One day, I'm baking bread and making soup and the next I'm putting meat on the grill. I'm pretty sure I know how a squirrel thinks and feels. For the last six weeks I've been trying to beat cold weather by getting my outside projects done before the real cold sets in which has me neglecting letter corresponding, twitter entries and my blog. The switch between the warm days and windy, cool, dreary days keeps me guessing about what plants to cover and what needs brought inside. That's why the squirrels scurry from one place to another so fast. They aren't sure when to take winter's coming serious.
I have to confess I got out of most of the garden cleaning except when my husband asked me to decide if he could pull some plants. I ventured into the garden long enough to say yes or no and went back to my flower beds; cleaning, digging bulbs and picking flower seeds for next year's crop. Hubby cleans the garden off, but he doesn't bother the flowers anymore. Last time he weeded the flowers in August while I was away, he proudly showed me a clean portion of bed minus my twenty year old rare yellow violet. Looks like the plant had time to make seeds which have sprouted so I may luck out. In that case so did he. Hardy marigolds are still in full colorful bloom in front of my porch. I look at that row of flowers and the garden, now bare soil, and wish it was already time to start over again.
We delivered the spring's crop of lambs and goats to Kalona Salebarn. I ate my favorite peanut butter cream pie which the Amish waitress teasingly offered to bring me before the meal. I resisted and ate light so I could enjoy the pie. Came home with one more rabbit. Now we think the stork may make a visit any day. It's a repeat trip for that stork. A month ago a hen hatched 12 chicks in between hay bales in the loft. Just what we didn't need when we're preparing for winter.
To my delight, a walnut tree I planted from seed produced a five gallon bucket full of walnuts. This morning, I picked the walnuts up and stored them in the stock trailer to dry. That is the go to place for green tomatoes to ripen and to hide walnuts. I lucked out this time. The neighbor's squirrels didn't find the walnuts before I got them picked up. Now let's hope those curious creatures don't get into the stock trailer right away. A real cold snap might signal them to carry off my walnuts.
Since the middle of August most of my computer time has been spent writing my mother's family story and tree. That has meant hours of interviewing aunts, uncles and cousins on the phone and with emails. The emails I copied into the story, but I had to take fast, sketchy notes as the aunts and uncles talked for an hour or two at a time. Those had to be transcribed as soon as I was off the phone while the stories were fresh in my mind.
The research has been fun and time consuming. I found much documented on the internet about my ancestors that was interesting to me. I've added notes about them in the family tree. I think the cousins children and great grandchildren will enjoy history like the French and Indian War and the Civil War when they realize they had relatives involved. Not to mention changes in transportation from walking to cars and kerosene lamps to electricity. I've been told my grandmother said she wished she'd had modern conveniences when her children were little. She was probably thinking about eight hour wash days bent over a scrub board using lye soap, washing for a family of eleven.
The relatives response to my writing this family project has been great. I've been bombarded with old photos to place in each of the nine siblings stories and a favorite family recipe. I'm thankful my mother was a saver of all things; a 1937 hospital menu, Dad's draft notice, and so many other things that documented the time of events. Best of all, this enterprise has brought me closer to cousins I played with when we were children. Now I'm looking forward to a visit in the spring from three cousins which is one more reason to wish winter away.
The cousins are curious about how I'm coming with the book. I don't think they realize all the information I've put into this 200 plus page story. I'm looking forward to getting done and on to another Amish book about Nurse Hal. November is national novel writing month (NaNoWriMo). I only have a few days to meet my self imposed October 31 deadline with this book and on to the next book in November. If I'm not ready by November that's all right, because my writing this family book will be a legacy for my family's future generations.
Besides I can't stay at the computer all the time. Friday afternoon, I'm going to the Keystone Nursing Care Center where I worked. There is going to be an activity about Lincoln Highway History by speaker, Mike Kelly. My parents operated one of the gas stations on the highway in Benton County for almost 30 years, but few people realize that a station has been in that spot from July 1931 to October 1987. I have gathered my pictures and information to share to bring some attention to my parents gas station. More on that later.
November 13th I've been invited to Keystone's St. John Lutheran Church to man a table at Elder Health Fair. My information is Alzheimer's disease. Along with handouts furnished by the Alzheimer's Office in Cedar Rapids, I'll be giving away one of my books on the subject "Open A Window". I can't miss an opportunity to educate people about this disease that has no cure. If you'd like a book that educates Alzheimer's caregivers go to my book store at booksbyfaybookstore.weebly.com or Amazon. If you like the ebook form go to Amazon's Kindle store or B&N nook store.
So there you have it. That's what the squirrels and I have been doing this fall.
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