PARTIES & POSIES & OTHER FUN THINGS

Julia is 10. She wanted Oreo Cookie Pies instead of Birthday cake. Her friends look just as delighted as she does and see her baby sister Madalyn taking it all in?

I don't know who did it, but someone managed to get all the kidlets in one spot for a picture. I'm glad my camera was handy. Dylan on the far right wasn't crying, but I think his eyes were bothering him. He recently got new glasses. Eight of these sweeties are my great grandchildren. Little Victoria apparently was sleeping.

We have has a lot of parties this month. Birthdays and Bridal showers have kept us on the go, and July and August will also be busy. The above picture is at Jenn's Bridal Shower on Saturday. It was a really hot day but we had shade and a nice breeze making it a quite comfortable. Her shower was fun and she got a lot of nice things. Of course I couldn't keep my camera off my two youngest grand babies. See how cute they are?

Here's Ethan in his shorts, tank top and sandals. I have to tell you I had a great time watching this little guy toddling around. He moves really fast so getting a good shot is one big challenge, but it sure is worth the effort!
Here is Miss Victoria, in her sweet little dress. She is trying out a shower gift which is just the perfect size for sitting. I'm not sure why she has her dress lifted, but aren't her chubby knees cute? I think she takes after her great grandma in that respect but it's not cute on me! LOL

Here is my orange Lily just blooming like crazy! It must really like where it is growing because there are over fifty flowers and buds on it this year. I also have yellow, pink and wine colored lily's but they are not as well established as this one. Am I supposed to separate the bulbs?

This pretty Snapdragon has been blooming every summer for about six years now. I just love how the bright blossoms contrast with the green all around. They just stand up tall and proud as if to say. "Well, here I am!"

As I mentioned, we have had some really warm days. Last night I left my door open and even left the screen door open so my puppies could go out if they wanted. Not a wise move.

When I was getting ready for bed I found this prehistoric looking monster on my laundry room door. No way I could smack it, because it was so big it would have seemed like murder and I could just imagine the mess on my door not to mention the 'C-R-U-N-C-H' it would make!

I got a few pictures, then captured it in a jar and turned it loose outside. I don't know what it was or if it's considered a pest, but I sure don't like things like that in my house! Today ALL the screens are shut tight!

NOTE:

My daughter Patty-Jo, who is a Master Gardner, has identified this ugly creature as a Douglas Fir Borer. She said they usually bore into rotted wood.

Thank you daughter!

I mentioned on a previous post that I used to live on the Chance Road. Now my grandson Luke and his wife live on the same road. Last night I was at their house for a Birthday party for my grandson Dylan and I talked my three daughters into taking a walk down memory lane with me, to the little house we used to live in. It was getting dark so photography was difficult but I did get a few good shots. I like this one of the grass. As you can see it was quite dark so I used my flash. I love experimenting with this camera of mine.

This old barn is on Luke's property. This is the view as we walked down the gravel road. The pink Hardhack in the foreground adds a special touch to this otherwise rather drab scene. The Lord knew just where to put it, didn't He?

I'll post photos of Dylan's Birthday soon.

I pray you are all having a wonderful week filled with love and the joy of knowing our Lord Jesus.

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SISTER DAY

Overlooking Bellingham Bay. Lummi Island in distance.

My two younger sisters and I try to get together occasionally for lunch and some fun time.

Last week we took a five minute drive to the small town of Old Fairhaven, on Bellingham Bay, where we indulged in cheeseburgers, fries and drinks which we took by the water to enjoy. We grew up in Fairhaven and the bay was our playground. I remember walking there many times with our cousins and neighbor playmates. We were aged six to ten then and did not have an adult with us. I have often wondered why our parents let us go alone. None of us could swim and we frequently played on boulders, slippery with wet seaweed, which overhung some very deep water.

Grandma Prayed.

Here are my precious sisters, Barbara and Bonnie taking in the view. The San Juan Island's and Vancouver Island are out there. It was a cloudy day so my photo's are not as bright as I'd like.

I probably shouldn't confess this but we found Horse Clam necks sticking through the seaweed and couldn't resist poking them so they would squirt. I can just imagine what any onlookers were thinking. Three sixtyish ladies poking clam necks then running and shrieking when they squirted. Mercy! The whitish line you see is what it squirted at sister Bonnie.

You see, there is still a little kid in all of us no matter how old we get.

This Blue Heron was patiently waiting for a fish to swim close enough for his lunch. I used my zoom for this shot.

This golden colored bladder type seaweed was interesting. I can't recall seeing this type before.

Seaweed used to be harvested to use on gardens, but it is against the law to take anything from the beach now days, except you can glean seafood when the season is open if you have a permit. It sure is different than when I was a kid. Dad and mom would take us to their favorite clamming area and we would take as much as we wanted of Butter Clams, Horse Clams, Oysters and Dungeness Crab. Nothing ever went to waste either, what we couldn't eat was canned to be enjoyed in the cold winter months.

Well that's about it for my Sister Day. I bet you are wondering "What in the world is a Horse Clam....."

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FRIEND OR FOE

I guess that depends entirely upon how you look at it.

See how pretty the blue Iris and yellow buttercups and dandelions are with the orange Hawkweed?

In the early 1990's I took Amtrack from my home in Bellingham, WA to Duluth, MN, where my daughter's Sailor husband was stationed. I was there for their oldest son's high school graduation and had a wonderful time exploring the local plants and trees.

The pretty orange flower/weed I am posting was growing all over the front yard and since I had never seen in here in Bellingham, I had to dig some up and bring it home. I later read that it is called Hawkweed.

Wikipeda says Hawkweed is a slang name taken from folklore which says that Hawks would chew on it to improve their sight. Maybe it did.

Just look how beautiful it is. And it has a delightful fragrance too. I haven't noticed that it is invasive here. It has been growing for 16 years and the small patch you see in the first photo is all there is.

I have often wondered just who decides what is a weed and what is a flower. I have found that if we look closely at any plantlife, we will see a fascinating creation and always there is beauty in it. And if we get our nose close enough, we many times discover a fragrance we never expected.

So the next time you are out walking, take time to look closer at some of the 'weeds'. Check out the dandelions and buttercups, sniff the clovers and discover a little more about our Lord's wonderful creation.

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LOG TRAIN WRECK BANDON, OREGON 1912

Both of my grandfathers were photographers. My maternal Grandpa, Percival Wixon Ferris, took the photos of this train wreck. He was also donkey engineer in the logging industry in the early 1900's. Many of his photos are in postcard form as are all I am posting of the wreck.

This is what is written on the back of above photo.

The back of the above photo says, "close view of engine showing wreckage on top." I wouldn't be standing under all the wreckage like these guys are!

I want to mention that when I enlarged this photo in Photo*shop I saw Grandpa's fingerprints all over it. That sure gave me a funny feeling!

The back of this one says, "This is the way it looked after falling.

The front says, "Wreck on Anderson's Logging Road, Bandon, Oregon, Nov 25, Six lives lost.

Here is a picture of my grandfather, Percy. He was born in 1890 in Lincoln Michigan and died in 1942 in Bellingham Washington.

This post is quite a change from my usual. I just felt like sharing this today.

God be with you all.

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PRAYER NEEDED

I have mentioned my friend John in Maryland before, asking for prayer for him as he was fighting Prostate cancer.

(not to be confused with my friend Joan in Canada who has been healed of cancer of the liver)

We all prayed for John and the counts went down to normal.

He called yesterday to tell me that his counts are up again and he will be having a surgical procedure tomorrow and is starting Chemo on Friday.

John is a Christian man and has put his trust in the Lord. He knows the power of prayer and I told him that I would be asking for prayer for him.

So my dear and faithful Prayer Warrior friends, lets get our prayin' shoes on and bombard the heavens for John's healing.

Thank you so much.

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PEEK-A-BOO

You can't tell the size of this old fir tree from the picutre, but it is huge. It's in my back yard, just beyond the fence.

As I was warming my lunch yesterday, I looked out the back door and saw something climbing up the tree. As soon as I saw its tail I knew it was a raccoon. As I've mentioned before we seem to have plenty of the critters hanging around. I have to be very careful they don't get my little dogs.

When it was about twenty feet up the tree, it curled up in it's cradle of small, new branches and took a little nap in the sun. I grabbed my camera, took my lunch out to the deck and watched for it to start climbing again so I could get a picture.

Then my dogs began barking and woke the coon up. It looked over the branches at us, then began to climb again. Unfortunately it went to the back of the tree. I watched and waited and eventually it peeked around the tree at us, but as soon as I pointed the camera at it to take it's picture it hid again. We played this little game of Peek-A-Boo for about five minutes. Finally it stayed behind the tree and I had work to do, but I did manage a picture. It isn't as sharp as it should be because I didn't have my tripod set up and I was zoomed in 100%.

It looks cute sitting up there but don't let them fool you. These little rascals can be very vicious, they carry dangerous diseases and will kill your small pets.

I hope you all had a good week-end and will have a wonderful week.

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ODDS & ENDS

Look what BigDadGib made for me. Isn't it nice? He made five but this is my favorite. If I knew how I would put it in my side bar. Thank you dear friend!!! Gib drives a big red truck. You might see him on the road sometime. Meet the Pansy Family!

This is a plant that another bird brought in. It was one of those unplanned blessings. This, on the other hand is not a blessing at all. My daughter Patty, identified these nasty worms as the larvae of the Viburnum Leaf beetle. I took these pictures to show you what kind of damage they do. My snowball tree is about 99% defoliated. I noticed a few bad looking leaves a few weeks ago but didn't look into it. I should have. These critters work fast!

I went to the garden store today and they told me the only thing to get rid of these little beast's is an insecticide. This is something I have never used before in my life, but I'm afraid I will have to this time. (God protect the bee's) These worms are also attacking my apple trees. I am concerned they will spread to my neighbors yards too. I don't know where all these horrid pests come from but I sure know where I wish they would go!

Here's my poor Snowball tree. If you enlarge the photo you will see there is a small amount of green left at the top. I started this tree several years ago from a piece off my mothers, so it is special.

Here's something a little more pleasant to look at. My lovely double lavender Rhody, surrounded by purple Columbine. I like this picture so much I have it on my desktop.

Happy week-end everyone and may the Lord bless you and yours.

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YARDSALE TREASURE

I found this dear little book about a month ago at a yard sale for fifty cents. See below to learn it's age.

It's a book of stories and poems, wonderful reading by great old authors.

One of my favorites so far is

Army Hymn, "Old Hundred"

by Holmes

O Lord of Hosts! Almighty King!

Behold the sacrifice we bring!

To every arm Thy strength impart,

Thy Spirit shed through every heart!

Wake in our breasts the living fires,

The Holy faith that warmed our sires;

Thy hand hath made our Nation free;

To die for her is serving Thee.

Be thou a pillared flame to show

The midnight snare, the silent foe;

And when the battle thunders loud,

Still guide us in it's moving cloud.

God of all Nations! Sovereign Lord!

In Thy dread name we draw the sword,

We lift the starry flag on high

That fills with light our stormy sky.

From treason's rent from murder's stain

Guard Thou it's folds till Peace shall reign-

Till fort and field, till shore and sea,

Join our loud anthem, Praise To Thee.

At the bottom of the page it says, "See Exodus xiii. 21.

Here's what it says,

21 "And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night by a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night."

I may post more from this book. I hope you enjoy it.

God bless you and yours

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A WALK IN MY GARDENS

& WONDERFUL NEWS

(click to enlarge)

I don't know what this green plant is called. I started it from a piece about 6 inches long that came in a bouquet. It has cute little yellow flowers and makes an incredible ground cover but will totally take over your yard. Right now it covers an area about 20 x 20 feet!

I have to tear it out. Why? you may ask. My daughter the Master Gardner said it best. "It's a snake condo." enough said about this plant.

The above photo was taken near the top of the hill, looking down. Lots of weedy things growing, even a few blackberrys which I will remove soon. A lavender-blue Butterfly bush is at the top, and the little boy at the pond is actually cement. The yellow flowers are weedy buttercups. They are everywhere.

This is a super macro shot of a very small (prob. under 1/4 inch in diameter) blossom of a rockery plant. I am fascinated with the tiny red dots and the sunshiny center.

Here's a blossom from a plant I got from my Mother-in-law, many years ago. She called it a bachelor button but I know it has another name.
I've shown this Iris before. I got the start from a little boy in Georgia. It's an heirloom from Victorian times that smells like grape Kool-Aid. I have several large clumps that have to be separated this fall.
I probably shouldn't have included this shot. It was a dark day and the Columbine blossom is a very unusual color. Not the prettiest is it? However I like the way the light shows through the petals. I started this lovely pink Rhody by layering a branch of my mothers plant. I think it's one of the prettiest Rhody's I have.
Here's a sweet little double pink Azalea that grows in my back yard. These plants usually don't do well for me but this one continues to thrive. Bless it's little heart! I absolutely love the color.

I turned this photo so the beetle was upright. I don't know what the plant or the beetle are called.
Here's my red peony blossom. Isn't it big? Peony's are so gangly and mine used to fall all over the place till my Friend Bonnie told me about putting tomato cages over them. It works just wonderful, and the foliage eventually covers the cage.
I call this photo "Dancing Columbines." They are the only double's I have.
The old faithful yellow Daylily. She grows larger each year and always gives a nice show.
Isn't this double white Lilac fun? I got a few starts several years ago from my uncle. This plant just jumps out from all the green foliage and the fragrance is intoxicating!

I hope you enjoyed the posy's.

Now for the wonderful news.
On a past post I asked for prayer for a friend who had been diagnosed with Liver cancer.
Today I received news from her that the cancer is gone.
We are convinced this miracle came from a loving God through many prayers.
Thank you for yours.

Blessings

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SCARECROWS, LUPINES AND NEW DISCOVERY!

I love this picture of the kids making a scare crow.

Several years ago I made one just for the fun of it. The crows around here use them for a resting place.

I nailed some poles together and tied on some old pillows for a bust and rear end. I used one of those styrofoam heads they put wigs on and painted a face on her, then put a stretchy fabric purple with white polka dots dress and a big black wig on it. I have to say that when the breeze blew the hair and dress around it looked pretty real to me.

That summer I spent a month or so in Sad Diego with one of my daughters and her family. While I was gone, my brother in law, who lives next door, brought his cam corder over and interviewed my scarecrow, who he called Oprah. I never got to see the interview, but sure wish I had.

I have a new flower in my garden! I saw it growing there last year and planned to pull it up. I have a lot of the wild type purple Lupine and didn't want any more, and especially not in this particular garden. I believe lupine is a biennial meaning it gets it's growth the first year and blooms the second, so I didn't see it's flowers last year. Anyhow, I never got around to pulling it up and just look what it did for me this year! It's quite large and has about seven flower stalks.You may wonder how it got there if I didn't plant it. Well you see, a few years ago there was this hungry little bird who swiped a few seeds from someone's yard. When he came to visit me, he left a 'deposit' already fertilized in the very garden where this new plant is flourishing.

Just imagine, the Lord instructed the little bird to do this just so I could have a nice surprise. My Lord loves me a lot.

WATER HAS BEEN DISCOVERED ON MARS!

Have a great rest of the week, and please remember to pray for our troops as well as our country's leaders.

God Bless

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HAILEE'S SEVENTH BIRTHDAY

Look at all the bright flowers on her cake, and up in the corner is a little mermaid. I wonder how many bakers pray for the recipient as they are baking and decorating?

I don't do much cake decorating now, but when I do there are always prayers laced into every flower and swirl.

Hailee blows out her candles as little sister Madalyn watches. Notice how the flame on the candles is reflected in the glass table top.

The Party was held at the home my daughter and her husband recently bought. They are doing some remodeling before they move in. They will be much closer to me so I will see more of them. Am I happy about that? You can't imagine!!!

Here is our Birthday girl opening her gifts while cousin Kenny watches. I love Hailee's outfit. Isn't that just as cute as can be? And see little Ethan toddling in the background?

Hailee Loves her dollies so her aunt Patty made her this beautiful doll cradle. Patty didn't have a pattern but said she looked at pictures on the internet to get an idea how to go about it. Isn't it beautiful? And it rocks so smoothly that any doll would fall asleep easily. Maybe even a great grandma!

Hailee was happy with the new dress I gave her. This dress is one of those gifts that the Lord arranges.

I wanted to give her a pretty dress, but you all know the price of clothing these days? I also wanted to give her some pretty paper and sparkly pens and some other fun things. Anyway when I was shopping, I walked to the girls department, and went to the sale rack. This dress was hanging right on the end where it was impossible not to see. The size was perfect and it had been marked down from $19.99 to $6.00. Isn't our God magnificent?

Here is baby Victoria being held on her grandma Cyndi's shoulders by her mama Miranda. I thought it was a cute three generation picture and wanted to share.

Ethan loves his cousin Victoria and was trying to get close enough to hug her. His mommy is talking on her cell, and hanging on to him with the other hand while Victoria's mommy is holding on to her. Both babies are walking but don't have the best ballance yet. I think they look just darling in their little blue jeans.

Once in a while those of us who live behind a camera are able to capture one of those shots that invites a hundred different captions. I would love to hear what you think is bouncing around in this little doll's mind.

I hope your weekend was great and the coming week blesses your sox off.

HUGS!

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