SNOW

SNOW—the word of the week!

The view from my library this week is fantastic! Beautiful! Every imperfection, every weed lay covered with bright, white snow. This weather is rare here in the valley; therefore, it's most appreciated and enjoyed. Thank you, Lord! 

                                   Craig's new 'pet'

“He sends the snow like white wool; he scatters frost upon the ground like ashes.” 

          Psalm 147:16

I could sit in the library all day. In fact, I just might. Except I need to go measure the snow again. I used a fifteen-inch wooden ruler. Do you think that's long enough?

As it turned out, I only needed a six-inch ruler. I must have measured the depth every hour with excitement, of course.

Why does snow bring out the child in me?

                          Me and Aunt Leona   1946

I grew up in Klamath Falls—snow country. I have memories sledding down Autumn Avenue hill with the neighborhood kids, seeing ice cycles reach down to the ground from our roof, and playing in snow drifts three-feet deep. School was rarely canceled and we kept the tire chains on for weeks.  Someone made snow angels all over the lawn.

Shall we pray for a white Christmas?

Merry Christmas to all !!

Next time we'll talk in January, unless it snows again!

Chocolate will make a great Christmas gift for yourself ! 

Happy Birthdays !!

Chuy, Marguerite, Ruth, Jody, and Larry.

Juanita

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Happy Thanksgiving

My ancestors came from England, so I need to act English, right? Previously I gave up drinking tea to avoid staining my teeth. That decision lasted about two weeks. Good think I'm not addicted to beer; habits can be hard to break. Recently I had a lightning flash in my brain which prompted a solution for my pride. The English people put cream/milk in their tea, so why shouldn't I? Next time, Earl Grey and I will have a little milk in our tea to lighted the stain. You are most welcome to join us as we sip together in the library.

I have so enjoyed talking with you these last three years. I hope I brought a smile or laugh to your day. No, I'm not saying goodbye. Just wanted to say I appreciate my friends and family. I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving. Some of us have started keeping a 'Blessings' book. It's fun to watch my list grow longer each week. If you want another blessing in your life, join Patty, Dianne, Nancy, Barbara, Margaret, Lois, Jane, Jewel and myself as we write down our blessings to keep us focused on what's important.

I saw a laughable sign in Springfield the other day. It said, “Don't look. There's nothing here to read.” A block away, another sign shouted, “Never pay the cannibals to eat you last.” That one had a deep political meaning (I think). Springfield has great free entertainment!

Money talks. Chocolate sings. Beautifully!

Love ya!

Juanita

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One Hundred Percent

Good morning to you, my friends!

Is 100% the same expression as a sure thing? A perfect number? A guarantee?

Checking the on-line weather prediction has become my early morning habit. The report tells me if I'll get wet working in the yard that day. Tomorrow shows an amazing figure, one I don't recall ever seeing. Rain is 100% tomorrow here in the valley. I wonder if it will rain all day or maybe it means rain is guaranteed at least for five minutes. One thing for sure: no yard work tomorrow. So guess what I'm doing today. Yard work and fall clean-up.

When we returned home from a nine-day trip recently, autumn had visited us at 100%. Enjoy the scene as we drove in the driveway.

What else comes to your mind when you hear 100%?

 Forget the stock market!

This week an airline pilot announced, “We are going down!” He sounded definite, 100% sure. People were calling their loved ones and telling them goodbye. I wonder how many prayed and repented of their sins?

I, for one, would have been extremely excited, then disappointed when the plane landed safely. Imagine the joy believing you would see Jesus in five minutes! I would have been sitting on the edge of my seat—ready, set, go!

God's amazing 100% guarantee:

“For God so loved the world that He gave 
His only begotten Son,

that whoever believes in Him should not perish

but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 NKJV

Happy Birthday: Tall Tom, Ken, Jewel, Iona, Georgia, Colleen and Brad!

Happy 50th Anniversary: Ted and Jeannette Carper

Love, Juanita

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The Color of Yellow

“Don't eat the yellow snow!” Good advice for the children. 

I'll add: “Don't make snow balls with yellow snow either.”

From my window, I see the lawn near the waterfall covered with yellow. Not yellow snow, but yellow leaves. The wind is blowing a strong breeze and the leaves are falling fast this Sunday morning. The scene is a must to record with my camera. 

Corylss, does this inspire you to dip your brush in oil?

It's a pleasure to watch nature in action. We cannot see the gentle wind, but we can certainly enjoy watching the leaves race back and forth across the lawn as the wind forces them to drop from the trees.

The autumn season paints many beautiful scenes for us. Take time to sit and enjoy the bright colors. Or better yet, walk through the piles of leaves, kicking them as you did as a child.

"May the Lord richly bless both you and your children.

             "May you be blessed by the Lord, 

               who made heaven and earth." 

                   (with four beautiful seasons)

                                       Psalm 115:14,15

Happy Birthday, Denise !

Happy 46th Anniversary, Janice & Larry !

Juanita

Another View

Greetings!

Earl Grey and I, Earl with his bergamot flavor, enjoyed our devotional time together this morning. For a different experience, we moved from my comfy library to the dining room which I call my sun room because Craig designed nine windows on three sides.

You know the wonderful view I see from my library window, but I neglected to share with you this view of the back garden. We can sit and enjoy my bouquet of roses displayed on the table, the last picking for the season, sad to say. This Caribbean rose has a mild scent. I love the apricot color; some people label the shade a cantaloupe orange. Sounds pretty enough to eat, right?  I chose this flower for my memorial service folder. My friend Jean took a beautiful picture of this rose years ago. I didn't tell her I saved the picture for that purpose.

This morning, the azure blue above hid behind a low blanket of fog, but I see promise of a bright clear day to the east; especially if the ducks and beavers both win their football games tonight.

My dining room resembles a indoor blooming garden—orange lipstick plant, purple African violets, fuchsia colored cyclamen. Since never remember the name cyclamen, I keep the tag in the pot, on the back side of course, so not to detract from the colorful plant.

As I enjoy this morning view, I see two burning bushes looking fiery red. The plant displays a bright red glow for several weeks, then goes naked as the leaves drop off.

Purple asters peek from behind lavender Russian sage. I love this type of sage because its silver leaves and stems show all winter long. I only wish they stood up straight on their own. Any suggestions?

The snowball bush, as tall as a tree, turns red this time of the year. A few persistent white balls hang in there to the end which reminds me of another promise of spring.

An old, rusty bathtub full of small hardy geraniums sits behind the hardy ferns my husband brought home from the forest. Oh, oh, that shovel work might register as illegal now.

One of my favorite garden arts peeks out under our fifty-four year old grape arbor. The crop doesn't appear large enough to make grape juice this year. The Lord already knew my freezer hides too many full juice jars from yesteryear. I believe you gals know what I mean—out of sight, out of mind.

I also see the Mexican orange hedge with white blooms again under the east and west windows.

I could say more about my view, but I think you got the picture.

Thanks for stopping by for a cup of tea.

Enjoy your chocolate without guilt!

Happy Birthday!

Carol, Aunt Leona, Sharyn, Tom P., Erik, Omaira, Brian, Betty, Bonnie, Lynda, and Clyde.

Love and blessings to you all!

Juanita

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