Weekend Wishes

AND....

Offline

I'm going to be offline for a bit.  We have a baby coming and my daughter is having a birthday.  Keep the light on for me and be well while I'm away.

Monday-Tuesday

Thanks, Rye.
AND...
Did y'all have a nice Valentine's Day? I recycled last year's idea, but instead of using cash with marbles in the base of the jar , I used lottery tickets and dimes.

The HH got me roses, which once again I will try to root.  Haven't succeeded yet:( The next day when he saw them on sale, he picked up the tulips.  Yay! Those will definitely go in the garden come spring.

Weekend Wishes

Monday-Tuesday

AND...
My brother is in the hospital with two clots in veins leading out of the liver.  He does have a good doctor that is running lots of test, so I'm confident he'll get to the bottom of the problem.
The HH has pneumonia and acute bronchitis.
Other than that, it's same-o-same-o at the Cox household:)

Monday-Tuesday

How was your weekend, blogger buds? I trust it was relaxing, productive and fun. We finally got to celebrate Christmas, and their birthdays, with the kiddos. So, of course, ours was good:)

AND....

Last week, I received not one but two lovely surprises in the mail.

A Christmas card from our blogger bud and calligrapher extraordinaire, CJ Kennedy. My photo doesn't do it justice.

Verse Inside

Is this not purrfect? Thank you so much, CJ. I love it.

~*~

Bleubeard and Elizabeth sent me this beautiful wall hanging.

One of the things I really like about this hanging is the subtly. That small, four letter word on the hanging says as much as the picture itself.  Thank you so much, Elizabeth. I love it.

AND....

This arrived yesterday from Ro.  A happy  journal and lovely card. 

Thank you. I am truly blessed to have such great blog friends.

AND....

The Garden in January.

As you can see, the kale's doing well. It's the second winter for the white kale, which is surprising.

The Christmas/Lenten Roses are almost blooming.

AND.....

What is wrong with this picture?

 I've had to deal with unpleasantness in Januaries of the past but never dandelions. Good grief!

AND....

Condolences to the Bears' Fans. :(

Holiday Wishes

This will be my last post for a bit while we enjoy the holidays and family. I'm: 

And....A gift for you.
ODIN CATS will be free Dec. 24 and 25. Help yourself to an E-Copy. 

Odin Cats at Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/ODINCATS

With his constant desire to enslave, man has destroyed the earth. In the aftermath of this destruction, two factions vie for power. Man, who did not learn from his mistakes, and Odin Cats.

And....

Happy Birthday, Val.

Weekend Wishes

AND....

Monday-Tuesday

The holiday season has arrived at the Cox household.
The tree is up but not all of the ornaments. I'm running out of places to put them.

The HH is hanging the outdoor lights. We've had outdoor lights for many, many years. No issues...until we moved. Things have not gone smoothly.....

The workshop is set up and open for business. (Thanks, CJ:)

The HH got me the purrfect dishtowel and

a Charlie Brown Christmas tree, which meets with Frank's approval..

Now there's just the pesky little details of shopping, wrapping and cookie baking.

21 days till Christmas.

AND....

While watching the news of George H.W. Bush, what struck me was the constant mention of his kindness AND....(If I heard correctly) his and Martha's Christmas card list had over twenty-five thousand folks on it.

RIP.

The Good, The Bad, And....

The Good:
We  signed up to take part in a senior flu shot study. It was a pleasant surprise to get a card telling us that for everyone that was taking part in the study, a child in a poor country would receive a life-saving vaccine in our honor.

The Bad: 
Somehow my keyless car entry came loose and fell off in the garage where it was promptly run over. The cost to replace it...just let me say OUCH. Gone are the days of getting a spare car key made for a buck or two.

Furniture Protection from Pets:
Do you ever have problems with the cats scratching your furniture? My cats are usually pretty good about using their scratching pads, but Frank figured out that scratching the couch was a great way to push my buttons. Was he doing it on purpose? Oh definitely. He'd scratch, look at me and wait for my reaction. I saw this cover on Amazon and was skeptical but decided to try it. Surprisingly, it works. This is our secondary couch. It basically gets used when we have company, at which time we take off the cover. I'm not sure I'd want it on a piece of furniture I used daily. If you are interested, you can find it on Amazon or better yet Smile Amazon where they donate to the charity of your choice.

AND....
A shoutout to my ninety year old aunt who faithfully reads this blog. Have a great day, Norma:)

AND.....

Raindrops on roses...and mums.

AND....
What's wrong with this picture?
The only way I get my overweight cat to exercise is to throw treats for her to chase.

AND....

Purr-fectly Delightful Gifts

I take in goodie bags for the kids whenever I see them. This time they had one waiting for me. Yum.

The HH surprised me with a Halloween dishtowel. Purr-fect right?

Looky! Looky! I've been on the prowl for a Mrs. Claus's Workshop sign for two years to hang over the door of the spare bedroom where I keep my Christmas secrets and do my wrapping every December. I mentioned it to the delightful and talented CJ and look what I got! I'm very calm and sedate on the outside but doing the Happy Dance on the inside. Thank you, CJ!
AND...

Nothing that CJ sends would be complete without a picture of INK on the envelope.

Weekend Wishes

AND.....
Happy Birthday, John Le Carre.

IWSG Wednesday

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Members post about their doubts and fears, discuss struggles and triumphs, and offer words of encouragement to others who are struggling.

FYI: The IWSG monthly question can be found under the IWSG Sign-up tab on the Insecure Writer's Support Group Blog.

September 5 question - What publishing path are you considering/did you take, and why?

I have been writing since the prehistoric age, I.E. when a writer used a typewriter (gasp) and before E-books.  When I first started out, I applied with several publishers and later found an agent, but I didn't have any success in the traditional world.  Then E-Books (and computers:) came along. I found my  niche and have never looked back. I'm currently a hybrid author. I have books with Kensington and I'm self-published. Originally, I published with several small presses. It was a great experience, I made many friends and learned the ins and outs of publishing. I recommend it for authors that are just starting out. There are some excellent E/small presses out there. From there you may decide you want to stay, go trad or Indie. Wherever your journey takes you, I wish you much success.

Daylilies

The daylilies did their momma proud this year. Unfortunately, they've just about finished blooming.  They bloomed for about a month and a half. For those who have daylilies, how long do yours bloom?
Note Franky horning in on the photo shoot:)

Word for the Day: Kindness

Garden Tidbits

Grab your coffee/tea and take a quick stroll with me.

The roses.

A corner of the garden.

The liatris is a bit bedraggled after the heavy rains.

A Mother's Day gift from the HH.

A Mother's Day gift from the HH.

Heh. The umbrella is doubling as an awning for my Christmas/Easter Rose (which still has a bloom or two on it) since it does not care for sunlight.

Daisies and friends.
AND......

Is anyone out there familiar with watermelon radishes? I'd never heard of them till I ordered this salad. As you probably guessed they're the pink sliced veggies rimmed in green. They are about the size of a tomato with a flavor much blander than regular radishes and very pretty. I'd love to have some more.
What about you? How's your garden doing? Have you ever had or heard of watermelon radishes?