Occasionally, when I sit down

 in the living room and sit for any length of time, say five or ten minutes, instead of resting, my eyes focus on the dusty old bottle collection, the deer mounts with cobwebs linking them together, maybe a tuft of white dog hair under the coffee table, or the dusty tail feathers of a turkey. But a day or so ago while in the living room, something beautiful caught my eye...

The Bobcat! I haven't told you about the Bobcat! It was over a year ago, our "soon to be new neighbor" Steve was on his way out and got just a few feet from turning into our dirt path and saw this Bobcat that had been hit and killed by a car...

Of course, Steve stopped to tell Poppy about it and the two of them went back to move the cat out of the road. The cat was just too beautiful to leave lying there so Poppy decided to have it mounted. We waited a full year for the taxidermist to finish. He said it was the largest Bobcat he has seen in this area, and it's a female!

This is the day Poppy brought it home in the truck...

We were curious to see what Eli and Ellie would think of a big, strange cat in the living room...

Eli went right up; Ellie growled a little but then the cat is looking straight at her. :) 

I was just so sad and heartbroken that such a beautiful animal had to die this way but glad she is here with us now and not left on the side of the road. 

Who knew we had cats this size in our woods!! I mean, I've been all in these woods around our house, by myself!! They say Bobcats are rarely seen but driving home from town a few days ago, one that looked a lot like this one ran across the road in front of my car, and in the same place this one was hit! Scared me to death! 

Sorry to have gone on and on. Want to show you this vine, growing on the garden fence...

So as mama used to say, it volunteered and came up. All this time waiting for pink or blue morning glories to open and what?? We have a mass of tiny red blooms...

Anyone know what this is?

One more thing and I will hush and go away...it's the beauty berry bushes I planted a few years ago. Look how they've grown!!

I wanted a hedge along the side road to block the view. Now I can work in the garden and not be seen. :)

Never in a million years did I think these bushes would grow this big and be so pretty. Don't know how I got one white mixed in. 

Okay, I have certainly overstayed my welcome. Thank you for visiting. Hope my posting about the Bobcat is acceptable and doesn't make anyone feel bad. 

Love, Henny

 

Not much of a post...

walking past the garden again and Poppy asks, didn't you just take a picture yesterday...

well, I did and will probably take another one tomorrow.  :)

Hey friends. I am starting a post with absolutely nothing interesting to talk about except maybe the weather. According to our weatherman, we have just been through the hottest June, and hottest July on record.

Then August, normally out hottest most humid month, comes in followed by a cold front and we have enjoyed almost a week of wonderful cooler weather with temps in the 60s and 70s. 

Smokey has been stretched out on our raggedy old back steps...

Gosh, I didn't realize how badly these steps and screen door need painting. Another job added to my list...the list that keeps growing with very little getting checked off. When I think of all the work, I used to get done around here...

Anyhow, a few weeks ago Poppy said, wonder if there is a recipe for "raspberry pie"?? Well, I found a recipe, tried it...

and we have eaten a raspberry pie a week ever since. It is absolutely delicious, (got to have whipped cream), and wouldn't you think, good for you?? Best of all, easy to make. Here's the recipe...

1 c. sugar, 3 T. cornstarch, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 c. water, 4 c. raspberries, 1 T. butter

Over medium heat stirring constantly, bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Add butter. Cool then pour into baked pie crust. Refrigerate.

I am ashamed to say that I cannot make my own piecrusts. and at my age!! The one in the picture was a little Pillsbury frozen crust. My favorite though is this one...

to unroll and place in my glass pie dish. Looks much better, kind of like a homemade. :(  One more thing, Food Lion puts their store brand frozen raspberries on sale 2 for $6.00. One bag makes this pie. 

Poppy came in the other day saying I brought you a flower...

awww, well actually, it was stuck to my boot, he said. Have you ever seen such a tiny flower?

Hope you will visit again, if you've made it this far. I do appreciate you all.  

I will end this mess with little Miss Violet, trying on a new dress...

Love, Henny

Special note to Darlene...I am so sorry for not seeing your comment sooner. Please see my reply. :)

Anybody remember ...

my ball of string?? I started saving the string off every bag of feed we opened starting back in 1989, well, it was probably 1990 before we actually got chickens, and the pretty black sheep Poppy brought home for me to love and care for...

The ball has grown so big I can hardly hold it, making the string hard to wrap.

My neighbor gave me a large mouth jar to keep it from rolling away. :)   "important stuff"...

I finally got around to making myself an apron. It's a cross-back and made from Holly Hobbie fabric...

and the back...

Since I've enjoyed wearing my long pantaloons lately, I figured a tee shirt, and apron would do the outfit up right. Believe it or not, these pantaloons I make with the wide legs and elastic waist are much cooler to wear than jeans in this extremely hot weather. 

and, if you're wondering where the Holly Hobbie fabric came from, well, Cousin Patty! She had yards and yards stored away. I was tickled to death to get it. I've made bags, ladies' aprons, and girl's aprons and now one for myself. Thank you, Patty.

and do you remember this...

The date on this pattern is 1973 and I found it in a thrift store a few years back. One of these days I might try and make the doll. My oldest daughter Lynn was 10 years old in 1973. Gosh! How time flies. Back then the little girls loved Holly Hobbie and now I love her. :)

Okay, more important stuff to show you...

Have you ever seen a prettier ear of corn!! (I'm kidding). This grew on a stalk of my beautiful Hickory Cane Corn! I'm just so tickled. And, it's just like Rose said...the shucks are so tightly wrapped at the top no bugs or worms can damage the corn. Hickory Cane Corn was grown for animal feed and for cornmeal, grits, etc. but can be roasted and eaten while tender and young. :)  Thank you, Rose.

I made a little video of my beautiful Hickory Cane Corn blowing in the breeze yesterday. I love the sounds too but didn't mean to go a little over one minute. If I sound proud, well, I've never been able to grow corn. Just think of all the decorating I can do with these stalks this fall!! :)

Well, once again I have talked your ears off and gone on and on about stuff. Thank you if you are still here.

This little green frog was about to move in with us, so we sat him in the birdbath just outside the front door...

Love, Henny   

"Even the best laid plans

of mice and men often go awry". :)

Yes, they do! My intentions were to post once a week.  Anyhow, busy this morning with my usual jobs, the words, "even the best laid plans", kept going through my mind. Where did this come from? So, I Googled it. Awww, the poem, "To a Mouse", by Robert Burns. I sat and read the poem. 

Oh my, now I could get into some mouse stories. I've done a couple posts way back about tiny mice and my struggle to save their tiny lives. 

image borrowed from the computer

 

Maybe later. :) Friends, I am not believing, (forgive me for bragging) how pretty the teeny tiny garden is. Thank you Rose for your suggesting the old timey corn...the corn stalks are tall, some already 10' and still growing...

It's so much fun to watch everything grow and thrive. Last year the bell peppers and eggplants and even the tomatoes were such a disappointment. This year everything is doing well, and the one squash plant...

Well, you can see Poppy's arm, how small it appears compared to the plant. So far, we've gathered 22 squashes, there are 5 more almost ready to pick, and still many tiny ones coming on...one squash plant!!

Back to the corn, we found a tiny ear of corn coming on. Hickory Cane Corn grows only 2 ears per stalk...

How cute! Pink tassels for hair and see the huge cornfield bean vines winding up the huge stalks...so exciting!

And look what I found in the shade beneath the corn, a kitty cat...

 The next prettiest thing growing in the garden is the one Cone Flower...

All these blooms are from one single plant. I've never had any luck growing Cone Flowers so next year I just may have a row of just flowers. Wouldn't that be fun, and pretty!

Speaking of fun, Shelby and I were vendors at the Bee Jubilee in Oxford last Saturday. Fun, but a very hot humid 95-degree day. I was too busy fanning myself to take pictures. :)  Thank goodness for the cooler full of crushed ice, drinks, and battery-operated fans. The day went well. lots of customers, lots of sells. 

I do have an apron picture to show you. I've decided this is my favorite of all apron patterns. It's a little harder to make but worth the work...

I love the heart shaped bib, skirt, and pocket, and here's a blue print...

and matching bonnets...

The chicken print sold fast, as usual. I came home ready to start sewing again. 

Oh my gosh, I have talked your ears off again. So I will end this bragging and showing off pictures, but can I show you one more?

Little Violet got a new pocketbook to carry her important stuff in...

One year old and putting a cell phone in her bag. :) 

Thank you for visiting. Hope I haven't driven you all away. 

Love, Henny

A bed in the greenhouse??

First, thank you all for the nice comments on my last post. I feel bad for not replying to each one, but especially to those of you without blogs. Those with blogs, it's easy to visit and say thank you. Anyhow, I sure appreciate you all!

In my last post I told you that Eli is going on 11 years old. I was wrong. He will be 12 in January! We were in the vet's office with him yesterday and the chart on the door says that Mr. Eli, in human years, would be 92. 

Something about this picture I really like. The early morning sunrise cast such pretty colors on the old dirt road. Eli had stopped to rest, and I was asking him if he was ok. Sort of looks like an old painting, doesn't it?

The teeny tiny garden and all the potted plants are keeping me pretty busy. Poppy says I need to put myself a bed up in the greenhouse. Humm, now that's a thought...

But look, are these pictures neat...

and this one...

This is an ice plant. My friend Karen brought me a pot full last summer and I started more pots.  Oh, and while we're up at the garden, remember the old washing machine tub I use for potting soil...

and the trash can lid Poppy found lying beside the road?? Well, the lid doesn't fit tight and when it rains the soil gets wet. 

Walmart had a display of plastic tablecloths for $4.38. I bought one of the large size ones, folded it in half and cut out a circle. Sewed some binding along the edge and...

Dry soil! Also found these clips at Walmart...

Oops! Wrong picture! These clips...

Making and clipping little pleats along the bottom keeps the cover on nice and tight.

and here's a little idea...

I cut several pieces of old green clothesline wire and bent them into "S" hooks. Makes hanging things easy, like my little garden basket. 

So, that's about it for this time. I will leave you with a picture of little miss Violet. She turned one year old on May 25th! 

She is such a sweet baby and smiles all the time!!

Thank you, dear friends!

Love, Henny

Sometimes I ...

 just feel like going back in time so I pulled out my old homemade pantaloons and muslin apron...

the feeling was wonderful except when I turned to hook the gate Poppy had followed me with the camera. "Oh, good grief", I said but continued on to enjoy the day, in my little old-fashioned way. :)

The teeny tiny garden looks pretty good and has grown since these pictures were taken last week...

Instead of the usual wattle fence I love to build, Poppy ordered garden stakes for me. I am weaving twine in and out...that's fun too. Will have to take new pictures. 

Anyhow, see the little row of corn back against the fence? It seems to be doing well. Let me explain. Last summer a blogging friend to many of us, Rose, at Pics & Pieces, asked if I had ever tried growing old timey Hickory Cane Corn. She said when she was young that's what they grew, and they also planted cornfield beans along with the corn. 

So, searching online I found Hickory Cane Corn and Cornfield Bean seeds for sale and ordered both...

I just ran up to the garden. Whew! Here's a close-up...

and here's the little row of corn today...

and, while I'm at it, might as well bore you with one more of the woven bean fence...

Oh, my goodness! We've waited all winter for this! So, keeping with my old-fashioned feeling, I went behind the house and pulled our two old rusty lawn chairs to the front...

I like them here, do you? Why I remember chairs just like these sitting under a big shade tree at Aunt Ruby's house. Poppy and I found these chairs at the landfill a few years back and I just had to have them. :)

Have also been busy dividing and repotting root-bound plants and potting up cutting. "When are you going to start selling some of these", Poppy asks. Well, I've thought about putting a little note on "Nextdoor"... Eggs, Plants, Bonnets, & Aprons for sale here. Sounds fun, doesn't it? 

But we'll see. You know, because of the deer, I have given up on growing roses in the yard. Given up!! All the roses are now in pots inside the garden gate with no more worries...

Well friends, thank you if you are still here. I sure can go on and on about things. I will leave you with a picture of Eli and Ellie. You know, Eli is going on 11 years old now and his age is really showing. We can no longer take our long walks to the highway and back. His back legs just won't hold up. He is still our sweetie pie though, our special Eli. 

Love, Henny