Who's That Singing?

Tuesday I heard a bird singing loudly & beautifully.  I thought it might be the mocking birds returning to terrorize us their nest from last year, because it seemed this bird was singing several different songs.  I dug around in a drawer to find grabbed the binoculars & headed the direction from which I was hearing the songs.

At the top of some very high Leland Cypress trees sat the "singer"... and it was NOT a  mockingbird!  Oh, I was so glad!  Last year they built a nest in a really tall bush right near our grill, & first they were noisy: then when the "young" (which grow to full size very quickly!) left the nest, they hung out around our back yard & dive bombed swooped at us anytime we were outside.  We were SO glad to see them leave & weren't going to put out the welcome mat for them this year.

But is seems the singer is a Brown Thrasher (upper left corner).  So hopefully if she/he is building a nest nearby, they will be better neighbors than last year's mockingbirds!
The Carolina Wren (who has been around since we first moved in nine years ago, & who I love to hear sing) has built a nest in the gutter right at the back door!  So it should be interesting grilling out there when her young come along...

Out My Kitchen Window

I love to know what others see "out their kitchen windows"...  In the many places we've lived, we've rarely had a kitchen sink that did not have a window above it.  So I always wanted something I really like to look at when standing at the sink.
My mom died just two months after we moved into our last house, & as a memorial gift from my sister-in-law we received a gift certificate to use for a tree to plant in our yard.  So I chose an ornamental plum tree & planted it where we could see it from the kitchen window.
Nine years ago when we built this house (very similar to our last house), I wanted to plant an identical tree in the same spot so I could see it out my kitchen window.

And this is the best time of year to look out there!  (The metal bird was a gift from my DH a few years ago & I had hoped it would scare away the deer... but it doesn't!)
Last year for the first time it actually produced plums which we were going to eat... But the deer beat me to them!  Since they are currently eating everything in sight, I have no love lost on deer!!!! (And don't give me the song & dance about how they need food... they just would rather feast on the delicacies of delight in human yards than the ordinary food provided for them in the wild!)

But for the short blooming time we have, I'm going to enjoy the beautiful little plum blossoms... at least the ones on the upper branches where the deer can't reach them...
I love spring time!!!

What do you see out your kitchen window?

A New Taste

I'll just tell you that the photography on this is not good... but I wanted to give you an idea of shape more than anything.

Have you seen one of these?  It's not an orange... it's not a Clementine or a Cutie... it's not a tangerine...

But it's one of the tastiest of this family I've ever had!

Almost as tart as a lemon, juicy as can be, & so tasty that I was smiling after I ate one!  The description on the box truly says it all: "bold tangy flavor"...!!!

Highly recommended! (I got mine at Kroger)

"Won't You Be My Neighbor?"

We've hardly seen our neighbors this winter, but as we came into the neighborhood on Sat. after a 10 mile bike ride on the Greenway in Raleigh, there were a couple of neighbors out in their yard across the street...

You see, there has been a dead tree that has dropped some pretty good sized limbs lately, so since it was such a beautiful day, it was time for the tree to come down.  It's always helpful to have some "support" on a project of this magnitude.

Especially when the saw gets stuck in the tree!

After breaking several ratchet straps...

and puzzling over how to get this monstrosity down...

the beast finally gave way!

It made a loud crashing sound (well, of course, it was a big crash!)

Then the work really began & everyone pitched in...

We only blocked one car from coming in... one neighbor had been to the grocery & had cold things in the car, so she took them out & walked up the hill to her house to put them away.

Many hands made quick work & it was all cleaned up quickly.  It only took an hour & a half to bring down the tree...  The clean up?  Not so much...

And it was so nice to see some neighbors again!

March 16, 17, 18...

Ides of March, Saint Patrick's Day,... Pool Opening.

"It's great to have you helping us spread the salt in the pool..."

"So, can we go in?"
"Oh, the earliest anyone has gone in is April, & only Corey goes in that early... The water is too cold."
"PLEASE!!!!"

"Geronimo!!!!"

"You're right, Mimi, it IS cold!  But I like it!"

"Oh my, goodness....!!!"

"Well, I like it anyway..."

"But it is rather cold..."

"I don't think I really want to go in..."
"You don't have to... it's up to you." 
 "But she promised!!!

"Do I HAVE to keep a promise???!!"
"It's entirely up to you..."

"Okay, I KEPT my promise!!!"
"Maybe that's a good life lesson... to be sure of something before making a promise.."

"We set a record!!!  First ones in the pool for the season... in MARCH!!"
"(Well, at least two of them look like they're glad they got to do it....)"

Hospitality & Winning

***

Though it will decrease my chances of winning... I just can't help but share with you a great give-away going on today over at Reluctant Entertainer. (http://reluctantentertainer.com)
It is a three-in-one offer to win, meaning three different gifts from three different bloggers that all go to one winner.

But the main reason I want you to visit there is that her encouragement on practicing hospitality is something I so firmly believe.  Her blog title suggests that she has tips for those not so inclined to practice hospitality, and that it is "entertaining".  But hospitality is something ALL Christians are COMMANDED to do.  And it is not entertaining.  It does not depend on how much space you have lack, how pristine messy your place may be, how few many children there may be to help hinder, how tight your budget is or how you may lack cooking skills (there's always the "potluck" or hotdogs on the grill...), or any of the other excuses reasons you may come up with.

So hop on out of your comfort zone, wander over to the Reluctant Entertainer, make up your list & set a date for when you are going to practice hospitality!  You will be the winner, even if you don't receive her give-away goodies...

*** I chose this picture (you know I just can't "do" blogs without pictures...) because it reminded me of a little trick a friend recently taught me.  She had a lovely plate of desserts after dinner at her house & when I remarked on a couple of them she grinned & said she'd show me how to make them.  She had taken Little Debbie Swiss Cake Rolls & the vanilla version of them (also boxed), & cut them into slices about 1 1/2" thick.  She then laid them on their sides on a pretty plate, & voila! a nice little dessert!  So you see, it's not hard...

Multi-use Item

I found it most interesting on Friday when our son called from the other side of the world that when I described this to him, he knew exactly what it was...

He even told me the approximate size of it...  He said it was just like they stored water in for showers in Iraq when he was there just a few years ago.  He also said that when he saw the Special Ops guys "sunbathing" on it in their shorts, he decided, "I'm going to be one of those guys!"  And now he is....

Out & In

For the last 9 years this pool has brought lots of fun & great memories to our family and friends.  It's been the sight of many get-togethers, has been the "learning-by-doing" experience for all three grandchildren (who are all now great swimmers!), and was a lifetime dream for me.

Unfortunately, for the first time this winter it began to look "poorly"...  We don't cover it in the winter, but keep it clean & glistening since it is basically our backyard.  But having to add water several times in Dec., we realized there must be a leak.  So in January we turned off the cleaning device, shut off the system, & ordered a new liner.

Yesterday the work began in the AM...

as they laid out the "bladder" that would hold the water (so we didn't have to truck in all new water or run our well dry);

and set up the vacuum that would suck all the water out of the pool.

It was filled to the limit...

as the pool emptied out.

Then the old liner was removed...

(and the old lights removed to be replaced).

The kids had always wanted to walk in the pool with no water in it

 (??? I don't know why...), but to avoid any extra dirt or damage, the workers asked them to take off their shoes to go down there.  Yes, it was COLD!

Then they began to lay the new liner...

and used a vacuum to extract all the air between the liner & the wall.

They pumped the water back into the pool, all nice & clean and free of leaves,

as we watched the "bladder" begin to go back down.

The new liner is a beautiful blue & everything is sparkling!

It will take a few days of running water from the well to completely fill it back up...

then we'll add this & turn on the new system... no more chlorine!

We are looking forward to making many more wonderful memories here!

Now You See It, Now You Don't

Today we had something "unusual" in our driveway...

But by day's end, it was....

Gone.

For a Little Man

About a month ago a friend & I were in a neat kitchen shop in Charleston and she saw a child's apron that was really cute.  It was definitely for a girl, but she said that she wished they had one for a boy.  Her grandson loves to cook with his mom, & when he comes to visit, he loves to cook with Dede.  The aprons were $16!
I said, "I could make him one."

Since we were going to my friend's house for dinner Saturday night,  I got busy on Saturday...

I made it shorter than the pattern because he's a short little guy.  The fabric came from...
Hobby Lobby!  He loves football, so I thought this might be a good choice.  And then to personalize it...

I hope Colton has fun cooking with Dede!

Are You Nutty?

This is a just an FYI post with no "depth" or "challenge" or.....

I really like nuts!  I like almost all kinds of nuts!  And since they're "healthy" I try to take in my fair share of them.  I bought some of these:

I mean, the label alone says it all!!!
But I found out something about myself while indulging eating this healthy little snack...
Although I like all the kinds of nuts in there, I like them one flavor at a time.  So I pick out all of one kind & eat those: then next time later I eat all of another kind.
I guess I don't really like "mixed nuts"...
How about you?

Going Green: Part 2

The most difficult thing to find was.....
Fabric for the kitchen chairs & bar stools.  I looked for a long time & brought home several swatches to try out.  Since they are near the windows, I wanted to have the greens a good match.  My DH suggested I just go with different curtains... But I really like them, so I persevered.  I also realized that I had an extra panel of curtains... so I could take them with me when looking for fabric!
And when I walked into a fabric store last Friday, I saw THE fabric!  I knew the minute I saw it that it was exactly what I wanted!

No one has ever accused me of being too neutral!  I LOVE color!!  This had more than one shade of green, but it also opened possibilities for different seasons of another accent color.  The rust red is the same shade as the sofas in our family room (which can't be seen from the eating area), but that color is also in the rug in the sunroom adjacent to the eating  area.  The main color of that rug is the gold color & it has these greens & a touch of blue the same shade as in this fabric.

We were busy yesterday putting the new fabric on the seats.  I also had new foam cut for the chairs that are 3" thicker than the original.  So my feet may not touch the floor, but I will no longer feel like a little kid at the table with too-low seats!
I went for indoor-outdoor fabric and sprayed it with a protectant, because I don't want my grans to have to worry about "spillage".
I've wanted to do this project for about two years, so it's very nice to have it done!