Brown Paper Packages

a best afternoon

:: he was fixing fence when we finally found him 

:: it is a rare treat to spend time with Uncle James on the job 

:: he took some time to help the kids explore

:: the homemade arrowhead sifter was dug out of the pick-up 

:: he and August took a little stroll down the creek

:: they saw an eagle - I wish I had a picture of that

:: we found no arrowheads but lots of other treasures (i.e. rocks)

:: anything that could have gotten wet was - we were down to skivies when we left

:: I sat in the grass and watched - I like to do that

:: the breeze was just perfect and so was the afternoon

the barn, a cat and a horse

Now that is a morning of entertainment for both those in front of and behind the camera.

bees

Each spring, our flowering trees are filled with activity.  If you walk beneath them, you will hear a strong and steady buzz.  And if you have a moment to stand and watch, you can slowly see how the trees are coming to life with hundreds and hundreds of pairs of wings. 

Some day I hope to have bees of my own.  Until then, I'll just enjoy their buzzing in my trees. 

There is a bee in each of these pictures - can you find it?

 

this girl

this girl.  this funny, witty, wise-beyond-her-years girl is now four.

and four, well, four suits her just fine.  four has a sense of her own style. four is my laundry girl and right-hand helper.  four takes care of herself and even her brother.  she loves playing with friends but still needs her own space by herself.  four is so very grown-up, you know.

but thankfully, four is still small enough to snuggle.  and still needs Nap.  and is content to spend hours upon hours coloring and drawing.  or playing with play-dough. 

four is creative. just as the other years were.  and will be.  creativity runs from her soul and sprinkles into her hands and makes every corner of our house sparkle with her color and lines.

just like she does.  this four.  this Ruby. 

oh my, how we love you, Miss Ruby.  happy belated birthday!

 

 

Easter

It's May.  I understand this.  But I've taken the liberty of backing up in time to share our Easter memories with you all.  (They were such very good ones.)

getting ready for Easter . . .

finding new friends Easter morning . . .

looking for eggs early in the morning . . .

discovering this perfect shadow in the morning light . . .

our advent resurrection tree . . .

looking for eggs in the afternoon . . .

and not to be forgotten, dessert!  (Where else have you seen such a handsome cake decorator with pliers hanging from his belt?)  

 

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment in our days. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

* * *

in honor of 200

Mr. Fox was my 200th post to this little blog.  (I won't tell you when I started as it has taken me many a year to get to 200, but that's not the point, now is it?)  So in honor of my 200th post, I decided to do something special.  A little out of the ordinary.  A little indulgent. 

I'm giving away a trip to Hawaii!  An all-inclusive, expenses paid trip to the island of your dreams!  And stay as long as you like - bring a friend or two or three.  Go shopping.  Buy lots of grass skirts.

Okay.  So I got a little carried away.  That would be so very nice of me, wouldn't it?  But I'm really just going to give you our favorite granola bar recipe.  That's very comparable, I think.

I have made about a dozen different types of granola bars and frankly, none of them were very good.  We can't have granola bars from the store because every single one of them worth eating has been made in a factory that warns against a loose peanut lurking in the bar.  And most of them are full of questionable ingredients anyway, so it's not a total loss.  (Not to mention they are pricey!)  But one day last fall I tweaked a few recipes and came up with our new favorite granola snack.  

Here's whatcha need!

4 c. quick-cooking oats

1/2 c. brown sugar, packed (you can substitute raw sugar or sucanat, but you may end up with just granola and not bars!)

3/4 c. butter, melted (you can substitute coconut oil, but the bars do not have the same consistency as a chewy granola bar)

1/2 c. honey

1/2 c. brown puffed rice

1/4 c. sesame seeds

1/4 c. wheat germ

1/4 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4 c. butterscotch chips

1 t. vanilla

1 t. cinnamon

1 t. salt

And here's whatcha do!

Mix all ingredients together and press into a greased jelly roll pan.  Bake at 450 degrees for @ 8 minutes until lightly brown.  Don't get too brown or they will be crunchy instead of chewy.  Cool and cut into bars. 

Enjoy! 

P.S. I realized that I have no picture of our granola bars but as my camera does not seem to be speaking to my computer right now it doesn't make any difference ANYWAY!

Sorry about the shouting.  Technology frustrates me greatly.

 

 

 

 

a visitor

Yesterday morning we let our puppy outside at a little past seven.  It was quiet and cool but decidedly light.  Suddenly she began barking loudly - which is not uncommon but quite annoying and we try to shush her so as not to bother neighbors - so Korey hollered for her to come in. 

I peeked out the front window to see if there was someone on a morning walk or a dog in our yard - both known to cause Sadie to talk. 

As I peered out the bay window, neither a person or a dog walked around the corner of the house, but a red-tailed fox.

A fox!  Our animal visitor list has included deer, rabbits, turkeys, moles, (and their holes, says Ruby) possums, raccoons and even a badger.  But never a fox! 

He walked right up onto our front steps - I wonder if he isn't a regular visitor.  I raced around the house trying to get pictures through the windows.

Good-bye, little red fox.  We enjoyed see you this crisp morning.  What a perfect day for you to appear . . . it was a rusty red morning all around.    

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment in our days. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

* * *

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment in our days. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

* * *