Celebration !! For With God Nothing Is Impossible !

Let It Be According To Your Will

Christmas is in full swing, few more days we will be writing thankyou notes
for the celebration.

     I love this time of year.  Excitement of snow again, family coming, Joy, Laughter, Closeness.
Some days it is not like this.  Some days it is ordinary, empty of celebration, only in my heart and soul comes the celebration, families are busy, I am busy, days slip by in an ordinary way.
      Nature fills that spot most days in Wisconsin winter time.  I can always look out the window and celebrate with the color that flits and fly in and out by my feeder.
      I might have to quick run to the car while I am out in that 20 degrees below nature shopping, home again,  rushing into the house all bundled up.  When going into the house from the barn,... Dick bravely does chores most freezing weather.....he looks frozen but  he would rather be out in any kind of weather, winter, spring, summer or fall.

Dick coming in after feeding horses, chickens and doing chores in
below 0 temperatures.  Luke our Airedale greets him at the door.

Dick also fills feeders, helps grand kids climb the steep hill of ours and also does metal art on the picture below.  Trellis and gate he made a couple years ago.

We celebrated our 51 years of marriage this year.  Keep working at it along with the help of our great creator's Spirit of Faith, Hope, and Love.  Celebrations and ordinary days

This morning was special.  Waking up to a cold Wisconsin morning, pulling up the blinds and a celebration of God's art work enveloped our wonderland of nature!

Looking down at the Chicken coop at lower level.  Each branch, stem,  of our woods
was a winter extravaganza!  No scientist,  Hollywood producer, artisan of man
could come near our Creators Hand! 

Grabbing my camera I began to snap one picture after the other.  Every window found me rejoicing at another glimpse awesome to my whole being!  My mind echoed the song Rejoice, Rejoice, again I say Rejoice!

Horses pasture and our field at rest with the backdrop of the outer woods.

Little finch rests on the branch of a Hawthorn tree covered in frosty ice crystals
looking like diamond dust.

I might not have lots of money, and my old HR car is seven years old sitting in our garage, but this little bit of  Heaven is a celebration of what is to come.  If on earth I am given this splendid gift of nature my small mind can't even imagine my Creator's revelation of the hereafter.  

Gardens on the way to the barn are but skeletons of last summer.
Winter has a beauty of its own.  Even the trees that the deer ate off the
bottom look magical with all the frosty trimmings.  

 Feeding birds is a production of natures abundance.  Sunflower seeds, thistle and suet are on the menu  these days,  Feeders scattered about our land give them plenty of room to gather.  Amazing who shares.  

Blue Jays have a bad reputation of being scrappy but I see morning doves, jays, finches and even wood peckers sharing.  This year we have only sean two pair of Cardinals compared to seven - eight that were here last year.

Downy Woodpecker share with a Red headed woodpecker

I

Blue Jays landing and flying off.  They fly to the near by Amure Maple
eat their sun flower seed and back they come to get another one.

Chickadee fly in to feast on Sunflower seeds.

The colors outside are drab, brown, grays, blacks except for the flash of color to our bird feeders.  It was such a welcome celebration to see this winter wonderland painted into a breath catching moment this morning. 

      Inside our home we have man made colorful decorations that makes the heart skip with Joy.  Wrapping presents, putting that special card into the mail.  This year where Dick sells his metal art at Botanical Florists, he bartered for the wild and fun decoration.  It puts a smile on my lips every time I pass it in the house.  Hardly a week left to enjoy it and it will be tucked away for another year.

I celebrate nature, fun filled orniments, outside, 

I celebrate mans geneus creations out of 

floss and frills

and

I Celebrate our Great God, creator of all, Man, Nature and all of you!

Blessings to those who hurt in this season of Love

Blessings to those who have so little

Blessings to open hearts

To Love All  

Celebration to you all,

love Kate

Artist, Carlyn Shores Wright   ( was forwarded to me on internet)

Wisconsin Indian Summer

Abeyance-Lull From Fall's Cold, Wet, Days

     Indian summer has arrived after weeks of cold 15's-30's degree days of early snow.  Waking up to dark mornings of gray skies.  Indian summer warms me with 46 degrees of blessed warmth, blue blue skies and the need to sit on a bench soaking up my last days before the blast of true winter is on us.  

Crabapples are the only bright color left in my gardens.  The Robins have been enjoying the smaller ones but these crabapples need more freezing to soften their outer skins.  Some will hold through the winter letting the deer pull them from their bottom branches.  In spring the left overs will be devoured by the Waxwings coming through on their migration North.  Meanwhile I will enjoy their eye candy throughout the winter as I go down the wintry path heading towards daily chores in the horse barn.  I am drawn toward the trees this time of year.  The frame is no longer hidden,  delightful shapes and sizes wait for me to gaze upon their beauty like I use to relish the flowers that no longer grow beneath them.  

Time to notice the hidden architecture of natures trees. This is our oak planted
by the gray squirrels a few years prior.

    Standing beneath our immense Red Oak in the below picture,  that has lived more than 200 years on our land.  I gaze up, up into the endless form of majesty. An Indian marker from ages past. Although turbulent storms, age, and extreme weight of its limbs, have modified it's appearance, I know it has led many an Indian to water, which is why they marked this tree when it was a sapling.

Giant Red Oak in our woods at the present will hold onto  leaves until spring.  

This same Giant Red Oak  in above picture taken years ago, carries the branches that use to
hold grandchildren, even adults who would climb it.  Now it looks like the picture above it.

Creek ambling through our woods reflects light late in the afternoon.  The day is almost over.  Weatherman predicts cold and lots of rain the next few days.  Our Indian Summer is almost over.  I spent as much time as I could outside this day.  Letting the 50 degree crisp air gently play with my open coat, as I sat on one of the many benches we have placed here and there in just the right spot, to do what I was doing, muse, meditate, reflect, marvel at.

Heading back to the house my camera is drawn to the lovely Milkweed seeds ready to catch the next whiff of air to ride to their destination.  Landing, take root, feed butterflys, next season  summer.
I delibertly leave them grow around here for that reason.  Most people rip them all out as a bad weed.  My design is natural, leaving nature place what may, here and there, everywhere.  Oh yes I do control if they are weeds.  Only leaving enough to do their work.

Chickens are enjoying the respite, break, hiatus, from the cold we had last week.  

Egglaying has come to a halt, they feel the time for resting, pauseing, abeyance,

has come for them too.  Sitting in the sun, sheltered under the weeping pine, is

the natural thing to do on this lovely Indian Summer day. 

Miraculous our new Mini Paint horse.  She is getting
her winter coat making her look furry and plumper.
She is the sweetest little mini.  Makes me smile
just looking at her each day.

Hay is put out each morning now. The pastures two hard freezes, eliminated any nurshiment.  The horses also get more hay at night.  They eat off and on all night.  In the winter they keep warm while grazing in their stalls, which are closed up nice and tight to keep out the cold night winds and tempetures.

Ginger feeds on hay now during the day.  Her coat is
also getting thick and heavy.

Wisconsin's fall is putting the earth to sleep.  Trees are empty, colors are back
stepping into another season.  With the breeze, slight tunes from the chimes my
kids bought us are soft and easy.  All in place this season, moving into another.
Resting, Resting, a pause, Incongruity....evolving to another thing.

"Never be dismayed by apparent incongruity.  Never
be alarmed by a sudden dash of color seemingly out of 
context.  Say only to thy questioning heart, 'It is the Infinate
wielding His brush;  surely  He doeth all things well'  "
wrote by Frances J. Roberts book Total Love

Blessings and Peace to you all,

Kate

Pause In Life Brings Renewal

A New Beginning

Turning down a new road? Looking at the finish? A new adventure? or just coming home.  Actually this is my entry way to my country home.  Traveled it many times, know it by heart.  Familare, comfortable re-assuring, as I enter it and continue down to the home resting place for my whole being, flesh and mind.

This summer the vet traveled down my perfect lane, my perfect life. He gives me bad news I do not want to hear.  "Your beloved 37 year old Morgan has colic and has to be put down."  Hawk was our grand daughter's horse that we had bought her.  She had to be called.....  We wanted to help Hawk, not let him die.  With no improvement by night fall, the vet came back and ended Hawks missery, his life. Katelyn was able to say goodby. So heart wrenching.  A pause in our lives.  No trurn around.  Grief takes time. Almost two months have gone by.  

Add caption

Ginger cried out in her own grief for a week.  Calling, calling, endlessly running frantically back and forth searching for Hawk. I cried myself missing Hawk almost as much.  I told Dick we need to find a home for Ginger or get her a pasture mate.  Horses are a herd animal and need another for safety.

Because I had so many health issues last year, my kids demanded no more horses!  So I said yes, no more horses, unless......   I get a paint, free, and delivered right to my door.

Within a week look what arrived at my door, free and you can see she is a paint.  :)  A little mini-horse just the right size.  And above all things.....her name is Miraculous, and on her registration papers, her father is called Miracle!!

Now who can say  God does not answer prayers.  When Katelyn was around 8 yr.  we talked about answered prayers.   I read her the passage Matthew 7:7-8  "Ask, and it will be given to you;  seek and you will find, and to him who knocks it will be opened." We held hands and prayed in Christ's name for a pretty painted horse.   Katelyn had made me a little card with the cross on it and wrote the passage we had read.  Gave it to me as a surprise.  I have kept that in my Bible all this time and wondered why that prayer was not answered.  Now I know.  The time and place just was not there.  Miraculous was born 16 years ago and was given her registered name.  God already knew His time ahead when I would receive her.  She was bought for  $1,200.00 but the owner chose to give her to me free.  Now I smile every time I think of it.

 .

Miraculous has adjusted splendidly living here with Ginger.  She is so sweet in disposition and an easy keeper.
     Fall makes it grand entrance to Wisconsin, a pause between the hot fast moving summer and the long cold winter ahead.  Vegetable garden is all put away, and rototiller with fresh earth showing again.  It will be seeded with rye seed to keep weeds back and give the earth nourishment when it is again turned under preparing for another season.

Sumac are in full color of reds.  

Zennias are the only thing left of vegetable garden
It been cleaned up of all left over plants and rotitillerd by Dick
I love to plant Zennias by seed to be used for bouquets.

Grape vines cover the arbor down by the barn.  Dick's metal art 

greet us with DREAM, LOVE, AND PEACE.

I dreaded giving up our warm, sunny flower filled summer, 

but now find myself contemplating all that ac-curd , all

that needs changing, and a quietness only a cool fall 

day can bring in folds my soul.

 Peace,

 Love, 

Dreams

A New Beginning   

Kate

Summer In Wisconsin Steamy Hot But Beautiful!

A Perfect Summer, Brings Expulsions Of Bloom

Almost middle of July, a sign of summer well into its prime.  Heat in mid 80's is tolerable.  Humidity high and steamy but also tolerable.  That's what Wisconsin is all about.  Although I hated to say good by to our beautiful Spring weather, mid summer has its fantastic draw also.  This morning we had downpours of rain but no Lightening and only slight distant sound of thunder.  I hate scary storms, which can bring Wisconsin threats of tornadoes.  This summer has so far been a delight.  Cool enough in the morning to get some work done with horses, chickens and the gardens.  Enough rain to bless us and the creation of God's Power and might in sunshine and warmth.  

The clematis blossoms this year nearly cover their exuberant growth of leaves.  Here on this double one, I think is called Blue Light, the stunning design, and colors make me smile every time I go past it.  It is amazing what the modern world has done to bring our little modest clematis of the past into these glorious specimens of doubles so lavish, extravagant, and breathtaking!

Pony Ginger and Hawk a 36 yr. old Morgan enjoy the lush pastures.

     Flowers and gardens aren't the only Blessings we behold here on our little paradise.  Our horses  are also in their prime with the lush pastures, many natural baths from the gentle rains we are having.  We allow them the freedom to leave their stalls at night, in the summer if violent storms do not threaten us.  In bad weather the stalls are closed to the outside so they cannot get hit by lightening.  Their summer coats are shinny and so healthy this year.  We do have an abundance of insects so the horses are sprayed with fly spray for the mosquitoes. We also use the monthly program of Spalding Fly Predators //www.spalding-labs.com/?gclid 

This splendid company sends a batch of the fly predators in egg form.  We wait until the tiny predators hatch out.  Then they are sprinkled out in the area of horse manure to develop and eat the pesty flys that are growing in it. Because we had so few flys around one summer we decided to eliminate the program to save a few pennys one summer .  Wow!!  Did we ever find out the cost was well worth the coverage and protection.  That summer we fought flys until frost!  We also made the mistake of trying to discourage Swallows from nesting in our barn and again flys and mosquitoes pretty near drove us out!  This summer we hardly see a fly in the barn and the horses are not going nuts trying to get away from them.  

Coleus add a bright spot to a shade covered area and can tolerate some sun.
The steps take us down to the lower gardens and horse barns.
Antique Chicken coop is almost hidden in picture behind the horse pillars.

author unknown of this picture

Dotty one of our good egg layers is keeping cool under the weeping pine in their outside pen.  The white shelter in front is for protection also but keeps rain and the North wind off them.  The chickens also run free in the gardens and surrounding woods, pastures and lawn, as they devour oodles of bugs.  Wish they would learn how to weed!
We just cleaned their coop with all new pine wood chips in their inside nest boxes and flooring.  It gets pretty stinky in the heat so necessary to keep it fresh and clean.  They will avoid a dirty nest box and coop.  One day I found a nest in one of the lower gardens where a fussy hen layed four eggs.  That reminded us it was time to strip and refresh their dwelling.  Takes four packaged bails of wood chips at $5.00 a bail to replenish the chips but well worth it.  In one day they added one egg to the three we were getting each day in the nest boxes. .  Maybe today it will go up to five!
     Chicken books suggest cleaning the coop at least twice a year but we usually do it every three months to keep it fresh.  Penny pinching does not help in this area either.....

Catalpa tree is in full bloom right now.  It is an amazing tree with large blossoms which seed out into long graceful pods. Keeping the pods inside the house, after letting them dry completely after they fall, I save the papery looking seed and plant them in spring.  I have many Catalpa trees on our 21 acres now from doing that.  They are a nice size tree with heart shaped leaves which give a molted shade.  It is one of my loves in life to see it each day here in the country..

Up close view of the Catalpa flower and leaf.  It will drop to the ground but
with one mowing of the grass, it is gone.  No raking necessary.

As I took the path past where we have our raspberry bushes planted, I discovered that they were almost all gone at first glance.  But looking closer there were just a few starting to set up their fruit.  The rabbits or many deer must have ate the raspberry branches  off.  But then as I continued to go further down, the current bushes delighted me with an over abundance of fruit.  I do not make jelly anymore but it was such a treat to pull off the ripe ones puckering my lips and smiling,  remembering when I was a kid. Eating them off the bush was almost as much fun as experiencing the special taste they have.  With addition of sugar they cook up to a delicious jelly.  I will share the the currents with the birds this year,  With just the two of us, Dick and I find all that canning is too much.  Our land has many areas of wild raspberry's also, which we leave go for the birds and critters that happen to share our 21 acres.

Black eyed Stella de Ora Daylily are starting to bloom.

Pink Ornamental Lilly's open into a dazzling show of  regal splendor!

Do you break out into praising our Great Creator like I do
when you see these glorious gifts from God?

I don't have any fancy words or perfect prayers, but when I walk in His Glory of nature my being cannot help but to
sing out in "Glory to God in the highest"  !!

:)

In summer here in Wisconsin , it is easy to forget those blistery snow laden days.  My eyes rest on nature , giving me peace, well being, and so very much joy!



I wish you that Joy!
That splendor of happiness
in
whatever beholds you
whatever gives you
peace
joy
love




Kate

Wisconsin Parade of Nature Continues

Lake Winnebago South Shore

Last week we went to our son's 50th birthday at his lakeside home which includes waterfront on Lake Winnebago.  It was a peaceful sight and even before I went over to greet and hug my son I grabbed my Canon EOS Digital and headed for the shore!  The sunset was extravagant in displaying the mighty reflection of dusk greeting the mass water of Lake Winnebago.  The closing and beginning of my day evokes such energy and joy, it makes me ponder, celebrate that we have such a fanciful God that paints our sun sets and sun rises with the panorama only He can create.  Joy, Joy, Joy!

A calm sunrise greets us most days

 Even on common everyday wake ups here, it can still be breathtaking.  We lived on that very lake in the picture above for 18 years raising our five kids.  It was breathtaking most evenings with that gorgeous sunset.
         Here in our little hermitage we face East.  Our home is on a hill and our land runs down to be part of the valley which is what my eyes feast on in the morning.  This picture shows the pasture, and the 9 acre field we let a farmer use for planting and beyond is wild area that holds woods, wetland, a pond and breaks of meadow.


Both areas, the lake we lived on for 18 years,  and now our 26 years in the country have been a beautiful blessing. As I aged to the point my life is right now, I often reflect on the extravagant happenings, also, most days are sutler as the picture of a calm day break.

But each morning I awake and quickly look to the sky to see what kind of day it will be.  Sailors, not having news and weather to help them did the same.  Red in the morning the sailors warning, Red in the night is the Sailors delight.

Looking to the East early morning.

The month of June almost makes me forget there is a winter!!   Each day I discover a new bud of color peeking out of the lush green foliage.  Or there is a grand display of God's orchestra in full view.  

Spring Daises running wild.  I let them have their way, loving their river of Joy flowing through the gardens.  Afterwards they get pruned back and half removed to give room for other perennials coming.

Rosy Pink peonies are close by to share the scene.  

Another peonie is very full and demands lots of attention as I walk by each morning.  I never am without my camera to witness this rebirth of nature that surrounds me.

Bearded Iris are in full swing.  This one's name is Amazing Grace .
A very appropriate name for the delicate colors and the bright orange beard.

Columbine are not to be out done.
This is one of my favorite flowers that I search for each day until I discover it humbly fit in amongst the big show stoppers, like the peonies and the Iris

In the wilder areas we have Dames Rocket accent the Crazy Daises .

Chickens add color to the gardens besides eating lots of bugs and
then the added bonus --  large organic eggs.. emmmm so good in the morning!

Gracie is always good for a stunning surprise.  I thought she got her head caught in this flower pot that got set on a fountain we are getting ready to move to the rock garden.  I cried out, "Oh Gracie you poor thing!"  She promptly looked up and gazed at me with the mad look for disturbing her morning drink.  We do have fresh water in the  tack room for the  three cats every day, but for some reason the cats and chickens love to drink out of a puddle or as in this picture rain water in the flower pot.

Gracie is very old but with our good care, shots, good food, warm tack room
and being neutered she has blessed us with catching lots of vermin.

Believe it or not this is a peonie.  It made me smile when I saw it in its full bloom soaking up the morning sun.

This Iris has shown the Glory of its Creator!  The colors are stunning and
check out the fuzzy blue and yellow beard on the fall.  The ruffled edges and the
emphasizing  lines in the  -fall - as  in a waterfall.  I just love it!

The first Ornamental Lilies are open.  This year there is an over abundance of buds.
It is a smaller lily with a brown stripe on the outside.

How can I tell you there is a Loving God
I can show you His painting
I can express the joy in waking up to His Blessings
  I can carry Hope no matter what happens in my day.

I can share the miracles in my life, answered prayer, I can quote Scripture like Matthew 7:7-8  "Ask, and it will be given to you;  seek, and you will find, knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened."

But, the best thing I can do for you to see, hear, and experience is to sit quietly, ask Jesus Christ, to come in to the door of your heart, and wait........He will come!

  A God Hug to you all , artist unknown, it was emailed to me awhile back.
Blessings and Love to you all.

Kate  

Kate