Birthday Gift From The Gourd Lady

This is Ron's birthday present from his sister, Evie, who is truly a magician with gourds.  This bird house will not hang out in the trees this summer, but will be put where we can enjoy it.  The carefully and precisely carved design had to take a lot of time, and the effect is a "wow".

 These two pictures are the back of the gourd - Love the dash of turquoise - it sets everything off nicely.

 This picture shows a more true color of the gourd.  So glad that Ron had a birthday to celebrate!

The rather ugly winter weather must be blamed for the hiatus in the family blogs, with the exception of Dwight and his Curmudgeonly Professor, which keeps the wit and pictures coming.  We have had bitter cold weather, but the sun in the daytime has eroded the edges of the snow so that some of the grass is showing.  And this morning there is a light, steady snow to chase the inversion away.  As we live in the north end of Cache Valley, our atmospheric effects from the inversion are not as heavy as Logan, itself.

Beautiful Great Grandchild

Doesn't he look like a winter?  Fortunately for us, Jet's father is a photographer, and posts pictures on Facebook for us to admire.  This little guy has really grown.  I don't frequent Facebook often, and usually just browse, but it's a boon to great-grandmas like me, so that we can see these children who live far away. We live in a town where, often, families in close proximity. Great-grandparents, grandparents, mothers & fathers, children, etc., etc. all live in or near the community.  That's how life used to be for many.  However, we are prey to the logistics of society today - the jobs are far away, and ever evolving.  Once my aunt Cindy and uncle Norman moved to Smithfield, Utah and built a home to be near two of their children and families.  Within a couple of years, those children had moved away to follow employment opportunities.  My aunt and uncle stayed in Smithfield, and both are buried in the Smithfield cemetery, far away from their parents' burial place in northwestern Wyoming.  Such is life!

Wintry Morning from our window.

We've just been very, very cold this year - and the mornings have not been spectacular.  This picture is from a year ago - I don't remember if the day was glorious, but the sunrise certainly was.  It is wonderful to have this beautiful scene in its varying aspects at our back door.  Count my blessings.

Down by the Riverside

This long-ago wintry day was celebrated by Louise, Judy, and me with a walk down to the river in the snow.  We were dressed pretty warmly, but it was the idea of the photographer (me) to have them pose in the snow.  Dumb idea, but the pictures, taken with the old Baby Brownie, turned out okay.  Louise must have been  working away from home,and was home for the weekend.  Maybe you remember?

Anyway, these are good memories - I would probably have forgotten this time, except for the pictures that remain to tell about it.

Nostalgic Photo

Sometime in the late 40s, I got this coat for Christmas (if my memory serves me right.)  Some of us went up to Grandma and Grandpa Wasden's to show them our gifts.  I'm not sure what this pose is all about, but I do know that I thought that  this coat with the hood was just like a wonderful cloak that made me beautiful.