Welcome Rain

Before writing about today's activities, I need to say something about yesterday. The theme for our church service was "The Good Shepherd." The hymns followed this theme and we also recited the 23rd Psalm responsively. The sermon began with the question "What was David going through when he wrote Psalm 23?" I always thought it was because of some illness, but I learned that King David wrote this Psalm when his son Absalom rebelled and overthrew his father and he had to flee and go into hiding. We may not get everything we want but God gives us everything we need. As our Shepherd he cares for us. We can trust that he is leading us where we should go.

We were home early and after lunch Ray got busy in the garden and planted our 20 tomato plants. I joined him after he had them in the ground (great timing on my part!) and planted the 12 pepper plants we had also purchased last Thursday. I noticed one red strawberry -- ripening very early -- and spent a few minutes pulling weeds in the strawberry patch.

I wasn't able to work late since I planned to return to church to help in the kitchen. The co-chairs had assembled a great crew as we prepared and served dinner in honor of the youth being confirmed next Sunday. We probably fed close to 60 people (including the kitchen help). After the meal I ran the dishwasher and cleaned lots of plates, glass dishes and silverware. I was able to bring home some meatballs and noodles for tonight's supper.

This afternoon I returned to the garden and planted radish, lettuce, spinach, kohlrabi, kale, wax beans and sugar peas. The real gardening season has begun! More planting is planned in the next several weeks. I heard some thunder in the west late in the afternoon but it was far away. Eventually raindrops began falling. The rain was a perfect ending to the day. With the warm weather we're having this week, the seeds should germinate quickly.

Mixed up Months

Seems like we are having March weather when it's almost the end of April. In fact, this morning's newspaper mentions that March was warmer on average by 2 degrees. We had seven days in March of 80 degrees or higher and only one day in April. Personally, we often opened our windows in March to let in fresh air and cool off the house. We didn't turn on the AC, but some people did; we used our bedroom ceiling fan on warm nights. I removed one blanket during that warm spell but lately have had to put it back on our bed and we turned on the furnace again because of cool nights.

We had several frosts in April but saved our strawberries by covering them. An Asian Pear bloomed in March and had many tiny pears already growing but they didn't survive the frost. It's been a strange, mixed up two months for sure.

It's time to plant our garden, but today was not the day as we've had a cold, windy day with several rounds of rain. Last Thursday I noticed an ad in the newspaper where a local nursery was offering tomato plants at 10 cents each. The nursery isn't close to our house, but since we were going to be in the vicinity in the late afternoon, we decided to stop. We have never seen tomatoes offered bare-rooted before but they looked healthy and there were about six different varieties offered. We ended up selecting 20 plants. Do your math! That's $2.00 total.

We didn't keep the plants sorted so we won't know
which variety is which until they mature

Earlier in the week, Ray stopped in at a local welding shop hoping to get a part from our grass catcher repaired. At first, the man at the desk said that the metal was too thin and he wouldn't be able to do the job. He suggested that we purchase a replacement part and Ray explained that the part cost $65 plus S&H. The welder then changed his mind and said he thought he could do the job. His charge would be $25. The next day we picked up the repaired part. Ray happened to ask him why he said the day before that the metal was too thin. He replied by asking "Do you really want to know? You may not like it." Ray replied that he wanted to know and he was told by the welder that he didn't like doing business with older men. Wow. He wasn't kidding either. Apparently, many older customers think they can get a welding job for $5 or $10.

In three days May will be here with the promise of some warm weather -- maybe even 80 degrees. I'm ready!

Surprise find

Ray usually makes the trip to the street to get our daily newspaper. When he returned this morning with the newspaper he suggested that I take a peek at what he saw on the driveway. I was a little apprehensive because my first thought was that it might be something creepy or crawling. I peeked out the front door and asked "Is it that yellow thing?" I wasn't sure what the yellow thing was. So I walked to the driveway and found this:

An Easter egg and some mutilated candy

Was it a raccoon that found the hidden egg from a couple of weeks ago? We'll never know for sure but we often wonder what goes on in the middle of the night when we are asleep. Whoever found it apparently doesn't have a sweet tooth or got scared away. The candy was nibbled on but left behind.

Lazy Week

It was a lazy week as far as posting here. Otherwise, I was pretty busy. Part of the time I worked on one of our beds removing old growth Rosa Rugosa. The planting was old and growth was out of control. So I cut everything down. It's looks quite different now and perhaps later we'll plant something we can better keep under control.

One afternoon we played bridge with our neighbors -- it's become an enjoyable monthly event and this month I held some good cards at the same time my partner did and came out as the top scorer. This doesn't happen to me very often. On Saturday evening we drove west about 30 miles or so to the South Putnam High School where our telephone cooperative holds its annual meeting. They served fried chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes, roll and cookie as a way to get a quorum. Also, everyone gets $5 off their monthly phone bill. The company is upgrading telephone and Internet service from copper to fiber optics and our street is scheduled for later this year. We might decide to purchase their TV package when fiber optics arrive. We've not made a decision on that.

Ray went to a meeting of our home owner's association this afternoon regarding plans for replacing the bridge at the end of our street. We've assumed all along that it would be replaced but after some discussion this afternoon, they now plan to repair it. Should be cheaper and faster. Everyone who lives on our street must use the bridge to get to the main road. Having the bridge out for a few days is a big inconvenience for most of the 20 home owners that live on our street. The present plan is to build a small pedestrian bridge that everyone can use to cross the stream to reach their parked cars on the far side of the bridge. If all goes well, the plan is to have the work completed this summer.

That sums up some of the past week. This morning we got an early start and had little traffic to contend with and I actually arrived at church early! During the children's sermon the pastor showed the children a flashlight that didn't work and explained that it needed a battery. He inserted batteries and the flashlight worked and told them that the Word of God is like a battery for us to help us shine for Jesus. Later in the main sermon he posed the question "If you were put on trial for being a Christian, would there be enough proof to convict you?"

This week I'm planning on working on some heritage photos about my birth and early life. I don't have any photos from that era of my life, but my sister Judy sent me one that I had forgotten. I might be about three years old and sister Gloria nearly one. I'm really not sure when the photo was taken. You can take a look.

Someone wrote "1940?" on the bottom

Hoping it warms up again and we don't have any real frost overnight. We aren't covering anything tonight.

Second Sunday of Easter

Easter is not just a day on the calendar, as our pastor said this morning. It is a season so we celebrate Easter for several weeks. Today's theme was on peace, based on the story of Thomas. We all desire peace, but after Jesus' crucifixion, the disciples didn't have peace. They were huddled in a room on Easter Sunday. The doors were locked -- they were afraid of the religious authorities who might come looking for them. They felt they had nothing and they were frightened, then Jesus appears to them. Thomas wasn't with the group at this first visit.

We are all familiar with the word peace, but the greeting "shalom" has even a stronger meaning than the English word "peace."

When Jesus returned a week later he gave peace to Thomas who was unbelieving until he actually saw Jesus and touched him just as he gives us peace because of his death on the cross and resurrection from the grave.

The rest of the day was peaceful -- at least for me. I didn't venture outside because it was very windy. Ray worked outside for a while. We are expecting some rain early tomorrow morning. The day was quiet and peaceful and we had some leftover Gumbo for our evening meal.

3rd Event

Eight days ago, on the Saturday before Easter, family and friends came over for fishing, food, and an egg hunt. Several days later our nephew David, his Dad and Son, arrived for a short visit. Then yesterday, we hosted our neighborhood quarterly dinner get-together. Clustering these events works to advantage when you consider that the house was cleaned for the first party and all I had to do was a quick pick up to keep it clean between events. (Otherwise, I tend to let housekeeping slide a bit.)

About a month ago I sent out invitations to our neighbors. The date had been set back in January and all I had to do was let them know the theme for the evening and suggest some type of dish to bring. Since we had visited New Orleans for Mardi Gras in February, we decided to have a New Orleans theme. On Friday I went grocery shopping for ingredients for Gumbo and completed steps 1 and 2 of the Gumbo.

On Saturday noon I began making Orange Shots and wondered for a while if I had delayed too long as it would take at least four hours to gel. Here are the oranges ready for filling.

Saved all the juice and added sugar and gelatin

Here's the Orange Shots ready for serving as a palate cleanser:

Ingredients: orange juice, sugar, gelatin and some orange soda.
Some recipes call for Vodka

I finished the Gumbo and cooked the rice and kept it warm in a crock pot. We had set up three tables with four place settings at each table. Ray helped by making random seat assignments and placing Mardi Gras beads (from our extensive collection) on each place mat. I dressed with what I wore back in February and had suggested that our guests arrive wearing costumes - though not required - or at least wear a traditional Mardi Gras color.

Jocelyn came with mask and I put on mine and we posed for a photo.

Jocelyn's temporary tattoo is hidden behind her mask

Before we sat down for the main course, I had everyone pose for a photo:

Front: Lori, Jocelyn and Linda
Back: Mike, Me, Rick, Mary, Don, Mike & Ray
(Calvin was ill and Jan arrived later from a day trip to Cincinnati)

As an appetizer we had Spicy Okra and then for the main course, Gumbo, Jambalaya, Red Beans with spicy turkey sausage, and two vegetable salads.

For dessert we had beignets with genuine Cafe Dumonde coffee with chicory and pecan candy. Linda made Bananas Foster. First she melted butter with brown sugar, added bananas and then poured on rum which she lit.

Look carefully to see the flaming rum

The hot mixture is served over a scoop of ice cream - delicious!

Needless to say, at the end of the evening I felt that I wouldn't need to eat another meal for a day or two. The next neighborhood get-together is in July. I wonder what food adventures we'll have then.

The Zielke men

Yesterday afternoon our nephew David Zielke arrived bringing along his son Joel and his dad Bob. David is attending a trade show today in Indianapolis and Joel and Bob are spending the day with us. Last evening David helped us cover our strawberry patch in anticipation of an overnight freeze. Actually, some of the blossoms may have already had damage from a day or so ago.

Bob enjoyed reading the Indianapolis Star as he began the day.

Relaxing with the daily newspaper

This morning Ray and Joel took the pickup truck to the local garden supply store and picked up a cubic yard of mulch. Joel is spreading the mulch.

Joel is a high school Freshman

Working on the warm side of the house

Ray planted some grass seed and covered it with straw hoping the seeds will sprout when the weather turns warmer.

Newly seeded area with covered strawberries in the garden

Our butterfly bush looking a little droopy and
bedraggled after last evening's freeze

Lots of things are happening outside. Even Bob shoveled some mulch.

Bob handles the shovel while Joel spreads the mulch

After a long day of shoveling and spreading mulch, this young man is ready for some shut-eye.

Spending a day outdoors can make one mighty sleepy

Our friendly salamander has surfaced and seemed to be enjoying the sunshine on a rather cool day. These lizards don't usually let anyone get very close.

Some salamanders are more colorful than this one

David returned from the trade show and we enjoyed a leisurely dinner together.

Ruth, David, Joel, Bob and Ray

The strawberry patch is still covered as we anticipate another night of frost. Then a warm up is expected. We'll uncover the berries sometime tomorrow.

Easter Sunday

The alarm was set only a few minutes earlier than usual for a Sunday morning even though the church service was an hour earlier than a regular Sunday. We didn't eat breakfast so all I had to do was get up, get dressed, fix my hair and make-up and drink a glass of orange juice. We were out the door a few minutes late and arrived at church at 7 a.m. I missed the first choir selection, but they sang a second anthem later in the service.

There were lots of flowers decorating the front of the chancel--mums, lilies, tulips, hyacinths and maybe something else. The sermon was about renewal of hope. What does the Easter message mean for my life today? Life without God is hopeless. If the tomb is empty we have a new life and hope of everlasting eternal life. Alleluia! Christ is Risen!

Ray joined me for Easter breakfast at 8:15. The menu consisted of a delicious assortment of breakfast casseroles, toast, bowl of fruit and doughnuts. Another day of eating more than we usually consume! The scale may tell the tale in the next day or so.

We spent a quiet day -- at least I did -- mostly catching up on computer work and e-mails. Ray did spend sometime outdoors. I would have enjoyed that, too, but there is always tomorrow. I think we need to get to the Rec Center tomorrow to work off some of the extra calories we consumed.

Easter a day early

Because Josh, Kylie & Jayden had other family to visit on Easter, we decided to have an Easter get-together on Saturday, a day early. Sounded good to me once I got used to the idea. The early weather forecast seemed to indicate that Saturday would be the best day of the weekend.

Then on Wednesday evening I had a call from Kylie that her Mom, Nancy, was in the hospital because she had had a heart attack the day before. The good news was that Nancy did not have any blockage and the attack was most likely caused by stress. After two nights in the hospital, she was released and able to come to our Easter celebration.

Everyone had a great time -- the men and kids spent the majority of time fishing and enjoying the outdoors. The fishing was good, I'm told. The women worked on the meal.

Four-year-old Jayden enjoyed rolling down the bank on the backside of the dam

Kylie is showing 2-year-old Parker how to roll

We had 18 people wandering around, fishing or just watching someone fish

Bailey shows Parker her catch -- a Blue Gill

After a very filling meal -- there was a lot of food -- it was time for the egg hunt. Over 300 eggs had been distributed around the house.

Notice the bare feet -- a very lovely day!

Where shall I run to next?

Do you see the eggs?

Every time Jayden spotted an egg, he yelled "Aha!" over and over

Kylie & Jayden

The three Kidwells

Emptying the eggs

I didn't get a picture of young Mark hunting for eggs, but you can see him here counting his loot.

This afternoon, Ray spotted a bright pink egg that somehow got overlooked yesterday. Wonder if we'll find any more in the coming days.

Preparations

During the past week, probably on Monday, I finally decorated the mantel for Easter.

Some big plastic eggs and a few lights makes a rather festive display

I was really surprised to see our Wisteria vine blooming. There's an interesting story about this plant. Several years ago, we thought our Pin Oak tree was dying so we planted some Wisteria next to the trunk to create something interesting on the upright trunk of the tree. The tree had some life left, however, and both the tree and the Wisteria grew. Here's how it looks today:

The oak leaves are not fully grown and later it will be hard to see the Wisteria

I noticed that maple trees this year are loaded with seed pods. The trees seems to be growing beige-colored leaves.

A Red Maple tree in the background with the
Pin Oak/Wisteria in the foreground