Pay It Forward 2

Hi folks!  Whatchy'all been doin'?  Me?  Well, lookie here what I got in the mail yesterday!

This gift is from Sunny at Sunny's Place.  She is doing a "Pay It Forward" giveaway. I'm participating, too.  Look at the lovely things she sent my way - a beautiful candle holder and votive, some handmade (by Sunny) candles from her real beeswax when she was raising bees (wait - I mean beekeeping), a little windchime that makes the sweetest sounds and this sweet book entitled His Princess, Love Letters From the King, which is just grand. I can't wait to read it. Short devotions that I will be able to share with my daughter about the love that our Heavenly Father has for his daughters in Christ.

Sunny, Thanks so much for this lovely gift.  I know I'm going to enjoy it immensely.  Now, I have 3 sweet friends that I am "paying it forward" to, so they will be getting something from me very soon!!!

Got WORMS???

Well, WE GOT 'EM! Hornworms that is - on the tomato plants. They are huge. They start out little bitty and in a day or two or three they've eaten enough of the plants that they are engorged and sure make a mess when you snip 'em in half with your garden shears.  They leave little poops everywhere, too. I wanted to just snip 'em, but Tony said he was gonna leave 'em in the metal pot in the sunshine... They've bitten holes in some of the tomatoes, too.  I've dusted with Sevin so we'll see...

Got baby birds?  Yes?  We do, too, baby mockingbirds.  The nest is in front of my kitchen window in the crepe myrtle tree.  I can do the dishes and watch the mama bird stuffing bugs down their throats. I'm keeping an eye on 'em to see when they jump out of the nest or fall out.  We've got cats all around.  I guess I should just let nature take its course.

Good night, friends.  I'm sleepy.  Take good care of yourselves and I'll see ya on the flipside!

Memorial Day & Farm Kitty

http://thedailyawakening.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/memorialday1.jpg

Memorial Day - brings to mind lots of different things for different folks.  Altho I haven't had anyone directly that has died defending America, I have had many in the armed forces who've served our great country.  Memorial Day has a special significance for me this year - my nephew, Clay, is serving in the Navy.  My sister has made a great sacrifice, too, even tho it was Clay's decision.  She puts him in the hand of God every single day.  I know there are countless other parents and loved ones who do the same.

My dad was in the Navy and later in the Naval Reserve.  I remember when I was a little bitty girl the weekends that he went off to the Reserve activities.  He would put on his "whites" that mama had starched 'n ironed stiff as a board so carefully.  I remember him picking me up and swinging me around, and sometimes he'd let me wear his sailor hat for a few minutes before he'd go. Didn't wanna get it dirty, ya know! 

Tony's dad was in the Marines and the Army - two different stints.  I don't know much about his days in the service. Tony's uncle Horace's plane was shot down in France and spent some time in a prisoner camp until the war was over.  He would never talk about it but he never quite got over it.  He has Alzheimer's today and struggles in his mind over things that happened to him during the war. I've got some great uncles that served who of course are long gone now, but I remember them.  Let's remember ALL of them who served in the past and those who are serving still today in prayer - for thanksgiving and for His watchcare over them.

IN OTHER NEWS...

Meet ALICE THE FARM CAT

She protested loudly that she really didn't wanna have her picture made right in the middle of her dinner.  She really didn't wanna have her picture made at all.  "No paparazzi!" She kept squeaking! She has food on her mouth and is being very immodest indeed! "Well, that's what you get for interrupting my dinnertime!"

Alice, please quit being so rude!  That's not a nice way to meet new people!!!

I'm sorry, folks, that Alice is making such a little pill of herself upon her introduction!  She really will have to learn some manners.  Wait - cats don't ever learn manners, they always do what they want!

WHICH MEANS...

Aunt Amelia, YOU have won the "Name the Farm Kitty" Contest!!!  After much debate and much discussion around our house this weekend, the name "Alice" has been bestowed upon this skinny little orphan.  Thank you Aunt Amelia!!!  If you'll please email me your address, I'll get your grand prize in the mail ASAP!!!  And it WILL be a surPRIZE, cuz I don't know what it's going to be yet!!!

Thank you to all who entered - they were all cute names and there were several we liked alot, but "Alice" came out on top!  Now, Alice, mind your manners!!!

Little Farm Cat Contest!

Howdy from Sand Flat Farm!  Ya know when you live in the country how your house always seems attract stray animals or drop-offs?  We had our stray chicken back at Christmas & New Year's if you'll remember. I've missed that chicken come running up to me when I'd come home to the farm.  Something got her - probably an owl or hawk.  And since we don't have any immediate neighbors around & she couldn't have traveled through the acres of hay by herself, I've got a feelin' that somebody dropped this little baby off at our farmhouse...

Yep, we now have a farm kitty.  I found her Monday.  When I got to the farm, she came running out from under the porch, crying her eyeballs out - she's teeny-tiny, can't be more'n 5-6 weeks old. Skinny-skinny, and it made her eyes look HUGE. (just look at the picture - looks like "space kitty")  Well, you know what happened.  Soft hearted me (I LOVE animals of all kinds) fed her and gave her water.  She ate till she had a big fat tummy and plopped herself back under the porch.  She's still a little scared, but she wants to eat more than she's scared. 

I did manage to scoop her up and turn her upside down to see what she was - pretty sure it's a girl - we'll know more in a few days maybe.  But her bobo is all black fuzz and it's hard to see right now.  Plus, she was panicked and trying to get away.  She's coming around now, tho, and letting us hold her.  I guess she's decided that we're not the mean people that dropped her off and we do have good catfood.  I hope she'll stay under the porch and out sight of the owl that lives in the sycamore tree until she gets a little bigger! Now, I'd almost like to have two kitties so they can keep each other company.  Will check into that more...

Who knows?  Maybe she'll be able to earn her keep by catchin' gophers and moles???  And the rat that's made a home in the garden shed...

Oh, oh, get this!  Yesterday, I picked cucumbers again - about 2 dozen more.  Did you know crows like cucumbers? Perhaps they were just jabbing holes in them for fun and to irritate me.  I thought crows were just carion eating critters.  Well, I had to throw away about 10 of the cukes that had crow beak stab holes in 'em.  I knew it was crows cuz there was crow tracks all around my cucumber vines.  They also managed to scoot an already-exposed potato the rest of the way out of the ground and peck on it, too!  What are they doing? Playing soccer? We've got alot of crows.  I even have a big plastic owl on a pole above my garden.  Lotta good it's doin!  Guess I could set out there with a shotgun or my .22 and take pot shots at 'em, but that wouldn't work for long. Kill one, two more come back.  Dadgummit!  I'm gonna get me some aluminum pie pans and hang 'em all around my cukes. Hope that helps!!!  Daddy runs a radio 24/7 by his garden and his pecan trees to keep crows away.  I don't have electricity to my shed yet, unless I run a 200 ft extension cord out there so I can't really do that.  Got any ideas??

Ok, sorry for the interruption - back to the topic at hand. I'm open to suggestions for a name for the kitty - I'm partial to pet names myself - none of the Chloe or Zoe stuff. (My daughter's dog's name is Bella). Adam wants me to name her some cute little Spanish name.  If you have a cute name for this little black and white kitty, send me your suggestions!  Whichever one wins gets a prize!!!  Don't know what it'll be yet, but a prize just the same!!!  Start thinkin'!

Harvest Time!

The harvest season has begun!!! YEA! I have harvested ONE big juicy tomato - it's almost ready for me to slice and eat over the sink with juice running down my chin and hand, 2 dozen jalapenos, dill, onions (still got a bunch in the ground - just pulling 'em as we need 'em), 6 big yellow squash, 4 zucchinis, and about 2 dozen picklin' cucumbers!!! I know what I'm doin' on Memorial Day weekend!

I love this time of year. I put up 2 1/2 dozen quart jars of my spicy pickle recipe last summer and they were all gone before the end of the year 2009. We love 'em and so does everybody else. I did a post on making 'em last summer in June. If you're interested go to this link Pucker Up For Pickles! So hopefully I planted more this year and will make more than ever.

Jelly's still a ways off, but that's coming up, too. I also planted plenty of tomatoes and peppers so we can do some hot sauce. I can make a meal on hot sauce and chips (and do sometimes!) Monday evenin' I made some fried squarsh (haha). I never fry stuff except in the summer and except for fried squarsh or okra. That's about it. Wanna see it even tho all of you already know how to do it? Well, you're goin' too, anyway, as I'm hurtin' for blog fodder.

Ok, here we go.  I've got a bowl with about 2 parts flour to 1 part corn meal and I'll stir it with a fork til it's all mixed up.  I've got milk and eggs, too, and maybe a cup of vegetable oil in the skillet heatin' up.

I mix two eggs with about 1/2 cup milk and whip it up real good.

I've already got my yellow squarsh & zucchinis washed straight outta the garden and sliced up.  They get an egg bath now. Swish the slices around in the bowl and cover 'em real good and slimy.

Then, I take them out one or two at a time and salt & pepper them and put 'em in the flour/cornmeal bowl.  They get coated all over with this mixture and then...

...throw them babies into that hot grease & let 'em fry!  Not too hot, or that corn meal 'll burn before your squarsh is done.  I let 'em fry for a few minutes on each side til they start turnin; golden brown.

Here we go - see, they're lookin' purty good on one side there, flip 'em over and do the other side!

Ok, have ya a plate with some paper towels standin' by and when your squarsh is done take it out carefully (so you won't lose your crust) and lay them on your plate.  VOILA!!!

Now, don't they look great?  My mouth was waterin' way before these were done.  I love to get a little Ranch dressin' in a salsa bowl and go to town on fried squarsh.  I don't need anything else to go with this supper!  In a week or so, I'll have some fresh homegrown summer tomatoes to go with these! Or how 'bout an onion and tomato sandwich???  Love 'em!

Edited to Add--- and other stuff - MY LITTLE CORNER

All through my last post I talked about "blue salvia".  There is a blue salvia, but what I meant to say was that the blue flowers in my beds are "blue sage" - very similar but very different, too.  So, I stand corrected (by myself).

I ran into this lady from California at the Blue Moon Gardens in Edom, Texas, yesterday and she was carrying around a leaf of this little plant she called "silver dichondra". I googled a picture of the 'silver' to show you but she was wantin' the dark green color - She wanted to cover her yard with it...

 

source - http://wzus1.ask.com/r?t=a&d=us&s=a&c=p&ti=1&ai=30752&l=dir&o=0&sv=0a5c4242&ip=4ac07927&u=http%3A%2F%2Fnature.jardin.free.fr%2Fimage%2Fdichondra_repens.jpg

I told this lady that this was just plain ole kidneyweed (some call it dollarweed, but dollarweed is completely circular) and that if she wanted some all she had to do was come over to my house and dig all she wanted out of my yard under the shade trees.  She said in California, people put this stuff in their yards and it makes a nice lawn - never have to mow it.  Well, I guess here in Texas we have centipede, saint augustine and bermuda and we like to see a nice "stand" on our grass. 'Course we have lots of hot summer sun here in Texas, so we don't usually have alot of cool, shady, damp spots in our yards.  She ain't from around here, for shore!  Hope she's not plannin' on having a kidneyweed yard here in Texas!

In other news, I went to the "SPRING FLING" at My Little Corner in Noonday, Texas, on Saturday. It was fun. I was actually pressed for time, cuz we were having my sweet dad's 75th Birthday get-together-charcoaled hamburgers -n- birthday cake - with the fam - minus one grandson, SO I didn't get to shop like I wanted.  I did get a few pictures for you, tho, and highlight of my trip over there was meeting a fellow blogger - Elaine from Soggy Bottom Flats!  also Margo from Margo's Junkin' Journal was manning the cash register - she has a booth over there doncha know.

Margo has become a sweet friend of mine that I don't get to see enough - she's going 90 MPH all the time with her hair on fire. Her booth is well-stocked at all times - if you've not been over there, YOU NEED TO GO! I don't know where Margo gets her energy!  We meet up at our local favorite Mexican Food restaurant from time to time to catch up! Here's a shot of Margo and Bill,one of the owners - he's real nice!

You really should see this place - might take you a couple of days. There are so many different vendors and lots of tastes and styles of antiques, vintage items, and junk - good junk, mind you - repurposed industrial junk decor is the "newest thing" in junk, so I hear.

This is a lovely lady from around Canton, Texas, way - meet Elaine, from Soggy Bottom Flats Quilting & Stitching.  You should go visit her blog - she quilts beautifully and she has a gob of blogging friends that do, too! 

Of course she was drawn to all the quilting stuff right off!  Here she is again checking out some squares amidst some of the ever-so-cool stuff for sale!!!  Happy hunting Elaine! It was SO nice to meet you!!!

See the tan slender lady behind the popcorn machine?  She's Sherri, Bill's wife. Together, they have a great thing going here at Our Little Corner!

You see that old vintage Coke cooler?  Well, I WAS TOO LATE. I wanted it bad, but it was done got. Dang.

Hey, go inside and tell somebody to come out here n move their big ole Mercury out from the front of the store so's I can take a decent picture!!!!!  If you wanna see more pictures of the sale, go check out Margo's blog, and also Our Little Corner's blog!!!

Well, there you have it folks.  My trip to Our Little Corner.  I did not spend any $$$ which was good, cuz my husband keeps tellin' me that I don't need any more junk. Can you believe that?  But I DID get to meet Elaine, a bloggy friend, and I got to see my friend Margo again.  Margo, I got a hankerin' for some enchiladas, girl!