November sunset

That the sky is brighter than the earth means little unless the earth itself is appreciated and enjoyed.
(Helen Keller)

The last five days of wonderful warm weather have been simply awesome. I've managed to get most of my procrastinated chores done and also spent some time just enjoying the sunshine. Today, I was outside putting up Christmas lights when a high, dark cloud cover arrived just before sunset. Once the sun set the clouds lit up in shades of orange, pink and purple, it was a beautiful sight. I know living in a town or city has some advantages but I would never want to miss my rural MN sunsets.
The first photo is facing west, the second photo is facing southwest and the third is facing south. I've been asked several times if I "photoshop" any of my pictures. The answer is NO, I'm not that computer literate :-) What the camera captures is what you see and tonight's sunset really was that pretty.

A cradle song. . .

Golden slumbers kiss your eyes,
Smiles awake you when you rise.
Sleep, pretty wantons, do not cry.
And I will sing a lullaby:
Rock them, rock them, lullaby.
(Thomas Dekker)





Alexis didn't feel well yesterday so she spent the day with me rather than going to daycare. She played "babies" all day with a cradle and rocking chair made 20 plus years ago by her Grandpa Steve for her cousin Jayme. Grandpa, it might be time to dust off those woodworking tools. . .






The dolls were well fed, rocked to sleep, taken to the window to enjoy the birds and changed quite frequently. All skills showing she is ready to help with Diego or Orlando :-)

huge, yellow moon. . .

Autumn ends the harvest
And breathes old thanks-filled tunes.
A fruitful, swollen, storing time,
It hangs huge, yellow moons.
(Mike Logan)












These past two nights we have been blessed with a beautiful full moon. On Sunday it appeared yellow/orange as it rose but on Saturday it was a cool white. I chose this poem because of the "yellow moon" line but also because we are thankful that most of our farmer friends have their crops out and are finishing the plowing for the year. The landscape has returned to flat, black fields.




What beautiful evenings and absolutely gorgeous weather this weekend had compared to our cold temps last week. I spent both afternoons outside and with the sun setting at 5 pm I watched the full moon rise (the sunset wasn't bad either). With this week of "indian summer" predicted, I'll get my fish out...my windows washed and maybe start hanging the garden christmas lights (don't worry, I won't turn them on until after Thanksgiving).





Take time to watch the sun set and the moon rise...you won't regret it!

Cool drink of water. . .

The ice was here,
the ice was there,
The ice was all around:
It cracked and growled, and roared and howled,
Like noises in a swound!
(Samuel Taylor Coleridge)




You know it is cold when moving water freezes! With a temperature of 10 degrees this morning there is ice on the pond and ice on the fountain. While it may be a pretty sight to see it is not good news for me as I still have to get my fish out for the winter. The weather service is predicting a warmup next week so hopefully all this ice melts so I can get them in and not have to resort to a heater.




The frozen pond surface didn't bother this woodpecker he just "pecked" until he got a drink.

Trick or Treat

Witches, ghosts, and goblins.
Stealing down the street,
Knock on every door way,
Trick or treat!

When your door is opened,
This is what you meet,
Scary creatures shouting,
Trick or treat!
(author unknown)



There were no scary creatures at my door tonight just a very handsome cowboy who was quite handy with a camera phone and one beautiful little fairy princess who can light up any room with her smile.

Happy Halloween everyone!

"Special". . .

"Special is a word that is used to describe something one-of-a-kind like a hug
or a sunrise
or a person who spreads love
with a smile or kind gesture.
"Special" describes people who act from the heart and keep in mind the hearts of others.
"Special" applies to something that is admired and precious and which can never be replaced.


"Special" is the word that best describes you.
(Teri Fernandez)


Jeff was working & hunting so I took a road trip and had a great weekend with my wonderful & special daughter, Jayme. We talked & shopped till we dropped, we talked & talked some more, we got up early and watched the sunrise over Lake Superior (while talking the whole time) and spent some quality time over meals with Scott (who didn't hardly get a word in) while we talked some more. I'm thankful that she is not only my daughter but my friend.

I think there is something in my eye. . .

Friends care, Friends share
We need friends Everywhere!

Friend, can you check
if something is in my eye?
















Yes, I got it!
I see it falling out. . .













"Thank You"

What are Friends for!

Your smile for the day :-)

The Magic of Autumn

I revel when Autumn's palette
Appears upon the scene,
With hues of golden splendor
That are strewn with red and green!









The sunrise casts its shadows,
So picturesque and still,
Across the hills and valleys
To share Fall's morning chill!





While the quiet, peaceful countryside
Lay slumbering through it all,
O'er night, the Master Painter
Changed Summer into Fall!

No season is more tranquil,
More soothing to our souls,
Than the long-awaited Autumn
With the magic it unfolds!
(Mary Chevalier)



It is a beautiful, sunny fall day and I looked out the window to see Ruger and Gabi napping in the sunshine. They dragged their bed outside but I guess the grass was more comfortable after all :-) As long as I was outside with the camera, I discovered ice on a frozen pond plant that had a beauty of its own. The "fall trees" are from our Oct. trip to Itasca and the sunrise was taken Oct. 12th (the morning of our first snowfall).

Happy Birthday Grandpa Steve. . .

I like to walk with Grandpa,
His steps are short like mine.
He doesn't say "Now Hurry Up,"
He always takes his time.





I like to walk with Grandpa,
His eyes see things like mine do -
Wee pebbles bright, a funny cloud,
Half hidden drops of dew.










Most people have to hurry,
They don't stop and see.
I'm glad that God made Grandpa,
Unrushed, and young like me.
(Thena Smith)

Happy Birthday one day early. . .

from Benjamin, Alexis
and your sister, Marsh

Anticipation. . .

One of the most delightful things about a garden
is the anticipation it provides.
(Author unknown)




Today, I planted 233 bulbs. . .oh the anticipation those will provide as I wait for spring to finally arrive after a long MN winter.
It may be a little late to plant them but it took me this long to clean up the garden and find spots to put them in. Thank goodness for photos I took in April/May so I knew where my "bare spots" were. These individual shots are also from last spring.

I planted tulips, hyancinths and allium and hopefully I will see results next April. In the lyrics of Carly Simon . . .
"Anticipation, Anticipation"

The Woodlands. . .

This quote was on an interpetive sign on a hiking path in Lake Carlos State Park and the first sentence reminded me of the old saying "you can't see the forest for the trees. . ."

I don't know what it is about the woods but I love walking in them, driving through them and most of all camping in them. Maybe it is because I grew up and still live on flat farm land that I appreciate their sights, sounds and smells so much.Though those farms had their "groves" which seemed like the "big woods" to a child. Remember those forts and playhouses in the grove?
With a keen eye you can see so much more than trees. . .

An itch. . .

I have an itchy ear.
And it gets itchyear and itchyear
Itch year.
(Andrew Chaikin)








Lots of birds bathe on the rock and sometimes I am able to capture them in their most unflattering moments. This morning it was a junco having a good scratch and the wet (and scary) looking sparrow was earlier this summer.

Yikes, don't you wish the garden hadn't frozen out because you never know what you will see in "the garden of life". Smiles . . .

Peaceful evening. . .

There are two ways of spreading light:
to be the candle
or the mirror that reflects it.
(Edith Wharton)






It is a beautiful evening and I just witnessed a gorgeous sunset. One thing about this time of year is that we have beautiful sunsets and sunrises. If it is the colder air or dust from harvest I don't know but I am thankful for them either way.

I have been working on cleaning up the garden the last few days and one little visitor that is quite bold and not at all shy about coming to the feeders or water with me very close by is the Nuthatch. I'd say he's a "mirror".

Seasons. . .

I'm glad I live
Where seasons change -
I like my world
To rearrange.
(author unknown)







The juncos came back to my garden about 10 days ago. I should have known we would have an early snow. My dad, a lifelong farmer, was full of little "weather wisdoms". He always called the juncos "little snowbirds" because they arrived when it was going to snow and left in the spring when the snow was done for the year. For that reason they always bring me sweet memories of him.

On Wednesday afternoon the first snow arrived in the form of little ice pellets. It looked like someone had cut up styrofoam over the garden. All of yesterday's snow is history but most of the plants froze out. There is a time for everything and I am ready to start the cleanup before it gets too cold out there.

It covered the flowers. . .

The snow fell gently all the night.
It made a blanket soft and white.
It covered houses, flowers and ground
But did not make a single sound
(author unknown)

What a difference a couple days makes - we woke up to 22 degrees and snow.

If there were such a thing as "bird candy" I would say it is peanuts. Within minutes of filling the feeder the bluejays are there and they keep coming back until they are gone.

"It doesn't taste like cotton candy to me"
Ruger

Come on - SMILE - this won't last. . .

It had to happen sooner or later. . .

Leaves in the autumn came tumbling down,
Scarlet and yellow, russet and brown,
Leaves in the garden were swept in a heap,
Trees were undressing ready for sleep.
(author unknown)

It's October, most of the trees in the grove have lost their leaves and most of the perennials have gone to seed and died back but those annuals just kept blooming and blooming. I'm afraid today was the last day - tomorrow's forecast calls for snow showers with a high of 36 degrees and a low of 25 degrees so the cleanup begins. I started cleaning up the coneflowers today but those birds and blooms kept distracting me so I finally went in to get the camera, sat in a patio chair and enjoyed the sights and sounds around me.

After all. . .
"Even if something is left undone,
Everyone must take time to sit still
and watch the leaves turn."
(Elizabeth Lawrence)

Sigh. . .

"there's to be seen a glorious 20-mile circle of some 50 lakes scattered among fields and pastures, like sequins fallen on an old paisley shawl."
(Sinclair Lewis)


Sigh. . .we had a wonderful weekend camping for the last time this year. The forecast was for a beautiful (albeit windy weekend) and we decided to get one more weekend away before winterizing the camper. This time our destination was Lake Carlos State Park in central MN where we hiked in a beautiful forest (photo 2 - can't you just hear those leaves crunching beneath our feet) and camped within yards of the lake (photo 3 sunset viewed from our campsite).

We spent all day Saturday cycling lake country. Photo 1 is the view from Inspiration Peak near Urbank. The beautiful red leaves of the maples are gone but a few golden birch leaves remain as well as the deep burgundy, reds and browns of the oak forest. Oh those changing leaves...can't they stay a little longer?. . .Sigh