• Hello, Montana!

    August 21, 2014 / 1 Comment

    I left Des Moines yesterday morning in a FIERCE Midwest storm – the likes of which I haven’t seen for a while.  I couldn’t find my umbrella, so by the time I had the luggage loaded into the back of my friend Susan’s car (who had kindly offered to drive me to the airport), I looked like I had just stepped out of the shower.  Not to worry though, I dried. Once the plane got up above the clouds and past a few major bumps, it was sunny and smoother flying.  Once we arrived closer to Bozeman, I looked out the window to see a mountaintop so close, I could almost touch it!  The scenery here is magnificent.  Definitely different from Oregon but amazing.  I can see why they call this “Big Sky Country”!  The sky stretched as far as the eye could see over the mountains. I was so happy to see my oldest and his precious family!  The girls have grown so much and are, of course, beautiful!  They love it here and it suits their outdoor, hiking, camping, mountain biking lifestyle beautifully.  Later in the week, we will head to Yellowstone and I will take some pics there.  In the meantime, enjoy a few of their Montana living pics below!

     

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  • Texting and driving…

    August 19, 2014 / 1 Comment

    I was out this morning running a few last minute errands in preparation for my flight to Montana in the morning.  I am so excited to see my oldest and his precious family…especially three beautiful granddaughters!  They are all growing up so fast and I love every minute I have to spend with them.  Their entire family loves the outdoors and loves Montana – especially hiking, mountain biking and camping.  I was reminded to bring “good shoes” which I will be wearing but I’m not taking my dirty hiking boots!  Surely, they know this Grandmom couldn’t keep up with them on the trails.  Right?!

    My tall stack of library books was going to come due while I’m away with  no more renewals allowed.  So I stopped by the library and dropped them in the book drop.  Then off to Walmart where I stocked up on a few surprises for the girls and a few toiletries.  Not sure what my allergies will do in Montana, so I picked up some Sudafed just in case.

    It was a good thing I was alert – and definitely oriented – since a young woman dressed in a high-powered business suit and heels came plowing quickly around the corner – literally missing me by an inch.  Not exactly sure what happens when you are hit head-on with a full cart of groceries traveling at an indoor-high-speed, but I don’t think it would be a pretty picture.

     

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    She apologized profusely, and said “this is what happens every time I TEXT and DRIVE!”  There in her hand was the evidence.  An iPhone mid-message.  She really was texting and attempting to fly down the aisle with a heavy cart without a clue about her surroundings.

    I wondered if she really did text messages while beyond the wheel of an automobile!?  I wondered if she had read the statistics and had seen the photos of the tragic consequences of texting while driving?  Maybe this near accident – albeit a shopping cart – was a wake-up call for her to put the phone down and pay attention to the road/grocery store aisle?!

    Since her fast-moving-cart was aimed for me personally, I was just glad she didn’t hit me!  I wouldn’t want to miss my trip in the morning for any reason!

     

  • Iowa, simply beautiful…

    August 16, 2014 / 4 Comments

    Lately, I’ve spent more than my fair share of time in the dentist’s office.  Each time I’m there, I actually hope I have to wait for a while in the waiting room since that gives me time to browse through a wonderful photo book entitled Iowa Simply Beautiful.  The photographs by Larsh K. Bristol and Curt Maas are absolutely amazing.  Some are breathtaking in fact.  I looked on ebay hoping to find the book there but could not.  What I did find though is Iowa Simply Beautiful II by Larsh K. Bristol, Curt Maas and Kent Foster.

    Paging through some of the photos, I have to look twice to be sure that I am not looking at photographs of Vermont, Virginia, parts of Kentucky or the hills of the Tennessee Cumberland Plateau.  Beautiful rolling hills, exquisite squares of patchwork green farmland, rivers, waterfalls…all in Iowa!  For those of you who think Iowa is “flat farmland”, think again!  It’s time to start traveling and see as much of this beautiful state as I can.

    I’m reconciled to the fact that it is going to take a while for me to get to the British Isles, France, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland.  I may never get there, although I hope I do.  In the meantime, I’ve decided that there is very little standing between me and some of the places I’d really like to see in Iowa!  This is not an exhaustive list by any means! So here goes…

    • The Amana Colonies    Their 2014 Oktoberfest sounds wonderful.  I will actually be in Memphis the first two weeks of October this year but there’s no reason YOU can’t make it!  I definitely want to see The Amana Colonies.  Check out the link – it looks like a terrific place to visit.
    • The Iowa State Capitol  Here, I’ve been in Des Moines for almost two years and have not scheduled a tour of the historical, 23 karat gold leaf-topped, Capitol building!
    • The Blank Park Zoo   Also sad to say that this animal lover from way back has never been to Des Moines’ wonderful Blank Park Zoo
    • The Bridges of Madison County.  Have you seen the movie by that title with Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood?  I’d love to see and photograph these famous bridges.
    • The Danish Windmill and The Danish Museum.  Just about an hour from here is The 1848 Danish Windmill and Danish Museum in Elk Horn, Iowa.  Since I love the old classic movie Foreign Correspondent, partially filmed in Holland, I’d love to see this authentic windmill!
    • Field of Dreams.  I enjoyed the movie and would like to see the setting for it in Dubuque County, Iowa.

    This post may have to be without photos until I have and/or make time to wander the beautiful Iowa countryside and farmlands and capture some of what I see and love on film!  On my Pinterest site (Click Follow Me on Pinterest sidebar at right).  On the site, there is a board of photos for the Amana Colonies!

    Note:  Sadly, I read that Curt Maas passed away on September 7, 2005 and Larsh K. Bristol died in 2006 in an automobile accident on one of his beloved Iowa river roads.

  • A taste of Scotland…

    August 5, 2014 / 5 Comments
    If you’ve been following my blog since the early days of My Southern Heart, then you know it is my dream to visit the British Isles…especially Scotland and Ireland.  My original ancestor, Rev. William McGregor, was a Baptist preacher in Scotland – rare in those days!  I enjoy pursuing the answers to the mysteries about our Scottish ancestors.  Mama’s ancestors were Irish and I’m also on the trail of those early immigrants!  (Most of them were here before the American Revolution which makes finding them in Scotland and Ireland especially difficult.)
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    Since it doesn’t appear that I will be setting foot in Scotland any time soon, I have started a small collection of Scottish mugs.  It started with one mug, of course, as most collections do.  They are made by Dunoon Mugs in Scotland.  (The only mug made by Dunoon Mugs in England is the one with the cat.)  The mugs I’ve collected so far are either fine bone china or stoneware and have very comfortable handles.  Suprisingly, beverages stay hot in them rather a long time.
    I especially like the mugs depicting pastoral scenes in Scotland as this mug does.
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    Of course, no afternoon cup of tea in Scotland – or Ireland for that matter – would be complete without a delicious scone to accompany it!  Like the one below that I wrote about here with recipe.
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    I do have a confession though.  
    The mugs may have come from Scotland, but the tea came straight from IRELAND!  
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    Check out the brief slideshow below to see all seven of the mugs I’ve collected so far.
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  • Rethinking my “Bucket List”…

    July 2, 2014 / 5 Comments

    If you’ve seen the movie The Bucket List with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, you’ll remember these two memorable characters hospitalized with terminal cancer who set out to fulfill their unrealized dreams before they “kick the bucket”.  I think each of us has a “list” of experiences we hope to have:  amazing places we want to see, people we want to meet, things we want to accomplish, dreams we want to fulfill – all before we “kick the bucket”.

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    Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson in the movie, The Bucket List

    I was born in 1945, so next year will be a “big birthday” for me.  Well, okay, December is almost the end of the year, but 2015 will still be a milestone.  I occasionally get a tad depressed when I think of what a big milestone it will be, but then I remember the alternative.   I want to enjoy my life as long as God gives me breath.  I especially want to enjoy watching all of my precious grandchildren grow up!

    So, I have been thinking about MY “Bucket List”.  I confess that I have shortened it significantly.  Let’s face it, there’s only so much time left and I don’t seem to be making a whole lot of progress.  Of course, there is the little factor of completing my “Bucket List” on a fixed income.  Ever the optimist, we’ll see how it goes.  Of course, if I would hurry up and finish #1 and #2, that might help!

    My Bucket List 2014

    1.   Publish my children’s books…

    2.   Finish my family history and publish it…

    3.   See Scotland…especially the highlands and the Isle of Skye…

    4.   See Ireland and England…especially Cornwall

    5.   Visit Anne Of Green Cables’ Prince Edward Island…

    6.    See Niagara Falls and ride the Maid of the Mist…

    7.   See New England…preferably in the Autumn

    ?    Cruise the inside passage of Alaska – DONE!

    ?    See the Caribbean on a cruise – DONE!

    ?    Spend time on the Pacific Coast – DONE!

    Originally, I had placed building sandcastles with ALL of my grandchildren together at the top of my bucket list.  I decided that was going to happen without a bucket list!  I’ll work on that one for sure!

    What’s on YOUR Bucket List…?

    This post was edited from its original publication in My Southern Heart…

  • Catching up…

    January 15, 2014 / 3 Comments

    January in Des Moines is not for the faint of heart.  After a couple of weeks with frigid well-below-zero temps, the days that followed spoiled us with the temperature in the mid-thirties.  I ventured out yesterday and was nearly blown away with a fierce wind that made the actual 29 degrees feel more like -50!  I’m not kidding.  I did my banking at the drive-up window and my deposit slip almost flew out of my hands before I could reach the rock in the drawer to anchor it down.  Next stop was for a much needed haircut and purchase of necessary hair products.  The water here is so hard (no water softener) that it does a number on my hair!  Last stop was the grocery store for a few supplies.  Today the temperature is a windy 17 degrees.  Think I will stay in where it’s warm and knit!

    Last night, I took the ingredients to my downstairs friend’s condo and she showed me the secret for making her delicious orange chicken with broccoli, carrots & rice that she served when I was her guest a couple of weeks ago.  Basically, we repeated the same delicious meal she served and enjoyed it once again!  Since it is no fun cooking for one, we decided to cook together occasionally and try to recapture the joy of cooking.

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    I seem to have lost my mojo for writing these past few weeks, so this blog post is by way of catching up.  I had a wonderful visit with each of my sons and their families before Christmas.  I helped put up a Christmas tree and decorate for the holidays in Louisville and then in Dallas.  The visits were wonderful and I miss them all!  I arrived back in Des Moines on the 17th of December.  I was battling a sinus infection and didn’t feel like even putting up a tree!  I spent a fun Christmas day with my daughter and her family and then on the day after Christmas, we all traveled back to Kentucky.  I spent ten hours in a van (coming and going!) to enjoy a quick 48 hours with my oldest son and his family and it was worth it!  We had a wonderful visit – just wish it could have been longer.

     

    Baking cookies with my two year old granddaughter!

    Next year my youngest granddaughter will be baking cookies with us!

     

    Now it is time to catch up with reading my favorite blogs as well!