COUNTRY KATIE AND ALWAYS DAISY MAE, BUT ALSO HEMINGWAY, VINCENT vG AND MR. MOLESLEY....

Why is it that sometimes a certain dog just touches your life so deeply like my Daisy Mae Foxhound or as a friend called her, Daisy Dog, did touch mine and others?  Maybe it was her intelligence and kindnesses,  or her devotion to me, protection and love.  I don't know, but I still have pictures on my dresser of her and think of her often, recalling our times of "glamping" and long walks, talking together.

When I say talking together, yes I mean just that.  She had a way of looking at me that was like she was giving me an answer.  Protecting me when a loose dog at the campgrounds came after me and not her.  She was behind me on her leash as she was afraid of this Australian Shepherd.  When the dog charge toward me, well, she came out from behind and in front of me, with hair on her back up, and teeth showing, growling and barking at the dog.  It was then that the lady who owned this dog came from her campground to get him.  She said she was sorry and that we almost had a bad dog fight...hee hee hee.  I just looked shocked at her as she took no responsibility as many don't for their dogs.  I just said "the rules are that you are to have your dog tied in the campsite or on a leash when walking."   Enough said and I left.  In it all I was so amazed at my nice lady Daisy Mae Foxhound.  She protected me and then went right back to being who she usually was.  On our way back to our campsite we stopped at the gatekeepers to report the situation to them, and Daisy did her usual greeting of putting her paws up on the shelf by their window and wagging, waiting for her treat from them.  What a see dog.

Now with all those memories, I must say, I am smitten with my three little dogs, Hemingway, a Yorkie mix and Vincent a Maltese/Poodle, and Mr. Molesley, an Italian Greyhound.  They are smart, loving, fun, funny, and happy.  They each have different personalities and temperment.  They each have a special place in my heart.

So it is true some certain dogs are special, but now I believe each dog is special if you give then an opportunity.  All of these dogs are from our local Humane Society.  I suggest if you need a good friend, a companion, a protector, go visit your local Humane Shelter and let them, one of those special dogs, choose you to be their mom or dad.  They will love you for it.

 Mr. Molesley

 Hemingway

Vincent vG

Renewed Friendships

Most people take friendships serious and important.  Well, some people do anyway.  Some others call everyone that smiles at them a friend.  But, I am speaking about real friendship.  Someone that cares, tells you when you are thinking correctly and when you are thinking right.  Someone who stands by you through thick and thin.  I have had several good friends like that in my almost 70 years and feel blessed for it.

Today I found out I had another such person.  About two years ago I called it quits on an agency I liked going to because of so much drama with staff and always wanted to share and talk to me about it each time I went there.  They played people against each other and I was just tired.  Instead of telling them so, I just stopped going there.  That was not the best or correct thing to do.  It hurt me and also the leader of the place who was and did consider me a friend.  Although at times she made mistakes also and did not speak or treat me as such either.  But today I decided I wanted to go back there and use this agency.  So I walked in, and right away, out of the elevator door was my friend.  I asked her if we could talk a bit, and she was happy.  She listened, and she talked also.  She was so glad that I was back.  She was also glad that I am the person that I am and will come back and correct things and always work toward the right things.  I was proud of her and she was proud of me.  We see our good and not so good qualities, but admit that we actually both have good character.

It was a wonderful day for this country woman and this city woman to get things established as friends should do.  We laughed at how we let people who gossip, like drama and cause trouble to harm our relationship.  We also noted that they are no longer at this agency, but that I am back and she is still there.  We also noted that there will always be people who like to cause trouble, but we are ready and will protect our relationship from now on.  Now that is having a friend.  I am glad to have her and she is glad to have me.

If you have friends like that, count them a blessings and cherish your times with them.  Life is short so fix relationships and move forward.

A note, I have some relationships in my life that I could not fix, but another good friend told me that it really is not my job to fix them, but to not allow them to steal my joy.

That is good advice I think.  Enjoy.

PAINTING

Today I was able to take some time and paint, with acrylics from my grandson, Easter cards.  It was relaxing and fun.  I did six and then stamped my name on the back, wrote inside and addressed the envelopes.  I was done in time to walk them out to my country mail box at the end of my gravel driveway.

With all the fun it was, I had to laugh as I cleaned up, because in the studio sink, as I washed the brushes and pallet, I could see a lovely rainbow.  Yes, in my sink.  Now I know I am creative and enjoy things like pictures in the clouds, but just laughed at my pretty sink rainbow.  I will always look for them again as I clean up after painting.

Do any of you enjoy painting as I do?  I mainly do oils and  have been working on birds.  I have usually done flowers, especially sunflowers, some of my favorite.  I have a nice collection of paintings in our one bathroom.  Birds are a bit harder for me, but each one I do I see improvement.  An artist friend in Wisconsin has encouraged me to keep working on them.  So my next bird project is from a photo I took of my son's red-tail hawk.  He is one of the about 90 licensed falconers in the state of Missouri.  It will be a nice project and also make a good gift to him.  

If you paint, draw, quilt, knit, crochet, etc., I want to encourage you to keep at it and enjoy creating your own patterns and ideas.  Design things for yourself.  You can do it.  And the more you do, the improvement will be seen by you and make you proud.  Have fun with it, and also....look for that rainbow in your sink.

WAITING NOW

People all over are waiting for spring, but this country lady enjoys time to complete some projects inside before being outside during the spring and summer.  However, I would like to see more sunshine even if I am inside.  These gloomy days remind me of when I lived in Indiana some years ago.  My friend and husband had moved that direction with our family as we needed work and that is where the engineering jobs took us.  She loved the gloomy days as she said they reminded her of Yugaslavia, where they were from.  After living in Colorado, it was just too gloomy as Colorado is such a sunny state.

However Missouri changes a lot from day to day so I know that spring in on the way and so is the sunshine.  I told my three little four-legged sons today that soon it would be warm and sunny and they would want to be outside all the time.  They just wagged.  They like to have me talk with them, no matter what I say unless it is "eat, walk, see, look, who is here, bedtime or bathtime".

So as I rest today, play on my computer and drink hot cocoa, with dogs on my lap and chair next to me, I enjoy some down time.  I, as a country person, know that once spring really arrives, it gets busy.  The farm people have tractors ready.  We have lawn mowers and tillers ready for our yard stuff.  I even have seeds purchased and pots in the screen porch to plant flowers in as soon as I can.  My little mini veggie garden, table garden, salad garden, or as I call it, the flag pole garden, is tilled and ready to go also.  My compose from the year is tilled in to make the ground richer and looser also.  

Am I anxious for spring, yes, waiting, but keeping busy with quilting, knitting, crocheting, etc.  in the mean time.  Just maybe I will get off of here and take a nap.

COUNTRY GOES TO TOWN 

Sometimes I do have to head to town, and sometimes I just want to.  I usually am home all week and enjoy it, but on Saturday, especially on a rainy day, I head out to Hannibal, nearest big town, 18,000 people or to Quincy, Illinois, about 50,000 people.  Both places are nice to visit but still will take my country home over any of it.  

Today was a Hannibal, Missouri type day.  So my husband decided to go with me.  We went down town to little shops like Stam Chocolate store....delicious is all I can say.  Next we stopped at Java Jive, his coffee shop hangout a few times a week with the guys.  I used to go there once a week for my knitting circle, but then decided with my not so social side, that I can enjoy knitting at home better, in my pjs and with my dogs.  We also hit Mike's Cheese Haus.  He is a friend from Wisconsin and runs a nice little shop that serves and sells beer, wine, cheeses and meats.  Most of the cheese and meat is from Wisconsin which I like.  I also like his Wisconsin accent.  I seem to have lost lots of mine from all the places I have lived, but can pick it right up again the longer I speak with Mike.

After all this excitement, we went to Country Kitchen for lunch and a good visit with the owners, Sue and then Kevin both came to the table and chatted for some time.  It is always nice to see them.  They are also farmer neighbors down the country road we live on. Onward then to drop off donations at Good Will before heading to WalMart to say hello to our grandson who works there, and also do a little shopping.

The big purchase was an air fryer so now I have something to learn and play with while making better and healthier fries and chips, meats also.  This one actually does more, it dehydrates, and has a rotissourie.  I am looking forward to making some chips tomorrow.  

Wow, enough country woman going to town for awhile.  I told my dogs that I promised to stay home all week again.  They just wag, their way to smile, accept for Vincent the Maltese/Poodle mix who actually does smile when I speak to him or maybe he is showing his teeth to tell me that he will not listen to me like a defiant teen because he is two or fourteen in people years.

Oh, it is so good to be home in the quiet country and have my pjs on and my little dogs around me, smiling or not.

   Country Lady Cooking

Today was another day of cooking and baking for this country woman.  I really enjoy doing this.  I especially appreciate my nice baking supplies, cookware, and stove....with a proof oven setting.  It is a LG model, electric with glass top stove.  The oven is blue in color and also works as a convection oven. 

With all that sales work for this great oven, I have to get back to what I wanted to write, which is taking my sour dough recipe from King Arthur Flour, and using it to make some wonderful cinnamon rolls today.  I let the dough rise as needed and the second time out, I rolled it out, put in sugar, cinnamon, raisins, dried cranberries and walnuts plus butter.  I rolled it up , cut them, and placed them in a large baking pan so I could allow them to have a rising time again of about 1 hour.  After baking, I cooked them and frosted them with simple butter/powdered sugar frosting.

These turned out so good and were a great use of my sour dough starter which I enjoy making.  Then for dinner I made beef/potato/carrot pasties with a great gravy.  I have made them before and we enjoy them.  We always have leftovers for another day.  This is a good old recipe.  Pasties were made and used by miners and lumberjacks for years as lunch pail sandwich food.  Check out recipes and enjoy.

WATCHING....

Today I am enjoying watching the young people of our country taking action and charge of a great movement to hopefully progress on gun control.   It is good to see them challenge the norm.  It reminds me of this country woman who so many years ago as a country girl, got involved in picketing and protesting during her high school years.  Oh, those 60's had lots to not stand with for sure, but today also does.  So proud of these young people who are standing up and speaking out.  You don't have to agree with them, but you still can be proud of the fact that they are having a voice especially when many older people just sit and do nothing.