Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Things I've seen lately


I've been going through a bit of a rough patch. A number of family challenges have surfaced lately that have left me feeling, well, challenged. And sad. I don't have much to say about this, but looking through my pictures from the last few weeks, I notice that this hasn't really lessened my appreciation of the various things going on around me. Here are a few of the things that have been intriguing me or making me smile lately. I'll let you decide which pictures did which. :-)

A very kooky raspberry:

Poison Oak. Did you know it turns various shades of red and yellow in the fall?:

My fall/winter apparel. It kind of looks like a crime scene chalk outline, doesn't it?:

This really cool package that was delivered to our front porch:

A new weather station was inside that package. My husband has proudly (and quite prominently) displayed it off the edge of our deck:

A Fork-Tailed Bush Katydid. We have yet to have our first frost in my part of Oregon - I find it uncanny that in mid-November I am still hearing these guys chirp at night:

Reggie and Pete helping to put up the clear roofing panels onto the chicken run. Thanks, boys:

My oldest son and his girl taking a fall walk with me and the goat boys:

My friend from middle school, Scott, helping me clean out the goat house:

Roxy, my farm pup, mesmerized by a squirrel in a very tall Douglas Fir tree:

A heart in my avocado. I see hearts in the most unexpected places some times:

Lots and lots of Earth Bread ready to go into the oven. This bread is heavenly (and an awful lot of fun to bake with your best friend):

My pal, Marcee, taking my sweet donkey, Beau, for his first "off property" walk. He did *such* a good job!:

A lacy tomatillo. It looks like a piece of art, doesn't it?:

Today, I am especially thankful for my camera and the ability it has to remind me of all the happy stuff that goes on, even when I'm feeling low.

32 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing the beauty with us. Here's sending warm thoughts from the "other side". Where it's cold and the skies are blue. :)

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  2. Great pics Danni...lots of folks get in a funk this time of year...this too shall pass.

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  3. OMG that tomato is sooo cool!!!!

    ~The Mama Monster

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  4. Danni, Winslow Homer and I think of you, Roxy and all your wonderful critters often. As a mother of two grown sons who have flown the coop, I am here to tell you life does become easier. There is not a day that goes by that I do not wish my boys were little again, but I remind myself what incredible young men they have become and realize I did my job well. Blessings to you. Julie and Winslow Homer~

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  5. Hey Danni- you sound like you go need to take a tan! Seriously- it might help you over the hump.

    Thanks for the earth bread recipe, which I want to try- it sounds good, and I love good bread. And the less white flour in it, the better, huh?

    BTW, that insect you ID'd as a cricket is actually a katydid. Crickets are black or dark brown. If you look at google images for each, you'll see what I mean.

    In the meantime, schedule yourself a little me time with a tanning bed and maybe a facial or a massage or something. But definitely get some tan time in there. You'll feel better.

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  6. Love the picture of the clothes on the floor, fantastic.

    Hope you feel better soon - spend more time with Pete and Reggie!

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  7. Hey Dani,
    I'm Jane's friend in Alabama. We love your blog and your donkeys:)I drive alot for work out of the city where there is alot of farmland and animals. I try to remember to really look at and appreciate the beauty of what I see while I'm out. It does make for a better day doesn't it.

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  8. Thank yooo, Meadowlark - we actually had a bit of blue sky ourselves today!

    Hi AD - How's that sweet baby of yours doing?

    Love your profile picture, Mama Monster - your pup looks really happy to be in your arms!

    Hi Julie - Thanks for your kind thoughts and wishes - they are so very much appreciated!!

    Hi Paula - Thanks for the insect correction. Goes to show you, the Internet isn't *always* right, lol, since I did look it up originally and the ID that I got the first time around was cricket (there is a green Oregon cricket known as a Snowy Tree Cricket)! Anyway, I have corrected it in my post now and, after finding a photo (yes, on the Internet) that most closely resembled my guy, I could even give him a full and proper name. :-) Regarding the tan, while a week in Hawaii does sound lovely, that's unfortunately not going to begin to tackle the situation here. I also updated the opening paragraph in my post to lessen any confusion about this - you sure keep me on my toes... :-)

    Hey Chai Chai - Animal therapy, the power of this is incredible, isn't it? I'm not sure what I was going for with that picture of my clothes on the ground, but the result sure made me laugh. :-)

    Hello Jeanie! Thank you so much for commenting! (I ♥ Jane!) - I hope to see you here again! :-) p.s. Chester and Beau, my donkey duo, say "hey". :-)

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  9. Hope you're ok! ((Hugs)) I have a new baby at our place! That will make ya warm and fuzzy! A lovely Little Gem :D

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  10. that is a crazy long-ass raspberry.

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  11. I got two wacky looking raspberries a few weeks ago too. I figured some of it was the weather and some was it being a first-year cane. Maybe next year.

    I'd love to know more about the weather station you got. I've been looking for a nice, non-computerized weather station. So far, all I've found (anywhere near my price range, anyway) is a couple meant for elementary school kids.

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  12. I love your blog and critter photos. It is so awesome that the weather is still nice where you are. My farmgirl experiences usually tend to all be from April to August, we are getting -25 tonight and maybe 10 inches of snow tomorrow. I really have enjoyed your honesty and your blog, we all get down at times.
    I just started blogging, visit if you like.

    Christy

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  13. oops! somehow my comment disappeared! I really enjoy your blog and critter photos. It is so nice that the weather there is so nice. Here is some news that will maybe cheer you up, it will be about -25 at my house tonight and possibly 10 inches of snow coming tomorrow. Most my time farmgirl time outside is done between April to August. I love stopping by your blog from time to time and love your honesty.

    I recently began blogging too, so visit if you like.

    Christy

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  14. That picture of your "chalk outline" of your clothes cracks me up. :-) Were you standing on the coffee table? Or hanging from the ceiling or what? :-)

    We have been experiencing some great help from the goats around here lately, too. Arent they the best helpers?

    Deep into the forest he goes with that wheelbarrow. Im not yet sure how I feel about someone else helping clean the goat house tho...

    Oh oh oh...I remember that avocado! AND that bread on the plate behind it.

    YUM! Earth Bread. I have to tell you how happy I am that after 2 years and 10 mos I have finally made that bread. *AND* add to that that I got to make it with my best friend....well thats simply perfect in my book :-)

    Awwww...sweet Beau. He did such a great job. And it was so much fun! I really need to work on my whoa voice tho. :-)

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  15. Hmm! Thanks for teaching us what the green insect is! We have them all over down here in Georgia and I was intrigued by them this summer. I hadn't noticed them in Oregon before.

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  16. I forgot to ask you if you would share the earth bread recipe. It looks like you are mass producing bread in the picture. Do you freeze? Do you eat that much? Are you giving some away?

    Christy

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  17. Well they all make me smile, Danni. I agree with Paula . . . Methinks you need some sunshine to perk you up.

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  18. Yes, you have lots to smile about.

    And you now have another wild fan of your Earth Bread. "Wow, she made the Earth Bread into rolls! Can you do that?" That's what I heard at our dinner table last night. I'd better get that recipe again!

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  19. Your pictures are always so happy looking. I hope things get straightened out and you get back to your smiling self soon.

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  20. hi dani....i hope things work out for you soon! cool weather station! i have always wanted one of those. i am a bit of a weather freak! the tomatillo sort of looks like an upside down heart! joyce

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  21. There is much beauty to be found in the simplest of things.

    I hope you are feeling better.
    Hug a goat...

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  22. Well the heart in the Avocado made me smile... all that wonderful bread caught my eye as well! Roxy fixed on the squirrel was so cute. The goaties helping ah yes the goatie what trouble um I mean things they can't find to get into. I will be posting in the next day or two the latest goat adventure here LOL .. what they can't manage to do hasn't been thought of yet! LOL...

    Thank you for the nice post on my blog, yes running is, well I can't even put into words what running is to me and does for me. I am hooked. :O).

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  23. LOVE that first pic..how are they doing anyway..I'm so excited about that project..I have a pot and soil all ready for them.:)

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  24. I am sorry you are going through challenging and troubled times. I certainly can identify with that. Good that you take the time to remind yourself of all the good in your life. I have had to consciously do that too.

    I didn't know, maybe I forgot, that you were growing tomatillos! I should do that too!. They would be great with my new found love of everything with roasted green chile peppers.

    My wv cracks me up. It's "succu". That describes my moods lately.

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  25. I've been wondering where you've been. I'm sorry to hear that your spirits have been low. It really does help to look up and see all that there is to be grateful for, doesn't it? Thank you for sharing these images and inviting me into your world, just a little bit.

    Carolynn

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  26. Sending you a big hug from Texas. I'm sorry you're in a rough spot. I sent you a note on FB.
    Love your pictures. Did you save the avocado pit?

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  27. Hey Sue - your little Gem is, indeed, a precious gem! :-)

    Chook - Almost identical words came out of my mouth when I saw that raspberry! lol

    Hi bldrnrpdx - Thanks for commenting! So, when you say "non-computerized" weather station, could you elaborate? Our new one is a Davis and has a digitial display that sits on our nightstand and the ability (though we don't use it) to hook up to our computer. I think most every weather station these days comes with a digital read-out, which is "computerized" in my mind.

    Hi Christy! I'm so glad you posted a second time, because there was no link in your first comment for me to click on to be able to find your blog. Ok, wait...did you comment a third time as "ChristyLyn"?! LOL - I'm looking forward to visiting your blog.
    Regarding the Earth Bread - I posted the recipe on my blog back in 2008 here: http://critterfarmgirl.blogspot.com/2008/01/earth-bread.html

    Hi CaliforniaGrammy - Now when has a bit of sunshine NOT been helpful for perkiness? :-)

    Zitrone - So glad you guys enjoyed the rolls! Did you eat them with the golden eggs? :-)

    Hi Penny - Thanks for thinking my pictures look happy! :-)

    Hey Jaz - the weather station is SOOOOOO cool. I can highly recommend the Davis one we got. We are a family of weather freaks - you'd fit right in around here. ;-)

    Hi Pricilla - I got in some most excellent goat hugs just this morning, but last night, Reggie was feeling especially loving and just stood there for the longest time letting me love on him. It was WONDERFUL. :-)

    Hi Texan - Ah yes, goatie trouble. It's never ending. You'd think I'd stop being surprised at the nonsense they do. Ah, but with all that nonsense comes an awful lot of laughter.
    :-) :-)

    Hi Diane - Your project is still plugging away...I've read that they can take a while to root, so you may just have to practice your patience skills. But don't worry, I won't forget.
    lol

    Farmer Jen - Oh man, I got SO many tomatillos, I didn't know what to do with them all. In fact, right now, I have a huge bucket full of them - I wish you lived closer. They'd be yours!

    Hi Carolynn - Thanks for thinking of me. ♥ It really is important to have a dose of perspective every now and again. I am so very fortunate, but it's hard when those closest to you are having a difficult time. I really appreciate your kind words.

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  28. Hey Sue - your little Gem is, indeed, a precious gem! :-)

    Chook - Almost identical words came out of my mouth when I saw that raspberry! lol

    Hi bldrnrpdx - Thanks for commenting! So, when you say "non-computerized" weather station, could you elaborate? Our new one is a Davis and has a digitial display that sits on our nightstand and the ability (though we don't use it) to hook up to our computer. I think most every weather station these days comes with a digital read-out, which is "computerized" in my mind.

    Hi Christy! I'm so glad you posted a second time, because there was no link in your first comment for me to click on to be able to find your blog. Ok, wait...did you comment a third time as "ChristyLyn"?! LOL - I'm looking forward to visiting your blog.
    Regarding the Earth Bread - I posted the recipe on my blog back in 2008 here: http://critterfarmgirl.blogspot.com/2008/01/earth-bread.html

    Hi CaliforniaGrammy - Now when has a bit of sunshine NOT been helpful for perkiness? :-)

    Zitrone - So glad you guys enjoyed the rolls! Did you eat them with the golden eggs? :-)

    Hi Penny - Thanks for thinking my pictures look happy! :-)

    Hey Jaz - the weather station is SOOOOOO cool. I can highly recommend the Davis one we got. We are a family of weather freaks - you'd fit right in around here. ;-)

    Hi Pricilla - I got in some most excellent goat hugs just this morning, but last night, Reggie was feeling especially loving and just stood there for the longest time letting me love on him. It was WONDERFUL. :-)

    Hi Texan - Ah yes, goatie trouble. It's never ending. You'd think I'd stop being surprised at the nonsense they do. Ah, but with all that nonsense comes an awful lot of laughter.
    :-) :-)

    Hi Diane - Your project is still plugging away...I've read that they can take a while to root, so you may just have to practice your patience skills. But don't worry, I won't forget.
    lol

    Farmer Jen - Oh man, I got SO many tomatillos, I didn't know what to do with them all. In fact, right now, I have a huge bucket full of them - I wish you lived closer. They'd be yours!

    Hi Carolynn - Thanks for thinking of me. ♥ It really is important to have a dose of perspective every now and again. I am so very fortunate, but it's hard when those closest to you are having a difficult time. I really appreciate your kind words.

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  29. Ooops, sorry, Frugal mama, I leap frogged right over you to tease Christy. Forgive me.
    To answer your question, I was standing on the arm of the couch. I do this regularly, even when I'm not photographing. :-)
    You never told me what the family thought of our Earth Bread...what it a hit or a miss?

    Hi Oregon sunshine...Funny about this green bug - quite the discussion occurred on Facebook after I requested assistance with this insect's identification. Apparently, a katydid is actually a type of grasshopper? And I say that with a question mark, only because I'm still not entirely certain and nobody (including the wise old Internet) is/was able to agree. lol
    Pretty picture, though, right? ;-)

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  30. I love how you photograph the most simple of things and how, by sharing them, they have meaning. Thanks for the smiles!

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  31. Dani, I sure hope you're feeling better. It's no fun when you feel cloudy even when the sun is shining.

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  32. I'm a little behind Danni...hope you've gotten over the blues!

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