Ice, Baby, Ice

 Ice in a glass of Diet Pepsi is good.  Ice in a blender when making a smoothie is good.  I don't drink alcohol but I hear that certain drinks like ice.  I don't drink coffee either but I guess ice coffee is good.  I don't do ice tea either but the name says it all.  Ice, baby, ice....ice on the deck is not good. Ice on the steps is not good. Ice in the grass when the dog needs to pee is super not good.

An ice storm came through last night and today the trees are shimmering ice sculptures.

Each branch covered completely.

A beauty all it's own.

It's a cold day in bird land.

These little icesicles remind me of something...

Tears..they remind me of tears that are shed when a person is really and truly over the cold harshness of a long winter....speaking for a friend!  Ice, baby, ice.

Having A Melt Down

 This time of year can bring the brutal cold, tons of snow, and then some unseasonal warm-ups.  It's all the ups and downs of Ohio winter that I've blogged about for years. Maybe it's repetitive but it's my life so on the blog it goes.   We had some 50de temps in the past week that melted a lot of the snow we had and that had problems all it's own.  Flooding with some roads closed. We didn't have any problems thankfully but the yard is a soggy mess.

Hello raised beds! We'll be digging in you in a couple of months. It was just nice to see them again.

This side of the yard always melts off first. Walking the property is messy business.

Speaking of business..Annabelle is finding more spots to do her business! She's limping around today so I'm not sure if she hurt her back paw while exploring or maybe got something in her paw pad. I've soaked her feet and applied antibiotic ointment on the sore one. We'll see how it goes before I call the Vet. She really does enjoy the yard!

Just when we were enjoying the melt down, it snowed and iced again. You can't really tell from this pic but that's a Robin.  It was all alone and for a minute I thought it's feet were stuck to the ice! Nope, just looking for some water to enjoy.  Today was almost 50de and again we had a melt down.  I should have gotten a pic of all the Robins in the soggy area of the yard taking baths in the cold water! Must have felt good to them!  I believe we're in for another snow event on Thursday but today was sunny, warmish and tomorrow and Tuesday will be almost 60! Yippee!  Yesterday was pretty chilly though and Jack made his wonderful spicey tortellini soup. Yum! We hadn't had it in a while and it really hit the spot on a chilly evening.

Pair it up with my homemade bread and it's a winner, winner, yummy dinner!

It's been a quiet weekend and not a whole lot to blog about.  We did receive these in the mail:

The freebies from the government. We got 2 and hopefully will never need them. Did you all get some? We still wear masks at stores and church but we're only among a few who are wearing them.  With numbers going down again I hope it will be a good spring and summer for gathering . Speaking of gathering...the owls have been heard morning and night and when I was closing the shutters in the dining room the other day I saw 2 of  them fly into the trees. I grabbed my camera and clicked a quick pic before they took off:

This one turned just as I was taking the shot. Hello cutie!

This one wasn't as cooperative...how rude! Well, maybe it was me that was rude since I didn't ask permission to shoot them! So that's my weekend.  Monday tomorrow and since retirement I always say that my Mondays don't ruin my Sundays anymore!

The sun was setting as I took this shot today. The best part was it was after 6pm and still light out! Woohoo! Night all.  I hope melt downs are in our our futures soon!

A Day Late/A Dollar Short

 Happy belated Valentine's Day! I hope everyone had a fun, love filled day.  Maybe it included some flowers? Some gifts? Some chocolate? A dinner out? A dinner in?  However you shake it I guess it's nice to have a day to remember to send out love and I know that Hallmark appreciates it!  It was a  nice day here at the Pines even though Jack had to work and Annabelle had to go to the Vet for her checkup.  We've had her a month.  She is doing well with house training or maybe it's YaYa training! One of us is very good at going outside to get her business done.  One of her big deals was getting up and down stairs.  We only have 2 stairs that go off the deck but it took her a bit to figure out how to get up and just today we...I mean she..figured out how to get down them.  So you can guess that I'm a day late with Valentine greetings but I'm also a few hundred dollars short that I left with the Vet! I figured Annabelle was good to go since the shelter had done all the vaccines and such.  Ha! Silly me!  She needed a flu vaccine.  What? Yeppers, a flu vaccine.  And her heartworm shot.  And her flea and tick pill.  And the office call of course.  I think she was a bit sore from the shots and was up and down all night.  So not only am I...and Jack...a day late, a dollar short...we are also a bit sleep deprived!  However, Jack got me a beautiful bouquet of roses yesterday and our son, Jack, and my daughter-in-law, Evelyn and her cousin Mandy came for dinner last night.  No food pics to show but it was all delish.  It was fun to spend some time with them.  My kids were great as littles but they are even more fun as adults. 

Jackie, Evelyn, and Mandy.   It was a nice sunny day and fun evening.  They also brought a bouquet of flowers so I have fresh flowers in a few rooms and I love it! It reminds me that Spring is on  it's way. Tomorrow and Thursday we will have 50de temps! Yeah!  It will melt the snow, cause some flooding, make lots of mud, but I don't care because it's going to be sunny and warm..ish!  Love to all!

Snowmageddon

 It seems like I haven't blogged for a while but it's only been a week...just seems longer for some reason. Well, we did get hit by storm "Landon".   Or "snowmageddon" as it's being called around here. Jack measured the snowfall in the front of the house...10in...in the back of the house it measured 15!  All I know is it seemed like it was never going to stop. I know I shoveled a ton of snow to keep the paths open for Annabelle.  Word to the wise..wiser than me anyway...don't get a new dog who is being potty trained in the Winter. Just sayin.   When the snow finally did stop the sun came out and it seemed like the world was slowly waking up.  Of course everything was cancelled from Thursday to Saturday.  We came out good with no power outages here at the Pines and it was warm and comfy indoors.  Now it just has to melt and from the piles of snow out there it may be June before that happens!

Welcome to our front sidewalk...enter at your own risk!

Our kind neighbor did come and plow our driveway...thank goodness!  I made some special cookies for him to say thanks since he didn't let us pay him.  

Bird bathing is closed for the season.  Speaking of birds...I took a few pics of our feathered friends as they came and dined at the Pines.  These were taken from inside so pardon the bad focus.

I made sure the feeder was full.  It's first come first serve around here.

Some preferred a table for one under the gazebo!

A few preferred to snack on my herb plants under my kitchen window.

Does this outfit make me look fat?

Looks like he has on red earmuffs! As cold as it was that would be a good idea!

Go Jack, Go.

Annabelle is doing really good with her potty training.  She has a bit of anxiety and we hope it will get better as time goes on.  She just wants to be near us at all times! But she's been a sweetie and we love her.

Thanks for stopping by.  You're welcome to visit anytime. This snow shovel has your name on it!

I'll even share some of my fresh baked...this morning...cookies! Sending out the love and the hope that Winter will calm it's self down from here on out!

Entering February Holding Our Breath!

 I always say that February is the shortest month with the worst weather. After coming through a  very mild December and then a frigid, snowy January I was hoping to slide into February quietly and maybe a bit warmer.  I got my wish as Mother Nature handed us a balmy, sunny, almost 50de. day to enjoy.  Also to get ourselves prepared for a bit of a snowstorm named "Landon".  That Mother Nature is such a crabby appleton at times.  She's holding her cards close to her chest and letting us and Al Roker guess what's really going to hit the East coast and us here in Ohio.  So prepare we did. The wood stove is humming and wood is sitting waiting for it's turn to burn. Food is stocked and water too.  I bought a new book and magazine to read on Thursday if all is shut down.  I'm sure I'll be outside clearing the paths for Annabelle to do her business.  Jack cancelled his office also.  Annabelle is suppose to have her first Vet visit on Thursday but we'll just have to wait and see what happens.  So holding our breath and hoping the groundhog comes up tomorrow with a good report for Spring.  Somehow I imagine Spring will arrive as it always does with a few surprises of it's own.  Oh well, Happy February everyone. To celebrate the warm day today I did grill outside..

Mmmm...the steaks were really good! Throw in some fluffy baked potatoes and Jack's favorite veggie...Lima Beans (not my fav for sure!) and call it dinner!  I will bake some bread tomorrow and probably some cookies to get us threw these crazy days!  So for now we'll hold our breath and hope for the best! Night all!

What A Flake

 I often joke that Mother Nature and I clash whenever I have an event planned. I won't call having friends over for a fun lunch an "event" but I did make a lot of food and was so looking forward to enjoying a Sunday afternoon with friends.  The winter weather has hit our area and we had our first really measurable snowfall last week. But as we gathered wood in on Saturday and prepared for more snow on Sunday we didn't realize it was going to be as bad as it got yesterday.  Snow was falling quickly and accumulating fast. First reports said it would be that way in the morning but by noon it would be done.  Nope, nope and nope. Church was cancelled as roads were slick. And the flakes kept coming.  And the weather folks moved the end up to late afternoon.  Canceling our lunch with friends was the safe thing to do as we live out in the country and roads in our area weren't getting plowed and in town it was just as bad.  I'm a plan ahead gal and had all my food prepared.  So Jack and I had a nice lunch and I called my son Phil and said when roads are safe come and get it!  Last night Phil came over with his girls and happily took home the bounty!  The kids got to play with Annabelle and I was happy no food would be wasted.  A win-win I guess!  Here's a few pics of our crazy weekend.

Chicken soulvaki...fancy shish kabobs!

Beef soulvaki...again, just fancy shish kabobs.  They were yummy! 

Some cheesy braided bread. It's an easy and pretty bread to make that's filled with swiss & cheddar cheese and Italian spices. I also baste with butter when it comes out of the oven and lightly sprinkle some garlic salt on top.  It's one of my favorite things to make.  I also made Greek style potatoes, fresh green beans and was going to make a Greek salad but didn't make that after cancelling.  Oh, we had a beautiful apple pie to be served warm with icecream.  Phil and kids enjoyed taking the pie home too. I did save a piece for Jack's lunch today.  Yes the weather made us "flake" out but nothing was wasted and it was a beautiful looking day outside with the snow softly falling.  When it was done we headed outside to clear the driveway.  Why is it that snow blowing machines always break down when needed most?  Maybe it's just us and Mother Nature playing tricks.  So shovel we did. We worked off any calories from lunch!  As soon as we hit the end of the drive a sweet neighbor stopped by and said he was going to plow us out and felt bad we had already shoveled.  He asked if he could do it if we get snow again and he didn't want paid to do it.  He wants his kids to learn to do service for people. What a good Dad!  What a nice neighbor.  Oh, we are going to get a battery powered snow blower with the hope it's more reliable.  

Annabelle doesn't mind the weather at all.  All snug in her coat and boots she's stylin'!  She's been doing really good.  Her biggest issue is not being potty trained.  Is potty trained the right term or "house broke"?  What ever.  I do believe she's got the idea now.  At first it took her a long time to do her business but she's not stupid and frankly it's cold out also so she's finally going pretty quick.  After only one week I think that's a good thing.  She's very curious and it makes me mad to think what a fun pup she would have been instead of being used as a baby machine.  She still can't go up the stairs but she's trying hard to learn and I know soon there will be no barriers to what she can do.  She went with me to Home Depot and seemed to enjoy that outing.  I'm trying to give her lots of new experiences and also it helps me know what will or will not work in training her.  

Last week I introduced her to the Creepy Woods.  Again, she was enjoying sniffing around every nook and cranny.  Being  a small dog I did carry her up and then let her down to roam.  

She was happy to trek home following in my footsteps.  More snow is heading our way this morning. By noon we will be back in a heavy snowfall event and Mother Nature can do what she wants.  I'll bring in more wood before then and get prepared for the deep freeze also heading our way.  This last week in January is looking pretty cold and snowy.  Makes April so appealing!  My last thought for this day is about my nephew, Jonathan. (My sister's son).  He passed away 18 years ago today, Jan, 24th.  He has been gone as long as he had lived. Hard to believe even now.  He's missed and loved by his family.  My sister has decided to start blogging again.  Her blog is on my side bar or if you'd like to visit her site the link is:https://hopeseternal.blogspot.com/ .  Have a safe and warm week everyone!

Forever Families

 This weekend we're having friends over after church to share a meal and hopefully lots of laughs and enjoyment.  I like feeding people and I always hope they enjoy the meal and the time spent together.  When I was planning what to serve I decided on souvlaki.  Yes it's Greek. It's shish kabobs actually with the meat marinaded in lemon, oil, oregano, and other spices. I've  made it before and it's pretty good. So I went to my cookbook to make my list of ingredients.  This is where food and family meet.  Some years ago my brother, Phil, gave Mom a cookbook he found in a bookstore. 

He thought Mom would enjoy this book because she grew up in Greek Town Chicago.  After Christmas Mom sat down and went through the book and was enjoying the stories inside. She came to a page that featured a women's organization.  

As she looked at the faces she was surprised, maybe a bit startled to see her Mother in that group.

I'm sorry this is blurry but it's the best that I could get from the photograph.  Mom's mother died when my Mom was 10.  So to see her face in a cookbook randomly picked out by my brother who didn't know all that was inside was a big surprise.  Mom was in her eighties when she received this gift and then to suddenly be brought back to that 10yr old who lost a dear mother was really a crazy thing to happen. But a wonderfully happy thing also. I found the cookbook on Amazon and bought it and really love it.  When Mom passed away at age 94 in 2020 she was at home and was failing quickly but she reached out her arms and said: "Momma, Momma!"  and then passed away.  It's my hope that her Mom came to get her at that moment and now they are together with her Dad, brothers, my Dad and my brother and many others who  have passed away.  I don't know what your beliefs are but mine are filled with hope that this is true.  My Grandmother's name was Sophia.  When my son and his wife had their last child, a daughter, they named her Sophia without remembering that was this child's Great Great Grandmother's name.  Families are forever.....love yours daily and don't forget to tell them.

Blame It On Betty

 Over the years I've blogged about my family.  Maybe even bragged? Ha! However, I have blogged about the humans and the pets in our household.  Over the years we've had some wonderful dogs.  Ferris the wonder dog, Eddy the best boxer ever, Chubbs the sweetest, kindest senior rescue that stole our hearts. Arnold..aka Arnie, the last senior that we rescued who went to the rainbow bridge last year.  We have had our failures, if you want to call them that.  By failure I mean they were awesome dogs but not for our family.  Lucy was so fabulous and I'm happy she's in the best family situation and that they send me photos and update often.  We had one puppy mill mom that was the saddest thing and opened my eyes to what happens to the parents of the puppies that folks buy in the pet stores or from the Amish.  After saying good-bye to Arnie we, or I should say me, stated we were done with pets.  My kids didn't believe it and frankly I did keep a watch out on Petfinder for any dogs that looked like a good fit.  So in the spirit of dear Betty White I found a dog at a local humane society shelter and applied.  Lo and behold I got a call on Thursday last week that Annabelle was available.  I saw her photo and bio but we went to check her out and make sure this was a winner for us.  She's a puppy mill Mom of 7 years.  However, she is very social unlike most puppy mill dogs.  She came right up to us and was very friendly even though just a tad bit shy. Once she was around us for a few minutes, all was good.  Knowing she wasn't even potty trained was my hesitation but I've trained dogs before so I'm sure hoping she will fall into routine soon.  She just got spayed on Wednesday and we took her home Friday. She did great with outdoor potty until today.  I walked her a bit much and I feel bad that her feet are tender.  I forget that those dogs are in a kennel and not exercised.  But she's a sweetie and hopefully I'll have more blog posts featuring her.  Meet Annabelle:

She likes TV.  My kind of gal.

Begging me to take her in the house! She was so done with walking!  The potty issue is stressful but we have lots of paper towels and cleaner.  Now I just need lots of patience to teach an older dog a new trick. She's not treat motivated either.  Puppy mill dogs don't get that either.  We hope to get her over that!  Darn you Betty White! I was just going to donate to the shelter on your 100th birthday tomorrow. Oh well.  Welcome to  our family Annabelle!

It's Ice Baby Ice!

 This weekend a little town south of us has it's annual Winter festival.  Part of that fun time are ice sculptures.  Many years there are freak warm spells on this weekend. Luckily for Loudonville it was nice and chilly and perfect for the ice sculptures not to  melt like last year.  On Saturday it was cold...around 30 but with crystal blue skies and sunshine galore it was pleasant to trek up and down the main street and enjoy the many sculptures.

Like Ashland, Loudonville has a quaint downtown with small shops and restaurants. It's  mainly a tourist town in the summer months because it's right next to the Mohican State Park and campgrounds.  The Mohican river runs through it and canoeing and kayaking are big here.  The park is beautiful and I've featured it on a few blogs in the past. Our sweet Arnold dog used to love to go and play in the river!  There was a good turnout for this weekend as the weather on Saturday was beautiful and folks are just looking for a way to have fun and be outside where masks aren't necessary.

This cute log cabin sits in the main square. I've gone here when they've had antique shows in July.

The school teams are called "The Redbirds" and here's one in ice!

This little ice piggy didn't go to the market although he could with all those pennies inside!

Every little town needs a winery...or at least a brewery!

The ice sculptures on the sunny side of the street were starting to melt even though the temps were around freezing.  I don't know who won the best ice sculpture but I thought all were really cute and clever.  There were lots of people there and many had brought along dogs. It made me wish we had a pup of our own to bring along! Maybe one day we'll get a dog again. Time will tell! I found a few cute shops to explore but the only thing I bought was a sign that I just felt I needed:

It will go nicely with my Witches Brew mug I use daily.  It was a fun afternoon adventure. We stopped at Village Point market on the way home for some cheese and other goodies.  Once home I decided I needed to try out a recipe I found in this book I found at the dollar store of all places.

The cover caught my eye and the title looked cute so I grabbed it. It's really a young adult book but it was a fun story written by an English author.  I tried out the scone recipe:

The flavor wasn't bad but they didn't rise as nice as I hoped. Probably the chef's fault! Anyway the book is good and I'm going to find the sequels online.  The temps are going to get colder by tomorrow so homemade veggie soup will be on the menu along with some homemade bread.  The woodstove is humming along keeping us toasty and comfy and this month is flying by. Covid is going crazy here in Ohio and my son and daughter-in-law who are both respiratory therapists got Covid. Evelyn is back at work and Jackie has to stay home until Thursday. His weird main symptom was a swollen right eye.  45 employees have the virus and the hospital is in crisis mode. Jackie and Evelyn are vaccinated and boosted but one employee in their department wasn't and came to work sick and it spread quickly. Hopefully all the employees will get better soon. I think we all need to keep hospital workers in our prayers. Maybe by February this will start to die down again. Night all!

Looking Back As I Move Forward

 I took a few minutes to look back at each blog month in 2021.  I wanted to highlight the good moments and take a deep breath at the not so stellar moments. So bear with me as I look back at 2021. I was going to post pics from those months but seriously, that would be a long post.  So in a nutshell this sums up last year: January...Jack had another surgery but did well. My sister, nephew and myself signed up to get pups from my friend who raises Doodles.  February: I actually fixed my microwave with the help of You Tube and a new light bulb. Sounds pretty elementary but I felt like a real winner figuring it all out!  March:  The sweet pup I bought in February...little Miss Lucy...found a new home as I was trying to figure out some health issues I was having. You Tube didn't help me there! Then I took a tumble, broke my left wrist, right arm and found out I needed neck surgery. April: I got my wrist fixed and thankfully didn't need anything done with my right arm. May: I got the neck surgery and that was the hardest thing I had done ever! June: It was a mixed month of happiness and sadness as my darling Granddaughter got married and then my wonderful older brother, Greg, died unexpectedly. We gathered to wish a sweet young couple best wishes and then gathered to say a final farewell to the best brother any one could have. July: We took a trip to Chicago to celebrate July 4th with my sister and watch a parade in the neighborhood we grew up in. My sister lives in our home that Dad built and it was fun to see the parade tradition continue. August: Sadness again as we bid farewell to our sweet pup Arnold. He was a senior rescue that we had for 3 wonderful years. He was a character and we sure loved that little dude. September: This month had me canning our garden produce and also welcoming in my favorite time of the year..FALL! October: Our son Jordan came home for a few weeks from California. It's been a full year now since he's moved and we miss him but know he's doing well out West.  Also, we had some Halloween fun with family and just enjoyed that time of year. November: We were able to gather together as a family and have a wonderful Thanksgiving. In 2020 we weren't able to do that because Jack was in the hospital for the first of 3 surgeries. Even though he had another major surgery in September this year, he was ready for some good times and good food! Thankfully he's doing good although I know he feels like he's not truly 100%. He's back in the office fulltime and pushing himself daily to get things done.  Fingers crossed for no more for him this new year! December: We had a good, mild weather month. We were able to travel again to Chicago to have a family Christmas with my siblings and nieces, nephews, and all their families. We mourned the empty chairs and shared memories and thoughts of those who have passed. Mom and Greg were deeply missed.  But life goes on and I'm glad we could celebrate as I know they would have wanted us to.  Yes, Covid is still with us. Family members have had some outbreaks but we're all vaxed and hopefully this will get better by Spring. The mild weather we've been enjoying is ending tomorrow as snow and cold descend.  We haven't had to heat up the wood burning furnace but that will start up tomorrow too. So we move forward in this new year with the hope of better things to come. I'm just taking each day as it comes .  It's like a rollercoaster ride that you get on with a smile for the ride but hold on tight for the deep drops and twists and turns that you know will also make you scream. The last few years I've picked words to use as my guide and theme. I picked 2 for this year: 1. Seek...I want to seek for new opportunities to help others, seek for better health, seek for better use of my free time, seek out prayer for more help in my daily life, seek the scriptures for more answers to daily questions. 2. Push...push my self to do better at exercise, recouping my body since my surgeries. Push myself to connect with friends more in person than just on social media.  Push myself to follow through on projects we're wanting to do this year. Push myself to prepare to travel more. In general just seek out opportunities and push myself to work harder and do better.  We'll see how I do when I blog on December 31st of this year! Happy New Year everyone!