~ Summer Scrapbook ~

 

Summer sunflowers.

Sleepy morning bees...still sleepy from gathering pollen.

Sweet little sheep, grazing in a field. 

On an early morning ride, we saw these sheep in a nearby town. They are very small and quite sweet looking, though I haven't any idea what kind they are.

We drove to Loa to a shop to have new tires put on one of our vehicles. Loa is close to Capitol Reef National park.  This cute old truck was at the gas pumps. 

Love it!

Lots of beautiful skies this summer. 

Most mornings we go for a walk, and what a treat to see such beautiful morning skies. Although, most evening skies are equally beautiful.

Sea Holly. This has been a good year for our flowers, and the sea holly is gorgeous. 

For July, I put out buntings and this sweet Uncle Sam porch sitter that I made years ago. I gave him a refresh this year with a new wooden USA tag. 
July is a big month in Utah... not only do we celebrate Independence Day, but Pioneer Day as well.

Also, both of our sons have birthdays in July, one of our daughter~in~love, and our only Grandson has a birthday in July!!!

There is a great barn door and shutter-making factory in our area, and many times they will have scrap wood that is free for the taking. It is a great benefit for the community to have the free wood, not only for making cute crafts but also there are those that heat with woodburning stoves, and that scrapwood is so nice for that.

We used a bit of the scrapwood to make these sweet little 'lathe' stars. I put one on all the exterior doors of our house for July.

 

Another day, another beautiful sky.

New French-style bistro in our area. 

There is a darling patio attached to the bistro as well, strung with cafe lights and cute French-styled bistro chairs and tables.

July hutch... all the red white and blue. 

Barn on the property just west of us. This barn belongs to the people that sold off 40 acres of their farm and made our subdivision. We are still on 'farm share' water, and we pay just $10.00 a month for pressurized irrigation.

Incidentally, the couple that owns the farm, and barn, and sold the land for our subdivision, lives in our ward. The Mr. told me that this land is fertile and some of the best farmland he had ever had!

We made this sweet 'Garden Angel' with scraps we had. The shutters were given to me by a friend when we lived in Spring City, the head and wings and arms were from the scrap wood pile at the factory that I mentioned previously.

The wheelbarrow was a curbside find and given a bit of a crafty makeover. 

I am enjoying this summer so much. It's been a long time since I remember enjoying summer so much! Usually, I tend to wish summer away a bit. 

Especially as I have gotten older the summer heat just zaps me, but not this year! I am loving all things summer and each and every day has been a blessing and a treat. I am thankful for this summer.

So many good things and blessings plenty this summer. My cup runneth over.

~ Things that make me smile ~

 The meadow is greening up.
The trees are beginning to leaf out and the last of the snow across the mountain tops is melting.
Spring is here! 
Warmer temperatures are here to stay for a few months and that makes me smile.

 Deer grazing on the foothills...

 and the elk are grazing in the pastures.

 The birds make me smile.
They have quite a routine down.
They hop onto the edge of the bird~feeder, knock the seed on the ground, then all their friends swoop onto the ground and feast on the fallen seed.

 Rogue rooster. Pheasant rooster out touring the neighborhood. 
Seemingly dancing through the green grass. 
Yep. 
Makes me smile!

 Pigweed makes me smile { the purple stuff is what I call pigweed. 
Purple weeds = Pigweed, and Yellow weeds = Spurge weed. 

It matters little if I have correctly identified the weeds, the fact that the weeds are growing is enough to make me smile. 
The color is beautiful in the meadow and I'm smiling to know that the growing season is here once again.

 The flower beds and borders are alive with color.

The skies are alive with color as well.

All is well. 
Spring has returned.
Flower are blooming, trees are leafing out, and the grass is growing. 
It makes me happy and makes me smile.

*Update on the house sale"
All is well on that front too.  So far everything is falling into place. 
We have begun to pack and sort the last of the items that need to be sorted through. 
My goodness, gracious, but we have accumulated a lot in 32 yrs.!!
Downsizing is a challenge, but the reward I think will be worth the efforts.

~Attitude of Gratitude:
 I have so many things to be grateful for...
Feeling grateful that our daughter~in~love and Grand are safe after a fender bender this last weekend. 
~Thankful for a husband that is my rock! 
Whenever I feel overwhelmed and unsure about my abilities to do things that are challenging, he reminds me of my strength and he gives me encouragement. He prays for me, and I am grateful for that.

~ Wintery~

Hello friends.

I wanted to share these pictures of an incredible sunset.

We've been quite busy around here. 
Taking advantage of the season to work indoors. We are downsizing. 
Organizing and donating tons of stuff. 

Preparing for retirement.

Some of our retirement plans include traveling.
There are so many gorgeous and amazing places to see, and things to do.

Last weekend, we bought a new travel trailer. 
Ohhh... it's gettin' exciting!

For those of you that are retired, let me know what you enjoy most about retirement. 

Also, what advice do you have for people that are about to become retired?

Attitude of Gratitude:

Thankful for a life filled with blessings. 

Thankful for this season in my life.

Grateful for good health.

.. Daily Life..

 The clouds gathered over the mountains, and the meadows last night.
The winds picked up.

It started raining, and the rain continued for about 20 minutes.

Our temperatures dropped, and everything cooled off nicely.
We also lost power.
It's not un-common for us to lose power if the winds blow hard.
It was off for just a few hours, and it was in the evening.
We spent the time playing  UNO, and laughing.

Today, I'm getting things done around the house.
 I'm also going to start making some curtains for Spencer's house.
 He finished his office, it just needs some simple curtains now.

I relish days like today.......
When I can just putter-butt around my home, and be a homemaker !!


Attitude of gratitude:
~ Of course, I'm so grateful for the rain, and the cooler night temperatures.
~I'm grateful for a bunch of ripe bananas.  I'll mix up a batch of banana bread, and have a nice treat waiting for them, when they get home.
~I'm grateful for being able to find the good in each day . It's easy to find the negative and the sad.... there is so much of it. However, we must try to find the good. Find the blessings, and be a blessing to those around us by serving.

Gifts.

Sunday evening sunset.
A gift from our loving Heavenly Father.

As another week and month finish, and a new week and month begin, I felt comforted and at peace.
Time sure seems to be flying by, and we've got a million things on our  " should do" list,  just like everyone else. 

It's pretty important to me to take time out of my hurry, busy schedule, and just enjoy this wonderful life that our Father in Heaven has blessed us with.
I haven't always taken a step back to see the big picture.
Sometimes I've been too focused on one or two things, to get the right perspective.

Stepping back and getting a better perspective on the big picture; it's become really important to me.

Remembering what matters most.

Attitude of gratitude:
~I'm grateful for a peaceful heart.  This year, I'm feeling peaceful, and content. Knowing that our Heavenly Father is in charge of this world.  I will do my best, and He will make up the rest.