khmerpainting.wordpress.com
pictify.saatchigallery.com
Filed under Creativity, Landscapes I Like
“Ducks” – Paul Militaru Photography
“In Flight” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Paul Militaru Photography
funny-quotes.picphotos.net
We awoke to an easy, quiet rain this morning, just as our weather forecasters said we would. They are saying we’ll have rain off and on through Friday. It’s a very good thing I pushed myself to do leaf blowing and mulching yesterday. I spent 4 hours, filling TWO 39-gallon bags with mulch. So many more leaves have fallen since I cleaned up that it’s hard to tell where I worked!
I’ll wait until the leaves dry again and try to do at least one more good session of mulching. Meanwhile, if the weather will cooperate, I’ll concentrate on cleaning out the flower planters and filling them up to the brim with mulch for the winter. Happily, I have more and more perennials each year. The mulch helps them get through the winter here and happy to bloom again in the spring.
Later today I will try to harvest some lettuce. I’ll plan to show you pictures.
Life is full of beauty. Notice it.
Notice the bumble bee, the small child,
and the smiling faces.
Smell the rain, and feel the wind.
Live your life to the fullest potential,
and fight for your dreams.
– Ashley Smith
Filed under Arkansas, favorite poems, Greenwood, Mother Nature
If anyone asks you, blowing leaves into piles, then picking them up and putting them in the mulcher is a really good workout. I’ve only been working an hour and I’m pooped.
I have to say that this is a perfect day for leaf gathering and mulching. The temperature is 62 degrees F. with a slight breeze, and mostly overcast. If you’re just sitting out there, it’s chilly. If you’re working like a stevedore, like I am, you’re still sweating, but the breeze cools you off when you stop.
I have half a 39 gallon bag of usable mulch so far. This has been through the mulcher twice and is ready to put into the flower planters. I’ve used the leaf blower to make another humongous pile of leaves, but I’m resting and drinking lots of water before going out again. The task is endless, but I’m going to TRY to clean up the civilized part of the front yard today. Since it’s supposed to be rainy Tuesday through Friday, that’ll probably be it for the week.
I can’t begin to tell you how filthy I am. I sat down in my computer chair and there was a ‘huff’ with fine leaf powder that poofed out. I’m like that all over. Needless to say, I’ll hit the shower when my energy is sapped and work outside for the day is finished.
Filed under Acting Like a Grownup, exercise, Gardening
“Wild Fruits 1” – Paul Militaru Photography
“Wild Fruits 2” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Paul Militaru Photography
hagermanart.com
Simon Kenny’s Paintings-www.etsy.com
Filed under Creativity, Landscapes I Like
I THINK the leaves are dry enough today that I can blow them into piles and put them through our leaf mulcher. If they aren’t, I’ll have to wait until NEXT week, since the rest of the week here is supposed to be rainy.
I just finished unhooking and gathering the extension cord we’ve been using for the greenhouse. This was a job, because we had TWO 75 foot HEAVY extension cords linked together to get from the house to the greenhouse. I THINK I have the greenhouse ready for winter now. My basic book for using a greenhouse says that I can extend my growing season in the spring by starting seeds for hardy plants, such as broccoli and cauliflower, in mid February, and most other early spring plants, such as lettuces, spinach and such at the beginning of March. Until then, things will be idle out there, though I’ll get out and try to organize for seed planting soon.
Meanwhile, I’m trying to do things like final weed whacking, clean up, mulching, pruning, etc. to get ready for winter. I’ll also harvest lettuce from the raised bed, square foot garden. I have two kinds of lettuce, Bibb and Simpson, carrots and celery left.
Right now, we have so many leaves in the front yard, you can hardly tell there is any grass under there.
This is our mulcher.
We attach a 39 gallon trash bag to the bottom part (orange). We dump the leaves in the top and run the mulcher to put the mulched leaves into the bag. Then I run the bag full again, because the first time doesn’t get nearly as small as I would like. Then the bags go into the garage until I have the flower planters cleaned out, and then I’ll fill them up with the mulch we’ve made.
This time of the year, it’s all I can do to try to get everything outside done, so I’m not doing yoga or my elliptical trainer until things are under control.
I hope the weather where you are is cooperating with your plans today.
Filed under Arkansas, Gardening, Greenwood, Mother Nature, Square Foot Gardening - Raised Beds
“I’m thankful for the USA, family and summer.” — Ava, age 9
Source: “Kids respond: What are you thankful for?” by Christina Holt
Filed under holidays
blog.orangecarton.com
joedonaghy65.blogspot.com
Filed under Creativity, Landscapes I Like
new-hdwallpaperz.blogspot.com
“I’m thankful for my mommy, my daddy, my sister, my brothers and horses.” — Emily, age 9
Source: “Kids respond: What are you thankful for?” by Christina Holt
Filed under holidays
The movie is called, “Megan Leavey.”
“The true life story of Megan Leavey, a young Marine corporal whose unique discipline and bond with a military combat dog saved many lives during her deployment in Iraq.”
It stars Kate Mara.
We watched it last night. It’s a movie well worth seeing, based on a true story. Don’t watch without a kleenex or two.
Filed under Book - Movie - TV Reviews
“Red Tree in Fall” – Paul Militaru Photography
I WISH our trees looked like this. We had a lot of rain this spring and summer compared to what we normally have followed by an entire month of August with not one drop of rain. This caused the trees, in survival mode, to shed their leaves early.
We do have a lot of leaves in the yard now, though, and I’m HOPING that they are dry enough that I can use the leaf blower to pile them up and then run them through the shredder this afternoon. It’s on 44 degrees out there now, but it’s supposed to get to high 5o’s or low 60’s this afternoon. It would be good if I could clean up the yard, making good leaf mulch for my flower planters in the process.
It seems like the yard work is neverending around here. I still need to do more weed whacking, plus prune and clean up the flower planters. I need to harvest the lettuce in the garden, too.
Since my to-do list is much longer than my energy supply, I’ll choose one thing to try to accomplish outside and see how it goes.
I hope the weather is nice where you are and that you’re planning something fun for the day.
Filed under Mother Nature, Paul Militaru Photography
stylishhdwallpapers.com
“I’m most thankful for my mom and dad… What? Am I missing somebody? Oh yeah, I guess my sister, too.” — Ella, age 8
Source: “Kids respond: What are you thankful for?” by Christina Holt
Filed under holidays
I have two hangers together here,
And two more here –
and one on the door to my closet.
I gathered a large plastic tub full of jewelry for donation or jewelry making. I have some fine tuning yet to do, but I free up a lot of space, can actually SEE and get to the pieces I might wear. I’ll give it 6 months and then purge what I haven’t worn between now and then.
Filed under Organizing/DeCluttering
mrkate.com
This is me – except for her youth, beauty, and lack of clothes…
I’ve been up in our master bathroom trying to organize my jewelry. I have FOUR nice wall-mounted jewelry holders.
I brought in a purse from my art room that was filled with jewelry and turned it upside-down on the step beside the tub. I reasoned that one holder would hold ‘silver’ jewelry, one ‘gold,’ one primarily for holiday stuff, and one miscellaneous. (The quotes around silver and gold are because I mainly wear costume jewelry.) I have a few REAL pieces; but I decided long ago that the more something cost, the more nervous I was wearing it. I also had a stroke if a stone were lost, or I actually LOST the piece. I decided that the few really valuable pieces I had would mainly be put away for safe keeping. The jewelry that is in-between in value I wear, but more carefully.
I stopped in the middle of trying to add the jewelry from the purse to the holders, because the holders were getting full. I KNEW I needed to purge, putting the pieces that were still good in the donation pile. The ones that have stones missing will be put in the “if I ever get serious about trying to make jewelry’ pile.
I’m down here typing this because, though I’m making progress, I feel pretty overwhelmed. I have a lot of jewelry I really like – more than one woman should have, I suspect. (think Imelda Marcos with shoes). I’m trying to become more and more ruthless, thinking when it was I last wore something. If I haven’t worn it in a LONG time, it gets purged.
This was becoming agonizing, so I decided to take a break. I’ll gather up all my RUTHLESS motivation and go up and purge a bunch more stuff. Hopefully, at the end of it, I’ll not only be able to hang everything up, I’ll have some room left to buy more stuff!
Filed under Challenges, Changes, Organizing/DeCluttering
This is like the two jewelry holders I ordered recently from JewelryHoldersForYou on Etsy. Mine are a nice cherry wood finish.
I’m going to go up today and see what sense I can make of my completely unorganized jewelry. If I get enough accomplished, I’ll take some pics and show you.
Yesterday I didn’t feel well. I slept all day long, rousing only to eat or go to the bathroom, moving from my recliner to the couch and back again. I then slept all night long, awaking feeling much, much better!
I had called and told my Lunch Bunch friends that we wouldn’t be there today. I called them again this morning and said we WOULD! We had a good time, as always, catching up on what was going on with the three of us. We did our errands on the way home and are now in for the rest of the day.
It’s a much nicer day than we’ve had lately. We’re supposed to get to a high of 61 degrees F. and the sun is shining brightly. My spirits soared when I saw such a beautiful day. Amber did her ‘run like a mad thing’ act when we went out earlier. She LOVES the cooler weather.
So – I’m up to the master bath to start trying to bring some kind of order to my jewelry.
I hope you have something fun to do with your afternoon, too.
Filed under Challenges, Changes, Organizing/DeCluttering
“Arms” -www.steffrocknak.net
collectorsofwoodart.org
Filed under Creativity, When Wood Comes Alive
“Blue Purple Bells” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Paul Militaru Photography
“I’m thankful for my family and Thanksgiving feasts.” — Peyton, age 5
Source: “Kids respond: What are you thankful for?” by Christina Holt
Filed under holidays
credit for photo unknown
This photo of the Greenwood Memorial Park in the center of our square was taken in 2013, but the park looks much like this today, Veterans Day 2017. The main thing that is different is a very nice custom wrought iron fence with gates that go around three sides of the perimeter of the park.
Stones like this line the park and the walkways honoring many men and women of Greenwood who served their country. It’s an awe-inspiring sight. I wanted to get one for my husband, who served in the USMC from 1965-1969. He is classified as a Vietnam veteran, though he never had to fight there. He was offshore in all the hot spots during the four years, most notably Cuba during the Bay of Pigs and Vietnam, but never had to actually be in combat. That fact makes him think that he shouldn’t be honored. I respectfully disagree.
I’m not sure if it’s volunteers or the employees of the park department who make time to put out all the flags for days like this. I think it’s wonderful, and it makes me choke up to see it each year.
I hope that the families of all the men and women who served, and are currently serving, know how much their sacrifice means to all who love our country. There is no way to ever thank you enough.
Filed under holidays
APA-SickChild
I’m feeling puny today, so I’ll share something with you later. Hope you have a good day.
Filed under Challenges
Filed under Creativity, Embroidery/Sewing Art
creativeartworksblog 