A Sunny Lazy Sunday

The weather hasn't been especially cooperative since Denny and I arrived in Ohio in April. As a matter of fact, it's been better suited for ducks.

At times, we felt adrift in a sea of mud, wondering if we were ever going to see the light of day.


Day after day passed by and we started to feel very housebound.


But with the arrival of the Memorial Day weekend also came the end of the rain.


The ground has started to dry out and we were able plant all the tomatoes in Dad's garden.


And if we can keep the various reptiles...


...and mammals out of the garden...


...we might end up with a harvest like this.


Denny and I want to thank all those who have served our country so valiantly, making it possible for us to travel freely wherever we wish to go. Have a great Memorial Day (observed) weekend, everyone.

This and That

The week has flown by here and we've finally gotten the garden planted. Last week's rains tapered off finally, so Denny was able to get the tomatoes planted before the next series of storms rolled in. The grass was so high last week that Denny had to raise the settings on the lawn tractor for me to cut the grass and we went back three days later to do it again. I know that in a few weeks we'll be wishing for the rain and cooler temperatures to return, but for now I'm ready for summer.

Denny and I have decided to try to clear out the garages at both his dad's house and my mother's house; how ambitious is that? We have our work cut out for us, to be sure.

I met with a periodontist this week and discovered I'll need gum surgery and bone grafts to repair bone loss from periodontal disease. Money is going to flow from our pockets while we're in Ohio this summer it seems. I seriously considered having all the teeth yanked and having dentures made, but I'm just not emotionally ready for something like that. Does anyone know of a good work at home business or have the inside track to winning lottery numbers? ;-)

My good friend Vicki's sister received the gift of a heart yesterday. Diane came through the transplant surgery okay and is doing well so far. We are grateful for that. A family in Toledo made the difficult decision to donate their loved one's organs and it helped save a life. Knowing someone who has benefited from an organ donation makes me very happy that I'm signed up to be an organ donor.

Strawberries should be ready to pick by the end of the first week of June--I better start walking more now to make up for all the strawberries with whipped cream I'll be eating for as long as the picking season lasts. Yum.

Have a great Memorial Day weekend, y'all.

A Late Lazy Sunday

This has not been a typical weekend for Denny and I. Normally we just veg out and leave the stores and the roadways to all those working folks who have to do their shopping on weekends. But we've been out and about with Don and Vicki, going out for pizza, hitting the local flea market and just spending the afternoons bs-ing. Thus I am way late on my Lazy Sunday pix.

Truly random, some old and some new, and not up to snuff because Desperate Housewives is on. ;-)


A family trip to the Fairfield resort in Arkansas was a treat. We played some golf, rented a pontoon boat for a day on the lake and wandered the area on foot with the boys. This natural bridge was an unexpected treat.


Fall color at Brown County State Park in Indiana. A lovely park with little Nashville close by for shopping if you get tired of all that nature.


Stone Mountain Park is a fabulous place to take your kids; there's history, a water park, a mountain to climb and the greatest laser show you'd ever want to see. Take a picnic dinner and get a spot on the lawn early for the light show.


A parasailer above the Gulf of Mexico at Gulf Shores, Alabama. I wish I had the nerve to try it, but I sure love to watch them in the meantime.


White water at Snoqualmie Falls in Washington. A truly beautiful area, an impressive waterfall and a great place to visit.


This is our "back yard" here in Wilmington. As you can see, Patches enjoys exploring our little patch of woods.


I'm still trying to figure out what these little pointed things are that are growing out of the tree stump. All sorts of evil thoughts run through my head though.


When I would look through the neighbor's trees at sunset back in our old neighborhood, this view always made me think of pictures I had seen of the African veldt. A fanciful thought, but I never tired of the sunsets seen through those trees.

Remiss

Busy, busy. Yesterday was spent in Cincinnati, trying to cut the near-foot long grass at the in-law's place. We were going to plant the tomatoes, but after attempting to dig a hole for the first one and coming up with a spadeful of slop, Denny decided we'd have to wait on that. Cincinnati had had two inches of rain the day before and more is predicted over the weekend. We did get the electrified horse fence partially installed (I'm sure the neighbors are now wondering when the horse will arrive) although we need some additional pieces-parts (what WAS that commercial that said something about pieces-parts so many years ago?) before we'll be ready to fend off the deer. Denny has started some lettuce seed so things are coming together for the garden.

Why I am remiss? We had the big 97th birthday celebration for Denny's dad yesterday; Denny's sister Connie made and brought over a huge meal for eight of us which was absolutely delicious. What with the hugs and catching up with cousins and an aunt, I totally forgot the camera which was down in the truck. So no birthday pix, no family pix, nada. Dumb. Good memories, though.

A nice surprise when we arrived back at the campground was seeing Don, Vicki, Burt and Sandy next door gathered around a campfire. I grabbed the cat for a quick walk while Denny meandered over to chat. Don gave me an amaretto sour, which was very tasty, and we hung out for an hour or so until the long, long day started catching up to us (we had left at 9AM and gotten home at 9:30PM). Sleep came easily last night, for sure. It was a good day.