News From The Nest

Another Week

Last Sunday, Mom and I went to Cincinnati's Playhouse in the Park and saw Erma Bombeck: At Wit's End. It was great and what a nice facility! It was our first time going and we really enjoyed it. We had lunch before the show and then moved into the theater. It was a small and cozy area and we had great seats - front row on the corner of the stage. I didn't realize until moving here that Erma was from Dayton, Ohio. 

Of course, our visit wouldn't have been complete without a picture with Erma!

We've had a lot of rain this week - remnants or tail-end of Tropical Storm, Cindy. I love it when it rains because it means I don't have to water the garden that day. I swear I can water for hours and not get the results that a fifteen minute rain does. My gardens are going wild and the flowers are blooming like crazy! 

I took the picture to the right standing behind my Conefower Maximus. The first year I planted this, it had one bloom. This year, it has three. The stems are almost as tall as I am! 

Today, Andy and I took our old pontoon boat out on the lake for a morning ride-about. It was an absolutely gorgeous 74 degree morning. I usually knit while we ride but it was just too windy today to do anything be sit there and enjoy the ride. We had company on the water as we came back in. This flock(there were at least two dozen birds) of Canada Geese that included eight babies, almost swam right up to the boat. They thought it was a wonderful day for an outing, too!

Tomorrow, it's back to the grind and then a 4-day weekend next week for July 4th! Definitely looking forward to that! Any of you have special plans for the 4th?

Father's Day

Today is Father's Day! I've been fortunate to celebrate 59 of these special days with my wonderful daddy. This man has been an exceptional role model of what a father should be. From picnics at Pumpkin Creek and letting me dance with him while standing on his toes to packing up and moving from Virginia to Ohio to be closer to me, this man has shown me what to expect in a father.  

I've had wonderful "fathers" in my life. In addition to my own daddy, I was fortunate to have my two grandfathers in my life until they were in their 80's and 90's. Now, I watch as our two sons (son Taylor with grandson, Landen, pictured above and both sons, Brian and Taylor to the left) walk through this role.
They are such great hands-on fathers. Good men.

Today, I celebrate all these guys in my life, as well as, sending a shout-out to fathers everywhere!

Happy Father's Day!!

Happy Blogiversary and Welcome Back!

On June 16th, this blog turned 11 years old! That is so hard to believe! There's been a lot of water under the bridge in 11 years. I've also sorely neglected my blog in the past year and am going to try to remedy that. I work at the computer all day and operate mostly off of my phone and iPad during my off hours. It's been months since I even turned my laptop on. This needs to change! I miss my online journal and can hardly believe it's been a year since the last post!

A lot has happened in the past year and then nothing much has changed. One thing has changed since I last posted - there is less of me! I have lost 50+ lbs. since July 2016. It's truly a journey and I have more to lose so stay tuned!

The grandchildren are growing like weeds and are now 6, 5, 3 and 2. The oldest two just finished their their first years in school - kindergarten. One family still lives in Virginia and the other in South Carolina (Rachael, Taylor, Raleigh, and Landen pictured to the left). We don't get to see them as often as we would like but did thoroughly enjoy when ALL of them came to Ohio last Thanksgiving. It was absolutely wonderful having them everyone here under the same roof and watching the grandchildren interact with
one another.

I recently spent a weekend in West Virginia at Hawk's Nest State Park with my friend Nicole from Virginia. The weather could not have been better. Perfect for spending our time outside hiking and exploring.

We went on the Bridge Walk and it was awesome! We were harnessed and tethered to the underside of the arched bridge and walked the length of the bridge 856 feet up in the air. These pictures were taken from the Bridge Walk. The one of the rafters was taken by really zooming in. We watched from our perch as the rafts and kayaks floated down the New River and through the rapids.  

At one point in our walk, we spotted one of the Peregrine Falcons that lives under the bridge. According to our guide, they were having a terrible pigeon problem under the bridge so brought in a pair of Peregrine Falcons and settled them near the bridge on a rock outcropping. The pair favored the bridge and began nesting / living there. It worked - they have no more pigeon problem! 

We also rode the tram from the lodge down into the New River Gorge and toured the river on a jet boat. We got a good look at the bridge that we had walked the length of high up in the air!

On our way to dinner one night, we passed this waterfall and had to turn around and investigate. It was beautiful!

Another nice hike was Long Point. This hike was about 3 miles round-trip and took us to a rock outcropping that faced the bridge from the opposite direction than the picture above.

West Virginia definitely lived up to its description - Wild and Wonderful!

We've had several days of good rains this week and my gardens are going nuts! It's so funny that I can stand out there and water for hours and just 15 minutes or so of "heaven's tears" makes by plants/flowers soooo much happier. 

The two raised beds this year have all vegetables and no herbs. One bed has yellow squash, zucchini, honey nut squash, cucumbers, and spaghetti squash. The other has six different kinds of tomatoes. I love all these vegetables but I don't can and they all seem to get ready at the same time! There are a few yellow squash, zucchinis, and cucumbers that are just about ready to pick.

The flower beds are flourishing! The coneflowers look better this year than they ever have. I planted my herbs in the flower beds so I could have more room in the raised beds for vegetables. 

I continue to make soap and knit every chance I get. I'm currently working on several projects (of course!) - a baby blanket, several shawls, a cowl, etc. 

I recently obtained my first passport and I'm headed on an Alaskan cruise in August!!!!! I can hardly wait. I am not well-traveled at all so this will be a huge treat! This will be a knitting cruise through Craft Cruises with classes offered by two teachers. I'm signed up for Orenburg Lace classes with Galina Khmeleva and am so excited!! Three of my knitting friends are going, also. I hope Alaska is ready for us!

Something big might change by the end of the year - I may retire!!!!!!! We need to do more figuring to make sure everything that looks good on paper can sustain us for the next 30 years (if we live that long). Also, super duper excited about this as it will give me more time to spend with Mom and Daddy, the children and grandchildren, and pay more attention to my soap business. I always thought I'd have to work up to lunchtime the day of my funeral but maybe not!

Please come back and visit as I try to get this blog rolling again! And, as always - thanks for reading!