Almost Wordless Wednesday

Wheeee! I love to jet ski!



Happy Wednesday!

Two Oldies in Blue! A Little Update

Hello Friends in Blogland! I thought I'd do a little update and say Hi. It's been a little while since I did. I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day. I certainly did. I received cards and gifts and phone calls and was treated to a delicious Mother's Day dinner by my younger son, Greg. Of course, Eileen was included, because she is my best friend and she is also Greg's honorary aunt!

And here we are, two oldies in blue on Mother's Day! I didn't know Eileen was going to wear blue, and she didn't know I was, until we saw each other in church that morning. Imagine our surprise! LOL. Of course, she is more stylish than I, being into more accessorizing and all. She is a New York City gal, after all! (Well, actually, from Rockaway Beach, New York, but that's a part of NYC.) And I hope, Patty, her real life niece in Broad Channel gets a kick out of the picture! All in all, Mother's Day was a wonderful day, although I wish my daughter and older son and families could have been with us.

Otherwise, everything is green and beautiful, the garden is growing by leaps and bounds, and I'm enjoying wearing my jaunty straw gardening hat, one of my Mother's Day gifts from my daughter!

I haven't had much time for blogging lately, and that will be the case for a while longer. But I will try and visit with you all, and wish you a wonderful week ahead!

Thank you for visiting.

Blessings from the Woods!

Our Visit to Tunica, Mississippi

Hi Friends,

Our visit to Tunica, Mississippi was a lot of fun. Just picture two old country gals, used to a larger population of trees and wildlife then humans, suddenly transported to the glitz, glamour, and excitement of Casino life, teeming with people from all over the country. Huge rooms filled with wall to wall slot machines, (where cameras are not allowed!) and other gaming paraphernalia, scrumptious food, drinks, and cigarette smoke. Cough! Cough! (Our choice of drinks were coffee and diet Coke!) A strange wonderland for the likes of Eileen and myself. Greg, of course, had been there before, so he wasn't walking around in an amazed state of mind, like we were. LOL.

But before I show you a few of the pictures, most of which didn't turn out as well as I had hoped for, let me give you a bit more background about this place called Tunica.

Tunica, Mississippi is 35 miles across the Mississippi River from Memphis, Tennessee, and just about 180 miles from where I live. Tunica is in northwest Mississippi near the Arkansas and Tennessee borders.

The county was established in 1836, but its history goes much further back than that. The early residents were Native Americans who cleared the heavily forested land and built Indian Mounds. In 1885, the county seat was moved to Tunica where it remains today.

Today, Tunica, Mississippi has ten world-class casinos, over 6,000 all-new hotel rooms and 40 great new restaurants.There is golfing, swimming in luxurious pools, Tunica Lake, and Riverfront Park, where one can indulge in Riverboat Rides, on the great Mississippi! And, Nancy, no, I did not win the jackpot! But then again, I didn't really try to win it. I played one short game on a penny slot machine and won $20, and that was the extent of my gambling.


This picture is of the Gold Strike Casino, where we had brunch. Here were are in the lobby of the Gold Strike, posing for Greg's cell phone camera. No deer or wild turkeys around here, just some high rollers and us. :-)

The ceiling of the Gold Strike was adorned by dozens of beautiful chandeliers, and I just had to take a picture of one of them.

This is the Hotel Entrance to the Hollywood Casino, where we spent most of our time. Eileen and I enjoyed all the movie memorabilia that lined all the elegant hallways, while Greg was off in the slot machine area pushing buttons. He did hit a couple of jackpots!

The landscaping around the Hollywood Casino was beautiful and I especially loved the blooming Magnolia's, although the picture could be better. And everything was Spring green already in Tunica.

Tunica was a nice place to get away to, and if we ever go there again, I might just try to hit the jackpot!

Thank you for visiting. Happy April!

Blessings from the woods, my most favorite place in the world to be!

Chasing Away the Winter Doldrums!

Well, besides still battling the last of this bug that has been plaguing me, I have been down with a major case of the winter doldrums. The Bah Humbugs! So I decided to post some of the pictures of Thanksgiving and birthday week, to remind me of the wonderful time my daughter and granddaughters, son Greg, and dear friend Eileen and I had together. Since I have several pictures here, I hope you won't be too bored with them.

My daughter took this picture of Eileen and me at the lovely restaurant where we all had lunch. And the waitresses even came and sang the Happy Birthday Song, to me! :-)

Here are my granddaughters Nichole and Hannah with Uncle Greg, in the woods. The girls think Uncle Greg is a cool and fun guy to hang out with!

City girls enjoy hiking around in Nana's woods!

And they also enjoy riding around on the 4-wheeler.

Since the weather was mild and beautiful the entire week they were here, we decided to go to the river, too. And as you can see, The Current River is beautiful even in November!

And here are the girls by our cabin on the river.

Alas, our visits are never long enough, and I always miss them when they leave for home. :(

I also had some good news in the mail this past week.

I received my copy of the Winter 2009 issue of "Pure Inspiration Magazine," with one of my stories in it. As a writer, I'm always happy to see my work in print.

I also received the new "Chicken Soup for the Soul, Loving Our Cats," book with my story in it.

And I have a story in "The Big Book of Christmas Joy: An Inspirational Treasury to Celebrate the Season," published by Howard Books.

I also have three awards I will acknowledge very soon, friends.

Thank you for visiting. I hope you are all doing well and ready for the holiday, unlike me.

Ah, and today is Chinese Buffet day. That should also help chase the winter doldrums. :-)

Blessings from the woods!

Ruby Tuesday

It's another Ruby Tuesday, and this weeks post has been fun for me! Just yesterday morning, as I was getting ready to go to town and meet Eileen for coffee and a snack and some shopping, I only had two pictures in mind for todays post. But as I walked into Mc'D's, there was Eileen, in all her red glory! LOL.

"Oh, you're wearing red this morning! Woo Hoo! Let me go and get my camera from the car," I said, jumping up and running out to get it.

"But I don't want my picture taken," Eileen protested.

"Don't you want to be famous on the Internet?"

"Oh, alright," she said, "But you will owe me for this!"

Just then, in walked our friend Pat. She was wearing red as well! This was my lucky morning.

"Oh, can I take your picture?" I asked her.

"She'll make you famous on the Internet," Eileen told her. And Pat, being a good sport, agreed, and I was all set for another Ruby Tuesday. Aren't my friends nice to put up with me?

Here are the pictures. I hope you enjoy them.

This is my 11 year old granddaughter Hannah, posing with all the ribbons she won at a recent horse show. Isn't she cute? And please note that one of those ribbons is blue!

Here is Eileen, in her red shirt, toasting the picture taker! (Or maybe contemplating throwing the cup of coffee at her!)

And this is Pat. Her red shirt isn't quite as a showy red as Eileen's, but it is still nice for a ruby picture, don't you agree?

And Cody, the dog, wanted to get into the action as well. Here he is showing off his red sweater, smiling for the camera. Woof!


If you'd like to participate in Ruby Tuesday, visit the teach to find out more.

Happy Ruby Tuesday!

Pictures That Cheered This Nana Up!

I've been in a bit of a funk the last couple of days-sad and even depressed. So when my daughter sent me some pictures this morning, they cheered me up considerably. As it happens, my 11 year old granddaughter Hannah, who is in these pictures, was in a bit of a funk as well. Her big sister Nichole had left for college last week. This is the first time Nichole is no longer living at home, and Hannah misses her. So her Mom took her to the Farm Park, Wednesday, to help cheer her up.

It was a beautiful day with big, fluffy clouds, and cheerful looking sunflowers welcoming them to the Farm Park.

There are beautiful flower gardens at this Farm Park, and here is Hannah

wearing her Jonas Brothers (hope I spelled that right!) T-shirt, that she got at the live, Jonas Brothers concert she attended a couple of weeks ago. She is mighty proud of that T-shirt!

The beautiful flower gardens have paths through them, so one can get up close and personal with the beautiful flowers.

They also have a vegetable garden there, and it was potato digging time. Here is Hannah helping the farm ladies to gather the freshly dug potatoes. What a fun job that was!

Of course, there were lots of animals at the Farm Park, such as Llama's.

And calves. Here she is petting a little bull calf that is chowing down. Of course, many other animals reside at the Farm Park as well.



And here is Hannah with the draft horses that pulled the wagon she rode in. Nana is saving some of the other pictures for another time. But as you can see, Hannah enjoyed the Farm Park. It cheered her up considerably, as it did this Nana, who enjoyed the pictures.

All Nana's, also known as Grandma's, enjoy pictures of their grandchildren! :-)

Have a wonderful weekend, and a great week ahead, everyone.

Blessings from the woods!


I do have a couple of awards to acknowledge, and I will do that sometime next week.

Cruising Down the River!

Our weather has been perfect for spending time at the cabin on the river, and doing some cruising in the jet ski. The captain doing the navigating is my younger son, Greg.

Here he is, above, sitting next to me, manning the steering wheel, while I am snapping pictures. I'll have to keep it a secret from him that I put his photo on my blog though. lol.

So I thought I'd show a few pictures of our lovely river, along with a few of some of the cabins we see along the way. There are many more, some elaborate and large, some smaller and some tiny, (but quaint,) like our cabin.

The Current River is a very beautiful river with blue green waters, and scenic views. This is where it really begins, at Big Spring, in Van Buren, Missouri. The ladies on the dock in this picture didn't know they were going to be on my blog, just as Greg didn't know!

As the Current River winds its way through our hilly, forested County, it sings its sometimes tumultuous, sometimes placid song. And in the water, on the banks, and in the sky above it, wildlife thrive. Can you see the nose of the jet ski, where I am sitting, snapping the pictures?

Another picture going north on the river. I have not been successful at snapping a picture of any of the Great Blue Herons, although they are always around, for the fishing is good on our river. But I will keep trying, and maybe have some next time. Many Bald Eagles spend winter along the Current, arriving in the fall, as do other beautiful visitors like the Osprey, or fish hawk. Of course, tourists from all over the country come to enjoy some float trips and fishing on our beautiful river. Float trips are done in huge inner tubes, that are carried along with the river's current. The last time I went on one of those was with my daughter and son-in-law, a few years ago. These days, I prefer cruising and floating in the jet ski. Not as scary!

And below, you see a few of the cabins we passed.

Heading back now after a totally relaxing hour spent cruising the river. Guess where I will be once again, very soon?

I hope you enjoyed the pictures of this area, featuring our favorite playground-the Current River.

Thank you for visiting. Have a great weekend, and week ahead, friends.

Success at Last!

The other day, I was reading blogging friend Linda's This and That blog post, when I discovered a solution to my grrrrr problem! Linda wrote about being ticked off because she forgot to take her memory card out of the reader, so even though she had her camera along at the 4th of July cookout she attended, she couldn't take any pictures! So she was ticked off! And who can blame her?

But you know something? I was glad she forgot her memory card, because writing about it, I had the chance to find out about memory card readers. Sorry, Linda, but it's true. :-)

Memory card reader? I have never heard of it. Could this possibly be a solution to my uploading problems? I called our local Radio Shack and asked about it, and the guy said, "Yep, it will work with your camera. It works with any digital camera." So I went to town yesterday, and bought a memory card reader, and voila, I can get my pictures uploaded from my camera! Woo Hoo!

The last few days, I have been enjoying taking pictures of sun and shade, light and dark, and although they are not real good pictures, I thought I'd show them anyway.

This is Dottie, the doe with the lump on her face. I wrote about her before. She's had this growth on her side for almost six years now but seems to be doing well. The other afternoon, she was standing in the shady side of the field, watching me, while the sun shone brightly behind her. I thought the sun and shade effect makes an interesting shot.

Yesterday at dawn, this young doe was out in the front early. I saw her from the kitchen window and went out with my camera. Her glowing eyes make her look surreal, don't you think? But she posed for me nicely.

Here is my front yard in the early morning. This picture really has to be enlarged to see the sun and shade better.

And here the sun was playing peek-a-boo through the tree tops.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my sun and shade attempts. I'm just happy I can upload pictures again, and will post my purple castle pictures soon.

Have a great day, everyone!

Tagged Again--Why I Love Writing from Home

Okay, something a little different here from my usual posts. My busy bee little writing friend, Michele, over at Writing the Cyber Highway.com, has tagged me for a meme. I'm supposed to list some reasons why I love writing from home. So here it goes...


1. Although I always loved writing, and wrote stories for my 3 children when they were young, I began writing for money,in the late nineties, on a typewriter! Yep, remember typewriters? I was a late bloomer, when it comes to writing, anxious to write the stories in my head, some true, some fiction. So my career of writing from home began.

2. This new career of mine was on wobbly legs for a while, and I jokingly called myself an almost starving writer. But I hung in there, and made my first sale. And when that first piece was published, in Good Old Days, and I got a check in the mail for it, well, I could go outside and whoop and holler all I wanted, and the only neighbors I disturbed were the wild creatures that share my woods with me. And they're all still here, so I didn't scare them too much!

3. Writing from home has so many advantages. I can write when I feel like it, and not write, when I don't. I couldn't do that writing for some publication, while sitting in an office. No sirree Bob. (Are you smiling, Michele?)

4. Writing from Home in the nineties was a different ball game. I bought magazines like, The Writer, and Writer's Digest, and a huge book called The Writer's Market, which came out every fall, listing thousands of magazine and book markets that bought articles from writers. I also bought books of advice for writers. They were all a huge help. Besides, I have always loved to read!

5. Then I got a computer! My son Greg brought it, set it up on my desk, showed me how to turn it on and off, then he was gone. I was alone with this new gizmo I nicknamed Einstein. Einstein seemed to have a mind of his own! But he made life easier for a writer writing from home. And I wrote a piece about Einstein and had it accepted by Folks Online! The year was 1999. What a thrill that was. My first published article on the Internet, and I got paid for it! And that article is still up. Here is the link to it, if you'd care to read it, with a photo of me from that year that I also posted on here. It was called, Messages from the Old Homeland, and if you check it out, I hope you enjoy it.
http://www.folksonline.com/folks/ts/1999/hungary.htm

6. Computers are amazing. We all know that. But for a writer writing from home, they are truly a boon! I no longer have to buy the magazines put out for writers, I can read all the writing advice I care to read, right on the Internet. I can find writing markets galore on the Internet as well. I can submit my writing by email, instead of by postal mail. I am saving on paper, postage, and on gasoline, since I don't have to go anywhere, to send my manuscript. (Of course, that doesn't mean I am saving that much on gas, since I enjoy going to town and meeting my friends for breakfast, lunch, or just coffee, often, and town is 10 miles away.)

7. Writing from home affords me unusual sights that I would not see writing from an office. Like the unusual sight that I have been witnessing for the past couple of weeks. No doubt you have heard about the plight of the honeybees. How they are supposed to be is some sort of trouble. Well, outside my window, honeybees are causing a lot of trouble, this year.

I've been putting up hummingbird feeders for 25 years, and enjoy watching the little jewels buzz around. Well, this year the bees have taken over the hummingbird feeders. Swarms of honeybees! And I don't know what to do about them. The hummies are afraid of the bees, and who can blame them? Anyone know what to do about honeybees swarming on the hummingbird feeders? (Maybe there is an article there....hmmm.)

8. Of course, there are the usual advantages to writing from home: I can stay in my pj's all day. I can comb my hair or not. I can bring my lunch to my desk, or take a break and eat it out on the deck, I can work all day, or just a couple of hours. I can read all kinds of neat stuff on the neat blogs I enjoy visiting, and then go back and work on a story, or an article later. I am my own boss! What could be better?

9.Well, you get the picture. Writing from home is challenging, interesting, and even fun! I wouldn't have it any other way.

Thank you, Michele, for tagging me. I enjoyed it.

And thank you for reading. I hope it wasn't too boring. Have a wonderful day!

Happy Summer!

Today is the first full day of summer, and I hope everyone is out there, enjoying some lovely weather. Our weather in the Ozarks has been heavenly the past week and a half-mild, sunny days in the low 80s, and cool, good for sleeping, nights. And I have been out and about, enjoying it.

I went to some yard/garage sales this morning, followed by a nice lunch, with friends. Our small town is already getting ready for the Fourth of July, as the tents are all set up in town, selling fireworks. I can't believe the Fourth if July is already almost here!

My favorite neighbors in the woods, the deer, have been around, as usual, and I took a couple of pictures of them. I have not been able to take pictures of the new fawns as of yet, although I have caught glimpses of them. It will be a little while before they will follow mama to the field, where this "odd" human lady lives that talks to them. :-) But they will come eventually.

Before we began mowing my field, it used to be a beautiful meadow, full of wildflowers and butterflies! But, I soon discovered that besides butterflies, many unwanted insects liked the tall grasses and flowers as well. So did the various and sundry snakes, like copperheads and the more benign, but equally unwanted black snakes. They all enjoyed my beautiful meadow. So now, we, or I should say my son, Greg, keeps it short and almost looking like a suburban lawn, and I can see any unwelcome visitors clearly!

My posts have been sparse lately, but there is just too much happenning in my world, that I want to partake in. Even my writing has been neglected. Thank goodness for reprints!

Thank you for reading, God bless, and have a wonderful week, everyone.

Tagged Again--Mememememememe!

Mary, at Mary's Writing Nook has tagged for this new meme, which is to list 15 things that make it great to be me. (Oi!) Since I have done a couple of meme's about myself already, I thought I'd do a lighter, more fun one this time. So, here it goes...

1. When my children were grown and living lives of their own, I decided to follow my dream of living in the country. After all, I was newly single, and the time was right to seek and find my own way of living. And my grown children were happy for me.

2. In August of 1983, I moved to this beautiful Ozark hill country, thrilled to be here, and even the heat of August in these hills, didn't dampen my joy.

3. I brought with me my dear Grandma, who was 83 years old at the time, and had always seen me through thick and thin. She had to be a part of this new adventure.

4. Our family also included two large dogs, and a couple of cats. The dogs loved their new life in the country, the cats did not!

5. My new neighbors were nice and welcomed us with home made peach pies, and friendly smiles. I felt at home among them instantly.

6. As an animal lover, I soon began to acquire more animals to add to my place in the woods. Within a short time, chickens of various sizes and colors scratched around in the yard and edges of the woods. I was happy, so was Grandma. "Csirke, csirke," she would call out to them. And the chickens came running to her. I couldn't believe those American chickens could understand Hungarian!

7. After the chickens, my sweet neighbor Bessie, brought over a couple of guinea hens, as a gift. Oh, goody, more animals. They made noises like a machine gun, and caused a great deal of excitement in the woods. And they were better watchdogs then the dogs!

8. Since I had a pond, the next logical step was to get some ducks and geese, of course! And soon, there were Peking's, Mallards and some downright homely Muscovy ducks swimming around in the pond. Free meals for marauding coyotes, raccoons, Bobcats and even owls, I soon discovered!

9. I also discovered that my nice new neighbors and friends loved to give some of their animals as gifts. It was an easy way to get rid of ones excess animals. I got into the habit of giving them away, myself, after a while.

10. I love rabbits, of course. So very soon, I had some adorable bunnies in my menagerie as well. Unfortunately, black snakes love baby bunnies, and baby chicks much too much, and suddenly there I was, a former city gal, battling black snakes in the Ozark hills!

11. As I surveyed my animal kingdom in the woods, it dawned on me that I was missing one of the most fun animals that ever boarded Noah's Ark-the goat. So I acquired a black and white pygmy goat. Grandma was elated and named him, Kecske, which is the Hungarian word for goat. (Catch-keh.) My dogs seemed elated as well with their fun loving new friend.


12. I loved to go hiking around in the woods, accompanied by the dogs, Dobie and Samson, and Kecke, the goat, who by this time thought he was a dog, too. (Hiking is still my favorite past time in the woods.)



13. I got lost in the woods several times, until my son Greg bought me a compass and taught me how to use it!

14. Those first few years in the woods were full of fun, excitement and even chaos. There is always chaos with a bunch of animals around. But the fun and companionship they provide makes it all worthwhile.

15. Although I no longer have a huge menagerie of domestic animals, there are still a couple of dogs and couple of cats. And there is a large menagerie of woodland animals now that call my woods and field home, and grace my life with their beautiful presence. I am ever thankful to God for the gift of these 24 years in the woods. And remembering all the sweet and fun moments with the animals, warms the cockles of my heart on this mighty cold winter morning.

Thank you for tagging me, Mary. It was fun.

And thank you for reading. Stay warm and have a blessed week!