Luke 2:8-14

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field,
keeping watch over their flock by night.
And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them:
and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, Fear not:
for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour,
which is Christ the Lord.
And this shall be a sign unto you;
Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God,
and saying,
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth
peace,
good will toward men.
Merry Christmas

Cooper

Not much going on in the garden these cold winter days. There are a lot of feeders and the heated bird bath. Several trees have berries on but are fast disppearing because of the heavy snow cover. Here you see a Cooper Hawk having lunch. She comes about twice a week and isn't very shy. I guess that's what hunger does. She feeds on Mourning Doves, only takes what she can eat and finishes it completely. Last summer when she was feeding her hatchlings she came more often, but they must have left for their own territory now. I call her Cooper, not very imaginative. She's a beautiful bird.

Snow

I don't know how much but at least a couple inches of blowing and drifting snow. It's 23 degrees right now. I can see out the computer window the squirrels are brushing the snow off the platform bird feeder...the birds are standing by in the bird bath and the dogwood tree waiting their turn at the seeds. Just filled them all full before the snow. Have to go out a little later and shovel out the paths and the driveway. Need to go mail my correspondence and pick up some food for supper. I hope it isn't too slippery. Dan and Hali are sleeping (his car is in my way or I'd leave now), Owen is at school. It's nice to have a red twig dogwood in the winter as it brightens up the yard covered with snow.

Happy Thanksgiving

Dollar Tree and Boutique Decorations

I decided to see what I could do with just decorations from the dollar tree, so I have giant snowflakes and large red ball ornaments. The happy snowman, the turkey windsock, a couple lanterns, a weather thermometer and misc decorations.

Here are a couple pictures...Owen and Hali LOVE the decorations.

Holiday Season

The leaves got raked.
The potting shed got turned back into a garage
The snowblower is ready as are the shovels.
The decorations are put in place...snow flakes and red balls this year, no lights
A new temp gauge is placed on the south fence
A couple lanterns are hung and a couple solar lights placed.
Decorated the large planter with red twig dogwood and evergreen bows.
And the snow man from the boutique is wishing everyone that passes a Happy Holiday.

Raking Leaves

Today I looked at the leaves and thought, oh gosh, I've got to get out there and rake them up for the gardens and the compost. And I will do that too, only just not today. I did, however, put up a little turkey flag sort of thing for a decoration and took down the ghosts that I had up for Halloween. Yesterday I took the grandchildren on a field trip to DePere thrift store and Burger King and the turkey flag thing is what Hali picked out. We also got some wonderful winter boots for each of the kids for only 25 cents a pair.

Spring like weather

Of course the warm weather is gone now but it left behind Magnolias that are growing. Looks like new leaves coming out. I hope this doesn't cause harm to this beautiful little tree.

Most of the flowers are gone now with the cold and snow that we've had in the last 24 hours. Still have the yellow tuberous begonia, a few lavender flowers, and one Mum plant is still flowering. It's one I got from my brother that appeared dead when I got it in the summer. The leaves have finally turned on the red maple and they will be coming down soon. They are wonderful mulch and I hope I can get them raked up before a lot of snow comes. I have the snow blower all tuned up and ready to go, but I don't have my garden shed turned back into a garage yet. I'll wait for a sunny day as that seems to make it easier to do and I can always bring out my small heater to keep warm. I have some decorations to put along the south fence for winter viewing LOL. That's about it, except to keep warm. Oh, I was going to get a new car before winter but now I don't think I will. I've had my old gray Honda so long that I'm having trouble parting with it. Like an old friend. It's a 1990 with almost 200,000 miles on it. That doesn't seem so long ago, but I guess it is for a car.

Around town

Went to get my flu shot today...I had an appointment...they said I was too sick and wouldn't give it to me. Have to go back on Monday. I feel better, just tired, but they said I still have low grade fever. It's always something isn't it. These pictures are all adjusted to comic view, it's a sign of the times.

Walter the tree and the sparrows feeding area. Looks like it was the hawks feeding area today as well. This is also my mini forrest and swimming area.

Here is the squirrel feeding station and several baby trees. Owen and Hali got them during a scavenger hunt this summer. Also the back fence that usually has beautiful Sweet Autumn Clemitis in bloom.

On the left is my compost bin that I've had for years and years. In the back over there is my shade garden and I can't think of what the plants are called. The sandbox area (better known as the beach) is in the front, and along the fence are the grape vines. No grapes this year, the blossoms were frozen out in the late Spring killing frost. On the right that tree trunk is my maple. It's a red maple but it sure puts out some wonderful syrup.

Guess what this is...yup it's the piles and piles of salt that they spread on Green Bay roads throughout the winter. I took Owen to see it but he was more interested in the oil refinery area.

My resting place when I'm working too hard. A couple garden chairs and a little fake birdhouse structure. I'm going to leave these out this winter. My butterfly house was here also but I bring that in for the winter. That's my holly on the left, still quite small. As soon as I find out if it's male or female I'll get the other one so I can have those pretty berries. The wonderful thing about this tree is that the beautiful green leaves stay on all winter long.

The oil fields...or oil tanks...or whatever. When I was a teenager one of these blew up and I still think of it as the night of the lights....it was a spooky, end of the world type event...in fact, it was even spooky being this close to them after all these years.

You can see a couple of the oil tankers coming in to fill up or dump off or whatever they do. The bridge in the background is NOT the bridge to nowhere. It actually goes across the Fox River. I was across it once riding with someone else. There was a terrible accident on this bridge and I was working at the hospital when they started bringing the people in...I've never been back across this particular bridge. I'm not so fond of bridges anyway. There's the swinging bridge at Pamperin that moves back and forth, there's the Main Street bridge, that as a child, I was on with my mother and sisters when they started raising it for a ship. There's the bridge in Sturgeon Bay that looks like it's made from a toy frame...none to my liking. Of course, once I did walk across the Fox River railroad bridge to get to Fort Howard Paper Company so I could jump aboard the Rainbow Warrior.

Well I guess I've come to the end of the pictures. If nothing else I got to practice my typing.

Goodnight and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Janice

Snow

It snowed today. Oh, not much, but just enough to say hello to winter. Here you can see the snow clouds rolling in. It got quite dark but don't want to show that, love the warmth of the sun.

Still Blooming

It was a great day for drying clothes and for playing outside in the sunshine. Wow, there sure are a lot of lady bugs around right now and some of them have a nasty bite and some of them are coming in the house where it's warm. Haven't seen many spiders lately. The crickets still sing in the evening and the Canadian Geese are starting to leave for the warm south country. All the green pipes have left the train yard and have gone to southern Wisconsin to make windmills. I'm going to have to go see one of these days. Lots of chick a dees in the yard today and sparrows. Didn't notice any other kind. The squirrels are sure stocking up and the chippies are too. Well it's time for me to turn in...goodnight, and have a pleasant tomorrow.



Tried to think of the names of the flowers but I can't. I'm am pleased that I still have some blooming up until today. Tonight there will be another killing frost.

This is the same kind of flower as the one above.

This is as scary as it gets at our house during the season of halloween, vampire ghosts hanging from trees and smiling scare crows

I guess these are the famous red flowers LOL

These are beautiful flowering annuals. I am pleased that these did so well in my little tiny late summer garden. The snow on the mountain was here and see it is already back.

This looks very patriotic doesn't it, but it's just the flowers my grandchildren picked out to put in their swans. They have bloomed all summer. I think they did a very good job.

This doesn't look like much I guess but it's the last flower in my Lavender patch. It is very hard for me not to pick them and bring them in the house but I'm hoping by leaving them they will get bigger for next year. This is the first year for this bunch in the south side garden.

These are the flowers that I got when I took the class in organic gardening, you can also see a little of my peach tree, a little bench and my foot path

I got this from my brother. I got a lot of plants from him this year. This is a mum plant. When I got it all the tops were cut off and I thought it was done blooming for the year but look, isn't it pretty. I'm going to stop over at his house tomorrow and see how his yard looks.

Well at last, one that I know the name of. This is the Sweet Autumn Clematis that I got from my sister Sandra. I got five plants from her and they have spread all up and down my chain link fence giving me privacy and beauty. First they have beautiful white flowers and then they turn into these little puffy gray clouds.

The last of the honeysuckle vine. I'm not going to cut it back this year. I'm real leary of that but my sisters say they let theirs overwinter not cut back. This vine is at least 20 years old and a real beauty when in full bloom.

I don't know what this is but it's leaves and grass that I planted in September. They were almost giving them away but I've had their beauty for two months.

Thanks for stopping by.

Yard work

Almost finished for the time being. Waiting for the leaves to fall so I can mulch them or put them in the compost. I forgot to plant oat seeds at the end of August. It's what I use for furtilizer. Oh well. I hope the plants make it through the winter anyway. I transplanted a lot of lilies and the two huge cup plants. I was going to give them away but I found new spots for them. I did give some lilies away, my orange ones, to a minister that put an ad on freecycle that he wanted some.

My blog is being investigated, not sure why. It couldn't possibly be more innocent.
Anyway it says I can't post until the investigation is over so I'm test posting.

Frozen Soldiers

That's what my Mom called the plants that were left standing through the winter. She didn't want any plants left standing and during her last Fall here on earth I went to her home several times and cut them back or dug them out if they couldn't overwinter.

I'm different, I love to see the plants and stems and berries in winter. It helps the birds I think, but it also helps me to see them and know Spring will come again.

Worked in the yard a little today, then sat for a while to watch the critters. The big rabbit came right up to the white pumpkin and started eating it. I'll have to see if a can get a couple more white pumpkins. I haven't seen or heard any chippies for a while, I wonder where they are. The squirrels are really busy gathering and storing. Those darn blue jays sure are noisy and let me know in no uncertain terms when their favorite feeding is empty. Robins are all gone, finches are brown now, lots of Mourning Doves and sparrows. One pair of Cardinals is here, the other pair has left I think as well as the babies. Lots of Chickadee de de de's, love their song.

A picture of the river that runs through town...the Fox River.

A little gardening sort of

I added a couple ghostly images to this little side garden. Look at that Snow On The Mountain already growing after I pulled it all out a week ago. If you want something to fill in an area get Snow On The Mountain, it is hardy and dedicated.
I sit here quite often, this little bench by my side door. It was green and I recovered it and painted it so it would last the winter for me again. I'm hoping the paint color is the same as that of the fence in the picture on Deb's Hippie Farmer web site...what do you think?
My granddaughter immitating the ghost that we placed in the yard. It lights up and looks really cool.
My little scarecrow on the garage window shelf.

Pretty soon all the gardening will be done for another year and the beautiful green will be gone. I have prepared snowshoes, skies, sleds, skates, hockey sticks and pucks in preparation for playing in the winter. What do you do in the snow and cold of winter...I'd really like to hibernate but that makes it last too long.

Pictures

I have hundreds of pictures posted on AOL Hometown that I'm in the process of downloading to my computer so I can burn a CD. I used Hometown to save my pictures. I'm up to January 2006. This is one of the pictures I found. It's my dear grandson Owen 'reading' the newspaper.

I started this web blog to try to figure out how to get the widget for the followers but I see it just came automatically here so it was no help at all.
Back to the drawing board.

the fall garden