Country Roads

When we're in between something

to harvest,

to repair,

to plant,

or ground to get worked.

I get an invitation for a drive in the country.

These are a few of the views.

Oh and yes...

cattle out.

UmmmmmHmmmmmm...

Cattle and Corn Stalks.

Do you enjoy drives in the evening?

We are so Blessed with the views!

Country Roads really do take me home,

MFSD

Quilts & Colors

Next to reading,

I love quilting.

(But, not more than I love Handsome Man!)

This was a quilt top shared at our last quilting meeting.

I am a member of the Cherokee Strip Quilter's Guild.

Obviously, I have a long way to go to get to this stage.

But, I'm having a good time learning.

We are doing a Pizza Box Challenge.

(I've mentioned this before.)

This is my latest block of the challenge.

I love the colors that my quilting friend has selected;

it was a lot of fun cutting and piecing this one.

I have chosen to do the Pinwheel pattern.

We had a guest speaker,

Patty Russell, she shared some of the quilts she has made.

(The quilts shown here were all made by Patty.)

((Except for my tiny block, that is.))

This was one of my favorites!

It is called, Road to Oklahoma.

I love the blues, greens, and yellows.

Happy Colors!

Do you have some comfy quilts you like to curl up with?

Quilts and colors,

MFSD

Happy Birthday, Handsome Man!

Happy Birthday, Handsome Man!

Happy, Happy Birthday,

Today's Your Special Day!

He's a great guy,

and I'm soooo glad he's mine!

So...

There will be presents and cake!

Yep!  More cake!

I'm baking that Strawberry Cake for him to take to work

and share with those he spends his work day's with.

Happy Birthday, Sweetheart!

(Yep, it's on the message board, too!)

I love you!

MFSD

Turtle in the Yard

Turtle in the Yard.

Which as Handsome Man's Grandpa Nick used to say,

"Turtle in the road, means rain."

Oh, I hope he was right!

(I'm hoping the yard can mean the same thing.)

He stopped to pose for me.

I'm afraid to speak too soon...

but it does look like rain is coming.

(This was Saturday afternoon.)

You know how it turned out.

More prayers for rain.

MFSD

PS.  It started raining about 7:00 pm...it's 10:15 pm and still raining.  Handsome Man is watching the weather & I am ready to go to sleep with the sound of rain in my dreams.  We ended up with about 6 tenths all together.

We're grateful...and we would be grateful for more.

Birthday Wishes

Handsome Man made my birthday so much fun!

Don't you love his original, "All American," wrapping!

It's a trademark for him.

He's a Classic!

Some of the best gifts come in brown paper packages...

If you haven't noticed there is a theme going on here...

I suppose you could call this my mid-life crisis,

or just that I'm a little car crazy!

I reeaaallllyyyyy like my Mustang!

Classic Man & Classic Cars...

He started my day with a sweet message~

we keep this by the back door.

It is a must check area.

On the days that I've forgotten to check...

I've forgotten.

You can tell it has been and is well used~daily.

Handsome Man and I have birthdays that are very close together, so...

Our parents took us out to dinner,

we went to Lucille's in Mulhall.

But, this was the best part!

Cake!

(Actually, the best part was sharing our birthdays with our parents!)

((Wish our kids could have joined us~but their hearts were with us.))

A Big Thanks to Dad & Mom B and Mom C!

Handsome Man loves German Chocolate,

his Mom made it just for him.

My Mom had my favorite cake made just for me,

White Cake & White Icing.

Thanks, Amy!

Oh, yeah.....

A Classic Birthday!

MFSD

PS.  White cake for breakfast is on my menu this morning!

Book Club

We met for Book Club this week.

We chose Nora Ephron's,

I Feel Bad About My Neck.

We chose this selection for three reasons.

First, Nora died this past summer and we wanted to read a work of hers to honor her in a small book club way.

Two, we all really admired at least one or more of the movies

she directed, produced or was the screenwriter.

In some of her works she did all three.

"Sleepless in Seattle"

"You've Got Mail"

"When Harry Met Sally"

"Silkwood"

"Julie & Julia"...

Three, we could all relate to the "neck" thing.

(I don't need to say more.)

And yes, there was cake.

It was a lemon cake, topped with lemon cream and cool whip.

Oh yes...

It was delicious!

Thank you, Friend!

What's a good read for you?

Book Clubbing with Friends,

MFSD

~Have a great weekend!

Back in the Kitchen, Yummy!

Strawberry Cake, yum!

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting, yummy!

I haven't made this in years.

This are the ingredients you will need.

I can't wait for the end result.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Mix together:

One white cake mix, 1~3oz. box of strawberry flavored Jello gelatin,

 4 large eggs, 1/2 cp Canola oil, 1/4 cp milk.

Thaw & puree 15 ozs of frozen sliced strawberries.

Add all but 1/4 cp of the strawberries to the cake mixture,

(this 1/4 cp you have left is for the frosting.)

Bake in a lightly greased (I use PAM spray) 9"X13" pan

for approximately 30 minutes

or until it pulls from the edge of the pan.

Allow to cool before frosting.

And then it's frosting time!

I chose a Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting.

Mix together:

1~8oz cream cheese, softened,

1/4 cp butter,

1 box of Powdered Sugar,

1/4 cp of the pureed strawberries

Let your cake cool completely and frost.

Oh, Yeah...

(I store the cake in the refridgerator.)

*I used my old aluminum 9"X13" pan.  It's not a fancy pan~it's been with me for many years.  And...it's the only pan I have ever used for this cake.  (I was afraid to make it in any other!)  You know how it is when you've had a success~you're afraid to risk another pan.

What's cooking in your kitchen?  Do you have a favorite old recipe?

I'd love to know!

Back in the kitchen with an old favorite,

MFSD

~Happy Birthday, Neighbor!  Hope you liked the cake!

Dinner out

Dinner out.

We took an evening out with my Mom

and went to Pawnee, OK.

We had dinner out at Click's Steakhouse.

It a great restaurant

& the drive is really nice, too!

(I love the soft hills and loads of trees!)

((Handsome Man likes it because you drive past the

Pawnee Livestock Sale Barn.))

Yes, this is Click.

Clifton "Click" Nelson, Founder,

opened in 1962.

No he isn't there now, but...

the delicious legacy

continues.

You should always start with dessert.

(At least that's a favorite start for me!)

Creamy ice cream over Blackberry Cobbler.

Oh, my...

No, we didn't really start with dessert...

Click's has a salad bar with the most awesome selections.

You have to start there!

Handsome Man had his, "All American" choice~

Chicken Fried Steak with cream gravy,

Mom & I had Grilled Shrimp on skewers.

Delicious dinner rolls and the best green beans were our sides.

(I planned on a photo of dinner...as I said, "planned.")

((I was hungry...))

Do you have a favorite restaurant?

If you need a suggestion, try Click's.

You'll love the drive!

Yum,

MFSD

Happy House Plants

My house plants are happy plants!

I set them out to get a healthy drink

& shower.

Now, of course, they couldn't tell me, but...

I'm sure I heard them, "Singing in the rain!"

(I love that movie!)

These are my sunroom buddies.

UmmmHmmmm,

fresh shower!

A fresh shower,

with the purest of water...

always feels soooooo much better.

Freshened up,

MFSD

It rained!

Oh yes,

it rained!

Just about 3 tenths,

we'll take it.

Handsome Man checks the rain gauge.

It's one of his favorite jobs.

Yes.

It's a puddle,

a small one,

but it's a puddle.

Notice the green already growing...

My rain chimes are gratefully

filling up and are ready to get to chiming.

(These were a fun gift!)

We have'nt seen this in quite awhile.

If you're not sure...

it's a wet sidewalk.

Pretty.

Have you had any rain lately?

Singing in the rain,

MFSD

Surprises

Dinner!

Round steak, french style green beans, diced tomatoes,

Brother in law's new potatoes from his garden.

They are incredible!

Oh yes...that's butter on my potatoes.

Yum!

Handsome Man was busy in the kitchen

early this morning.

It's a surprise~he always tells me.

He's a great chef with the crock pot.

 

I did take a peak after he left...

I love just about anything with tomatoes in it.

And those french style green beans!

Look at those new potatoes!

Makes you almost think about growing a garden, almost.

I thought about this all day.

Handsome Man is the Best!

What's for dinner at your house? 

Do you have a favorite crock recipe?

I love surprises,

MFSD

Mornings

Good Morning!

We're all in our places,

with bright shiny faces...

I have fond memories of that song.

These cows and calves are ready for the day.

They love these cooler mornings!

We're hoping for rain today,

and I know they are too!

Have a wonderful day!

Oh yeah...

In my place,

MFSD

We need rain!

We can see them.

Rain clouds.

We know they're out there.

Rain clouds.

It's very dry in our area.

We need rain!

Yesterday, I wrote about moving the cows.

Today, the pond...

This is the pond that our cattle were utilizing.

Not much there...

You could even see the fish close to the surface.

(Yes, that's Handsome Man standing

where the water should be.)

Even the weeds are thirsty.

Praying for a much needed rain,

MFSD

Moving the Momma Cows & Babies

It's time to move the Momma cows and their babies.  We're moving them a little earlier than usual.  Usually Handsome Man moves them when it's time to weane them away from each other.  Babies do have to grow up.  However, he is moving them this time due to our lack of rain.  The pond is very low.
So, it's moving day.  And...by the way...it's CRAZY hot!

He does a great job of getting them loaded.

Experience.

(Notice I'm waaaayyyyy back & I'm very, very quiet.)

((We've discussed before~I don't think like they do.))

Last load...

These Momma cows are pretty calm because they got loaded on the trailer

with the babies that were left.

I'm thinking, they're thinking,

"Hmmmmm, wonder where we're going?"

The first load that left without the babies were much more restless.

Upon arrival with the last load you should have seen those Momma cows running to the gate where Handsome was ready to unload,

(the trailer full with all the babies.)

He could hardly get the gate open to open up the trailer.

You would have thought that they had been apart for days!

It was really cute~

as they unloaded the Momma cows crowded around with lots of bawling & waiting for their baby to get off the trailer.  Everyone was anxious and smelling their little ones to be sure they were safe and well. 

It's like first time mom's or dad's sending their children off to Kindergarten.

Their first full day school experience.

When their children get off the bus for the first time...

the mom's or dad's are waiting.

(Thank goodness, we get to give great big hugs when we greet them!)

So sweet!

Mom's are Mom's.

Dad's are Dad's.

Hauling cattle... well riding along,

MFSD

PS.

It's almost school time!  Watch out for kids and school zones!