Awwwwwww..., Puppies !

~What can I say, puppies ! The word 'puppies' makes my heart go mushy, and just plain leaves happy feelings in me. Although I did not want another litter of puppies..well, we have puppies. Since I fully intend this to be our last litter of puppies ( an appointment at the vet will take care of any future litters) I am taking the time to enjoy these little fuzz balls. Isn't she cute ?~Over the years of raising puppies I have noticed the mommy dog really does know her business. Sienna is a very good mama. She seems to have a very determined attitude to having and raising puppies. Sienna keeps her puppies very clean. They are well cared for by her. She nurses them faithfully, cleans their little bottoms and protects them. ~I noticed the other day that Sienna was leaving food in the kiddie pool the puppies were in. She buried a whole bread roll for them. Whenever I have had litters of puppies, there comes a time around 2 - 3 weeks that the mama dog will either leave and bury food in the puppy nest, or begin vomiting her own food for the pups. THAT is my cue to begin feeding the puppies, and supervising Mama. I have had Mama dogs regurgitate whole rabbits for their puppies. I am sure the puppies would be fine consuming what Mama would leave them, but I am not O.K. with facing jumbled animal parts in my puppies' beds. ~Anyway, the buried bread and the restless searching of previously sedate puppies was a very loud indicator that the puppies need to begin eating puppy food.My choice of puppy food. So here is their first feeding of puppy chow mixed with warm water.(below) They loved it ! ~Miss Marple looks on with interest. I have not allowed Miss Marple access to the puppies . Miss Marple takes down and consumes full grown wild rabbits, and as the puppies were smaller than the bunnies I was concerned she viewed them as an easy meal. Now that the puppies are a bit more active, and barking...I am a little more relaxed about her presence around them.

~I am not sure that if I were a puppy I would be comfortable with THIS peering at me through the NOT cat-proof barrier.~

~Here Miss Marple gets close, and she is very interested in the puppies and their first meal of Puppy Chow.She did not seem to find their food appealing to her. Let's just hope the puppies aren't too appetizing to her either. ~The puppies ate a lot of their first solid food, and true to puppy nature, full bellies led to naps. The kind of naps that leave puppies sprawled out or curled comfortably satiated. The kind of naps anyone who has puppies sighs with relief when she sees such satisfied puppies. Ohhhh...awww... puppies ! How can anyone resist puppies ?

Spot on A Warm Spring Day in the Fall !

~Looky here, a sun shiny day in the middle of November. A month typically known for rain, wind, chilly temperatures, all around gray weather. My front porch was WARM this morning !~Hubby's bees also thought it was spring, maybe even summer ! They were out and about and very busy. It is a good thing we put a feeder in the hive. ( jar on right hive is full of sugar water to feed the bees )The flowers for the most part are very aware of the season and there are not many flowers available to feed the active and busy bees. ~The bees even made themselves their own entrance to the hive, yes- siree, no using the common entrance below. Short cut in the middle works best for them ! ~There was one confused rose. Here she is , blooming beautifully amidst the grapes , the grapes that have shed their leaves in due accordance to the season. ~The 4 new ducks I brought home from Lacamas Bazaar have finally grown up, and after a week of penning near the pond with the rest of the flock, were released today ! Freedom to enter the BIG pond. They were timid at first, but the rest of the duck flock was so enjoying the pond they finally went in for their first real swim ! ~They were very, very enthusiastic about their first swim. Their first chance to fully wet and preen their feathers. Look at them splash with abandon. ~The warm weather was just perfect for a bath and a swim in the pond, and the opportunity to dry in the WARM sunshine on the front lawn. Ahhhhhhhh...Spring ! (in the Autumn)

An Award, and Gifts !

~~~Marie Antoinette ! A REAL PERSON ! I have been given this award from Daisy! I am a real person and I have been given an award .....I will get to the details after this small aside about Marie Antoinette. Shown below is a portrait of her and her children I obtained from taking a picture of Wikepedia's bio on her. Yes, I said I took a picture of a picture because I could not cut, copy and paste the picture on Daisy's blog to mine. Sorry, However, thank-you Daisy for explaining HOW to hyper link ! You're right, it is much easier to do than explain. And thanks also for teaching me a new and useful skill !~The painting above is of Marie Antoinette and her three children. I had to look her up to discover more than the few shallow words attributed to her, which she did NOT say. here are some things she DID say, "I was a queen, and you took away my crown, a wife and you killed my husband, a mother and you deprived me of my children. My blood alone remains; take it, but do not make me suffer long."said just before her execution. Another quote from her "I put on my rouge and wash my hands in front of the whole world!" Expressing her irritation at her very public life as royalty. She gave birth to her 1st child in her bed chamber before an audience of hundreds of courtiers. And " Monsieur, je vous demande pardon. Je ne l'ai pas fait expres", her last words, said to the executioner after accidentally stepping on his foot on her way to the guillotine. (all info and picture from Wikepedia) ~I discovered I felt very sorry for Marie Antoinette. She was a real, and tragic person !

~Thank-you Daisy , an award for me from a real person, a fun person !Really for fun and laughs, you have got to check out Daisy's blogs !

~~~Marie Antoinette, a real person and so are you Awards go to~~~ 1: A.Joy At Home ~This blog is written by my daughter who occasionally has her husband as a guest writer. Her posts vary, but family, food, gardening and hunting are her usual topics, because they are part of her life. 2.Kiss Of Pikake ~This blog is written by my daughter's sister-in-law and is an especially joyous blog because Antoinette and her husband Alex are rejoicing in their first born child, a precious baby boy.....and their whole story is such a miracle, a miracle many prayed for ! Plus, she also values family, friends, and good Guamanian and Korean food ! 3.Gooseshooter ~This is a new blog written by our friend David who lives in a beautiful place in Washington. His photographs of the water front, light houses and wildlife are spectacular. They are great friends who almost always have my hubby laughing, and have upheld us in prayer and fellowship through many, many years ! 4. Mr.Wooleys' Diary ~This blog is written by Mr. Wooley, a cat. He has a very particular view of the world, a view that his world exists for him...he is a cat after all ! 5.Nalley Valley ~This blog is written by Mildred who has a wonderful story and life , she and her husband Nalley live in the "Circle Of Love'. Her writing is truly inspirational! 6.Life On the Road. ~Wingmaster rides with the Patriot Guard here in Washington. They mount their motorcycles and attend the funerals of fallen warriors, to show respect and support. He has many a true story that makes you proud of and sad for our young Marines and soldiers.

~Here are the rules:should you choose to accept this award:

1.Put Marie Antoinette on your blog. 2.Name 7 0r more to receive this award. 3.Link them 4.Leave them a message letting them know you've given them an award.

~~~My hope in awarding them this award is to encourage them all to continue writing because very selfishly, I love what they write. I want more pictures of our waterfront and stories about my family and extended family. I want to see what Mr.Wooley has been up to and what encouraging stories Wingmaster has to share and more about Mildred and her life in the 'Circle of Love'. So, to all of you REAL PEOPLE, this award is for you !

~~~I received a gift in the mail from, isn't this lovely ? Sandy Babb of Quill Cottage Look at the packaging. Look at the package it came in. She even adorned the address label so very beautifully. Look at her card and the lace doily wrapping paper. "Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery, and today ? Today is a gift. That's why we call it the present." Babatonde Olatunji ~When I opened the package there was this precious little notebook she has turned into a treasure....."It isn't the size of a gift that matters, but the size of the heart that gives it." Eileen Francis Thank-you Sandy, very much! This is indeed a treasure. ~And this gift was left on my front porch a few weeks ago. It had no card identifying who left it but I thought I knew. The book HAVING A MARY HEART IN A MARTHA WORLD by Joanna Weaver could only have been left by two ladies I know, and I was right ! The lady who did leave this, and a journal to do a study on it, is someone who has struggled for years with her Mary/Martha dilemma. She is always, and I mean ALWAYS busy helping so very many people . She is there for you or others in need even when she should be in bed tending to herself.This is my sister-in-law, Jean!One of Hubby's younger sisters. He has 4 sisters and she is the older sister of the 4. Thank-you Jean !

~"You can give without loving, but you can never love without giving." Author Unknown

~"God's gifts put man's best dreams to shame." Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Baa Baa Pink Sheep, with Spots !

~Time for another spot on wool...you know, the stuff that my spotted sheep produce . Well, to get the wool to make all the woolly stuff , like yarn, felt, rugs.....well, I start with these. (below) My spotted, Jacob sheep. They're kind of cute aren't they ?~I am going to show you how I combine fibers to make batts of wool for spinning into yarn or felting. I start with the gray wool, shown below. The gray wool is the black and white wool of my sheep, combined . You know, black and white mixed make...gray ! I dyed some of my gray wool pink. I will be carding ( combing or brushing ) the dyed pink wool with some Angora fiber. The Angora is from a goat, a very pretty, long haired goat. Here you can see the original gray fleece, next to some of the pink fleece and some white Angora. ~Here are batts of dyed pink wool,(the pink rolls of fiber that look like cotton candy) sitting next to my little drum carder. The carder will comb or brush together the Angora and the pink wool. ~Close up of the wool being rolled through the carder. I laid strands of the Angora on top of the pink wool and rolled them together through my drum carder. It is fun. I still think it is like magic to take the wool from my spotted sheep and turn it into amazing batts , just waiting for me to create yarns and rugs and woven fabrics.

~See the flat batt of wool I have loosened from the back of the carder ?~

~I roll the batts of wool off at the back. Look at the batts of wool piled up beside the drum carder. The possibilities are as limited as my imagination...and that is not too limited. I have ideas and plans for this pink wool. ~Pink and lustrous and just waiting for me. This wool calls me from afar. The Angora adds the luster that the Jacob alone does not have. ~I felted a bit of this wool tonight. This is my first time felting and I will write more about that process at a later date. Then, I began to spin my pink wool.....I think after I spin up a bit of it I will weave it into a funky, pretty fabric that I have planned to make into..... ~.....more little purses! Won't they be nice ? I already have some Chinese fabric for lining, and beads and buttons to decorate the purses. ~ I am so happy and blessed to have the opportunity to create things using the wool of my sheep. Do you have outlets for your creativity ? Does your heart sing when you are happily busy expressing yourself in some special way unique to you ? Cooking, sewing, knitting, writing, gardening, painting, photography ? "Creative work is play. It is free speculation using materials of one's chosen form." Stephen Nachmanovitch

Spot on Nesting....and Home

~I made this as a centerpiece for a family tea I held in my home in the spring.The theme of the tea I gave for the ladies in the family was HOME.~~Inside this candle lantern is a nest my grandchildren found on the ground the day before the tea. In my grandchildrens' defense, they did not know the nest was probably being used at the time, after all, it was on the ground, not in a tree. After consulting my Bird's nest identification book we discovered it is the nest of a Rufous -sided Towhee, and they nest in low bushes, vines, and the ground. The grandchildren were VERY excited to give the nest to me because they know I highly value bird's nests...and birds too.

~I decided to create a centerpiece for my tea using this precious gift. Inside my candle lantern I made a tag with one of a few definitions of nesting. "Nest:any small or cozy place of abode, a snuggery or retreat." Funk and Wagnalls new Standard Dictionary ~Is that not just the best description one could ever want of HOME ? I have always wanted my home to be cozy, a place of retreat and comfort..a place that nourishes the body and soul. A place where family and friend and even stranger can find some comfort and encouragement. "If we return to the old home as to a nest, it is because memories are dreams, because the home of other days has become a great image of lost intimacy." Gaston Bachelard ~"This sense that you are really, truly home cannot be drawn up like a blueprint. It never depends on how many hollyhocks are planted beside the garden gate. It doesn't even matter if the front door leads to a three bedroom ranch exactly like every other on the block or a Victorian high up on a hill...It's any house where the children sleep peacefully in their beds on winter nights , dreaming beneath warm quilts. It's any address where you realize-perhaps at long last-your own good fortune." Alice Hoffman Doesn't this quote sound like a description of a nest, a snuggery ?A cozy place everyone's heart yearns for? ~Home, our own home...does not require much. And a home does not need to actually be owned by us. We have made a home in an old trailer we bought and lived in for 3 years before we built our house. Our daughter and her family made their HOME a tent they lived in for months while their house was built.Big difference, house and home. One is a structure, the other an abode, a dwelling for the heart and soul. I love being home, in my house!I love the little nest my Hubby and I share, with each other, friends, and family !

Puppies, Playdough and Cupcakes !

~#5 Granddaughter's face just lights up at the sight of puppies. She positively glows when she gets to hold them ! Almost a good enough reason alone to have a puppy or two around .~~Here is Sienna with her six puppies. They are thriving. There are 3 boys and 3 girls.~

~When Sienna was not in the kiddie pool in the kitchen with her puppies, #5 Granddaughter was. #5 Granddaughter's favorite television show is Jon and Kate Plus 8, and we decided that since Sienna had 6 puppies, 3 girls and 3 boys, we would name them after the Gosselin sextuplets. #5 Granddaughter had fun turning the pups over and after figuring out if they were boys or girls, gave them a name of one of the sextuplets.I think if we want the names to stick I will need to put collars with name tags on the puppies.

~A yawning puppy being cuddled by a very happy granddaughter.~

~Another of #5 Granddaughter's favorite activities here at Grandma and Grandpa's is playing with playdough. When she comes over I leave the playdough stuff out on the table for the duration of her visit. Here she plays with it just before bedtime, ~And here she is the next morning, playing with playdough. She likes to make playdough cakes and pies, and all kinds of food. ~Granddaughter also very much likes to make real food. Her choice for us to bake together is chocolate cupcakes.Can you tell she likes to make and bake cupcakes?

~Can you tell I love to make and bake and frost cupcakes with her ? ~

~The cupcakes were delicious!~

Spot on Family Veterans

~Our oldest son David Burnson, a U.S. Marine and veteran of two tours of war in Iraq.~~This is David with his tank crew(below) in Iraq. David is idealistic, in spite of the disrespect so many in our country show towards the country of their birth, and the people who put their lives on the line ( brace yourselves ) for true ideals of freedom, freedom of religion and speech, and love of country! David comes from a long line of men willing to lose their lives for our country and values they hold dear. David has lost friends and brothers in arms , as did my father and my husbands' father. Their sacrifice has not cost them their lives, as it did so many they fought along side, but it did cost them...in areas they will not talk about, nor will I write about. It cost them in ways that will affect the rest of their lives. David does NOT regret his service. My father did NOT regret his service, my father-in-law does NOT regret his service. I would not ever deem to disrespect them for this , and have a very hard time personally with the very popular expression of disdain and disrespect so commonly written and published by the media "elite"and youth who have never had to suffer hardship or severe consequences for expressing their opinions , nor had to live under a regime which would easily kill them for their brash words.

~This is my father-in-law(below). Our oldest son David is named after him. My father-in-law was 17 when he enlisted in the Navy. He fought at the end of WWII and was in the South Pacific and involved in the famous D-Day launch on the beaches in the Phillipines. This man has such a fair complexion, (the Norwegian blood) that the extreme exposure to the sun during his time at war has earned him a lot of time having skin cancer treated. He does not understand the opinions of so many who think there is no cost to the protection of peace and security in our country. "An appeaser is one who feeds the crocodile, hoping it will eat him last." Winston Churchill

~Here is a picture of my family , minus my youngest sister who was not yet born. I am on the far left. My father was a soldier in the U.S. Army. He did 2 tours in Korea in the 50's and 2 tours of Vietnam. He was also someone who did a lot of reading and thinking....I am so sad when I think of how he and his brothers in arms were treated by America in the late 60's and 70's. To his dying day he knew Jane Fonda to be a traitor, and a few others I will not mention. But you know, Hollywood and their ilk are really all we should look up to, right ? We don't really need ideals that are worth risking life for do we ? "The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional as to how they perceive the Veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their country." George Washington ~Here is my father, Lloyd L. Hartley, in Korea , May 1958. "For it has been said so truthfully that it is the soldier , not the reporter, who has given us the freedom of the press. It is the soldier , not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the agitator, who has given us the freedom to protest. It is the soldier who salutes the flag, serves beneath the flag, whose coffin is draped by the flag, who gives that protester the freedom to abuse and burn that flag." Zell Miller (D) Georgia 2004 ~Another picture of my father in Korea, 1958. When my father came home from Vietnam in 1971 he was more likely to suffer abuse and disrespect from young fellow Americans than the enemy he fought in foreign wars. How sad is that? My generation, not like minded and never will be. I am still puzzled by the way so many Americans view our country, their country, as the reason for most other country's problems...yup, we should not be helping any other country out. Nope, we should not be shedding American blood for anyone else...wow, WE are responsible for the Japanese and German claim to world dominion and the resulting war ? Oh my....you would be surprised at the books and theories presented as truth to justify hatred of America. You would think we were the scourge of the world. Surprisingly, it is fellow Americans that hate us so much. "Never in the history of the world has any soldier sacrificed more for the freedom and liberty of total strangers than the American soldier." Zell Miller ~Here is a newspaper article about my Father. He is receiving the first oak-leaf cluster. My father received many medals and awards, but we did not know until he died because he was not one to talk about these things, or boast. He did not like to talk about death and war. I re-discovered in old photo albums many photographs of the people of the different countries he served in. He really liked and respected the different cultures, and was very able to appreciate differing views. He did NOT tolerate well the disrespect of your own family , culture and country. "Valor is stability, not of legs and arms, but of courage and the soul." Michel de Montaigne ~"In the beginning of a change, the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot." Mark Twain Patriotic-"characterized by patriotism, influenced by love of native or adopted land, intended for public good." Funk and Wagnalls Standard Dictionary

God of Our Fathers

vs.3: From war's alarms, from deadly pestilence

Be Thy strong arm our ever sure defense; Thy true religion

in our hearts increase, Thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.

vs.4:Refresh Thy people on their toilsome way

Lead us from night to never-ending day; Fill all our lives with

love and grace divine, And glory, laud, and praise be ever Thine. by Daniel Roberts

~Thank-you to all of you who have served our country , and willingly risked your life for the ideals you hold dear. Thank-you to all of you who have helped make this a country where freedom has been valued. May we always realize what we have been blessed with, and may our people hold dear the values that built and founded this country. Thank-you God for allowing me to live in a country I am free to practice my faith openly and voice my opinion. Please, may it always be so! Thank-you Veterans!~