Saturday's Critters # 398

 When we went for a drive on Wednesday, we drove around 

Lake of the Lilies

I didn't see much, actually the wildflowers were the best part of the circle around.

But there were a few birds I could see from the car,

and I was able to get a few snaps, although none of them great!

Brown Eyed Susan and Queen Anns Lace

A Mockingbird

Female Red-Winged Black Bird

All of the Swans are back in the lake, funny to see them swimming in this straight line.

And I got these terrible pictures of the 

Common Sandpiper

Still, it was fun to watch it running around the shoreline,

 I dreamt of the day I would be doing that as well.

Nature is the greatest place to recharge and heal!

Sharing today's images with Eileen at 

Viewing Nature With Eileen 

for Saturday Critters

Out For A Drive

Wednesday, I got into the car, and we went for a drive!

YaY!

This barn is familiar to me, we have driven past it many times...

but it received a makeover so we went back so I could take a few pictures.

It is lovely and the sign above the door said 

"Welcome" 

We were approached, asked what we were doing and we did not feel very welcome at all. 

We left, I wish I could have taken more pictures, it is a beautiful barn.

This bench is carved from a tree log, a huge tree log.

I took this picture as we left, from the road.

I did not have much time, I only took one, so it's not a great picture.

But it gives you an idea of the beauty of the barn.

After we left, we passed this group of beautiful deer, most were bucks.

The hubs spun the car around and went back but once we stopped the car, they ran off.

I did see 2 babies and I thought it was a little early to see baby deer.

Sometimes the best therapy, is a long drive with your best friend!

Banana Upside Down Cake

 it's a thing ~ who knew!

All this time pineapple upside down cake has been stealing the spotlight,

and this lovely delight has been taking a backseat until now!

This recipe is all over Pinterest and it seems like peeps are catching on!

If the hubs brings me all of the ingredients,

I do pretty well putting things together here at the kitchen table.

This one required a lot of bowls.

I usually have a "garbage bowl" too, but this time I forgot.

Good to remember it next time.

Mixing, mixing...I mixed by hand

Banana slices get pressed into the butter/brown sugar mixture,

the hubs prepared that.

Into the oven...

Once you take it out of the oven, 

you wait 5 minutes to flip it, the anticipation is killer.

Can anyone say delicious!

It's all gone now, and boy was it good!

If you are interested in baking this sweet treat,

the recipe can be found here, at Sprinkle Some Sugar.

I followed the recipe exactly, but wish I had used a deep dish pie pan.

The cake was fine, 

but I did loose some of the butter/brown sugar mixture, and that's the best part.

I will definitely be making this again!

As long as you know how to bake, life is sure to be sweet!

I Picked Up My Knitting Needles

 I picked up my knitting needles again,

and it felt really good!

I am finishing the Spring Thing Shawlette that I was working on before...

- you know what happened -

The Spring Thing Shawlette by Lisa DiFruscia.

The yarn is a blend of 50% Superwash Merino Wool and 50% Silk.

The Shawlette is done, right now I am putting the silver edge on it.

You can see the edge in this picture in the pattern.

I purchased this yarn many moons ago while on a trip to Lancaster, Pa.

It was a cute little yarn shop and I really love this yarn,

I just never found the right project to knit until now.

There is an old lady who lives in my soul, she loves to knit and drink tea!

Oh Miss. Debbie, Do You Need Any More Caterpillars?

 My neighbor next door Jennifer is growing parsley.

Her precious young children (I showed you their picture the other day)

 have found some caterpillars in her parsley...

and when they do, they bring them over here to me.

7 so far, and they seem to really enjoy bringing them over here to place in the cage.

They are the cutest kids, talkative, and they sure do ask a lot of questions.

Several days ago, they brought me a rotisserie chicken, 

(did I tell you that)

a huge caesar salad, and a large pasta dish that fed both of us for 2 nights.

How kind and thoughtful they are, the kind of neighbors people dream of having.

The younger one Celia and her cousin made me this adorable card...

The card on the right, was handmade by my friend Connie.

She is an artist with paper and makes the most amazing cards.

The yellow butterfly card and pretty shell came from a friend from high school, Louann.

These pretty flowers came from my sister Kathy, 

she knows how much I love the color purple.

Somehow, we went from caterpillars to kind people who have shown me so much love.

People I am so lucky to have in my life.

Are You Watching The Olympics?

 Are you watching the Olympic Games?

We are...but as we watched the games on television, we noticed the stadiums were empty.

I'm not sure when the decision was made to eliminate spectators, 

some of the athletes have tested positive for Covid,

but it seems the decision would have been made months ago.

There is something especially sad about watching a sport in an empty, 

temporary venue, built for a purpose it will never fulfill.

I could see a few journalists, cameraman, volunteers, and the officials.

The summer games are my favorite, I really enjoy gymnastics and soccer.

We attended the 1996 Summer games in Atlanta, Georgia, a trip I will always remember.

It was so exciting for so many reasons.

We watched all of the events we were personally interested in.

Mens Soccer for Mike, Mens Gymnastics for Scott, 

Track & Field and Boxing for the hubs.

I found these pictures from the 96' games on-line,

I have a lot of pictures from the trip but non on my computer.

We watched this game where Brazil 

won the bronze.

We were also at the gold medal game,

where we we watched Nigeria win the gold medal.

It was all so thrilling...

the events and the time we spent as a family.

The boys were getting older and I knew it would probably be our last trip as a family.

If you have a favorite sport, let me know in the comments!

Wise Words On Sunday

Saturday's Critters # 397

Butterfly season is in full swing and the first caterpillar from this complete season has...

become a butterfly!

All of the butterflies I released prior to now were from last year,

and had been in chrysalis all winter.

I told the hubs to find a pretty flower to release her on,

he did and was able to snap this beautiful image.

Right now I have a total of 27 caterpillars,

some quite large...

and some teeny, tiny.

Yesterday I had a visit from this adorable looking gang.

The 3 kids that live next door and I think the others were their cousins.

They were so excited to bring me 4 more caterpillars.

They are such a sweet bunch, they were here the day before too.

More on that Monday!

Sharing today's images with Eileen at 

Viewing Nature With Eileen 

for Saturday Critters

A Little Of Everything - And A Little More On The Side

 Life here on the Winding River has been good... 

- full -

here's a peak into what's been going on!

We sold and closed on our Lakewood Property, the property where we had the fire.

You may remember that the hubs rebuilt the part of the building that was destroyed by the fire,

the property and buildings were in tip top shape as we sold it.

We made the decision several months ago, preparing all of the paperwork took a bit of time.

The plant on the back of the mailbox is doing well,

I really like the color!

Have you ever had Toaster Strudel?

A guilty pleasure I allow myself every so often.

It's like a Pop Tart, but so much better.

Hot and flakey, filled with fruit, this one is mixed berry.

 

I took this picture of the clouds a while back, before the hospital...

I thought these clouds were pretty interesting.

Garden Haul

I planted yellow summer squash, but this is what I am getting.

A very strange combination of yellow squash and zucchini.

The pepper is suppose to be red,

since picking it and leaving it on the counter, most of it has now turned red.

Dried egg shells promote growth in the garden.

I have plenty...

I am afraid to put them in my garden, my plants are all huge.

I was able to make a coffee cake this morning.

The hubs put all of the ingredients on the kitchen table, and it went together pretty easily.

It was delicious!

Remember...

Tough times don't last...Tough people do!

Thank You For Being My Friend

While I was in the hospital, the hubs brought me the mail that was coming to the house.

My good friend Liz sent me this coloring book with these great twirly pencils... 

to occupy my mind and hands.

Such an awesome gift, I have enjoyed the art of coloring so much, and this is one GREAT book!

And the twirly pencils are wonderful too, 

I have never used these pencils and I really like them.

 

I finished one...

for Liz.

That's me in the purple and she with the pig tails.

Her sons Grant and Wade made these cards for me.

Yesterday, she brought this spaghetti pie for the hubs and I for dinner.

Omgoodness it was so delicious, enough for both of us for two meals.

And my good friend Leanne, my knitting teacher and Liz's sister

made me this delicious loaf of homemade bread!

I could have eaten the entire loaf by myself, extra butter please.

What wonderful friends they are...

Did I mention the food was great but the visit was even better...

it was so good to see them, and Leanne's son Chase too!

What great laughs we had...thank you both for being my friend!