Missing My Muse

There is a part of me that would love to blame my lack of posting on the disappearance of my Muse, or maybe I could explain it as my Muse left when my husband retired and she felt her services were no longer needed among the talk and laughter and coffee drinking that goes on in a house with a happy retired couple. There may be some truth to that, my life has gotten crowded, not a bad thing, I just don't have much time for thinking...

My bowl painting has continued. 

One of the bowls I designed and painted for the
Tarrant Area Food Bank
on display at the Empty Bowls Event 2014.

More bowls from the 2014 Empty Bowls Event.  The green
bowl at the top and the striped bowls are "my" dog dishes. 

And I am still painting in the house. 

Will this madness ever end?  You make one little change,
which leads to another little change, then another, and...

I enjoy visiting with my family and friends. I get a little crazy when they tell me they follow my blog - they know what I'm doing and I have no clue what's going on in their life - they read my blog... They are too busy to tell me what they are up to.  I'm not too bitter. 

I'm still reading blogs - o.k., some days I'm so busy I just look at the pictures... Just wanted to say a word of thanks to all you clever bloggers out there. Thanks! ... And if you should spot my Muse somewhere out in this great, big world, maybe you could tell her she's welcome to come home anytime.


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Well, that didn't take long...

Our kitchen remodel is almost complete. In an old house like ours, once you make a change it inspires you to make another change, and another...



Coffee and a bit of whipped cream.

Once we got the counter top in I decided the wallpaper would have to be changed - - - Mr. J&C suggested that it be eliminated.  I begged him to let us get rid of the old wainscoting that screamed 1966. Stalemate.

A day or two later our neighbor, Terry, walked in and asked when were we getting rid of the old, ugly paneling and when I told him how right he was and wouldn't the room look better with when I got it all wallpapered, he looked at me like I was nuts and announced that wallpaper went out in the 1950s. After he left, we picked ourselves up, decided to go for broke, and ripped out the paneling and the wallpaper. Sigh. Sounds quick and easy. We were lucky that there was sheetrock, this was the summer we got to learn about "mud" and "tape and bedding." Then we had to put texture on the wall - I would redo that in a heart beat, and probably should, but for now it will do.

Before...

Almost done...

If it's Friday, the plumber is scheduled to come back and properly attach the dishwasher to the countertop. Also, we have wood trim to put up around the floor and the windows and the door - - - did I mention we took out a door, jamb and all, and now I've got to go to the lumber yard to get trim and ...

Someday this will be done. During our two months of construction we've had house guests, friends over for drinks, and friends over to play Mahjong (I'm learning a new game!).  Life has not been all play and no work or all work and no play. The dust has not yet settled but we think we are going to like our new old kitchen.

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Waiting, Working, Waiting

Our kitchen remodel continues, happily so does our marriage.  We are both ready to get this done.  Not in a sad way, an "Oh this is terrible, I wish I was through with it!" way.  But in a happy "I can't wait to see what we've created!" way.  Still, I don't care for the waiting part of this redo...

Right this minute I would like to be playing with or reading to my grand daughter...

Or playing (hiding) in the garden like Rodney...

Not now, not today, there's work to be done...

Moving furniture to make room for the coming destruction and reconstruction of the kitchen...

Waiting with all our new cabinets...

that are still in the boxes... waiting for Tuesday... and it is Thursday.


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Winner!

The winner of my book give away is:

 

 

Janey

at

Thick and Thin (air) 

a fun blog about life in Texas and Colorado. 

On this fine day I've got lots to do.  The new hot water heater failed the city inspection so we will wait for the plumbers to return and make things all better. We can take hot showers so life is still good, it just the whole pass/fail thing.  *Sigh*

In Kitchen Remodel News:  We have learned that we can't take down the wall between the kitchen and the family room, still we will carry on, somehow.  *Sob* I would love to open up all the space, take down this wall that blocks my view -- but since this particular wall is holding up my house and it would cost more than I care to spend -- the wall stays.  *Sigh*

Mr. J&C has reminded me (more than once) we don't want to put a $1,000 radio in a $300 car.  That balance of old and new is a bit tricky but I think we can make it work.

Right now, I'm going to finish my coffee and then I'm going outside for a walk.  It's a beautiful day in my corner of the world, whether there are ants...

or flowers in the sidewalk, life is good. 

Tomorrow, I'll deal with the plumbers and sweep the sidewalk.


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Book Club Adventure

As I type this I am humming the Sesame Street song, "One of These Things Doesn't Belong Here..."  Can you guess which picture was not taken at my house? 

The past two weeks in my garden...

That's right - The Butterfly.  In March, my book club read Flight Pattern by Barbara Kingsolver and we had our meeting during the first week in April at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden - lunch and a tour of the butterfly exhibit. We visited just before the Asian butterflies left town.  A good time was had by all.



This exhibit was amazing.

The butterflies were beautiful.  I wasn't allowed to touch them or bring one home with me. It's just as well, we are getting really serious about our kitchen redo. So serious that I am trying to make room in the house for all the kitchen stuff that has to be moved during the remodel.  No room for the odd butterfly or two and, to show my husband I can "get rid of things," I am giving away my copy of our March book.

If you would like to own Flight Pattern it just so happens I have a copy that I would love to send it to you. Just let me know in the comment section and I'll put all the names in mixing bowl and let Mr. J&C do the honors. 

The winner will be chosen the next time I post a blog or next Wednesday - which ever comes first.  Chances of winning are if-y to a sure thing depending on how many / if anyone comments and if I can find a mixing bowl.  I'll contact the winner to get your mailing address and send it to you - yes, I'll even send it to far away places like Dallas or New Zealand...

I made these photo collages using iPiccy - the version I use is free and it has been updated to include ready made sizes like Facebook Cover and Twitter Picture. I used iPiccy to create my header and that's also how I 'signed' the pictures in this post...

What Day Is It?

Spring is busting out all over here in Fort Worth.  Lots of buds and blooms and grass growing and leaves sprouting and, well, here's something I don't see every day.



Spring - time for a young lizard to look for love



 

or



 

maybe just a place in the sun.

 

 

Happy Wednesday!

 

 

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Perfectly Good Home

I am enjoying the benefits of grand motherhood. Once a week I travel 30 miles to the west to visit the most beautiful and intelligent baby in the world. Sigh. Life is good.

Sometimes you have to look around to find a place to call home.

For a few weeks Mr. J&C and I toyed with the idea of moving to the other side of town. It was a good time to look around and see what is out there because after a year of retirement we want to make a few changes in our home (the kitchen). Why put the money into this house when there might be a perfect house just down the road?

Sometimes all it takes to make a place your home is adding a few touches of your own.

There is no perfect house. 

I really hate that. 

On the other hand, getting out and looking at a few houses has given me new appreciation for what I've got. So this weekend I will happily weed in my garden in the morning and in the afternoon I'll continue to look for clever ideas and inspiration for our kitchen remodel.

Sometimes we realize our house has become our home because of who shares it with us.

We are keeping the same 'footprint' just changing the wallpaper, moving the fridge, changing out the cabinets, getting a new sink, knocking out a wall between the kitchen and family room... Shouldn't be too hard, right? 


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That's What Friends Are For

My friends and neighbors are in estate sales. I know that their job is lots of hard work and dust and grease and tears (parting with worldly possessions can be heart breaking. Or the classic "will Momma know I loved her if I get rid of these three chipped water goblets that I'm sure she and Daddy got for a wedding present in 1937?"). They are able to sort, clean, deal with the clients and shoppers, and make money for their clients and themselves. This week they let me come visit them early and see what they had to sale.

Mr. J&C and I went over Tuesday morning and 'found' a breakfast room table, it's perfect and it was the right price. So, naturally, I asked if I could come back again with a friend of mine, known for her clever decorating, quilting, and the ability to spot treasures almost anywhere - the Colorado Lady.

Many thanks to whoever made these wonderful items.

 

Suzanne came away with all kinds of things (check out her Thursday post Vintage Thingy Thursday).  I got a quilt and a few baskets... a couple of embroidered table runners... and a child's apron... did I mention my quilt?

My new picnic quilt.

Thing is, I would have had fun even if I had not found this lovely blue quilt all because a friend was with me. I hope you have people in your life who help you through the tough times, cry with you, laugh with you, eat & drink with you, and, of course, shop with you.  That's what friends are for...


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New Life, New Love

I have fallen in love with someone new.

Dark hair, blue eyes.

She's gorgeous!



Makenzie, less than 2 hours old, wearing
traditional newborn hospital ensemble.

I am a grandmother. 
I think I'm going to like this adventure. 
I want to spend more time with her but I'm
smart enough to wait until I'm invited -

I believe her parents get to be Number One

in her life right now.  I keep reminding 

my daughter "I'm here whenever you need me!" 
I'm always looking forward to our next visit. 
I've even contemplated moving to her side of town...

 

This was taken the night Makenzie was born, the first time
I got to hold her, and it was love at first sight.
(This watercolor picture was made possible by a handy
little iPhone app called Waterlogue,  I learned about
 it from a post by Rosemary at Content in a Cottage.)

This could be the beginning

of a beautiful friendship.

 

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Comfort and Joy

For the past 365 days Mr. J&C and I have explored the brave new world of retirement. This year has been a period of adjustment for us.  Learning we don't have to live by the clock.  Making a list of fun things to do and actually having the time to do (some of) them. We are also finding new things to do to keep our brains young happily middle aged. There has been lots of togetherness, so much that some days we just make time to be away from each other.  Still, my favorite way to start the morning and end the day is with him.

A perfect gift from my mom.

Mr. J&C still belongs to his professional society which meets once a month. He has also joined a group of retirees (many of whom he worked with) and they meet once a month. He's slowly getting back into golf (very slowly, he hurt his elbow weeding in the flower beds - I told him gardening was tough). He goes to lunch every now and then with his friends. He likes the outdoors and hunting (visiting with family and friends). He's taken 3 different BBQ classes and (I'm happy to report) his cooking gets better and better.

I still visit with my girlfriends (we call it shopping - it's really more talking and having lunch and talking with a little shopping thrown in). Took a pottery class in October.  And (this is big) I've joined a book club - it's a delight, one of my smartest moves in years. We meet once a month, taking turns to be hostess and choose the book and, if we're lucky, our hostess will theme her lunch menu around the book. The month we read The Great Gatsby our hostess welcomed us into a 1920's cocktail party. I'm planning on doing future posts to describe the books we've read and the meals we've shared. This group of eight women is amazing and the books they have me reading (no pictures! I'm talking serious reading here!) have been entertaining.

I guess the point of my post today is to let the world know we are surviving, even thriving, in retirement. Still learning about each other and the world around us.  Always on the lookout for our next adventure.

Happy New Year!

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Baby, It's Cold Outside

My week has been a sweet adventure.  Sunday and Monday I got to visit my daughter and help put a few finishing touches on my grand baby's room.  We even packed bags for the hospital, and now we wait.

Back home Tuesday, Mr. J&C and I put up Christmas lights on the outside of the house and visited with our neighbors.  We caught the folks next door out decorating on Tuesday evening and took our bottle of wine over to visit - with glasses for them!  Sharing is one of the perks of friendship.  I highly recommend it.  Standing out in the lovely evening air (the high temperature that day was in the 70's, it was 60 or so just after sunset), lights sparkling, visiting with neighbors who have become friends - life can be perfect. 

A "JOY" sign for sale at Montgomery Street Antique Mall.

Wednesday I got to meet and have lunch with fellow blogger, Jenny Schouten Short.  Her beautiful blog, Two Tumbleweeds, is one of my favorites.  Jenny is a native Texan, who spends half of her year in the Netherlands (the hot half!) and half the year in Fort Worth.  We enjoyed lunch at a local antique mall and got a chance to get to visit with each other.  Looking back on the day, I am reminded of the expression "A friend is a present you give yourself."

On Thursday, Mr. J&C and I shopped and prepared for the coming ice storm, which arrived as predicted late Thursday night.  And we've been here in the house ever since, because, trust me, it's cold outside.

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Thanksgiving Wishes

I wish cheesecake had no calories.

 

I wish the Cowboys would win today.

 

I wish everyone would be kind.

 

I wish self cleaning ovens really were.

 

I wish everyone truly felt loved.

 

I wish there were no weeds in my garden.

 

I wish the UN would (and could) outlaw killing

in the name of god (any god).

 

I wish ....

 

 

once I get started, it's hard to stop.

 

 

I wish you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving.

 

Peace,

Joy

 

 

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Land Line

I could not wait until I got my own telephone. 

October 1978 - First apartment and a phone with my very own number!  Life was good. 

It was just eight short years ago we moved into this old house and, before we settled in, I made sure we had a working telephone.  At that time, I had my cell phone but still wanted, needed, loved my home phone.  New number for this side of town -  we moved all of 20 miles and that meant changing our number.  Good times.

Here I am, October 2013 - thirty five years of  'my very own number' and I'm not so in love with my home phone.

On Friday, Mr. J&C and I took steps to let go of our land line and, if all goes according to plan, we will sell it in the neighborhood garage sale at the end of the month.  We each have a cell phone.  The poor home phone seems to only get calls from people trying to sell us stuff or persuade us to vote for the candidate of their choice or folks asking for donations. 

This sign is on our front door, a gift for Mr. J&C when he
retired in January.  If only I had something similar for our phone.

What about you? Do you still have a land line?  Are we making a big mistake?  Or, like butter churners and rug beaters, are home phones no longer necessary?


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Going Out in a Blaze of Glory

Autumn has (at last) come to Fort Worth.  Cooler days, longer nights - I love this time of year.  The Morning Glories ("Papa Ott" variety) in my garden seem to 'know' that their growing season is coming to an end.

In early September I had blooms like this.



A volunteer wandering through the flower bed.



First Saturday in October.

 
It amazes me how many more blooms there are when the temperatures come down to a reasonable 82F and we get a little rain.

Hope your week is colorful.

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Changes

The past few weeks have been wonderful -- busy, busy, and just a bit crazy. 

First, I'm going to be a grandmother!  Due at Christmas - I just wanted earrings, but no, my daughter and son-in-law insist - a baby before the New Year.  Our family is growing - how exciting!  Someone new to love.  Sigh.

Also, my son graduated from Texas A&M and we now have a second lieutenant in the family.  He's off on adventures of his own, much loved and thought of, and we are very proud of him. 

I've visited with many of my family and friends lately (still have a few on my list that I hope to see soon) - you are all loved.  Hope you are happy and doing well and, if any of you are coming to visit, please call an hour before you arrive so I can change the sheets and clean the bathroom...

In all the excitement I forgot to mail a package to Betty Lou at American Vintage Quilts so tomorrow I'm off to the post office to mail some fabric to her.  Fabric I promised her in June has been sitting here gathering dust while I've been out having fun.

I'm going to try to post on a more regular basis, it helps me get things done and lets my mother and my children know that I'm still here.

Mr. J&C and I have been harvesting okra and having all kinds of fun cleaning house and ---- o.k., we have harvested and eaten okra from our garden a few times.  We've also been to a few college football games, slept in a several hotels, eaten delicious food, and traveled a bunch (two oil changes in two months a bunch).  One of us may have to dust - soon - I hope it will be fun.

Well, I sat down to get you caught up on my adventures and I almost forgot to tell you about the big change here at the house...

 

I moved the hummingbird feeder to the front yard, next to the dining room window - now meals are livelier on both sides of the window.

Happy Monday!


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Visiting Blogs

August - 100F days, 80F nights... ugh. These are the days when I question why I live in Fort Worth, Texas... With this heat it makes sense to stay inside and read blogs,  drink glasses of iced tea, and pay a little more attention to my own blog.

This is one of my favorites - day lilies
from my mom's garden - thriving in the Texas heat.

I find myself dreaming of travel and I like to check out bloggers who are enjoying a summer with warm sunshine-y days and cool nights. Jane, at Marigold Jam, makes life in England sound so tempting. 

Jen, in Canada, captures beautiful pictures and weaves stories around them in her blog Muddy Boot Dreams.  Her post on Wednesday reminds me that while I may picture Canada as all hockey and snow, they have their own summer heat, drought, and beautiful flowers.

The heat seems to make the day lilies happy.

I'm here in Fort Worth, trying to find ways to beat the heat but thankful for my friends and neighbors. Besides, Mr. J&C loves Texas and I love him - so here I stay.

While I complain about the heat, I must admit I am proud of my adopted home state and follow several (many) Texas bloggers.

There's a Jane in Fort Worth, at New Dog Learns Old Tricks.  Her adventure in June with yarn was an example of friendship, recycling, and talent - love the way she put the old squares together with multicolored new yarn.

And Theresa, with her Run A Round Ranch Report, makes life in the heat of Texas look so cool. Love her pictures and stories - especially the dogs and ducks... and horses, turtles, wild birds, barns...


Thanks, Mom!

And then there's Jenny, at Two Tumbleweeds, exploring all things Dutch in the summer - she seems to have the best of both worlds - living in Holland in the summer and returning home to Fort Worth each winter. 

Thanks to all of you who entertain and inform and, even in this heat wave, make me smile.


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Ground Rules

There have been a few problems in my garden this year because I thought the rules didn't apply to me. My plan for an arbor with purple wisteria on one side and gorgeous, white clematis on the other side is not to be, at least not in the spot I planted them.

Wisteria healthy and green.

Wisteria grows like a weed and doesn't always bloom where it is planted, especially when it doesn't get enough sunlight (current location). I thought I could plant it where I wanted to plant it (counting on its 'weedyness'), not where it needed to be planted.

*SIGH*

Wisteria shading Clematis.

Last week I admitted defeat and trimmed it back, I also plan to move it in December to a location where IT will be happy (I'll try to adjust). 

It's a good thing I got pictures of last year's beautiful clematis blooms because I got nothing this year. Too much shade - because of a wildly, healthy, weedy, green wisteria blocking out the sun and giving me a green/yellow, pitiful clematis this spring. Turns out the old garden rule of "heads in the sun, feet in the shade" is one I need to remember and follow, so maybe next year I can have beautiful blooms on my clematis and beautiful blooming wisteria.

After I trimmed up (cut down) the wisteria I added a few pots
so this corner of the garden wouldn't look so bare. (Notice
the clematis is all greeny-yellow and sad looking.)
 

I left a few leaves on the wisteria, and noticed new growth on the plant in less than a week. Now to keep every thing trimmed, mulched, and watered.

Gardening (and baseball) - there's always next year.

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Loving My Neighbor

I love to grow things in pots.  The last few years my collection has grown and grown - pots all over the patio and pots on the front porch.  I had to set an alarm on my phone so I would remember to water all of them - every other day in the summer and at least once a week in the winter.  Several of them are tucked into the garage in the winter, they get a little shabby, but they survive and, when Spring returns, they thrive.

The trouble with containers is the little saucer that collects the excess water - it keeps the water from going all over the place but it can provide the mosquito with the perfect little incubator and nursery.   

Here in north Texas the West Nile Virus is a major concern.  It is transmitted by infected mosquitoes (not all mosquito's have the virus - most are just annoying) and even if you get bitten by an infected mosquito, you might not get the disease.  I say this so you won't call 911 the next time you get bitten.

I have no desire to be known as a Mosquito Rancher so I try to follow all the rules the City of Fort Worth gives for minimizing mosquito breeding.

I've cleaned up my act - well, my patio actually, and put away most of the saucers.  I've scattered the containers around my garden, tucked them in the mulch - no need for a saucer.  A bonus - I took the time to check where the water goes when the sprinkler is on and almost everything gets watered even when I'm not here to do it.



These seem to be adjusting to their new home.

I still have a few pots on the patio and by the front door but I'm very careful not to over water.  I figure it's worth it to help myself and others in my community stay healthy.  I am helping people I don't know and may never meet, still, it gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling to realize we are all in this world together and little things we do (or don't do) can have a big impact.

Admit it, you are probably doing something to make the world a better place.   I would love to hear about some of your adventures - comments are always welcome.  I'm off to read blogs and drink tea on this hot, hot summer day.

Garden

These days we start early - our (please notice I'm sharing the ownership) garden gets better every day. 

This Spring, I have had another sweet reminder of one of my friends.  I was afraid the red lily that my friend, Paula, gave me two or three Easters ago had been lost with all the pulling of weeds and cleaning out the flower beds - I was happily surprised to see Paula's Lily had survived.

It just popped up one day, tucked in behind the grapevine.
 

Sometimes Mr. J&C's weeding is reminiscent of bush hogging. Somehow we missed this and I got to watch it grow and bloom another year.

It had blooms for about two weeks - thanks, Paula!

Thanks to my garden companion, I'm becoming a better gardener. I have always tried to keep up with the rainfall and water accordingly, but I've been slow to weed. Now I'm checking on the garden once a week for weeds - bonus! Mr. J&C weeds!

I have even (GASP!) thrown out plants that haven't "performed" well in my garden. My thinking being weeds and useless plants are drinking precious water.

Planted in November 2009, this purple crepe myrtle has
 gotten smaller every year. It easily came up out of the ground -
the root ball was almost nothing.

I'm also compromising with Mr. J&C - he wants the plants not so close together so it will be easier to weed. The work we've done so far looks good and it has been easier to weed. 


Update:  I got reimbursed the money taken from my checking account back in April.  This is a good thing for me, but we all will pay for this with higher prices.


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Here on Gilligan's Isle

We still have a few things to work out - being together all the time is something new for me and Mr. J&C.  Yes, we love each other but, each other all the time is...well...  different.  The first few months life was great.  We traveled, we worked in the garden - then we both got a cold. 

"Cheers!"

Just a common, every day, nothing special cold.  We don't do 'under the weather' very well.

This is not something I planned on and now I'm behind.  I've still got gardening to do, several packages to mail, and I haven't even been in the mood to talk - that is sick!

As the month comes to an end, I looked at my poor, neglected blog and decided to reach out and say "Hello!"  Miss you all, hope you are well. 

For a little more than a week we locked ourselves up in the house afraid if we ventured out we might give someone our cold.  It's like we were marooned on Gilligan's Island.

So being bored and not wanting to really do anything, I googled Gilligan's Island and I found, among other things, a drink.  Here's the one from the Mixologist App on my phone:

Gilligan's Island:  Pour 1 ounce vodka, 1 ounce peach schnapps, 3 ounces orange juice and 3 ounces cranberry juice into a cocktail shaker.  Mix well and pour into an ice filled glass.

At the time I was taking heavy duty cold medicines and all of them warned me not to have alcohol.   So I didn't try the drink.

As if to pile on, a friend (thanks, Dawn!) posted to Facebook a recipe for slushies.

Vodka Slushies:
1 1/2 quarts cranberry juice cocktail
1 (6-ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate, defrosted
2 cups vodka

Directions:  Combine all of the ingredients in a large plastic container. Freeze for several hours. It will not freeze solid, but rather achieve the consistency of a slushy.   Scoop into punch cups or wine glasses and serve.

Due to the meds I was taking I could only think about drinks and drinking.  Now that I'm feeling a bit better (and off the medication) I thought I should put my own spin on an adult frozen beverage. 

Frozen Castaways:
3 1/2 cups of cranberry juice cocktail
1 (6-ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate, defrosted
3/4 cup of vodka
1/2 cup of peach schnapps

Stir and sample.

Directions:  Combine all the ingredients in a large plastic container.  Freeze for a few hours.  Stir every now and then so you can have a quick taste.  Scoop into pretty glasses, enjoy.

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