You Can't Read Just One! :)

 I've discovered an author who I just love! Her name is Carla Kelly! :) The first book I read was My Loving Vigil Keeping. It was a book that I found almost impossible to put down! :)

 

 Then I read Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand, followed by Borrowed Light! :)

 Borrowed Light was a two part, continued in Enduring Light! :)

 All were page turners, that I lost myself in! They were the kind of characters that one identifies with and misses when the last page is read. :)

 Authors this good deserve to be acknowledged, ... and shared! :)

Lucky for me, she's written several books so I have many more to look forward to reading, and I believe she's still living and writing! :)
If you enjoy getting lost in a good book, I highly recommend reading one by Carla Kelly! :) One word of caution, ... her books are like potato chips, ... you can't read just one! :)

It's As Fun To Plan As It Is To Plant! :)

 I finally sat down with all my seed catalogs and thoroughly enjoyed studying every page, giving each company their due! :)

 This year I decided on purchasing from a local nursery and these two seed catalogs, (Territorial and Johnny's)! They've become my tried-and-true and carry my "got-to-have" seed selections! :)

 Before placing an order I sort through all my seeds to see what I have still. :)

 Then I choose what I most want to grow this year, scratch out a quick map of the garden space, and plan out this year's garden, being sure that all crops have been rotated! :)

My first order has been made, and is due to arrive in a few days! I've made my seed choices and will be filling out the forms and mailing the other two seed orders this week! :)
You most likely are looking out your window and seeing rain or snow, and feeling like garden season is a long way off yet! :) It's really just around the corner and the thought makes me almost feel giddy!
If you haven't already, get out those seed catalogs and start planning! It's just as much fun to Plan as it is to Plant! :)

Will The Stray Stay? ... continued. :)

Some of you may remember a post I did titled "Will The Stray Stay? :)". It was about our stray cat, Cali, who came and had her kittens in our garage, and found herself a home with us. :)
She, and her four babies, worked their way into my heart, to the point that I didn't want to part with any of them, so my loving husband let me go ahead and keep them! :)
As you know, when they were old enough I took them all to the vet' and had them fixed and vaccinated, and this has been their home ever since! :)
This winter we decided to move them from the open garage to the enclosed shop where they can hunt mice and be safe from the elements and night predators. They're free to roam the property during the day but I close them in at night.
After some time, Cali had begun to object about being confined at night, and then she disappeared. After being gone a whole week I thought the worst. We have owls, coyotes, and other critters around so I was amazed when she showed up one morning by the shop, waiting to go in and join the others! :)
I kept giving her affection, as she ate, amazed to see her calm and healthy! :) Wherever she'd been, she didn't look like she'd suffered in the least! When she lost interest in the food, I picked her up and pressed my nose into that sweet spot behind her ear, and kissed her repeatedly, breathing in her natural fragrance! :)
She remained for that day, that night, and half the following day, and then disappeared again!
This time I'm not fearing the worst, but rather thinking she's found another home that suits her better.
She waited until her four babies were grown before leaving us, and I'm grateful for that.
I've called our country neighbors, on either side of us, but she hasn't taken up with either of them, so her where-about remains a mystery, for now.
I won't deny that I miss her. She and I developed a real bond of trust, and she was my little buddy. I still keep my eyes open for her, even though she's been gone for a couple months now. One never knows when a stray may decide to return, longing for home. ...
For now, though, she's decided to go elsewhere. ...
So I guess the answer to that once asked question, is ... "No. The stray won't stay, but she will leave her babies for me to go on loving, and many, many tender memories that will continue to warm my heart and bring a smile to my lips when I least expect it! :) ...

Colors Of Winter, & Signs Of Spring! :)

 Winter has been showing her true colors lately! Lots of lavenders, pinks, and reds! :)

 When things haven't been white with ice, they've been white with snow! :)

 Mick has been making the rounds with me, looking for, and finding, signs of spring! :) The potted tulips are starting to emerge, showing shoots of green! :)

 The dainty little violets are blooming purple! :)

 There's even streaks of red and orange on the tulip tips! :)

 Vinca Minor's adding a spot of soft lavender! :)

 Hardy violets continue to show color, blooming all winter long! :)

 Red berries mixed with continual white blooms grace a spot in the yard! :)

 Soft greenish-yellow jewelry dangle from a twisted shrub ...

 that Mick highly approves of! :)

 Amid the colors of Winter, ...

We're finding signs of Spring! :)

Here's Wishing Everyone Joy! :)

 First off, let me say Many Thanks to Chris from "Geek Squad"! Thanks to him I'm back in business with my blog! He made a few changes to my Windows 8 laptop so it acts a little more like my Windows XP computer did! :) I'm So Grateful!! :)
 Now we can get back to enjoying life's journey together again! :)
One of the most joyous things of all, in my opinion, is Christmas! :)

 Welcome to our home! ...

 Come on in! :) ...

 If you've visited our home in the past, at Christmas time, you'll see the familiar decorations that we enjoy year to year! :)

 This year's tree! :)

 One thing that made This year more special was having Sheana, Troy, and the grandkids with us for Christmas! :)

 We even found time to watch Mary Poppins together! :)

 "Bert" looking up the chimney! "Chim chimary, chim chimary, chim chim, charoo"! :)

 Another angle of the tree shows some of the lights in the living room! :)

Coal and his guests all tuckered out! :)
It was a Great Christmas for the whole family, and for the first time since Sheana's been married we had everyone home for Christmas, and even saw in the new year together! :)
Here's wishing everyone joy in this new year! :)

Here's Hoping, Anyway! :)

Hope is something I often feel when I'm watching the sun rise! Even when the morning sky issues a winter warning, as it has lately, followed by an unexpected snow turning everything into a beautiful winter wonderland, ... there's something promising about a fresh new day! :) I hope to share a few photos of an even deeper red sky and white back yard! ...
I'm still not up and running with my photos, since there are so many more steps involved with this new Windows 8 format compared to Windows XP, that I'm not sure I can repeat the process, ... but the fact that a photo has been successfully downloaded gives me hope for the future of my blog! :)
Here's hoping, anyway! :) ...

Family left today, making their long drive home. We miss them already, and I'm grateful for my long list of "want-to-do's" to keep me busy until our next get-together!
Ironically, with family here I had more to take photos of, but took less photos as I was so involved in each moment that I didn't think to take pictures the way I meant to! I already regret that, but hope the few photos I did take will keep moments alive in my memory! :)
Here's hoping, anyway! :) ...

After seeing in the new year, and having a fun-filled full week + with family here, we are quietly taking it easy today! :) I have a long list of things I'm anxious to do and have been mentally going over some resolutions which I will be writing down as goals!
Many of my goals are ones that are on-going from year to year, with a few new ones thrown in, that are of the short-term variety! :) I'm anxious to tackle things on my resolution list and turn my goals into dreams-come-true! :) ...
Here's hoping, anyway! :)