Nature

It is Saturday again.  Saturday mornings are my time.  My time to wander in my mind or wander in the fields.  Whatever I want to do. 

I am looking forward to tomorrow.  It is Easter.  It brings hope from the ashes. 

And that is what I am feeling this morning.  It is still cold here.  Frost is on the ground this morning.  But Spring has come.  Tulips are getting ready to bloom.  The small green shoots are out.  The plum trees are done blooming.  There are birds at my feeder who I have not seen before.  My guess is that they are done visiting relatives in the sunny spots and have come home to see what is up here. 

And finally the dogs are playing.  Ok, so the dogs play all the time.  But there is a newness to their play.  Even Gabby, the oldest of the bunch is running around.  Ok, so most of the time she is telling the younger dogs to settle down a bit, but she is spunky and showing her color. 

Belle is definitely in love with Sampson.  He understands her.  It was sweet to see him playing with her this morning.  He is so big and he is gentle with her. 

This is also a time for mourning for me.  My friend at work's son has taken a turn for the worse.  He is 25 and he has been fighting cancer for a very long time.  Last year he was told he has leukemia.  It was in remission (he had fought it into sumbission) for a while, but now it is back.  On top of that, he has a bacterial infection throughout his body.  My friend has been so strong.  But she is not ready to let go.  It is so hard to see. 

And my friend from my childhood's mother passed away last week.  She was just one of those women who could make a room light up just by being in it.  She was always good for a hug as well.  She was part of my church family as I was growing up.  She supported me by just caring for me as I was.  She didn't have girls, so I always felt like she was extra interested in the girlie stuff that I had to share with her.  I know she has a job now for the Lord.  But I wish for her family's sake that she could have stayed around a bit longer. 

And then, I come back to where I am and remember the love my husband has for me.  He cleaned the kitchen from top to bottom yesterday while I was at work.  No small feat after the busy week we have had.  And I listen to the meowing of my sweet cat Yodalina trying to get my attention.  A couple of my sisters are getting together for a small dinner to celebrate mine and my Mom's birthdays before Easter celebrations start.  And I remember that I am blessed in so many ways. 

Want to write

It is quiet here this morning.  My boys are asleep.  Belle is out roaming our territory.  Gabby is here sleeping next to me.  The cats are racing around wildly wishing that they had some yummy cat food. It is quiet and it is peaceful. 

Looking out our big windows, the plum blossoms are...the cat is now sitting on my hands. It is difficult to type.  The plum blossoms are moving gently in the breeze.  I can see out across our property and it is cloudy, but not raining now.  Really a lovely spring morning in the Northwest. 

I woke up early, as I usually do on Saturdays.  Saturdays are my gold days.  They go by too quickly.  Time with the family.  Time to dream a little.  Time to contemplate life and the direction we are moving.  Time.

Today I was thinking about gardening.  We haven't done much since last weekend when we started getting our soil ready.  I have been thinking a lot about how to keep deer and rabbits out of the garden.  I looked it up on the web and my favorite tip was to plant 1/3 for eating, 1/3 for the wildlife and 1/3 for the insects to get.  I liked that idea the best.  But there were a lot of ideas about using human hair around the edges.  Or using used kitty litter.  The problem with the last one is that my dogs like that enough as it is, and making it available to them outside...just not a nice thought for me.  There were also tips about putting up string between two posts and tying plastic bags to them.  People said that it scared the deer away, but it didn't sound like it was helfpul for the rabbits.  Just to be clear, we love having deer and rabbits around.  After all, our home is named Bunny Haven.  But I just would rather not have them eating anything that we plant.  I know, I know, why don't we just put up a fence, right?  Well, we are a bit short on funds to do that right now.  Or instead I could say that our funds are allocated elsewhere right now.  So...we need to figure something else or else we might not be able to plant anything. 

It is Saturdays though that make me thankful to live here.

Our neighbors the goat family (this is what we call the family who raise goats) has had a baby, so no baby goats this year.  They only have three goats and a big billy goat left right now and they said that they will most likely slaughter all but the Billy at the end of the growing season.  Then they are considering selling their Billy.  Wow.  What a difference this will make around here!  What will Sampson the Protector have to do all day?  I bet we will see more of him around here.  And who will eat the grass?  Our lawn mower can happily mow a swatch through the field for us to walk down to the river, but ummm....it won't do five acres. 

I went down to the pond last Saturday and started pulling some of the greens out of there.  I miss seeing the water.  I wonder who I can talk to about making the stream and the pond more healthy. 

Well, the birds have started their daily song.  My goal is to go get them 100#s of food today.  Crazy I know, but I used the last 100#s of food and it is less expensive if bought in bulk.  It is enjoyable to see the variety of birds who congregate to share in the wealth.  Maybe if I keep them fed that way, they will leave the garden alone. 

Belle is asking to come in after her morning jaunt.  Have a good day.