Doings

I know, I know..... I haven't posted!  It is a terrible thing and the blogging kiss of death.  I can't help it!  I've been busy with doings.  So... I'll list my excuses and see what you think.

First, there is the genealogy thing.  It has grown!  I didn't intend for it to get away from me, but a simple question about an ancestor has turned into a three ring binder of information.  It is amazing, and I'm thrilled with all I'm learning.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not taking responsibility myself.   My new found relative has been doing this for over twenty-five years, and he is sharing his wealth of knowledge.  I'm so fortunate!!


Second, It was wonderful this past weekend to have family as company.  I'm still getting acquainted and bonding with Mr.'s family, and there are a lot of them.   They came equipped with 4-wheelers and dirt bikes and played like crazy in the country.  It's another one of those appreciation for open spaces thing.  Sometimes one must get away from the city and roam free.

Speaking of roaming free...  I'd been hearing from Mr. about a new colt.  Mr. has given up horseback riding, but still has his old friends around the ranch.  He has replaced the horse with a 4-wheeler as thinks it is safer for him at this point in time.   As I said, I've been hearing about the colt and the mare.  The poor dear injured her leg and Mr. has been doctoring it.  She is getting better.  I was thrilled that I had Snappy with me when I got to the ranch and they were by the gate.  I'd really been wanting to see them.   I told Mr. that I wanted to name the colt Promise.  I don't know why, I just said it.  We will see how that goes.

The grand finale excuse: Most doings lately have been just the same old thing.  I will admit that some days I'm at a writing stand still.   Now, that is probably the biggest excuse.  I'll post to say I'm still around.  I'll try to think of something witty and mildly interesting.  Intensely interesting would be better.   Have a wonderful week and try to get into a bit of mischief.  It is good for one to be a little ornery around the edges... just a little. Tah Dah.

Not Our Traffic

I've mentioned before that I love living in a small community where we don't have rush hour traffic.   I will confess that Mr. dragged me out of town. You will be happy to know that there was no kicking and screaming involved, at least on Mr.'s part.  I behaved and went willingly.  We headed out of town to spend the Mothers' Day weekend in the great state of Texas.   It was a long drive, and I was ready to get there.  We skirted around the Dallas area, thank goodness, but still we ran into traffic.  I got snappy out of its riding place and took a picture of the highway as the traffic started picking up a bit.  I kept thinking how calm our little streets are.  This wasn't a rush hour picture, but it was certainly busier that we ever get in our small town.  We don't have a rush hour.  Period.

We did have a good time, and even managed to get home without getting blown away.  I knew storms were coming, and I really wanted to just drive on home when we returned.  However, Mr. had other ideas, and we stopped by Oklahoma City Stockyards.  Oh, I should have taken Snappy with me as I walked across the catwalk type thing over the cattle pens and into the auction area.  It would have been super to show you here.  However, it was windy as the dickens, and I left Snappy cowering in his case in the car.  I wasn't too sure that I wouldn't be blown off the walkway and onto the top of cattle.  I hung on and Mr. sailed ahead of me.  He was so anxious to get inside and check out the auction that I probably could have been dropped into the pens and trampled to death before he would even notice.  Such a guy.  Sometimes I just don't cut the mustard in the hurry up department.

The other thing I've been doing is that genealogy stuff... searching for long lost and dead relatives.  It has become an intense thing on my part.  I finally had to push away from the computer and make myself leave it alone for awhile.  It is a hard thing to do.  I can see why people say it is addicting.  It is.  Hopefully, I'll be back to post again tomorrow... perhaps.  I'm in an intense phase of ancestry searching.  Hope all is well with you, dear readers.

Bitten By a Genealogy Bug

I know many people are into genealogy with a passion.  I've never done anything with genealogy, so couldn't have issued any statements of value on that particular subject.  However, I've been bitten... badly bitten by the genealogy bug.  It didn't take long either.  I've only been at it for a few days... perhaps three.

As I said in my last post, I had a couple of documents, and I was trying to find some relatives on my Mother's side of the family... her maternal grandparents.  

I was looking at a site yesterday that was dedicated to the county where I knew they lived.  I happened to click on a link for a forum discussion, and I immediately saw the name of the person I was looking for.  Not only that, but the person who had posted the link was a familiar name.   I'd heard my mother use that name.   I immediately got the e-mail address of the person who posted and sent them a note telling them why I had contacted them and giving them a little information so they could decide if I had the right person.

I almost held my breath all day hoping and praying that I'd hear from this person.  I  felt I had the right person, but the information had been posted sometime last year and I hoped they were still around and with the same e-mail address.

I could hardly believe my eyes when I got a response.  Sure enough, we are related.  I hit the jackpot by finding a living relative.  That person has a ton of information on the family, and I can fill in the blanks on one line of the family.  I got so excited that I literally jumped up and down in the kitchen.  Mr. was just coming around from his slumber this morning and probably thought I'd lost my mind for sure.

It is amazing how exciting it can be to find family information.  To find a relative that you didn't know you had is even more exciting.   I'm afraid I've really been bitten by that bug.  I'm not sure I'm going to get enough of it anytime soon.

Genealogy and Me

This poor little photo, which needs much repair, is, I think, a picture of my great great grandmother.  I've been on a quest to discover some information concerning family on my mother's side.  I may have raved on about this in the past, but I'm just now getting serious about trying to find that information.  If I don't do it, it will probably be lost to the family.

I've never done any genealogy research, and I'm not too sure where to start.  I actually called the city where she lived and have found a few pieces of information.  We are talking about people who lived in the 1880s, and piecing together certificates, marriage licenses, and family oral tradition can be daunting, if not downright frustrating.  It also seems to be quite addictive.  I can feel it in my bones.

I don't know why I had to wait until this late stage of my life to get interested in family history.  I have a feeling I'm not the only one on Earth to do such a thing.  We seem to wait until it is or almost is too late about things.

Well, I'm on a quest now.  Poor Mr. is going to see another demonstration of my obsessive focus.  I'm like a dog with a bone in that respect.  I call it extreme interest.  At least I'm doing something that is useful, and I hope to have a nice scrapbook with all the ancestors and their stories springing to life from the pages.

If I'm correct, this lovely lady once lived in the house that is now a museum.  It is a museum not because of this lady, but because the famous General Pershing once lived there.  It all seems terribly interesting to me, and I'm going to see what I can discover.   I hope I have a shred of sanity left when I'm finished.

Country Spaces

On the way back to town from my adventure of driving the feed truck the other day, I was once again overcome with the wonderful feeling of wide open spaces. The sky was a beautiful blue with such white fluffy clouds, and there weren't any buildings to look at... just that wide open God's country feeling.

I couldn't help myself. I pulled over and grabbed Snappy. (Love my new Canon Rebel T1i). I pressed the window down button and listened as the only sound around was the zzzzzzzzzz of the window. No traffic noise, no blaring radio, no anything. Perhaps if I were a better listener, I might have heard some blowing grass sounds. It was lovely. So, Snappy and I took some pictures and reveled in the unbroken peacefulness of the place.

Later as I crossed Sand Creek, I stopped again. Snappy was ready and we enjoyed a few more pictures looking up the creek. Again.... peaceful and quiet. I could hear a little bit of water noise, but that was only the music it makes.

I've said before that I so value our little area of the world. It is wonderful to have open places and peaceful retreats. It only took one year of living in Dallas to make me appreciate a lack of buildings, concrete, highways, and noise. I embrace the peaceful scenic life. Tah Dah

Promise of Peaches

Earlier this spring, I took this picture in the orchard at the ranch. It shows buds forming on this peach tree. I had hopes at the time that a nasty frost wouldn't come along and kill them. I want peaches!!!

Mr. took me out to give me another little tour of the orchard. He really does love all his plants and gardening efforts. He was quick to give me a little rundown on each of the plants, and I tried to soak it all in and be appreciative.

I will tell you that I was thrilled to see the leaves out on the trees and the buds looking good. My mouth is watering a little in the hopes of peaches, apples, and grapes. They are all in the orchard area.

This is a macro (close up) of the dwarf peach tree. Daughter I-Needa said that dwarf peaches are the kind that would be best in tarts. Silly girl!! We will see just how big those peaches get. Who knows, she may be right.

I'm just glad a killing frost didn't get the peaches. It looks like they are going to make.

Here is another picture of a regular peach tree. I'm so hopping to get some peaches after awhile. I know there are critters out there in Raccoonville who would love to have those tasty offerings from the trees. Man's objective is to beat the critters to the produce. Mr. said he would set out traps. We will see on that too. Unfortunately, Raccoons do not like to share. They are pesky little critters, and let's not forget about the deer. They like to eat too.

I'd best get a good cobbler or pie recipe dusted off. Baking pies or cobblers might just be in my job description of ranch wife. Actually, I've seen the look in Mr.'s eyes when he mentions peach pie. It is the look of a man in love... with pie. He actually suggested that I should make crust from scratch. I thought I was hearing things. Crust from scratch! Well... I hate to tell Mr. this, but Pillsbury roll out is fine with me. Seriously. I'm afraid he can tell the difference. He seems to have discerning taste buds for things like that. He is hard to fool. Still, I think I'll stick with Pillsbury. He forgot to put that in the job description before the wedding vows. For better or for worse, the man is getting Pillsbury.

I have other things to consume my thinking. I don't care about crust. I care about fruit survival. I asked if I should consider camping in the garden and protecting it from critters. He laughed. I'm thinking he has good reason to laugh. I wouldn't last five minutes camping in the garden. There are bugs there... maybe snakes... I don't know about that and don't want to find out either. I'll have to depend on Mr. to protect the garden and orchard with traps. Perhaps I'll mention that to him again. We will see... Tah Dah

I-Needa's Cherry Coke Salad

I don't mind cooking, but I like things that are simple and quick and still make the taste buds happy... rather like the shortcut pie crust.

By simple, I'm talking about limiting the number of ingredients to items that I can find in the grocery store. I've a number of cookbooks with luscious looking food pictures and ingredients that I've never heard of before. They may be tasty, but I have no idea what they are.

I offer you this very tasty tested jello recipe. I'm having to keep it on hand at all times for Mr. He loves it... really. I've served it at dinner parties as well, and it seems to go with everything. People who initially scoff at jell-o take a bite of this delight, roll their eyes, and go for more.

So... get ready for a four ingredient recipe (five if you count the water) that is fresh and tasty and, best of all, easy to make.

Thank you I-Needa for sending your mother this wonderful recipe.... It's a winner for sure at our house.

I-Needa's Cherry Coke Salad

1 can (20 ounce) crushed pineapple

2 packages (3 ounce each) cherry Jell-O

1 can (21 ounce) cherry pie filling

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup cola ( I rather like to use cherry)

Drain pineapple juice into pan, (set aside the pineapple for later)

Add water and bring to boil.

Add jell-o and stir until dissolved.

Stir in the pie filling

Stir in the cola

Pour into a serving bowl.

Refrigerate until slightly thickened.

Fold in pineapple. Refrigerate until set.