FEATHER DRAMAS @ THE SMITH'S

 Such a on-going show in our little backyard this year!  Looks like the first photo here will lead me to show how the little crooked birdhouse that Norm made....very much like this one shown here, blew off into the 'wilds of Roseburg'.  We don't normally have the types of winds that we used to experience on the coast.  Anyway, off it flew and I asked Norm to make another one just like it since it was one of my favorites.  Below is the in-the-rough beginning.  Further down you'll see Norm working on it as it nears completion.

 Above is one of my first of the David Austin roses...........I love this rose.  It's so delicate in appearance, has a beautiful fragrance and seems pretty hardy.......I'll try getting some slips soon.

 Just a little house or purple finch that visited.  Since he arrived in the middle of the great war between the swallows and the bluebirds, I think he just wanted to watch the sport.  He hung around for a while as the show went on around him..........

 Now this birdhouse is the one that the swallows used to raise their babies last year.  There was a confrontation between the two last year, too, but they finally settled into agreeing to disagree..........The bluebirds, which I thought were friendly, sweet little guys, that just spread happiness all around where ever they came.....Oh, so wrong!!!   They are aggressive and relentless in their declaration of territory.....So, whenever the swallows would begin patching up their previous nest the bluebirds would move over to stand on top of their house.........like the photo above.  There is another birdhouse that  the male swallow would sit guarding the female's work.  (typical) but this year the bluebirds would take that guard station over, too.  The bluebirds finally started going into the swallows nest and I think they destroyed it.  Everytime the swallows come in now, the bluebirds are right there and I[ve noticed the swallows have given up...........can't blame them, but I'll miss watching the new brood being raised.

 A few days after the destruction of the swallows nest I thought it was pretty funny to hear some birds just fussing away........there on top of the bluebirds birdhouse was a bright big blue jay...........what goes around comes around, don't ch'a know?

Through this time of torturing the poor swallows, the bluebird of happiness were busy attacking every window around our house.  Their reflections were as relentless as they were.  Norm started threatening about getting his b-b-gun when they started leaving messes on our brand new deck.  I started dropping blinds and doing everything I could to discourage them, at least around the deck. Something finally worked.....About this time I noticed there was all kind of dried weeds on the front porch.  A pair of sparrows were now trying to build a nest on the timbers over the porch.....the bluebirds eventually scared them off, too.  I read on Google that the aggressiveness of birds is based somewhat on the size and strength of their beaks.....I'd never thought about that before, but it makes sense, doesn't it?

 So hear in the ever so talented husband of mine, finishing up the new birdhouse.  See all those little shingles on the roof?  A hassle, apparently, to tack on. The shingles are fairly thin and would frequently split when he would try to tack them on.  He must have worked all day on just the roof.  Finally, it reached a stage of painting and then 3 coats of varnish.  I think it looks great!

TRAVELING UP THE NORTH UMPQUA AKA STEAMBOAT INN

 A week or so ago Norm was asked to help friend, Dick, with a 'not-working-right' lazy susan in the kitchen and it was down low rather than above the counter.  After quite a frustrating and long afternoon both Dick and Norm's arms were covered with dark bruises from elbows to hands.....taking turns crawling on the hands and knees was hard work.  It was all fine, though and it's to be expected for 2 senior 'gents' to have a few dings here and there as well as the bruises.  So, Ginny, Dick's pretty wife, wanted to take us out to a special meal......(I had a 'sympathy' bruise).  We had all heard about Steamboat Inn so off we went Saturday morning..........It far exceeded my expectations!  The weather was perfect..........white dogwoods in full bloom could be seen hanging onto the hillsides overlooking the North Umpqua river.  Beautiful!

Much to the utter annoyance of the men, we stopped a few times here and there for me to take some photos......And the landscapes just kept getting better and better.  I think my preference is the mountains compared to other surroundings and I was so in awe!!

 Our lunch at Steamboat......actually we ordered breakfast since they serve either up until the dinner hours........was delicious!  and a very nice selection..........Loved the young waitress so friendly and in a natural way........nothing artificial about her.   Our table looked out onto the beautiful garden pictured above.  That path you can see in that photo leads down to their cottages and they also look over the river.  Steamboat does have dinner open to the public and reservations are a 'must'.  They have local chef guests that change every weekend.  Guests get first chance at the reservations.  The cottages rent run generally in the $200+ per night.  It is a destination site and really calls for the time to look around and appreciate all that it has to offer even if just for a meal.  Inside the lobby there are photos of some of the more famous guests of t he past. (Jimmy Carter for all you Democrats, Hemmingway for those fans of his)......

 After lunch was when I picked up my camera and started wandering..  It just got better and better and truly, the photos don't do any justice at all to the enormity and grandeur of the view.  You follow a path down and then onto a rock overhang.  The sound of the rushing of spring water pouring downstream and bubbling and bouncing over all the rocks, little islands and brave little trees that stand tight against the force of the river just kept my camera snapping a mile a minute.  I wish I could have

been able to post more but time and space won't allow that.  Do yourself a favor, though, and if possible take a trip to Steamboat Inn.  You won't be sorry.

an after thought..........walking down the path over the river, watch out for the fresh, healthy poison oak.........

OAKLAND SEEN AS AMERICANA

 Norman Rockwell would  have loved this town in the spring.  The older buildings with so many beautiful established plants, trees and more give a bygone days kiind of feel.  It seems like there is a lilac in every yard and on every corner..........Here below you can see Ginny given homage to her favorite fragrance......The lilac pictured on top is closer to being a tree rather than a shrub.  I love that gorgeous old brick in the background, too.

 Lauren, Ginny and I had the usual good lunch at Tolly's.   I should have taken a couple of photos of that,too.  It's one of the more popular restaurants in this area.  There is one particular artist who places a lot of his paintings in Tolly's.   His work looked familiar but I thought it was just that I admired his style.  Everytime I go in there I have to take a few minutes to look at John Benjamin's newest (and older) works.  This time I spent a little bit more time and read the  bio on him,  There I saw how it was his work that I would seek out to study and look at for in 2nd St. Gallery in Bandon when I lived over on the Oregon coast.  The same gorgeous blue sky is what I remember.  The first painting of his that caught my admiration was a long and narrow canvas with just a little strip of land at the bottom but the emphasis was on that gorgeous blue sky with just a few puffy clouds......Absolutely beautiful!.....I just fell in love with it.  I've looked and hoped to see where he might have a website, but no.........I'm out of luck.  Good to know, though, that he lives in the area and much of his work is of various pastoral scenes from the Umpqua Basin that I find so inspiring......I can only imagine what beautiful works, Elaine Roemen could catch if she were here......

 After lunch we wandered with camera and every place reminded me of Norman Rockwell paintings....Americana, small town style.  Love it!

 And the flowers are so happy........tulips, scilia, wallflowers, roses getting ready to break open, lavender and iris.........Many, many more....

We hit a couple of antique shops on the way..........unfortunately there was one that was so overwhelming with the smell of cat that we just couldn't stay...I couldn't care how many bargains there were.  It was truly over the top.......They needed the lilac aroma badly.......

This Saturday, we're supposed to be going to the famous Steamboat Inn.  Hit a waterfall or two, also.......I'm really looking forward to it.  It's open for breakfast and lunch Saturdays and Sundays without a reservation.......dinner is a different story.  Guests that are staying there have first priority and reservations are required.  They have a different guest chef every so often.  I'm not sure if that changes every weekend or longer........but it's somewhere to go when you want something very special...........so I've been told.  I'll let you know about lunch and hopefully some good photos.
Have a great weekend!

A MORNING FOR THE BIRDS

Beautiful weather the last few days..........I think with such super days all the folks we passed in our jaunt to Stewart Park duck pond, were friendly, smiling and just happy to be out and about.  Spontaneous conversations popped up here and there.......one lady on her way to play golf greeted us like long last friends....

 My niece, Lauren, was down for a few days visiting us.  Which is always a treat for Norm and I.  She and our friend, Ginny, had met last fall and so the two met up again as we all did a photo shoot with the morning catching the birds at being birds.  They're pairing up and one couple of Canada geese had a flock of goslings......I counted 9.

This little cutie and her sister (not shown here) were excited about feeding the birds.  Some looked bigger than her..........but she found out soon enough that they'd scatter if she ran at them.  Great fun!
And speaking of birds, we have our usual Hatfield vs McCoys battle in our backyard.  The western blue birds and the swallows.  We went through this last year until they could learn to ignore each other.  They each take over one of Norm-built birdhouses, both lined up on the fence and facing each other.  Stay tuned for further developements............

This group of ducks just spent so much time upside-down they made me laugh.  As they had bottoms up, they would sort of bob up and down like those little bobbing balls that fishermen use.    

Here is one final long view of the pond.......from here we went on to Oakland to have lunch at Tolly's...(Yum!)  Then toured the small town dressed in all it's Spring finery.......I'll continue our photos in my next post.

So..........here in the Umpqua area don't put away your winter woolies just yet........a small chance of showers tonight...........No moaning now.....most aren't quite prepared yet to jump into the heat of summer.  It was 91 degrees yesterday!  Record breaker for sure.  Summer will be here soon enough

Nite for now.............

BRIGHT DAYS OF SPRING

 Wow!  I was shocked to see how long it's been since I'd posted here on my blog!   I guess I just needed a bit of time doing other things for a while.  Like making new friends, facilitating A Course Of Love group, gardening, etc. etc.  Day to day in getting familiar and comfortable in our new home.  It's been over 2 years now and in some ways we still feel like newcomers.........other times, not quite 'old timers' but not the new kids on the block anymore.

Our garden is thanking El Nino for the wet winter......I think anyone living on the west coast is thankful for the abundance of the rain.  Even with some of the problems it might have caused.  Quite a number of hillsides and rocks not wanting to stay in place.  Thankfully, no one was hurt that I know of.  Oh.....one woman I believe was killed up in Florence when her house slid down.  

I actually haven't been taking as many photos but have been exploring some of the arts and crafts.  A little painting and sketching.......did Zentangle until I got a little bored with it.  My newest is Iris Folding.  I love it.......It leaves a lot of area for creativity.  Something like Origami but more expressive, I think.  

Above is one example of a card I made up.  After cutting out a particular shape and using a pattern you start folding pieces of paper.......on overlapping another........It's a little time consuming but I enjoy it.  

And Norm?  It's been a long time in developing but it seems he's made some sort of woodworking items for everyone one of the women in my art group.  Some have a specific item in mind and wonder if he can accomplish what they can't find at the stores (without $$$$)   Small items.......but he comes through.  Lately he's been repainting our outdoor furniture.......love the new soft mint color.  He has some men neighbors who stop by on their walks if they see the garage door open.........which means he is accepting.......

Now with such warm weather happening I'm spending more time gardening.  There are a number of plants that I thought I'd lost.............particularly ones I brought over from the coast.  The prize goes to a couple of peony that not only popped up through the creeping phlox, but one has about 6 or 7 buds all ready to bloom with exuberance!!  

I saw that on the last post back in May of 2014 I showed our new pergola.  At the time it was placed on a cement patio.  Just last week we had Precision Plus build a deck.........Although I like to call it a 'back porch'............on top of the cement..........They used Timber-Tec rather than wood.  I love it!  It's maintenance free and it matches the pergola so perfectly you'd think they were all installed at the same time in the same material.  I can't say enough for the workmanship of the crew, also.  Precision Plus earned the top spot for building the best decks in all of Oregon.  Everything they did from the foundation to the final touches was accomplished perfectly.  No rushing through to hurry and get the job done..........and I do know they have a big job coming after ours.  The photo below shows one angle of it.  Norm still wanted that screen cover over the top, more to insure privacy than another else.  The pergola does have more slats now.  So. there is more shade.  All in all, the result more than passed our expectations.

 My niece might be coming this week for a visit and I'll have more photos and tales to tell in a few days..........I hope.   Next weekend, TJ and Aiden will be coming.......more on the adventures of grandson and great grandson......
Our friends, Ginny and Dick, will be taking us up to Steamboat Inn for lunch and photos of waterfalls I hope.  Steamboat is a internationally know resort where 'serious' fishermen from round the world come to try and thin out the fish from our lakes and rivers........The beginnings of a good summer....
till next time..........

It's good to be back...........

THE PERGOLA

It's up and running now but it was clearly a disaster when Norm and I tried putting this up by ourselves.  We got it about half way up.........trying to connect the two sides........it swung, it swayed, it swung again, and swayed and crashed down with a mighty roar!  Barely missing hitting us on the way down.  These are steel beams........light steel, but still would have left us seeing stars had it landed on our heads.  Within a few days, help arrived in the form of Clayton and Danny.......Angels from Umpqua.  The directions said it was "easy to put up......only taking a couple of hours.  Ha!  It took 4 of us, at times and about 3 hours to get it done.  But, it's up and now nicely shading our little patio.  I think eventually it might look nice to have wisteria growing over the top.  But that's a project for another day.  And I might want to wait until the many, many things I've planted lately, start filling in so I don't bury ourselves in greenery and blooms.  

And speaking of blooms, the rhoddies and azaleas in the front are just gorgeous!  They were here when we moved in and have a number of years growth.  Big and lush.........with hydrangea starting to bud.

Seems like some good spring showers have graced our areas lately.  And in a couple of days the temperatures are supposed to go shooting back up into the 80's again.  Good........I ordered a half a dozen Virginia Creepers to plant.  I see them on the freeway overpasses, and saw them in their autumn beauty while in Scotland.  Seeing them growing up on century-old castle walls is something I won't forget anytime soon.  And I expect nothing less for here!!  So......I'll get them off to a good start tomorrow when it dries up a little and hope they grow quickly.

I went with a friend the other night to the Roseburg Unity Church.  They have A Course In Miracles group and I've very much missed being a part of a study group since I've moved over here.  Those of you who know me, know that this is very much a passion of mine.    What a great bunch of people.........I know I'm going to love it......I already do and it's like a part of me 'coming home'.

So.......all in all, life continues to slowly evolve with Norm and I.  He still has very little voice from a medical procedure of a couple of months ago.  This week we see an ENT doctor to see what he thinks of it.  Obviously, Norm is not a happy camper regarding this.  Hopefully, he'll feel better later next week.

I hope all you Mom's out there have a perfect Sunday..........My own has passed on but not a day goes by that I don't think of her and miss her.  And in gratitude I thank her for her love.

WHO'S THAT KNOCKING ON OUR DOOR??

 It was our friend, Karen, from Port Orford!!  After a number of delays we had a lovely visit..........and it was a thoroughly delightful couple of days.   After Karen arrived and after showing her our new home, we traveled north a few miles to Oakland.  Had a good lunch at Tolly's.  If anyone get  over that way, they should try to stop by....even for just a look at this great refurbished business.  It was once a pharmacy although it looked like it was more.  Done in old Victorian decor now with a gorgeous winding staircase to the dining room upstairs.  They have some very good art hanging on the walls, cupboards of beautiful old china and dishes, lots of vintage old photos of past business, homemade pies and cakes, bread, quiches, and all kinds of other yummy foods.  I think the chatter with Karen never stopped as we caught up on all the old, new and future news.

My photo album on Facebook held all my photos of our remaining afternoon as we toured by foot, Oakland.  All the spring blooms were out along with the sun.......the fragrances, the charms of old well kept Victorian homes and cottages........surrounded by cottage gardens was a joy to the senses.  Dogs, birds, kitties, alleys that reminded me of the French Quarter in New Orleans and lots more.  It was a great afternoon and my camera went crazy with the clicking.  If you want to see anymore of Oakland, take a look            https://www.facebook.com/donnas1/media_set?set=a.10152541640583243.1073741847.741743242&type=3  

Our next day we went to a park that I've been wanting to check out for quite while.  Lots of all kinds of water birds.  So.........even though my forte is not photographing birds, there were enough and they were tame enough that even I couldn't miss!  And I saw my first nutria...........not the most beautiful of animals, are they?  But that Mama loved her baby that was hidden (sort of) in the reeds........Mama kept a close eye on us for quite a while.  and we kept our lens on her....All in all, it was a long overdue and wonderful visit with Karen.  I had traveled with her on a cruise to Alaska a couple of years back and we dream of a trip to Ireland some day.

I can hardly believe I'm half way through my VA Hospice training already!  It continues to be fascinating.  Last week was particularly a good one......on Spirituality.  My opinion is that spirituality encompasses the entire Hospice concept.  There are so many various aspects, feelings, and emotions that are drawn from that one topic and everyone in our group had something to add to the training.  It was said that when any of us, as volunteers, come across a possible spiritual need of our patient, that our own experiences (or lack of) pertaining to that need, will tell whether we can actually relate in a positive and meaningful way or not.  That might be anger, guilt, fear, etc.   And that really applies to any of us, I'd say.  And there is the difference between truly wanting to help the patient and coming from the heart or talking so as to boost our own egos, just wanting to fix things that aren't ours to fix.  Lots to ponder......letting our own experiences and discoveries from those experiences do the teachings.  Things that can't be taught from a book.  I love this training!!

Well, Easter is just around the corner and I wish you all a Happy One!!

A DAY OF SUNSHINE......

 We had a pair of our long time friends from Port Orford stop by for lunch last week.  So good to see them again!  We caught up on all the coast news.......unhappy though a lot of it was.....I sure don't miss that negative atmosphere, but all our friends.......ahhhhh.  Like a breath of fresh air.  The lovely couple above is Jim and Karen Auborn.........Karen has a lovely art gallery and is a marvelous artist.  I have a number of her paintings, which I treasure.  Karen has also done wonders in working for the Main Street Project in Port Orford.  Jim is mayor and I believe will be next year's Rotary president.  His plate is full!   Both are dedicated to working for the good of the city and it's citizens.  And I hope we see more of them on their way between Port Orford and Portland.........

 These last photos are sort of an experiment of setting flowers in ice and trying to get some interesting effects.  I don't know.......I think it needs a bit more work!   I got the idea from another photographer whose work I follow on Facebook.  His name is Mo Devlin, in case you want to look up his photographs.  I think you'll be impressed.....

The planting in the back yard is proceeding quickly......we had nice day the other day where I found out I still have some arthritis in my back..........But I got a number of seed packages planted......and 4 plants that I ordered from Michigan Bulb.  Those plants did not arrive in great looking shape.  If they don't make it, I'll be sending them back.  This has happened before so I should have known better than to order from them again.  But, who knows, they might make a beautiful comeback and be the best in the garden.

I've had my second week of VA Hospice training.......third coming up on Monday.  It's really a lot more different than civilian hospice that I've been in before.  But just as fascinating.  And the other day I had to have the VA Police try their hand at getting my fingerprints.  In case any of you might remember, I went through 6 different Curry County deputies, each trying to get acceptable fingerprints about a year ago...no luck!  So, I expect the same will happen here.  They still need to send them in to where ever they go, to give me a number, then I'm sure I'll be hearing from them again asking me to come in for ink prints........which will again be an effort in futility.  But who, I ask, would have the same scars along with what's left of my fingerprints??  It just seems very silly to me and a waste of time........at least all these multiple attempts.  The saga will continue.......

Part of my Hospice reading was this tome for HIPPA.  It's dealing with the Federal laws protecting privacy and security of patients.  After reading it 'forever', I'd deem it an excellent replacement for Ambien.  Boring, boring stuff..............Thankfully, that's over and the rest will be great.  The other volunteers in training all seem to be really nice people.  Some are already involved the health field and others have had family in need in the past.  They now want to extend their knowledge and experience in a meaningful and very much needed way.  Like I said.......Really nice people~!

Well......the weekend's coming up and I hope you all have a good one.  With enough in between possible rain showers to give you a breath of spring!

A PROMISING SPRING

Happy spring, Everyone.........we're almost there and in a few days it will be official.  In announcing the happy weather, here is a photo of some beautiful tulips that my niece Lauren brought me when she and her girls came for the weekend.  They're looking too nice in my living room right now for me to plant them outside yet.  That will come soon enough.  The daffodils below are our own......one of the first garden blooms from some bulbs that I just barely got in before it was too late in the season.  Other plants are poking through the soil or bursting out into leaf, depending.  It shows great promise.  We're already making some of our own changes in the back yard without going too crazy.  But my visions for the future garden are inspiring me to forget the aching back and get out into the midst of it........I'll probably "Cry Tomorrow".....

 This below photo was my proud find while I was doing some weeding.  The prized black morel mushrooms!!  I've never had them but the mushroom books all say they're highly valued among mushrooms. We have a ton of them coming up under a dead oak tree whose has some branches that drape over our fence.  The others are too little just yet to pick but you can depend on me checking them daily!  And into the frying pan they go!

Had a wonderful time over the weekend visiting Ashland for my first time.  I definitely need to go back to check out all the area we didn't get to.  There were street musicians on every corner as well as a lot of colorful characters walking the streets and in the shops.  There was a lovely little park that we walked through on our way into town complete with bubbling creek and duck pond.  The park was so well used with a lot of families and little kids running all over.....enjoying the warm sun and the bagpipes, or fiddles that were playing by more street musicians.  I enjoyed the bagpipes..although normally I can only take it for so long.......the bagpipers were dressed in their kilts, of course.  Always makes me wonder...........hmmm??

Norm has had a bad couple of weeks but is feeling much better now.......although he still has laryngitis.  Doctor said that he aspirated stomach acid into his bronchial tubes and lungs during a medical procedure.  This is a new area for us and of all the things I'm alert to and making as sure as I can do to prevent, this, I didn't expect.  Anyway, it never did get into anything like pneumonia, thankfully so I see the way all-clear ahead now.

Well, while the sun is still out and the day is balmy, I'm going back out to rustle around a little more in the garden..........Hope you're all enjoying...........

A SPECIAL TREAT

 Well, what a sight for sore eyes!  My dear friend and ex-neighbor, Nanci came by for a visit today.  And the  beautiful orchid below is from her.....We talked and talked non-stop, catching up on all the old news, new news and everything in between.  It was an extra special treat since this past week has been pretty rough for Norm.  He had a medical procedure that left him in worse condition than before.  Apparently, he had saliva entering his lungs and developed a type of aspiration.  A lot of pain, coughing, coughing and more coughing plus laryngitis.  And anyone who knows Norm, knows that he doesn't sit around all day in front of the TV, but that's pretty much all he did the past week.  To say I've been worried is an understatement, but I do think he's moving forward now.  And Nanci's visit was just the perfect boost.

We're both looking forward to Nanci and Ray coming back over and stay longer so we can go
exploring.......

It looks like our drought is over here on the west coast.........we've had lots of rain with more promised.  I read that another El Nino might be developing.  I remember when we moved to Port Orford there was an El Nino to end all El Nino's!  1998, I think.  A woman who lived in a cute little beach cottage with a nice slope down to the water's edge ended up with an abrupt cliff with logs outside her window being tossed up in the air like matchsticks.  She was getting ready to have the house movers....like move the house not the furnishings, take her home out of harm's way.  Then I guess the storms subsided.  Just one of the reasons I never wanted to live right on the water.  I liked a nice healthy buffer zone.

Norm and I continue to plan our garden.  I haven't received in the mail yet the climbing roses, jasmine or clematis I've ordered and I'm getting impatient.  Especially since I have some gardening magazines that are inspiring me.  We planted some new lawn where the heavy equipment tore things up when we had our back yard and fence boosted up.  In order to not encourage the birds in eating the lawn seed, we stopped putting out birdseed.  Now we set up the hospitality wagon again and the juncos and finches are returning.  I never see any squirrels or chipmunks, though.  We have oaks around so I'd think that the little critters would be seen........course we do have a few kitties around.......That might explain  things, huh?    The Little Darlin's........

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend.  More rain coming tonight and tomorrow but here in the valley we're looking at sun later on in the week.  So........everyone enjoy the hints of spring coming.

A VALENTINE FOR BUNNY LOVERS

Yesterday I heard the best story and wanted to share it with all of you.........A friend of mine, who is VERY pregnant had a flood in the basement of her home.  (who says we're having a drought?)  My friend, Lynn, kept her bunny, along with her dogs, in the basement when they were away from home.  Lynne's husband is in the military and away from home most days of the week but close enough to come home at odd days.  They have two young daughters, one from each other's past marriages and the girls immediately bonded when they came together........a nice family unit.  And like I said, a new little one coming along soon to join in the fun.  OK........back the the flooded basement.  After Lynn found the flood and that the bunny was in need of a little 'clean up', all seemed well.  The next morning Lynn's mother (Mom and Dad also are part of this close knit family life), told Lynn that she'd better check on the bunny "Whiskers" because he wasn't moving.  Lynn was devastated to find Whiskers had died.  The home was an older place and the basement was a mess (her words not mine) and who knows what had been down in the basement to float around in the flooded water.  Very likely something like rat poison.  That had Lynn worrying about the dogs, too, and whether they might have drunk some of the water.  Lynn called the vet and learned what signs to look for if the dogs were in any kind of trouble.......and thankfully that never became an issue.  But the bunny's passing was going to be hard news to break to the girls, also.  So they weren't told until later.  
While Lynn was crying her heart out about Whiskers, she called her husband and told him what had happened.  Lynn's husband, Roger, was really upset that Lynn was taking this so hard.  ( I expect the pregnancy hormones were alive and well).  So, Roger consoled her as best he could via long distance phone calls.  
The next day, Roger was home and when Lynn got home from work, he told her to check in their closet for his Valentines Day gift to her.......(Feb. 14th).......AND to NOT bring the girls with her.  Lynn naturally thought that it might be a slightly "naughty Valentines gift" so she went in alone.  She went to the closet looked around, and seeing a pet cage on the floor of the closet, leaned down to find a new bunny in the cage.......a cute little lop-eared female.  Seeing this new addition, Lynn promptly broke into a fresh wave to tears.  Roger is frantically asking if these are tears of good or bad???  "It's too soon!!!"  cried Lynn.........And of course, Roger, felt terrible.... telling her that he can bring back the new bunny until the passing of Whiskers had reached become a more manageable emotion.  Roger had looked all over the south coast area looking for a bunny to bring home to replace the missing hole in her heart......as well as the girls when they got the word about Whiskers.  Lynn realized what an exceptionally sweet thing that Roger had done and the effort he had put into this loving act.  She told him that she did intend to keep the new bunny and realized what this all meant in the larger picture.........
When the girls came home from school they told them to go in their closet and take a look at Daddy's Valentine's Day gift to them all.......From the other room, Lynn and Roger could hear the shrieks "ITS a BUNNY!!!".    They still hadn't been told about Whiskers and that was to be shared with them when the girls came back from playing a bit with their new discovery.  There were some wet eyes at once, and one of the girls asked if they could name the new bunny Whiskers, also.  Roger said he wanted to name the new bunny Valentine, since it was his gift to all of them on Valentines Day.  So, Valentine is now a happy addition to this beautiful loving and growing family.  
I think what really touched me was Roger's desire to fill in the feelings of loss that all "his girls" were or would be feeling.  The pain of loss rarely is as long lasting as say, a family member, but still a loss of a beloved pet still hurts acutely in it's initial stages.  This story just moved my heart.   

Today, I drove over to the Roseburg VA and scouted out the building where I'll be meeting the administrator of the VA Hospice program.  I've been thinking along these lines for a while and when our local newspaper listed that they were in need of more volunteers.......well the timing was perfect for me.  It's been many years since I've been to the VA campus and the new housing they have built for some of the veterans is so nice!  Nice, neat, cheerful.....like comfy little condos......no barracks here, thankfully.  I'm sure I'll have more news about some of my experiences in my future ramblings....

The above photos are of a few spring flowers that Norm and I recently purchased.  We're definitely starting to look forward to spring and warmer weather.  I have a number of vines, shrubs and plants coming.  We have a much smaller garden area now, but there's enough room to make it "our own".  Put our own stamp on it.  All we have to do is wait out the continuing rains........at least they've started again and this is Oregon, after all!

Enjoy your winter days and dreams of spring........

"THE GREAT FENCE"

 Before I get into the saga of The Great Fence, I want to show off the gorgeous colors of the autumn trees around here last week.  I went with a friend for lunch and we drove over to the Umpqua area.  My kind of photo shoot!  Old historical homes, pasture animals, old barns and beautiful fall colors......plus the ever wonderful Umpqua River.  "My cup runneth over!"   We had lunch at a delicious bakery.......The Lighthouse Bakery.  It's also a cafe and has vegetarian food.  Being an animal eater, I usually avoid vegetarian restaurants, but that menu has changed so much from what it was years ago.  Just delicious is the new version.  The Lighthouse does a great business and this is what supports, at least in part, a spiritual retreat center that I've yet to visit but sounds pretty amazing........That will be the subject for another day.
In the travels of last week, we stopped by one home that had such an assortment of  an autumn themed garden.  Not only the gorgeous trees, like this first photo of a liquid amber, but a cute outhouse, hay wagon, scarecrows, beautiful fall flowers, and just too many odds and ends to list them all here.  I put a couple of photos of it on Facebook, if you follow me on there.  The family all came out when they saw us out in front......first the son, visiting from Chicago, then his mother, then his son, then the father, then the daughter.....and then the family dog.  One by one and we all had a great gab-fest.  Such nice people!  And they do it up for Christmas also, so I'll be hoping to see that come December.....
The second photo is of a group of fishermen taking off on one part of the Umpqua River.  And the third photo is of one I took of the river from an overpass........I usually don't put my own photos on my computer's desktop but this one I had to........It's so beautiful!  And it was a beautiful day.

 So now it's the sage of "The Great Fence".   When we moved into our new home we noticed that a part of the fence in the back was leaning but didn't think it was that big a deal.  Then we had a storm come through that dropped quite a bit of water.  Compared to what we used to get in Port Orford, we didn't think it was much of a gully-washer, but it did do some damage out back.  It washed out a gully between the sod of the lawn and the weed-guard that held decorative plants against the fence......It looked like it washed under the garden beds and under the fence.  I couldn't see beyond the fence to see what the backside looked like but the fence was REALLY leaning after that.  Obviously, something was going on that needed looking into.  So......we had a maintenance man and contractor, Scotty, come out and take a look.  It appears that when the backyard was re-landscaped, the drainpipe that went under the lawn, either broke or just stopped without continuing out beyond the garden area......meaning under the fence.  No one actually knows this for sure at this point since it's underground but that's what suspected.  Another contractor came out and those were his thoughts also.  Doesn't really matter, except it has to be fixed.  Next week, the project will start........digging up part of the garden and lawn......dropping steel I-beams, a cement wall, 2 layers of treated plywood and some kind of cloth, layers of rock....a French drain and the the fence pulled forward attached to something or other. They say that the garden will look back to what it looks like now (minus the leaning fence) but I really, really have my doubts about that!  So today, there have been all kinds of utility men coming and going to make sure that there are no lines, wires, etc. that will be impacted by the work....Plywood has been delivered, and different men painting words on the lawn that means something to them.  Good Grief!!!  And "Yes, this will cost a pretty penny".  The good parts are that (1) it will be fixed so no further damage can occur and (2) they will start next week and will work at it straight through to completion..........5 or 6 days.  Oh.....a third plus is that we're meeting a lot of very nice people....and that counts for a lot, right??

The weekend is coming up and I wish you all a happy and fun time to be had by all!

TRICK OR TREAT??

 It's been so long since we've been living in a place where we get the Halloween trick or treaters and this year was just great!  Our very first trick or treater was our new friend pictured above.  Myrna did NOT have her parents with her but braved it on her own..........actually she was in costume for handing out the treats which her daughters and grandchildren went out to treat everyone with their 'family of bones'.........All dressed in skeleton costumes.  Myrna was so decked out I couldn't pass up taking a photo of her.  Not long after that the kids started arriving......in hoards!  Some of the very little ones were so funny.  A number started to just walk in the house like it was it was where they belonged.....one little guy who was only about 1 1/2 years old didn't consider my putting the candy in the bag his Mom was carrying to be legitimate and when he thought I wasn't going put any candy in his own little hand, his face started to scrunch into what would become 'the big square mouth wail'.  Of course, I quickly put another piece in his little hand before the dam broke and he, satisfied, went on his way.
 The various parents were pretty funny, too.  They almost always had to tell the younger ones to say "Trick or Treat".....which translated into "Twick or Tweet".........then there was the duty "Thank You".

 A tall young girl dressed up like Little Boo Peep, gave a very deep voiced thanks that had me commenting on The Voice.........When he told me a bit defensively "I'm a boy!".
  After I gave one little one his treats with his father standing there with him when I saw a flash from out on the street.  I said "Oh, picture taking?"  And the young father said in a bit of a tired reply "Of course"........guess Mom makes happy and frequent use of her camera!  Another pre-teen boy suggested I give him ALL the candy.......then gave a thank you and a "God Bless".  I wondered whether he knew it was a heathen holiday.......8-))

Now we are left with about a couple of dozen little candy bars and/or packages of M&M's.  Hmmm.....I wonder what we're going to do with them?  It is a dilemma.........

 These flowers are perfect for the autumn of the year, aren't they.  They above chrysanthemum grows in our garden.  It seems to be a prolific producer........And the beautiful variegated cyclamen was given to us by a friend, Sarah..........I've never seen one like this before with the variegated leaves and the very deep dark red blooms.  I think we've found the perfect place for it and enjoy watching it thrive.......Fingers crossed that I don't do anything to change that.

Hope you all had a fun-filled Halloween, too.  There were probably Halloween parties at the schools and churches.  Some merchants in shopping malls hold a Halloween costume parade for the kids to march in and collect treats from the various shops and stores.  Unfortunately, we have to worry more now-a-days on keeping the kids safe from the real-live bad guys.  Thankfully, last night showed Norm and I that the kids are having just as much fun as they did when we were kids.