Wednesday Treasures "All Things Bright and Beautiful"

 Here it is the last day of April already...I think we are all reeling over how quickly this month has passed! And for us, there were no "April Showers" to bring "May Flowers", so I am hoping there will be a change in our weather pattern here soon, or there won't be any May or June flowers! Even Still Waters Pond is feeling the effects of the lack of rain.  

These are some of my "April Treasures" for this Wednesday:

Say hello to a very tall "Trumpet", who is only one month + one week old!

He is walking on what should be water along the shore of the pond...but the waters have receded quite a bit away.  This is not that unusual...it normally does recede at least once a year, and then when the summer rains come it will fill back up with fresher water and not as many lily pads (for a while).

Since Sand Hill Cranes really do not swim much once they are past their early baby stages, they prefer to walk along the shore looking for goodies down in the mud.  Trumpet's wings are developing, but he will still not be able to fly for at least another month. They usually "fledge" (fly) around 70 days old.

Now, I would not exactly call this my "treasures"...Well, Blackie Sue is a treasure, but if you look under that table you will see a DUCK eating the cats' food.  We had not seen the ducks for several days and so I thought it was safe to let the kitties eat on the back porch again since it's getting too hot on the uncovered front porch, but within a few minutes of putting their food on the back porch this Muscovy Duck flew in out of nowhere to help herself!  Needless to say I was NOT happy!  And as you can see, Blackie Sue just laid there and let her eat.  I think Sunshine just left the porch and didn't even put up a fight.

So I went outside and chased the duck away and removed the food, but the duck came back a few minutes later to see if there was anything left. I was watching her through my window from my "Room with a View"...

Apparently these ducks have such a keen sense of hearing or sight or both, that she knew I was watching her and turned around to basically stick her tongue out at me! LOL.

That's when I noticed that there was not just one, but TWO ducks on the porch!  But I got the last laugh because there was NO food for them, so they decided to fly away back into the pond...

There goes the first duck on the left...see her feet and outspread wings?  Yes, they do have pretty coloring, but that is not enough to endear them to me! LOL.

If you look just to the right of the post in the middle, you can see her flying with her white wings up, and the duck on the right is just getting ready to take flight.  And no, I'm not being cruel. They have plenty of natural food to eat out there. They don't NEED to eat my cats' food!!!  The people who were going to try and catch them kind of gave up because these ducks fly so well. The ones they have on their pond have had their wings clipped so they can't fly away. They raise them for eggs and also to sell to others.  I do wish they could come get these two, but I've pretty well given up hope. Maybe with the receding pond waters they will go away on their own.  That's one good potential thing about the drought! LOL.

Speaking of treasures...Can you tell that I love to take pictures of these kitty-cats?  Sunshine seems to be the most photogenic and often gives such wonderful poses that are irresistable...This is one...

I was working on something in the shed this morning, and had the door open.  I turned around and there was Sunshine laying on the floor making himself right at home. Please notice the place he chose to lay is right in front of the "Old Rugged Cross" that we put outside for Easter, and also in front of the Christmas Nativity Scene that also goes out in our yard for the Christmas season.  That really touched my heart that Sunshine chose that very spot to lay down...

Once he had checked out every nook and cranny of the shed, including jumping up high and back down again, he was content to go lay down on the doorstep and watch me.  You can see Blackie Sue the background watching and wondering if she should be quite so adventuresome...

And in a few moments her curiosity got the best of her and she came in and explored all around as well, but didn't linger as long as Sunshine, and soon she was back out the door and on her way.  

Speaking of Blackie Sue, no, she still hasn't had any kittens. She doesn't seem to be getting any larger and I really am not convinced that she is pregnant.  But we are going to wait a couple of weeks longer, and if she hasn't had any kittens by then, I have made arrangements for her to go get spayed. They will check her out of course to make sure she isn't pregnant before doing the procedure. This is a link to info about a "false pregancy in cats", which is what I am really thinking is going on.  Having her spayed will keep this from happening again, as well as keep her from having kittens.

We took a little ride the other morning, and this tiny moth came along for the ride:

We stopped over at Benton and Rose's house for a few minutes, and Rose was outside tending to her...you guessed it...her Rose garden!  Here are some of her roses that are blooming:

I LOVE this Rosebush!!!

And this one is uniquely beautiful too...the petals turn more white as they die...really pretty!

All these special "treasures" reminded me of this little poem/song

All Things Bright and Beautiful

Refrain:

All things bright and beautiful,

all creatures great and small,

all things wise and wonderful,

the Lord God made them all.

1 Each little flow'r that opens,

each little bird that sings,

He made their glowing colors,

He made their tiny wings. [Refrain]

2 The purple-headed mountain,

the river running by,

the sunset and the morning

that brightens up the sky. [Refrain]

3 The cold wind in the winter,

the pleasant summer sun,

the ripe fruits in the garden:

He made them every one. [Refrain]

4 He gave us eyes to see them,

and lips that we might tell

how great is God Almighty,

who has made all things well. [Refrain]

Author: Cecil Frances Alexander

Oops! Maybe I need to alter my attitude about the Muscovy Ducks after listening to this song! Yes, they are beautiful, and the Lord God did create them, but I don't think God would be mad at me for wanting them to go swim  in someone else's pond...you know...we should share the beauty with everyone, right? LOL. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

LOL. Bye for now.  So long to April!  See you in May, folks!!  

Tuesday 4~Question Variety

 I am writing this on Monday night...where we were supposed to get some rain, but it bypassed us! I heard that some people on the other side of our little town got a really nice rain, but it didn't come east toward us so we missed out. It was over 90 degrees today and very DRY. We definitely need the rain! 

Question Variety

Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4
This week just a variety of little questions for you to ponder.

1. What's on TV for you tonight? Alternatively do you have plans for Tuesday night?

Tuesday nights are choir practice for me. We will continue our practices until the Tuesday before Memorial Day, and then we will take a break for the summer and start up again after Labor Day. Hubby is probably watching a hockey game on TV while I am at choir practice.  I think they are in the Stanley Cup playoffs now, and he is very much interested in that.

2. Is there a TV program you hate to miss? Why? And if not TV is there a club or activity, get together you would hate to miss out on?

I love to watch Maine Cabin Masters. Why? Well, they renovate camps and cabins on lakes or in the woods in Maine. We used to live in Maine, and I love hearing the way they talk and do things because it reminds me of Maine, which is where our son who passed away used to live, and where his wife and our grandson still live. Also, I have always wanted our own little camp or cabin retreat to go to with our family. (Not necessarily in Maine, but somewhere cooler than Florida!!) When I watch this program I see families  doing things together and they are so happy to have a place where everyone can come together and have a great time.  It's always been a dream of mine, but I'm afraid I'm running out of time and we already ran out of money. LOL.

(on the Magnolia Network)

I also enjoy HGTV Hometown, with Ben and Erin renovating houses in Laurel, Mississippi. 


3. Do you belong to any clubs or societies or organizations? Odd Fellows, Elks, Moose, Eastern Star of antying like that? Can you tell us about it?

The only "organization" I belong to is our church, and I think I've told you about that quite a bit already in many previous posts.  We love our little church and all the people there. It is a warm and welcoming place, where people love one another and love God most of all. Between Sunday School and Church, Bible Studies, Choir practice and other church activities, we really don't have time (or energy) for any other kinds of clubs or organizations.

4. The internet is filled with ads. Are there any ads that you enjoy seeing or ones that you hate to see?

I really don't like ads on the internet. If there's something that needs to be looked up, I can do that on my own without the internet suggesting things to me all the time. It's gotten to the point that the internet seems to be able to read my mind and it will bombard me with ads for things that I may have looked up once  and now I can't get away from it! Ads are very distracting and annoying...so to answer the question, no there aren't any that I enjoy seeing! LOL.  I will amend that answer to say that I often enjoy some of the special commercials around Christmas, like the Publix grocery store videos and there are always others that are very touching, but I can't think of any right now off the top of my head. We really don't watch the commercials very often and usually mute them on the TV and skip through them when we can.

If you wish to join in with the Tuesday 4 each week, you can link up HERE

On another note, the Bluebirds were out there checking out the birdhouse again this evening! They still have not built a nest here this spring, which is very strange, especially with all the checking they've done of the birdhouses.  Now I'm afraid it's getting too hot!

I mangaged to get a few pictures of the male bluebird checking out the house:

Hello!

It looks like he's thinking really seriously about this...

I hope they don't wait too long and miss out!

And no, there still aren't any kittens...here's Sunshine and Blackie Sue relaxing in the shade on the driveway, which seems to be one of their favorite places to lay all day under the shade of the big oak trees.  It's nice and breezy out there most of the day, and they kind of move with the shadows to stay out of the sun.  However, we have to be very careful when we back up out of the driveway because they are sometimes too lazy to get up and move right away!

We went for a walk this morning, and our "kids" were out for a ride as they had a day off and they happened to show up in the same neighborhood with their pups in the truck.   It's always fun to see our "Grandpuppies".

I guess there really isn't much other news to report, so I will close with these thoughts for the day:

1 Corinthians 9:24-25

"24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? 

Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 

25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. 

Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown."

Good Night dear friends...

Have a blessed and wonderful week.

Saturday Morning Musings

 Good Saturday Morning!  I'm sorry I didn't get around to posting anything yesterday for Friday Fotos. I had some in mind, but my body got too busy doing other things and never got around to sitting down long enough to share what was in my mind. LOL.  Hope that makes sense!  Sometimes my mind has a mind of its own.

Thank you all for your kind comments on my last post.  I don't always reply to your comments because I have found that most of us don't really ever come back to check and see if there is a reply or not, and I can't always figure out how to reply via email...my computer tends to get confused when I try to go from blogger to email and it takes forever and by that time we've all moved on to the next thing. But I always cherish your comments and love hearing from you.  Instead of replying on my post, I try to go and visit you at your place and enjoy reading whatever you are writing about and leave a comment there.  One way or the other we all communicate, and it is a blessing to have you in my life!

So, let's see, what's been going on?  Well, not really a whole lot, just keeping busy...but last night we had a little scare again in the wildlife kingdom...the Sand Hill Crane parents showed up at our back porch alone, and calling and calling for their "baby", "Trumpet".  I thought, "Oh no! Not again!"  I went outside and commiserated with them over the loss of their colt, who is now almost as big as they are and shouldn't be that hard to lose. I threw them a little bit of birdseed and they forgot about calling frantically for their child and started eating. I thought that was a bit strange...I know if my child was lost I wouldn't be distracted by food until I'd found my lost child.  But they stopped calling for him and stood there and ate up the bird seed and then flew away.   I was the only one who appeared to be grieving, so instead of getting all worked up, I decided to just pray that "Trumpet" was somewhere safe and we'd wait and see if he showed up later.    

Actually this picture were taken the night before as they all three walked around on "Goose Island" for an evening stroll.  But later last evening, just as the sun was going down, I looked out across the pond, and I finally could see "Trumpet" standing  there with his mother,  safe and sound!   I don't know where he'd been before when they were calling him, but somehow they must've figured out that he was okay and they were able to take a few minutes to eat before they went to join him.  Maybe they heard a little call responding back to them that I couldn't hear...you know how a parent can hear their child's cry above all the noise of others? That may be what happened.  Either way, I am very thankful to know that they were all back together again and safe and sound as the sun was going down and they were settling in for the night.

OH! Here's a picture taken this morning as they came up to say Good Morning to us! Yep, Trumpet is just fine!

I am thankful that our Heavenly Father always hears us when we call Him...and then we can lie down and sleep in safety and peace, knowing that He is taking care of us...

Psalm 4 NKJV

1 Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness!

You have relieved me in my distress;

Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.

2 How long, O you sons of men,

Will you turn my glory to shame?

How long will you love worthlessness

And seek falsehood? Selah

3 But know that the Lord has set apart for Himself him who is godly;

The Lord will hear when I call to Him.

4 Be angry, and do not sin.

Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Selah

5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,

And put your trust in the Lord.

6 There are many who say,

“Who will show us any good?”

Lord, lift up the light of Your countenance upon us.

7 You have put gladness in my heart,

More than in the season that their grain and wine increased.

8 I will both lie down in peace, and sleep;

For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.

Speaking of "lying down in peace, and sleep..."  Looks like Sunshine is able to do just that:

This was him on the back porch the other afternoon...such a good kitty, abiding by all the "Porch Rules". LOL.

Here's Sunshine earlier...the fearless hunter ...

And here is Blackie Sue, in her favorite hideaway on the front porch. She feels very safe on that little shelf under the wicker table.  I've noticed that when she feels threatened by anything, like that neighborhood "bully" Tuxedo cat who likes to come and eat their food, she always jumps on this little shelf and feels safe. And then she often just sleeps there for the rest of the afternoon...Her eyes are at half/mast here because I think I woke her up from a nap.  And NO, she still hasn't had any kittens...time will tell, but I am becoming more and more convinced that this may be a "false pregnancy". 

Last night our kiddos came over and brought our Grandpuppies, Sugar and Spice.  So of course there was a lot of commotion from the pups over who was on the front porch...but Sunshine and Blackie Sue just ignored them. Blackie Sue was in her little hiding place on the table, so you can't see her, but the pups knew she was there and they really wanted to go out and play with them so badly! LOL.

Golly, have you noticed that my posts have gone to the dogs and cats lately?  I hope you don't mind...we write about whatever is going on in our lives, and this is what is going on! LOL.

I guess I'd better get a move on. We are going to go to the Deep Creek Farmer's Market today,  where Benton will be selling some more wooden planters and some new stuff he's created. I will probably have some pictures from there later. So maybe I'll just wait and finish this later...

Okay, I'm back!  We went to the Farmer's Market, and here's a few pictures of some things that caught my attention: 

A couple of cute goats...the lady selling the goats also makes Goat Milk Soap, which is something I  use all the time, just not from her.  But I like to keep up with other vendors who sell it in case my lady quits making it.

I bought a Lemon Blueberry Scone to eat later with a cup of tea.  I love scones and they are best with tea, although the vendor selling these was there from a coffee shop and they didn't have any tea! What's up with that?  Someone needs to educate them on the fine art of tea and scones! LOL.

I also bought a couple of large tomatoes. I much prefer to buy tomatoes at a farm market than at the grocery store. These have to ripen a bit, but that shouldn't take too long...

And the main attraction was this guy:  Yep, that's our son with his wonderful wood planters that he makes and sells.  Hubby is inspecting things in the background. LOL.

I know this is meant to be a special chair for holding potted plants, but I called it the "potty chair". LOL

Pretty little planter  box/steps design:

Some other cute little planter stands:

This is a cute hanging "porch swing" planter:

And this is his latest design,  a cute hanging house planter!  I love it! I hope he saves one for me!

I hope he has a good day of sales!

Well folks, I guess that's all for now. I hope you are having a wonderful Saturday wherever you are. It looks like a warm and sunny day here, but we sure do need rain.

Deuteronomy 11:13-15

13 ‘And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the Lord your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, 

14 then I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain, your new wine, and your oil. 

15 And I will send grass in your fields for your livestock, that you may eat and be filled.’

May it be so, Lord. Especially for those in areas of great drought and some who are battling forest fires even as we speak. Amen.

Some Thursday Memories and Thoughts

I just saw this on Facebook this morning, and it really spoke to me, so I wanted to share it with you:

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Shared with Public

The Homespun Wife 

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Each morning we present an empty vessel to the Lord. Some scurry out with hardly a thought, as they are in a hurry but running on empty. Others gain only enough to take themselves through the day.

Yet I long to be among those who are filled to overflowing. With the abundance God has provided, they have plenty to share. They pour out kindness, love, grace, gratitude, patience, mercy, comfort, and compassion. Long into the evening, they continue their offering, using up all the blessings God called on them to pass along to others.

These dedicated servants have no fear of tomorrow. They rest in the assurance that God’s storehouse is always full and he will meet them in the morning with everything they will need for a brand new day.

So Here I am Lord….

To worship you

To praise you

To serve you anew

Love To All,

Sherry

*Image/Pinterest

And then next I saw this on Facebook...actually a dear "old friend" sent it to me saying, "Well, that brings back memories."

Dolly Parton singing "He's Alive"

Yes, it certainly did bring back memories. This friend who sent it to me is someone I haven't seen in many years, but way back in the early 1980's she and I used to spend almost every Thursday morning together, having tea and letting our two youngest children play together (my Scotty and her Heather, who were about 2 and 3 years old at the time) while she played the piano and I sang songs...sometimes we did duets...and a few of the songs we would sing at church on Sunday. This was one of the songs we did. I don't think I sounded quite like Dolly Parton (and certainly didn't look that good!), but we sang for the glory of the Lord. My friend Cindy could play most any kind of music on the piano, and it was so wonderful to spend that time together praising the Lord in song. Now my friend lives way out in Oregon and we are both much older and not quite as energetic as we were then. Although she and her husband stay very busy running a ranch and raising cattle, and her daughter Heather lives nearby on her own ranch with her husband and five children (actually her children are almost grown up now too). 

My friend and I also share another kind of "memory", not so pleasant, as we both have had one of our precious children die.  Her son Jeremy died in a tragic car accident when he was just 18 years old.  And my son Matthew, (who was about the same age as her Jeremy and they were good friends and fishing buddies as children) has also passed on to heaven at the age of 41.  We both believe our sons are enjoying all the joys of heaven together today.  Maybe even going fishing like they used to when they were kids. 

I don't know if my friend could still play this song on the piano, but I have a feeling she could...and we "talk" via Facebook about how wonderful it would be to get together again someday and sing and drink tea and remember those happy days. I'm not sure if I could still sing this song, but in my heart and mind I could. And we could rejoice together in knowing that because Jesus is alive, our sons are also alive in heaven.

He's Alive

Song by Don Francisco 

The gates and doors were barred and all the windows fastened down

I spent the night in sleeplessness and rose at every sound

Half in hopeless sorrow and half in fear, the day

Would find the soldiers breaking through to drag us all away

Then just before the sunrise, I heard something at the wall

The gate began to rattle, and a voice began to call

I hurried to the window and looked down to the street

Expecting swords and torches and the sound of soldiers feet

But there was no one there but Mary, so I went down to let her in

John stood there beside me as she told us where she'd been

She said, "They moved him in the night and none of us knows where

Oh, the stones been rolled away, and now his body isn't there"

So we both ran toward the garden, then John ran on ahead

We found the stone and the empty tomb just the way that Mary said

But the winding sheet they wrapped him in was just an empty shell

And how or where they'd taken him, it was more than I could tell

Perhaps something strange had happened there, just what I did not know

John believed a miracle, but I just turned to go

Circumstance and speculation couldn't lift me very high

'Cause I'd seen them crucify Him and then saw Him die

Back inside the house again, the guilt and anguish came

Everything I'd promised Him just added to my shame

When at last it came to choices, I denied I knew His name

And even if He was alive, it could never be the same

Then suddenly the air was filled with a strange and sweet perfume

Light that came from everywhere drove shadows from the room

Then Jesus stood before me with His arms held open wide

And I fell down on my knees and clung to Him and cried

Then He raised me to my feet and as I looked into His eyes

Love was shining out from Him like sunlight from the sky

Guilt and my confusion disappeared in sweet release

And every fear I'd ever had just melted into peace

'Cause He is (alive and alive, He's alive, alive, and alive, He's alive)

(Alive and alive, He's alive, He's alive)

He's alive, He's alive, He's alive, and I'm forgiven

Heavens gates are open wide

He's alive, He's alive, He's alive, and I'm forgiven

Heavens gates are open wide

He's alive (He's alive), He's alive (He's alive), He's alive (He's alive), and I'm forgiven

Heavens gates are open wide

He's alive, He's alive, He's alive, and I'm forgiven

Heavens gates are open wide

He's alive

He's alive (He's alive), He's alive (He's alive), He's alive (He's alive), and I'm forgiven

Heavens gates are open wide

He's alive, He's alive, He's alive, and I'm forgiven (He's alive)

Heavens gates are open wide

He's alive!

And then I saw this on Facebook this morning also, and again, it spoke to me...

Oh, I love this...Yes, our journies may be different, but we have met here on this "path", and may we take the time to encourage each other along the way.  I know many of you have encouraged me with your stories of comfort, hope, and thanksgiving, and I pray that perhaps I have been able to encourage you as well as I share memories or thoughts that God gives me along the way.

Just a quick update...No, Blackie Sue has still not had her kittens, and I am beginning to wonder if she's having a "false pregnancy", which is a real thing. Time will tell...

And as you can see, "Trumpet" is getting bigger every day:

And life goes on...we are blessed and thankful...especially on these post Easter days...it's wonderful to know and believe that Christ is Risen! And because He's  Alive, we too shall live!! Amen.