Fall, Books, and Grandchildren

The first day of Fall came and went. It hasn't made a huge dent in the Kansas weather, although temperatures in the 80's are better than 90's. The winds finally blew in some rain, below an inch, which was very welcome. I drove home from my daughter's farm in a heavy shower Thursday night. I managed to keep moving without incident. I'm not as used to driving in the rain at night, but since we moved thirty miles from our daughter it's necessary sometimes.

I commemorated this Fall by going to one of my favorite places in Wichita, after a doctor appointment. I could spend hours at Bookaholic just browsing. They take books and give trade-credit, selling them for half off the original price, and giving half-credit for the marked-price of books I want. The prices may not be as good as our local resale bookstore, but the local store doesn't give credit for donations anymore.

I knew what I was looking for, the Holly Clegg cookbook that Cindy mentioned in her http://realpersonproductreviews.blogspot.com/ Her honest review and the facts she shared about the book sold me. I'll for sure continue looking for it because I didn't find it at Bookaholic.

I didn't come away empty-handed, however. I found a book by Emilie Barnes, Time Began in a Garden. It's similar to another one of her many books I have, If Teacups Could Talk. These are both coffee-table quality books, but I usually have them on the night stand by my bed or wherever I want to pick them up and read for inspiration and comfort.

I found another book I've been wanting to own: Life Recovery Bible. I didn't find the Bible, but the New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs. This will suffice because, If I have to, I can use the complete Life Recovery Bible from our Church Library. I usually hesitate adding another Bible to my already extensive collection, but the Topics indexed, the Relections and Insights at the end of each book, all tied to the Steps of Recovery, are what I've been looking for.

Lastly, I bought a book I think I or my daughter will enjoy in planning menus and cooking activities for the children, The Pampered Chef Kids in the Kitchen. I haven't invested in a lot of Pampered Chef products, but Amy has quite a few. It's a little awkward for me to read the recipes around all their listed bold-faced products, but the recipes are tempting enough to try. If I get tired of it, I'll pass it on to the grandkids when they read enough to use it.

Enough about books.

Yesterday, I went to spend the afternoon with Amy and the kids. She spent most of the afternoon resting and napping while I entertained the three cuties and picked up in the family room. I put some toys away that more often end up cluttering than being used purposefully for play. I hope they stay locked up in the cupboard so I don't have to go through the same aggravation next time I'm there.

While I was there, the 5-year old was struggling with a lose tooth. She wanted it out so she could enjoy eating an apple and roasting ears. But the fear of the process, be it pain or a few drops of blood, was scaring her. Both parents tried to talk her into giving up this useless little tooth, that was just hanging on by a thread, but had no luck.

Later, when she and younger brother were playing a game of "puppies," she suddenly exclaimed, "Derek, you knocked my tooth out." I thought, oh, oh, for Derek. But, no, Alana was delighted that he had accomplished what no one else could. Little brothers are alright sometimes. The tooth went into the fairy's pillow where I'm sure there will be a prize in return.

A couple of days earlier she lost her other front tooth. That means that there's a big gap in her smile. Daddy said that she should be singing that old song, "All I want for Christmas," which prompted Mommy to get out a Christmas CD. Alana practically had it memorized by the time I left. I know what I'll be singing the next time I visit.

I tried uploading cropped pictures from Picasa 3, but copying the pathway refers back to the uncropped photo.

A Walk In the Woods

I love walking in woods, and the best place to do that is at Sandcreek trail. The head of the trail starts on the Bethel College campus in Newton. Having worked in the library on a different college campus for 12 years brings back feelings of nostalgia and the joy of seeing young people doing what they need to prepare for their life's work.

"We love the things we love for what they are."
Robert Frost, from Hyla Brook poem

I follow the sunlit-dappled path,
and it follows my back;
A cocoon of trees, an experience
like no other.
All five senses awaken, and linger
long after the walk is over.
~Jan Eitzen 11/13/09

I can't tell if this cut was a tree-treatment or if someone tried to cut it down and gave up.

Whatever happened it survived and, though not alive, stands as a strong sentinel in the woods.
"Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of His holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth. Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice before the Lord." Psalm 96:9, 12

Can you find the spider? Much as I dislike spiders I couldn't resist taking this picture of one sunning on the "front porch" of its well-built lair.

Where Am I?

Oh, yeah, right here. It's just been one of those weeks. Yesterday (Friday) I spent most of the day with my daughter and her two babies. Well, the 3 1/2 yr. old doesn't want to be called a baby anymore. And if the two-year old could talk, he would mimic his sister, which he tries to do anyway. Here's a picture daughter sent Halloween evening: Strawberry Shortcake and the Little Farmer. I just love them bunches of baskets and buckets!

Thursday night I slow-cooked an arm roast with potatoes and carrots and took that over for Friday's noon meal. We put the food in divided plates and took them out to the field for hubby and his dad who were cutting milo or planting wheat-- can't keep up what they're up to. When I was growing up on the farm all those seasonal things were so much a part of my life I hardly gave them a second thought and didn't realize how much they had become a part of me till I left and never went back. Have I mentioned I miss the rhythm of those seasons, the routine? I loved being closer to nature.

I wish I had more time to reminisce but hubby called and said he's taking me out for supper in Wichita tonight and I'd better get ready to dine in the city. Hope to be back soon. Y'all take care.

The Blessings of Fall

Last Sunday we took a two-hour road trip to visit our son and his girlfriend in Topeka. It was a beautiful fall day with nary a cloud in the sky. Since they moved to a different home we took
I-70 through the northern part of the Flint Hills. It's not as colorful in fall, but you get the idea. The traffic up, was slow, but going home there was constant traffic from east to west, or west to east, whichever you prefer.

We had been taking I-35 and 335, the turnpike, through the southern part of the Flint Hills. That drive was just gorgeous last Spring, but I couldn't find pictures. You know how it is, you get to moving along at 70 mph. and it's hard to stop and get pics. But I remember stopping for at least a couple If I find them on a different card I'll post them at another time.

In the above picture you can barely see a ranch house and other buildings sheltered by trees. I can't imagine living on that windswept hill in any season except the few calm days we have in Spring and Fall. In a serious Winter snow I can imagine being shut in for a least a day or two. We don't seem to get the blizzards I remember we lived through when I was a child, but then I was a child and everything was bigger then.


When you travel I-70 from West to East Kansas, Salina seems to be smack dab in the middle of vast barren pasture lands. You get, oh, I'm guessing about 75 miles east of Salina and you're beginning to see the type of rolling hills that are reminiscent of Missouri. And by the time you're on your way to Kansas City, you can't tell the difference between Kansas and Missouri. There are lots of hills smothered with an array of different tree varieties.


About the same distance west of Salina, you'll see pretty much the same level pastureland, but with a few more farms visible from I-70. When you get closer to Hays you begin to see gentle rolling hills with clumps of trees growing at the bottom of gullies. Enjoy the reprieve, because when you get to the Kansas-Colorado border you drive through hundreds of miles of desert-like landscape till you get to Denver and can see the promising mountains west of Denver. (Ignore the date on the picture-Picasa saved the picture in the wrong file & attached that date.)

A few weeks ago, my dear friend and I decided to take the walking trail around Emma Creek just east of the Bethel College Campus. It was a beautiful Fall day with just a little bit of a nip in the air.

As you can see the trail is tree-lined with leaf-mold and chipped wood carpeting the path beneath our feet. Not too far into the trail there's a small sanctuary with a fire pit where college students and others can gather around a fire with hot chocolate, roasted hot dogs and marshmallows or to just gaze into a warm fire.

All the while we were walking our senses were wonderfully titillated with a woodsy and earthy scent. At one point a quick movement just in front of me made me realize a baby snake had slithered across the path in front of me, and not a second too soon! When we began our walk the sky was overcast and it was eerily quiet. On our way back the sun came out which seemed to wake up a couple of cardinals who started calling out to one another.

Yours Truly is trying to hide discreetly behind a bush while leaning against a tree that looks like it was seared most of its length by lightening. It must have been raining enough to keep the other trees around it from going up in flames.

We loved the walk and hope to do it again soon. I think it would be lovely with a little snow on the ground and shrouding the bare tree branches. Wish y'all could join us. It took us about an hour to walk one-third of the trail with the creek running full and singing joyously beside us after several inches of rain that fell a couple of days earlier.

I hope you've enjoyed this slice of Kansas life. I'll keep posting pictures as I'm enjoying using this blog as a pictoral journal.

Long Time Passing

It's been two years since I added anything to my blog spot. I can't believe it's been that long! So much has happened I hardly know where to begin to catch up. I've changed the look of the blog and like it much better. I've added some of my favorite bloggers and other interesting links. I highly recommend them.

When I last wrote we had one grandchild, a precious girl who is now 3 1/2 years old and just started going to preschool. She's an intelligent and a happy, precocious, presence in our lives. I'm often reminded how carefree childhood can be, and I'm relearning how to have more of a sense of humor, how to be spontaneous, how to have fun in everything we do, and how to live each day at a time. I know some of these very things I love about her are likely frustrating to her parents...she gets too enthusiastic in hugging her little brother, she babbles on to anyone who will listen and we never have to guess what she's thinking because she thinks out loud, and she has spurts of energy where she runs wildly around the house neighing like a horse. She likes to help set the table, cut up watermelon or honeydew with a plastic knife, but she doesn't always like to pick up and put toys away anymore. She's perfect company for anyone who may be feeling a bit lonely.

Her little brother joined the family in January, 2007. He has the same blue eyes, but blonder hair than his sister (he's what you call a real towhead), is quieter, and keeps most of his thoughts to himself. But his face is a dead giveaway as to what he's feeling or thinking. He lights up my day with the sunniest smile, a smaller imitation of his sister. His pout almost breaks my heart, and he seems to know it. I often find him in a pensive mood but he won't tell me what he's thinking. Of course, he hasn't learned all the words he needs to talk to us, but I have a feeling even when he has a good handle on language he will still keep a lot of things to himself. He takes more risks than his big sister, a lot of times because he's trying to keep up with her, but isn't old enough to do what she's doing. He raises quite a fuss when we won't let him do what could be quite harmful to him. He sits quietly reading a book or building a tower with Legos, that is if his sister doesn't interrupt him. Then it's time for Nana to read a book with one or both to help diffuse over-enthusiastic sibling rivalry.

Being a Nana is more wonderful than I ever imagined it would be. Even on days when my chronic pain is at it's worst, just getting a call from my daughter which often includes a hello from Alana or Derek helps me forget what's bothering me. Hours of pain are erased when I spend time playing with, and caring for, our grandchildren. It's afterwards that I groan, moan, and limp around like an injured horse (who's lost its neigh), and complain to my hubby, Papa, that I can't budge another inch. But it's all worth it. Yes, and yes, grandchildren are real gifts from God, and also our children, who are the first blessing. But sometimes I've wished it could be lived backwards...if we would have our grandchildren first (I know, it's impossible), then we could hopefully enjoy our children as much as we now do our grandchildren. I remember it was the sense of responsibility, perfectionism, and constant vigilance to protect them that hindered me from just letting go and enjoying the moments each day, week, month, and year.

I'm not saying I didn't enjoy our son and daughter. There was real joy in those times of spontaneous connection in the moment. There was a feeling of great reward when they responded to our love which included times of discipline and consequences not to their liking. We all survived those times and we had fun in spite of them. I just hope that our children mostly forget the struggles and remember the good times. Going to the pizza place in Spring to celebrate the beginning of Summer. Going back to the pizza place and shopping for school needs and clothes in Fall. Having popcorn and watching a rented movie on a stormy winter's night. I especially want them to know we have always loved, and always will love them. I think our relationships have evolved more to a friendship level now. At least that is my hope. Is it possible to stop being a parent, or a child of parents? Hopefully, we can reach a level of maturity where we put those roles in perspective and let go to experience and enjoy each other as the individuals we are.

On the lighter side: Kansas has had a mild and wet summer. Having grown up on the farm and having a farmer for a son-in-law I find that the growing seasons still influence my life. I love Spring and Fall, especially Spring since I was born in April, and Spring is a life-enriching time. Everything is reborn in Spring. As a child I loved summer. School was out, and I could bask in the long sunny days as I read a book or helped my mom freeze or can garden produce. Any hot weekend was an occasion for home-made ice cream served with angel food cake, lemonade and iced tea. Chewing on ice cubes while reading or working was a pleasant way to cool down. It still is a pleasant way to cool down, but better than ice cubes are the low-cal, low-sugar fruit smoothies I make to subdue a hot day. Mmm-Mmm!

I like Fall because it's a time to slow down and think. Cool, rainy afternoons are just right for catching up on journal writing, setting goals and planning, considering what I can do on those cold winter days when snow keeps me housebound. Will I attempt to get out my scrapbooking materials and finally finish the album I began soon after Alana was born and is still only half done? Maybe I'll write that short story or start a novel. Saturdays might be spent baking some bread or cinnamon rolls to warm up the kitchen and enjoy the scents that remind me of pleasant memories from the past. It's time to get out the full-spectrum lamp that I can sit under while I read or work on the computer to drive away the gloom of SAD. That's the main thing I dread about winter--the short and cloudy days that keep away the sunshine which I absolutely need to feel happy.

I guess I can always come to my blog here and surf the links and favorite other blog spots to drive away the gloom. I'm feeling better already because I have something to look forward to. I wonder if anyone will read this blog and find something that speaks to their heart and will inspire them to share or comment so we can carry on a conversation about life? I can only hope and pray that will happen.