Friday Foto Friends Oh, Deer Me!

Welcome to Friday Foto Friends...the time when we gather together to share our favorite photos from the week.  I wasn't too sure what I was going to share this week, and then on Thursday morning I took an early walk about the neighborhood, and God provided plenty for me to share with you.

We'll start with this deer playing peek-a-boo with me. He wasn't really as close as this makes it appear, but I believe this is the closest encounter I've had with the deer in quite a while:

See what I mean?  I thought he was going to walk right up to me and say good morning! Yes, I did say good morning to him (or her?)  After giving me a good looking over, she bounded into the woods to join the rest of the family...

Except for this one that was still across the road...

And this one that came down the road a ways to see what was going on...

Kind of looks like she's dancing and prancing for me...maybe this is "Prancer" or "Dancer"...perhaps they are getting in practice for you know what that is coming up in about 95 days?

So, after those deer disappeared into the woods, I walked around to the other side of where they were, and noticed these lovely morning sun rays shining through the trees...I just had to pause and breathe in the morning air, and give thanks to the Lord for another beautiful day to be alive...

And then I turned around and looked into the woods, and what did I see staring back at me?
Another deer playing "peek-a-boo"...

As she started to move on, I noticed a lot of movement coming along behind her...

And so I stood there and watched quietly...

And they just kept coming...that third one in the row is the BUCK...He stood and stared at me for quite a while. I couldn't get a very good picture because he was behind the bushes, but even though he is still a young buck, he is definitely the buck of this family, and he shook his head back and forth as if to say to me, "Back off...this is MY family!!"

 I believe he is still standing back in the shadows in this picture below, waiting for all the family to move on to safety before he brought up the rear...

And then they moved over into another area, and kind of corralled themselves there for a few minutes while the young ones caught up to their mamas...

You can see the youngsters here...one is still nursing, and the other is very curious about me...
I believe I counted over seven or eight deer in total in this group...it was quite a fascinating experience.  I've been watching this family all summer long, but have never seen them ALL together like this before. Wish I could have gotten better pictures, but they just kept moving and camouflaging themselves in the woods.  I didn't dare get any closer, or that buck may have bucked me out of the way!!

Then I noticed this lovely pond, which is the area where the deer were headed.  I waited for a few more minutes, but they stayed hidden, waiting for me to leave...so I decided I'd better move on so they could get on with their daily routine.

It looks like fall leaves are starting to show here...and they are here and there. I love the golden hues of fall in the morning sunshine. Now if we just had the cooler temperatures to go along with this I could be in "hog's heaven"...or maybe I should say "deer heaven!"

Some thoughts from God's Word for today:

Psalm 63:1-5

1.  "O God, You are my God;

Early will I seek You;

My soul thirsts for you;

My flesh longs for You 

in a dry and thirsty land

where there is no water.

2.  So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,

to see Your power and Your glory.

3.  Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,

My lips shall praise You.

4.  Thus I will bless You while I live;

I will life up my hands in Your name.

5.  My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,

and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips."

An Afterthought:
For my less woodsy friends who may not always appreciate just pictures of more DEER, (Oh, dear, I can hear you saying...what next?)
Last Saturday I found this delightful little plate at the flea market, and couldn't resist it as a little early birthday present to myself. (next week) It came already equipped with the little wire hanger thingy, so all I had to do was find a suitable spot to hang it and voila!

I probably need to clean that rust off that wire thingy...hmmm, didn't see that before, but anyway, you can see here that it is entitled "Coaching Scenes" made in England by Johnson Bros., The Ironstone Coach Office!

maybe you can read the details a little better here:

I know it looks lost on this wall, but wanted you to see where it now resides:

right under the picture of the beautiful large wicker chair with a lady's hat, next to a tea table ...ready and waiting for your visit, "mi' lady", so hop on that coach and come on over!
The Teapot is ready and waiting...

Now let us hop on a coach and trot over to visit our other Friday Foto Friends who are waiting patiently for us at Deb's place at Breathing in Grace. 

May your day be blessed with the joy of seeking and finding the Lord in places where you might not have expected!

Black and White Wednesday - Memories of my Grandma

Okay, so some of my blogging friends started doing a black and white Wednesday theme, and I was late to get to the party. Now that I've decided to do this, I noticed that all my blogging friends have moved on to other ideas for Wednesday. So, even though I may be a day late and a dollar short, there is still something wonderful about old family black and white photos.

Today I wanted to share my memories of my Grandma Tedlie with you. She was my mother's mother, Flora Sheets Tedlie.  Grandma died when I was a teenager, but because we had moved from Pennsylvania to Florida when I was only five, (and she and my grandfather lived in Ohio), our times together were few and far between. Also, my grandmother was rather sick in her later years, and when we did go visit during our summer vacations, she was often either in the hospital or in bed at home.


Even though this is not a very clear picture, I have always cherished it because it showed me with my Grandma, taking a walk in the woods, probably on a fall day. I would have been about two years old.

And here I am with Grandma and my cousin Cheryl (on the right).  Cheryl was about two months younger than I.  

I'm the one with the mouth hanging open and the big eyes looking in wonder at something or someone! I haven't changed much.

This is my dolly "Sandra", who was lovingly created especially for me by my Grandma when I was a very little girl. Yes, I still have her. Isn't she sweet? I am not certain why I named her Sandra...can't recall that I ever knew anyone by that name when I was a child, but now I have a niece "Sandra" (Sandy), who looks a lot like this doll...dark brown hair and big blue eyes!  (My brother Cliff's oldest daughter!)

This is a Halloween postcard that was sent to me when I was seven from my Grandma and Grandpa. If you read it, she tells me that she wants me to "keep this card...it is about 46 years old. Your Great-Grandma bought it."  Well, that was in 1957, so it would be 107 years old now!!! Wow! I guess this IS a keepsake!  Note the 2 cent stamp too!

Front of card:

This is a picture of my Grandma when she was probably about five or six years old...

And here she is at age nineteen or twenty I believe...Isn't she lovely?

And this was my Grandpa Tedlie... Benton F. Tedlie. Isn't he handsome?  My oldest son is named after him. Almost every one of my grandparents' five children has carried on his name in one form or another in their children or grandchildren... (sorry for the reflection of my hand taking the picture...I was too lazy to take the picture out of the frame, and so everything reflected on the glass!)

This is a picture of my Grandmother with her parents and her Aunt "Dode" (Dora)  , but I'm not sure which one is which...

Here is my Grandma many years later, at her garden gate...isn't she lovely...and also the garden gate?  I love this...

And I LOVE this little picture...it is my Aunt Margie, Aunt Belle, and my mother Dorothea, sitting at their little table and it looks like they are playing with blocks.  Probably my mother was the one playing with the blocks, as she was much younger than her sisters. They were probably entertaining her and keeping her out of mischief.

I guess this is enough for today...I will save some more for another time and another place...

My memories of my Grandmother are so few, and that makes me rather sad. I would have loved to have known her better and have spent more time with her. One special memory I have was when I was very young we visited at my grandparents' farm in  Frazeysburg, Ohio. They had a big old two story house, and I remember that my sister Doris and I would play upstairs in one of the bedrooms, and it seems like we had a little tea set and sat beside what was a door, which opened up to a tiny little balcony over the front porch, on the second floor. The door was not open, however...but I remember it. I know there is a picture of that house somewhere, but not in my collection...just in my memory.  I wish I could see that old house again. Maybe one of my relatives will share a picture with me someday!

If you are blessed to have young grandchildren still, take the time to do special things with them...take walks in the woods, have a little tea party, or make them something special just for them...a rag doll or teddy bear...something that will be a keepsake.  Send them letters or cards or something written in your hand that will become a cherished treasure.  In this digital age we tend to do everything online or with gift cards, and there is very little tangible human contact.  I only have one grandson, who is now almost 19.  When he was young we tried to visit every year for his birthday and do fun things together, but because they lived so far away from us it was difficult to be together very often.  Now that he is grown I miss those happy times when I could hold him in my lap and read to him or just listen to him talk about everything that came into his mind...he has always been a "talker"... so I struggle now to think of things we can do to make more memories.  Now I am waiting for him to present us with some "great-grandchildren" someday...maybe? Please? But not TOO soon! :) 

Taken from a little book
"The Little Big Book for Grandmothers"
published 2002 by Welcome Books

Here are some other links to previous posts I've done about my Grandmother in one way or another:

Who Do You See In the Mirror?

Just What Is A Journal Anyway?

Discovering Hidden Treasures

Family Traditions and Happy Days

Tea Time Trivia and Blessings

It is no secret that I love tea.  I love all the stuff that goes with tea...teapots, teacups, tea cozies,

I even have a teatime calendar (thanks to my sister giving it to me every year for Christmas!)

 And lots of books about tea and teatime...

and many tea cups and tea pots

I also have Tea Tins to hold tea...

Added note: I should have mentioned in my original post that this lovely little red Lipton Tea tin with the pretty lady on the front is a recent "gift", from the estate of my husband's cousin Janice, who recently passed away.  I will think of Janice every time I take a tea bag from this delightful tin.

Yes, I have a small collection of Lipton Tea tins. I have some others too, but Lipton is my favorite.

Obviously this one is a bit old and worse for the wear, but that's probably why I keep it...

 Here is one of the several devotional books that I've been given over the years...Emilie Barnes is one of my favorite authors about things pertaining to tea...but in this book she goes to a different level...

 "Fill My Cup, Lord..."  (one of my favorite hymns too!)

Yes, Lord...

 But, Oh! My cup is chipped and cracked, and not in perfect condition...much like my life and my body...How can I serve You?

"He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength...but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint."  

Isaiah 40:29, 31

"And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."

Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." 2 Corinthians 12:9

Yes, even when our strength is small and frail, and our "cup" is chipped and worn, Christ comes to fill our "cups" with His strength, His love, and His peace.  

To quote Emilie Barnes:

"Whatever your circumstances, you, too, 

can hold up your cup and it will be filled.

If your cup is polished and dry, 

hold it out for the Lord's plentiful pouring.

If your cup is full of the old and the unsatisfying,

hold it up for the Lord's cleansing.

If your cup is cracked and broken, hold it up anyway,

for the Lord's resources are plentiful and can keep even leaky cups replenished.

Come to Him as you are, cup in hand, 

and hold it up to receive His blessings.

And then you will say, as I have said over and over again in wonder and amazement...

"Surely...my cup runneth over."

Emilie Barnes

Fill My Cup, Lord...with the Peace of Your Presence

Copyright 1996 by Harvest House Publishers

It's Tea Time somewhere

So put on the tea kettle

and pour a cup of 

tea for you and me!

I'll be right over!