Sunday, October 24, 2010

Fall Colors....Some Annual Hold-outs!!


 You have to LOVE Re-Bloomers!!
Iris that bloom both Spring and Fall are great!



The Ornamental Grass that Barb and Terry gave to me a couple years ago is finally starting to look like Ornamental grass.  Somehow, I've avoided hitting it with the round up! 


The Morning Glory is going crazy with this cooler weather!
If you need seeds, let me know!


A few Dahlia Hold outs!
They did okay in pots this year, 
but next year I'll put them into the ground.


There's just NOT enough round up to get
rid of the Fish-Tunias!!  
OMG!!


 I still have some Elephant ears hanging on!
I might need to get another bag of cement to make a few more casts.


 Still have some tomatoes and squash holding on!
 
  

The Nasturtium LOVES the cool weather too!
The Zinnias, not so much.
We collected some seeds for next year.


I'll miss all the color over the winter.
I guess it just makes you appreciate Spring all that much more.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Why Cats Are Better Than Dogs!!!

Exhibit A        



Exhibit B
Which animal would you rather sleep with?  
The Black and White Border Collie with fresh green bird poop on his face? 
Or the happy CLEAN little Yellow cat on the right?  HANDS DOWN!!  
Give me COUGAR!!  

What is it about dogs anyway?  
Why do they have to roll in things that are dirty, smelly, and often times dead?  
What is the appeal in that?  

Cats on the other hand, like things soft, warm, and clean.  
Okay, an occasional dust roll, but that's just for coat cleaning purposes!  
They aren't doing in order to SMELL!!  

Monday, October 4, 2010

Now (2010) and Before (1913) - or so?


Joann (husband Gorden) and Genvieve, pictured in the first photo, are sisters, and were born in our house.  Actually, the house was then owned by their Grandmother, not by us.  The sisters now live in CA, but stop by every year when they come to Iowa to visit family.  This time when they stopped by, I suggested we park their car in approximately the same location and take another picture.  They thought that was a grand idea.  

We decided that a convertible would have been better, but since the vehicle was borrowed from family in IL, we didn't think we should take the top off.  They weren't necessarily excited about saddling up the two ponies either.  Oh well, it turned out rather nice, especially since we were battling the sun in the West!  

 I enjoy hearing the stories of who slept in which rooms and where the heat came from.  How they had to sleep downstairs in the winter because there wasn't any heat upstairs.  The heat came from a wood stove in the living room and the kitchen stove.  Our bathroom was the pantry, and also had open selves for the everyday dishes and closed cupboards for the good china. It was NOT a bathroom.  When I asked where the outhouse was, Joanne laughed and said, "You went West, under the clothesline and kept on walking!"  Apparently it wasn't very close! 

The upper porch that was on the front would hold about 2 people, Genevieve told me. She said she remembered that there was a barn fire at one of the neighbors and the girls weren't allowed to go.  So, they ran up to the porch and watched from there.  Funny how things in the country don't change!  

The wind break that we started West of the house was their garden.  They had a very large garden that feed the family of 8.  There used to be a lot of large trees out in front of the house.  That sure explains on the dips in the ground as those trunks have rotted over the years. 

It was fun to see them again and I sure hope they stop by again next year!