Lovely Irises'...54º

Warm morning, high could get to 80º, so I better get outside and do what needs to be done in the garden...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

A sight to behold driving into our driveway.

Closer

From the other end.

Overcast/stormy...54º

Yesterday was a stellar day, warm, sunny, green and clean from all the rain...Pat and I went to a few yard sales before going to Alder Slope Nursery for bedding plants...I came home with good intentions but my energy level was nil...I welcomed the chance to sit on the deck and visit with Pam as we had much catching up to do...Pam is back working for the Forest Service this summer, liking her job but putting in long days and usually spends the first day of her 3 day weekend, resting and recuperating for the next week...Guess the Utah trip is catching up with me as I was in bed by 7:30 last night and slept until 4am.

I have a "ton" of bedding plants waiting for me as well as the rest of the garden to plant...I splurged on planters this year to adorn my old cream separator...These are in memory of our parents who though gone for many years now, still remain in our hearts...We were so blessed to have loving parents...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Digging and Planting...44º

A friend, Jean, from water therapy, stopped by on Tuesday morning taking me up on my offer of rhubarb (to eat) and perennial starts for planter boxes in her yard...The morning threatened rain, but me with a shovel and her with containers we started in the yard digging, bagging and labeling starts for her to take home...About half way done, we took a break for a cup of tea, while the rain shower moved over us, then finished our job and filled her trunk with starts of all kinds, and an invitation to come back when she was ready for more...I love helping other people get gardens started because that is how my gardens came into existence and give me so much joy!

It's Friday morning and time for Pat and I to hit a yard sale and go to Alder Slope Nursery to pick up annuals for planters on our decks...Then back home to do the planting...Yesterday I worked deadheading flowers and planted beets and cucumbers in the veggie garden and will do more of that today...Seems like I get pooped out too fast and find myself reading and napping on the deck in the warm sunshine...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Photo before Bob leaves for Portland

My favorite yellow iris

Utah Trip...44º

I think this is the longest stretch of time since I started writing OWAV:), that I have gone without posting at least a photo...One whole week has flown by...First the internet was not working, then a rather sudden trip to Utah was being planned and it was easy to say, "I'll do it later!" So I have a lot of catching up to do and will start with the Utah Trip.

I have two sisters that live near each other in Utah...Loraine, 88 years old, lives in an assisted living facility in Morgan, Utah, her husband, Steve passed away 5 years ago, and Mona , 78 years old, lives in Centerville, Utah, with husband Jerry...They both have large extended families, nearby...My other sister Barbara (Bobbie), 86 years old,  lives in "Tornado Alley" in McAlister, Oklahoma, alone, her husband Jim, passed away about 2 years ago...No relatives nearby, just very good friends...This time of year is a good time to vacate Oklahoma and the tornado season...So Bobbie's friend, Sharon (much younger and a nurse) offered to drive Bobbie on a trip through Utah, to visit sisters, then on to California (near San Francisco) to visit her only son Alan, and his two girls and their families...So it seemed only natural that I the youngest sister could make the trip to Utah and we would have a mini reunion...Our daughter, Bobi, came from Portland to make the trip with us and son, Rusty, met us near Boise, Idaho and we arrived in Utah Friday afternoon...We spent two very special days at niece, Lynelles...Saturday visiting just Sisters, Husbands, Nieces and Nephews, where we reminicesed about old times, laughed until our "sides" hurt and shed a few tears and had a lovely dinner...Sunday turned into a full house, with extended families joining us...Cousins of all ages came bringing salads, desserts, entrees and appetizers...The house was bursting at the seams and luckily the day was warm enough for younger people to go outside...After a lovely weekend and tearful goodbyes, we returned to Oregon on Monday.

Bobi left for Portland yesterday and now Herb and I have a quiet, empty house...Herb got the lawns mowed, I've wandered the flowerbeds, digging a few weeds, it has rained "buckets of water" and our internet, maybe is fixed!..The sun is shining this morning...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Idella, (Herb) Loraine, Barbara and Mona (Jerry)

Rusty (80 MPH)

Me and Bob

Herb and Ginger

Internet, NO Internet...45º

In my last post our internet was off and we were sitting downtown Joseph borrowing wifi, so Herb could download more books and I could do scrabble and write a blog…That was Saturday, May 16th…By 9am that day we were on our way to LaGrande where we attended a Memorial Service for my Sister-in-law, Marlene Ashton…We arrived to take the last parking spot and joined family (nieces and nephews of three generations) renewing old acquaintances and making new ones…In the small social hall, family and friends filled the tables, eating dessert and sharing stories of their connection to Marlene…Many knew her from the years her girls were on the LaGrande swim team and others were bowling friends and friends she made in her long career of cooking at the school, college, fire crews and also through her own catering business…Tables filled with dessert, cheese cakes, red velvet cake, and brownies, made by her girls…It was a fitting tribute to Marlene as she loved to bake and share the bounty with family and friends.

We arrived back home late that afternoon and low and behold the internet was working…Over the next four days it worked and stopped working intermittently, depending on the weather…Sun shining it worked, raining it stopped working…I was able to keep up with scrabble and some texting…Both H and I downloaded books, but I took a break from blogging…It is raining this morning and I’m finally writing a blog in “Word” and will copy and paste it into “Oma with a view” when the internet connects again…The EONI repair man will be here today and hopefully we will have a permanent fix!

It is amazing what I can accomplish when the Internet does not work…The upstairs has been dusted, vacuumed and decluttered…Even the downstairs has some of the dust, cobwebs and clutter removed…I made it to water therapy and garden club on Tuesday and managed to get outside during sun breaks for a bit of deadheading as well…Today is our last WT until October and we will celebrate with lunch at the “Range Rider.”…Hugs To All…OWAV:)

Japanese Maple

The last surprise tulips

Painful....45º

Our internet went off and on during the storm on Thursday night...But then finally stayed on and was good Friday, until I had finished all my chores and sat down to "VEG" in front of the computer...NO internet...Called eoni and they did some trouble shooting and decided it is the "device" on our roof that is defective...An easy fix actually Except, they only come to the County on Thursday...So nearly a week without service...We found a partial way around this, and this morning we are sitting in our car stealing "internet" catching up on scrabble, writing my blog and downloading books so we can survive the week...Maybe in the long run it will be good for us to disconnect for a few days...Hugs to All...OWAV:)

Rain/Flashback...45º

We had another hard rain yesterday and the sky is cloudy again this morning...It is kind of nice though, we get rain, then clearing and sun breaks...Everything looks fresh and clean and all of the greens get more vibrant with each passing day...I love spring!

One yard sale this morning and then I must get busy preparing for the weekend...Hugs to Cienna...OWAV:)

Flash back Friday:

                                                        That Glowing Smile

I would love to share this plate of fries with Ci.

Not sure if she is going forward or backward.

A Rotary event with host Mom and friends

One year ago ready for Prom with friends

Busy Weekend...34º

Saturday is the memorial for my sister-in-law, held in LaGrande...Also Sat. is a fund raiser (50's sockhop) for the JC that I'm fixing food for, but have begged off of the evening shift...Sunday is the Hootenanny, another fund raiser for the "music alliance" that I have to make a pie for and then cut and serve pies at the event...I made about 5 gallons of chex mix yesterday and my other food for the 50's is celery stuffed with peanut butter, will get the celery washed and ready so I can stuff it on Saturday morning before we leave for LaGrande...This volunteering is taking up way to much of my time!

The following photo shows what I've been doing in my leisure time when I'm not reading...That is doing jigsaw puzzles on the computer...The following is a challenger puzzle and took me many hours, I'm not very fast at it and usually listen to an audio book while putting the puzzle together...Sun is shining this morning although rain is in the forecast...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

It was a real beast!

Cloudy/Sunny Spots...34º

Tuesdays are always busy and I'm glad to get home to dinner warming on the stove...Chile over tamales was on the menu yesterday...Always tasty on a cool, cloudy day.

The afternoon was warm enough for wandering around, picking a small bouquet, deadheading and planting dill seed in the garden...We did such a good job of mulching the garden last year that I don't have any volunteer dill showing up...I'll keep planting a few seeds each day, maybe the potatoes over the weekend...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Last of the Tulips and Daffies

Rain overnight...44º

Looking ahead at the 10 day forecast, rain showers are predicted for the next week and a half...We need the rain, so hope the prediction is correct...Our outside world is clean and damp looking this morning.

Sunday was a fun relaxing day for my Mothers Day, both kids checked in early with love and good wishes and to remind me once again how blessed I am...Before breakfast (which Herb fixed) he loaded two wheelbarrow loads of mulched hay/manure for me to spread on the garden, building up the soil for our root veggies and cabbages, cucumbers, beans, peas, squash and tomatoes...This new rain will make it ready for planting...Late morning I mixed a batch of rolls for our dinner with Pat and Brian...We arrived there about 3pm where prime rib was cooking on the grill and potatoes in a dutch oven...We visited over a glass of wine and munchies with the smoky aroma wafting from the grill to whet our appetites...B & P always the ultimate hosts served us a lovely dinner at their cabin near the lake.

Prime Rib ready

Herb Patiently Waiting.

Pat and Della enjoying the sun/wine...

Back at home, relaxing and digesting, we had a surprise visit from John and Becky...They had taken Pam "mushroom hunting" for Mother Day and generously shared their bounty with us...On Monday we had another special dinner of prime rib/potatoes and sauteed morels.

Morels

An easy dinner.

Yesterday was a lazy Monday, although I did some deadheading and scattered a few chips...Then I spent time sorting all of my seed packets into a box for veggies and another for flowers...Cleaned out and threw away a bunch of stuff...With the light rain it should be a perfect time to scatter seeds and plant more of the garden...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Most Important People...30º

The sun is shining, Herb is fixing me breakfast, we are invited to Pat and Brians for dinner and the most important people in my life have checked in to wish me a Happy Mothers Day!...What more could one ask for...Wishing all Mothers a Happy Day...Hugs to All...OWAV:)

PS...We have critters in our pasture, a black sheep, 3 white sheep and two goats, one of which is a fainting goat...Should keep us entertained for a few weeks.

Flashback/54 Days...30º

As the clock ticks down, some wonderful photos have been posted on Facebook from Thailand...Some by Cienna and others by her Thailand family and friends...I have borrowed some of these photos so my friends and family in the US can see more of her adventures...Words cannot express but photos tell the story...Hugs To Cienna,with love...OWAV:)

Hanging by her Toes

Thailand Family

Car Dreams

Improving the Planet

Riding an Elephant (left)

Leading the Group

Occassionally she Sleeps

Stepping into the Unknown

Living on the Edge

Who would have dreamed?

Baking...37º

The perfect day for baking, so I started early with my favorites chocolate chip cookies...Mixing a double batch then adding milk & vanilla chips to half of the batch and semi-sweet chips to the other half...I used the recipe with cream cheese, which stays very soft, so you have to be careful and not add more flour...Theses stay puffed up on the pan (don't spread out) and remain soft, UNLESS, you miss hearing the timer and overcook them...So we had one pan that Herb said he would eat even if they were a bit scorched on the bottom, another pan that I labeled crunchy, that will be perfect dunked in milk or coffee and the rest are soft like the recipe promised...As usual when I have all the ingredients out, bowls dirty and flour strewn everywhere, I think, "May as well make another batch."..I soon had a double batch of oatmeal, raisin dough mixed up with cream cheese added...All told I finished with about 10 dozen cookies bagged and ready for the freezer, meatloaf and potatoes baking in the oven by 1:30...I was wiped out!..Herb helped by sampling the dough and then with the cleanup, licking the beaters and scraping the bowls before loading the dishwasher...What a guy!

The afternoon passed quickly, as I finished listening to a book, worked on jigsaw puzzles on the computer, while listening (always multi-tasking) and was ready for bed by 8:30...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Choc Chip

Raisin/craisin Oatmeal

Sunny...29º

We had a cold breeze all day yesterday, so after write people, water therapy and safeway shopping, I was almost content to stay inside...I cheated on dinner with a "doctored" frozen pizza, sauteed onions, red peppers and mushrooms were added to the top, along with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese...Fresh salad greens rounded out the meal...Hadn't had pizza in a long time and it tasted good.

My friend Diane is emailing people trying to get another card game going for today, that might be good since I don't think the temperature is going to improve much...Herb started the irrigation water in our ditch yesterday, only a trickle so far until accumulated debris is cleaned out and the water can flow freely...With such a dry spring our lawn and gardens are very dry...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

PS...I snapped the following photo at a yardsale last week...Dogs patiently watching while their family looked for yardsale bargains.

Photos...38º

Lazy today, so will just post some photos...Must get moving, have Write People and Water Therapy on my calendar...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Apple Blossoms

Dinner

Grape Hyacinths

Leopards Bane

Easy Sunday...39º

Herb and I were both outside early yesterday, he moving chips off of the pile and I using the roundup sparingly on grass and dandelions that have crept into the flower beds...This morning I will spread chips to mulch the edges and bare spots that show up in the spring...While deadheading the daffies I pulled volunteer maple trees that spring up everywhere!

I'm really itching to plant more seeds in the veggie garden and have to keep reminding myself that it is only the first part of May...I have planted lettuce, chard, arugula, radishes and spinach...I use plastic gallon jugs as mini green houses to get the seeds to sprout and grow quickly...I will plant a row this morning of peas and radishes mixed, hoping that when I pull the radishes it will give the peas more room to grow and since they are considered cool weather crops neither will freeze...:)

I fixed one of my favorite dinners, beef stroganoff, yesterday using the leftover short ribs...Diced the meat, added onion, mushrooms, roasted tomatoes and wine, to the rich brown gravy that was also left over...Left it to simmer while enjoying the sunny deck, where I listened to a book...Mixed a 2 egg batch of noodles and left them drying on the counter...When it was time for dinner the noodles cooked quickly in boiling water, I added sour cream to the beef and topped the noodles, salad on the side...I think there is enough leftover for breakfast...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Noodles without

Noodles with, Yummy!

Sunshine...45º

Oh no, the chip pile is steaming this morning...Must get dressed and help Herb, while he loads the wheelbarrow I will unload and we will get it opened up...Think it is too green to combust but don't want to take a chance.

Yard sales are looking up...Two out of the three advertised yesterday had things that Pat and I couldn't do without...It was a fun morning as we yard saled, stopped at Alder Slope Nursery for a few plants, then back to Joseph to the Kids Artshow at the Civic Center...Over 900 pieces of art are on display up from 600 last year...The morning had flown by and we passed up a stop at the Chocolate shop for another day.

The house was smelling like short ribs when I arrived home and Herb and I were soon having our afternoon dinner...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

May Day...43º Partly Cloudy

Overcast yesterday morning was perfect for washing windows...I gathered a sponge mop, squeegee with a detachable long handle, rags and a small flat "dish pan" with water, and squirted in some window cleaner...Using the sponge mop full of the cleaning solution I scrubbed the sliding glass doors, then used the 18" squeegee to clean it off, then I moved on to the large plate glass windows in the living room and kitchen...I will wait to do the inside of the windows until I can move all of my house plants on to the front porch for the summer, give the living room a good cleaning, along with the windows...Herb cleaned the front porch before unloading the trailer full of wood from the log deck...We kept busy with other small cleaning jobs until we sat down for our afternoon dinner of sausage, eggs and pancakes.

Late evening I wandered around the yard snapping photos to share...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

                                     

Pasque Flower (Pullsatilla)

Fern Peony

Pile of Wood Chips

Flowering Crab Apple

Sunny/Warm today...34º--71º

Looking forward to a lovely day on Barton Heights...I finished pruning the grape vines yesterday and have a myriad of tasks that I could do this morning...Windows need to be washed, deck cleaned off and wood chips to scatter...Yes, we got a huge pile of wood chips delivered yesterday...Wasn't able to dump them in the spot I wanted but they are handy to the front yard, off of the roadway and not unsightly...So we can take our time spreading them around the flower beds to keep the weeds at bay.

Yesterday we had our last water therapy for April and most everyone signed up for 3 weeks in May...We will have our last session, just before Memorial weekend, and take a break until October...It has been fun meeting new people, renewing old friendships and getting exercise therapy in the process.

The afternoon was spent mostly on the deck, although it was a bit chilly, and I resorted to bundling up to shield me from the cool breeze...I am reading "Still Alice," a novel about early onset Alzheimers...It is interesting, scary and thought provoking...Daylight is burning, I must get busy...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

A quail visited me on the deck yesterday.