Cube Revenge

"Take that! And THAT!"

Pretty tough for a little kid just diagnosed with RSV, isn't she? Poor little girl. But she's still happy and playful, despite the shortness of breath. If only she didn't have to have those bothersome nebulizer treatments! Grandma's so mean! ;-)

From the back yard

It's been COLD here (well below zero Fahrenheit) the last couple of days. The poor little juncos are searching for food in any bare spot they can find.

Yesterday morning I happened to see a tiny shrew running across the garage floor. It was hunched up into such a little ball that in the semi-darkness I at first thought it was a leaf or something the wind had blown in under the door, but when I went to pick it up and toss it out, it ran away. :-) So I had to check it out a little closer, thinking maybe it was a mouse, but it turned out to be a shrew. I let the poor little thing continue on its frigid way.

Isn't it amazing how such tiny little creatures can survive such cold temperatures?!

Too many animals?

Or not enough hands?

Success! Two in one hand!! Oops.

So precious!

Nope, not Courtney this time. This is the grandbaby of a friend I went to visit yesterday.

I can't decide what's cuter... the curls or the grin. Both just make you want to smile, don't they? :-)

How big is Courtney?

Soooooooo big!!

Well, a lot bigger than that little wagon, anyway!!

Thanks, Grandma Grace, for sharing the adorable photos! I couldn't resist posting them!

Why is it....

... that a child can leave her cute little ponytail alone all day long, but let her feed herself and get her hands all sticky with numerous types of food... mainly the juice from grapes... and she feels compelled to reach up and start playing with that same cute ponytail?!

(Remember how it looked here!)

"Well, Grandma... I just wanted to rearrange it,
and it needed some gel."

"Mommy will love it! Won't she???"

Poll Results

Hmmm... it appears that people found the last poll too difficult to decide on, as there were only 5 voters. Yep, it was a tough decision, and I have to admit that neither of the choices was very appealing. ;-) Here is how people voted when asked "Would you rather spend a week with weather that is... constantly below zero Fahrenheit (2 votes)... or 100°F and humid (3 votes)".

Thanks to all who made that tough decision! :-) Let's hope we never have to experience either one!

Amaryllis

I have 3 amaryllis plants. Well, at this point, they're mostly just bulbs. After they've spent the summer outside, I bring them in and put them in a dark corner of the basement till mid-winter. Then I bring them upstairs, water them and watch them take off and grow. Within a few short weeks, they have HUGE, beautiful flowers. If you've never seen an amaryllis, you'll be amazed by them. Actually, I am somewhat amazed every year, even though I know what to expect! I love them!

I brought the bulbs up from the basement today. This first amaryllis is my most recent one. This will be its 3rd winter of blooming for me. You can see it's ready to grow... the little white triangle peeking out is the flower stalk pushing its way up. Checking out the soil is my assistant, Willow. ;-)

This next one is my oldest amaryllis. There's an interesting story behind this one. My mother-in-law got it for me for Christmas in 1979!! Yeah, a lot of years ago, but that's not the interesting part. She called me one day a few weeks after Christmas and asked me how it was doing. I said, "Huh?" I had no idea what she was talking about. It turns out she had put it under the bed in the spare bedroom where it was cool, to prevent it from growing too soon, and she'd forgotten to get it out and put it under the tree at Christmas! I hope she doesn't mind my telling on her here on the internet. Nah, she won't... she's a good sport... and we still get a good laugh about it whenever we talk about amaryllis plants. :-)

I've had many years of enjoyment from this bulb... it's bloomed every single year except one, when I had kept it in the house the summer before instead of setting it outside (a lesson learned there). It's even survived being chewed on by a dog one year! So thanks again, Dee... it's been one of my best Christmas gifts ever from you!

If you look carefully, you can see 3 growing points on this one. The front one is the flower stalk, and the 2 with green tips behind that are leaves. They get very long, narrow leaves. Usually just the flower stalk comes by itself first, and I've noticed that when the leaves do appear at the same time, the flower stalk grows slower. Again, my assistant... examining closely.

This last amaryllis has gotten a head start on me. This will be its 4th bloom for me, and it is always the first one to begin growing. I obviously didn't get it out of the basement soon enough! It's rather pale, because it was growing in nearly total darkness, but it'll green up fast as it gets sunlight. My assistant thinks it needs watering, too.

Because my assistant is a little over-zealous in caring for them (or tasting them), I can't put them where she can get at them, so for now they're in a basement window. It's a little cool, so they'll grow more slowly, but they'll get lots of sunshine. Here they are, for comparison purposes:

Do check back to see their progress! I'll probably post new pics weekly.

Cube Attack 2

Watch the facial expression! :-)

I think it got away with her sippy cup, but she managed to save Pooh!

From the back yard

Hen Pheasants

Wish I could've gotten a pic of the one when it was sitting way up high in the evergreen tree!

Poll Results

The results of the poll "What type of computer do you use... a PC or a Mac?" were 6 users of PC's and 2 users of Mac's. I guess I wasn't very surprised at that. I think Mac's are gaining in popularity, though. And each machine has its pros and cons. I'll stick with my PC.

Thanks for voting! If anyone has suggestions for future poll topics, email me or leave your idea in a comment on this post. Feel free to post anonymously if you prefer. ;-)

HUH???

"That crazy thing won't let me stand up by it! What's with that?!? I'm gettin' away from it before it attacks me!!"

Note from Grandma: You may want to see previous post about cat-cubes.

Glamour(?) shots

"See my new 'do!"

("Sorry, Mommy... the barrette came out!")

"I can whistle!"

(Note from Grandma: She really was making a
whistling sound... as she inhaled. ;-) )

"CHEESE!!!" (Note from Grandma: No, she doesn't have
her molars yet... it's actually CHEESE!)

"I'm gonna getcha!"

("With my sticky fingers!")

Contrasts

Winter sunrise:
Night time... yardlight reflecting on new snowflakes: Frosty "feathers" from the cold: Hibiscus blooming in the warmth of the house and winter sun:

Discovery!

Grandma: "Uh oh! Where did I put those child-proof latches?!"

Poll Results

Our last poll, "Did you make any New Year's resolutions?", resulted in 2 voters who did and 6 voters who did not make resolutions. I didn't make any, either. I guess after all these years I've learned that I don't do a very good job of keeping them, so why bother to make any? ;-) But good luck to you two who did make them! I hope you're successful in keeping them!

Thanks for voting, and welcome back to those of you who didn't make it to the poll(s) over the holidays!

Good morning!

Such a beautiful morning! And once again, the rare lack of wind!

We had a little fog overnight again, as seems to be the norm this winter. If you look very closely, you can see a few sparkles of the sun shining on the frost.

And if I'd gone outside to take the pics instead of being lazy (and warm!), they'd be even clearer than these taken through a window with plastic on it. ;-) I have to say, though, that the plastic does get pretty nice and clear after you shrink it.

Pillow fight?

"I always put things back where I found them."

"Well, I try hard, anyway!"

Just moments ago...

The photo doesn't do it justice, though, because you can't see the bright gold streaks. They're all kinda smooshed together on the pic. And you also can't feel the 40° warmth (relatively speaking, of course) and the stillness, or hear the silence of the gorgeous evening. Ahhhhhh.....

Poll Results

Our poll "How many Christmas gifts will you be returning (or have already returned) to the store?" showed 3 voters returning none (yay!) and 2 voters returning only 1 gift. I guess all the other voters were still busy out returning or exchanging gifts. ;-)

Thanks to all who took the time to vote!

Just work

Here she is, slaving away at the recycle center. And it's an extra-big job this time of year, what with all the Christmas catalogs and ads! But, even "work" is fun when you're little! She just dug right in and got at it, even "crowing" a little in her delight. Wish I had that much fun doing housework!
Pretty tiny pics, I know... so if you want to see that cute little butt a bit bigger, just click on the image!

Just fun

It's so easy to have fun when you're little!

Dinner (lunch?) time at Grandma G's

What's this? A little elephant???

But now it's lunch time (make that dinner, down on the farm). What's it gonna be... lamb or ham?


Lamb it is, but......

"Eeuw. I don't know about this end!"


"Oh well, I'll give it a try."

"Ahhhh... that was just right!"

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Brrrrrr!!! It's a rather nippy start to a new year... barely made it above zero today, with a major wind chill! Still, it was pretty this morning... note the very blue sky below. And hanging from the garage roof... marshmallow icicles?!

And here are some more marshmallows... skewered and ready for the bonfire!
I hope 2008 brings all of you much happiness, pretty scenery around you, and troubles as light as marshmallows! ;-)