I'm Such a Hoer

Our garden is full of



big beautiful squash plants



with pretty yellow blooms



green beans



and weeds. We have been hoeing & tilling daily to attempt to keep them out. I've worked so hard I broke my hoe. I thought maybe I wouldn't have to use it anymore, but Behm fixed that. He bought 3 more at an auction Saturday. I guess I'm back in business.

Pickled Beets

Sunday was a learning experience for me. I pickled beets! Daddy got Grammy's recipe from Neenie. Thanks Daddy & Neenie!

Beets fresh picked in my basket I bought at a garage sale for $1.00. Can't have a garden without a wooden basket can you?

Tops chopped off, washed & waiting to be cooked.



Finished product!



They were really easy to do & I hope they are good. I have to wait a week before I can taste them.

Lessons learned:

1. Next year we need to plant more beets. 3 pints weren't quite enough, but I'm glad that was all there were for the first time.
2. Pickling salt is hard to find in a small town. I read if you used regular salt, it would make them cloudy.
3. Patience. Waiting for water to boil was a test of my patience.
4. Thin plants, so the beets will grow bigger.
5. A jar lifter is a wonderful utensil! I don't know how I've lived this long & never used one. It might be because I've never canned or made jelly or pickles.
6. Fresh cooked beets are good even before pickling them. Sonya, I might have to try them on a salad. Gourmet red neck mama.
7. I never knew canning could be such fun.

I hope Grammy approved of my method.

Bugs in the Garden

Gardening may be hazardous to my health. The buffalo gnats and/or mosquitoes really like me. I used spray & had on a long sleeve shirt. I am covered in bites from the collar up. I bought some anti-itch cream today, so maybe I won't get up in the middle of the night & take a bath like I did last night. Behm said he thought I had forgotten to put make-up on the other eye.

Memorial Day

Small communities have annual cemetery decoration days. I have always thought this was an important time to remember and honor those that have gone before us. Whether it be family or unknown people who have given their lives so that we can live the type of life we live now, today on this Memorial Day remember those that have touched our lives in some way.

Perfect Vacation Site

Summer is near and gas prices are going up. Wondering what to do on vacation? Just stay at the gas station.



Actually the camper is for sale & the gas station is no longer in business, but it gave me something to post about!

Lighting the Way

Continuing my tour of the courthouse, we're going to shed a little light on the subject. Look up!





Hallway lights on the 4th floor. This floor is unused except for storage and as you can see there is a huge hole that needs to be repaired.






District courtroom lights.



Detail on district courtroom light.



Light covering outside front door.

The next time you are in an older building, look up & maybe you'll see some great light fixtures or maybe just boring fluorescent lights. No loss, you stretched those neck muscles a little bit & it might help that pain in the neck you have...if he looks up too.

Recipe Search

I need your help. I'm looking for pickled beets recipes. It needs to be easy, I have no experience in "putting up" vegetables. I know Sonya fixes beets, but I don't know how. Grammy used to make pickled beets all the time, but I don't have her recipe. Any family member have it & will share?

I think that this weekend will be pickled beet weekend! Wish me luck!

Jack County Patterns

My life is filled with patterns at work. Here are a few:



Ceiling tile in courtroom.



Metal floor mat outside.




Grate covering radiator in hallway.



Hallway of third floor.

These patterns have stayed the same since the courthouse was built in 1939. Our courthouse isn't the prettiest on the outside, but there are lots of little things that make it special. Stay tuned for more!

Life Lesson #576

I saw this mushroom/toadstool and thought it would be a good picture to put on the blog. Yep, kinda boring & ugly! Not exactly what I had in mind.

Look at the difference another way of looking at things made.



Now it's a more interesting & pretty shot.

Life lesson #576: Take a look at all the possibilities life has to offer. Sometimes something boring can be interesting, if you just change the way you view things.

Going Green in Texas

Everything is green & growing in Texas. The bluebonnets are slowly fading away, but I don't remember them lasting this long before. Lots of grass for the cattle to eat and lots of grass to mow. Mama & I were talking yesterday and we're trying to come up with something that will make the grass grow in the cattle pastures, but not enough to mow in our yards. Any suggestions?

Speedy T. Roadrunner

I'm up & running again. I went to the Dr. Friday & sure enough I have the flu. I probably wouldn't have gone except the swine flu scare had me scared. I feel much better today.

The doctor did a throat & nose culture, but I don't know the results yet. I had never had one done & it is really not something I'm looking forward to doing again. You can just call me a big baby!

I think I have turned this into a bird-watcher's blog. Speedy T. Roadrunner has been darting around the shop the past few days. Behm saw him out in the garden one day. The garden has also been visited by deer. Some of their tracks are pretty close to the plants, but so far they haven't snacked on any.

We now have squash, tomatoes, & I finally talked Behm into digging up a few potatoes. Dinner tomorrow night will be home-grown. Can't wait!

Speedy isn't the only one darting around. I have jumped from one thing to another. Better get off here before I spill my guts about all our family secrets!

Woodrow Woodpecker

This woodpecker likes our utility pole. I love to watch Woodrow climb up & down the pole & I wonder what upsets him so much that he has to bang his beak against a hard object. Could it be air traffic jams, another bird taking his perch, or is he just a frustrated drummer? Does he get headaches from all that banging & what does he take to ease them if he does?

Look Closer

I went to a garage sale Saturday & while I was sitting in the parking lot talking to Mama on the phone, a pickup pulled up next to me. The woman got out & left her dog in the pickup. He looked so sad & pitiful I had to take a picture.



The entire time I was talking to Mama I noticed this dog never moved from that spot. I finally realized it was a stuffed animal! I think I need to get my glasses changed! Just another goofy moment in my life.

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope your day is filled with sunshine



and flowers.



If it isn't I give you permission to be a little



Seriously I want to thank all the Mothers in my life:

Mama for being a great role model for me.

Sandi & Sonya for making my job of being a Mom easy and for being great mothers to my grandkids.

Behm's mother for raising a great guy.

Kerri for being a great mother to my grandkids.

My grandmothers for setting examples for all of us.

I love you all very much! Have a Happy Mother's Day!

Zazzle

Just found this site & am going to try it! I have one card on there now. Go check it out!

See my gallery at Zazzle

Grandma's Clock

I've always been fascinated with this clock. I don't know if it is the light behind the fireplace that makes it appear to have a fire burning or the books with tiny baby shoes as bookends on the mantel that I love more.

This clock was Grandma Kinney's and it's been around since I was a little girl (which was a long time ago). Now I am the proud keeper of this clock. It makes me smile every time I see it, but looking at this picture I think "Man, I need to clean that thing!".

Garden Update

Our garden is really growing. It is still too wet to walk around in, but from the edges you can see the plants getting taller. Some of the beans have runners, the tomatoes have lots of blooms, and the weeds are growing. It needs a little sun so we can attack the weeds and bugs and see if there are tomatoes along with the blooms. Rain is in the forecast for today. Maybe a little sun will pop through anyway.

Pain in the *** Back

This is the way I've been getting around the last few days. I woke up Saturday morning with leg cramps, later had stomach cramps, & then it moved into my back & will not move out. I'm staying home from work today to see if it will go away with rest.

Why is it when you aren't feeling well you see everything that needs to be cleaned and when you do feel okay you don't do anything about it? Is it just me or is everybody that way?

Same Place, Different Conditions

This was April 13, 2009 after the fires that swept through Jack County.



A little bit further up the road on April 30, 2009 after the rains swept through the night before.




God blessed us with over 8 inches of rain on Wednesday. I'm not sure exactly how much over because our rain gauge has a crack in it & it doesn't hold water very long.

I actually have 3 rain gauges hiding somewhere in my house. Why don't I replace the broken one you ask? It makes it more exciting to guess how much rain we actually received!