The Kaiya-nator

Kaiya thought that the new "cat bed" I got for Riley was a snugly place to sit with her "baby". Riley, our Siamese Himalayan cat doesn't fit in it anyway. I loved the print and the soft fabric, but "the cat's too fat". So go ahead and enjoy Kaiya!

This weekend the girls came home for a Scrapbooking Weekend for my birthday. They as usual accomplished more than I did!, But I did have a lot of fun times, and some extra Kaiya time too. I remembered that we still had the little kitchen play station that used to be Chelsee's --Kaiya thought it was great!

Kaiya also discovered that make up is FUN! She loved putting make up on...as you will notice in several of the pictures, she has very "make up dark" eyes. She looked so cute and funny.

Hollyhocks

I'm wishing these Hollyhocks were in my yard. I took this photo at a wonderful Garden/shop called TLC by Hooper Ne. My hollyhocks did not do very well this year. I need to start a new patch in a different location. My yard needs so much attention. I have a railroad tie big square flower bed that needs to be taken out. The RR ties are falling out of position. I have decided I want to do a landscaping brick circular design, maybe a different location, just need TIME. Hollyhocks have always been a favorite of mine. They were a favorite of my Grandmother Mary Westerman's too.

I had many wonderful times staying with my Grandparents. We would go for walks, hunt for "pretty rocks" enjoy the flowers, make just about anything possible with apples from their apple trees. I peeled so many apples back then. I wish I would have had my Pampered Chef apple peeler/corer back then!!!. We also played Rummy a lot. Grandma would get annoyed when Grandpa would help me out. Grandma was also the first person to get me interested in sewing. I am still looking for a sewing machine like hers. It was a New Home in a wooden treadle cabinet. She used to let me sit on the floor beside her and use my hands to run the treadle while she was sewing.

Enjoy all the wonderful rich colored fall flowers and foliage. Beautiful photo and memory opportunities outside right now.

"Memories are the heart strings that keep us connected to our past."

Life is Like Jam

Sometimes life's best lesson are learned through some of the simplest everyday tasks. Saturday Chelsee and I made homemade Peach Jam. Through the process of preparing and making the jam I felt like there was a little lesson to be learned. Not just in the jam making, but a life lesson. Preparation, having a plan, adjusting the plan if needed, having all the ingredients needed, and of course enjoyment of the finished product. We haven't made jam for a couple years, so the search was on for all the utensils. Once everything was gathered, and the instruction read, we began. Most of the process went pretty smooth, but there were some little bumps along the way. No matter... we worked it, figured out how we could adjust and kept going. That is exactly how life is. We have a recipe, or plan for our life. Many times along the way things happen that make it necessary to adjust or change our plan. If we let it happen, we find that the change or adjustments actually can be challenging, but often work out very well. So, enjoy the process, and have a slice of fresh Peach Jam, and don't let the "sticky" times keep you from enjoying your life.

Cuming County Fair Super Saturday

Every Cowgirl needs her own cowboy hat, and Briana even had cute pink top leather cow"girl" boots. She didn't call them cowboy boots, they were cowgirl boots.

Alyssa, Lonnie, and Briana enjoyed watching the Bull Riding and cheering on the cowboys

These little guys look like they are anxious to give bull riding a try, or dreaming of the day when they can.

Ok..explanations here...the picture above is the shot I was trying to get, of the cowboys, (local and from elsewhere) getting ready for the bull riding right before their names were announced to the crowd. Well, I was taking pictures without my glasses, (which apparently is just as bad as when I text without my glasses) and zoomed, but did not see what was being zoomed in on, I just kept shooting pictures, because with the bright sunlight, you can not see the screen on the back of the digital cameras..so I kinda lined up and shot pictures. The lower picture is what I got...believe me, I did not mean to take it, but Briana saw it and thought it was hilarious...ok..seriously MB....I feel a book mark "Cowboy Up!" design developing !!!! just kidding.

Hoot Hoot whose Quilting!

My Granddaughter Alexa came for a visit to the farm and brought along some fabric. I was surprised when she said she had brought fabric to make a blanket. Made me feel so good that she brought it without me suggesting. That let's me know she really wanted to sew and not just because I wanted her to sew!!! YEAH! Her fabric was a busy print of trees with owls perched in them, really cool colors. For the backing she chose orange minkie. I let her rummage through my batik fabric and she found most of her accent colors in there for the block border. We tried to keep it simple, so had her sew 2 different sets of 3 rows of different fabric, then cut them to 6" widths. That made putting the outer block border together pretty fast and simple. We did not put any batting it, the minkie had enough body and it has a wonderful feel to it. I did sew on the binding just to wind things up. To make it an even more fun day, Chelsee was sewing also. She is making a batik tridazzle type quilt using purples and blues for the main blocks, and creams for another block. Beautiful batiks! So all in all a fun Monday and Tues of sewing at the farm. Alexa was excited to be able to take home her quilt and show it off to her Mom and Dad.

Bazinga!

I have thinking about "sitting on the dock of the bay" a lot lately. Just plain miss the relaxing atmosphere of that special vacation. There was lots of laughter and silliness...so to refresh the memory...I think the word BAZINGA! covers it all

My DOG

Oh Faithful Friend

You fill my Heart

Memories of you never end

So we will never part.

Every one has that pet that is so special to them. This is a picture of me and my German Shepperd dog in about 1973 -74. I can still remember the night I got him, a gift from someone. He was the cutest , cuddliest, fuzziest puppy I had ever seen. So I named him Fuzz. I remember playing with him, and always saying a silly rhyme to him...and he loved it!

Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear

Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair

Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn't fuzzy wuzzy,

Was HE?

Like I said silly rhymey poem, but both of us loved it.

One of his most favorite places to run and play were in the alfalfa field. I would play hide and seek with him there...and he would ALWAYS find me. He would pounce jump through the field over the tall alfalfa. It was hilarious to watch.

He was also my protector, no one messed with me with Fuzz around.

Good boy FUZZ.

Memories of you still warm my heart, again

Good Dog Fuzz!

Grampa Anton Westerman

Grampa....that's what I called him. He was one of my earliest heroes. A very hard working man that loved his family very much. He loved to play cards, mostly sheephead and pitch. He also would play rummey with me and my Gramma, and Gramma didn't like it that sometimes he would help me win. lol

All of us grandkids used to watch him while he was playing cards because he would always rap the table in a certain way that made us jump . (something they did when playing sheephead, to trump or something like that). I lived with my grandparents until I was 4 years old. I remember feeling very loved by them. As I grew older I would go and spend a "summer vacation" with them. I enjoyed the time I spent with them, looking at photos, playing a lot of cards, going on walks, and rock hunts, picking apples and making every imaginable recipe with apples or rhubarb. My grandparents had blackberry bushes, and they were the largest blackberries I had ever seen. Usually I would go pick a nice size bowl of the berries, wash and stem them, then add some sugar to them and serve them up to my Grampa. Well, one day let's just say that the blackberries turned out extra special!!! I prepared the blackberries as usual, but instead of adding 1/2 cup of sugar, I accidentally grabbed the salt container (also a clear glass container) and add 1/2 cup of salt. Grampa's first bite told it all, and so did his German after he sputtered from his "sour" surprise! Grampa never did let me forget that special recipe, but he always re-told the story with a smile and a twinkle in his eyes. "Acck, vhat is in the blackberries", I still hear him saying that to this day! I miss having my Grandparents to go visit, and play cards with, and share memories with, but they are in my heart and mind ready for reminiscing anytime I choose.

"You Are Loved"

Lucky, that is exactly how I felt when I was asked by Lois O to join her in attending a Josh Groban concert in Omaha. She won 2 tickets from a local TV station. She remembered that he is a favorite of mine. WOW what a concert! I heard some of my favorites by Josh..yes we are on a first name basis..silly me! Fav's "You Are Loved" everyone needs to hear this song, and his Grand Finale.."You Raise Me UP" The concert was impressive, his ability to connect with the concert goer's with his music, sense of humor, and his genuine personality. Amazing to see him play the drums with such power! Also..he sang in 4 different languages, English, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese. I didn't care that I didn't understand every word...I along with all the others there "felt" what Josh was singing through the power of his voice and emotions. Again WOW WOW WOW ! The "opener" was a performer named Elew. I have never see anyone perform music playing a piano in the manner that he did..again impressive, powerful music. He played a different song with his right hand, and another song with his left hand simultaneously and it sounded fantastic. Thanks again Lois O for inviting me. It was a night to remember!

I've Got a Secret

I REMEMBER MAMA

I am so excited. I found an old movie on DVD that my Mom and I used to always watch together (it was an old movie then, even older now!!!). The title is "I Remember Mama". My Mom used to let me stay up to watch old movies with her. This "special" treat started when I was very sick and had to take medicine at regular intervals. Instead of making me go to sleep, then waking me up for the last dose, she would let me stay up and watch TV with her. At that time, there were late night movies on. (Sometimes I wonder if it really was very late, or if in my child mind it just seemed very late!) This movie was always one of our favorites. I ordered it from WalMart, online. The suspense of waiting for it to arrive grew each day. Finally today, my copy came. I have not told Mom that I found and ordered it yet. I plan on having her out for a special viewing, with treats and snacks. I can still remember my favorite parts of the movie and can't wait to share watching it with Mom again. I think we will probably look through family photos while watching. We are always multi-taskers around this house! haha.

I thought about saving the movie until Mother's Day, but I know I can not wait that long to watch it with her. So-- time to check the calendar and set up a movie day! Because you know " I Remember Mama"

Ancestors

Recently my daughter Kristin and I have been working on genealogy for our family. There is something so compelling to find the stories of family ancestors before us. Above are pictures of Lonnie's great grandparents on his father's side. The top picture is Johann and Phillipina Jahnke, and the bottom is Johann and Albertina Leitow. I wish we had a lot more information about their story of coming to America, and then to Nebraska. Both families were homesteaders in our county, and they were some of the early settlers in this area. We still farm the Leitow family farm ground. When I am walking around the land, and the homestead place where the Leitow's began their American story, I feel a wonderful connection to them. I think about the fact that, at some point, they may have stood at the exact same spot that I am on. That they too enjoyed the beautiful sunrises, and sunsets around their land.

Kristin is like a detective, uncovering facts, and maps, and bits and pieces to puzzles. We were extremely lucky to locate a box of very old photos with generations of pictures. What a wonderful find. Luckily most of the photos were labeled with names. Some of those photos tell their own story...like the story of the Great Great Uncle that we thought had never married. He actually was married to a "mail order bride". We have their wedding picture. Sadly , the union did not work out, and she left him. Amazingly enough, Lonnie remembered a story about that uncle that his Dad used to tell him.

While I have been truly enjoying all the fun stories, photo's and facts about these people, most of my enjoyment comes from spending time and sharing a common interest with my daughter Kristin. We will continue searching and hopefully finding stories. We recently spent some time at the local library using Ancestry.com. I think we were both overwhelmed by all the information available, but anxious to check it out again..soon.

Lifeline

Life is a Patchwork of Friends.

I just completed, well almost completed this wallhanging. I still have to layer and quilt it. I received it as a Christmas present, already cut into pieces and ready to sew kit. What a wonderful way to get me kick started again to get sewing. The name of the wallhanging is called "Lifeline". (notice the zig zag rick rack "lifeline". This quilt reminds me that our Faith, family and friendships are our lifeline through almost anything, happy, sad, funny, or struggles, you just have to let them in. Thanks for the kit Mary Beth. The fabric is very special because MB chose it from the fabric stash of our dear friend Mary Therese B, She just keeps on giving and keeping us moving forward whether she is here physically with us or not. Yesterday Chelsee was looking at some of my fabric. She found my squirrel fabric and asked. Where did you get this, and why did you buy it?? lol. Well, I just told her the truth, it's Mary's fault, she sent me a "Mary Wink" and made me buy it. Mary and I always had a special squirrel joke..that just went on and on and on. Our Stitchin' group had lots of squirrels laughs because of it. So..moving forward, and keep lovin life. There will be something squirrely sewn in my future.

It's Scrap a lappin time!

I have found a new hobby. Scrapbooking & crafting with the Cricut machine. It is so amazing. I got one for my birthday this fall. Chelsee has made great use of the Cricut making Christmas gifts, and scrapbooking. She has made some beautiful designs and has a flair of putting just the right papers and designs together. I'm still a novice and it take me a lot longer to figure out what I am doing. But I am getting there. Daughters Amber & Kristin are enjoying this hobby also, and each have a Cricut machine of their own. When we get together for a scrapbooking day, the paper is flying! Great memories made together.

Christmas in the 70's

One year for Christmas I received this black leather fringed/beaded coat. It was amazing. It was made by a woman in Winnebago. I still remember going to her very small home and getting measured for it...and it still was too big for me! I loved wearing that fringe coat, and how it felt when I moved..the fringes and beads moving with me. I wish I still had it, but I gave it go a cousin of mine and her dog had an accident on it. My hair is longer than it appears in this picture...I also had "hot rollers" and did a curl job on my hair that really curled it a lot. Of course I am wearing denim fringed bell bottom jean..the most comfortable in the world!

Kaiya

Baby Kaiya showing off her sitting up tricks!

Hugs, and grins, and giggles is what this little sweetheart creates!

I think we are all hooked by her sweet face and smile!

Birthday Cake

Here is a picture of the birthday cake Chelsee made for me.

She did a basket weave around the side of the cake, and a "quilting meander" around the top. It was very pretty and tasty!

Well Hell

Uncle Ben

In our lives there seem to be people that leave their imprint on some of the simplest everyday things that we do. It's been quite a few years now that my Uncle Ben is gone. But every once in a while, when something goofy happens, I still hear his voice in my head saying "Well, Hell!" He had the right delivery for this phrase...and for some reason (even though I don't like swearing) I liked hearing him say that. Go figure. Above is a picture of Uncle Ben disembarking from his naval ship for the last time, and being saluted off. He ALWAYS had a story to tell, and was ready to help ANYONE who needed help. He did not judge people for their circumstances, and I know he loved all his nieces and nephews dearly, and we all loved him back. I always felt a special bond with him, he was my Godfather and always made me feel special. I love looking at pictures of him and hearing stories about him. We all have a favorite Uncle Ben story. My next few blogs will be some of those stories.

I just need to share and remember him. Maybe feeling a little nostalgic because we moved the loveseat that was Uncle Ben's to the family room in the basement , so it is no longer in the living room, and he would have said..."Well, Hell, you should have done that a long time ago!" Haha good one Uncle Ben.

Granddaughter, Daughter, Daughter, Daughter

A night of memories!

We spent a night from 5 -11p.m.

scrapbooking together at Archivers in Omaha

What a night.

My girls have so much creativity,

Looking at the pages they scrapbooked, we traveled back to many wonderful memories

Swimming Beach at Virginia Beach , VA

Airport in Omaha and Atlanta

MS" size=5>Las Vegas

Car trip to Washington DC

Baby pics

Sister photo's

Starting high school photo's

size=5>All scrapbooked in one night. wonderful

And Amber let us all use her new toy!

Which is going on one of my most wanted lists

5>the  Cricut...what a wonderful helpful machine for making letters and designs.  Makes scrapbooking a lot of fun.

Sweet Baby Face

Ok..so I admit it

I can't get enough of this Baby Face

So wonderful to see the reminder of Kaiya's mom Amber

in Kaiya's own sweet baby face.

Her smile just brings sheer joy to see

And now she coos, and the start of laughter!

Oh , the joy of it all.

And yes, she enjoys "church singing" as we found out last Sunday at Mass...with every song, she started to coo!

Sunrise, Sunset

This is a photograph of a sunrise that the wife of one of my cousins took. It is so beautiful! She said I could use it, but I do have to make her a refrigerator magnet with it. Great swap. I still have not come up with a saying or verse to go with it yet. So I need to put my thinking cap on. Whenever I see a beautiful picture like this, it makes me think of a line from a TV show from when my girls were little. My daughter Kristin loved the show ALF. Alf was an alien life form, living with a family in the good ole' USA. Anyway, he signed up for a checking account through the mail. And he ordered check blanks. When his checks came he said this in a disgruntled sounding voice...."I ordered Sunrise, they sent me Sunset". For some reason that line stuck with me all these years. The line makes me chuckle, but also makes me be more appreciative for what I do have, and not wishing those moments away for something else.