonds, that I didn't have much of an opportunity to get out, so today was the day.  Wouldn't you know it, as soon as I packed my bag, the winds picked up, I heard a little roll of thunder and then here comes the drops.  According to my trusty I-Phone, the weather app revealed that it soon would be clearing, so off I went for some morning fuel (a stop at Panera's for an orange scone and coffee) and then to the Arboretum.

Random 5 -

• One of my guilty pleasure TV watching is "Sleepy Hollow", and really lovin' "The Black List".  I must have a dark side that I keep buried....hee hee!
• Our new Bible study entitled "With" has me thinking more than any other study we have done for the past 4 years
• Since my friend, Bonnie shared her trunk full of Honey Crisp apples, I have been eating an apple a day....keep that Dr. away (I hope)
• The 2 dogs are becoming distant friends....Toby tried playing with Cinder in the yard, but she had no idea what he was doing.  Is she a little princess or what??
• This was the week I was to leave for that wonderful trip to the Amalfi Coast in Italy, but cancelled (postponed).  Didn't feel comfortable being so far away from my sweetie, so a trip to the Great Smoky Mtns. for a week of photography, snapping & learning is planned in its place.  Italy will still be there when the time is right.  

Loved this lichen growing all over this pine tree..!!

All you bird people, help me out...what kind of a fine feathered friend is this??

I sure would appreciate you stopping over at my collaborative blog, Focusing on Life, to check out what other beautiful things I found today.

Sharing with Nancy at A Rural Journal

Kim for Friday Finds

And Maria for Orange You Glad It's Friday.

“Autumn is the hardest season. The leaves are all falling, and they're falling like they're falling in love with the ground.”  ― Andrea Gibson

Until next time....