Bunnies, T.J. Maxx, Generosity

1. The bunnies lie on their tummies with their back legs stretched out long behind them. This is how a bunny looks the cutest.
2. Poked around the home department at T.J. Maxx. This is upscale garage sale and you have to rummage and poke around to find a treasure.
3. Audrey so kindly and generously gives Chelsea the book shelf.

False Ocean, Small Kindness, Shower

1. The breeze plays over my bare feet. It causes me to daydream about the ocean.
2. A small gesture; someone holds the door for me.
3. The new hose nozzle makes watering the plants a pleasure. Once in a while I let the cold spray wash down my arms and legs.

Moving Day

1. It all fits in the moving truck! No small fete given the fact that we've been driving on a wild goose chase for 4 hours to find the truck, which turned out to be smaller than we ordered. Victory.
2. On the busy highway I follow behind the moving truck. It is so cute and tiny- looking that when a larger rental truck drives up alongside it, I smile at how the two appear and I imagine their conversation.
3. Daughters #3 and 4 are left home alone all day and I don't need to worry a bit about that. They have grown up.
4. One chapter ends and a new one begins for Chelsea, daughter #2, and her husband.

Solutions, Farm Store, Funny Movie

1. I try to help de-stress someone else's day. I come up with a few solutions and we solve the biggest problem. We can take a little breath now.
2. The smell at Ikenberry Orchard's store-sweet, spicy, fruity. I love farm stores.
3. Audrey asks me out to the movie to see The Proposal, a lighthearted romantic comedy with Sandra Bullock. It's quite funny and I feel the stress of the day fall away.

Mother, Bunny Tag, Evening

1. A mother deer with her baby make regular appearances in the field. The baby's movements are animated and adorable. He runs circles around his mother and for a moment, this mother and I understand each other.
2. Two bunnies observe me as I mow the lawn. They dart after each other, play tag and pause every few minutes to watch me. Are they mocking me?, daring me?, waiting for me to leave so they can scamper on down to my garden? I guess they probably care nothing about me and I am an intruder on their fun.
3. We gather on the porch, one by one, after our day's work and usher it into the quiet of evening.

Basement Notes

1. My dad wrote notes on things in his basement with large block print lettering. For example' "COLD WATER", or "TURN THIS WAY". There are notes everywhere down there, written over the years, on pipes, walls, appliances, etc.
2. Steve visited my mom while in New York and did a chore for her in the basement.
3. I opened my dryer today and was surprised to see Steve's block-lettered handwriting right on the metal inside the door, leaving me instructions.
4. Thanks, Dad.

Cleared Up, In Season, Together Again

1. I thought I had said the wrong thing and was worried. Then she phoned and we chatted and there was no misunderstanding, all is well.
2. The fruit salads change as summer progresses, altered by whatever is best in season. Tonight the cherries make it different and the peaches are beginning to make an appearance. I should introduce the salads as a performance, "Now starring...!"
3. Steve and Tess arrive home! All kinds of happiness, hugs and kisses.
4. We sit on the porch after it's dark and cooler and catch up on the news. The patio lights and the table lamp are lit and Tess remarks on how cozy the porch is.

Afraid, Raise Those Rates, Pink

1. Henri leans against me and buries his face under my arm. He knows the vet is coming with his shots.
2. The insurance agent sneakily tries to fish for information with friendly chatting but I don't bite. The call turns out to be a battle of wit and cunning. Someone brilliant must train these people.
3. A bank of sweet peas lines the road where I walk this evening.

The view from the barn at Blue Ridge Vineyard

Chatting, Vineyard, Vandella

1. I accidentally stumble upon an online "chat" with Tess, daughter #4. I think myself so clever for doing this, I have never chatted before! I know millions of people do this every second of every day, but at this moment, I am the clever one.
2. An afternoon event at Blue Ridge Vineyard with wine tastings and live music. This vineyard has a big old restored barn with tables and chairs a magnificent view. Lots of people, friends to share a bottle with and B. brought food!
3. Driving home on back roads I spot a farm sign that reads, "Greek Acres". Why would someone give their farm that name, I wonder. And then J. politely tells me that he's pretty sure it said "Green Acres". Gosh! I only had 2 glasses of wine but I do like a good laugh at myself.
4. Audrey plays tag with Vandella in the field. It's fun to watch Audrey laugh and charge at the horse with no chance whatsoever of catching her. That horse is so beautiful when she gallops, tail raised and mane flying.

Vandella

Checking In, Pecans, Georgia

1. My family is away for days and the house is too quiet. Each one phones throughout the day to see what I'm doing. "I'm holding down the fort", sounds important.
2. The "use by" date on all of the pecans I bought on sale expires this week. Now I have a mission and bake a pecan pie.
3. My evening to babysit a friend's 1 1/2 year old girl. She is the cutest thing and I am so glad do this favor tonight. She brings me books, climbs up onto my lap and leans her body against me, sucking her thumb. We are both very happy and content.

Filing, Neighbors in Albumville,

1. I am finally getting these 291 albums in the cabinets, alphabetically!
2. I notice that "The Graduate Soundtrack" is filed next to "Godspell". Hmmm, I wonder if they should be side by side.

The Terrace, Sparkling Glassware, Up Late

1. A dinner party at B.'s out on the terrace. The food was so wonderful, I can't even choose a favorite dish.
2. The long length of tables are covered in a variety of glassware and candles. After dark, the expanse of glassware sparkles in the candlelight and looks so pretty.
3. Arriving home late, I'm still wide awake. I'm glad I still have it in me to stay awake after 9pm.

Shine Bright, Grow!, Open Line

1. The white daisies shine neon-bright on these gray days.
2. Our trees show visible growth! I am encouraged that one day we will have shade.
3. My girls phone me with questions like, "What kind of hamburger would you buy for...?" or, "The store doesn't carry sherry vinegar, what should I use...?" My thoughts are that I'm glad to be needed even in the simplest way, I guess I'm an expert of sorts, and what did we do before cell phones?
4. I realize that my daughters do many things better than me.

Prime Numbers, Jewels in a Jar, Dessert

1. Steve is messing around with prime numbers and mathematical stuff that I barely understand, BUT when he plots it out on paper, the numbers form a pinwheel pattern and it's evident to me that God did this.
2. Pretty jars of cherries lined up on the counter. Come winter we will be so pleased to have these bits of summer preserved in a jar.
3. Instead of pie, I make turnovers. A little extra effort, but pleasing to bake on this rainy (again) day.

A Weekend in Raleigh, NC

1. It's fun to set out on a road trip alone. I have no schedule to keep and I am responsible for only myself!
2. Claire cooks for me, I wash the dishes afterward.
3. When she drives me around in the little red convertible, my stomach feels like I am on an amusement park ride. I do love the feeling of my hair blowing every which way.
4. We shop and shop and shop. Raleigh has so many more stores than our sleepy, little Roanoke. I buy very little, but the possibilities are endless.
5. Claire, Daniel and I all work together on re-covering her dining room chairs. She cuts, I sew and Daniel recovers the buttons. We make a day of this.
6. An evening under the North Carolina sky. We walk into the woods to the amphitheater, find a spot on the lawn and listen to a great performance by Michael Feinstein and a big band perform songs from the 40's.
7. We've brought along a simple refreshment of wine to sip, but I love to watch other people with their portable tables, wine glasses and picnic accoutrement. It is a huge audience for so much people-watching and they are so clever in what they bring.
8. She gives me a Friday night tour of downtown Raleigh via convertible. The restaurants are bustling, sidewalk tables are packed and people walk and mill about. Beautiful old buildings are renovated and still in use. Claire's work place, a law firm, is a renovated creamery of interesting architecture. It's fun to see a town so alive at night. There is one store just for cupcakes and another just for popsicles. I really feel sheltered lately...

Quiet, Albums, Pizza

1. I take my hand sewing on the porch. It is peaceful and quiet with only the rain and birds as my company.
2. Cataloged our record album collection, pulling out a couple to listen to as I typed.
3. Prepared a pizza with lots of toppings. I believe you can't have too many toppings on a pizza.

Shopping, Teardrops, Rain

1. I tag along with B. to Roanoke where we ramble around a variety of shops and stores. I make small, leisurely purchases here and there with no pressure of time.
2. B. introduces me to these beautiful blown glass teardrops. Simply elegant. I hang them in my kitchen window where they will filter the view.
3. Wonderful rain, as though on schedule. Now I don't have to water my flowers.

Babies, Another Baby, A Very Good Book

1. It's a quiet morning on the porch and suddenly the silence is broken by a chorus of baby house finches, newly hatched in their nest. We have been watching mom and dad finch for weeks, busying themselves with this nest hidden in the trumpet vine.
2. Another baby today! This one is a new foal at the barn where Audrey works, only 3 days old. The mom lets me pet its velvet coat. I run my hands over it's cute body and imagine how big it will be one day.
3. Everyone should read Three Cups of Tea.

Start Over, More Bugs, Fruit

1. A second start to the day with a refreshing mid-morning shower to wash away the humidity and dirt from a morning spent outside.
2. This bug collection thing is quite the challenge for me. I am not fond of bugs and my kitchen is now overrun with jars and specimens everywhere. I have both a fascination with the creatures combined with a, "Look away!" feeling. I am conquering my aversion, temporarily.
3. The fresh fruits are more plentiful at the market now so we enjoy a fruit salad for dinner.

Evening, The Moon, Bugs

1. An enjoyable evening outdoors, eating, reading, studying, and laughing with friends.
2. The moon rises up in the east, on fire.
3. Audrey waits until dark, switches on the porch light and gathers a quarter of her biology bug collection in 5 minutes. We hear the plastic bug jar clapping against the side of the house. I smile at her approach to this task because I know how unpleasant she finds it.

Perfect, Happy Dog, Cherry Juice

1. The weather today can only be described as glorious.
2. Henri is so excited to take a walk with us. He rushes at every blade of grass, rock and weed, trying to cram the experience for all it's worth.
3. I try to pick cherries with one hand and they fall on my face and down my front. I return home with dribbles of cherry juice down my neck and shirt, feeling like a five year old. I love being five.

Coffee with B., Easy Weeding, Home

1. Invited for coffee at B.'s to catch up on things. Got up to leave, thinking an hour and a half went by, but the clock said three hours had passed! I completely lost all sense of time.
2. The weeds gave up easily from the rain soaked ground.
3. I was glad when Steve arrived home after a very long drive.

Rubies, Black Widows, Soft Ground

1. Ripe cherries on the tree are shiny, ruby jewels. A bowl full is a treasure to behold.
2. The clerk in the garden shop was helpful and knowledgeable...with a genuine smile. I told him we have a problem with black widows and he quickly directed me to the right stuff and gave me instructions on how to use it. It made all the difference in my drudgery of errands.
3. The evening was spent in the garden, after a rain.

Getting well

1. News from a friend that she is home after three months in the hospital. Her battle with cancer is still ongoing, but she expresses only positive attitudes and thankfulness for the little things in life. Hearing from her has made my entire day light.

Curtains, Energy, Entertainment

1. The breeze flutters the curtains at the windows.
2. A rampage of house work. I enjoy this burst of energy and where it gets me.
3. I sit under a tree with the elderly landlady of the property next door. From our vantage point we watch the tractors bale hay on two fields as though we are watching a performance.