Category Archives: weather

Oct8

2 figure ‘8’s and I don’t mean ice skating!

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Another very warm day through most of the country. I didn’t even venture out.

But look what I found last night when I was watering my flowers (yes still doing that because they still look fairly decent):

2 cukes

Very unusual to be still getting veggies in October! But Bri just piped in that he planted these late. We still have a few tomatoes clinging to the vine. I’d like to make some green fried tomatoes, but I didn’t feel like picking them the same time I got the cukes.

We had whole wheat spaghetti and turkey meatballs. The Classico spaghetti sauce was the three mushroom kind-very good. And after dinner I make a quick Pillsbury pumpkin bread:

Pumpkin bread

My sister-in-law is doing my hair tomorrow, so I’ll take them a loaf for their dinner. These are the mini loaf pans.

And it was about 88 degrees today! Unbelievable!

Sep10

The summer can’t quit here

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The a/c is blasting again. If it’s not on, it gets stuffy in here. I was hoping for temps in the 70s and I see on the weather now that we will be getting some rain! It’s been dry too.
Here are the promised photos of the compacts I got at the weekend yard sale. My mom recognized the name of the designer on the aqua one, Richard Hudnut and it may be from the 1930s.

Outside of old compacts

Inside of old compacts

I was going through a plastic shoebox and found a list of bushes, trees and perennials that I identified around the yard in the 1990s(which may or may not be correct):
Spotted Dead Nettle-spreading perennial
Emerald ‘n’ Gold Euonymus
Golden Euonymus
Dwarf Lily of the Nile (purple flower looks like hyacinth)
Laceleaf Japanese Maple
Barrenwort
Crepe Myrtle
Chinese Dogwood
Little Princess Spirea
Columbine
Azalea (I added 2)
Daffodils
Tulips
Vicary Ligustrum shrub
Lily of the Valley-perennial
Bradford Pear
Bird’s Nest Spruce
Japanese Painted Fern
Mugo Pine
Autumn Joy Sedum
Yucca
Yews along the house
box hedge
Lilac (purple)
Wild begonias
Several Rose of Sharon bushes
Burning bush
Maple
Snowball bush
other trees along the back
Hollyhock, though I have another one that was divided now.
And of course two American Chestnut trees.
(We still have most of the above!)
I added:

3 butterfly bushes (2 purple, 1 white)
Bleeding heart
Shasta Daisies
Bluebeard/Mist Spirea
3 hydrangeas–2 blue, 1 lacecap
Viburnum
Grasses
Variety of lilies
Variety of roses
variety of irises
Rhododendron
trumpet vine
Clematis
peony
2 white hydrangeas (thought one was a mock orange blossom)
Sweet Bay Magnolia
Cinnamon, fiddlehead and a couple more ferns
Waterlilies
circle of box hedge
barberry bush
Mums
Variegated hosta
hosta
phlox

Here’s my photo set at Flickr if you want to see a lot of the above mentioned greenery. I’m proud of myself for knowing so much of what is in my yard!

Speaking of IDs-here’s the one from about 1981 when I was young and free. : ) It’s now West Chester University, but it started out as West Chester Teacher’s College. I was born in that town too.

WCU ID

Jul9

A Walk in the Woods

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My latest cross stitch finish-boy are my eyes tired! I think I started this in April-2005 (I checked my blog!). I actually had enough room (with about 1/4″ to spare) to add that second border. I have no idea what the crown represents. It’s 11″ x 15″. I will probably get this professionally framed. Does any craft store ever offer specials on framing (that you know of?)

A Walk in the Woods

I waited until 6 pm to do a quick watering job. I almost couldn’t stand it for more than 15 minutes. Cos wanted to go out and by that time, I really needed to come in and cool off, so he had a few nibbles of grass and we came in 5 minutes later.

Bri may have a job opportunity in the next town over! He started there over 8 years ago before they moved him first to Maryland and then to Lancaster county. Apparently a lady who does a similar job resigned today without notice. Weird. I think she probably wanted a raise and they said no. Crossing fingers!

I found a pedometer while tidying up my bedroom and put it on about 2 pm. It’s 8:45 and I’ve walked almost 2 miles in that time! (5,000 steps=2 miles). Good motivator for moving my fanny!

Jun15

Graduation gift

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This is for my nephew who just graduated from high school on Wednesday, exactly 30 years after me! This is on a pale green aida (which I don’t mind stitching on once in a while to save my eyes) and it’s mounted on cardboard with a green felt backing. The school’s colors are green and gold. His middle name is Ian. The original ‘I’ looked like a lowercase ‘l’, so I made up a new ‘I’. Also in the original, there were two graduates, but I opted on using his name and info instead of the girl. I designed the mortar board as the design is from a button company and you are suppose to use their button. There are some green and light yellow beads on this too.

Pat’s gift

I learned that Tori was sick last weekend and is now fine. I was at my mom’s today and decided to drop off a goodie bag for Tori on the way home and she was cheerful and running around. Her brother Kenny just graduated from elementary school today. He’s about 5’5″ or so, he’s taller than his mom and auntie.

My mom is showering me with gifts-jewelry and clothes! She won a little money and wanted me to have a few things. Hey, I love a bargain (Monet jewelry for $5 each), but I need more clothes and jewelry like a hole in the head. It makes her happy. Everyone isn’t feeling up to par-Mom, Sean and still me. Our weather goes from hot to cool. We were lucky if it was 70 today. I’m someone who is affected by changes like that. Mom and I went to one of our favorite restaurants and I could only eat half of my chicken salad sandwich. I ate the other half for dinner.

Have a great weekend.

May17

Wishy washy in a good way

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We did need the rain we got in the late afternoon, especially the pine barrens over in New Jersey that were engulfed in flames. Seems a test pilot dropped a flare in the area-problem is it’s been windy and a bit dry-fuel for fire. I hope the rain helped!

I’m having sleeping issues from overusing my muscles. Now a tooth on the opposite side where I have to get the crown is bothering me-I need to chew somewhere. Looks like a crack is in the filling. I should get it checked out before the 29th. Sean went to the dentist today and has some of his first cavities. They are small, so he can wait a few months to get them filled. Bri goes for his check up tomorrow.

I just had wet eyes from Lost. I don’t know if you watch it, but Charlie knows he is going to die from a premonition Desmond made (who is also stuck on the island where their plane crashed). So Charlie is shown in flashbacks-the first time he jumps in a pool as a child-he writes it down as #5 as his favorite moment. So when they got to the moment he met Claire, one of the other survivors, he writes meeting her as #1! Sniffle. I’m a sap.

Charlie and Claire from Lost

May8

But I can dream…

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can’t I?

Make life easier

Mother’s Day is around the corner. I don’t think Sean will spend $89 on me. But, all is not lost! I have a Home Depot gift card worth $100! We do need a new toilet (the one we have is 47.5 yrs old and the inside is covered with rust from goodness knows what and I am always cleaning the bowl). What to do? What to do?

I want this as I am finding edging gardens to be a royal pain in my back. I like that clean edge. I just can’t do it anymore.

I am so sorry about the tornado that devastated the entire town of Greensburg, Kansas. They just called it ‘the perfect storm’ on Nightline.  It’s always a blessing when a survivor is located. Prayers are being said for the people there.

Apr22

Florida weather

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Thank you very much O’ creator for bringing back my gardening mojo (sorry Barbara I stole that one from you). I didn’t actually garden today, I went to a book sale and then my hometown’s Super Sunday main street sale. When we arrived at mom’s she ushered me outside to present me with a ‘journey’ diamond necklace-you know the swirly ones you see in the tv ads? She said that it was a special Macy’s had. It’s really pretty and she got one for herself too. Wow!

The book sale had been on since Saturday and things were picked over. I spent too much ($2 for one hardback-how dare them!), but found fairly new books for crafting and some older musty books for cutting up for my paper crafts. My creative writing teacher from high school was there as a volunteer again this year. I didn’t speak to him as he seemed more interested in tidying up the books and I didn’t want to make him or myself feel old by bringing up the fact that my 30th high school anniversary is this year. Eek gads!

The main street sale was a bust. Mom got some applications to adopt a few kitties she saw up in town at booths for animal rescue. She was just going by seeing them in a cage and cat carrier. She wants a pet so badly, poor thing. The kitties were so pretty-the boy Leopold was white and Kyra the girl was almost white with a little calico thrown in.

We ate at a good Chinese restaurant this time. Sean was along (opps-forgot to mention him) and he drove us around. Nice when they get to that age.

I will be doing a little digging tomorrow. My irises have spread like wild fire! I am thrilled. I think of digging them up in the fall and adding them to other parts of the yard, sharing with my mom and maybe selling them myself. : )

Have a fine week-maybe I’ll finally get to Longwood Gardens to see the orchid display.

Apr16

Virginia Tech tragedy

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Just when you think the world is spinning on a safer axis, something like this happens. We don’t know all the details, but 33 people are dead-the worst in US college campus history. Sean knows a freshman named Stephanie who attends the school (from his old high school). He has a message in her Facebook to make sure she is ok.

Update-Stephanie was home for the weekend and is still there-thank goodness!

I can’t even write anymore about this nor could I watch any news about it.

While I was sitting in my quiet and cold house this morning (we had no power from about 8:45 am to 12:15 and it’s still risky that it will go off again), I was reading an update on the opening of the new schoolhouse in Nickel Mines in People magazine. About $4 million in donations were sent from all over the world as that tragic event last October touched so many people. They have art work from some of the deceased girls hanging up in memory of them. And it’s called the ‘New Hope’ school. The magazine even quotes a minister from Quarryville, where Brian works.

Feeling better today-sure didn’t waste those 3 hours earlier. I finally wrote out my cards for the Make A Child Smile kids (see side bar) and sorted out stickers, etc for my art projects. If the power had remained off, I was going to clean my bedroom-well, I guess I can still do that.

; )

Apr16

4″ of rain Sunday

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That nor’easter sure did blow in and is hanging around. That’s a lot of rain for a single day in these parts. Mom’s yard was like a swimming pool (so she told me) as my brother was preparing it for grass-the seed is surely gone now!

I made a nice roast beef dinner with mashed potatoes and cheddar cheese biscuits, which was very good and perfect for the cool, rainy weather. Brian peeled the potatoes and mashed them to perfection. I didn’t use the ricer as the russets had weird looking skin and I didn’t want to cook that.

I haven’t been up to par, I had indigestion Saturday, ate the Chinese food (uh oh), but slept ok. I had a sore stomach all day until I wised up and took a Tylenol. It felt better within a half hour. I tried mint tea, Gas-X and assorted tummy remedies when I probably had a muscle pull! My mom had had a wicked tummy thing on Easter and I am knocking wood that I avoided that one.

So here is what I made today. I am using old flower, bird and kid’s books (shown mostly in the first example). I hate to cut them up, but I feel I am giving them new life through art. The second card has a definition for ‘dreaming’. I was using the water sphere from the flower show and rubberstamped a face on it, but the embossing power was put on thick and melted too much, hence an entire new idea crept up in my brain. The children were part of a CD collection I found on eBay.

Why do stars shine?

Dreamer child
These were photographed on a trio of cute wicker chests my mom gave me for Easter that I am using to store a lot of my art supplies in.

And last, but not least…my latest cross stitched piece, a The Prairie Schooler church for Su’s neighborhood (see link in sidebar).
Su’s NRR church

Apr13

Feeling unlucky?

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Are you superstitious?

Exactly 23 yrs ago it was also Friday the 13th and I was getting ready to ‘take the plunge’ into matrimony. I guess it’s the way you look at things don’t you think? Sean’s car is at the inspection center and we hope everything will be fine with that. I’m feeling the chilly weather to my bones. I remember last year I had a nicer looking yard than this one and the lilacs were budded and about to bloom. This year I don’t see the buds at all. The pond needs cleaning and I just can’t do it until the aches ease up. I don’t want to end up like my mom who is dependent on pain meds to get through her day. I am happy to report that a Tylenol usually helps me and some nice, warm weather.

The heater guy adjusted the furnace yesterday and fixed the leaky filter. The banging we are hearing is from the duct work and he can’t do anything about that. He said our last heater was way too big for the house. He made a big fuss over the cat as he has 3 of this own. Cos was not use to a big hand rubbing his head so brisking, but he didn’t nip at the guy.

John Corzine, the governor of New Jersey, was in a serious car accident around 6 last night. He broke his leg (upper) and about 12 ribs. He’s in critical, but stable condition. He was said not to be wearing a seat belt. The police are looking the the vehicle that appears to have forced them off the road.

Next Thursday we are planning on getting together with Brian’s old college pal Kathy. She lives in Tennessee now and comes back up to PA every few years to visit mostly friends. She is divorced with no children. And we share the same birthday. We are thinking of Carrabbas, the yummy Italian restaurant to meet at.

I have the Neighborhood Round Robin #6 cross stitch project finished up for Su except for my name. I am done a month early! I figure since the next person to stitch on it is Su’s mum, she can get it early (she is finished with her lady’s design anyway) and then send it to her other daughter to finish up the 8th square (we had planned on eight people, but one dropped out) if that is what they are going to do. I’ll show you a photo soon.

Have a great weekend!