Happy August

HappyAugust!!!!    Feels like autumn is here a little early, as our weather has been very dry, and things are drying up much, it feels like late September!
We've had a very busy summer and now granddaughter Amanda and TJ are married (wedding was August 10th) and things are settling down.  Company is gone, house is getting back to normal, and now I'm getting ready to dig into some quilt making again.

Granddaughter Renee as "flower girll" and Wyatt (family friend) starting their walk down the aisle!

A beautiful wedding and a beautiful day for a wedding. No wind and nice and warm.  We all did get a little sun burned.  The day before at the practice it was chilly and we all wearing jackets, so most of us didn't even think of using sunscreen!!!    A beautiful view looking out over the lake.

Saying their vows.  

I have so many pictures it is hard to know which ones to show everyone.

I've been gone so long, I almost don't even know where to start again.   Have been away from reading blogs and everything.   Need to make time to get back into the swing of things again.

See you again soon, JoLynn

April 8th, and Tired of Snow!

A year ago, hubby had a good start on his farming field work!  Not this year, and as things still look, I'm beginning to wonder if our growing season will be long enough for him to spend the money to plant.  Probably shouldn't think that way, as the money for seed corn is already spent and seed corn is here waiting to be planted!  He did change his order to seed that has a shorter growing season.  Now AFTER this snow melts and seed gets planted, we'll be thinking and worrying about when the first hard frost will come.  Is there never an end to worrying?

This is our yard late this afternoon on 4-8-13.  Snow hasn't melted fast enough.  Dogs, Odda and Putzer are tired of it too!   We still don't have patches of grass showing through except by the steps where we've shoveled.  Spose we could have plowed off the whole yard, but that wouldn't help the issue of the farm fields being any closer to ready for planting!

Just had to post a couple of pictures.   I can't wait to get out into my garden and get flowers going!

Looking toward the barns.  Where we've plowed to drive, it's good.  Muddy up by the barns, but close to the house the driveway is good.  Our dirt road is drying up nicely too.

Odda and Putzer just starting to get dirty feet.  With more rain, we'll have really dirty dogs, but I'm ready for that.  Anything to get green grass going!

From our deck, looking south toward Connie's house.  You'll see close to the road that the fence posts are now sticking up through the snow!  So quite a bit of melting needs to happen.

Have a great evening everyone!  Hope you're enjoying your weather where you're at.

JoLynn

 I'm back from our "girls" trip south to see # 3 daughter and granddaughter Renee.   What a nice trip it was.  #2 daughter Stephani, and two sisters-in-laws Loretta and Sue went with.  We drove my SUV and we were lucky enough to have great roads!  No rain or snow storms to worry about.  Just cool and somewhat grey days, but we were all so thankful for good traveling weather.  Sue and Stephani were both getting over flu and bad coughs, so they weren't feeling 100% for most of the trip.  But that didn't stop us from having a great time.  

We went to a Mardi Gras parade in Youngville and two parades in Huoma on Fat Tuesday.  Did the tour on Avery Island in the gardens and the Tabasco Plant; enjoyed their gift shops.  One evening we did Paint With A Twist, and all of us took home picture!   Enjoyed the Chinese New Year celebration at Jessica's in-laws, enjoying all the good food and company.  Went to the Flea Market at Lafayette one day.  I didn't find anything that I couldn't live without.  Kind of unusual for me not to get something!    Stephani had to go to the doctor one day as she just wasn't getting better.  She got a shot and medicine and now is finally feeling pretty good.  Says she is still coughing a little - that cough just hangs on so long.

We did so many things, I had to come home to sit and relax!!!  Our time went by so fast.

At the Youngville Parade - Jess had shirts made up for us
" Mardi Gras - Minnesota Outlaws - 2013 " 

Painting our pictures!   Jessica's sister in law came with us.
What fun!

With our finished product!  All so unique!

At the Huoma Parade 
Renee's cousin nickname Turtle is on my lap.  We ended
up with so many beads!!!!   Loretta and Sue took home
lots of nice beads to their grandchildren!



Jessica was such a good hostess.  Floyd was working off shore while we were there, so it did end up to be a truely "girls week"!  Loretta and Sue and Stephani enjoyed a lot of "firsts" in the food they tried and things we did.  Jessica had a "big" itineray made up, and due to rain there were only two things we didn't get done. 

Thank you Jessica and Renee for a creating such a great memory for us.  Can't wait to come back south!   Missing you already, Gma Jo

Have a great weekend everyone, JoLynn

New snow!!

We got a beautiful coating of fluffy snow to cover our dirty snow.  Like Connie (Far Side) says "Snirt"!    I measured here when I went out to shovel off the deck.  We have 11 inches in the front yard. 

The sun was trying to come up, and the sky was so pretty in pink!  It is cloudy so can't see the sun at all.   Our temperature isn't bad, we have 30 degrees F, but the temps is suppose to drop later today and we are to have some chilly and windy weather the next couple of days.

 Looking north  - now the shoveling is done, but Steve is still out on the skidsteer plowing and pushing snow!  When we get this much snow, it's an all day job for him.

 

Steph's Rat Pak  

Spotty, Louie & Jack

I made Stephani's three dogs double layered fleece coats.  Used the serger on one, but wasn't that impressed, so just did a zigzag around the edges of two, and that works great too.  Fleece doesn't ravel, so they'll be just fine.   Didn't change the serger thread as that is such a pain.  I have an old serger, and it goofs up every time I change thread.  Does anyone else have that problem?  I've finished sewing on the velcro and they're in the car ready to get to Steph.  Today I think I'll work some more on Amanda's curtains for her new house  (granddaughter).    I have the living room ones ready to hem and need to remake some for her extra bedroom. 

Take care everyone, stay healthy!  So far knock on wood - we've been healthy all fall and winter.
Jo

Planning a little trip!

Changed my header picture to Renee - getting ready for Mardi Gras!   I'm driving down in February to Jessica's and picking up two sisters-in-laws and Stephani on the way.  What a trip it'll be!  One sis lives only a few miles from us, so she and I will be leaving one day after she gets off work mid day.  Then we drive to Hudson Wisconsin to pick up Sue, and stay the night there.  Plans are to get up and leave by 4:30 am the next morning, so we can get through/around St.Paul/Minneapolis before the traffic is terrible.  Somehow, I fear, we will still have a lot of traffic. We head SW to Pipestone Minnesota to pick up Stephani, which I suppose we'll arrive there about 11 am.   Then on to Sioux Falls, SD and interstate 29 south!!!!   We'll stop again spending one night on the road before getting to Louisiana!  

Jessica has made up an itinerary for us and we will be VERY busy!  We'll probably arrive at Jess's on Friday late afternoon or early evening, and starting Saturday we are going to an 11 am parade, and then tour Avery Island, and Jungle Gardens.  That evening we're to do Painting with a Twist - can't wait for that!  I've been to Avery Island, but not the Jungle Gardens, so hopefully the weather will be fine. 
Sunday we're going to Floyd's parents to celebrate the Vietnamese New Year.  I've been there before to celebrate with their family and it is a lot of fun.   I'm excited for Steph, Sue, and Loretta to experience some really great food.  Floyd's step dad came from Vietnam and is such a nice man.  Their story of coming to the United States should be written down.  It is an exciting story of how they escaped their homeland in just a little fishing boat as a family with 6 or 7 little children.  Floating out in the ocean and later picked up, taken to camps in the Philippines, living in camps for a couple of years and finally getting sponsored to come to the United States.  Now the children all are grown up with families of their own, and doing very well for themselves.  Grandpa is now 102 years old and still very spry!  He takes care of a little garden, his fruit trees and has a few chickens that he gets out to feed daily.  He lives next door to Floyd's parents. 
Monday we're going on a Bayou Tour at McGee's Landing.   I have not done this yet.  We tried to one year, but after we got there it started to rain with thunder and lightning, so the tours that day were canceled.  It's a little drive, so we didn't make it back another day that year.  Then in the afternoon we're going to Shadow's on the Teche tour.   Later we're going to a Mardi Gras Costume Contest party.
Fat Tuesday, we're going to Houma for 3 Mardi Gras Parades.  Sure the weather is good for us!

Now that's a busy schedule!   Will see how well we stick to it. 

These are pictures of a couple of the costumes when we went to watch the contest a couple of years ago.  They're beauitiful!!!

Have been busy since the kids went home from their holiday visit here.  Now have been making curtains and valances for granddaughter for their new house, and getting pictures into frames that Steve has been making.  Will take pictures when done to show you.  They're turning out nice.   Seems like there is always something to keep busy with. 

Today our temperature shows 25degrees F, and we're suppose to have subzero temps and nasty weather starting tomorrow for the weekend.  Will see how bad it gets.  We really haven't had a bad winter so far.  We badly need more snow for the winter sport people.  Have a great weekend everyone.

 

Two in Time-Out!

 

Granddaughter was sent to “time out” and Nanny Leah (daughter and God Mother to Renee, wanted to go visit her.  That didn’t go over with Renee’s mother – so Leah was naughty  and got sent to “time out” too!   Renee felt so bad for Nanny Leah.  It was rather cute, as Leah almost couldn’t stop from giggling, and Renee knew they’d both be in BIG trouble if there was any giggling!

We’ve been enjoying our granddaughter and mommy Jessica and daddy Floyd.  They have been here from Louisiana since Dec 27th, and will be flying home on Sunday, Jan 6th. 

Had a great get together on New Years Eve, and the house will be really quiet next week after they go home.  Hope you all had a great New Years!

Jo

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas --

Everywhere you go --

Love this frosty snowy weather!!!  Now we have a "little" snow cover, and the past couple of mornings and lasting throughout the day have been frosty and beautiful.  I did take some pictures, but somehow they don't do justice to the beauty around us.

Tomorrow  AM, getting up early to go shopping.  Taking camera with - may have slippery roads, and frosty snow laden trees.   We've had some mild weather, and now this weekend it is suppose to get cold.  Winter is now here!

Trying to get done with my shopping, and then need to finish up on baking!!! We're actually having kids home starting on the 27th, so get a couple of extra days than most of you to get ready. 

Hope you're all further along in your plans than I am!!!!
jo