Turquoise...

This year I have decided to get "Country Diva" jewelry up and running. Trying to decide how to accept credit cards on and off line. Adventuring out into soldering and cutting my silver. Who knew silver could be so expensive? Wow! Going to use some copper accents and stamping techniques to my new pieces. Excited! Actually going to go to a local shop and see if they are interested in any of my stuff! Anyway, here a few of my things I have made in the past...my favorite pieces.

This weekend we went in search of the perfect Christmas tree.
We thought it would pretty cool for the steers to pull it out and take it home for us. We had a lot of on-lookers who thought this was pretty
cool too!







First one cut..... Then the other.......Aww... the memories they will have!



Then Al and Bert hauled it away to our house. Such a magical experience! And don't they look important? Such majestic beasts!

Passions

So...my daughter just got a set of bull calves to train for 4-H...she will be training them to be pulling steers. This ones name is Buck...he was curious about our dog Colby...who was not at all interested in him! Her other bull is named Bronco. He is a feisty one! He likes to kick up his heals and jump around.

Anyway, this passion of hers has left me to put on hold one of my passions...beading! I love the satisfaction of making something out of nothing and winding up with a higher quality, one of a kind, custom piece than you would find at any store!

Gotta get going on making some new pieces for the Christmas season...after all...they aren't MY calves!

How you doin?

I just thought this was a cute picture that my daughter took. This is one of her cows. Every year she raises a team of steers for 4-H. This team is her second team. She is selling them on Tuesday. She is now hoping to acquire a team of red and white holsteins. She wants to name them Buck and Broncho. Cute, huh? This team was Elmo and Ernie, and her first was Luke and Buster.
Anyway....I just thought I'd send a little message to see how you were doing! Have a great day!

This is the view from one of the fields near my house. Isn't it breathtaking? On 10/10/10 I took my two youngest up this mountain with the two dogs. It was amazing! And we even looked back to the field and could see my husband mowing! Very cool! What did you do on 10/10/10?

Memorial Day Weekend

This weekend is Memorial Day! Thank you to all of our soldiers who have died for our Country! What an honor!!

A little trivia below for you:

Memorial Day is a United States Federal Holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates U.S. men and women who died while in the Military Service. It was first enacted to honor Union soldiers of the American Civil War and was expanded after World War 1.

The Help- good read!

I finished "The Help", by Kathryn Stockett, last week. Very moving book! It is about black maids in the south during the 1960's. They talk about what it was like to live and to take care of the white people's homes and children. Don't you think for one minute the white women could be real housewives! They couldn't make it without the maids! To think that it actually happened is beyond me! How can someone treat another human being with such disregard? It just blows my mind! Intense at times...but an easy read!
If you are looking for a good summer book, check this one out!

Hot May Day

It is supposed to be a real hot today in NH today...92 degrees!... Makes me wonder what the Summer will be like if the Spring is already hot like this! I will have to break out the fan for the students that come in because they are too hot...along with my infamous ice packs! They are a cure all... Oh and water too of course!
Enjoy the day!!

4-H is a wonderful program. It teaches kids responsibility. It teaches them respect. It teaches them confidence! How rewarding is it to take two calves that are only a few days (hours) old and teach them to follow you around like dogs?! My daughter has done just that with these two. Ernie (on the right) and Elmo (on the left). They are Holstein/Jersey cross. They adore her. They follow her around like she is their mother. She loves it! They listen better to her than they do me...hope they don't get loose when she isn't home!

So...I'm in the middle of reading "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett and I can not put it down! I have only just started getting into it because I have been so busy these last few weeks...
So far, this book is intense! An easy read. You've got to try it out!

Molly

Meet Molly... The newest addition to the family. We found her at a Farm and the owner wanted to get rid of all of his kittens. It was all I could do to just take her! Isn't she precious?

Girls Day! The boys are off for the day!
What to do?

Last week was school vacation week. What a beautiful week it was! My daffodils are up! My pansies from last year reseeded themselves and now I have new ones growing. The trees are full of bright green and red buds. The piglets have arrived from another farm. We have had two bull calves born within the last week and here is Annie. Born this morning!

Compliment

I had the best compliment today from my 5th grade girls. They said I was like their mother away from home! Too sweat! It made my day...
year... career!

Reading

I just started reading the book "The Help" by Kathryn Stocket. A New York Times Bestseller. It is set in the 1960's in Mississippi. I read an excerpt on-line and it looked interesting. I'll let you know what I think of it when I'm finished with it.

I am constantly looking for a book to read. Haven't found any particular author that I absolutely love yet. I want something that will keep me hooked!

Any ideas for books to read this summer?

Cleaning

I ended up cleaning the game room today, along with my 17 year olds bedroom. All I can say is WOW! Who knew rooms could get that dirty? When he gets home from visiting his father in Kentucky, his room will be freshly painted and a lot less cluttered! I threw a lot out! Thank God my husband rented a dumpster. Can't wait to rip out the carpet and paint!
What color should I paint?

Boots

I wear many shoes...wife, mother, sister, friend, nurse. However my favorite shoes to wear are not shoes at all. They are my boots! Yes, boots. Muck boots for the farm and cowgirl boots for the other times...that's just who I am! I have wanted a pair of cowgirl boots for a very long time! I finally found a pair that I like and ordered them. They arrived yesterday! My daughter was just as excited as I was! It was all I could do to keep her from putting them on before I got home from work.
What shoes do you wear?

Farm Life Pictures

Some more farm life pictures! Colby is my lab, Ladybug is my Jack Russell, AL and Bert are my steers!

ADHD

ADHD...know anyone with it? Boy I do! My 4 children all have different "looking" ADHD! Some days I am so exhausted...I just want to crawl into bed and cry! I should be an expert in it, but I'm not. I HATE using drugs to treat it, but it seems to be the only thing that helps. It is amazing at how ADHD affects everything from daily living, to friendships, to school,to getting along with your siblings.

So today I dropped off my 17 year old (who has ADHD bad!) to go visit his dad in Kentucky. We had to be at the airport at 5:20 a.m. That meant leaving home at 4:30 a.m. He of course slept all the way down! He was so angelic looking. Why can't they stay that way? He used to be so fun and cute and funny when he was younger...What happened?! He can still be fun and cute, but the attitude and defiance is what kills me! Ever since he discovered he was taller than me (and possibly stronger) he has been pushing his limits! Why can't we just skip the teen years and go straight to the young adult years?

Any advice on ADHD? Treatment? Dealing? What ever you have, I'd be glad to consider!

My Secret Garden coming to life!

Here are more photos of my perennial garden coming to life. I am fascinated with taking pictures in a new way! I am having a ball! I will be adding more soon. Enjoy!