Nostalgic Musings!

I told myself that I was NOT going to do this. NO TRIPS DOWN MEMORIES LANE THIS YEAR!! But I didn't recognize a voice of authority and I can't seem to help myself, so here I am!
Autumn is ABSOLUTELY my most favorite season of the year. I am very much as seasonal person, enjoying all the changes each one brings as I watch the landscape around me change daily. But Autumn.......ahhhh......NOTHING compares to the glorious colors and wonderful smells that IT brings! Now, if you find this subject to be boring and pointless, let me suggest that you log off now, because I have picked up too much momentum to stop!
I guess that autumn brings out the farm girl in me, big time!! This season is the farmer's last big HURRAH before the howling winds of winter force him to park his equipment and seek some other activity to occupy his mind and hands. I can still smell the dry, dusty chaff that filled the air as my Daddy maneuvered his big John Deere combine through acres and acres of soybeans, clearing the land so neatly that it looked cleaned and swept. Mom and I would fry chicken and put together a wonderful supper that we would take to the fields so that Dad could keep right on working...."making hay while the sun shines", as he put it. After he ate, I would ride with him, watching row after row of harvested crops go into the insatiable mouth of that monstrous machine. I never tired of it and I still love to ride the combine to this day. I have been tempted to stop one of my poor, unsuspecting neighbors and ask if I can ride a round or two.....but I'm afraid they would forever fear the 'crazy woman' and be scarred for life. So, I just watch from my barn lot, drinking in the sights, sounds and smells of autumn....feeling a little homesick, a little nostalgic and a WHOLE LOT BLESSED!!

She was just a little dog...!

She was just a little dog, but she had woven herself into our lives and our affections with an undeniable charisma. She could charm her way into getting anything she wanted. With her buff colored, silky fur and her huge brown eyes, her floppy ears that never, ever, really stood up straight and her tail that curled like a corkscrew on the end, she was just too cute for words. She came into our lives when she was 6 weeks old, a tiny little thing from the humane society, ready for all the love we had to give. Technically, she was Jeren's little dog. But Jeren is a busy college boy, not always able to give her the attention she wanted. Her life in the apartment, this semester, consisted of early morning runs, then 12 hours in her crate until Jeren got home from classes. She'd get another run outside, then back to the apartment where she tried to get her boy to play with her, in and around all the homework. So.....she got to stay with us, on the farm, for a few weeks. We had so much fun with her, throwing things for her to fetch, wrestling with her on the bed, and being the constant recipients of all the love she had to give. She had the run of the farm and I would often catch her back in the pasture, running ahead of the horses as if her life depended on it, which it probably did! She was everybody's darling and Jeren's special little girl. Her name was Buffy and we lost her today to a reckless driver who was speeding down our road. We will miss this little furry bundle of energy and fun. She will be forever in our hearts! She was just a little dog, but she leaves behind a giant hole that nothing else will ever fill!

A Perfect Evening!!

There are some things in this life that simply defy explanation. They have to be experienced for a person to truly understand their meaning. Last night was one of those instances. Not that last night was anything new! It started out to be a repeat of what has gone on at this farm for the past seven years. I start by picking a date for our annual bonfire and then sitting down at my computer with my trusty little PrintShop cd's to create a cute invitation. I carefully compile my guest list, TRYING to keep in mind that I have limited room, here. Each year that list has grown a little bigger as I try to squeeze just one more important person in........and there always seems to be room. This year was really a stretch, with the list growing to include over 40 adults and at least 12 children under the age of 6!! But people are just SO IMPORTANT to me, ya know?!? Then there's the mad dash from store to store, looking for unique decorations, the best deals on paper products and the biggest sale on food. Then the FUN begins. After the RSVP's start rolling in, I choose the soups that I will be making. This is always a very big deal!! I cook up three large pots of soup, have plenty of hot dogs and sausages on hand, along with all the fixin's for smores! Ken brings in a load of wood for a roaring fire and several bales of straw for comfortable sitting. Corn hole games are set up and the anticipation of a great time builds as people begin to trickle in for the fun, food and fellowship. This is what we do every year. It's as important to us as Thanksgiving, Christmas and the Fourth of July! So, what made THIS year so perfect? I'm not really sure!!! All the major elements of our party remained the same. But, somehow, the atmosphere of this one was different. This night was very nearly perfect. The wind was not blowing at all. The sky was bright with stars, the air was crisp and the bonfire, with it's glowing coals and drifting sparks, was the perfect backdrop for the cozy fellowship that we all enjoyed. As I wandered among the guests, listening to our friends laughing together and ssharing our good life, I thanked God for giving us the perfect evening......and great friends!!