Afternoon Tea

Please join me for a pot of tea, and a bit of quiet companionship.

Until next time then, ponder your many Blessings, Sue

Pots......

I love words... I always have. I was born talking and I haven't stopped. Ask anyone that's around me. I also love to do word studies. This comes from my years of inductive bible study. I was thinking the other day about the situation that I have recently found myself in, due to the car accident I was in, at the beginning of summer. (Pain is not good.) I decided I would have a bit of fun with a word study. Not anything in depth but bear with me for a bit.......... Let us look at the word POT. or s, ing or whatever like I said we won't be getting technical. This picture is entitled "Flax looks into the Pot of Gold" it is an illustration from a book entitled The Pot of Gold and other short stories by Mary E Wilkins 1893. You can find it entirely online and it is a joy.

These of course are painters pots....

These Lobster Pots are made by Nigel Legge. A fisherman artist and traditional willow lobster pot maker. You can go to his website. He is a fellow artist and the beauty of his craft is evident.

It was a cool site to check out. www.lobsterpots.co.uk/boattrips.html

This of course is a flower pot and not to be out done by the following coffee pot.

There are even the Fountain Paint Pots in Yellowstone National Park to be considered.

There are chimney pots, the ones below are called chioggia.
A crock pot

Bean pot

Money pot.......a control pot, a Gimchi pot , melting pot and a stock pot.
You can sweeten the pot, or just go to pot.
You take a pot shot, have a pot belly or a pot of ale.
You could hit the jack pot, or know a crack pot.
Don't' forget Pooh's honey pot.

Theres the watched pot that never boils.
The hot pot of tea or The warm pot stew on the stove.

This last picture is my favorite. It is a pot being created on a potters wheel in Thailand.

I didn't do anything in depth and this was just for fun. Maybe you can come up with a few more. I did notice that not once could I find anything that even looked like a pity pot. That's reassuring since I'm not going there anyway. Thanks for all the well wishes and support.

I'll try to be on here more often.. leave comments.

Blessings, Sue Isaiah 64:8

Must be Summer..Sure is HOT!!!!!!!

Seth bought a new thermometer..... So now we can not only feel hot we can know EXACTLY how hot it is we are feeling. The top number tells us the time. The middle number is the temp. inside and the bottom is the temp outside. Pretty cool huh?!!!? Being a firefighter, the man is adamant about knowing the weather conditions. I love it. It makes things interesting/fun around here. I know your probably ready to see some yarn or some knitting but alas my hands and shoulders are still not doing that great. Soon though. Seth said that he misses seeing me spin... Man... If I could only tell ya how I miss spinning. I am knitting. Slower than usual but I am finished with clue 3 on the Mystery stole. I'm happy with it so far. Pictures later. I finished a baby sweater and some booties, but can't share pictures yet on here either.
I guess you'll just have to look at these beautiful strawberries I bought. I do love the produce that summer brings us.

This is a sunflower that came up from one of the seeds that got tossed out of the bird-feeder.

It always amazes me what can come of one little seed. God is truly AMAZING.

Our Little fat hen is alone no longer. We have added to the flock, actually we added an entire flock at once. We got eight little ones. Boy are they cute.

We got 3 Rhode Island Reds, 3 Buff Orpingtons, 2 I can't remember right now and oops 1 New Jersey Giant.

I don't have much else to write about. I start physical therapy soon and am hoping to get back to business soon after that. I'll keep everyone posted about that.

Till next time then, stay cool , drink lots of water and count your many Blessings, Sue

Its not easy being Green.........

Not today, not around here anyway. I have been noticing that my beautiful mint plant has been looking rather lacking in the leaf department the last week or so. And its been rather droopy..... Well look who I found..... munching away as fast as possible...... right in broad daylight...

And He was not alone. He had a guest. I'm sure there are more, the mint is disappearing fast.

Allison loves the show "Man verses Wild" (either the show or the guy on the show , either way).

I don't know much about it myself but the guy is always eating weird things, really weird things, so I told Allison to taste one of the worms to see if it tasted like mint. She wouldn't do it. Oh well. I guess I'll never know since the chicken can't tell me either. heeheehee.

It's gonna be a hard knock life for this dishcloth too. Being green and all. And living around here. This is that new stripy peaches and cream cotton blend. I picked it up at Joanns. I like it. Being a dyer myself I'm not to impressed with the dye job on this yarn but for the purpose of the finished product (dishcloth) its just fine. I wouldn't use it for a garment but I wouldn't use this particular yarn for that purpose anyway regardless of the dye job.

And since I'm going with the somewhat corny green theme tonight and since the muscle relaxers that are supposed to be helping my shoulders and neck, have finally proven that my brain is in fact my largest muscle and is starting to not only relax but nod off......... I'll show you my beautiful green Basil. Which I moved very quickly to the other side of the patio and checked closely to make sure that those voracious little monsters had not set up housekeeping in yet.

It tastes as lovely as it looks....

Goodnite then and Blessings, Sue

Perspective

The Snail

The snail wuz crossin' de road for seben years. Jus' as he got crost, a tree fell and jus' missed him. He said, "Gee! It's good to be fast."

African-American Folktale
Copied entirly from Outfoxing Fear, Folktales from around the world. edited by Kathleen Ragan

Still creeping along and sending Blessings, Sue

One Busy, Busy Week

Time flies when your busy as heck huh??? But what fun stuff I have to tell you about. First some not so pleasant stuff.
I haven't told to many people about this so the news is.. I was in a car accident on June 13th, the last day of school. A lady backed into me while I was driving Allison home from school. My car was pretty smashed up but Allison and I were fine ......... My car is now fixed by a very reputable company and back home. I was given a very nice rental car to drive the entire time. A 2007 Silver Mustang convertible, which I was VERY happy with. I did have some fun driving that thing around. You may have noticed, however that I haven't been showing you very much spinning and knitting lately and that is because..... My left shoulder was hurt during the accident. I thought it was going to get better but it's not, I have contacted the insurance company and they are going to cover all doctor stuff so I have to go get it checked. The problem is my hands are going numb. I can only knit a few rows and then my hands are asleep. BUMMER!! I'm afraid spinning is really hurtful sooooo on to better subjects...............
I still am making progress on my Mystery Stole 3. Slow as steady like a turtle. I'm finished with clue 3 and clue 5 comes out this next Friday. I have another 7 or 8 inches since the last photo. The thing about lace is that it just looks rather blobby until your finished and you block it. thats when it really shows its beauty. This is a pretty stole. I'm enjoying it. If you look really close you can see a brownish /green yarn going horizontally through the piece. This is called a "lifeline" It is just that. I used to think that they were just for wimps until I have had to rip out many rows, with many tears. Now I know that they are for good reason. Ripping out lace is especially difficult with the many stitch combinations etc.

I also found my sock hiding in the mint. See it back there... This is the sock yarn I dyed, and spun using the fractal stripe experiment. I'm excited to see what happens as the colors unfold, so to speak. I finally found some 5' dpn's locally, but I'll post about that later.

Let's see... Oh yes Lily graduated from puppy obedience school. Here she is with one of her fellow class mates, Zorie. Shes the Black Lab/Rott. on the bottom. This is during the break. Which with the puppies is pretty much all the time. We had a really great time at this class. We met some other really nice people who love their dogs as much as we do. And did I mention that Lily made some life long friends. We are going back for the second session. It makes for a great family night.

Ok now for the Saturday BBQ... This is a shot of our "before dinner, get the taste buds ready, cause the nose has been smellin the 'Q' for quite awhile now" appetizers. We had a wonder, relaxed, Saturday afternoon. It's been HOT here this week and decided to start cooling down just in time for Daddy's RDO. And true to form Daddy out-did himself again and made some of the best ribs.

No word needed... Just a YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM... will do!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the Broccoli Coleslaw that I make to go along with Ribs. Tookys favorite. The picture seems a little queasy but if you like coleslaw this is definitely worth a try. Unfortunately I'm a "thrower" when I cook so I'll try to give you the amounts as best I can.

Sue's Broccoli Coleslaw

3 or 4 soft ball size heads broccoli (chopped)

3 green onions (chopped)

4 or 5 pieces of bacon (fried crisp, and crumbled)

1/2 cup dried cranberries ( raisins are ok but cranberries are best)

1/2 to 3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese (grated)

Sauce

1/2 cup mayonnaise (NOT salad dressing)

1/8 cup sugar

1 TBS white vinegar

Whisk together all sauce ingredients and set aside. In a larger bowl, Chop and mix all ingredients. Combine and refrigerate at least an hour. Enjoy and God Bless. Any problems let me know.

Left overs of this salad are amazing but good luck with that. You may want to take a little bit out and hide it behind something in the fridge for the next day just to see what I mean.

I want to leave you with some the thoughts on perseverance. Or maybe sticking to your guns. or maybe just sticking up for your self or what you believe in or???????? You see this chicken, peacefully pecking the grass. Well she is the last of our little family of hens. We have had chickens for many, many years, since the girls were little. They have come in as chicks and well, honestly gone out as.. KFC for the coyotes that live around our neighborhood. (When children are little and moms are busy, putting the chickens "away"doesn't always mean the same thing to everyone)

This chicken is by far the most tenacious little thing I have ever seen. She has lived through all her coop mates demise and still comes off with grace and dignity. She came out unscathed in a viscous attack that left our oldest wiener dog (15) almost dead and bite marks on the other three ( we were on vacation). We didn't have Lily then.

She will have none of the 4 pestering wiener dogs that share her yard and does drink from their water bowl FIRST and even eats from their bowl while they stand BACK and watch. She rules the roost. I like her. I like to watch her peck around the yard. She seems not to give a darn what comes up, she just takes care of it at the time and keeps on pecking. She doesn't seem to hold a grudge, just slow and steady, peck... peck... peck. Then when she done she goes and finds a nice sunny spot and lays down. Hmmmmm either I need to socialize more or theres something to be learned here. Whatdaya think.

I have alot more to tell you. I found some cool places in San Diego to share with you but I gotta go now before my rear end adheres to this chair.

More sooner then later I hope, as I did figure out how to add links.... And as usual my prayers for you are Many blessings, Sue

Just Saturday Dreaming

I love hummingbirds. If you have known me very long you know they have a very special meaning for me. I also love fuchsias, well mainly because I know hummingbirds love them. I have always wanted to try growing some but we live inland and it gets a bit too hot in the summers usually. I found these yesterday and couldn't resist. They are miniature and the exact same colors as the ones I painted in in my watercolor " Jennifer's Hummingbird". Too cool. When I was little my mom had fuchsias. We lived in a coastal town in California called Morro Bay. My ornery sister and I used to pop the un-blossomed flowers. Funny the things you remember.............. hee hee hee snickle!! snickle!! I didn't plant any tomato's this year. Can't really say why. I do every year. Just didn't get around to it I guess. But.... Allison was out in the yard and unbeknown'st to me found a seedling that had popped up form a tomato that got a way from us last year.

She planted it in a pot and Daddy has been watering it.. We have a harvest. Reminds me of the parable about the mustard seed, in Matt. 13. A tiny seed can become so much given the care it needs. And tonight these little yellow orbs will nestle into a soft bed of green and red lettuce, sprinkled with just a bit of crumbled blue cheese and gently splashed with Italian dressing. Yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Oh and speaking of culinary delights..... Check this out! Wine? you ask Nooooooooo.... I have found a tea so delightful it can be a stand in for dessert itself. Its called Blueberry Breeze Green Tea by Celestial Seasonings. OH MY GOSH !!! I have a Mr Coffee Ice Tea Brewer. I make a pitcher using 4 teabags and 1/8 cup sugar. I add a sprig of mint for esthetics's and smell more than taste. Its is really good. Refreshing and addicting. Well if you like yummy teas. I'm very picky about what I drink and eat and well just about everything ( I HEARD THAT, GIRLS)

and this gets my oh yeah.

I leave you with more of God's wonderful abundance. These I'd like to say were fresh picked but no, just freshly washed and gobbled up. We still have some left for tonight and I may just have enough. to put into some homemade ice-cream. But that's another story........ Enjoy your day and week end with many Blessings, Sue

Hazy, Lazy, Crazy Daze of Summer........

So far it's been a great summer. This is what Iam blessed to begin my day with if I choose. I bring my cup of coffee out to the patio and begin with my devotions and Bible study. As long as the feeders are full... I have lots of company. These little house finches are fun to watch. This is a male, they bicker and argue and flitter around. We have plenty of feeders for everyone. I also have alot of goldfinches. They come later when things have settled down a bit.

This little dove comes every morning to clean up the mess from above. Theres actually a pair and they coo to each other. Quite endearing.

Oh yesssssss!!!!!!!!!!! Too bad you can't smell this one.. Hickory I believe...OH YEAH!!! This is the new BBQ we "all" got Daddy for Fathers day. He LOVES it. I LOVE it too. heeheh. Does it make you girls want to come home ?????????? Don't worry we'll fire it up when ya get here. I miss you so much.

Ok so what else is there to do when its soooooo HOT????HAHAHAHA This little poop isn't even supposed to be on the couch, neither is the one on the other end. But how can you resist such cuteness. Seriously we've been taking here to obedience classes. This is her 5th week. She really is a great dog. I'm not sure how obedient she is. Sometimes with her, Allison and Daddy here I feel like I have 3, 14 year olds to pester the living crud outta me.

The other evening it was very humid. One of the only really humid days so far. We really have had a mild summer. But this sky was so beautiful. This is out the front window. There was an enormous rainbow but by the time I grabbed the camera I just got the tail end of it. I thought you'd like it anyway.

Isn't is beautiful???.. NO words... Just pause.....

And for the grande finale....... I'm working on The Mystery Stole 3. A designer online has done this each year now for three years. I did it last year but wasn't blogging then. The design and pattern are a mystery. She releases a section of the pattern each week for 7 weeks and you knit along with other people. At the end she reveals the name of the stole and her thoughts about how it came to be. It's very fun. There is an online group that you can talk to or not. Very friendly helpful people. This year there are over 6500 people from all over the world participating. I'm just finished with clue 1 and shes releasing clue 4 this Friday. I waited a couple of weeks to see if I wanted to make it and decided definitely yes. Its beautiful and very fun to knit.

She has other patterns for sale on her blog if your interested. Her name is Melanie and her blog is Pinklemontwist. I don't know how to add links yet.

Half the fun is trying to guess the theme of the stole. Any thoughts?

It's not really crooked . I didn't by any means try to block it. I'm also working on a baby sweater for a good friend of my daughters but can't show it in case she peeks on here. Lots of other stuff to tell you but I'll wait for another day. I wanted to take some pictures of some special stuff but my batteries died. soooooooo next time..

Until then Many, many Blessings Sue

I Guess it HAS been awhile

OK, I'm Back...... Sometimes life goes by fast.
Alot has happened.
New points of view.
Good stuff.......... I'll share I promise.
Blessings, Sue

My Knight in Shining Armor

Last January or so we were able to be chaperone's for a field trip for A's class to a place called "Medieval Times" in Anaheim California. Right next to Disneyland for those of you who are more familiar with that. This place is fun. For girls and boys in very different ways. It has on display a lot of Knightly things. Swords, shields. Alot of Homeschoolers come for history (which we happen to be.) You enter a big arena and sit around the outside. They serve you a 1/2 chicken, a potato, and a sting cheese with a bottled water. It smells like horse. I'm sorry the romance was a bit not there at the moment its coming....... The arena is divided into colored sections for which you get to cheer on your Knight of the same color. Ours was the Yellow knight who just happened to be the cutest one of course. They have jousting and a whole program they perform. It's really fun. After each tournament the knight that "wins" is presented to the queen and given carnations, which he in turn takes to his admiring fans and with a kiss to the flower, he then throws it to the girls who need I say are swooning and SCREAMING to get a carnation. This guy was loving it.
In this photo you can see the King and Queen up in the upper left hand corner. It was all pageantry and very, very cool. these actors are amazing horsemen and very good performers. You can also see the stadium like seating in the background.

It was hard to take pictures. There was alot going on and it was very dark in there. And loud, lots of screaming and laughing. I really enjoyed it. I enjoyed watching the girls. I enjoyed watching the boys. It was quite different. And gladly so. That's why it is what it is.........

I like the differences. I'm a mom to girls. I don't get to see the boy side of things to often and it was refreshing. But now on to the reason................ I truly believe that deep in our hearts, sometimes hidden VERY deeply, there was or is, the hope of that knight in shining armor, that handsome prince, that really buffed out guy, who is going to come and see us in a whole room of other people and see only us, the true us, way down deep and we will be saved from whatever it is, and we will be carried away on the back of his horse , or motorcycle, or firetruck hahaha and rescued and live happily ever after. I saw it... In those girls faces as they screamed for the carnation ,kissed by the knight. I saw a gleam in the eyes of the boys who were thinking they could be " that guy" and have all these stupid girls acting like this over them. I saw the way those same boys looked intensely at the swords and shields.

And sadly I saw as we left the arena those same boys and girls, take off their paper crowns, and pull out their cell phones. But it's ok. it's there. I believe it. I know it....... Because.............

Today is my 26th wedding anniversary. And My Knight in Shining Armor did rescue me. I remember right before I met Seth, someone took great pleasure in telling me that they thought I was being too picky, that there were no knights in shining armor on a white horse and I remember saying that I would wait anyway.. I did...... And He came......

So lest you think I live in a total fantasy land. I don't. I will tell you that it's been a good life for me. Seth is an amazing husband. He is my best friend. We have been through alot together and grown closer through it all. He is an example of what Godly husband should be. As a father he is at the top. You have only to meet his daughters to see the example he has been in their lives. I am looking forward to to spending the rest of my life with this guy. I honestly can't get enough of him.

A good marriage is ALOT of work, from both of you. My grama told me give 90% and keep 10% for yourself. It seems to have worked really well so far. Don't go to bed mad. Keep the Lord the center of everything.

Hope this wasn't too long....... Blessings Sue