Birds, birds, birds !

Wake up and get your cup of java- I want to talk birds today !

Wow my yard has became a bird sanctuary !! I have all different kinds this year, some I have no clue what they are. BUT I have got the meanest blackbirds ever !! I have asked Rick to set outside with the BB gun and fire away. ( maybe I'll post that next week as well as my scavenger hunt topic ) They have started tormenting my bluebirds.

I definitely don't want to scare the little blues away. They don't bother a thing. maybe I need to keep my suet feeders full on the other side of our property and that will keep them away. So I feed at least one suet block a week ! Yep, a week. Many thanks to my HUGE red-headed woodpecker. As many of you know when my suet feeder is empty he hangs out at the hummingbird feeder.

Anyway, I decided to make homemade suet. Man did I have a mess in the kitchen and when I washed up the dishes, I like to have never got rid of all that bacon grease ! Recipe follows for homemade suet.

I’m including this recipe from the 10,000 Birds blog. It’s perfect for making cake sized batches that fit nicely in those square suet feeders.
Homemade Peanut Butter Suet
Melt 1 cup shortening (Crisco or bacon fat). Add 16-20 ounces of crunchy peanut butter. Heat and stir until melted.
Add 1 cup of raisins, 1 cup of black oil sunflower seeds, 6 cups of cornmeal and 4 cups of flour.
Spoon into a 13X9 pan. Chill until it is hard. Cut into chunks for suet feeders (or stuff into cracks and crevices in logs).

The birds are going nuts over this suet, who knew it would be such a hit. Bam ! just started saving $5.00 a month.

My flower give-away is approaching and I only have 4 entries, what are ya' waiting for ? I will be drawing on Wednesday the 20th. I picked up the packet of flower seeds, oh wow are you goin' love them. Sorry can't tell you what they are it's a surprise. Some of the entries so far are - iris' ( old-timey ones) , barges on the Mississippi ( this would be fun ! ) blooming apple trees ( a little late for that here Maryann - this ain't NY, we are ahead of you in seasons ) Get some more good ideas in there the clock is ticking !

We are getting ready to go on vacation so a lot of work to be done around home first. Y'all know how that goes. Mow the grass, pull weeds, clean up the house really good, water indoor plants, etc. Well I decided to tackle another major project- clean the attic. After 30 trips up and down the stairs and 15 bags of un-used stuff went to the garage I am ready for a vacation. I had went to tan before my days activity and the lady there said maybe you'll find a treasure and I did $7.00 in a pair of shirts from last year. (tip for the pizza man !! )

This has to be a short post for the day 'cause I'm headed to Nauvoo for some picture takin', who knows as I cross the Mississippi I may see some barges ! ( thanks Julie for the idea, love it )

Oh yeah, I alomst forgot - I won in the Access Energy calendar again !! One of my Eagle pictures will be posted in July !! Yay me, 50 bucks is a nice addition to the vacation funds !

What the heck happened to Spring !

Well so much for my last post - Spring has sprung ! We now have snow. I guess it is Iowa and the weather here is very unpredictable. When I retire I want to be a "snow bird" you know people that go South for the winter.

I sat here yesterday and watched all the bird activity in my yard. I think they knew a winter storm was approaching. I had bluebirds, chickadees,robins,meadowlarks,cardinals,nuthatches and of course the over populated sparrows all trying to eat from the same feeder. My camera was snappin' like crazy! Here's a collage of some of the shots.

Updates on us - this will be the last on the shoulder. It's going pretty good. I have started strengthening it now- I tell you what 10 # feels like 50 , whew those gals really work me over. Most of the motion is back, I can raise it good but still having a little problem getting it behind my back. I asked the Dr. how much more therapy and he said they would kick me out when they see the progress had ended. I asked the PT's and they told me about another month would probably get it. Good - those visits are very expensive, thank God I have insurance !
Rick got back from Reno on Monday. He was there for work for a week setting up and tearing down fireplaces at a home show. I can tell, the laundry has reached the ceiling again (giggles) He took some great pictures for me, see. Oh yeah , the grill picture is for you mom :)


Now I want to go !
I have started following this blog. A lady I work with was telling me about her daughter and how she had started this plus how interesting it was. You should check it out if you are at all into crafty or fashionable new things ! It's great. Keep up the good work Jess.

Speaking of crafty. I'm getting ready to make a picture frame from a 4 pane window. Hey
Lana here's one for you as well.
I have all the stuff gathered up, just waiting on a warm day to paint it outside. Here's a picture of it -

I saw it in a Signature Homestyles catalog for 48.95. I thought it looked easy enough to make. I'm going to add my studio name to the bottom as shown in this picture. This will be ordered from my Uppercase Living book party
I just love that stuff, and you can customize anything you want !

Well it's time to jump in the shower and head to the grocery store. Fun, fun ! I will leave you with a quote.

"There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." ~Albert Einstein

Enjoy life ! Get out and do something fun, adventurous, exciting, make it the best day everyday !

Spring has sprung !

Well so much for me staying on top of this blog ! I'm not going to post all of my 365 pictures here. They are on my slide that I have posted to the right. If you click on it you will be re-directed to my flickr site and can see them all plus more there.
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First I want to say hi Chris ! I'm so glad you have a computer at home now. We miss you at work ! Chris was one of the great receptionist where I work. She retired and is greatly missed. I loved all our funny stories we used to share. It's just not the same without you, know what I mean. (wink-wink ) ____________________________________________________________________
Today is a new day, my flowers are starting to pop up and the grass is turning green, hallelujah ! I love the Spring it seems to refresh our spirits and get us out of the gloomy stage that winter put us in. I have seen bluebirds, robins, red-winged black birds and lots of grackles. A sure sign that Spring is here. I bought a bluebird feeder now I have to get some bluebird houses made so I can keep the beauty in my yard.

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Updates on me - shoulder is coming along good. I can lift my arm all the way up and out but I'm still having trouble getting it to touch my back with a twist in it :) Women you know we need this motion ! Think about it. OK now you can stop trying this and read on. My Dr. let me take a picture of my x-ray. Yeah it's kinda weird looking at the anchors in my arm but what about that zipper. Do you remember when your parents told you to" zip it !" I'm still laughing when I look at this. I had a shirt on that zipped and the technician told me to zip it all the way up so it wouldn't mess up the x-ray. Well there it is, looks like I have a zippered neck.
___________________________________________________________________ I joined back at Weight Watchers and have lost 9.8 # these past 3 weeks. Wow, it is hard to stay focused on the weekends. Any tips ? I have started a walk at lunch date with a good friend every Tuesday. That's a start i guess ! Also my former supervisor Deb and I have set up a lunch date once a month for catch up ! We chose Chinese last month and believe it or not I chose healthy !! Deb is a great motivator, she is always telling me I'm doing great and have got such ambition ! Thanks Deb , that means a lot. Oh yeah did I mention she is an entrepreneur ! She designed and invented dining stones. They come in different color and stone choices. Here's an example of the blackberry color. They are great !! check them out here. http://www.diningstones.com/about.html If you order tell her you heard about it on my blog !
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Rick has been out of town for a week. This has given me a break from housework & cooking. I literally come home from work , eat a bowl of Special K or salad, do a little yard work , then curl up on the couch. I have only had to do one load of laundry ! Woo-hoo, I was needing a little R & R. But I do miss him when he's gone. He's in Reno for work and I'm sure some play. He calls every night telling me how much he won or lost at the casino. He said he has some really good pictures for me , I can't wait to see them but then again , it will probably mean that once I do , he will have to take me out there !
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We're going to be going to the Turkey & Deer Expo in Wisconsin next month and also get a visit in with my Aunt Sue and my cousins. That should be a lot of fun and a great time for some pictures !
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Speaking of visiting family members. I will be going back to Tennessee in May to see my family there. My dad has almost finished making me a boat for my prop collection. It will go along with this set up. I have been buying all kinds of goodies lately. I have got to stay out of Hobby Lobby ! Bunnies, greenery, a mirrored sheet of plexiglass and much more. Now all I need is a kid to put in the boat with a fishing pole and I'm all set ! Rick and I built a dock from an old pallet. To buy the boat and dock form a prop dealer or even EBay was going to cost over $400.00 yep, that's not a typo !

I've worked on a couple more self portraits that's actually more fun than serious. I'm very inspired by this couple. ( http://nacedesign.com/blog/ )

Dreams Come True One Step At a Time

When going through life and traveling in the direction of your dreams, the best way to get ahead is the simplest way: Take it one step at a time. Don't look over your shoulder; if you do, you'll feel the weight of all your yesterdays upon you. And don't worry about what lies ahead. By the time you get to the bend in the road or the crest of the hill, you're going to be better and stronger than you ever were before. Just go a step at a time, one day at a time. And you'll find a rich, thankful life you never thought you could afford. ~A. Rogers