It Sure Was Hot Yesterday......

and everybody was looking for a spot to cool off.........

My birdies love that little rock in the center.....

for landing and resting before diving in!!!!

now I'm ready to clean up and cool down.......

action shot.....let me show you how this is done!!!!!

almost finished............

does anybody have a blow dryer?!?!?

now that's better....how do I look?!?!?!

The Tufted Titmouse!!!!

I love this bird. They are abundant at my feeders and I watch them all day long. They are quick though, I am rarely quick enough to get a good picture.

I am very happy with this shot!! I would prefer he pose in the tree beside my window, but I will take whatever I can get.

I'm So Excited......

and I just can't hide it........Marissa over at Life On Our Side of the Mountain gifted me with this......

Are you kidding me, 2 in one week. I am beyond excited. Thank you Marissa. Anyone who is not following her, please take a peak at her blog, it is awesome. She shares a little bit of everything, with exceptional pictures, stories and recipes!!! One stop and you will be hooked.

In accepting this award, I am suppose to tell you seven things you probably don't know about me. If you read my blog......you know everything. Maybe a few of these will surprise you.

1.  I can't spell.

2.  I talk to everyone, everywhere....I never shut up.

3.  2 days ago I passed a huge kidney stone, want to see it, let me know and I will blog it.

4.  I have a bucket list.....4 down, 3 to go.

5.  I have only been in love once!!!!

6.  I wear eye glasses but never for pictures!!!

7.  My glass in never half full or half empty......it's just always FULL!!!!!

Many thanks to Marissa and anyone else who stops by and leaves me a comment. I started this blog for me, I never though anyone else would ever read it or enjoy it. I share my joy, my life, my pictures and you guys just keep coming back. How sweet is that!!!!

Playing With A Blue Jay!!!!!

This blue jay was a riot as he "played & posed" for me today. He seriously saw me hanging out the window, not five feet away from him, and he still did this................

I'm here for dinner.....

Do you think this is my best side?!?!?

How about this.....do you like this better?!?!?

I can pretend I am uninterested in those peanuts you put out!!!!!

Thank You God for this beautiful woman.......

who feeds me every single day!!!!!

Do you like the slight tilt of the head?!?!

Are you seriously still here?!?!?

This is what I came for.....

this photo shoot is ooooover!!!!!!

ooooohhhhhh great.........

look who showed up, now I gotta wait AND share!!!!!

These pictures were taken over the course of about 5 minutes. He never touched the peanuts. If you look at the pattern of the peanuts on the deck rail you will see the pattern never changed!!!!

Joy and Sadness

I often feel a deep connection with sadness but I immediately focus my thoughts to joy. Even when dealing with death I fill my mind with joyful thoughts of life, the connection I had with that person, and I immediately feel happiness.

I felt so much sadness when I found this..........

the home of one of my little buddies!!!!!

I thought about the joy this bird must have felt preparing this beautiful nest. The joy he/she felt as they found material suitable for building the all important nest, their home.

I also found this nest.......

I think this is a robins nest!!!!

All that work.....we left the nest right there for several days....

I thought perhaps the birds could reuse some of if for a new nest.

They never came back!!!!

I feel so much joy as I write today. It is Infusion Friday and as I type, I am connected to the medicine that keeps me walking and improves the quality of my life. The wireless connection is finally working here and that brings me tremendous joy!!!!

I Don't LOVE to Cook....Part 2

If you missed Part One, you can read the details here. Nothing has changed. I did have fun making this because I took pictures along the way (which I shared in Part One) and I knew I was going to blog about it. That made it fun. I wanted to share pictures of the "finished" dish..............

As it came out of the oven.....

the house smelled so good!!!!!

All it needed was a big loaf of crusty bread......

it looks dry in the pictures, but it wasn't,

it was really delicious!!!

Can You Hear Me Squeal!!!!!

I know you can....wherever you are. I have been gifted with this......

From Debbie at Swamp Billy Ranch

Who by the way has an amazing blog. If your not following her blog, you should be!!!

Amazing right. My little blog, my words, my pictures.....my life. People read and enjoy ME!!! Blogging was probably one of the best leaps I have ever taken. A whole new world. A world where I can share my joy and people respond so positively. 

There are so many awesome blogs, amazing people, I am both proud and honored to receive this. Thank you Debbie, from my whole heart. This really brought me joy!!!

First I am to share a few things you may not know about little ole me...........

1.   I am a nurse.
2.   I got married when I was 19 and have been married for 32 years.
3.   I have lived in the town where I was born for my entire life.
4.   I am addicted to scrapbooking.
5.   I am cranky when I am hungry....really cranky!!!!
6.   I am a little silly!!!!
7.   I can't drive BUT I really want to!!!!!
8.   I overdo everything.
9.   I have MS, which has also given me a seizure disorder.

10. I adore my two grown sons and my darling husband!!!!!

I used the above 10 in a random post a while back. The only people following my blog at that time were the hubs, my two sons and Theresa at The Run*A*Round Ranch. She was my first real blogger friend. She helped me, guided me and most of all, encouraged me. Thank you Theresa....I am happy that you already know my 10!!!!

Next.....I need to Pay It Forward. This was difficult, there are so many wonderful blogs!!!

Drum Roll.......Drum Roll Please............

Trisha at Round About  She is super fun, super crafty.....doing it all with lot's of flair!!!!

Ruth at Ruth's Photo Blog She has amazing photo's, softly inspires and is a great blogger friend.  

Dawn at Just One Life Because she does all the things that I can't, with tons of style. She is real, she inspires me, she has an amazing spirit and she takes awesome pictures with her phone.

Bonnie at Living Life She is a lover of words with a very versitle blog. She is also a very kind soul!!!!

Please visit these amazing blogs....they all inspire me each and every day.

I have so much joy in my life, thank you all for sharing this journey with me!!

The Colors of Spring!!!!

As I "walked" through my gardens this morning, I thought, this is where I belong. This is where I am happy. I was surrounded with color and beauty, the scent of spring......the songs of the birds. Camera in hand, I would love to share what opened up in the gardens this morning.......

Tiny Be Asiatic Lily!!!!

Tiny Skyline Asiatic Lily

Pink Old Fashioned Roses

drenched in sun!!!!!

Rose Bud Impatients

Pretty Pot with Mixed Flowers!!!!

This is just a little "sprinkle" of what's opening up!!!!

The sun is out, the sky is blue, the hubs is home and life is good!!!!

I am still having a lot of trouble commenting on SOME blogs. I believe it might be only the ones with the word verification. I am really enjoying everyone's updates. If I have not left a comment, it was because I was unable!!!! 

I Don't LOVE to Cook!!!!!!

I don't LOVE to cook. I am not a bad cook but for whatever reason, I just don't enjoy it. I LOVE to bake, I make awesome treats, sweets, cupcakes and cookies. 

I do however like to eat and homemade food is always a treat. The kids flew the coop so the nest is empty. I don't cook much anymore because it's just the two of us. The hubs and I don't really work, we manage some income property that we own. That keeps us busy a few hours each morning, which leaves plenty of time in the afternoon for having fun. While we are out and about on our afternoon adventures, we usually just stop at one of the many local eateries and have dinner. Most offer "Early Birds" (yes we are those people) so the 2 of us can usually eat for about 20 bucks.

The point is coming.  When my sister visited recently, you may remember that she made me an awesome casserole. If you missed that entry, you can read all the details about that here. The casserole was soooooo amazing I decided to try to replicate it!!!! My sister sent me the "recipe". I honestly thought it was a joke because it did not say anywhere.....1 cup of this, 2 cups of that, a teaspoon of this or a tablespoon of that. Only one of the 16 ingredients had an amount, and that was the garlic. "6" cloves, that's a lot of garlic. As we shopped last night for the ingredients, the hubs and I were hysterical. "This is not a recipe" he said, "is she kidding, you better call her". I didn't call, I decided to "wing" it and see what happens. So here's the nitty-gritty of my kitchen adventure today...

All the ingredients...I forgot the cream in the picture!

I had most of the ingredients prepped as the pasta water started to boil...

you cook the pasta first, then once you drain the pasta and set aside,

you use the same pot to saute all the other ingredients.

again no measurements.......this part said add cream until the sauce is pink.

Do you think this is pink?!?!?!

The mid-way mess!!

The finished product!

All I can say is "it better be good"

She said it would take about 30 minutes to put together...

2 hours for me!

oooohhhhh and it still has to be baked at dinner time for 45 minutes!

I decided to do a little experiment and figure out exactly what this meal cost to make. Factor in the time it took to shop, prepare and clean up...let's see what I came up with.

1 Bulb of Garlic - $ 1.49

Basil & Parsley - $ 4.28

Scallions - $  .79

1 Onion - $ 1.66

1 Pint Grape Tomatoes - $ 3.49

1 Pound Sweet Italian Sausage - $ 3.99

3 Cans of V-8 Juice - $ 3.00

Fresh Parmesan Cheese - $ 6.44

Fresh Marinated Mozzarella - $ 6.99

Light Cream - $ 1.69 

Olive Oil - $ 5.99

So the grand total is...$ 39.81. I do think we will get 2 meals out of it, one dinner and one lunch. Not bad but it took a good part of my day. The kitchen still needs to be cleaned up but I do love one pot/casserole meals. No real mess/clean up at dinner time. 

I had fun with this BUT I still don't love to cook!! I am off to clean up the mess. The stove is black, too much water in the pasta pot, no smoke alarms and no flames, so I'm calling this one a success!

 

Edel haus farm, Part 2...........

the adventure continues. Just in case you missed part 1, you can read all the details about our first visit to Edel haus farm here. Saturday, after shopping at Barlow's Garden Center we decided to revisit the farm and see how the Alpaca were doing after their haircuts shearing. Their bodies sure did look a lot different, but their cute little faces were the same. I was disappointed that John and Audrey were not there but the adorable Alpaca were and they were just as cute as ever. Let's get down to the good stuff, pictures.......

this one has the lightest coat and is the friendliest....

he ate right from my hand last visit!!!!

this color is really beautiful.....

an auburn, brownish/red..............

these two were very busy "chowing down"!!!!!!

these two are always kept separated from the others....

they participate in shows!!!!

a close up of the sweet little face!!!!!

and this sweet face!!!!!!

This picture was taken on April 30, 2011, prior to the shearing!!!

They got their "haircut" on May 13, 20011. John and Audrey had invited us to come and watch, 

I wish we had been able to go!!!!

Barlows Orchids!!!!!

Are these not gorgeous?!?! These are one of the many reasons I LOVE this garden center. I think one of those purple orchids is definitely in my future.

The hubs and I had such a great weekend......super fun and super duper productive!! We found a new pizza joint "Coal Fired Pizza" in Point Pleasant, NJ. We had brushetta and pizza there tonight. The food was really good and the restaurant had a really cool vibe. I will have to get pictures next time. I had a blast watching the pizza guy toss and twirl the pizza!!!!!

Yard Progress!!!!

The yard is coming along nicely......all those spring chores that must be done in order to "prepare" the yard for summer. There won't be a lot of chatter here today as I need to get outside and get to "work".

This deck wraps around the back of the house.....

it's all cleaned up, the furniture is scrubbed,

and the wrong umbrella is in place.

I will tell Chuck that today!!!!

This is scrubbed and ready to go!!!!!

I'm thinking about a nice big steak or some juicy kabobs!!!!

The patio tomatoes are potted and caged!!!!!

The entire bird feeding station is cleaned (including windows) and filled!!!!!

This is where I take all my pictures!!!!

The new humming bird feeder is up and filled!!!!!!

Same window.....just a little further back.

The plants under the window are a variety of hydrangea's and a sand cherry tree,

you should recognize the tree from my bird pictures!!!!

The bird bath is scrubbed and filled....

I always keep that rock in the center, it's a great spot for the birds to land.

I learned that from Martha Stewart!!!!

This is back by the pool, we did a lot of weeding back here!!!

The yellow bushes are gold flame spireas, they are gorgeous!!!

Pink old fashioned roses grow around the arbor!!!

and they are almost here!!!!!

Close up of the gold flame spireas.....

the delicate purple flowers are only a few days away!!!!

The roses look sooooo much better covered with sun!!!!!

These are Knockout Roses, look at all those buds!!!!!!

I have 5 of these!!!!!

The maple trees are full of leaves, providing some much needed shade in the backyard!!!!

Isn't the back of the house soooo pretty.....

I just love all the lines and windows!!!!!

I have sooooo much more but I need to "get busy" so that's it for today. That was really too much anyway. I am so thrilled to add that I am walking "without" any assistance. Very slow, very short distance's but the walker is history and I decided not to rely on a cane. Last time I became too dependent on it. Wish me luck, i am off to "sit" in my gardens and plant my joy!!!!