RANDOM JANUARY PICTURE POSTCARDS OF THIS AND THAT

Oh, Ralph’s, we love you [a little too much]


Granddaughter Shelby after school on a mild winter day with her phone and her drink of choice

Grandson Elijah ~ plugged in, tuned out. Or is he?

Grandson Knox just a swingin’

Knox gets in some January jump time on the trampoline [with peek-a-boo Shelby]

Having a ball ~ always a source of amusement for the kiddos….

….even the big kiddos like daughter Kelly



Chicken [noodle] soup for the soul….

….or in this case, a sick grandson


We fill the plastic bottle with seed, then the squirrels climb on the feeder and push the bottle up so that the seed spills out, making it easier to pig out. It also spills all over the ground, which also makes it easier to eat. They may be greedy but they’re not stupid.







I am not a coffee drinker. I love the aroma, but I’ve never understood the obsession. I keep hearing about how good it is for you~~a proverbial cure all/prevent all disease and maladies. So, I’ve been forcing myself trying to drink coffee lately [even though the caffeine really messes with me]. Coffee addicts tell me, Oh you just need to use cream and sugar or a flavored creamer and get it fixed the way you like it. I’ve done all that. And I’ve come to the conclusion that, no matter what flavor or how much of it you mix into a cup of coffee, it still tastes like coffee. It can’t be the taste that coffee addicts are addicted to. It’s the caffeine. Yes? And to add insult to injury, you have to drink like a gallon of it every day to reap the so-called health benefits. Maybe if I keep at it, I can build up to more than one cup a day. I just need to add more….something. I’ll let you know when I’ve figured that out.

Why can’t D.Q. banana splits be the cure all?!? Yes, I could become addicted to something like this [already addicted to Ralph’s donuts]

At the D.Q. with grandson Knox ~ he really was loving his ice cream with [extra] chocolate sprinkles even though his face says otherwise

Love winter sunsets. Hard to believe January is done already.
You'd be so lean, that blast of January would blow you through and through. Now, my fair'st friend, I would I had some flowers o' the spring that might Become your time of day. - William Shakespeare

"That grand old poem called Winter" - Henry David Thoreau

In my neck of the woods [the hilly little middle Tennessee town of Cookeville], the kids can be out of school for a ‘snow day’ when there’s not a snowflake to be found [such as yesterday, unless of course you live on the mountain in Monterey]. It was cold and there were some slick spots, so there you go. The kids were back in school today [on time] which is always a good thing [unless you’re a student or a teacher]. Still freezing cold and probably some slick spots lurking about, so I’m not sure what was going on with that. It did snow, briefly, in the early afternoon, a pleasant surprise [for me, anyway…I like snow…well, as I’ve aged, it’s become more of a love/hate relationship…but I mostly like it]. I wandered around in the flurries while they lasted and snapped some pictures of these icicles decorating Neil’s shed. I like icicles. Didn’t even realize they were there until it started snowing.

There are always fascinating things to be found [and gawked at] in God’s handiwork…things that beg to be photographed…like clouds. And icicles.

The birdseed in our birdfeeders is a siren call to the neighborhood squirrel population. I think this one finally got its fill. It seems to be in a birdseed coma. Look at that belly!

Pretty little bird enjoying the snow [and probably waiting for his turn at the feeder]

flora and fauna ~ looks like winter has taken its toll

Thank God for woodstoves and firewood…the only thing keeping us toasty these frigid winter days and nights [we have a heat pump, but there hasn’t been much heat to pump lately]

On Frozen Pond

Grandpeeps Elijah and Shelby. Shelby forgot her hat and gloves this morning and was a popsicle [or maybe an icicle] by the time we picked her up after school this afternoon. The cure for frozen fingers [and toes and everything in between] is a stop at Poet’s coffeehouse for hot chocolate [with whipped cream of course] to go. That seemed to do the trick. The fire in the woodstove helped, too. Hope you find a warm spot on this cold winter’s day.

Winter Time

"Late lies the wintry sun a-bed,
A frosty, fiery sleepy-head;
Blinks but an hour or two; and then,
A blood-red orange, sets again.”  -  Robert Louis Stevenson, Winter Time
Happy TGIF, everyone! Stay toasty tonight!

What Shall I Wish Thee?

“Lots of people go mad in January. Not as many as in May, of course. Nor June. But January is your third most common month for madness.”
― Karen Joy Fowler, Sarah Canary

"What shall I wish thee?
Treasures of earth?
Songs in the springtime,
Pleasure and mirth?
Flowers on thy pathway,
Skies ever clear?
Would this ensure thee
A Happy New Year?

What shall I wish thee?
What can be found
Bringing thee sunshine
All the year round?
Lasting and dear,
That shall ensure thee
A Happy New Year.

Faith that increaseth,
Walking in light;
Hope that aboundeth,
Happy and bright;
Love that is perfect,
Casting out fear;
These shall insure thee
A Happy New Year."
-  Frances Ridley Havergal, A Happy New Year

“May Light always surround you; Hope kindle and rebound you. May your Hurts turn to Healing; Your Heart embrace Feeling. May Wounds become Wisdom; Every Kindness a Prism. May Laughter infect you; Your Passion resurrect you. May Goodness inspire your Deepest Desires. Through all that you Reach For, May your arms Never Tire.” ― D. Simone

HAPPY NEW YEAR!