{ "version": "https://jsonfeed.org/version/1", "title": "The Farm on Marshmallow Ranch", "icon": "https://avatars.micro.blog/avatars/2026/36/1962506.jpg", "home_page_url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/", "feed_url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/feed.json", "items": [ { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/06/25/finally-a-great-loaf-of.html", "title": "Finally, A GREAT Loaf of Bread!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I am sure I read online that I could turn my smoker up to at least 350° to bake bread. I got the bread ready and went out to turn on the smoker. It only reached around 240°. In the meantime, with the temps hovering in the low 90s, my bread was going to run out of yeast pretty quickly. I was down to two choices… heat the house and bake there, or run out to the farm. Mr. FixIt looked at me, horrified, and I said, “Don’t worry…I’ll head to the farm right away.”

\n\n\n

I grabbed my go bag that I keep pretty much ready to head out to the farm on a moment’s notice, gently carried the two loaves in their carriers, and hightailed it out of there. One good thing is that the air conditioner cooled down the truck quickly, and that slowed the rise a little. I only saw two deer on the way out. One of them was two houses away from the farm, and it walked out in front of me. I rested my hand on the top of those two carriers the whole way because I wasn’t about to lose my bread. This recipe turned out lovely. The only thing is, I think I’ve overproofed the dough again. No surprise there, given the timing. Baking with fresh-milled flour isn’t as forgiving as commercial flour.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

As I write this, the loaves are cooling on their wire racks. They look and smell lovely. I considered spending the night here at Grandma’s house, but I thought about the nice air conditioning at home and decided to drive home. I’m running out of time before next week’s trip to Colorado, and there’s still lots to do. You know me…I always get down to the wire before I complete something. Still, it feels so nice to sit here for a few minutes… remembering a time I came to visit Grandma. She mentioned that she could never bake yeast bread. She said the best hot rolls she ever ate came from my Uncle Ernie’s mother, who was a caterer in Chicago.

\n\n\n

I went to the store, bought the ingredients, and made a HUGE batch of bread for her. I think I baked two dozen hot rolls and 12 loaves of bread. We drove all over the countryside, visiting family and friends and gifting them some homemade bread. I think Grandma looked at me differently after that. I kinda proved myself to her in some way, and I was no longer the little kid who sat on her knee. That made me so proud!

\n\n\n

Our pool is still hazy. This time last year, it was sparkling clear. The heavy rains this summer drew our attention away from opening the pool and onto things like keeping the basement from flooding and rescuing baby deer from the floodwaters. We’re trying to get it ready before the weekend so the kids can come out and swim. I hope you are all staying safe in this dreadful heat! Water is your friend, y’all!

\n\n\n

🔆

\n\n\n
\n\n

Though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand. Psalm 37:24 ESV

\n\n
\n\n\n
***Gratitude Journal*** I am grateful I got another couple of loaves of bread baked before I have to leave for Colorado. I’d love to bake a great deal and leave it for him in the freezer, but ours is on the fritz. We’ll have to enjoy this batch, and he can buy bread while I’m gone.
\n\n", "date_published": "2025-06-25T04:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/06/25/finally-a-great-loaf-of.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Baking","Memories","Fresh Milled Flour"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/06/18/are-we-living-in-a.html", "title": "Are We Living in a Tropical Jungle?", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It sure feels like we’re living in the Amazon! West Virginia is currently experiencing hot and muggy conditions. I was going to stay out at the farm for a couple of days, but Mr. FixIt called me yesterday morning to say the kids invited us out for dinner. I stayed as long as I could. I decided to take my box of stuffed toys from my childhood home, and when I was in the basement, I turned on the dehumidifier. Now there’s one in the basement and another on the main floor. That should help keep things from mold and mildew.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I rushed home to change before we headed to the restaurant in town. I had to go downstairs to the laundry room to get some clean clothes, and when I stepped onto the cool cement, it was wet. My heart sank because the first thing I thought of was water leaking in. It turns out the walls were actually sweating from the humidity. I pulled the dehumidifier out and turned it on. The humidity in our basement was 98%!!! That’s about as close to RAIN as you can get!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It seems like the last week has made everything grow like crazy. It almost makes you feel a little claustrophobic because everything is closing in on you. I feel the need to get out the machete and start hacking away at this overgrowth of greenery. If it weren’t so hot, I would. I think there will be a lot of cold drinks and cool showers for the foreseeable future. I can get the Ninja Creami out and make some light and fruity sorbets. That would hit the spot!

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I had several people call, text, and message me to see if we were anywhere near the severe flooding here in WV. The floods were about 120 miles away, up in the Northern Panhandle. The latest reports say seven people were killed and a few are still missing. Please keep everyone affected by these climate disasters in your prayers. So many people lost everything they owned. We Appalachian people are strong and resourceful, but still…losing everything you own but the clothes on your back is devastating, no matter who you are.

\n\n\n

I hope y’all are safe!

\n\n\n

💜

\n\n\n
\n\n

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.   Romans 12:12 ESV

\n\n
\n\n\n
***Gratitude Journal***   Today, I am grateful that my family is safe from harm. I pray for those estranged in hopes of reconciliation. I am grateful the water in the basement was condensation and not a leak!
\n\n", "date_published": "2025-06-18T04:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/06/18/are-we-living-in-a.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/06/17/the-past-is-fading-before.html", "title": "The Past is Fading Before My Eyes", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Those of you who have been following me for some time are aware of my strong attachment to my grandma’s farm. It’s the home of my heart. Every squeak of the wood floor, every creak as the house settles for the night…even the smell of old varnished wood reminds me I’m home. Grandma’s been gone since ’99, my mom since ’04, and my Uncle Bob since ’08. Finally, the time came to sell the old place. Fortunately, I became friends with the new owners. They know what the place means to me, so in exchange for mowing the yard, I get to stay here whenever I want.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The old place is fading. The near jungle-like woods are encroaching, closing in on the house till it’s barely visible from the road anymore. The barn is leaning toward the peach orchard. The old John Deere isn’t working anymore, so I haven’t been able to mow. They’re in the process of getting us another riding mower, but until then, I haven’t been here much. The nurturing feelings I once experienced walking in the back door aren’t as strong these days. It kinda makes me sad, but at the same time, I know it’s got to end sometime. I’m not quite ready, but I’m feeling a change on the horizon. I know it will be ok if I can’t come here anymore. I’ll survive. Till then, I take advantage of the good times when I can.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I’ve been baking our bread for the last six or seven months, and I had a hankering for sourdough. I told you about the fiasco I had the other day and ended up with a gallon and a half of ripe starter! Hokey Smokes! I decided to dehydrate some to sell, and that still left me with a gallon. I decided to make some sourdough. I didn’t really follow a recipe. I’m getting a feel for the flour, the dough, and the techniques for different types of bread, and it’s becoming instinctual. I loaded up the dehydrator, then stirred up enough sourdough to make two loaves.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I retarded the bulk fermentation by setting the container with the dough in the fridge for the night. This helps develop the tangy flavor sourdough is known for. When it came time to shape the loaves and prepare for baking, the house was already hot. Poor Mr. FixIt was melting as it was, and I didn’t have the heart to fire up the oven to 500℉. I packed a few things, shaped the loaves, put them in the bread pans, and headed to the farm to bake them here. No matter what the daytime temp is here, when the sun goes down over the far hill, it gets nice and cool.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I pulled the bread out around 6:00 last evening and could hardly wait for it to cool enough to cut a slice, slather it with butter, and spread on some of Mrs. FixIt 1.0’s apricot jam. I gave her some homemade donuts for that, and it was a good trade. I sat here, eating my jelly bread, feeling the warm hug of my family passed. It’s put a smile on my face. I’m only staying the one night…for now. We‘re having a belated Father’s Day celebration with Mr. FixIt Junior and his family tonight. So, I’ll head home in the afternoon in time to get ready.

\n\n\n

🔆

\n\n\n
\n\n

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.   John 6:35 ESV

\n\n
\n\n\n
***Gratitude Journal***   Today, I am grateful for the opportunity to still come and “visit my family” at the old homeplace.
\n\n", "date_published": "2025-06-17T04:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/06/17/the-past-is-fading-before.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Comfort","Baking","Country Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/06/12/my-love-affair-with-griz.html", "title": "My Love Affair with “Griz”", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I grew up cooking in cast-iron skillets. Grandma had a few. Mom had several. I had a LOT that I picked up along the way. When my grandma died, Mom got a couple of Grandma’s skillets. Then they were handed down to me when Mom died. When my husband died, I decided to downsize greatly, and now I cannot believe I let all that beloved cast iron go! It makes me sick to this day. But they didn’t fit into the lifestyle I was creating for myself, and I couldn’t see paying for storage when I settled down again.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I lived in a thirty-foot camper by myself for most of the four years after Mr. Virgo died. I traveled all over the country writing about it on my blog, Marshmallow Ranch. When I came to my home state of West Virginia for my high school reunion, my uncle asked if I could come off the road and take care of the family farm, which I gladly did. Here I was, living in my grandma’s farmhouse on seventy-three acres, being the farmgirl I always dreamed of …without that beloved cast iron.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It wasn’t long before I started picking up a skillet here and there. I didn’t know much about the cast iron itself…just how to cook in it. That’s when I stumbled across the love of my life…Mr. FixIt, my high school buddy. We both love hunting in antique stores for great finds. I can’t remember where we were, but my sweetie showed me a nice skillet.

\n\n\n

It was a Griswold. *swoon*

\n\n\n

I started my love affair with “Griz,” a No. 8 skillet. Smooth as a baby’s butt on the inside. Seasoned to perfection. I’d never had such a beautiful piece of cast iron. The Griswold Manufacturing Company was established in 1865 in Erie, PA. They initially produced door hinges and hardware before they branched out to cast iron cookware. The mark on the bottom determines the age and, therefore, the value of Griswold cookware. The earlier pans, skillets in particular, are highly sought after by collectors. Griswold was bought out by Wagner Cast Iron in the ‘50s, and the quality was greatly reduced. I’ve never bothered checking to see when mine was made because I know by the light weight and smooth finish that it’s an older one. Besides, it’s priceless to me.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I had some leftover biscuits from the other night, so I made some sausage gravy yesterday morning to go over them. “Griz” didn’t let me down. I protect that seasoning like it’s Fort Knox.  There are sources all over the internet that teach you how to season a cast iron skillet, so I won’t get into that today. Protecting that seasoning is essential to maintain its non-stick properties.

\n\n\n

Here are a few tips to keep your cast iron seasoned:

\n\n\n\n\n\n

Every love needs to be nurtured and protected. That includes your treasured cast iron cookware. I know it seems like a lot of work, but consider it a meditation ritual. Be present and enjoy the process. Think about the generations to come that will be cooking with the same pans you did. Because, with care, these treasures will last for generations to come.

\n\n\n

💜

\n\n\n
\n\n

An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.   Proverbs 31:10 ESV

\n\n
\n\n\n
***Gratitude Journal***   Today, I am grateful for the tools I need to cook clean and healthy meals for my family. I’m happy to serve God’s food instead of highly processed convenience foods. We are healthier and happier with this new way of living.
\n\n", "date_published": "2025-06-12T04:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/06/12/my-love-affair-with-griz.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Cooking","Country Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/05/16/from-meat-locker-to-microwave.html", "title": "From Meat Locker to Microwave", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The ancient John Deere

\n\n\n

Well, we are at that time of year when we casually walked out of the freezer and into the flame. We’ve been having these wonderfully cool days and nights. It made working outside pleasant and nights positively divine. Then we walked into hot and muggy weather…just like that. When I worked at our happy little homestead on Wednesday, the high was in the low 70s with a nice breeze. I barely broke a sweat. And now?

\n\n\n

Ugh!

\n\n\n

Ok…I know it’s going to get worse. I mean…it’s only MAY for crying out loud. But if you’ve been following me for any length of time, you know I sleep all winter with the window open. I don’t care if the temperature is -20°…I’m sleeping with the window open. So I’ve set myself up for this. I just don’t like, or tolerate, heat like I used to.

\n\n\n

We went out to The Farm yesterday to mow. It has been two weeks since Mr. FixIt went out and mowed for me and that grass was thick and wet. The old lawn tractor out there is a John Deere from the stone ages and I just baby the heck out of it so it will last. It’s literally held together with spit and glue. It goes through oil like a big dog. We checked the oil level and it was dry as a bone so we put a whole quart in.

\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt put a new battery on it two weeks ago because it wouldn’t start. I jumped on the tractor and turned the key. It wouldn’t turn over. It wouldn’t even crank….it just made a buzzing sound. Mr. FixIt and I looked at each other and sighed. We pushed it out in the yard and jumped it with the truck. It started right up so I proceeded to mow the yard. It’s not big…maybe 3/4 of an acre. I was almost finished when the mower started making a knocking sound and I stopped it right away. Mr. FixIt checked the oil again and would you believe, it was bone dry. We couldn’t find where we were losing it and we didn’t have anymore oil.  We drove to the nearest little town and got some oil at Dollar General.

\n\n\n

We bought a cold drink and some cemetery flowers and drove the ten minutes or so to the cemetery where my family is buried. I didn’t have enough flowers for everyone, so I put them on my mom’s grave and asked her to share them with Pop-Pop, Grandma, Uncle Sonny, And Uncle Bob. Someone had been up there since the last time I visited because there were angels and a glass cross and kitty on the headstones. It made me happy to some some came to see them.

\n\n\n

We got back to the farm, put oil in the tractor, and I finished mowing the little bit I had left. Unfortunately, the tractor was still making the same noise. And it didn’t want to start. I sent a note to the new owner to explain what happened. We’ll see what they want to do. (We’ve been keeping the lawn mowed in exchange for me getting to stay at the farm whenever I want. It’s always been my safe landing place.)

\n\n\n

It’s becoming more and more apparent that my time out there will eventually come to an end. There isn’t any running water anymore. There are trees that threaten to come down on the house if there’s a particularly bad storm. The roof leaks. The barn is beginning to tilt toward the creek. (There was a window in the barn that popped out from the pressure.) The electricity goes off way too easily and sometimes stays off for days. Yet, still…it is home.

\n\n\n

It is home, but I’m weaning off the old girl. I’m so happy I can still go see her from time to time. I just don’t want to watch her die.

\n\n\n

We stopped at the Pig on our way home. After supper, I watered the garden and the new plants I bought on Wednesday. It was another typical day at Marshmallow Ranch…filled with memories and hard work, heat and humidity. Oh, yeah…I got out my sourdough starter and fed her! I’m thinking we need some sourdough bread pretty soon.

\n\n\n

Life is good!

\n\n\n

🩵🌺🩵

\n\n\n
\n\n

“So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.” ‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

\n\n
\n\n\n
***Gratitude Journal***   
Today, I am grateful we can visit the old home place and take flowers to the family cemetery. I am grateful for the knowledge that someday, we will see each other again.
\n\n", "date_published": "2025-05-16T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/05/16/from-meat-locker-to-microwave.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/04/27/a-fist-full-of-berries.html", "title": "A Fist Full of Berries", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Monster strawberry from California.

\n\n\n

I had a really busy day yesterday and along the way, there was grocery shopping to be done. As I perused the produce section, these gorgeous GIANT strawberries captured my attention they brought back such strong memories of my childhood at my grandma’s farm.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The Strawberry Field back on the hill at Grandma’s farm.

\n\n\n

Some time after my Uncle Sonny was killed when his fighter jet crashed in a German potato field in 1955, my grandparents needed something to focus on…a way to bring in extra money and ease their broken hearts. So, when my Uncle Bud was in college studying agriculture, he hatched a plan to turn a section of the fertile ground on top of the hill into a strawberry farm.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Grandma in the hat and Nanny Goff in the overalls working the berry fields.

\n\n\n

My earliest memory of the strawberries was in the early ‘60s. I was 8 or 9 years old and banished from picking strawberries because I ate more than I carried to the sorting shed and I stepped on the runners. The runners make more plants which in turn produce more berries. No runners, no berries. I can so clearly remember the huge strawberries that grew in that rich soil. We had berries just like these and one filled my entire hand. You could only get five or six berries in a quart.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Strawberry Pickers. That’s my PopPop in the hat driving the old Model A he converted into a tractor.

\n\n\n

I don’t know how many years we had berries. I do remember going to farmer’s market with my PopPop with the bed full of strawberry flats. We went two or three days a week and people knew when to expect us. They’d be standing there waiting for us to get there with these precious gems. They were so sweet and juicy, they hardly needed sugar.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The berries were smaller in 1964. These were in the bed of PopPop’s truck.

\n\n\n

When we emptied the truck and headed back to the farm, PopPop always stopped at the old grocery store in Macfarlan and bought me some penny candy with his proceeds from the sale of those strawberries. According to my Uncle Bud, it was an awful lot of work with not a lot of return and they eventually gave it up.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Another view of the strawberry field.

\n\n\n

Even though they turned to other endeavors, I will always remember those hot summer days and warm, juicy berries that stained my hands and cheeks. I smiled as I picked up a carton of berries and put them in the buggy. Warm memories on a cold and rainy afternoon.

\n\n\n

🍓

\n\n\n
\n\n

 “Grandchildren are the crowning glory of the aged; parents are the pride of their children.”   ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭17‬:‭6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

\n\n
\n\n\n
***Gratitude Journal***   
Today I am grateful for my bonus family here in West Virginia. I am blessed with the friendship of the former Mrs. FixIt…a strong woman with a heart of gold.
\n\n", "date_published": "2025-04-27T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/04/27/a-fist-full-of-berries.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/02/26/a-portent-of-spring.html", "title": "A Portent of Spring", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I awoke at about 3:30 yesterday morning to the sound of rain on the tin roof at Grandma’s house. Oh, that sound instantly takes me back to my childhood. We used to go to The Farm nearly every weekend when I was growing up. Unless my cousins were there to play with, my Bubby and I kept each other company. My brother has Cerebral Palsy and he couldn’t play like me. He and I sat on the floor with our feet touching making a diamond with our legs. We rolled a ball back and forth between us. Or we played with toy trucks. When we got older, Uncle Bob taught us how to play checkers.

\n\n\n

When my Bubby was too tired to play, I headed outside for hours. Hunting for bugs and turtles and old bird nests. Maybe a snakeskin…or pollywogs in the puddles to keep in a jar. I was definitely a tomboy. This yard and crick kept us busy and taught us to appreciate nature. I took science and biology very seriously when I was in school. I’ve always been fascinated in how things worked. The skills I gained from that served me well all my life.

\n\n\n

Once I had breakfast, I made my RYZE Mushroom Coffee and went out on the front porch to bask in the sun. It was 68° yesterday afternoon! OMGosh! It was heavenly sitting out there with the sunshine on my face! I decided to clean a little and get packed up. I wanted to get back to my sweetheart!

\n\n\n

I received good news yesterday. First, Daughter #2 was feeling a bit better by late afternoon. They’re talking about sending her home on oxygen for a little while. I also heard from Hubby #2. His numbers are improving and kidney seems to be doing a good job. Both wonderful things and the answers to many prayers!

\n\n\n

💜

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” ‭‭Mark‬ ‭11‬:‭24‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n\n
\n\n\n
Gratitude Journal 
Today I am grateful my daughter is improving, as is her dad. These are prayers answered! Thank you to all who have been praying for them both.
\n\n", "date_published": "2025-02-26T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/02/26/a-portent-of-spring.html", "tags": ["Prayer","The Farm","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/02/24/shine.html", "title": "‘Shine", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
Screenshot
\n\n\n

I stumbled on this listing on FB Marketplace. For the bargain price of $300, you too can own a still! Gone are the days of bootleggin’ corn likker…or are they? This little home model says there might be some squeezin’s being made back in the hollers of the Appalachias. It’s still illegal to make…but, as long as you’re not runnin’ a big outfit, I doubt you’ll see any revenues coming to bust up your still.

\n\n\n

The name “moonshine” was coined to describe the making of home brew under the light of the moon. Moonshiners needed to work under the cover of darkness to keep their stills from being discovered. The still itself was made out of copper. It came apart in pieces to ensure a quick getaway if word got around the law was on your trail. 

\n\n\n

Bootleg, firewater, home brew, hooch, stump water, skull cracker, wildcat were all colloquial names for moonshine. It’s rose in popularity during Prohibition when home distillers made whiskey, filling Mason jars with the coveted elixir and “running” it through the hills to all manner of folks. Farmers, coal miners, young boys itching to be men too fast for their own good. There are numbers on the bottom of Mason jars and those ‘shiners would break every one of them that had a “13” on them. They figured that was bad luck and they were a superstitious lot.

\n\n\n

My Uncle Bud told me a story about my grandma. Seems Pop-Pop’s half-brother came for a visit one time, back in the day. That side of the family was a lot rougher than my side and Grandma wouldn’t have it. When the fella got out of his car, Grandmas saw him kinda sneak off to the crick. When he came back out, he adjusted his belt a little to let folks think he’d been down there “watering the grass.”

\n\n\n

You would have to get up pretty early to pull one over on my grandma. When the menfolk went around the back of the house and the half-brother was busy rolling a cigarette, Grandma walked out the front door and down to the crick to see what was what. Well, she found that jar of moonshine and smashed it to smithereens on the rocks. The fella’s precious hooch was snakin’ down the branch to feed the fishes.

\n\n\n

Oh, was that man fit to be tied when he went to take a snort and all he saw was shards of glass and a wet spot. But, I’m tellin’ you what, he had sense enough not to say a word to Grandma when he saw the icy glare she gave him. No sir…she wouldn’t abide such foolishness.

\n\n\n

Grandma called all liquor “hootypog.” Hudepohl Beer was established in 1885. It’s been one of the most beloved breweries in Cincinnati and is known for not only its delicious brews, but also the inspiration for the famous chant…”Who Dey” at Bengals games. Apparently, Grandma saw an ad one time for Hudepohl Beer and extrapolated it to cover all forms of alcohol. When Pop-Pop drove her to town every couple of weeks for groceries, she’d warn him if the driver in front of them was weaving, or if the car had a dent. She’d say, “Now, you back off away from that feller, Mart…he’s been in the hootypog!” PopPop would just smile and do as he was told. 

\n\n\n

Grandma always had a good story to tell. I guess the fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree, does it?

\n\n\n

💜

\n\n\n
\n\n

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,” ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭5‬:‭18‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n\n
\n\n\n
***Gratitude Journal***   
Today I am grateful to still have the opportunity to hang out at my grandma’s house and feel the memories and the stories wash over me with every sound, sight, and smell.
\n\n", "date_published": "2025-02-24T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/02/24/shine.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/02/23/the-farm-the-farm-the.html", "title": "The Farm The Farm The Farm!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Finally…I got it together enough to come out to The Farm for a few days. The internet is so much faster here than at the house, so I came out to do the taxes. Then, when I opened the computer program I use, my information from 2023 did not migrate over. That’s when it hit me…I did the taxes on the desktop computer. Either that, or I saved everything in a backup on an external hard drive. There’s just one problem with that…

\n\n\n

I remember putting all my external hard drives together to put them away when I cleaned up for a family gathering. I put them “somewhere safe.” You guessed it…I don’t have the foggiest idea where I put them. It’s always something with me and these taxes, isn’t it? Argh!

\n\n\n

Still…I’m at The Farm!!!

\n\n\n

Frank and Beans came over for a visit. It was great to see them. It had been quite a while. There were no further incursions in the house and no tracks outside so I think (hope…PRAY) that was a one-and-done once they found out there is absolutely nothing in this house that’s worth taking. I guess I won’t be staying as long as I thought I would since I can’t get the taxes done. Although…I did bring my knitting.

\n\n\n

Hmmmmmm.

\n\n\n

It will be much warmer in the coming week which is most welcome. It’s so funny…I can’t wait to get out to The Farm and away from the television. Then, I get out here and I’m lonesome for Mr. FixIt. What can I say…he’s my person!

\n\n\n

💜

\n\n\n

“Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.”

\n\n\n

‭‭Romans‬ ‭13‬:‭7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n\n\n

***Gratitude Journal***   Today I am grateful I can still spend time in my grandma’s house fill with memories…sights, sounds, and smells of my childhood. Just walking through the back door is like getting wrapped up in one of her hugs. 

\n\n\n

#TheFarm, #Home, #Taxes

\n\n", "date_published": "2025-02-23T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/02/23/the-farm-the-farm-the.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Home"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2025/01/28/feeling-violated.html", "title": "Feeling Violated", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I went to knitting group yesterday morning. Even though it was only 17° when I walked out the front door, I was determined to hang with my home girls and catch up. We haven’t gathered since the first week of December so were all really excited to see what was going on with the group. I got about three inches of the market basket done. It’s coming out great and it will be perfect to sit by the Big Red Chair to hold my knitting.

\n\n\n

I haven’t been over the hill to our little burg in a minute so I enjoyed visiting Carolyn at the Quilt Shop and the nice gal at the Assessor’s Office. When I got home, I fixed us a very late breakfast. I made egg sandwiches on those sourdough English Muffins I made last week. We still have a few left and they won’t last much longer. I fed my starter yesterday morning and by this evening I prepared my pre-ferment, or levain as it is called. I’m going to bake a couple of loaves of RuthAnn Zimmerman’s Soft Sourdough Sandwich Bread today.

\n\n\n

After our brunch, we headed over to The Farm to check on things. We haven’t been out there for a little bit because of the holidays and all this snow. I was relieved when I pulled into the driveway and there were no tire tracks or footprints indicating someone had been there. So, imagine my dismay when I walked in the back to and immediately knew someone had been in there! Every cabinet and drawer were open…all over the house. They even went in the attic crawl space…either looking for drugs or something of any value. Of course, they were met with a whole lot of nothing. The house has been pretty well emptied out except for some pieces of furniture a la Goodwill.

\n\n\n

I couldn’t figure out how they got in. The doors were locked. When I searched around, I found the small window open in the kitchen off the back porch. I was so sad. I felt so violated. It made me mad! Every year I declare that place as holy ground, but I was a month or so late this time. We contacted the State Patrol and I’ll talk to a deputy tomorrow. I secured each window, but like my PopPop used to say, “A lock is for keeping the honest people out. It won’t keep the bad guys out.”

\n\n\n

I told Mr. FixIt, this will not deter me from having my sabbaticals out there, but I’ll have protection with me when I go! I’m calling in all the Angels to guard and protect my grandma’s house.

\n\n\n

❄️🩵❄️

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.” ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭28‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n\n
\n\n\n
***Gratitude Journal***   
Today I am grateful the thieves did not damage anything at The Farm and God kept it safe from harm.
\n\n\n

#breakingandentering, #robbery, #TheFarm, #Violated

\n\n", "date_published": "2025-01-28T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2025/01/28/feeling-violated.html", "tags": ["Faith","The Farm","Anger","Forgiveness"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/09/17/a-walkabout-and-other-stuff.html", "title": "A Walkabout and Other Stuff", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Some days it doesn’t pay to get out of bed. That’s how yesterday felt. I woke up with a start. Everything was quiet. The blush of dawn had just begun to lighten the world. I felt unsettled and terribly sad. It took me a few minutes to discern what was wrong. Then I remembered the dream I was having just before I opened my eyes.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I hadn’t seen Mr. Virgo in several years. I didn’t know where he went or why I couldn’t find him. Then I heard that someone had seen him in Aspen recently. I couldn’t figure out why he was there and not with me. So I drove up to find him and when I did, he didn’t want to have anything to do with me. My heart was broken but he made it clear we were through and to never come looking for him again. The next scene I was standing in a barn. The sunbeams from the slats in the wood held swirling dust motes in their grasp like the water in an eddy. There were two large shapes hanging from the rafters. They were covered in a thin veil that connected them. I stood in the gloom, silently cutting the membrane between the two as my tears dripped to the dirt floor.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

This isn’t the first time I’ve had this dream and it always leaves me bereft. It just goes to show you, it’s been nearly twelve years since Mr. Virgo died and grief still smacks me right between the eyes sometimes.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I shook it off and headed into my day. I went on a walkabout and found a bunch of turkey feathers. The long tail feather is the largest one I’ve ever found. There were smaller feathers down by the creek. I’m hoping nothing got into my mama and babies I’ve been watching since spring.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

Lots of wildflowers are still growing down in the pollinator gardens. Pumpkin went on the walk with me. She’s like a dog in that way. Mr. FixIt took my truck in to get the oil changed and the tires rotated while I went to knitting group. In the afternoon, he started a load of laundry and soon came back up to tell me the washer had bit the berry and wasn’t spinning. About that time, he headed to to put the cat up. He came back in and something was wrong with pumpkin. It looks like she may have a UTI so now I need to take her to the vet today. Poor thing. We’ll get her feeling better. In the meantime, I gathered up all the wet laundry and took it out to the farm (at 11:00 last night) to spin it and stick it in the dryer. Having access to this farm is such a blessing. Since it was so late, I just stayed overnight.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

That was my reward for such a trying day.

\n\n\n
\"🩵\"
\n\n\n

“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”

\n\n\n

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭18‬:‭2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n\n\n

#farm#thefarm#farmlife#resourceful#grief

\n\n", "date_published": "2024-09-17T02:00:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/09/17/a-walkabout-and-other-stuff.html", "tags": ["Grief","The Farm","Farm Life","Uncategorized"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/08/10/this-is-more-like-it.html", "title": "This Is More Like It", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt had a couple of things to do in town yesterday and that gave me the whole day to myself. I didn’t do much till around noon when I decided I’d better go to the farm to mow. The grass was long but not as bad as I thought it would be. I got it mowed pretty quickly and took some time to sit on the front porch and contemplate how peaceful it was. The birds were singing. A little western blue-tailed skink wiggled out from under my chair and soaked up the sun till I moved and he went on his way in a hurry. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

This was exactly what I needed to center myself and feel anchored. I was home. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It wasn’t long before the temperature spiked and it was time to head back home. I stopped first at Happy Jim’s Trading Post. When I bought those cook books there in June, I left behind a few that I regretted picking up. I was thrilled to see they were still there, plus a more on sewing that I had to have. I mean, for $4, how could I resist? A quick stop at Piggly Wiggly to pick up a few things and I got everything put away before Mr. FixIt got home. 

\n\n\n

I was happy when he said he’d like to have hotdogs for supper. That always makes for an easy time in the kitchen and a quick cleanup after. After the news and a couple of episodes of Big Bang Theory and I was ready for a little after dinner sweet. Remember when we were in Colorado and bought “sugar biscuits” at Whole Foods? They were a whopping 400 calories…each! I knew I could make them for less. I’ve been baking biscuits in my air fryer for the last few months. I adapted them and the results were delicious!

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I put about 3 Tablespoons of sugar in one pie plate and a few tablespoons of evaporated milk in the other one. I dipped each biscuit in the milk then the sugar and placed them in the air fryer, turned the heat to 330°, and cooked the first side for 10 minutes (I actually did 7 minutes and checked them then added 3 more.) I turned the biscuits over and cooked them for another 3 minutes. I popped a couple biscuits in each bowl, added about a cup of lightly sweetened strawberries and topped with sugar free whipped cream in the can. It came out to about 400 calories. Twice the volume for the same calories as a sugar biscuit alone from Whole Foods.

\n\n\n

My sister-friend in Florida has dubbed me MommaPie because of my baking skills. I’ll take that. I ended the day feeling energized and ready to really re-enter everyday life again. That’s always a “thing” I have to go through every…single…time!

\n\n\n

🩵

\n\n\n
\n\n
\n\n

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”” Matthew 11:28-30 ESV

\n\n
\n\n
\n\n\n

#TheFarm, #StrawberryShortcake, #ReEntry

\n\n", "date_published": "2024-08-10T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/08/10/this-is-more-like-it.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Baking","Cooking","In the Kitchen"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/06/20/a-good-day-at-the.html", "title": "A Good Day at the Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I went “live” at the farm yesterday hoping you could hear the birds. They were going crazy out there! For some reason, the case I have on my phone interferes with the audio so I may end up getting a different one. It was very difficult to hear the birds on the recording, but…you got to see the lush, lush green that I love so much.

\n\n\n

I went out to mow while Mr. FixIt took his truck to the muffler shop. It is always cooler at the farm than it is here at Marshmallow Ranch. That’s because there is a hollow…or as Grandma always said, a holler…up behind the barn that reaches way back up on the hill. It is shady and cool with a creek bed in the bottom of the “V”. Grandma would open the back door, then the front door, and that cool air would just run down the holler clear through house. It was so refreshing. And so it was yesterday. When the thermometer was 96° in town, I was enjoying a lovely breezy 81° on Grandma’s porch. 

\n\n\n

When I got home, it was SO hot. We’ve really tried to keep from using the air conditioning in the house, but we couldn’t get by without it yesterday. We gave in about 5:00 or so. I went out to turn on the grill. It lit, but only burned for a few minutes and went out. The tank was empty. I bought some marked down New York Strip steaks at Sam’s on Tuesday. I’ll bet it’s been over a year since I’ve had a steak. This package had four beautiful steaks for $25 so at $6 a steak, I was all over that deal!

\n\n\n

I was disappointed the grill didn’t work, but there’s nothing wrong with an iron skillet for cooking up an awesome steak. I heated it up on the stovetop, sprayed with a bit of olive oil, seasoned the steaks with salt and fresh ground pepper and garlic powder. I seared them on both sides to seal in the juices, then added a good dollop of butter in the pan and finished them to a nice medium rare. A couple of ears of sweet corn, a sliced heirloom tomato, some cucumbers and onions in vinegar from the other night, and some sweet pickled baby beets made for a meal fit for royalty. We topped it off with the last of the pineapple sorbet that I made over the weekend. What a delightful meal. Mr. FixIt was a happy guy!

\n\n\n

Once the dishes were done and a couple of episodes of Big Bang Theory were over, I headed out the the pollinator gardens to see what was shakin’ out there. The deer were milling about. I realize now why all the trees and shrub along the hedgerow are cut off at one height all the way along. That’s as high as the deer can reach to nibble at the salad bar. lol I saw a young bunny darting in and out of the hedges, nibbling grass and watching me carefully.

\n\n\n

On my way back up to the camper, there was a young buck and a doe grazing not far from the door. They weren’t much afraid of me. It’s not rutting season so they weren’t being territorial. They’ve just become accustomed to our presence and I don’t want to encourage that. Mr. FixIt went across the hill to town the other night and there were two deer up on their hind legs fighting. I didn’t want to walk in on anything like that, so I made the same sound they do when they’re alarmed. That got their attention and they jumped through the underbrush to the safety of the creek.

\n\n\n

We leave on our trip a week from today! I still have so much to do, but I’m not stressed about it. It’ll get done…or it won’t. That’s what charge cards are for!

\n\n\n

☀️

\n\n\n
\n\n

“My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”

\nIsaiah 32:18 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2024-06-20T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/06/20/a-good-day-at-the.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/06/07/going-in-different-directions.html", "title": "Going in Different Directions", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We are divvying up the chores these days, trying to get more done before the Colorado trip. We pull the camper with my truck. It’s been making a funny noise lately. It’s really difficult to get in to a mechanic around here. We had a wonderful guy right here in town but he suffered a devastating injury in an ATV accident early this spring and had to close his garage. Thank God he’s still with us, but we needed to find someone else. I’m not sure what is causing the shortage in mechanics, but we’re running into roadblocks at every turn. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt finally found a guy that would at least listen to the sound and send us in the right direction. We found someone to work on it on the 18th. Cutting it a little close before our departure date, but we’ll take what we can get. While he was off taking care of the truck, I took his truck and went to The Farm to mow.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We had a hard rain yesterday morning and the ground was pretty wet, but by the time I got out there, things were starting to dry up. It doesn’t take long at all to mow out there. It’s probably just about an acre of grass. There was a nice breeze, full sun, and only 79° so it was quite pleasant.

\n\n\n

I stopped on the way home at Happy Jim’s to see what he has that’s new. They recently bought out a couple of estate sales and there are lots of things to choose from. I’ve been looking for garden flags around town but they’ve gotten so expensive. Jim had three of them from my favorite shop. They were new in the bag and half price so I couldn’t pass them up. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

On my way back to the checkout counter, I passed a bookcase stuffed with wonderful cookbooks. Several of them had handwritten recipes stuck within the pages. I didn’t have time to sort through them all, but I picked eight of them to start with. The hard covers were $1 and paperbacks were $.50! The first one I looked through was copycat recipes of favorite dishes from popular restaurants. I found several recipes that I want to try. The book that intrigues me the most is the Martha Washington Cook Book.

\n\n\n

When I got home, I put things away then headed out to mow the fenced area around the pool. Mr. FixIt usually does this, but we’ve been so busy and it’s been raining. I had the time and the energy to do it so I was finished, showered, and glancing through a cookbook when he got home. I stopped and fixed us hamburgers and waffle fries for supper. We had a great tomato and Vidalia Onions to slice. And we’re still eating from the jar of Bread and Butter Pickles that Loretta gave me for Christmas. Honestly, I could sit there with that pint of pickles and a fork and finish them off in five minutes, but I really want to savor them.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

One of Mr. FixIt’s errands yesterday was to take a water sample from the pool in to the pool supply store to see where we are with the chemicals. We needed to add a pound of chlorine and two pounds of alkali to the water. We had another really hard rain storm but once that was over, we treated the pool and watched the news. An hour later we tested again. Getting these chemicals just right is a really tricky business but I’ll get the hang of it. And then, we’ll be gone nearly six weeks and won’t be able to monitor it every day. I’m sure whoever we get to mow while we are gone will be happy to dump some chemicals in for us. 

\n\n\n

I’m praying for rain to keep things cool while we are so busy getting things caught up around here. I’m also praying all these storms calm down by the time we head through the upper Midwest. 

\n\n\n

🙏🏼

\n\n\n
\n\n

“The hand of the diligent will rule, while the slothful will be put to forced labor.”

\nProverbs 12:24 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2024-06-07T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/06/07/going-in-different-directions.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/05/09/a-busy-and-productive-day.html", "title": "A Busy and Productive Day", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt had a procedure done yesterday morning. When they were taking him back, I called after him and said, “Wait!” He turned around and I came up and kissed him. The nurse looked a bit surprised and said, “Are you two newlyweds?” We looked at each other and laughed. “Kinda,” he said. “We got married in 2018.” She smiled and off they went.

\n\n\n

When we were finished, we stopped at Sam’s for a few things. I buy three containers of their blueberries just about every week to ten days. I also buy their bulk box of Oikos Triple Zero yogurts which lasts me eighteen days. When we first walked in, they had beautiful bouquets of mixed flowers for Mother’s Day. I went over and buried my face in them and breathed deep. Ahhhhh…I love flowers. Of course, Mr. FixIt said, “Please…pick out a bouquet for yourself for Mother’s Day.” I sorted over till I found the perfect one.

\n\n\n

We went on with our shopping and I came upon the most beautiful buckets of hydrangea bushes. Now, if I have that, the flowers will keep coming every year, so I told my sweetheart I rather have those. He smiled and said, “Whatever you want, baby.” I love this man.

\n\n\n

After Sam’s was a quick stop for gas and we headed home. I fixed lunch and then left Mr. FixIt to rest and I headed to the farm to mow. When I came around the turn into the driveway, my heart skipped a beat. The huge rhododendron bush in the front yard was FILLED with gorgeous flowers precisely at the peak of their bloom! OMGosh! They were stunning. The irises were also blooming.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

The grass had grown a lot since Beans mowed while we were at the beach. I hopped on the John Deere and got to work. It was in the mid-eighties but there was a nice gentle breeze so it didn’t seem overwhelmingly hot. I did have to mow over the cut grass a couple of times to keep it from settling in clumps and killing the lawn. When I was finished, I sat on the porch for a little bit and admired my handiwork.

\n\n\n

The neighbors were out walking their dog so I went over to visit for a bit. They are such a nice couple. Probably 20-25 years younger than me. We always have a moment to catch up when I’m out at the farm. I wish I could have stayed for a couple of days, but there were other things I needed to attend to so I headed home.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I took a walk down to the new pollinator gardens and got some pictures. I didn’t see the resident turtle this time, but there is quite a variety of plants beginning to show their stuff. I’m still not recognizing any new varieties from the seed I cast last fall, but I’ll keep my eyes peeled. It was a lovely, busy and productive day. A perfect spring day with golden green light and the smell of flowers on the breeze. It just made my heart smile.

\n\n\n

🌸🌼🌸

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land.”

\nSong of Songs‬ ‭2‬:‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2024-05-09T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/05/09/a-busy-and-productive-day.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Choices","Farm Life","Pollinator Garden"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/04/14/saturday-at-the-farm.html", "title": "Saturday at The Farm!!!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I had about an hour to knit before I headed to town for the embroidery class with Mrs. FixIt 1.0. I had to stop on the way at the Sheetz station for a quick snack because I knew by 2:00, I was going to be really hungry. I arrived at the library right on time and met the others attending. Angie handed out the pattern for the little bunny embroidery we were to do, along with the supplies. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My mom was the embroiderer of the family. And she did beautiful work. One year when she came to Colorado for a visit, I bought some Aunt Martha’s Iron-On Transfers and prepared a couple of white pillow cases and asked my mom if she would embroider them for me. I still have them. She taught me several stitches when I was little which I used mostly to decorate my bell bottoms in the ‘70s. “Make Love, Not War”, “Peace”, and “Flower Power” were the designs of the day. This little bunny should be a piece of cake. 

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I traced the pattern onto the cotton square that Angie gave us then placed it in the embroidery hoop. I followed the directions and by the time a half hour passed, I remembered why I didn’t pursue this craft. It’s just not my thing. But I enjoyed the experience and visiting with the other ladies. They’ll be doing a class every month and I’ll go to the next one, but I’m bringing my own project and will visit with the gals while I work on it.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I had to stop at Sam’s to get my blueberries then headed home. I grabbed a sandwich and found Mr. FixIt down by the creek cleaning out the drainage ditch. As soon as he was finished, We headed out to The Farm to mow. I was shocked that the tractor started right up. I quickly finished mowing and headed home to start supper. On our way home, we stopped at the local park and took pictures of the flooding.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I have been craving two things…salmon and curry. I found a package of salmon at Sam’s with two large salmon halves. It was on sale, so I picked it up. I cooked some quinoa and set it aside. Then I sautéed a couple cups of sliced mushrooms, slid them to the sides of the pan, and put two portions of salmon (skin side down) in the middle of the skillet. I covered the skillet with a lid and popped it in a 350° oven. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

While the salmon was baking, I mixed up the curry sauce. I’ve been using this sauce mix for years. I used two of the squares in the package and added them to some water in a saucepan. The squares melt into the water and create a thick sauce. When the salmon was almost done, I pulled it out and poured the sauce over the fish and popped it back in the oven for about ten minutes. Serve with the quinoa and a vegetable of your choice.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

This was probably one of the best meals I’ve made in a long, long time….in the top five at least. Mr. FixIt loved it and you know that’s good testament. I froze the rest of the salmon filets and will certainly make this again in the coming weeks. I also love to grill salmon and serve it over salad.

\n\n\n

So, it was a busy and productive day. I’ll have to mow here at the house today because rain will coming again. Church first.

\n\n\n

🌷

\n\n\n
\n\n

”Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.“

\nColossians 3:23-24 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2024-04-14T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/04/14/saturday-at-the-farm.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Crafts"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/04/09/knitting-mowing-and-a-solar.html", "title": "Knitting, Mowing, and a Solar Eclipse", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Me and my Baby

\n\n\n

I actually had two stories to tell you yesterday morning, but the one I settled on took precedence. So, I’ll tell you about the smoke first. I woke up with a start yesterday morning…the strong smell of smoke making me jump out of bed. I sleep with the window open and the smoke was so strong it burned my strong and eyes. I looked out the window and everything was white…like a thick, pea-soup fog.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

From Mr. FixIt, Jr.

\n\n\n

The first thing I did was put my hand on the door and the door knob. It was cool, and the smoke alarms were silent. Good…I don’t think it’s in the house. I threw on some clothes, shut the window and went out in the hall. No smoke smell there so whatever was burning was definitely not our house, so I didn’t wake Mr. FixIt. It was only 30° so I threw on a coat, grabbed my phone, and slipped on my shoes. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I couldn’t get the focus right, but it’s still pretty cool!

\n\n\n

The smell was super strong outside but I couldn’t tell where it was coming from. We have some neighbors who burn wood, but I’ve never smelled it that strong. And, the smoke was white. Black, acrid smoke comes from a burning house. White smoke comes from burning wood. Some of these little hollers around here are steep and narrow. If a power line arced on some dead trees, they could be in trouble in a hurry.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

the light was actually very cool at the peak!

\n\n\n

While I wasn’t convinced it was something to be terribly concerned about, I did feel I should at least call dispatch and ask if there were any fires reported out our way. The dispatcher said he hadn’t heard of anything, asked my address and a few other questions, then said he would send someone to check it out.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I always love how it looks when I’m done. The near field.

\n\n\n

Now, I was expecting a guy in a pickup truck to come by and look around…maybe drive up the road a piece, check the next road or two down. What I didn’t expect was to hear the fire siren go off over in town! Oh, no…they were going to make people get out and come over here on a Sunday morning. I began to wish I would have waited. But, better to be safe than sorry, right?

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The far field. See that tan patch way out there on the left? That is one of the pollinator gardens. It didn’t really do much of anything last year…just grass. So I mowed it down short and I’ll see if I can plant some things there.

\n\n\n

So, I stood there waiting. We live way out in the country and we have a volunteer fire and EMS squad.We are blessed, because there are a lot of communities in West Virginia that have no access to emergency services. We’re a poor state. About ten minutes passed when I could hear the big fire truck coming down the hill. He tried to go out our road and thought better of it. It is very narrow and there’s no place out there to turn a rig that big around.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

LOVE this spring green! The maple tree us just barely budding.

\n\n\n

They backed out to the two-lane. The squad truck came and a couple of pickups. The chief sent them down to check out the other roads then came over and talked to me. By this time, a breeze started blowing and the smoke was being moved on down the road away from us. I could breathe better. We both decided it was a series of events that caused this. It has been damp the last few days. The weather was warmer on Saturday, then dropped way down to 31° overnight. We were in a temperature inversion where the cold air was pushing down on warmer air at the service. That created fog that lay low to the ground, as did the smoke from the neighbor’s wood stoves. I apologized to the chief and he said I did the right thing. He too was worried the woods were on fire somewhere and was glad he came to check.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The new birdhouses. I bought them at Aldi’s “Aisle of Shame” on Sunday afternoon.

\n\n\n

But even that couldn’t top the solar eclipse of yesterday! It was a fun morning with the knitting group, then I came home, cooked a late breakfast of grits and eggs, then jumped on the tractor. I wanted to get the whole place mowed before more rain kicks in this week. I was toodling along when Mr. FixIt flagged me down to come watch the eclipse. He had the lounge chairs set up on the deck and our eclipse glasses ready. I went in and got a cold drink then settled in beside him to watch. 

\n\n\n

We had 96% coverage here in West Virginia. I really would have loved to see the total eclipse. We weren’t very far from visibility, but we just had so much to do. And 96% is nothing to sneeze at. It was awesome to watch! But, shortly after the peak, I got back on the tractor. The phrase “burning daylight” took on a whole new meaning! Just as I sat down to right this, a thunderstorm rolled through. Good timing!

\n\n\n

I’m heading to town today for lunch with some of my girlfriends then I’m going out to The Farm till Friday. I need to get some things done on the computer and that high speed internet is calling my name! I also want to get that tractor running for the summer of mowing ahead. I’ll take some handwork with me, too. These will be the busiest months of the year coming up. 

\n\n\n

I’m ready!

\n\n\n

🌷

\n\n\n
\n\n

”Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so.“

\nGenesis 1:11 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2024-04-09T07:00:05-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/04/09/knitting-mowing-and-a-solar.html", "tags": ["Fun","The Farm","Change","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/03/06/the-farm.html", "title": "The Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Life at The Farm moves at a different pace. There’s no TV. The batteries in the clocks on the wall are long dead. You know it’s time to get up when the sun hits the top of the far ridge. And it’s time to go in when it sinks below that same ridge and the temperature drops precipitously. It wasn’t quite as warm yesterday as it was the day before, but it was still quite pleasant sipping my hot morning beverage on the front porch. The birds were ecstatic…billing and cooing and doing their sweet mating dances in the hedgerow along the creek. The sound of water from the last rains gurgled over the native sandstone and shale. It was divine…simply divine!

\n\n\n

I had planned to do the taxes yesterday. I downloaded my copy of TurboTax. I updated Quicken and created my yearend expense report, only to find my past tax returns are on the old laptop…which is at home. Not to be deterred, I set that aside and finished knitting a pair of socks in the afternoon sun. When I was finished, I took my camera and walked around looking for glimpses of spring around the farm.

\n\n\n

The first place I looked was obvious. The Daffodils blooming out back…their little faces turned eagerly toward the ever warming sun. All I could think of was my grandma’s happy smile as she cupped each little blossom in her work-worn hands. Each of her posies was a gift from God after the long dreary days of winter. And they were gifts to me, as well. I wandered up the creek toward the barn, the thick mat of ground cover spongy beneath my feet. It never really gets dry up the holler.

\n\n\n

The old smokehouse is leaning even further this spring. The dampness up there is rotting it away from the ground up. I peeked inside and found a couple of treasures to take along with me…an old alarm clock…a small wooden box…an interesting light that was probably used in a chicken coop at some point but rusted and surely unusable now. The kinds of things you might tuck away on a shelf or in a flower bed.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Something caught my eye amongst the leaves alongside the old pigsty. It was such a bright scarlet red, I felt sure it must be something man made…a piece of plastic, or tape perhaps. I brushed the leaves aside and was pleased to find it was a living thing! It’s called Scarlet Elfcup and it’s a kind of fungus. I’ve never seen it before to my recollection and I was happy to get a picture of it for you to see.

\n\n\n

I came back down the driveway and checked along the bank, but there aren’t any wildflowers coming up that I could find. The Daffodils and Naked Ladies have about 6-8” tall leaves shooting up, but no buds yet. I swung around the end of the yard and up the creek bank to the enormous Flowering Quince. Their leaves are shooting out and the pink of future blooms could be seen popping out. I was so disappointed that I couldn’t find any of the Carolina Spicebush that used to grow there. I’m hoping it’s just not out yet. A few years ago, my uncle hired a couple of guys to clean out the creek banks and they all but decimated that bush. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It’s been a wonderful visit here. I went for a walk last evening and talked with the neighbors across the road. Then my cousin’s wife stopped by for a visit. Later, my niece that lives in NYC called and we talked for an hour. She has such an interesting job and I learned a lot from her. It has been way too long since we talked so we left the conversation with promises to touch base more often. 

\n\n\n

I’ll start another pair of socks today and work on our travel plans for the summer. I’m nearly finished reading this book. There’s always something else to do, isn’t there?

\n\n\n

☘️

\n\n\n
\n\n

”For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.“

\nIsaiah 61:11 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2024-03-06T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/03/06/the-farm.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/03/05/springtime-at-the-farm.html", "title": "Springtime at The Farm!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I went to knitting group yesterday morning. There were only three of us attending. One had business to attend to. Another tested positive for covid about half an hour before she was to head to town. Too many people aren’t testing anymore. I believe they figure if they don’t test, they can’t have covid. I am grateful this gal listened to her husband and tested to be sure. I may be the only person around here who hasn’t had it! But, I am militant with hand washing and I wear a mask, no matter what.

\n\n\n

One of my knitting friends came in with two black eyes and a terribly swollen and blackened hand. She fell on Friday, carrying a bag in each hand. Nothing seems to be broken, thank God. But, I’m telling you…we are getting to the age when falls are becoming more commonplace. Two of my knitting pals have crossed the threshold of their 80’s and they warn that their kids have started “mothering” them. 

\n\n\n

I was thinking the other day about my escapades with the camper after Mr. Virgo died. Traveling cross country alone, towing a camper through cities and countryside. I wonder how long I’ll be able to travel solo? Will I ever take the camper to Colorado on my own again? I really don’t know. I was only sixty when I first started towing alone. I’m not nearly ready to quit that. I just don’t know at what point I should consider it. I guess I’ll know when the time comes. At least, I hope I do.

\n\n\n

I got to the farm early yesterday afternoon. Once I got all settled in, I fixed myself something to eat and sat on the porch listening to the birds. Northern Cardinal, Black-capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Song Sparrow, Carolina Wren, Robin, White-breasted Nuthatch, American Crow, Eastern Bluebird, Blue Jay…all calling and singing, chattering and swooping in and out of the Flowering Quince that lines the crest of the creek along the house. The Daffodils out back across from the old outhouse are starting to bloom. The little Chipmunk that lives under the old ramp off the back porch skittered around nervously. Red Shouldered Hawks circling high about the woods on top of the far ridge were too far away to hear.

\n\n\n

Someone around here is logging. I could hear the heavy equipment and the logging trucks as they slowly maneuvered their way out with their heavy loads. Perhaps I take a drive up the road today and see where the muddy tracks come out on the road to find out where they are working. A couple of loads drove buy some time after I got here, but they aren’t the big double trailers. They must be working in tight quarters.

\n\n\n

The temperature was well in the 70’s as I sat and soaked up the sun on the front porch…my book lying unopened on my lap…a cup of tea in hand. I took a deep breath of spring and sighed in contentment. The house itself smells exactly as it did when I was a little girl and I never fail to smile in remembrance when I cross the threshold. 

\n\n\n

I’ll probably go home tomorrow. The deadline for entering photos of the items donated to the Girl Camper Raffle is Thursday. I need to finish a pair of socks that I brought with me. And finish the book I’m reading and at least get started on the taxes. If I complete these things, along with ample porch sitting, I’ll have accomplished what I came for.

\n\n\n

My knitting friend Loretta is either-two years old. She has been married since she was sixteen. I told her at group yesterday that I was heading out to The Farm after for a little R&R. As we were saying goodbye, she called out, “Enjoy you alone time!” I laughed an called back, “You know…in about eight hours, I’ll be missing my husband and thinking of heading back!” She just smiled and nodded in understanding.

\n\n\n

☘️

\n\n\n
\n\n

”Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.”“

\nHosea 6:3 NIV\n
\n\n\n

#Spring, #TheFarm, #Memories

\n\n", "date_published": "2024-03-05T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/03/05/springtime-at-the-farm.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/02/04/a-beautiful-day-at-the.html", "title": "A Beautiful Day at the Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I woke up at 6:00 and thought…oh, no…I’m going to have to get up! But I fell back to sleep and didn’t wake up till 10:30! That’s more like it!!! Mr. FixIt called a few minutes after I opened my eyes. It’s uncanny…he “feels” me wake up. It doesn’t matter what time it is….he just “knows.” Before we were married and I was living out here on the farm, he texted me and asked if that bagel I had for breakfast was good. I hadn’t said word one to him about bagels…ever. But I had stopped at the store on my way home to the farm and saw them. I decided to buy a couple…and he KNEW! I accused him of doing video surveillance. lol

\n\n\n

I really enjoyed “having coffee” with some of you yesterday. Let’s do that more often as it fits into my schedule. I’m thinking Wednesday and/or Saturday mornings. That would be so much fun! I am thinking of other ways to interact with you, too. Perhaps those of you who are “makers” would like to do a project with me. I’ll have to think about it more and see what I come up with. 

\n\n\n

The weather was gorgeous here yesterday, although still a bit cool. I was on the phone for an hour or two with my friend Alice out in Colorado. She was with my brother and we got the Amazon Echo 8 set up for him. Now we can have visits together and see each other! As a matter of fact, we video chatted with each other twice yesterday! He is so excited. I can send pictures to his Echo and he got a great kick out of that!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I worked on the market bag yesterday afternoon. I got an email from my dear friend Judy out in Colorado. She gave me a smocking machine last summer and that’s one of the things on my list to do so I think I’ll start watching some how-to videos on YouTube to refresh my memory. It’s been a very long time since I’ve smocked anything. I used to make smocked Christmas ornaments that are really beautiful.

\n\n\n

I’ll be heading home later this morning or early afternoon. I do so love being out here, but I equally love going home to my sweetheart! I hope you have a blessed day!

\n\n\n

🩵

\n\n\n
\n\n

”Don’t be obsessed with getting more material things. Be relaxed with what you have. Since God assured us, “I’ll never let you down, never walk off and leave you,” we can boldly quote, God is there, ready to help; I’m fearless no matter what. Who or what can get to me?“

\nHebrews 13:5-6 MSG\n
\n\n\n

#Yarn, #Makers, #Brother

\n\n", "date_published": "2024-02-04T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/02/04/a-beautiful-day-at-the.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Crafts"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2024/02/02/a-very-happy-birthday.html", "title": "A Very Happy Birthday!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It was a gorgeous day…55° and bright sunshine. We got up and around, fixed our morning beverages, and sat on FaceTime with our besties…Ben and Sue…out in Colorado. It was almost as good as sitting at their kitchen table. We really miss them. 

\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt had an appointment in town in the afternoon so I had a few hours in the Big Red Chair. I finished the trim on the baby blanket and put a doll together and started another one. When Mr. FixIt came home, I fixed him a beautiful dinner. Lamb Chops with a Bourbon Maple and Black Balsamic Glaze, Steamed Broccoli, and Roasted Baby Gold Potatoes. Oh, my word….I know we aren’t supposed to brag, but my lamb chops are as good as any you could get in a 5-Star Restaurant. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I learned from the best. Mr. Virgo was quite the foodie and he taught me how to cook many of my favorite dishes…one of which is lamb chops. Mr. FixIt had a wonderful birthday, and I’m taking the evening off to binge watch “Bull.” And today, I’m heading out to The Farm for a couple of nights. 

\n\n\n

I’ll be back tomorrow morning!!!

\n\n\n

🩵

\n\n\n
\n\n

”Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct.“

\n1 Peter 3:1-2 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2024-02-02T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2024/02/02/a-very-happy-birthday.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Love","Marriage"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/11/09/oh-what-a-beautiful-day.html", "title": "Oh, What A Beautiful Day!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

OMGosh! On a day like yesterday, all you can do is praise God for his artistry! I’m at the farm to work on the computer since the internet is lightning fast. And, I needed to get the lawn mowed for the very last time of the season. I always breathe a king-sized sigh of relief when it’s over for a few months. I don’t mind adding this yard to my list of chores to do every week. It’s my payment for the privilege of staying here whenever I want. 

\n\n\n

When I went out to start the mower, I was afraid it might not turn over. It is a little persnickety if you haven’t started it for a couple of weeks. And this had been awhile… maybe three weeks or so? It only took two or three cranks till the ol’ John Deere came to life and I set to mulching up what seemed to be every downed leaf in the county. When the leaves are so deep you’re just pushing them along, you need to run back and forth over them to kinda mash them down so they’ll go under the mower deck. Even with that, I had to mow over the entire yard twice to mulch everything down.

\n\n\n

When it’s done it looks so beautiful. Especially in the late afternoon sun when everything takes on a golden glow. It’s supposed to start raining today and get cooler so it was the last chance I would get to mow before the leaves turn to a flat layer of detritus that resembles leather. That can kill the grass and this house sits in a little holler. It doesn’t get much light as it is and stays wet. A layer of wet leaves would further deteriorate the creek bank as it would never dry out. It’s sinking down pretty bad the last few years. Frank and Beans should be here this afternoon. I hope they’ll get a chance to stop in for a quick visit. They’re the sweetest people.  

\n\n\n

You remember my dear friend Sparky who died a couple of years ago? Well, her son is a well tender in this neck of the woods and when I was out mowing, I saw him checking a well across the road. I turned off the mower and we had a nice roadside chat. It’s been almost two years since his mom died and then he lost his uncle this spring and his dad shortly after. He’s had a heck of a couple of years, but I was glad to see him doing so well. He looks so much like his mom it’s not funny. I just stared at his face and mannerisms while he talked and felt a little closer to Sparky, even if it was just for a few moments.

\n\n\n

You can see a video of these creatures on my YouTube Channel HERE.

\n\n\n

I swept the front porch and inside the house and got rid of a bunch of Asian Lady Beetles. I’m kind of amazed I didn’t see a single stink bug. As a matter of fact, there aren’t a lot of them at this house this year either. Maybe it just hasn’t been cold enough yet. The weather will be turning chilly again as the week progresses and I sure hope they get the part in for the furnace soon. We need to get that fixed in a hurry.

\n\n\n

Hey, have any of you used Zenni or any of the other eyeglass shops on the internet? I bought my first pair about three years ago maybe and my prescription changed this time. I went online and shopped. I bought a pair of pretty glasses with progressive bifocals with a wide angle along with a new carrying case and two pairs of clip on sunglasses…one for night driving and one for sunglasses. Grand total? $128.93 including tax and shipping! The cheapest glasses I could find in the optometric shop was $250 and that didn’t have any of the extras. Zenni offers a 10% senior discount, too! I’m all about getting the best I can for my money. I’ll let you know how they turn out!

\n\n\n

It should rain today, so I’m planning on sitting here in Grandma’s chair, in front of her window and watch the world go by. It’s awfully nice to have this peace and quiet. NO TV!!! I hope you’re having a good week!

\n\n\n

🍁

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.”

\nRomans 12:10 ESV\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

Soon there will be snowflakes falling instead of leaves. Here’s a sweet Norwegian inspired Christmas Ornament. These make great hostess gifts or a gift exchange with your girlfriends.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-11-09T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/11/09/oh-what-a-beautiful-day.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Peaceful Moments","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/11/08/a-respite-at-the-farm.html", "title": "A Respite at The Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The sun was setting when we came out of the grocery store.

\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt had a followup visit with our PCP to see how he’s doing after his bout with Covid. We were glad to hear he’s doing great and we can hug again! That was a long stretch and we didn’t like it. Everyone needs human touch. I remember when I lost Mr. Virgo, I had my doctor write out a prescription for massages and I went every week. I needed that to help me heal.

\n\n\n

We accomplished about half of the things on the list with three stops and a dinner out at our favorite diner. Social distancing and masks are the rule now. My poor sweetheart doesn’t want to get that again! I got my RSV shot yesterday at Sam’s. So I’m covered for the four big diseases you want to avoid when you’re of a certain age. Flu, pneumonia, covid, and RSV. So far, I haven’t even had a real cold since the Covid lockdown and I really like not being sick. 

\n\n\n

When we finally got home, it was dark. I helped Mr. FixIt bring in our purchases of the day and put them away. Then I packed up some things and headed out to the farm. It’s supposed to 80° today and I need to mow one last time out here then I can put mowing behind me till next year. I got my bags unpacked, stowed my food for the next three days, then I had to sweep up all the dead Asian Lady Beetles off the floors. I had an exterminator come out here in 2016 to spray for fleas and whatever they used seems to also kill these retched things. It IS a little disconcerting to know whatever they used is still this potent seven years later! 

\n\n\n

When there is a light on, the beetles fly around up at the ceiling and they make a tic, tic, tic sound. This takes me back to the night I arrived here for my mother’s funeral. My Aunt Rosie flew in with me and we rented a car in Charleston to drive out here. There was only one bed to sleep in so she and I shared a double bed. We were so afraid to go to sleep for fear our months would gape open and we’d swallow one of these miserable vermin. We lay there for hours listening to the the sound of them buzzing around. It still sends shivers up my spine. I have learned if you keep a light on in the farthest room away from you and keep your room dark as a tomb, they stay away from you, but I brought earplugs… just in case!

\n\n\n

I’ll stay here till Friday morning. Mr. FixIt has an appointment in town on Friday so I need to get the truck back to him. Once I mow, I can take advantage of this lightning fast internet and get some things done much faster than I can at home. 

\n\n\n

🍁

\n\n\n
\n\n

“It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.”

\nPsalm 127:2 ESV\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

The same sweet Santa on the ornament has popped onto the perfect mug for you winter hot beverage. There’s a surprise on the other side… a darling little elf came along with Santa to help out!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-11-08T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/11/08/a-respite-at-the-farm.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Writing","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/09/02/seriously-september.html", "title": "Seriously September", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Touch-Me-Not, aka Jewelweed. This grows at the edge of the porch every year. The bees and the hummingbirds love it. I’m going to see if I can transplant some of it next spring.

\n\n\n

It was March and I blinked. Now look…it’s September! I need to slow down the hands of time to hang onto the fun summer months. They go even faster when you travel like we did this year. I told Mr. FixIt the other day…we wouldn’t normally have traveled like this, but we’re both feeling great and we won’t be able to keep this up forever. We got a year full of great memories, that’s for sure!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We always called this Foxtail Grass. Mr. FixIt hasn’t been out to weed eat in quite some time. It shows…but I think this is lovely in the late sun.

\n\n\n

I’ve been at The Farm the last couple of nights. I mowed right after I arrived on Thursday to get that over with. I spent the entire day yesterday trying to learn how to do something I want to do. Learning new things doesn’t come quite as easily as it used to and I have to watch, rewind, watch, rewind the educational videos I find on YouTube. Before, all I’d have to do is see it once and I could do it like a pro. Not anymore.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My summer supper…a baked sweet potato with Parkay Spray and Truvia Brown Sugar on it. Yummmmmy!

\n\n\n

By late afternoon, my brain was tired so I took a break, popped a sweet potato in the microwave and sat on the porch with my supper. Afterward, I took a little walkabout to see what is growing. I’m not sure what I got into when I was mowing, but it might have been poison ivy. I have itchy little bumps on my arms and my belly. I’ve only had one small bout with poison ivy in my life and I’m always really careful. But I’ve been mowing along the edges of our field and the yard here so I’m sure I’ve tangled up with something.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

While this looks like a dragonfly or a damselfly, it’s actually called an antlion. Their larvae dig conical shaped pits to trap passing ants or other prey. They are sometimes called doodlebugs because of the marks they leave in the sand.

\n\n\n

I gathered some seeds from a couple of the perennial flowering plants Grandma loved. I’ll try to get them to start over at Marshmallow Ranch next spring. I’m heading home today to do a little housecleaning. Tomorrow is our family picnic so I’ll have to get up early and put the pork roast in the oven. Do you have big plans for the holiday weekend?

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Then God said, “Let lights appear in the sky to separate the day from the night. Let them be signs to mark the seasons, days, and years.”

\nGenesis 1:14 NLT\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

September is the time for gathering the harvest and counting our blessings!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-09-02T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/09/02/seriously-september.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Peaceful Moments","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/08/12/i-know-a-change-is.html", "title": "I Know A Change is Gonna Come", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Looking down the creek, I think the big rains we’ve had the last few years is washing dirt and rocks down from high up and it’s filling the creek. Maybe that’s why it is spreading out.

\n\n\n

I fiddled around on the computer and cleaned up the house before I came home yesterday. I moved a floor mat to the inside of the back door into the kitchen because we’re always tracking mud in. The steps off the back porch and that sidewalk grow moss and algae on them, so every step is wet and soggy and that just leaves muddy footprints all over the kitchen. I know it’s not my house anymore, but Grandma would want it kept clean, so I cleaned it.

\n\n\n

Tradition. Peer pressure from dead people. 

\n\n\n

I can’t believe the amount of stuff I tote there and back. I think I’m just going to leave some stuff in Grandma’s dresser and not carry so much back and forth. I’m sure I’ll be going out more often with that lightning fast internet out there! Especially now that the biggest portion of our travel is over. Well, sort of. Next week, I’m going up to Gail’s for a couple of nights for a visit. We’re camping the third and fourth weeks of September. Then we have our big two week camping trip to the beach in October. Then we’re done for the year! 

\n\n\n

This was just an incredibly busy summer. Daughter #1 led Freshman Orientation at her high school yesterday and they start classes on Monday. School doesn’t begin in our area till the last week of August. Once that happens, then I’m kinda ready for fall.

\n\n\n

I reopened my shop yesterday from vacation mode now that we’re caught up with the mowing and all. (Although, I need to mow the next good day. The grass has really grown this week.) I had fun designing some fall things yesterday so I’m looking forward to sharing them with you. Also, I was gifted some beautiful silverware last weekend and I’m actually going to start making art jewelry again. I’ll let you know when you can expect that to show up.

\n\n\n

I didn’t write much when I was out at the farm this time. I wanted to really be mindful and present to those warm feelings I get when I’m there. Each time I visit, I’m reminded how old and tired that house is. The encroaching forest seems to threaten to swallow it whole. I was standing on the edge of the creek, shucking corn for my supper when I was struck by how wide the creek-bed has become. What was once just a little trickling branch has turned into a true creek…roaring past the house when these heavy storms fueled by global warming fill it nearly to the brim. It is eroding the creek-bank FAST. I have seen a noticeable change year after year since I moved back in 2014. 

\n\n\n

I know my days are numbered at the farm. I don’t dwell on it, but I am trying to prepare myself for the eventuality. I know, I know….how many times have I told you that? But, this time feels different. And it’s not just the house. It’s the times. It’s the world. It’s the division and unrest. 

\n\n\n

I don’t know…I am just reminded of Sam Cooke’s song…..“A Change is Gonna Come.” It’s been running through my head all week and Jennifer Hudson slayed it at the Kennedy Center when they were honoring Denzel Washington.

\n\n\n
“There been times that I thought\nI couldn’t last for long\nBut now, I think I’m able\nTo carry on\n\nIt’s been a long \nA long time comin’, but I know \nA change gon’ come\nOh yes, it will.”
\n\n\n
\n[youtu.be/_ZEzUq9th...](https://youtu.be/_ZEzUq9th3g)\n
\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

\nHebrews 13:8 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-08-12T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/08/12/i-know-a-change-is.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Change","Farm Life","Home"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/08/11/a-beautiful-day.html", "title": "A Beautiful Day!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It was cool and a little drizzly…definitely a little hint of fall in the air. I fiddled around on the computer for a bit. I ate good, healthy food. I visited with the neighbors across the road and they brought me fresh veggies from their garden. And, my cousin’s wife came for a visit. We talked till 11:30 last night! I shared my new bounty of veggies with her. I head home today and can’t wait to see my Mr. FixIt!!!

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

The neighbor’s garden across the road from the farm! Beautiful!

\n\n\n

I posted a “Feel Good Friday” video this morning so I’ll keep this short…with lots of photos. I’ll be back with a normal post tomorrow!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n

#TheFarm, #Produce, #Garden

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-08-11T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/08/11/a-beautiful-day.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life","Feel Good Friday"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/08/09/its-always-an-adventure.html", "title": "It’s Always an Adventure!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I took this picture Monday night before another wave of rain hit. If you zoom in, just on the far side of the pollinator garden on the left, you can see my little buck that comes to see me every evening at Marshmallow Ranch. He’s a handsome fellow.

\n\n\n

We ran to town yesterday to pick up a prescription and some fresh produce from the farm stand. On the way home, I told Mr. FixIt I was going to fix supper then go back out to the farm since my stay was interrupted on Monday. I got here about 8:00pm and stopped to talk to the neighbors across the road. By the time I got to the house, the power was out again. A huge tree fell across the road at 2:00 yesterday morning and took out the power lines. The electric came back on at 10:00 and was on the rest of the day…till I got here.

\n\n\n

I used the neighbors’ phone to call Mr. FixIt because I knew he’d be worried. I always check in as soon as I get here. The power company said the power would be back on by 11 o’clock and it came on at 10:45. I was laying here in the dark and thinking about a few things. I need to be sure to have some form of light out here. I have my big spotlight but the battery won’t last forever. I thought about my Aunt Peeps living out here at 83 during the derecho of 2012. It was about this time of year…really hot and sticky. And she didn’t have power for over a week!

\n\n\n

So…no electric. No phone. No water. Darker than a dungeon. And you know what? The thing that bothered me the most was not being able to write! And then…by the time the electric came on, I was past my window of creativity. So I’ll close with Mr. FixIt’s favorite line.

\n\n\n

It’s always an adventure with Ginny McKinney!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

““You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

\nMatthew 5:14-16 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-08-09T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/08/09/its-always-an-adventure.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Comfort","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/08/07/a-respite-at-the-farm.html", "title": "A Respite at The Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I know how blessed I am to still have time at The Farm. It’s old. The pump on the well isn’t working now. The floor isn’t level and there is evidence of carpenter ants here and there. But no matter what else is going on in my world, when I walk in that back door…it smells exactly as it has since I was brought here the very first time. And that’s been quite a while ago.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It smells like old wood. It’s dank and dusty but I run two dehumidifiers to try to keep her old bones dry. And even though I cannot actually smell the red furniture polish Grandma used to use on the wood, my mind tells me this is what it smelled like. I keep gallons of fresh water on hand for heating up to do the dishes. Beans has some big containers of water in the bathroom to use to flush the toilet, but I use my tinkle tank from my camping gear. It works fine.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I remember when there wasn’t running water here. There may have been a water tank on the side of the house that caught rainwater. That’s what Grandma did the wash with. She heated it up for baths in the galvanized tub that she placed in the middle of the kitchen floor. She used to turn on the gas cook stove to warm up the kitchen so we wouldn’t catch a chill. We had indoor plumbing at home of course. But stepping back in time at Grandma’s house spoke to something primal in me. It was simple and pure and good. It was hard work and sweat and a feeling of accomplishment.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Sitting on the front porch during a rainstorm yesterday afternoon was better than a dose of medicine for an ache I’ve felt ever since my grandma died. Listening to the wood thrush’s song echoing down the holler. Watching the Eastern Wood PeeWee and the Eastern Phoebe pick the elderberries. Catching sight of a rabbit underneath Grandma’s Rose of Sharon. Picking seed pods from the 4 O’Clocks alongside the house. Rocking gently as the hot and humid day fades into the glorious coolness of the Golden Hour.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My children don’t get it. This was just a place to visit for them. A place to tolerate Mom’s obsession for a week or two before heading back to what they defined as civilization. I had the chance to move back here with Daughter #1 when she was about three years old. Instead, I elected to stay in Colorado for two reasons. The first was, Colorado had more educational opportunities than West Virginia did. And the second was, I was self aware enough to know that If I went back when Hubby #1 went, I’d end up back with him and I couldn’t see a positive future with him. So, I stayed out West…hoping one day to return to the home of my heart.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Sitting on this front porch, married to my best buddy from high school, and knowing my girls are happy where they are?

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Priceless.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. Though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely, how blessed you will be, sowing your seed by every stream, and letting your cattle and donkeys range free.”

\nIsaiah 32:18-20 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-08-07T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/08/07/a-respite-at-the-farm.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Wisdom","Farm Life","Memories","Home"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/08/06/so-much-mowing.html", "title": "SO Much Mowing!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Two little mushrooms under the maple tree.

\n\n\n

When we got home a week ago, the grass was so long I had to cut it on 5 to keep from popping the belt off the mower deck. I knew I’d be mowing later in the week because 5 isn’t very short. I mowed yesterday on 4 to get caught up and maybe not have to mow for another week. The fall grass is growing now and it’s rough and tough to mow. I didn’t like the way the mower sounded so I came in off the field to grease the fittings in the steering and the wheels. I couldn’t get to the fitting for the steering column because it was too hot. Mr. FixIt use the air compressor and blew off all the extra grass so we can run it up on the truck ramps soon and hit that fitting with some grease. In the meantime, he sprayed a little WD40 on it and it sounds a lot better.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It rained at least five inches last month…maybe more with evaporation.

\n\n\n

It was really hot out there on the tractor. I drove around with the golf umbrella to keep the sun off. We bought these little fan gizmos that fit across the back of your neck and over your collar bones. They have three fan speeds and while it didn’t really cool me off, the breeze was nice. I was so glad when I was finally finished. Mr. FixIt mowed inside the fence because it’s supposed to rain here today. We’ve really had a nice week weather wise. A little cooler.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt’s Elephant Ears…we get more and more every year!

\n\n\n

I was hoping to get out to the farm yesterday but mowing always takes precedence. Now that I have that behind me, I can pack up a few things and get out there for my summer farm fix. Mr. FixIt has his first bowling meeting of the year tonight and football has been on TV already. You can just feel summer wrapping up. Daughter #1 is preparing for the school year. The new teacher they hired decided to take a different job, as did the new clerk…three weeks before school started. So she’s definitely going to have her work cut out for her shifting schedules around and getting someone hired.

\n\n\n

Please pray for the students, teachers, and staff for the new school year. God, please keep them safe!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.”

\nPsalms 4:8 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-08-06T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/08/06/so-much-mowing.html", "tags": ["Prayer","Strong Women","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/06/03/my-fight-with-a-snake.html", "title": "My Fight With a Snake aka A Very Long Day", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I slept like a stone. Even though I’ve all but stopped wearing earplugs to bed, I wore them out at the farm because the cardinal in the flowering quince right outside the bedroom window thinks she needs to start singing the song of her people at around 4:00 in the morning. That’s a big nope. And, even with the earplugs in place, I kept hearing something out of place. Not enough to actually wake me up to investigate. Just enough to think…”Huh. I wonder what that is?”

\n\n\n

When I finally woke up at about 8:30, I was aware of the noise again and took out my earplugs to listen. It was the FURNACE! It was 92° on Thursday, but it got down to 50° by dawn. Since I sleep with the windows open as often as possible, it was pretty darned chilly in the house. I had a medical appointment yesterday at 2:30 so I finally dragged myself out of bed and started packing up to go home to my sweetheart.

\n\n\n

I always pack like I’m going on safari when I go to the farm. Well, when I go anywhere, really…although I tell myself I’m doing better. As I filled each bag, I took them two at a time into the kitchen and lined them up in the kitchen in front of the door. Once they were all there, I started taking them out to the car. I know this farm like the back of my hand. I was brought here as a tiny newborn and I’ve loved it ever since. I navigated the two steps to the sidewalk carefully. Every time I go down those steps, I think of my Aunt Peeps. She fell and broke her wrist. It was obviously broken. But she was never one to suffer a doctor so she went inside, wrapped it with a telephone book to create a splint and went about her business. That wrist was bent and wonky the rest of her life.

\n\n\n

Anyway, I digress. I moved the car up by the cellar house when I mowed the other day so I could fit the John Deere by it and mow the front of the house. I looked up and it reminded me so I turned up the driveway. A bird caught my ear and I scanned the trees up on the hillside to see if I could Identify it. Just then, I happened to glance down and very nearly stepped on a good sized Black Racer. The thing coiled up as if to strike. Even though they are non-poisonous, they will bite if they’re cornered. It had the whole yard in which to escape, but it stood its ground. I stomped in an attempt to scare it away. Instead, it reared up and lunged at me! 

\n\n\n

Ok, game on.

\n\n\n

I set my bags down and went back to the porch for the shovel that’s always kept there for instances such as this. I came out and smacked the shovel on the ground right in front of it. I didn’t want to harm the snake. They are great at killing mice around the farm. But…again…it reared up and lunged at me. So I just quickly scooped it up in the shovel and gave it a toss toward the creek. It turned and slithered away over the edge of the bank and we were done with that. The shovel went right back to its place of honor by the back door.

\n\n\n

I’ve seen more snakes out there in the last two years than I have in all the time I’ve ever called this place home. As a matter of fact, I had never seen a snake there until three years ago. I suppose they know we’re just in and out now and the place is going wild again. I finished packing the car and scurried home to shower before I headed to town.

\n\n\n

I seldom have to wait at my doctor’s office, but yesterday was an exception. It took over an hour and a half, but I had my new issue of Girl Camper Magazine in tow. I could hardly wait to see the t-shirt I designed featured in the “Things We Love” segment! I showed it around the office and encouraged the camping lovers to check it out for themselves. And of course, to check out Marshmallow Ranch Designs!

\n\n\n

When I finally got out of the office, I made a trip to the grocery store and to pick up prescriptions. By the time I got home, I told Mr. FixIt that I was beat and asked if he would tote the contents of the shopping spree to the house on the dolly. He is such a good man…and we were SO happy to see each other! We fiddled around in the kitchen putting things away. He’s going to the annual company picnic tomorrow and is taking chicken noodles so I put the chicken on for him in the Instant Pot.

\n\n\n

He got a lot done while I was at the farm…namely he got the pool opened. I was hoping we wouldn’t be messing with it this year since we’ll be gone so much this summer, but old habits are hard to break. We hardly ever get in it…only to clean it. It seems like a waste of resources. But maybe the kids will come this summer for some cookouts and they’ll be really happy to have it available.

\n\n\n

It was 93° when I came out of Walmart and down to 85° by the time I got home. And this is only the first week of June! Yikes…we need rain!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”

\nLuke 10:19 NIV\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

Today I’ll share a link to Girl Camper Magazine. It come out quarterly and is one of the highest quality magazines I’ve ever seen. The spared nothing in the production, the photography, and the stories. It would be a love gift…to a camper friend, a camper wanna be, or an indulgence for yourself. I learn something from every single issue.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Check it out!

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-06-03T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/06/03/my-fight-with-a-snake.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Home"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/06/01/ta-da-im-finally-finished.html", "title": "Ta Da! I’m Finally Finished!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The pattern is called “Disappearing Pinwheel” and the quilting pattern is called “Baptist Fan.”

\n\n\n

After sleeping on it, I finally figured out which way was up on the quilt so I sewed the label on it yesterday morning and I was done! Then I couldn’t stop looking at it and taking pictures of it. I finally took it outside and hung it across the clothes line on the front porch. I’m kinda proud of myself that I started AND finished a project! It only took eight months!!!

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I was thrilled to see the scale go down again yesterday morning. I’m now down 10 pounds since April 26th! Yay!!! Eating is feeling more like joy and less like deprivation. I get more food than I can get down most days.

\n\n\n

I mowed the yard in the mid afternoon and I was really glad we have the use of an old John Deere tractor here at the farm. It was mighty hot but the job went quickly. I walked around a lot yesterday and took pictures. I went on walks up and down the road and identified trees and weeds and wildflowers. I saw a new bird but it was fleeting so I’m not sure what it was. It was beautiful.

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I was sitting on the porch taking pictures of the quilt in an old chair when something caught my eye. The Broadhead Skink that visited Wednesday was back again. Then later I felt something on my leg and found this American Dog Tick scurrying along my leg! Yikes! I did a couple loads of laundry…some of my clothes and I stripped the bed and washed the blankets. Things get really musty here. I’ll turn the dehumidifiers on before I leave. We had that brief rain shower on Tuesday, but it wasn’t enough to soak in. The ground is actually cracking.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I worked a little on the shop late yesterday afternoon, but decided to put it away and pick it up again this morning when I’m fresh. I haven’t had time to devote to it and I actually forgot how to do a couple of things. But it’s like riding a bike…it came back to me pretty quickly. I’ll work till midday then I’ll head home to my sweetheart. I miss him when I’m away for too long!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

So, that’s a wrap for May. Welcome, June! My Birthday MONTH!!!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“A person may think their own ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart.”

\nProverbs 21:2 NIV\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

We all need to find hope. This would make a perfect gift when someone needs the encouragement that Scripture so freely gives.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-06-01T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/06/01/ta-da-im-finally-finished.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Farm Life","Crafts"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/05/31/almost-finished-with-the-quilt.html", "title": "Almost Finished with the Quilt!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I woke up yesterday morning, prepared to work on the quilt while I waited for the guy to come hook up the fiber optic phone line. It was about 7:30. I was enjoying the birds singing all around the house when suddenly…I remembered something vitally important. My sewing needles were in my knitting bag…in the truck…at home. Oy! I looked at the time and thought I’d wait a bit before I called Mr. FixIt to see if he might run them out to me.

\n\n\n

I waited till 8:30 to call and even then, I woke him up. I hated that, but the neighbors here were already working and I really needed to finish that quilt! I asked ever so sweetly and added an offer to fix him breakfast, which he gladly took me up on. Within an hour, he was here and saved the day. We had breakfast out on the front porch and before he could get it together to head to town, the phone guy came.

\n\n\n

The outside wiring was already finished. All he needed to do was hook up the modem inside and do the paperwork. I did a speed test when I first woke up so I could see what we were getting on the old line. Comparatively, this fiber optic system is like a rocket! I put it to the test by backing up my iPhone. It took six minutes. SIX MINUTES! That’s crazy! At home, if it updates at all, it takes HOURS. Mr. FixIt shook his head and told the repairman he would never get me to stay home now! lol

\n\n\n

This new foray into speedy downloads has shown me one thing for sure…we need to do something about the internet at Marshmallow Ranch. The service provider here at the farm is Armstrong. At home, it’s Frontier. Armstrong has been working on stringing fiber optic cable in their service area for the last few years. Frontier has done nothing. And, one company cannot work in the other company’s area. So…there has to be a viable alternative.

\n\n\n

I am not a fan of Elon Musk, the man. But he does have some brilliant ideas and one was Starlink. I don’t like what it’s done to the night sky, but I like writing this blog and I can’t spend four or five hours a day trying to get our S-L-O-W internet to upload photos. When we were camping at Leith Run last week, there was a couple who live in their fifth wheel full time. They use Starlink and love it. It works everywhere they go and the speed is great.

\n\n\n

There are several packages available through Starlink. The home system has a waiting list. But the RV system is portable and you can use it at home or on the road. So I’m going to check into that and get rid of Frontier altogether. And, if the speed is what they say it is, we can ditch satellite TV and just stream through Starlink. We could end up saving money monthly and break even in a year from the investment of buying the setup equipment. I’ll let you know what I learn about it.

\n\n\n

Once the service guy was gone, Mr. FixIt went on to town to help his friend Joe fix a broken door. I sat down with the quilt in my lap and started stitching the binding over the edge by hand. It took seven hours and my wrist have just about had it. I wanted to sew the label on but I looked in my knitting bag and could not find my measuring tape. So that part will have to wait till I get home.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Close up of the binding. I’m using invisible stitches. I love the little stripes in the fabric.

\n\n\n

I need to mow here at the farm today, then I can sit down with my laptop and get some work done on Marshmallow Ranch Designs. I want to take advantage of this high speed internet and compare how much more I can get done. Oh, and the diet is continuing to work. After a plateau of sorts, I’ve dropped weight the last three days in a row! Noom taught me to eat more regularly and include my snacks, which I was kind of passing on. As soon as I did that, the weight started going down. The weather has been gorgeous this week!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”

\nJames 1:5 NIV\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

When I was a girl, the patio furniture had cushions covered in barkcloth depicting tropical plants and flowers. I can’t see this prints without thinking of sitting on the patio at my friend’s house, sipping on some sweet tea.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-05-31T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/05/31/almost-finished-with-the-quilt.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Crafts"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/05/30/when-theres-fog-on-the.html", "title": "When There’s Fog on the Hill There’s Water in the Mill", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My grandma had a million sayings. She had a saying for everything. Some were old timey Appalachian sayings handed down through the generations. Other’s were colloquial…a turn of phrase she’d heard from a neighbor or someone at church. Then there were things she just made up. I never knew which was which and have often been taken aback when I’ve heard others say something I was sure was a Grandma-ism.

\n\n\n

When you hear “When there’s fog on the hill, there’s water in the mill”…what does it mean to you? Have you heard it before? Did your grandparents have sayings that fit daily occurrences? Do you still use them? I’d be interested to hear from you because it couldn’t have just been MY family who spoke in such a fashion.

\n\n\n

I finally got the binding put together and sewn to the quilt yesterday. I folded it up neatly and packed up the car for a couple of day’s retreat at the farm. That way I can sit and hand stitch the binding when I fold it over the rough edge of the quilt. I’ll be sitting here anyway waiting for the phone guy to come hook up the fiber optic cable. 

\n\n\n

Once I put my groceries away, I went out on the porch with my second cup of RYZE. I was enjoying listening to the birds (and watching for snakes) when I heard a small “bleating sound”. I looked in the direction from which it came, and standing there as sweet as could be was the tiniest little fawn. Right on the edge of the lawn by the creek. I reached around for my phone gently so I would scare the little thing. But before I could take a good picture, it moved under the flowering quince bushes. A little while later, mama stuck her head out to see what was going on then she too faded into the underbrush.

\n\n\n

It is amazing how lush and green everything is right now. Not long after the little fawn went under the bush, the sky opened up and we had a really hard rain for about 20 minutes. It’s like a tropical rainforest here. And the birds! It’s a chorus of birdsong here. Even though there is a two-lane blacktop road that passes in front of the farm, I have to say it is much quieter here than it is at home, so the birds singing is just a delight to listen to.

\n\n\n

I’ll stay here for a couple of days until I get the binding finished on the quilt. If I did it at home, there would be something else to do that would steal me away from the task and before you know it, I could be stitching on the way to the wedding! Once I get this done, I’ll mow then I can go home and see what else I can get into! There is always…ALWAYS something to do here on Marshmallow Ranch!!!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.””

\nJames 4:13-15 NIV\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

The flowers have been so beautiful this spring here in West Virginia. This sweet apron will remind me of summer’s abundance when I’m working in the kitchen come winter!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-05-30T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/05/30/when-theres-fog-on-the.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Crafts"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/05/19/may-please-stay-forever.html", "title": "May Please Stay Forever!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Grandma’s rhododendron in all her glory!

\n\n\n

Oh, my gosh, y’all…wouldn’t you love to bottle up some May and save it for January or February? Yesterday was one of those days you wish would last forever. Clear skies, high 70’s, a riding mower, and GOBS of flowers! We went out to the farm after breakfast and mowed. It’s been two weeks since we got the chance to mow out there and buddy, it really needed it.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The first thing I noticed when I drove up the driveway was the monster rhododendron in the front yard. I meant to have Mr. FixIt take a picture of me in front of it because it towers over my head by a good three to four feet. But we got busy and I forgot. Grandma’s peonies, flags, and irises were in full bloom, as well. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Iris Sibirica…the Siberian Iris. This is what my grandma called “flags”. There are also smaller wild iris that are commonly called flags. The word comes from the Middle English word “flagge”.

\n\n\n

When we were preparing to go to the farm, I asked Mr. FixIt to walk out to the pollinator gardens to see if we’re making progress. One is full of buttercups and toadflax and the other is chock full of white clover. There were butterflies fluttering around and you could hear the bees buzzing as you walked up. I’m so excited to make these patches grow.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

These are absolutely the most beautiful peonies I’ve ever seen. Grandma would cup her hand beneath one of the saucer-sized blossoms, bend down, and bury her nose in the soft sweetness of her precious posies.

\n\n\n

Our peonies aren’t out yet here at Marshmallow Ranch, but it’s shouldn’t be long. The irises are crazy…I’ll get photos of them tomorrow. The chocolate mint smells divine when I clip the edge of the flowerbed as I mow. The European Starling is still servicing her babies in the eaves of the house but they should be fledging soon. Little fuzzy caterpillars show up in the oddest places. The Eastern Towhees and the Catbirds flutter around in the budding sycamore trees that line the creek bank out front.  The earth is bursting forth in all her glory and my heart is happy.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

This is a Flame Azalia…a kind of rhodododendron that grows wild in the underbrush of the dense forests of Appalachia.

\n\n\n

Today we mow here at home because Saturday, it rains. I picked up our granddaughter’s quilt for her wedding at the quilt shop yesterday and the only thing I need to do is put on the binding and sew on the label. Then I can show it to you! This will be a good rainy day project once the mowing is put away for the week.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

These are ramps. They are a well celebrated delicacy of spring in the Appalachias. You either love them or you hate them. They are the allium tricoccum and are called many different names besides ramps…ramson, wild leek, wood leek, and wild garlic. As the names suggest, they taste like a cross between onion and garlic. Some years you get a mild season of ramps, but most times, you can smell them cooking from a mile away. I love them fried with potatoes then pour beaten eggs over them and bake them like a frittata. SO good. Churches and civic organizations put on “ramp feeds” every spring as a fundraiser. Folks go out and forage the woods for ramps and morel mushrooms way back in the hills, then bring them into town where you can just about bet a fella has a pickup truck and he buys up the ramps, then sells them for a profit. Sort of like a “farmer’s market”. I paid $10 for this one pound bag. They say this is a mild year for ramps, so we’ll see!

\n\n\n

I took lots of good flower photos this week so I’ll be adding to the note card collections in my shop. As I’m writing this, I’m sitting in my big blue club chair in front of Grace. When we got home from the farm, we took out the chairs and ate our supper here. As the sun set, the evening chill moved in so I eventually had to pack it up and move back indoors.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

One of our Pollinator Gardens…they’re doing great!

\n\n\n

I lead a charmed life, don’t I? There was a time after losing Mr. Virgo that I couldn’t imagine living another day without him by my side. I definitely couldn’t have imagined this magical life I’m living. Try as I might, I couldn’t find what I was looking for. Then, when I gave it all to God to carry and I placed Him at the center of my world…that’s when everything fell into place and love came knocking on my door. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We ended the day sitting quietly together, sipping a new coffee substitute my cousin gave me when we were visiting. It’s called Ryze. I have been a lifelong coffee drinker till my stomach started giving me fits every time I drank it. So I quit cold turkey and went to decaf tea. This is a refreshing change of pace. It is made of a little bit of coffee and six different kinds of mushrooms that supposedly have healing properties. I don’t know about all that, but it is nice to taste something reminiscent of coffee without getting the stomach ache and nausea I was getting before. I’ll update you as we go along as to whether it’s worth the hype. So far, so good.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n

“Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

\n\n\n

Isaiah 40:30-31 NIV

\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

I love my new pollinator gardens! This sweet mug reminds me of the wispy grasses and little delicate flowers that invite the birds and the bees and the butterflies to some sit a spell.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-05-19T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/05/19/may-please-stay-forever.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Pollinator Garden"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/05/10/practicing-husbandry.html", "title": "Practicing Husbandry", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I’ve really enjoyed my stay out here at the farm. I told Mr. FixIt last night, I didn’t realize how worn out I was. While I did get some work done on the computer, what I really did the most was soak this place up like a sponge. I did a lot of porch sitting and bird watching and listening to the whispers of the past. It was restorative in a way no place can give me. And now I’m ready to go home and get back to work.

\n\n\n

I always sleep really well at the farm and this trip was no different. However, a mama cardinal has taken up residency in the Carolina Spice Bush right outside the bedroom window. At 4:30 yesterday morning, she decided to regale me with the song of her people. There wasn’t even a glimmer of light out there, but she was ready to rock and roll. I decided to wear earplugs last night.

\n\n\n

There is also a cardinal nesting in the big Rhododendron in the front year. I think there’s a robin in there, too. I don’t want to get close enough to look at the nest because I don’t want to disturb them. I did work outside a good deal yesterday afternoon. I took the loppers to the grassy area between the monster cherry tree and the barn. It was beginning to feel like you were in a cave going up there and that keeps it dark and wet. When the ground stays wet, there’s no place for water to drain and the ground gets soft and mushy and it adds to the humidity in the summer which isn’t good for the wood buildings. I don’t get a whole lot done, but it sure looked more open when I was done. Husbandry does not just involve animals. It also involved the management of the resources around you.

\n\n\n

I need to strip the bed this morning and wash the sheets before I pack up and head home. I timed the trip out here perfectly…I’m almost out of food. Just enough for breakfast this morning. I haven’t been able to weigh myself here so I’m really looking forward to seeing how much I’ve lost since Saturday morning. I went for long walks while I was here. That’s one thing I just wasn’t doing over the winter. I went sedentary as soon as the weather got cold. I just can’t continue to do that. 

\n\n\n

I’m feeling better every day! More energy…more motivation…more hope!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it. Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.”

\nPsalms 96:11-12 NIV\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

A sneak peek at what I worked on this week. I stumbled upon the soul-soothing comfort of fuzzy blankies in my camper when I was a new widow. I was given a beautiful comfort quilt with a Scripture on it, but the texture of the fabric wasn’t comforting to me. So, I’ve designed warm fuzzies with Scriptures on them. Look for them in the shop this week.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-05-10T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/05/10/practicing-husbandry.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Choices","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/05/09/a-busy-day-at-the.html", "title": "A Busy Day at The Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

This little guy greeted me at the barn door when I went to get the ladder!

\n\n\n

The day started out pretty slow yesterday. I decided to call the phone company to see if they could check to see why we have no service. She sent the request to the technical department and they did whatever booboo they do in the back on the…I don’t know…computers maybe? She said she would call me back when she knew something. Then, as soon as Mr. FixIt got here around lunch time things started hopping. 

\n\n\n

He brought the tools I needed. The first thing we did was hook up the old phone he brought from our house, but it didn’t work any better than the other two I had here. Pretty soon, the phone company called back and said they would have to send a technician out. So we moved on to the next job.

\n\n\n

We gathered up our tools and headed to the cellar house to work on the pump. First, we pumped air into the bladder inside the tank. Then we opened the top of the pump and poured in almost exactly six and a half gallons of water till the water came up to the top. We hurried and put the connectors back together and flipped on the pump and in just a few seconds, you could here the timbre of the pump that let us knew it was drawing water from the well. Hurrah!

\n\n\n

Once the pump built up enough pressure to turn off, I went inside and opened a faucet in the kitchen sink to bleed the air from the lines. Wow! It’s been a long time since the well was used so water sat in those old pipes for at least six months or so.  The water that came out looked like charcoal. Ugh! I let it run till the pump kicked on again and when the water was running clear, I filled up the empty jugs we use for priming the pump. 

\n\n\n

While I was filling the water jugs, I heard a big thud up in the cellar house. As soon as that happened, a whole bunch of air came gurgling through the faucet and the water turned dark again. I think we must have hit an air pocket in the well and it jerked the pipe and stirred up the sediment. I waited for the water to clear again, but by this time, the water coming out of the faucet had reduced to a trickle. There was so much sediment coming through, it clogged up the little screen filter in the faucet. So I turned it all off and took every faucet screen aerator off and cleaned them well. Now we were in business!

\n\n\n

The next chore was to take the exhaust pipe off the hot water heater and clean it out and make sure there weren’t any bird nests in it. Once it was cleaned, we put it all back together and attached it securely to the house. We didn’t have any duct tape so Mr. FixIt ran over to the next little town that has a couple of stores and got what we needed. When he came back, he taped up the joints to seal them. There are still a couple of things to do to get it just right, then I can light the hot water heater and we’re back in business!

\n\n\n

Right about then, the phone repairman pulled into the driveway I was happy to hear it wasn’t something inside. He started tracing his way back. The first box was fine. The box across the road was fine. So he had to drive to the next box. He was gone for a good half hour, but when he came back….we had phone service AND internet. Yay!

\n\n\n

While Mr. FixIt stowed his tools in the truck, I cleaned the washing machine and ran it through a cycle, I was wearing leggings when we worked on the exhaust pipe and I had to sit down on that wet, muddy ground in order to see what I was doing. I worked for a while with a wet hiney, but as soon as I got the chance, I cleaned the washer and threw those dirty things in that first load. 

\n\n\n

Everything works like a charm. Mr. FixIt gave me a smooch and off he went back home to hold the fort down there. I fixed supper and ate out on the front porch. It was just a lovely, lovely day. Not too busy…not too hectic…just the two of us fiddling around and making things work. I texted Beans with an update and told her what we’d accomplished and that was that. It started raining just before 8:00pm and that was my signal to put everything away for the day and write my post. It was a good thing, too because I was pretty much done. My back had the last word!

\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n
\n\n\n

I didn’t get a lot of pictures yesterday. I was too busy working. But here’s what I have. 1) The old road up to the top of the hill where the back of the farm is. 2) LOTS of milkweed shoots means food for the Monarchs. 3)Tons of Mayapples grow in the underbrush. 4) The creepy crawly dark place under the front porch. It has a wire gate in front of it to keep the critters from taking up residence down there. 5 & 6) What day would be complete without a snapshot of my meals for the day? I really only eat twice a day plus snacks. Brunch was the second half of my baked potato fried in a tiny bit of butter along with a big mushroom and a couple of scrambled eggs and some colorful peppers. Dinner was skinless boneless chicken thighs on top of a chopped salad. Sooooo good!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.”

\nProverbs 14:23 NIV\n
\n\n\n

#Work, #TheFarm, #Repairs

\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

Being at the farm reminds me that everything Grandma cooked tasted better because it was seasoned with love!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-05-09T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/05/09/a-busy-day-at-the.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/05/08/a-week-of-clean-eating.html", "title": "A Week of Clean Eating", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It’s been a week since I started Noom. I’m here to report it’s been much easier than I anticipated. I attribute that to the support the app gives me every day…several times a day. And physically, I feel completely different. My memory is a little better, I think. I know I feel clearer, if that makes any sense. I mood is stable. I’m sleeping soundly. And I am not at all hungry. As a matter of fact, I have to force myself to get enough calories to meet the minimum requirements. 

\n\n\n

The weight isn’t falling off fast, but overall I’m down 2-3 pounds. I finally got a new scale, however I left it home so while I’m here at the farm, I’ll have to make do with what’s here. I have been getting more exercise. I went for two walks yesterday after the rain stopped. It really poured for several hours with lightening and thunder. I slept through most of it till Mr. FixIt called around 10:30! I’m loving the meals I’ve been making. Lots of roughage! Lots of color! Lots of water! Here are my plates from lunch and dinner yesterday. So, so yummy. 

\n\n\n
\n\n\n

Breakfast was two eggs, over easy. 1/4 each of green, yellow, and red peppers, 8 grapes, about two tbsp. of blueberries, and 2 tbsp. cottage cheese. Dinner was two boneless skinless chicken thighs, 1/2 baked potato with 1 tbsp. sour cream, 1/4 head of steamed cauliflower, and marinated red and yellow pepper strips. I usually like to dip my veggies in Ranch Dressing, but I would rather have more food for those calories. So I put the strips of peppers in a coffee tumbler and added 1 teaspoon of Brianna’s French Vinagrette over them and shook them up to coat. It was perfect…you get the flavor without all the unnecessary calories!

\n\n\n

I took a ton of pictures when I was on my walkabouts yesterday. I went up behind the barn a good ways and saw the three waterfalls. I managed to stand in a place where I could get all three in one picture. Mr. FixIt was planning on coming out yesterday to work on the pump and try to figure out what’s going on with the telephone line. I also want to get the hot water heater lit. We need to check the exhaust pipe to make sure there are no bird nests in it. If we get those things done, then we’ve made great progress.

\n\n\n

I was a lovely and relaxing Sunday. I don’t miss the television one bit, but I’m sure glad my sweetheart is coming to see me today! Enjoy my photos!

\n\n\n
\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n

“He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.”

\n\n\n

Matthew 8:26 NIV

\n\n\n

#Storms, #Rain, #Wildflowers, #CleanGreenEating

\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

Wildflowers after a spring rain are probably one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-05-08T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/05/08/a-week-of-clean-eating.html", "tags": ["Health","The Farm","Farm Life","Fitness"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/05/06/what-an-incredibly-beautiful-day.html", "title": "What an Incredibly Beautiful Day!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We waited till the dew was off the grass then I went out and finished mowing here at Marshmallow Ranch. Mr. FixIt got the tiller out of the pole building and dug up the area along the fence and planted the Elephant Ear bulbs. Those things multiply every year so we always have more than we planted the year before. Maybe I’ll throw the container in the trunk of the car today with a handful of bags and give them away after the bridal shower for our eldest granddaughter.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Mowing at Marshmallow Ranch…look at that sky!

\n\n\n

We took a break to eat lunch, then headed to The Farm to mow. The grass everywhere has grown like crazy with all that rain then a sudden warmup. When you ran over it with the mower, it kind of mashed the grass down. Then you’d go around a couple of times and it almost looked like you hadn’t mowed there. I ran over a water snake without realizing it. Mr. FixIt motioned for me to come over and look. To him, every snake is a “copperhead, more than likely.” Bless his heart. As best I could tell it was a water snake.  I finally got the tractor mowing finished and helped Mr. FixIt by doing the last of the push mowing. Then we were really done for the day.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

View from the barn at The Farm.

\n\n\n

It was 6:45 when we got to the intersection to turn left and head back home. About 5-6 miles in the other direction, there’s a little gas station and country restaurant. Mr. FixIt suggested we turn right and let someone else fix our supper since we worked so hard. Let me tell you…distance is a tricky thing here in WV. Five to six miles in Colorado is a hop, skip, and jump. Here? It takes three times as long to get anywhere because of the curvy roads. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My $5 find…a McCoy planter in the sweetest blue with a quilted pattern.

\n\n\n

We got to the restaurant just fifteen minutes before they closed. The grill had been shut off, but there were still several menu choices. Mr. FixIt had a hotdog and a bowl of potato soup. I had a chef salad. It tasted pretty darned good after all that hard work and I didn’t have to do the dishes afterwards. As we waited for our food, we wandered around the little restaurant. Sometimes local people stop in with some antiques and the owner sells them. There was a beautiful yellow crock with a blue stripe that I very nearly bought, but really…how many crocks do I really need? However, there was the most darling little McCoy planter in a light blue color that I just had to take home with me. And…if was only $5.00!!! Score! I’ve decided to buy an African Violet like my grandmother used to grow and see if I’m any good at it.

\n\n\n

As we were sitting in the booth chatting, a woman sitting on the other side of the restaurant called out to me. 

\n\n\n

“Aren’t you Ginny?”

\n\n\n

I still can’t believe it when people recognize me…especially ten miles from nowhere.

\n\n\n

“Yes, I am!”

\n\n\n

There there was that couple of minutes of small talk catching up with what we’ve each been up to, when I had to ask that question that I seem to ask more and more these days.

\n\n\n

“Please forgive me. I know we’ve met, but can you refresh my memory as to how and when?”

\n\n\n

After all…there’s one of me. There are going on 6,500 of you all.

\n\n\n

“I’m Jean _________. You spoke at our church a few years ago.”

\n\n\n

Suddenly I totally remembered the night in question and I remember speaking with her that evening. Just a sweet, sweet gal. It still humbles me when people know me and I really appreciate it when they stop. And say hello.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Lots of people traveling on a Friday evening.

\n\n\n

On our way home, we marveled at the gorgeous sky and I had to pull over at the top of the hill to take a few pictures. By the time we got home, we were both ready to put our feet up for a while. Mr. FixIt is much like Mr. Virgo…the TV is their martini. Not me! I gave him a big kiss and headed to the quiet seclusion of the camper…the she-shed…the playhouse. One of my happy places. The other is the farm and since our internet has been totally erratic the last few days, I’m going to head back out to The Farm tomorrow after the bridal shower and stay a few days so I can get some designing done. Mr. FixIt will come out Monday with some tools and we’ll fix the pump on the well again.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Well, I sure picked the wrong spot to sit down yesterday. Did I mention I’m on my final weight loss journey? In my defense…the old picnic table is rotten and needs to be dismantled and sent to the brush pile.

\n\n\n

It was a busy, fun, and productive day and we both knew we would sleep like a baby! I’m really looking forward to the bridal shower today. The kids posted a picture of them in front of the courthouse where they got their marriage license yesterday! It’s getting real!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.”

\n1 Thessalonians 5:13 NIV\n
\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

This sweet blue apron with white birds makes a lovely housewarming gift.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-05-06T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/05/06/what-an-incredibly-beautiful-day.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Gratitude","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/04/13/a-trip-to-the-farm.html", "title": "A Trip to The Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My grandma was rolling in her grave yesterday…I mowed the grass while her beloved Johnny-Jump-Ups were still in bloom. She loved every tiny precious flower that God gave her. She would NOT be happy with me!

\n\n\n

Well, the taxes didn’t do me in this year. Neither did the banking or starting a new business in uncharted territory. Nope…what got me was Facebook Marketplace. You know we have the Big Birdhouse up for sale. We put it on Marketplace about a month ago which, in hindsight was probably a bit early. I’m kind of a novice when it comes to selling on FB. Apparently, if your item doesn’t sell in a certain amount of time, you can renew your ad but only for a certain number of times. Here’s a little tidbit of info I didn’t know…if you go in and edit your listing, it counts as one of your times. Who knew?

\n\n\n

We dropped the price…that counted. I added photos…that counted. Then when it reposted…only the first 1.5 sentences remained. I went in twice to try to fix that and used up the rest of my nine lives apparently because I finally got a message that said I could not renew. Go figure. This was actually on Tuesday night. So I waited till yesterday morning to repost. For some reason…my laptop was extraordinarily slow. I mean, creeping. I was trying to get something to work…anything! And it just spun its little wheels. I think the little guy who lives in my computer was kicked back with his boots up on his desk because this was a no go. 

\n\n\n

I was growling so loud Mr. FixIt finally asked what I was doing. When I told him, he said he saw the ad back on there early this morning. Grrrrr. I asked him to show me, but it was for a specific website…not the blanket, overall, everyone-can-see-it Marketplace. So, I went back to work. After another hour, my sweetheart asked me if I was ready to go to The Farm to mow…which apparently, he was. He suggested I bring my laptop with us and try at the farm. The internet is faster there.

\n\n\n

We arrived and unloaded the push mower and weed eater and I went up to the barn to get the tractor. We had all kinds of trouble with it last year. It was really hard to start. I mentioned this to Frank and Beans…the new owners. They worked on the tractor and, lo and behold…that thing started up the first try! Finally…something was going my way! The yard is only about 3/4ths of an acre at the farm, so comparatively speaking…it is a piece of cake. Well, MY part is. Mr. FixIt runs the push mower in the ditch out front and a few areas the tractor can’t get to. Then he does some weed eating. 

\n\n\n

We finally finished and sat on the porch to enjoy our JR’s Pepperoni Rolls and a soft drink. It was up in the 80’s yesterday and we were beat. After lunch, I sat down with the laptop to try to knock out the new Marketplace ad. The clinker was…all the photos were on the iPad and my phone. They’re Apple…I’m old school and kept my PC…they don’t talk to each other. It didn’t matter anyway because my laptop was still having a hissy fit and refusing to cooperate. 

\n\n\n

I’d say, “To make a long story short” but that horse is out of the barn, now isn’t it?

\n\n\n

It turns out, the cleanup program I thought was working in the background…wasn’t. Let me see if I can explain what happened with an analogy. Let’s say you have a funnel with a small opening and you’re pouring sand in a bottle. It works great till there’s too much sand then the funnel fills up and nothing is moving. Well, essentially my bottle was full. So full, as a matter of fact, I couldn’t even open the program to let out that pesky sand. Finally…I started making a little progress when Mr. FixIt indicated it was time to go home. 

\n\n\n

Breathe. I choose to love him. I choose to love him. I choose to love him.

\n\n\n

I put him off as long as I could then finally closed up shop and headed out the back door. On a whim, I turned on the faucet in the kitchen to check the water…and there was none! We had a couple of long power outages with those windstorms two weeks ago so when the pump was off, we lost the prime. When the power came back on, there was no water in the pump and it ran on and on for who knows how long. We didn’t have the tools, the time, or the energy to prime it so I just unplugged the darned thing. We’ll prime it the next time we go out to mow…probably next week before we head to the beach.

\n\n\n

When we got home, I finished cleaning the junk out of my computer and managed to get the photos I needed on the laptop. By that time it was after 9:00 last night and I still needed to write my post. I gently closed the laptop, thanked God for the blessings and opportunities of the day. With a kiss and a hug for Mr. FixIt, I headed out to the peace and quiet of the camper to write.

\n\n\n

Electronics. Machines. The Internet. They’re all supposed to work. And when they don’t, we have a choice. Pitch a fit, or count our blessings. We can’t control the things that happen to us, but we CAN control how we react to them. There’s always a teachable moment in every situation. 

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.”

\nJames 1:22-25 NIV\n
\n\n\n

\n\n\n

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

\n\n\n

When things begin to pile up and you find yourself getting frustrated or angry…choose JOY, Joy can pull you out of a lot of dark places. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Shop Now

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-04-13T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/04/13/a-trip-to-the-farm.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Wisdom","Insight"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/03/10/a-sense-of-accomplishment.html", "title": "A Sense of Accomplishment", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It’s truly wonderful to end a good solid day of work with a sense of accomplishment and gratitude. Listing all four big items at once had its up and down sides. On the upside, we got it done in a hurry. On the downside…we got it done in a HURRY!!! Mr. FixIt didn’t expect me to list all the campers at once and the big hybrid was still filled with Mr. FixIt Jr’s camping gear from several years ago. All that needed to be taken out, so it got stuffed in the back of Frankie the Ford. 

\n\n\n

Then, the Franklin sold fast. I told the fella that bought it I would go out to the farm on Wednesday morning and get all the wood, windows, and screens that had been removed to make room for renovations. They’ve been in the barn since 2017. However, in order to go to the farm and load up, we had to unload the camping gear that was already in back. There just weren’t enough hours in the day, so with great apologies, I told the new owner I would have to bring the items to them ASAP.

\n\n\n

We had rain forecast for last night, so we needed to hustle. We still had some of our own camping gear in the cab of the truck, so as Mr. FixIt emptied things, I sorted them and put what we could use in the new camper. The rest we set aside for Mr. FixIt Jr to get at his leisure. Once the truck was emptied, we headed over to the farm. The first thing I noticed when I got close enough to see the front yard was the big old elm tree that has been dead for years was down. It turns out, it came down in the bad windstorm we had last weekend and the neighbor across the road cut it up. I’m so grateful it didn’t come down and hurt anyone.

\n\n\n

Once we got the truck filled up again, we headed back home. The people we bought the camper from had extra things for it like windows and wood and we had a window out of an old mobile home we thought we’d put in it but then time got away from us and our interests went elsewhere. We drove the load up the the new owners in Ohio and they are just the sweetest people ever! They had another old camper there. I walked around the corner to look at it and ran right smack dab into two of the cutest little donkeys! It was a fun trip.

\n\n\n

We stopped at Lowe’s and picked up our new hose reel then went to Wendy’s for a little late supper. We finally got home about 10:00 and we’re beat! I don’t think there’s anything more scheduled for the week…but, there’s not much week left, right? It’s good to be busy and productive…and so grateful for the strength to do the things and for the blessing of having things to do!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

““For there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease. Though its root grow old in the earth, and its stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put out branches like a young plant.”

\nJob 14:7-9 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-03-10T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/03/10/a-sense-of-accomplishment.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/02/19/twinkle-twinkle-big-bright-stars.html", "title": "Twinkle, Twinkle Big Bright Stars", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Saturdays are often a catch up day around Marshmallow Ranch. Mr. FixIt headed to town first thing to pick up moulding for the newly painted hallway. And, of course, like every other trip to town, they didn’t have what he needed so he had to go to another store. In the meantime, I cleaned house.

\n\n\n

The sun was shining brightly and the windows were really dingy after having a Christmas tree in front of them for months. I don’t know if you’ve ever used Norwex products, but they have a wonderful two-cloth system that doesn’t use chemicals. With the windows all sparkly, and the kitchen clean and tidy, I ran the vacuum then sat down with the computer to do a little more work on this project. 

\n\n\n

I’m making a lot of progress and I think I’m still on course for the big reveal in the middle of March. I gave up on the more complex program and went back to the simpler, though more expensive, version. It’s looking good, I think. And I’m getting pretty psyched for it. Feeling appropriately enticed? ?

\n\n\n

Just after dark, Mr. FixIt was heading to the kitchen to put the kettle on when he stopped and looked out the door in the family room. He went out without saying a word and I knew that meant he saw something in the sky. My sweetheart has a love for the out of doors and especially the night sky. We had perfectly clear skies last night and after days of rain, it was lovely to walk out and see the stars.

\n\n\n

Just over the crest of the far hill were two huge stars. Well, actually…two huge planets. Jupiter and Venus were showing off last night and I was glad I grabbed my phone to snap a photo. The iPhone 13 Pro Max has an extraordinary camera and you can take photos of the stars in the night sky which astounds me. 

\n\n\n

I remember making the trip to West Virginia in the summer of 2016 for my 45th High School Reunion. My Uncle had just asked me to come off the road to live on the farm and take care of it. When I got home after the last party, I laid down on the wheelchair ramp out back and watched the Milky Way. It is incredibly dark out there and with no light pollution, it felt like you could reach out and touch the stars. 

\n\n\n

Star watching is one of my favorite things to do, too. I think that’s why Mr. FixIt and I both love to camp. We can get away from city lights and watch for shooting stars and satellites. I’ve still never caught a glimpse of StarLink but I have seen the International Space Station. We are still on the roller coaster of highs and lows on the thermometer, but Tony the Weatherman told us it looks like our risk of snow is pretty much gone. We had another very mild winter. On the one hand, I am concerned by the implications of climate change. But on the other, I am relieved we didn’t have a rough winter. As a matter of fact, we didn’t have to run the snowblower even once this year.

\n\n\n

Today will be another mild one with a high near 60°. I’ll take that any day of the week!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“He counts the stars and assigns each a name.”

\nPsalms 147:4 MSG\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-02-19T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/02/19/twinkle-twinkle-big-bright-stars.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Peace","Farm Life","Heaven"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/01/13/a-week-packed-into-a.html", "title": "A Week Packed Into a Day", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

See the sparse trees with the dusty pinkish gold leaves? Those are Beech Trees and this time of year, they really stand out in the woods against the dark wet background. I call them ”The Dusty Pink Ladies” as they dance around beneath the towering deciduous forest.

\n\n\n

What an incredible day it was yesterday! I didn’t sleep well either night I stayed at the farm because it was just way too hot. That old drafty house is either too hot or too cold. I even had the bedroom window open. Sometime in the night I got up and when I came back to bed, I forgot to shut the bathroom door. There is a small vent free gas stove in there and man, did it ever heat up the bedroom. And once I woke up, I was done. I stayed awake the rest of the night and finally got up around 7:00. 

\n\n\n

I fixed my tea and warmed up the leftover pancakes. Once I had breakfast done and the dishes clean, I settled in the easy chair with my laptop. It took me three days to do one job because…before I could do this, I had to do that. Then there were three things I had to do before that could be done. It went on and on…round and round. By 6:00 last night, I finally had all the pieces put together and I was essentially done with biggest part of it.

\n\n\n

I’m getting really excited about this project. I think it’s going to breath new life into my blog. I know it’s breathing new life in me! I came home all bubbly and bouncing around. I was glad to get back to the cool bedroom and warm hugs from my sweetie. He went to town in the early evening and I forgot to ask him to pick up a pound of tavern ham and some chips. I ran out in the rain and stood out in the side yard waving my arms but he didn’t see me. I tried to call him but he wasn’t picking up the phone. So, I did the next best thing. I called the little store he was going to and asked the man who answered to have Mr. FixIt bring home my desired purchases. 

\n\n\n

It felt like living in times gone by…asking the shopkeeper to bring home some meat and potatoes. See? We DO live on the Little House up the Holler! I talked to my Auntie Rosie yesterday and she knew who I was, but she was talking word salad. She didn’t really know where she was or why she was there. Poor thing. But I steered the conversation to safe topics from the distant pass that I was fairly sure she would remember. 

\n\n\n

So, all in all…it was a really good day! It got dark enough for folks to have to drive with their lights on at 9:00 yesterday morning. Then the thunder crashed and the house shook. The wind gusts blew around the corners of the house with a whistle. An hour later, the sun broke through for a bit and the storm was gone. It came through in waves all day and by dark last night, the temp started dropping and they predicted snow.

\n\n\n

Let’s hope today is a beautiful day with the world blanketed in white! Stay safe everybody!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

““If you’ll hold on to me for dear life,” says God, “I’ll get you out of any trouble. I’ll give you the best of care if you’ll only get to know and trust me. Call me and I’ll answer, be at your side in bad times; I’ll rescue you, then throw you a party. I’ll give you a long life, give you a long drink of salvation!””

\nPsalm 91:14-16 MSG\n
\n\n\n

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-01-13T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/01/13/a-week-packed-into-a.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/01/12/farm-sweet-farm.html", "title": "Farm Sweet Farm!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Oh…the soothing sound of rain on the tin roof! The smell of old wood and home. The feeling of love around every corner. This old house is like a great big hug and it makes me smile. I was up pretty early and made pancakes and tea for breakfast. I needed to pull some things together on my laptop and what I thoroughly expected to only take a couple of hours ended up being an all day chore.

\n\n\n

I was going to knit. That didn’t happen. I was going to read. Nope. But, I’m working on a project and I made some good progress. I’m not ready to talk about it yet…it’s still in the formative stage. But I’m hoping it will be fun, productive, and maybe bring in a little money. We’ll see! 

\n\n\n

I did have time for a few phone calls. My dear friend Gail called to say her kids lost a dear family member and asked for prayers. I chatted with my sister/friend in Florida. I had a lovely long phone call with Arlene, my Uncle Sonny’s fiancé. She would have been my aunt, but Uncle Sonny was killed in a plane crash before they could walk down the aisle. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My reading nook at the farm…Grandma’s Window.

\n\n\n

I worked on the toilet a little. It keeps running and I finally figured out what needs fixed. It’s an easy job. We’ll get it done somewhere down the line. I heated up leftover spaghetti for supper and it was wonderful. I always think spaghetti and chili tastes so much better on the second or third day. Have you ever had the pasta that comes in a bag? You microwave it for sixty seconds and its hot and ready to eat! I’m going to get some of those for camping! I finished off the Hummingbird Cake that I brought with me, too. 

\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt called me several times yesterday. It’s the funniest thing. We feel like we need a little break and two hours later we miss the heck out of each other! He had to go to town yesterday to get the oil changed and the tires rotated on the Lincoln because he was so bored without me there. I head home this morning to that handsome man. 

\n\n\n

A photo popped up in my FB Memories yesterday. It was a picture from our high school yearbook. Our high school had a program every year called the Sports Carnival. There were choreographed dances, demonstrations by the fencing and gymnastics teams, and just all kinds of fun things. One of the highlights was the “Living Statues.” One star from each team…football, basketball, wrestling, baseball, and crew were covered in metallic body paint. They turned off the lights in the gym and the “statues” posed, the lights came on. Then they’d turn the lights off again, and another pose was created. Every time the lights came on, there was always a gasp, and wild applause.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

There was the crowning of the King and Queen of the Sports Carnival. Those members who didn’t win walked together…in couples down to the stage to serve as the Royal Court. On January 11, 2011…I shared a photo of the court on Facebook for my fellow classmates. Mr. FixIt was one of the Royal Court members! Little did I know when I posted that photo that I would be widowed sixteen months later. Or that in seven short years, I‘d be married to that tall redhead on the far end there. Who knew? Such sadness…and such joy. God works in mysterious ways.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Friends love through all kinds of weather, and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.”

\nProverbs 17:17 MSG\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-01-12T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/01/12/farm-sweet-farm.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Comfort","Memories","Friends"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/01/11/such-good-news.html", "title": "SUCH Good News!!!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Guess where I am???

\n\n\n

OMGosh, y’all…I had my last appointment with the endocrine surgeon yesterday morning and received such good news. My numbers are now in the normal range!!! That means my second surgery was a success. I thought it must be improved because I’ve been feeling much better the last six months. I no longer feel the deep bone pain I had before. And, as my sweet husband can attest…I’m no longer Miss Cranky Pants! I don’t need to see Dr. Phay again unless something comes up. He said while it IS possible one of the remaining glands may give me trouble in the future, it’s not very likely. Thank you, Jesus and Dr. Phay!!!

\n\n\n

An additional high note is…the new medicine I’ve been taking for sleep seems to be doing the trick. Instead of an occasional restful night, it’s flipped and I have an occasional night with not quite as much sleep as I would like and the rest are 8-9 hours of good, solid snoozing. Can I get another “Praise, Jesus!” 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I finished Christmas Stocking #9 yesterday!

\n\n\n

I’m on cloud nine! Mr. FixIt and I went to town yesterday afternoon to get more birdseed for our little feathered friends. We needed to get birthday presents for two of our great grandsons. And we were out of eggs. I am praying the next generation of laying hens fare better and aren’t plagued with avian flu. I didn’t even ask Mr. FixIt how much the eggs were at Aldi’s. We are fortunate to be able to still afford most of the foods we are accustomed to eating. We have cut way back on red meat. We mostly eat roast pork and chicken when it’s on sale. But it sure hurts to pay so much for eggs.

\n\n\n

After we arrived home from town and I got the groceries put away, I packed a few things and headed to the farm for a couple of days. It has been quite a while since I’ve stayed out here…maybe before Thanksgiving? I’m not sure. All I know is, I needed a farm fix! I brought my laptop, a book, the new Girlcamper and Country Living Magazines, and my knitting. I brought out some of the leftover spaghetti sauce, a can of Progresso Chicken Noodle Soup, and some pancake mix. Oh, and a couple of slices of the Hummingbird Cake!

\n\n\n

It is so quiet and peaceful out here at the farm. It’s toasty warm with the gas stoves and the furnace running. I have an electric blanket on the bed so I am cozy and snug as a bug in a rug. I’ll make some phone calls that I don’t seem to have time for when I’m at home. I’ll go back to my sweetie tomorrow morning because it’s supposed to start snowing on Friday. I am so blessed to have access to my childhood home. Even though it technically isn’t “ours,” we work all summer mowing and keeping the place up in exchange for getting to stay here whenever we can. And that makes my heart sing!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“My people will live in a peaceful neighborhood— in safe houses, in quiet gardens.”

\nIsaiah 32:18 MSG\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2023-01-11T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/01/11/such-good-news.html", "tags": ["Health","The Farm","Peaceful Moments","Home"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2023/01/09/memories-of-times-long-past.html", "title": "Memories of Times Long Past", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I imagine I’ll be waxing poetic in the coming months as I close out my 60’s and turn 70 in June. I’ve been browsing old family photos of late, reminiscing and missing family members long since passed. I haven’t spent any time out at the farm since early December so I think it’s about time to get out there for a little R&R. 

\n\n\n

There are still a few things out there that belong to my family. The new owners have been kind and haven’t needed the space. But, sometime in December, my Uncle Bud asked if I could bring something to him…or at least get it out of the house in case there was a fire or some unforeseen tragedy.

\n\n\n

That something was my Uncle Bob’s nutcracker.

\n\n\n

Now…this thing isn’t like the Christmas Nutcrackers we have on the windowsill in the family room here at Marshmallow Ranch. No…this is the coolest thing. Obviously homemade, with well worn boards and what looks like the base of an old nightstand. The mechanism itself looks like some sort of Rube Goldberg Machine. 

\n\n\n

I can remember my Uncle Bob sitting in the chair at the front window where I love to sit and knit. In the winter when he couldn’t get out and pound rock or work the garden, Grandma had him hull walnuts. His hands were stained a deep bronze for months. Once the walnuts were hulled, they were spread out on newspapers in the basement to dry. 

\n\n\n

Uncle Bob carried that nutcracker upstairs to the seat by the window. He’d carry the dried walnuts up in a five gallon bucket. Then he would laboriously crack them into a bowl where Grandma would carefully pick the nut meats out of them into a separate bowl.  Several weeks worth of work produced maybe a couple of quarts of shelled walnuts. 

\n\n\n

Now, this is where the magic happened. My uncle Bud’s favorite treat in the whole wide world was Raisin Filled Cookies. Grandma cooked the raisin filling on the stove top and stirred in toasted walnuts then placed a spoonful of the filling between two soft cookies and baked them. They were never my favorite growing up, but I learned to appreciate them as an adult, although I prefer pecans as walnuts make my mouth blister.

\n\n\n

I think I’ll make my Uncle Bud a batch of Raisin Filled Cookies and take them with me when I deliver his prize. I know he’ll love that. I’ve lost all but two of my mom’s siblings. Uncle Bud is the baby and is doing really well…still building things like saw mills and machines that put Rube Goldberg to shame. My Aunt Rosie fell and broke her hip on Christmas Eve so she’s healing up after surgery, ready for rehab. 

\n\n\n

We aren’t getting any younger. And there will be more and more of those terrible phone calls letting us know someone we love is gone. I’m not really sure how I feel about turning 70. I mean, the alternative isn’t very good so I’ll take what I can get. The woman in the mirror has more wrinkles, but I LOVE her grey hair! I don’t feel sad, per so. It’s more like, I’m being reminded that I’d better not put off the things I want to do because there isn’t as much time to do them now. That’s what’s making itself more clear to me. I have a sense of urgency…but in a good way.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Open up before God, keep nothing back; he’ll do whatever needs to be done: He’ll validate your life in the clear light of day and stamp you with approval at high noon.”

\nPsalm 37:5-6 MSG\n
\n\n\n

\n\n", "date_published": "2023-01-09T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2023/01/09/memories-of-times-long-past.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/11/17/quiet-tears.html", "title": "Quiet Tears", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I awoke to a “beep” and a red flashing light at 4:00 yesterday morning. I was sleeping so soundly, it took me a bit to figure out what year it was, let alone what planet I was on. I searched for the source of the flash. It was the control for the electric blanket. On this particular blanket, if the electric goes off while the blanket is turned on, the control flashes all the buttons red until you turn it off. A safety mechanism, I suppose.

\n\n\n

The bottom line was, the power had gone out. Judging by how warm my feet were, I’d guess it wasn’t off for long. I picked up my phone to see if there was any kind of power outage notification and there was not. However, it wasn’t two minutes later the power went off again and this time it stayed off till 10:30. I went in the bathroom and turned the gas heat up just a touch and opened the curtain “door” to the living room to add some ambient heat.

\n\n\n

The temp is heading south in a hurry in the next couple of days and we’ll be seeing lows in the 20’s. I went out to the cellar house to check the heat tape on the well pump (it was working fine) and I noticed a faint tick-tick-ticking sound on the leaves. I looked down at the dark wool sleeves of my Navy pea coat and saw…little tiny snowflakes! I was hoping to miss those for a while…but, there they were.

\n\n\n

The snow didn’t last long. I ate my breakfast and took my tea to the chair by the window to prepare my knitting when the phone rang. It was my cousin and Aunt Rosie calling. What a joy to hear their voices! Our conversation lasted for nearly two hours. My Aunt Rosie is the last of my mother’s sisters still with us. When I told her I was at Grandma’s house, I could hear their love through the wires.

\n\n\n

My aunt told me about the vivid dreams she’s been having about times long ago. She said they would make great stories, even if they were just her own. I must get her to tell me some of them before I no longer have the opportunity. I asked her if I could read yesterday’s post to her and she said yes. By the time I got to the end, she was crying and at first I felt bad that I had made my beloved aunt cry. Then I realized, those tears are good tears. They are not tears of regret. They’re not even necessarily sad tears. They are reminders of deep love and time well spent in the presence of loved ones. I was glad I got to share that moment with her.

\n\n\n

Aunt Rosie was my champion when I was just a button of a baby. I remember her hiding me in the closet when I tore my mother’s book. She didn’t want me getting in trouble. She sent pictures of me as a little tot at her wedding. She helped Hubby #2 and me when we needed a little money to go to interviews for internship and residency. She was the one who met me in Charlotte to fly home for my mom’s funeral. We shared a double bed in the “Girls’ Room” upstairs at the farm. We laughed and shivered at the hundreds and hundreds of Asian lady beetles tip-tapping on the ceiling and vowed we weren’t staying another night in that house.

\n\n\n

As we get older, our stories are sometimes all we have left of happier times…simpler times…times of “back home” and “remember when”. Without being dismissive of her feelings, I gently brought her back to happier memories. We talked for nearly two hours and by the time we finished, the light was getting dim. I put everything away and came to Grandma and PopPop’s bed to write this love letter to you all.

\n\n\n

I love when my stories touch your hearts. I know then that I am doing what God sent me here to do…my life’s purpose. To bring you back to your own stories through the telling of my own. In this age of divisiveness, I am here to say, unequivocally…we are all far more alike than we are different. If we could just get back to the telling and sharing of stories and of love and laughter and fun…the world would become a much better place.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I hope you can reach out and touch people with your story today. Let us not waste the one big and beautiful life we have been given. When I look at this floor, I feel the heartbeat of every soul that ever walked on it. Sharing that can only raise us all up because…it’s nothing but love.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“Let all that you do be done in love.”

\n1 Corinthians 16:14 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-11-17T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/11/17/quiet-tears.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Love","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/11/16/home-of-my-heart.html", "title": "Home of My Heart", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I walked in the back door and it was as if a tuning fork was placed in my chest. It was raining and the sound of the drops on the tin roof was more magnificent than any symphony I’ve ever heard. Immediately, I was at peace and looking forward to a couple of days here at The Farm.

\n\n\n

It’s rained a lot since Thursday and the creek is running high. I love the sounds and the smells of this house. It takes me back to my childhood. I have a vivid memory of a Thanksgiving here at my grandma’s house. I was probably around ten or eleven years old. Mom and Dad had us bundled up in the back seat of the Oldsmobile. It was raining and cold, exactly like it was yesterday. The leaves on the ground were no longer crisp and rustling. They rehydrated in the rain and were now plastered together like a macabre kind of carpet with tufts of green fibers intertwined. There was a heavy, wet smell of damp earth and moss and old pine needles. 

\n\n\n

Grandma met us at the back door, her apron hastily tied over her ever-present cotton house dress. Her hanky peeked out from the pocket over her once heavy bosom…her hair neatly combed and twisted in a bun at the nape of her neck. I never saw her any other way, save for the days she washed her hair and the long, silver and black tresses draped down her back. She bent forward with her hands clasped together and pressed to her knees. Her eyes crinkled up with her smile as she prepared to wrap us up in her arms for one of the sweetest hugs on the planet.

\n\n\n

She smelled like vanilla and Beeman’s gum and Ivory soap. Her hands were worn yet soft from years of hard work on the farm. The roadmap of lines over her face told of countless joys and countless tears. Her heart was always overflowing with love for her family and she was never happier than when the house was full of conversation and squealing children.

\n\n\n

When you stepped into the kitchen of this old house, the heat and humidity hit you like a ton of bricks. The aroma of roasting turkey and dressing competed with the pot of half runners and salt pork simmering on the back burner. She handed each of us a raisin filled cookie and sent us on our way to play with our cousins who were visiting from out of town.

\n\n\n

The kitchen was quiet when I walked in yesterday, save for the rain on the roof. There were no yummy smells wafting out the back door to greet me. No “Ginny Lynnie…git yorself in here ‘fore you cetch yer death a cold!” I carried the groceries in and set them on the countertops where everything was still in the same spot as I left them the last time. Mr. FixIt called as soon as I walked in the back door, checking in to make sure I arrived safely. What a good husband he is! I put away the refrigerated items, gathered the magazines I brought from home, and pulled up the curtains in Grandma’s window. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It was dim in the room, even with the curtains opened so I went upstairs to find an old lamp to set by the chair. Once that was done, I sat there till the sun went down…my hands resting in my lap…the pages unopened as I soaked up the peace and quiet of this house. This home of my heart.

\n\n\n

I sat back and closed my eyes….and remembered and remembered and remembered.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n\n

“but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.””

\nMatthew 19:14 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-11-16T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/11/16/home-of-my-heart.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Be Joyful!","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/09/06/the-perfect-porch.html", "title": "The Perfect Porch", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I was listening to Tipper Pressley on one of her Celebrating Appalachia videos on YouTube yesterday while I worked on this quilt. She was talking about her front porch and how important porches are to people…not only to those in Appalachia, but to people all over the world who have them. They expand our living space and bring us into the outdoors during the warmer months of the year. They offer safe places to relax and read or visit with friends, family, and neighbors. 

\n\n\n

Porches facilitate community or solitude. They offer a cool place to get out of a hot kitchen during canning season. They’re a resting place when you’re too old to chase the young’uns around the yard but you still want to be a part of things. You can watch for the mailman or the newspaper or the school bus. You can wave goodbye to your loved ones as they back out of the driveway and head on home.

\n\n\n

I’ve had some really great porches in my lifetime. One of my favorites was the farm style house I had built after a divorce. I needed my house to be as Appalachian as I could get living in the Rocky Mountains. I had dreams of living in my home state of West Virginia, but I still had a young child to raise and those dreams had to rest on the back burner. It wasn’t a huge porch, but I had plenty of sitting room and flowers and, white wicker furniture, a barn wood bench, and an old chippy-green rush-seat chair. 

\n\n\n
\"flowers
\n\n\n

My country-style porch in Colorado.

\n\n\n

When Daughter #1 was little, we lived in an old brick bungalow that had a great front porch on it with swings. It was nice to sit out there and watch the world go by…and the traffic. It was a very busy street in Denver. I have had decks and patios that served as porches. And I’ve lived in tiny apartments with no porch at all. When I lived in my camper, the whole outdoors was my porch.

\n\n\n

But, my favorite porch of all times was Grandma’s front porch out at the farm. We still sit out there and have a cold drink whenever we go out to mow. When I’m there for my R&R breaks, I sit out there and knit and listen to the birds. I have so much history…so many memories that include that porch. I remember sitting out there with my grandma, stringing and snapping beans to can. I still have the old roaster pan lid that Grandma used to sit in her lap and peel potatoes or shell peas into. 

\n\n\n
\n\n\n

This sound takes me back to the long summer days of my childhood and Grandma yelling at us kids to quit slamming that screen door!

\n\n\n

One of my friends has the greatest porch. He designed it and had it built onto his historic red brick home and let me tell you…it is stunning. One of these days, I’ll ask him if I can come over and photograph it for you because it is truly magazine worthy.

\n\n\n

Here at our house, we have the pool deck with the pergola on it for shade and a nice table and chairs, but that’s not really a porch, per se. There is a porch on what is officially the front of the house, but it’s just not very conducive to sitting and relaxing. It’s on the busy road side of the house so there’s a lot of traffic noise. And there is a gravel road along the side of the house so it’s really dusty out there. Maybe someday we’ll have a covered porch we can sit on and watch the rain. But in the meantime, I’ll enjoy whatever porch I might get to sit on at any given time.

\n\n\n

We’re almost at the end of porch sitting season. I hope you’ll share a picture of your cozy porch in the comments below and tell us what makes it your special place. Give us all something to dream on.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”

\nIsaiah 32:18 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-09-06T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/09/06/the-perfect-porch.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Memories","Home"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/08/26/two-steps-forward-three-steps.html", "title": "Two Steps Forward, Three Steps Back…Cha Cha Cha!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Good Morning from The Farm!

\n\n\n

I woke up yesterday morning in my grandma’s room, in my grandma’s bed, and looked out my grandma’s window. The sun had just lit up the ridge atop the far hill with a sudden golden glow.  I smiled and stretched and just enjoyed the peace of the moment…listening to the birds and bees and bugs zooming around out there.

\n\n\n

I got up for my morning ablutions, dressed, and picked up my phone. I was preparing to make my morning coffee when I pressed the button on the coffee maker and…nothing. I looked down at my phone and there was no internet connection. I flipped on the ceiling light in the kitchen. Nope, no power.

\n\n\n

I made my coffee by hand. Since the filter and grounds were already in the pot, I just heated up the water on the stove and made a “pour over”. Works like a charm. I took my coffee and my knitting out on the porch and sat there for a couple of hours enjoying my surroundings. Around 11:30, I heard the beep on the microwave and I knew the power had come back on.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Grandma’s MASSIVE Hydrangea!

\n\n\n

I called Mr. FixIt and found out the predicted high was near 90°…pretty hot without air conditioning. I was thinking I might tough it out till I went back in the bathroom again and heard this strange groaning sound. I thought there was some sort of animal stuck in the dryer vent but when I tipped my head this way and that, I finally figured out it was the pipes behind the toilet. I flushed it and it worked fine but I didn’t hear the familiar sound of water going back in the tank. That’s when I knew we had a pump problem.

\n\n\n

Apparently, when I flushed earlier, and the power was off, the built up pressure from the bladder in the pump housing was enough to refill the tank on the commode, but it also let the water level and pressure down enough to hit that magic point where the pump needs to be primed. Well, I had six large jugs of water, but I lacked the strength to unscrew the plug and prime the pump. I called Mr. FixIt and he offered to come out to fix it, but I elected to just go on home and we’ll go out together in the next few days to get it working again. It’s not a big deal…just an inconvenience.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Pretty colors for the next wedding quilt!

\n\n\n

I stopped at the darling quilt shop in our little town on the way home and picked out the material to make a quilt for one of my bonus granddaughters for their wedding gift. I haven’t chosen a pattern yet but the fabrics are stunning. I’ll have to put my knitting on hold for a little bit and get the top made so I can send it to the machine quilter so it will be done in time for the wedding next June.

\n\n\n

My next stop was our local market. They sell what they refer to as “tavern ham”. I just love it! It’s moist and juicy, a little sweet, and not overly salty. We had sandwiches for our early supper and watched the news. Mr. FixIt needed to finish mowing the back yard. At some point, he came in and said he’d run over a hose for the pool pump and we needed to fix it. I went out to see what he was talking about. He said we’d have to run to town today to get a replacement hose. My brain started going over the vast inventory in the big building out back and I was quite sure we already had a section of hose that would work. I went in, walked straight to it, and within ten minutes, we had the hose replace and the pump running efficiently with no leaks!

\n\n\n
\n\n\n

Grandma’s hydrangea bush was all abuzz on Wednesday afternoon…volume up!

\n\n\n

Some days you go two steps forward, and three steps back. And then other times…you just do the Cha-Cha and call it a day!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”

\nProverbs 16:3 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-08-26T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/08/26/two-steps-forward-three-steps.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Frustration"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/08/25/stranger-than-fiction.html", "title": "Stranger Than Fiction", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

There are some stories that are so “out there” you have to ask yourself how on earth they happened. Here’s one of them.

\n\n\n

As you know, Big started college this week. Right? I don’t know how she got to be that old that quick but there ya go. I won’t divulge what school she goes to, but it’s in the Pacific Northwest so…far away. I received a text today from her other grandma saying she ran into the typical freshman logjam and couldn’t get into any of her core classes this semester so she signed up for electives. That’s ok…I think it’s a good idea to ease into college and not be terribly overwhelmed right out of the gate. One of her electives is theater related, which is kinda cool since her mom was a theater major and this is WAY out of her wheelhouse.

\n\n\n

The next text I received was from the former Mrs. FixIt. She sent me a screenshot of a FB post of a friend she and Mr. FixIt have known for decades who lives in our little town. The gal was sharing the news that her granddaughter was checking into her dorm…at the same college Big is attending! AND…she’s a theater kid.

\n\n\n

I sent the screenshot to Big and said…”Teeny, tiny world. This girl is at your school and is interested in theater. Your paths may cross.” She texted me a few hours later…they are in a class together!!!

\n\n\n

You can’t make this stuff up!

\n\n\n

I came out to the farm yesterday for a couple of days R&R. I knitted till the sun went over the far hill then got the riding mower out and mowed. The evening was so pleasant. I visited with the neighbors across the road then sat on the front porch till it got dark. Now that the yard is mowed, I can just sit and knit today. I only have a couple inches left on the second sleeve. Then I can knit the front plackets and this sweater will be finished.

\n\n\n

Oh, and I was washing my supper dishes when I looked down and water was running out from under the kitchen cabinet. I got down to look and the u-shaped trap under the sink had come loose. I tried to fix it but I only had a small hand towel and couldn’t sop up the water so I’ll check it again today. I may end up having to go to the next little town over and get some plumbing parts. It’s always something with an old house. Caretaking is what I do to earn my stays here and if I ever need to buy something, the owners reimburse me so I’m still calling this a win-win situation.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality.”

\nColossians 3:23-25 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-08-25T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/08/25/stranger-than-fiction.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/07/24/day-nine-was-divine.html", "title": "Day Nine Was Divine!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It was 80° by 9:00 yesterday morning. We needed to get out to the farm to mow before it got too hot but after some of the dew had dried off. It’s a delicate balance. I can be ready to go out the door in two minutes flat. Why is it Mr. FixIt takes for.EV.er??? Mr. Virgo was the same way. He always accused me of pushing him. Good grief…we’re going to MOW, not have an audience with the Queen! Get a move on. My sweetheart has met his match with Little. They were neck and neck getting ready. We left at 11:30. It was heading towards 90°…fast!

\n\n\n

I’m not sure why, but we’ve been having a heck of a time getting the mower out at the farm to start. I usually end up running the battery down then we have to push the mower down to the house and jump it with the truck. This time, we got it in place and decided to check the oil. It was low so Mr. FixIt added some. I tried one last time to start it up and…bam! It turned over like it was a brand new machine! 

\n\n\n

We adjusted the mower deck up a notch and out I went. The grass was still fairly wet, but it mowed fine. Mr. FixIt ran the push mower and I trimmed some of the overgrowth that’s narrowing the driveway. We had to stop a few times for a cold drink. It was pretty miserable by the time we were finished. We got back to our little burg and stopped at the Pig for a few groceries. We were thinking we might jump in the pool when we got home, but there was a wicked storm brewing and the sky was dark enough my headlights came on.

\n\n\n

Instead of swimming, we each went to our separate corners for a little “me time”. It wasn’t until we discovered Little is on the autism spectrum that I realized I am, too. I’ve always known I “think differently”. Daughter #2 does, as well. It’s not a bad thing. We are all high functioning. It’s our super power. But it IS draining. And when we’ve “peopled out”, we need to recharge our batteries. There’s not a darn thing wrong with that. It’s how we maintain our shine!

\n\n\n

We thought we might make a trip across the state to see some cousins and my uncle, but we’re down to one trusty vehicle and it’s been a bit dicey of late. The temperature is supposed to hit 100° today and I decided not to go. If we had a breakdown in this heat and have to wait for a tow truck or walk five miles for cell service, we’d be in a heck of a mess…especially with Little. If it cools down this week and if I can find a super good deal on a rental car…maybe we can go later. I would really love for the WV peeps to get to know Little like I do.

\n\n\n

Once I had my stretch out time, I went out to the hedgerow with the loppers and started pruning stuff back. It grows over so much that I have to lean to the side when I mow under it. I’m tired of getting grabbed by the thorns of the multiflora rose that threatens to take over. Also, the gusty winds of the storm that blew through spread the branches from the burn pile all around so I had to gather that up, too.

\n\n\n

There’s never a dull moment here on this little slice of heaven. My reward at the end of the day was a beautiful sky and a cool shower. Oh…and a nice, chewy brownie!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,”

\nColossians 3:23 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-07-24T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/07/24/day-nine-was-divine.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Farm Life","Littles"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/07/21/day-five-was-so-cool.html", "title": "Day Five Was SO Cool!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We had a blast at our sleepover at the farm. We told stories and walked out to see what a really dark sky looks like. It was the first time Little has actually seen the Milky Way! We warmed up leftover pancakes and corn cakes for breakfast. I sat on the front porch with my knitting and coffee and listened to the birds. Little slept in then we packed up and did a little walkabout. I showed them what the buildings were used for. We looked at the pictures of the people who built them. I explained how things worked before they got running water on the farm. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

When we left, I decided to take Little back up on the hill where the old home place was. I explained how the kids had to walk all the way down off the hill, catch the school bus and ride all the way to the nearest school after they outgrew the little one room schoolhouse down the road. Then, when they rode back at the end of the day, the bus driver dropped them off at the base of the hill and they walked all the way back home…rain or shine, snow or ice or the heat of Indian Summer. It’s just the way it was.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We drove out the new road they built to the compressor station for the gas pipeline. I was amazed how noisy it is and I’m so glad they built it way back on the hill and not any closer. There is an old church across from the driveway that turns into the compressor station. In the mornings, the family used to go to the little white church that I attended many years later. Then, in the afternoons, they walked out the ridge and went to this little church for Sunday evening services. 

\n\n\n

Little was fascinated with the signature book for visitors. They signed their name under mine with a smile. We looked around and commented how the old church is settling on one side. When we went back out to the truck, Little said, “Nana, there were cobwebs and bugs and dirt in that church. We need to go back and clean it. The windows could use a good washing, too.” I so love this kid! I told them we would go back before their trip is over so we can give it a good cleaning. We might leave a floral arrangement in their great great grandparents’ honor. That would be nice.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

On our way back home, I showed Little where Frank and Beans live…the new owners of the farm. As we drove by, I mentioned the building at the end of the drive. It was where the bus driver parked the school bus. I saw something out of the corner of my eye and before I could get a good look, Little called out, “Nana, look!!! An OWL!” Sure enough, there was a Barred Owl sitting on the ground, right smack dab in the middle of Frank and Bean’s driveway! It was in the area where I caught the recording of the juvenile calling in the middle of the night the last time I stayed at the farm. Pretty neat!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Someone has seen a young black bear on the hill above our house two days running. I told Little we needed to drive out the road on the ridge to see if we could find it. We didn’t, but we came around a turn and there were wild turkeys crossing the road and going into the woods. Little got to see them. 

\n\n\n

We got home and had some quiet time. I worked on a Christmas Stocking I’m knitting with stranded color work…a technique I haven’t used since I made Big’s baby dress eighteen years ago. I cleaned and cut up a huge pan of broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts to pop in the oven to roast alongside a good sized salmon filet. I bought a bottle of really good quality lemon infused extra virgin olive oil at William-Sonoma when I was in Colorado in May. I’ve been waiting for just the right time to try it and…all I can say is…WOW! What a lovely addition to both the fish and the veggies. We ate the whole 13”x9” pan just the three of us.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

After supper, Little and I jumped in the pool and swam around till nearly dark. We have some of our best conversations when we are outside in nature. We talked about faith and God and what a cool guy Jesus is. Little looked up and pointed at a flock of birds above us. I was about to tell her about murmurations when they suddenly started one…swooping in and out of curved formations. It was fascinating. Then, just at dusk, the bats came out and one kept diving the pool for drinks of water and that’s when I told Little we’d had enough and it was time to get out!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We needed to get some things out of the camper, so Mr. FixIt helped me set it up. It has leaked again, so I need to get it back to the dealer. I’ve just about had it with this thing. Too many problems for a brand new camper. We did keep it set up and decided to “camp” in the field last night. There was a storm predicted, but we were bound and determined to tough it out! You will have to wait till tomorrow to see how that worked out!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”

\nMatthew 6:26 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-07-21T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/07/21/day-five-was-so-cool.html", "tags": ["Family","Camping","The Farm","Farm Life","Crafts","Big Birdhouse"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/07/20/day-four-was-hot.html", "title": "Day Four Was HOT!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

There was an inch and a half of water in the rain gauge yesterday morning. Add this heat and you can almost HEAR the grass grow! I rustled Little up out of bed fairly early. I fixed corn cakes for breakfast and man…they were fantastic if I do say so myself. I didn’t really have a recipe. I used a couple cups of self rising flour, a cup of finely ground yellow corn meal, half a teaspoon of salt, a teaspoon of baking powder…even though there’s baking powder in the self rising flour. I also added a heaping tablespoon of sugar. Whisk the dry ingredients. In a liquid measuring cup, pour about a cup of milk, 1/4th cup vegetable oil, and two eggs. Beat with a fork till combined and pour into the dry ingredients. If it’s too thick, add more milk, a little at a time and stir till you get the consistency of pancake batter. I added a little vegetable oil and butter in a cast iron skillet over medium heat and cooked the corn cakes two at a time, flipping them when the edges were golden. I served them hot drenched in syrup. Divine! I normally would have a side of eggs for some extra protein and maybe sausage or bacon but I used the eggs to make the batter and didn’t have any side meat. Little loved them!

\n\n\n

I hustled Little into the pool and headed out to mow before it got too bloody hot to tolerate being out there. I lasted longer on the mower than Little did in the water. They felt like their skin was frying so they gave up and went inside where it was air conditioned. I took a break every hour and rehydrated with “DripDrop”…an electrolyte powder that was designed to rehydrate people quickly without going overboard on the salt, etc. I jumped in the pool which was SO refreshing. Then back out on the mower. Mr. FixIt took the loppers around the edge of the yard and trimmed back the low hanging branches of the sycamore trees out front. That made a world of difference when I was mowing out there. The branches didn’t threaten to dump me off the tractor!

\n\n\n

Once the mowing was finished and I’d cooled off, I fired up the grill and fixed bratwursts for supper. I bought a jar of mild chow-chow at the Piggly Wiggly the other day. Chow-chow is a pickled relish that is highly favored in the south. It goes wonderfully with roast pork or as a substitute for pickle relish on hotdogs or brats. It’s made with chopped bell peppers, green tomatoes, sweet onions, and cabbage. Northern versions can have cauliflower, carrots, beans, onions, bell peppers, and more. It can also have hot peppers in it for added zing. My grandma always made it and called it “End-of-the-Garden Relish”. My mom would sit with a spoon and eat it right out of the jar. Little tasted it, but wasn’t necessarily impressed with the texture. Mr. FixIt and I slathered it all over our brats! Yummmmm!

\n\n\n

While we sat and ate supper, I suggested to Little that we head out to the farm and spend the night. There’s going to be a strong storm front coming in tonight, so we thought we’d get this little side trip out of the way while the weather is good. We stopped at Dollar General and bought an extra fan because it was 88° when we left home. The old fan up in the “Boy’s Room” at the farm has finally stopped working after at least sixty years of service and that is what we depended on to suck the hot air out of the house. As you might well imagine, the house isn’t air conditioned, although at one time there was a window air conditioner that stopped working a few years ago. Grandma always said this ol’ holler was nature’s air conditioner because there is always a breeze coming down out of the woods through the back door. When it got really, really hot in August, Grandma would fill a bucket with cold water and throw it out all over the cement porch.  The wind coming down over it would cool down and work just like a swamp cooler.

\n\n\n

We have what we need here…a box of Mac and cheese, some pepperoni rolls, the leftover pancakes and corn cakes, and things to drink. We’ll head back home today. I just wanted Little to get to stay out here at least once while they’re here. We sat together and looked at old family photos and I told some of the family stories. I’m so happy to share my love for the home of my heart with Little.

\n\n\n
\n\n\n

The video above was taken the other night down by the creek at the edge of the “Far Field” at our house. I thought you might like to hear the night sounds.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.”

\nProverbs 24:3-4 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-07-20T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/07/20/day-four-was-hot.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/07/11/the-weekend-in-review.html", "title": "The Weekend in Review", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The smokehouse and the barn at The Farm.

\n\n\n

Forty-eight years ago, I became a mother. Forty-eight. I don’t understand how she got older than me but she’s a keeper and I’m so proud to be her mom!!!

\n\n\n

This whole week went by so fast, I lost track of the days. We are in heavy grass growing season with all the rain we had in the last ten days so that means more mowing. Mr. FixIt went to town on Saturday to help a friend with some plumbing and I stayed home and knitted. Then yesterday was mowing day at the farm.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

One of our first tomatoes of the season.

\n\n\n

We bring our push mower out to cut the ditch out front and the edges where I can’t get the riding mower. As Mr. FixIt was making a space in the bed of my truck, I went into the garage to put a folding table away and bring out the mower. I was reaching to lean the table against something when I lost my balance a little. I reached out to steady myself on the garage refrigerator and got the edge of the door…not the side as I intended. The door opened and away went my brace. I tumbled forward over the push mower and into the riding mower. I really wrenched my pinkie on my right hand and have some bumps and bruises, but I don’t think I broke anything except my pride. The first thing that went though my mind is when the doctor’s office questions me at each appointment. “Have you had any falls?” They only started asking me that at the last couple of visits. I’m…of a certain age. 

\n\n\n

*sigh*

\n\n\n

We have an old John Deere at our disposal about at the farm and when I say old, I mean ancient. But man, when they say nothing runs like a Deere…they aren’t kidding. We have a heck of a time getting it started. I ended up running the battery down, so I disconnected the gear box and pushed it down toward the house so we could jump it with the truck. I got to where the round started sloping and called for Mr. FixIt to come push me so I could ride down and have my foot on the brake. It wouldn’t do to have the tractor run into the creek!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Japanese Lantern Plant

\n\n\n

Before we jumped the mower to start it, Mr. FixIt lowered the mower deck for me. It’s been mowing too high and you can hardly tell you’ve gone over it at all. Once that was accomplished, we jumped it and it started up without too much trouble and runs like a big dog. The grass was thick and damp and we were cutting it pretty short, so there was a lot of clippings in clumps on the lawn. I ran over it and over it several times till they were all mulched up. Mr. FixIt ran the push mower and we were finished in short order.

\n\n\n

We stopped at the little neighborhood market on the way home and got a package of “Buzz Buttered Steaks”. This is a local delicacy that I’ve enjoyed since my childhood. As a matter of fact, I was a genuine grown up adult before I realized a “steak” wasn’t a frozen square ground beef patty with a pat of butter on it sold six to a box in the freezer section. These things were staples at our house when we could afford meat and they really are SO good! In the late ‘70s, someone stole a panel truck with several tons of these beauties on it and were fat and happy when they got caught. The whole incident put Buzz Buttered Steaks on the map and they enjoyed quite a boost to their sales. I was amazed they still make them. We don’t get them very often because I like to stay away from processed foods, but every once in a while, we like to indulge. We sliced up a home grown tomato and a Vidalia onion, topped it off with a generous slather of Duke’s Mayonnaise, and had a right proper summer supper.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Pumpkin napping on the kitchen window sill.

\n\n\n

I only have about eight inches of the second sleeve to knit on Big’s sweater, then the front placket. Today we mow here at the house. The family arrived safely in VA Saturday night and they’re having a big time already. I can’t wait to see them later this week. I’m taking all kinds of goodies down with us! It’ll seem so strange to see them all outside of Colorado. 

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

\n1 Timothy 5:8 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-07-11T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/07/11/the-weekend-in-review.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/07/10/running-on-purpose.html", "title": "Running on Purpose", "content_html": "\n
\"Country
\n\n\n

Country Roads

\n\n\n

I met Hubby #2 in the late ‘70s. I worked in the small x-ray department at a rehabilitation hospital in downtown Denver and he was working as a Physical Therapist between premed classes. We knew each other for a year but there had never been an indication that he would like to go out with me. And, I didn’t have the nerve to ask him. Finally I asked a mutual friend why he didn’t seem interested and she said, “Do you really want to know the reason? It’s because you smoke. He would never go out with someone who smokes.” I took my cigarettes out of my pocket and threw them in the trash and said, “Tell him I quit!”

\n\n\n

I knew he ran after work sometimes over at Washington Park, so I bought myself a pair of cheap running shoes and headed there on my way home. It wasn’t too long till we were running together and soon we were dating. We moved fast. It wasn’t six months and he asked me to marry him. I wanted him to meet my family in West Virginia first. Since he was starting med school in the fall, we went home in August for a visit.

\n\n\n

We went on a twenty mile backpack trip up the highest peak in West Virginia. We wandered around and visited with family and friends. And finally, we stayed a couple of days out at the farm with my grandma and my Uncle Bob. Grandma had the measles when she was pregnant with Uncle Bob so he had some special needs. He was smart and funny, but he had a lazy eye and a bad stutter so when the kids started making fun of him in school, Grandma just let him stay home with the family. He was a hard worker and a total angel unawares. He loved everyone and everyone loved him back.

\n\n\n

Late one morning, Hubby #2 and I changed into our running gear, had a good stretch, and headed off for our run. It was great running at sea level after living in Denver for so many years. I could run and run and run and not get winded. We finally came back and as we ran up the driveway, I could see my Uncle Bob sitting on the front porch laughing like crazy. We came up the porch steps and he was looking at us like we were some delightful oddity he had stumbled upon. 

\n\n\n

“What’s so funny, Bob?” I reached for my water bottle, still cold and sweating in the humidity.

\n\n\n

“Well…” he paused and chuckled. “I never seen anyone run on purpose before!” Then he let out a belly laugh and slapped his knee. 

\n\n\n

We laughed along with him, realizing this was absolutely true. Bob was trim and fit because he worked hard on the farm. He pushed a plow in the garden. He mowed the grass. And he pounded rock with a sledgehammer from a place on the side of the hill up by the barn. Then he filled the wheelbarrow with the resulting gravel and toted it down to line the driveway. He walked the hill to check the television antenna line. He fetched and carried for Grandma. The man earned his supper every day, but to go outside and run? On purpose??? Maybe if he had a bear chasing him, but that would have been the only thing to get him out of first gear. My Uncle Bob was slow and steady and that wins the race every time.

\n\n\n

I remembered that story last night when we stopped at the park after our once or twice weekly trip to town for a small ice cream. We walked a couple of laps to work some of it off. Who am I kidding…it only burned off, like…a spoonful or two. I haven’t run in decades. I really need to exercise more…you know…

\n\n\n

On purpose!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”

\n1 Timothy 4:7-8 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-07-10T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/07/10/running-on-purpose.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Fitness"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/07/01/and-the-year-is-half.html", "title": "And the Year is Half Gone", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

So, is 2022 really half over? Is the glass half full or half empty? Neither…it’s full to overflowing! You can see the water…it looks diminished. But there is air filling the rest of the cup. And that air, even though you can’t see it, is just as important. The calendar may imply we’re half done, there’s an awful lot of unseen days ahead with great potential if we give it our all! We can make a huge impression on the world in six short months!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I really enjoyed my time at the farm. It’s always so beautiful at this time of year. And I saw all kinds of critters….deer, a little tiny baby bunny, birds galore, lots of wasps and honeybees and bumblebees and butterflies and lightning bugs, two huge European hornets (thankfully deceased), a slick lizard, and a great big black snake! It was a plethora of nature!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I stripped the bed and washed the linens. I would have hung them out to dry, but I didn’t have enough clothespins. I love the smell of sheets dried in the sun, but they are always a little rough on the skin if they aren’t dried in the drier. Personal preference, I guess. I cleaned up a little around the farmhouse. There’s always lady bugs and dead wasps on the floor. And of course, we always track in dirt and grass and leaves. 

\n\n\n
\n\n\n

When I got home, I pulled out my knitting and somehow I’ve gotten something on it. I don’t know if it was my morning coffee or what it is. I will have to work on it a little this morning. I’m making great progress…just finishing the third skein of yarn. Bulky yarn and big needles make for a quick job when you’re knitting a sweater.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We went to our little town to get an ice cream last evening and went to check out a new little junk shop called Happy Jim’s. Trust me, Jim was happy. And talkative. We could have been there for hours listening to his stories. He had great stories! I found a perfect vintage tablecloth…not a spot or fray on it. As a matter of fact, it hardly looked used at all. Try as we might, neither one of us could find the price. Happy Jim asked me if $5.00 sounded good. We paid up and I continued to browse during the bulk of the storytelling. I was holding the tablecloth in my arms so I held it out in front of me to admire my find. I don’t know how we missed it, but there was the price tag. It was the same color as the pattern where it was placed. $18.00! I went right to Happy Jim and said, “I’m a good Christian, and I cannot in good conscience walk out of here paying the wrong price.” He took a good look and he said, “Well, ma’am, it looks like you got yourself a good deal!” I objected but he wouldn’t hear of it. “Just tell the folks you got yourself a good deal here at Ol’ Jim’s place, ok?” So, you heard it from me…you can find a good deal at Happy Jim’s!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

When we got home, Mr. FixIt and I took a walk around the property just before dark. There are several pears on the two trees out between the house and the main road. They’re pretty small and the trees look to be blighted. I’m not a tree person, so I’ll have to search the internet to see what I can do for them, if anything.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We still don’t have the pool just right. We can’t seem to get the water clear. We have one more thing to try and hopefully that will fix it. It would be awfully nice to get in it on these hot summer days. I came out to the camper last night to write and even though it was still pretty warm out, the fans circulated the air and made it quite comfortable. With the price of gas and the crowds at the campgrounds, I’m finding “home camping” to be a viable and cost effective alternative. Heck, you’re just going so you can sleep in your camper or tent anyway. What difference does it make where you park it or set it up? I’ve camped in tiny back yards and I’ve camped in National Parks. It’s sleeping no matter where it’s done, right?

\n\n\n

Happy Friday, everyone! It’s a Holiday weekend…I hope you get out and enjoy the outdoors!!!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.”

\nPsalm 145:5 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-07-01T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/07/01/and-the-year-is-half.html", "tags": ["Travel","Camping","The Farm","Farm Life","Big Birdhouse"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/06/29/knitting-and-bunnies-and-birds.html", "title": "Knitting and Bunnies and Birds", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We had to run to town yesterday to do errands. Usually that turns into an all day ordeal, but I managed to schedule things to make them go smoother. I dropped off Mr. FixIt at his buddy’s house to work on the tomatoes while I went to get my blood drawn, then we stopped at the post office box and the pool supply store. A quick stop at the gas station and we were home by 3:00…a record, I think!

\n\n\n

I was antsy. I wanted to go camping. The low temperature is going to be perfect the next two nights, but the days are going to get pretty sticky. Mr. FixIt really didn’t want to go and honestly, I wasn’t in the mood to pull the camper by myself this time. Still, I had itchy feet. It’s been quite a while since I’ve had a sleepover at the farm, so I asked my sweetheart if he minded me going over for a couple of days. He’s so sweet…he never, ever objects to me doing whatever I need to do to maintain balance in our life. For that, I am grateful and it encourages me to make our time together epic. He’s a smart man!

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I threw some things together and headed to the home of my heart. I always do a walk about to make sure things are all looking good. Everything was in ship shape. I sat on the front porch and knitted on Big’s sweater. I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye and there was a little Carolina Wren hopping toward me, moving her head this way and that. She stayed for quite a while. There was a little, tiny bunny in the front yard nibbling on the white clover. Every once in a while, something scared it and it darted off into the underbrush only to return when the coast was clear. It finally started getting cool and I headed indoors. 

\n\n\n

I heard a bird out the back door so I took my phone to investigate. It wasn’t dark yet. I looked up and scanned the hillside and noticed something amiss. There were several branches with lots of dead leaves on them and that only means one of two things…a tree has died from disease, or it’s come down. And that’s just what happened…it came down right on top of the old cellar house. There are limbs resting on the electric line going to the building, but there is still power up there. I did pull my truck back from under the lines, though. You can see the trunk of the tree where it broke off about twenty feet up. Judging by the way the leaves have turned brown already, I’d say this happened during the storm that knocked out our power for two days a couple of weeks ago. I don’t know how we missed it the other times we’ve been out here. I guess we just don’t look up enough.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

There have been more things like this happening in the last year since the farm was sold. I think houses know. I think they die. How many times have you seen an old house look perfectly fine then just fall apart quickly after its people leave? I told Mr. FixIt, we need to come out more often and talk to the old girl….make sure she still knows how desperately she is loved. Maybe plant some flowers. I am so happy her new owners love her like we do…but I just think this old house misses her people.

\n\n\n

It’s so incredibly quiet here. At night, the birds have gone to roost. The only sound is the dehumidifier humming quietly in the basement. Occasionally the hot water heater kicks on. As I write this, I have the window open feeling the cool evening breeze and listening to a Barred Owl just across the creek.

\n\n\n

Life is good!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.””

\nJohn 3:8 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-06-29T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/06/29/knitting-and-bunnies-and-birds.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Be Joyful!","Farm Life","Crafts"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/04/15/apologizing-to-grandma.html", "title": "Apologizing to Grandma", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Zoom in on the picture to see Grandma’s Johnny Jump Ups in the yard.

\n\n\n

When we went to the farm on Wednesday to mow, I backed the tractor off the trailer and headed to the road end of the yard to start mowing. As I turned off the drive and into the soft, spring green grass I saw a sight that stopped me in my tracks. I turned off the tractor and just sat there, admiring what lay before me.

\n\n\n

A whole yard full of Johnny Jump Ups. I can remember as a very little girl, picking handfuls of these little treasures and bringing my bouquet to Grandma. She would pull out a tiny cup and carefully place the flowers in water to enjoy till they wilted away.

\n\n\n

I could hear my grandma’s voice as plain as day.

\n\n\n

“Don’t you mow down my posies, pet!”

\n\n\n

It made my heart hurt. Grandma led such a simple, yet rich life. She’d had a hard row to hoe. The middle child of three, she lost her mom when she was nine years old. Her little brother had just turned five when their mom died. Her dad was a difficult man and made their lives pretty miserable growing up. He had a string of wives he picked up along the way to “mother” his children. The only one I knew was his last wife…Grandma Pearl. Grandma loved her, but she was already grown with a family of her own when she came along.

\n\n\n

Take a really close look at Grandma’s old house and you’ll see it was cheaply made before the depression. Upgrades were made along the way and she eventually got indoor plumbing and a bathroom. She always said this house was like the Taj Mahal to her after the places she’d had to live over the years. She nurtured ever flower and plant on the place and often brought cuttings home from friends and neighbors to expand her gardens. 

\n\n\n

West Virginia has an abundance of wild flowers that take your breath away and one that Grandma treasured was the little violets she called Johnny Jump Ups that covered her yard. The grass would grow long and thick before they finally faded and she would finally allow my Uncle Bob to mow. As I sat there looking at her beautiful flowers, I pulled out my phone and took a picture. Even the iPhone 13 Pro Max with its incredible camera couldn’t do that yard justice.

\n\n\n

Finally, I sighed and apologized to my grandma for cutting her pretty posies. I know she would be bitterly disappointed, but we need to “make hay while the sun shines” around here and we were right smack dab between rain storms. There was a lot of work to be done so I turned the mower back on and went on with the job at hand.

\n\n\n

“I’m so sorry, Grandma. I took a picture…and I’ll always remember you when I see these pretty little posies.”

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.”

\nSong of Solomon 2:12 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-04-15T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/04/15/apologizing-to-grandma.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/04/02/farm-life-is-fun.html", "title": "Farm Life is Fun!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I woke up yesterday morning to a weird chewing sound. Anyone who has ever lived in an old farmhouse knows there are any number of critters that could be making this noise, but let me tell you…I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt…this wasn’t your everyday little ol’ field mouse. This sucker sounded like maybe a beaver commenced to making the house his new home.

\n\n\n

I gingerly pulled back the curtains that serve as the “door” between the bedroom and the living room…afraid of what I might spook in the process. I didn’t see anything, but after a moment, the chewing commenced again. I listened carefully and from what I could tell, it was coming from the area of the front door. 

\n\n\n

Not wanting to scare the thing away before I had a chance to identify it, I tiptoed carefully across the living room and carefully pulled the curtain on the door back ever so slowly. There, in all his glory, was a fat grey squirrel doing his best to eat the house! I smacked my hand hard on the wall on the other side of his feast and he jumped three feet in the air…his little legs pumping before he ever hit the ground.

\n\n\n

I opened the door with some trepidation. I mean…was he just standing off to the side waiting for me to come out in the open before he pounced? Or did I really scare him away? Did he have friends out there ready to take me on? I wouldn’t put it past the little beasties! But, alas…the critter was gone and I had a chance to look at the damage. Let’s just say this little fellow has been at this for a while. There was a three to four inch semicircular hole in the outer level of wood with distinct teeth marks from the time spent trying to…what? Get in the house? I can’t imagine why he would want to chew through the side of the house when there are easily a dozen places where he could more easily gain access. Wear down his teeth? Squirrels, like beavers, have teeth that continually grow and they need to be worn down with chewing. I imagine that’s where this was going, but why the house of all things? There’s a million trees…standing and fallen…where he could go. There are outbuildings…the old barn…heck, he could have gone to Chicago for that matter. Why did he want to chew that place in particular? We’ll never know because I scared him off before I had the chance to ask!

\n\n\n

I sat down with my trusty iPhone and searched the internet for “How to keep a squirrel from eating your house.” It popped up before I had the chance to finish asking, meaning…I’m not the first person to ask this question. Oddly reassuring. It said you could pour hot sauce on the spot, but the poor little squirrel might get it in his little eyes which could lead to blindness and since I cannot have a blind squirrel running into things on the farm, I elected for option #2…mothballs.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Now, did I have mothballs? Well, in all honesty, I thought I had seen some down in the basement but no…it was Epsom salts. Not a good alternative, unfortunately. I needed some light bulbs for the kitchen fixture anyway as they were burned out. And I was out of paper towels. So, I grabbed my purse and keys and headed back over to the Dollar General where I had visited the day before.

\n\n\n

I searched up and down the aisles and finally asked a clerk if they had mothballs. She was good…she told me off the top of her head where they were…exactly. After paying for my purchases, I headed back home with my bright yellow sack to banish the tree rat! I needed a mesh sack and didn’t have one, so I cut the scrubby netting off the back of a dish cloth and that worked nicely. I took a length of my yarn and tied up a few mothballs in my makeshift sack and hung it over the place where Rocky Squirrel had been recently noshing. We’ll see next time if it worked!

\n\n\n

In the meantime, we had several snow squalls come blowing through. As is typical this time of year, we saw hail, sleet, graupel, snow, rain and sunshine all in the span of fifteen minutes. It was epic! I changed the light bulbs, loaded up the truck, and headed home. The Piggly Wiggly was PACKED at 3:30. What on earth do people need to buy at 3:30 on a Friday afternoon…the line on both registers was six deep! *gasp*

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

With the fixin’s for a big ol’ pot spaghetti in hand, I headed on home to greet my sweetheart. Absence indeed does make the heart grow fonder and we are always tickled to death to see each other after a couple of days. After dinner, I finished the hat I started knitting Wednesday. It was one heck of an April Fool’s Day!!!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?”

\n1 Timothy 3:5 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-04-02T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/04/02/farm-life-is-fun.html", "tags": ["Strong Women","The Farm","Farm Life","Control"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/04/01/wake-up.html", "title": "Wake Up!!!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I was awakened yesterday by the sounds of heavy equipment and the incessant beep-beep-beeping of a back up alarm out front. I dressed quickly, grabbed my phone, and headed out the door to see what was going on. The highway dudes were clearing up the rockslide that occurred a couple of weeks ago. Cool!

\n\n\n

I came back in and fixed my coffee. The morning was fairly warm and breezy with intermittent clouds and showers. I took my knitting out on the front porch and worked while I listened to the birds. I don’t have feeders out here anymore. But I had plenty of company out there amongst my furry and feathered friends. The cardinals, blue jays, robins, wrens, sparrows, woodpeckers, towhees and a gorgeous red-tailed hawk were joined by chipmunks and grey squirrels. It was quite the show!

\n\n\n

Along about 1:00, I decided to take a drive over to the next town to check out the new Dollar General. I heard it was a real humdinger and they were right. This thing has a huge grocery section which is quite a convenience when you’re twenty-five miles from a real store. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Next was an impromptu stop at the church thrift shop. They weren’t officially open, but there were several cars out front so I took my chances. I wandered around a bit and didn’t find anything I needed…till the last aisle. There was a magnifying floor lamp with my name on it. $10! I saw them in January for up to $250 so this was just what the doctor ordered. It will really help when I knit at night with dark colors. 

\n\n\n

I debated where to go next. Back to the farm or on up the road to visit Berdine’s Five & Dime to get some chocolate covered peanuts and then a stop at the cemetery to visit the family. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It was 73° as I sat on the headstone and happily munched on my “penny candy” in the little paper sack and chattered away. I told Grandma all about her pretty posies that are blooming. I told Pop-Pop I thought I’d finally figured out how to fix the pump and all I needed was a good strong pipe wrench. I told my Uncle Sonny that I spoke with his fiancé a couple of weeks ago. I apologized again to my Uncle Bob for not always being nice when he teased me. He was differently abled and I was a petulant, headstrong child. I told Mr. Virgo I was glad I placed some of his hair in the ground alongside Mom’s headstone since I can’t visit him often in Colorado. And, I told my Mom I saw the most beautiful purple dress the other day that she would have loved.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

As I turned to leave, I glanced to my right and there, at the edge of the woods, was a redbud tree blooming. Oh, I love it when they bloom! They look like airy purplely pink clouds floating along the winding country roads and they just make my heart sing. I went to the truck to get my camera to capture photographic proof that spring has indeed arrived in West Virginia, whether it snows again or not. 

\n\n\n

I came back to the farm. Rather than knit, I stretched out on the bed to read and before I knew it, I dozed off. It’s been a restful couple of days even though I haven’t had running water. I’ve listened to the owls call at dusk. I’ve slept in Grandma’s bed. I’ve eaten chocolate covered peanuts and watched the flora and fauna running rampant and rich. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My soul is refreshed. Don’t be fooled today! 

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”

\nIsaiah 32:18 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-04-01T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/04/01/wake-up.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life","Crafts"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/03/17/an-eventful-day.html", "title": "An Eventful Day!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Our helpers couldn’t come yesterday so there was a change in plans. We got “Birdie” set up and cleaned out the ladybugs and stink bugs. Mr. FixIt gave her a bath. And I headed to the farm for a couple of days. It had been a while since I got to visit and I was in need of a farm fix. 

\n\n\n

The weather was stellar yesterday! I sat on the front porch and knitted in the sunshine. It was 71° and delightful. Along about 4:00, a lead car for a wide load pulled up out front. You never know what you might see out these old country roads, so I opened the camera on my phone and prepared to take a video of whatever lumbered by. 

\n\n\n
\n[youtu.be/aPRKMB-S1...](https://youtu.be/aPRKMB-S1oE)\n
\n\n\n

Soon, here came half a house on its way to become someone’s home in the country. Over the years, the phone line that crosses the road has begun to sag lower and lower. The trailer slowed way down then inched forward. Suddenly, the top of the house snagged the phone line and he hit the gas!

\n\n\n

I started yelling and telling him to stop and back up. The truck behind him was honking. The guy in front of him was waving his arms. He stopped, but not before he stretched the heck out that wire. The guy in the lead car got an extension ladder out and two guys extended it and lifted the line so the house could glide under it.

\n\n\n
\n\n\n

Once all the commotion died down, I went back to the porch and picked up my knitting. I was looking at that line and thought it looked lower. I pulled up an earlier photo and compared them and indeed…it was MUCH lower. I tried to call the phone company but they were closed. 

\n\n\n

I had been having a little trouble with the water pump earlier so I was on the phone with my cousin who lives down the road. All of a sudden, a fully loaded logging truck came barreling down the road, caught that line, and ripped through it like butter! So, that was that. The water wasn’t running, and now the phone was out. And without the phone, I had no internet. And without the internet, I had no cell service. And without the cell service, Mr. FixIt couldn’t reach me and wouldn’t know what happened.

\n\n\n

I packed up my stuff and came back home. Not at all the relaxing day I was hoping for, but like Beans said…it was a good thing I was there or we would never have known what happened. I was in the right place at the right time again, it seems.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“When a man’s ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.”

\nProverbs 16:7 ESV\n
\n\n\n

#RightPlaceRightTime, #Accident, #TheFarm

\n\n", "date_published": "2022-03-17T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/03/17/an-eventful-day.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/01/14/sending-out-prayers-by-the.html", "title": "Sending Out Prayers by the Bushel", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I woke up yesterday morning in my grandma’s bed. I looked out at the trees…their naked fingers reaching for the murky sky. A flash of copper zipped by the window and I scooched over to see if I could find it again. An Eastern Towhee was flitting in and out of the Carolina Spice Bush and the Flowering Quince on the creek bank…its wings rustling the crispy leaves underneath, looking for something tasty. I smiled. 

\n\n\n

This is what I come here for. I rolled back on my pillow and pulled the covers up under my chin. At the moment, everything was still. No furnace, no pump, no logging trucks. Just Bluejays and Carolina Chickadees and a Hairy Woodpecker up in a dead tree somewhere. *sigh*

\n\n\n

Someone shared here yesterday that relinquishing everything to God is like flexing a muscle. The more you do it, the stronger it gets. When God miraculously lifts the heavy burden of anxiety off you in a situation where you have always had anxiety before…you notice that. And, you want more of that peace. That “peace beyond understanding.” The only thing I did differently during my procedure a couple of weeks ago was A) I handed it over immediately and B) I didn’t ask for it back. That worked so well, I’ve been practicing it over and over and over and it’s really helping!

\n\n\n

I slept like a stone. 

\n\n\n

“Thank you, God.” I whispered. “Thank you for carrying my worry basket last night.” 

\n\n\n

I thought for sure I would lay awake all night worrying about my Colorado peeps. When I woke up refreshed, it further reinforced just how strong that “giving it to God” muscle is getting. It’s a behavior modification. Something works and it’s easier to do again the next time you’re faced with the same challenge.

\n\n\n

I checked in on my brother yesterday and got to talk with him on the phone. He said he woke up with a stuffy head, but by the time I spoke to him, he felt better. I was so relieved. Then I heard from Daughter #2 and they do have Covid. This was their fifth day and I think they are turning the corner. Thank you so much for your prayers and concern. I would very much appreciate it if you could keep lifting them up over the next few days till they’re all feeling better.

\n\n\n

It felt great to get home yesterday. It feels like I’ve had a two week vacation. The weather man is predicting a huge snowstorm at the end of the weekend so when I was finished with my doctor’s appointment in town, I headed for the grocery store. I knew it was packed when I walked in and there were no buggies up front. Someone brought one back into the store (don’t you just love that when people bring the carts in?) and I tried to do a quick sweep around the store to pick up necessities. I wore two masks and stayed away from people as much as possible and slathered my hands with sanitizer when I got back to the truck.

\n\n\n

When I got home, I did that dreaded chore…cleaning out the fridge so there would be room for the new stuff. Mr. FixIt took out the trash and I loaded the empty storage containers into the dishwasher. Then we had some time together, sitting in the family room, watching the news and old Big Bang reruns. I knitted a few rows on this pair of socks. They aren’t going as fast as the other pair. That’s because the yarn is much finer. Gail thinks I’m ready to try a sweater next!

\n\n\n

Oh, and I lost seven pounds since the last time I saw the endocrinologist! Hooray for me!!!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“But the one who endures to the end will be saved.”

\nMatthew 24:13 NLT\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-01-14T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/01/14/sending-out-prayers-by-the.html", "tags": ["Faith","Health","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2022/01/12/an-escape-to-the-farm.html", "title": "An Escape to the Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I can tell you, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I can’t think of anyone in this whole world I’d rather go through these trying times with than Mr. FixIt. He is mellow and easy going and it takes a heck of a lot to ruffle his feathers. He’s…steady. I, on the other hand, am not always….ummmmm, even keeled. I try, but it is the Gemini in me that sends me on tangents and I know…if I were him…I’d want to have a break from me once in a while.

\n\n\n

I occasionally grant him this unspoken wish by heading out to the farm for a couple days of no TV…no real noise of any kind. Just the regular cycling of the furnace and the gas heaters and the sounds of the sun heating up the tin roof making it shift and pop. I came out yesterday afternoon after my video visit with my endocrine surgeon. He was reporting the results of the Selective Venous Sampling that was performed a couple of weeks ago at OSU.

\n\n\n

I love the electronic charts that are available now. I can go in my patient portal and look at the results of my blood tests or x-rays on the same day they were drawn and not have to wait for a week to hear from the doctor. This works well if you have a background in medicine and can interpret the results. It’s not so good if you don’t really know what you’re looking at and resort to WebMD to diagnose yourself. 

\n\n\n

I could tell by the results that there were three veins (out of the twenty sampled) that showed a much higher concentration of parathyroid hormone than any of the others. That indicates the parathyroid tumor is A) on the right side and B) in my neck and NOT my chest…which is a major relief. We can do one of two things. Wait and keep retesting my blood which is not a desirable option. This disease will not go away on its own. The only fix is removal of the offending parathyroid gland(s). So, the option of removal is where we are headed.

\n\n\n

I’ll need a couple of visits before surgery…one with the anesthesiologist and the other with a voice specialist who will test to make sure my vocal cords haven’t been damaged from the initial surgery. Going in a second time in the neck is not as easy as the first. There is scar tissue from healing, and not everything is where it used to be because someone’s been in there moving things around. 

\n\n\n

It takes an extremely skilled surgeon to re-do a parathyroidectomy and I have every faith in this surgeon’s skills. From his training, to his years of experience, to his research in parathyroid disease, he checks off everything on the list. He not only does endocrine surgery, which is very fine work. He also is an oncological surgeon. So, I am in good hands as far as my medical team. And…I am in the Best Hands because God’s got this.

\n\n\n

I enjoyed my afternoon…sitting in grandma’s chair in front of her window, knitting the next pair of socks. A beautiful mix of sea and sand colors in 100% Merino Wool…soft as a baby’s bottom and a joy to cross my needles. I’m letting my mind embrace another surgery with great hope that I’ll be relieved of this disease once and for all and can live a longer, happier, healthier life. All while giving my sweetheart a little space of his own to rest and recuperate. We all need that from time to time.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you.”

\nPsalms 56:3 NLT\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2022-01-12T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2022/01/12/an-escape-to-the-farm.html", "tags": ["Health","The Farm","God"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/12/04/aint-it-good-to-be.html", "title": "Ain’t it Good to Be Back Home Again!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

*che-wink*   *che-wink*   *che-wink*

\n\n\n

I opened my eyes and listened to the cheery *che-wink* of an Eastern Towhee rummaging around in the leaves and lower branches of the flowering quince on the creek bank outside the open window. Yes…it was cold. But I had a pile of blankets on me and slept like a stone in the chilly air coming down the holler. I stretched and opened my eyes, rolling over and squinting without my glasses, trying to catch a glimpse of the beautiful bird with the black jacket and russet vest. I saw a flash of the showy “V” of black and white on his tail feathers as he fluttered off to another resting place.

\n\n\n

As I laid there, gazing up at the ceiling, I took stock of what was hurting today. This parathyroid thing makes pain of some level a nearly every day ordeal. It’s just something I deal with and pray they can fix when they find and remove the offending glands. What I was most interested in yesterday was how my back felt. I was disappointed that it was more sore than the day before. Time to give in and see someone about it.

\n\n\n

I made an appointment with the chiropractor for the afternoon and started gathering up my things to leave the farm once again. My sweet husband called to check in. He was on his way to pick up a deer someone gave his daughter. She had a full day of work ahead of her cutting up and packaging the meat for the freezer. He also drove all over town trying to find a new Christmas Angel tree topper. The lights finally went out in ours and it couldn’t be fixed, but…after a good twenty years of service, it was time to get a new one. 

\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt went to every store in town and finally found one. He tried to find an outlet in the store to plug it in but there wasn’t one to be had. So, he brought her home and hoped for the best. He plugged her in last night and we neither one liked her. This wasn’t a “well, maybe she’ll grow on us” thing. This was oh, heck no. She had colored lights, where we wanted white. Not only was she multi-colored, the lights changed colors every two seconds. You couldn’t even see the angel…just the lights. And she had fiber optics which for some odd reason just gives me the creeps. It’s like a hairy spider or caterpillar to me.

\n\n\n

Since this was the only one to be found in town, we resorted to the internet and found one from Penney’s. She’s exactly what we both were looking for. She won’t be here until well after the tree is decorated so the old gal can keep her place of honor til the new angel shows up. Mr. FixIt moved the furniture out of the way while I was at the farm so we can set up the tree in front of the living room windows. 

\n\n\n

The chiropractor did x-rays and gave me a gentle adjustment. A lot of icing over the weekend and I’ll see him again Monday. He smiled as I left and said, “We can fix this.” That is always reassuring. I told him we need to because I’m a busy woman and I have stuff to do!

\n\n\n

I’m really looking forward to setting the tree up today. I have so many wonderful ornaments that bring back warm memories. Some belonged to my parents, a couple to my grandparents. There are several I collected over the years at my friend Judy’s epic Christmas ornament exchange parties. Some I made myself. Some were gifts. And there are the special hand painted Ne Qwa ornaments I’ve been collecting for the last fifteen years. I am always so happy to see the decorations every year. It’s like running into old friends on the street and telling a story of how we met.

\n\n\n

Hopefully I’ll have beautiful pictures to show you tomorrow. I took today’s snap of the barn out at the farm yesterday as I was heading to my truck. I love the way the naked fingers of the tree are reaching up for that azure sky. I love the weathered wood of the barn and old smoke house. I love the carpet of leaves the color of a well worn saddle. Everything about that farm is enchanting to me. This was just another example. I’ll be back again!

\n\n\n

❄️

\n\n\n
\n

“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.”

\nPsalm 8:3-5 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-12-04T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/12/04/aint-it-good-to-be.html", "tags": ["Fun","The Farm","Choices","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/12/02/its-palindrome-day.html", "title": "It’s Palindrome Day! 12/02/2021", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The last time I came out to the farm, I expected to stay two nights but I had a dinner engagement wrong in my mind and had to cut it short. Then, there was all the hullabaloo surrounding Thanksgiving. Then I hurt my back and haven’t done much of anything since Saturday night. I do not like to take pain medication, but I did give in for the first couple of days. Then, just like clockwork, I stopped and my mood took a nosedive. It always does and that’s why I don’t like to take that stuff in the first place. So, if I was going to be blue, I knew where I needed to go. 

\n\n\n

The Farm.

\n\n\n

I cannot tell you what a blessing it is to still have the opportunity to come stay at the home of my heart. My grandma’s goodness is baked into the timbers of this house and any time I get to stay here, it’s like medicine to my spirit. I got here mid afternoon and crawled into Grandma’s bed. It rained off and on and the sound on the tin roof lulled me off to a gentle slumber. I woke up and heated up a little supper and climbed back in bed with the memory book I wrote about the farm. I’m leaving a copy here so everyone who gets to visit can see the history of the place.

\n\n\n

As I was looking through the book, I noticed the year Grandma and Pop-Pop got married. On October 13th, it was 100 years ago!!! I can’t believe that. My grandpa died forty-eight days before their 50th Wedding Anniversary. So, he’s been gone fifty years. It’s funny what the mind does to you when people are gone. When they are a part of you, and you hold them in your heart, that’s where they live and time is irrelevant. It is elastic. It stretches out interminably and shrinks back to the size of a grain of rice. They are always gone, yet they are always here.

\n\n\n

On Thanksgiving this year, I experienced a wave of grief where I missed everyone. All of my loved ones who went before were tearing at my heartstrings. I don’t think I’ve quite put them back to bed yet. Hence another reason to make a retreat to the farm, gaze at my book of memories, and feel them all around me once more. I’ll rest and process and heal a little more, then I’ll head back home to my beloved Mr. FixIt. 

\n\n\n

And this time…I promise…we’re going to decorate for Christmas!

\n\n\n

It takes a special person to love a widow or widower. I thank God I have that special man in my husband. He supports me and lets me fly and be who I need to be and feel what I need to feel. He’s so very special. 

\n\n\n

I am so grateful I had all these photos to put this book together for the family. My brother tells me he has it in a place of honor in his apartment. My Aunt Rosie says she held it and looked through it and remembered all the wonderful times she had growing up here and had a little cry. My cousin Cathy says she didn’t know half the stories that were in it. My cousin Tammy loves it and wants me to send her digital copies of all the photos. Daughter #1 took her copy with her to the family Thanksgiving dinner and shared all the stories she remembered. This is going to be a gift for generations to come and I’m so humbled I am the one to put it together.

\n\n\n

❄️

\n\n\n
\n

“Then my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles and the officials and the people to be enrolled by genealogy. And I found the book of the genealogy of those who came up at the first, and I found written in it:”

\nNehemiah 7:5 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-12-02T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/12/02/its-palindrome-day.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Aging","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/11/17/a-farm-fix.html", "title": "A Farm Fix!!!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

That’s me, standing where the house used to sit just after they moved it onto the new basement.

\n\n\n

I had to go to town for a followup appointment with the endocrinologist to bring him up to speed with all that’s been going on with my parathyroid issues. The symptoms are the same and it’s obvious to everyone I need to get this thing taken care of. He said it’s like having termites in your house. You may not see much evidence, but behind the scenes the little suckers are busy and before you know it, the piano is in the basement. That’s what is happening with hyperparathyroidism. It is slowly leaching the calcium from my bones so the time is now to get to the bottom of it. 

\n\n\n

I woke up yesterday morning and told Mr. FixIt I needed a “farm fix”. I haven’t been able to stay out here as much as I would have liked this year…mainly because of all the traveling and medical appointments. There was always something going on. But I’m here now for a little R&R. I have a few new magazines to curl up with. I revel in the stillness here. No TV. Very little traffic. I am hoping to hear a lot of birds.

\n\n\n

We are supposed to have a really warm day today, so I’ll sweep the zillions of dead ladybugs off the porch and sit out there with my coffee and my magazines and soak it all in. I love this place so much. I finished the memory book of the farm and ordered copies. I can’t wait to see it! It should arrive the 22nd or 23rd. They are having an 80th birthday party next month for one of my mom’s cousins. I’m going to take a copy to her. In one of the big group family photos, she is just a little girl holding a puppy in the front yard here at the farm. Her family lived down the road a mile or so. As a matter of fact, four out of my grandpa’s five brothers lived within two or three miles of each other most of their lives.

\n\n\n

That’s something I marvel at. People have longevity here. My friend has been married all these years to the fella she started dating in 8th grade. They’ve lived in the same house within a block of where her husband grew up. When people announce they are nearing their 50th wedding anniversary, I jokingly say I’ve been married that long, too. It’s just been to four different men. I don’t know what that kind of “career marriage” would feel like. Or living in the same house, let alone the same city for all my life. I have made twenty-eight moves and have lived in thirteen different cities/towns in two states and two different countries. Change is all I know. I think that’s why I’m so flexible.

\n\n\n

I am so happy to be where I am now. I love Mr. FixIt. We’re going on five years since we started dating, but it seems like so much longer since we’ve known each other since 1968. I love living in West Virginia. I love our little five acres in the country. And, I am so blessed I can still come and stay at the farm pretty much whenever I want. What a great barter…mowing in exchange for time here. It still gives me such a peaceful feeling to sleep in my grandma’s bed. 

\n\n\n

I may not have lived with the same person all my life, nor have I lived in the same house. But, this farm? This farm has been in my heart since the day I was born. This farm is what gives me that feeling of longevity, of steadfast love, of comfort….and peace.

\n\n\n

This house still has the heartbeat of my family nestled in its walls.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”

\n

\nIsaiah 32:18 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-11-17T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/11/17/a-farm-fix.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Aging","Memories","Home"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/11/09/the-scourge-of-the-lady.html", "title": "The Scourge of the Lady Beetle", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My mom died in January 2004. My Aunt Rosie met me during a layover in Charlotte and we flew the rest of the way together. We rented a car and drove to the farm where we were met by two more of Mom’s siblings…my Aunt Peeps and my Uncle Bob. It’s a small farm house, as you have seen in the photos I have shared over the years. There are two bedrooms upstairs and one small room on the main floor where my grandparents slept. There was a rollaway bed in the “Girls” Room” so my Aunt Rosie and I bunked together.

\n\n\n

When we arrived at the farm, Aunt Peeps matter of factly told us about a recent development. It seemed a non-native insect had been introduced to the US…the Asian Lady Beetle…in an attempt to gain control of a heretofore unnoticed over abundance of aphids. Aphids had never really bothered me as I didn’t raise roses and didn’t live in the country. But someone somewhere thought it was a good idea to bring these nasty creatures to this country and let them loose where they have proceeded to procreate into this yearly…scourge.

\n\n\n

As we lay in the dark, we heard the “tic tic tic tic tic” of the little buggers hitting the ceiling above us. I don’t think we slept because we were afraid our mouths would gap open and one of them would fall in. It was awful. At this point, no one knew how to keep them out of the house short of a nuclear weapon, so the only recourse was to suck them up in a vacuum cleaner. Asian Lady Beetles have something in common with that other autumnal nemesis…the Stink Bug. When you suck these bugs up in a vacuum cleaner, they release a decidedly unpleasant aroma into the room. There’s nothing like it. Really.

\n\n\n

The following morning, we gave each other a knowing look and said in unison… “I’m not sleeping here again.” We packed our bags back in the rental car and headed for mom’s house in town. The lady beetles are there, too…but not nearly in the numbers that they are in the country. Which brings us to today. The “Great Emergence” begins after there has been a period of very cold weather. On the first warm, sunny day that follows, you can’t walk outside in the afternoon without being covered with these bugs. And if they get down your shirt and get stuck in a skin fold, they will pinch the heck out of you! 

\n\n\n

In the late afternoon, with the sun shining behind them, there are literally thousands…hundreds of thousands…millions of them flying. I came home in the mid afternoon and was wearing a white shirt. By the time I got to the door, I was covered. Ugh!

\n\n\n

I don’t like using insecticides, but these things have NO natural predators. Even the cat gags when she smells one. I have been told by my friends that if you spray around the doors and windows of your home during the first week of October, you can at least keep the inside of your house somewhat clear of them. And yes…I’ve tried essential oils and herbs and other natural remedies to no avail.

\n\n\n

I love Indian Summer…but I’m telling you, I’ll be so glad when it gets cold and stays cold to keep these things under control. In the meantime, I am posting this video that I took a couple days ago. I wish I would have taken another movie yesterday because they were particularly impressive.

\n\n\n
\n[youtu.be/aJ9Xbcyfa...](https://youtu.be/aJ9XbcyfasY)\n
\n\n\n

Do you all have them where you live? Let us know how dispersed these beasts are!

\n\n\n

???????

\n\n\n
\n

““All winged insects that go on all fours are detestable to you.”

\nLeviticus 11:20 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-11-09T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/11/09/the-scourge-of-the-lady.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Warning","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/11/03/its-always-something-isnt-it.html", "title": "It’s Always Something, Isn’t It?", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Home again, home again…jiggety jig!

\n\n\n

What a crazy couple of days. We got to Columbus by 5:00PM on Monday. I wrote my post and we ordered carry out. I just had a salad and soup but it didn’t sit well. Butterflies and GERD…great combo. Also, I forget when we stay in a hotel room, Mr. FixIt watches his TV. I ended up putting in my earplugs and reading my Bible devotional. When I’m anxious, I have made it a habit to call on Jesus first before I chase down a rabbit hole. Sometimes I read the Bible. Sometimes I listen to praise music. Last night, I had a conversation with Him. I asked Him to go for a walk with me. It was so relaxing and peaceful. In my mind’s eye, we walked through the woods with the beautiful colors. I focused on the sounds and sights and smells and before I knew it, I was settled right down and snoozing.

\n\n\n

We both awoke before dawn yesterday and read the news and weather. My sweetheart brought me tea and yoghurt and a banana from the breakfast bar. Then we packed and left for my doctor’s appointment. As with most big medical centers, it’s kind of a hurry up and wait thing. I wasn’t really anxious yesterday. It’s always the night before in anticipation. We really loved the doctor. He was very reassuring. He went over everything with us. There’s good news and bad news. Anytime there has been surgery in an area, scar tissue builds up. In my case, the scar tissue has cut off the jugular vein on the left side. It’s ok…it doesn’t hurt me at all. As a matter of fact, the body is so miraculous, if the vein gets cut off or even removed, the body builds NEW veins to take it’s place. That’s where we are…new veins being built on the left. Which is good, but they are very small and it does diminish the chances of being able to thread a tiny wire through it. Because of this, he conservatively estimates he has a 50/50 chance of finding the missing parathyroid glands. Fifty-fifty is more than 0/100, so we will move forward with the venous sampling. He has had good results with this procedure, and he may be the only doctor in Ohio that does it. We came away feeling good about the whole thing. Especially when he told us my surgeon is THE cream of the crop!

\n\n\n

We took our time coming home and stopped in Lancaster to go through the Olde Shoe Factory Antique Mall. Wowza! We didn’t see half of it…it was amazing! Didn’t buy a thing but I sure saw lots of things that I loved. We got home around dark and had supper. I thought I might try sleeping out in the new camper last night. The temp was predicted to get down to around 28 and I wanted to see if the little heater would keep it warm. It was 39 out and I lasted maybe fifteen minutes. I didn’t want to turn the furnace on so I just packed back up and came inside.

\n\n\n

As I was gathering my things, a notification came across my phone to expect a freeze overnight. Suddenly I remembered…I had turned off the furnace at the farm in the spring and hadn’t turned it back on. I came in the house and told my sweetheart and before I could finish, he had the TV off and was up, ready to go with me. We changed the filter in the furnace, put fresh batteries in the thermostat and set it at 72. Then we turned on the gas stove in the bathroom to keep the pipes from freezing and turned off both dehumidifiers. So the farm is ready for winter…now we need to get things straightened up around here. I’ll work on the camping gear today…promise!

\n\n\n

Whew…that was a very fast and furious 36 hours. I’m really ready to have a couple of days at home!

\n\n\n

???

\n\n\n
\n

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

\nRomans 12:2 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-11-03T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/11/03/its-always-something-isnt-it.html", "tags": ["Health","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/10/12/theres-a-project-in-the.html", "title": "There’s a Project in the Works", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I am working on a family project. Around the time the farm went up for sale, I remembered a bunch of pictures my mom took home from Grandma’s house. Grandma was slipping into dementia and would often stand up all night long in front of the buffet…sorting through papers and pictures. She was actually ruining the photos by crinkling them and even tearing some of them up. So, one afternoon when her mom slept, my mom quietly took the important and irreplaceable pictures home with her. 

\n\n\n

When Mom passed suddenly in 2004, it was my job to go through her things and sort out the treasures from the trash. And believe me, there was a lot of trash. She was a bit of a hoarder, and photos were stuffed in sacks with junk mail. It took me four months to clear everything out. Even with that amount of time, there was no way I could go through every single thing, so anything resembling photos, albums, letters, and important papers ended up in plastic storage tubs that I brought back to Colorado with me.

\n\n\n

I met Mr. Virgo in 2005, so my life was a whirlwind of fun and activity till he passed in 2013. We moved several times and those tubs went right along with me. When I sold my house and downsized, I whittled those tubs down to two bins…stuffed with photos…and took them with me to West Virginia. They’d come full circle and after ten years, I finally sat down and sorted through them. 

\n\n\n

I scanned hundreds and hundreds of photos and put them on two external hard drives. When the farm was auctioned, and I’d met the wonderful new owners, I promised them I’d put some of the oldest photos of the farm together in order to give them a history of the old home place and the stewards of the land. When I got to thinking about it, I figured my family members would also love to have those pictures. So, I’m putting them together in a book and writing down some of the stories. I worked on it all day today and it was so much fun. I’m loving how it’s coming along. I know the old photos aren’t high resolution, and they’ll probably come out a little fuzzy but that just adds to the charm, don’t you think?

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”

\nDeuteronomy 6:6-7 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-10-12T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/10/12/theres-a-project-in-the.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Writing","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/10/01/birds-bees-and-the-little.html", "title": "Birds, Bees and The Little Meadow Vole", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We went to the farm yesterday to mow. We loaded up the push mower and the weed eater and left around 1:00. At this time of year, with the temps so much cooler, it takes a long time for the morning dew to burn off. It’s even worse at the farm because that little holler doesn’t get a lot of direct sunlight. So, even at 2-3:00, the grass is pretty damp.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

“Beans” mowed while we were gone. Yes, it’s their farm now, but…we kinda barter a little. They let us stay whenever we want and we mow the yard in exchange. It’s totally a win-win for both of us. Anyway, we pulled up the driveway and I immediately remembered the keys for the house were hanging on a hook at home. Dang! Mr. FixIt decided to go ahead and mow the ditch out front. Then, while he was running the weed eater, I push mowed the front yard. It was a beautiful day, it wasn’t too hot, and it was good exercise. Mr. FixIt mowed the backyard then I finished the driveway.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We sat on the front porch, admiring our handiwork and listening to the birds. I have no idea why, but I was watching some bees buzzing around and thought of the Asian hornet that was discovered in Washington state last year. The one they call the “Murder Hornet”, which…not surprisingly…seems to be a bit of a sensationalized name given this monstrous bee by the media. What a surprise, right? Around 5:00, Beans showed up and we had a nice visit. She told us about the last time their son was there for a visit. He was back up on the hill doing some mowing and mowed over a nest of bees in the ground. They stung him and he ran off, leaving the mower where it sat, and headed back to the house. When they returned the next day to get the mower, the bees detected the pheromones from the stings the day before and attacked him again. That time he got pretty sick but not enough to go to the hospital.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Multiple bees stings can be dangerous…especially on consecutive days. The bee’s venom builds up in your blood stream and…even though you don’t have an allergy to bee stings…you can have a serious reaction. As she was telling us this story, I grabbed my XL drink cup and took a swig. Ugh…warm, flat soda. I poured it into the flower bed and happened to look down by Beans’ feet. I saw something squirming in the grass and when I looked down, it was the biggest, angriest looking bee I have ever seen. Normally, my first response would have been to step on it but, having just thought of the big hornets in the Pacific Northwest…and just emptied my drink cup…I bent down and scooped that bee up in a hurry and popped the lid on the cup.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Now what to do? I wanted to be absolutely positive that bee wasn’t going to get out of that cup, so I found a grocery bag in my truck and gingerly set the cup inside and tied it closed. I have no idea what kind of bee it is, but I’m going to town today, so I’ll drop it off at the Natural Resources office and see if they can identify it. I really don’t think it’s a “murder hornet”…but I would like to know what kind of bee it is.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We headed home and as I pulled into the driveway, the cat was sitting staring into the field. She came running to us and out of the corner of my eye, I saw something scurry through the grass. I went to look closer and there was a little meadow vole. I’d never really seen one up close. I was really surprised when this little thing stood up and I swear he was going to come after me. It actually kinda worried me a little. I don’t know what their natural defensive behavior is, but I also know animals with rabies can be aggressive. This little guy was obviously not sick. I think he’d just been man…er, I mean CAT-handled…and he was over it. I let him scurry off as Mr. FixIt put the cat up for the night. That was enough hunting for one day!

\n\n\n

To top off my day, I got a note from the West Virginia Tourism Board asking if they can use another one of my photos for marketing. That’s the second time that’s happened. I have to admit…that made me feel good!

\n\n\n

Land’s sakes…it’s OCTOBER!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.”

\nPsalm 145:5 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-10-01T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/10/01/birds-bees-and-the-little.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/08/28/putting-birdie-through-her-paces.html", "title": "Putting Birdie Through Her Paces", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Panicle Hydrangea at The Farm

\n\n\n

We are going through our little a-frame camper with a fine toothed comb. We cleaned out the water system yesterday and discovered the hot water heater desperately needed a new anode. We rinsed out the fresh water tank and refilled it…adding a capful of bleach to sanitize it. While it sat for a while, we drove into town to one of the local camper supply places. They had exactly what we needed. After a quick stop at Walmart, we headed back home.

\n\n\n

I opened the drain to the fresh water tank and we got things ready to install the new diode. There was quite a bit of calcification in the threads where the anode screws in, so I cleaned it out as best I could with a wire brush. Mr. FixIt found a socket that fit the end of the anode rod, so I got it screwed in nice and tight. When we tested it with water, there were no leaks! We filled the hot water heater with water and turned it on with propane. It worked exactly like it was supposed to. We waited about ten minutes and turned on the hot water faucet in the sink and….bingo! Perfect!

\n\n\n

We turned off the hot water heater and started putting everything back together. The mechanicals are underneath one of the dinette benches. The dinette is broken down into a twin-sized bed so we had to take the mattress out to getting into it. Once everything was put back together, we cleaned up our tools and put them away. Now, the only thing left to test is the refrigerator on propane and the furnace. One wouldn’t think we’d be needing the furnace anytime soon with the heat wave we’ve been having. However, one thing I learned living in Colorado for forty years….winter can come early and with a vengeance. I clearly remember eight inches of snow on September 16th one year. I want to be prepared.

\n\n\n

I need to strip the big bed and wash all the sheets and blankets today. I’ll bring in the black “camping trunk” we use for all our cooking and cleaning needs and go through it. I like it to be organized and I learn from each trip out what we can absolutely do without, thus streamlining our packing. This will be a first camping with the two of us in such a small space. If we don’t kill each other by Kansas, I’ll count that as a win! 

\n\n\n

Once we had all our tools and trash picked up and put away, we were so hot and tired. The only answer was to hop in the pool. We’ve used the pool a lot more this year than usual…probably because it’s been hotter than normal. And SO sticky humid. It is a treat, and well worth all the work involved, to have that respite at the end of the day.

\n\n\n

We also need to mow today. With my hip still bothering me, we’ve decided to get the mowing done today instead of waiting till Sunday afternoon. Mr. FixIt bowls on Sunday night and doesn’t want to take any chances he’ll be sore. And I want to have as little to do as possible on Sunday so I can really rest and ice this hip all day. We’ll be packed up and ready to head out early Monday. This is the part that is hard for me. I’ve been known to leave for a trip one or two days early because I’m ready to GO! When I travel solo, I don’t have reservations ahead of time, but with the influx of new campers since covid hit, campsites along the busy interstate corridors are booked up in advance. That means, traveling on a schedule. Not my favorite, but then again…sleeping in a Walmart parking lot in the middle of Kansas without electricity during a massive heatwave is even less desirable. We do what we have to do for comfort and safety.

\n\n\n

T-minute 2 days and counting!!!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“For nothing will be impossible with God.””

\nLuke 1:37 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-08-28T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/08/28/putting-birdie-through-her-paces.html", "tags": ["Camping","The Farm","Love","Be Joyful!","Marriage","Birdie"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/07/18/the-cupboard.html", "title": "The Cupboard", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My Pop-Pop sitting by the cupboard. It sat in the dining room till the late 60’s when my great grandfather brought some antiques over to the farm. A gorgeous glass china hutch took its place.

\n\n\n

It’s been a fixture at the farm since I was little…around four or five years old, I suspect. Grandma’s jelly cupboard came into my life by way of an auction. An auction at the old house two farms down from ours. The property Frank and Beans own. The day I met them on the front porch, they called out… “We’re your neighbors!” THAT property. 

\n\n\n

Grandma and Mom pulled me around in a little blue wagon. They bought me a hot dog for a nickel. And Grandma bought the cabinet for $5. That was a lot of money to her. She needed more room to store her dishes and this one was the perfect size.

\n\n\n

It was covered with several coats of thick, white enamel paint. My Pop-Pop let me “help” him strip the paint off to reveal this beautiful golden oak beneath. I still remember what the paint looked like when the scraper pushed it into a rippled ribbon. I still can feel my Pop-Pop’s weather work-worn hands covering mine as we held the scraper together.

\n\n\n

Pop-Pop painted the inside a garish orange color. I never liked it…but it has aged beautifully. Deep and rich…like an heirloom pumpkin or the bittersweet you sometimes see in the wood in late autumn. I always knew, if there was anything at all the I ever wanted from the farm, it was this cabinet.

\n\n\n

I promised Frank and Beans that I would go through the photos that belonged to my mom and send any that were taken of the farm…the house and outbuildings and barn. The strawberry field and the old home place back on the hill. The nearly bare hills that are now thick with trees and underbrush. As I looked through the old black and white photos, there was grandma’s cabinet that now graces our living room…home to my collection of quilts.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The cupboard where it sits today. So many memories! That’s the old carpet!

\n\n\n

I hope you enjoy going down memory lane with me!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.”

\nPsalm 145:4 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-07-18T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/07/18/the-cupboard.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/07/16/my-farm-fix.html", "title": "My Farm Fix", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I Spy, with My Little Eye…Something PINK! Do You See?

\n\n\n

We went to the farm to mow yesterday. The new owners, who I affectionately call Frank and Beans, have been gracious enough to let me visit and/or stay out at the farm whenever I can…which has saved me so much heartache over its sale. I told them, if they would provide me a riding mower, I would be happy to mow in exchange for their generosity. So, yesterday was mowing day.

\n\n\n

They brought a wonderful “vintage” John Deere. Those things are heavy duty and run forever. Even so, I hadn’t used it yet, and just in case of something unforeseen, we towed our riding mower over. It turns out we needn’t have bothered because that ol’ Deere turned over on about the third crank. I couldn’t get it adjusted to cut quite as close as I like, but it is more than adequate and worked just fine. I have dubbed the old fella…John Boy. Mr. FixIt ran the push mower while I mowed with the tractor. It was 86 degrees and, as Little says, “you could see the oxygen”. Humid and sticky.

\n\n\n

I heated up pepperoni rolls from JR’s for lunch. They’re West Virginia’s Official State Food and I think JR’s are really good. The best I’ve ever had came from the old grocery store not too far from the farm. Unfortunately, they closed a couple of years ago and that was the end of the BEST pepperoni rolls EVER. They made them there, so maybe I can get the recipe one of these days.

\n\n\n

As we sat on the porch, I looked down and there…right at my feet…was one of those WICKED tussock caterpillars like the one that stung me a few weeks ago. Let me tell you, I dispatched that sucker toot suite, picked up his limp little body with a stick, and tossed it in the weeds where no one could get to it. They’ll still sting even after they’re dead.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I’m hoping their season is short and they’ll soon wrap themselves up in a cocoon and turn into moths. In doing some more research, I’ve found that nasty, itchy rash with the welts on my neck actually has a name…tussockosis. Clever. I try to be very careful when I mow and not brush up against shrubs and bushes where these nasty buggers can hide.

\n\n\n

I always have to sit and enjoy how pretty the yard looks at the farm after we’ve mowed. No matter how hot it is, I’ll sit with a cold drink, take a pretty picture, and let all that farm love wash over me. But, after a while, it was time to pack it up and head back home to Marshmallow Ranch (aka the Ponderosa). I made a big pot of spaghetti for supper. Mr. FixIt left to go help a friend move some things. And I curled up in TOW-Wanda to write this.

\n\n\n

Any day at the farm is a good day!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“You have fixed all the boundaries of the earth; you have made summer and winter.”

\nPsalm 74:17 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-07-16T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/07/16/my-farm-fix.html", "tags": ["Fun","The Farm","Peace","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/23/pure-mountain-spring-water.html", "title": "Pure Mountain Spring Water", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

PopPop and three of his brothers in front of the house before it was moved onto the new basement.

\n\n\n

Ok, I’m still doing some remembering. Even though the farm was sold at auction on Tuesday, that doesn’t end my relationship with it. I am incredibly blessed that the new buyers will welcome me there. And there are still so many stories to be told. This is the oldest photo I can find of Grandma’s house. The men picture here are four of five brothers...my PopPop is the third from the left.

\n\n\n

This is when the house sat on stacks of stones. Vines grew on the front porch to help keep the living space cool in the summer. If you zoom in, you can see the oil well derrick that stood in the back yard. For many, many years, the house was left natural and weathered to a beautiful, rich grey. The bad part about that is, the wood is more susceptible to rot and insect invasion. Sometime in the late ‘70s, early ‘80s, I came home for a visit and my uncle had painted the house red with white trim. I was devastated because it didn’t look like “home” anymore. Now, I can’t imagine loving it more. The red has mellowed to a deep, rusty color in some areas...depending on sun exposure. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The Old Oxbow Spring

\n\n\n

The house didn’t have running water till it was moved onto the new basement. That must have been around 1958 or so. This picture was probably taken in the early to mid-fifties, judging by the car parked in the yard. Grandma had to depend on the well to wash clothes and to bathe in the old galvanized tub. At the time, the well water was sweet and drinkable. However, once they took that derrick out of there and capped the wells in the area, the aquifer was fractured and the water was brackish. That was devastating when it was the only source of water.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

An Old Milk Can (not my photo)

\n\n\n

For a while, I remember hauling water from the old Oxbow Spring. I rode in the pickup with PopPop and hauled two or three milk cans of water home a couple of times a week. There was an aluminum ladle with a long handle that had a bend in the end of it that hung on a nail by the can in the kitchen. When it was really hot out, they kept the water cans in a root cellar to stay cool. I belong to a Facebook group that shares memories of the area and someone posted a picture of the spring. People still go and collect water there, although...someone mentioned there’s an old cemetery on the hill up above the spring. That might make me think twice about drinking the water now, but back then, we were happy to have it. I do believe Grandma always boiled our drinking water...no matter the source.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

An Aluminum Dipper Like Ours (not my photo)

\n\n\n

Our temps here in West Virginia have gone from meat locker to microwave in the span of a few days. It won’t be long and we can hop in the pool of an evening and cool off. We went over to see one of the granddaughters and her fiancé this morning. They just graduated from WVU and are fixing up an old house that was converted from a barn on 90 acres. They board horses and raise their own hay. I was telling Mr. FixIt...I would have given anything to have had something like that when I was their age. We are so proud of them...they’ve really been working hard, and it shows.

\n\n\n

We went for a little drive afterward and checked out the high tunnels where they grow the best tomatoes just a few miles from the Ponderosa. They’re already waist high! I asked Mr. FixIt not to plant so many tomato plants this year...just enough for the table. I’ll buy from the folks at the high tunnels when I want to can tomatoes. We have ten plants instead of twenty-three! We also have zucchini, yellow squash, and lettuce planted. I’ve been so busy over at the farm, I haven’t dabbled in my flowers yet, but I will soon. I still want to bring some back from the farm. We will probably go over and mow today before it gets too hot. Even though the auction is over, it hasn’t closed and I don’t want to leave it looking like a hay field for the new owners.

\n\n\n

I hope you enjoy your day. It’s been lovely!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. What is the first thing you will do? Won't you sit down and figure out how much it will cost and if you have enough money to pay for it? Otherwise, you will start building the tower, but not be able to finish. Then everyone who sees what is happening will laugh at you. They will say, “You started building, but could not finish the job.””

\nLuke 14:28-30 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-23T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/23/pure-mountain-spring-water.html", "tags": ["Family","Fun","The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/19/ask-and-ye-shall-receive.html", "title": "Ask, and Ye Shall Receive", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The Last Morning at The Farm

\n\n\n

The last twenty-four hours I could say the farm was mine offered a hundred lessons. I always write at night before I go to bed, but it was afternoon when I wrote yesterday’s post. Something nudged me to get it out of the way so I could just experience the evening and enjoy the peace and quiet...uninterrupted. 

\n\n\n

Funny.

\n\n\n

I was propped up on my pillows as always, listening to the night sounds outside the window, when I noticed a humming noise. I walked all over the house to find it and it was coming from the furnace. I’ve heard it before without thinking anything of it, but this time it seemed louder...probably because I wasn’t writing and I was concentrating on sound. I went back upstairs and moved the thermostat slightly and in that moment, the power went out.

\n\n\n

The old house still has the screw in fuses so, using the flashlight on my phone, I went into the kitchen to get the box of fuses and took them out on the front porch where the fuse box is. I checked every fuse and none were blown so I came back in the house. A few minutes later, I heard the neighbors across the road outside, looking around with a flashlight. I called over to them and, sure enough, it wasn’t just our house...the power was out up and down the road.

\n\n\n

I went back inside, crawled in bed and now...it was REALLY quiet no house sounds, no reassuring hum that things are working ok...just night sounds. I had to laugh at the irony. I’m a bit of a drama queen...in all the best forms of the word. I’m a writer, so I have a certain...dramatic flair. God made sure I didn’t have any distractions that last night in the house.

\n\n\n

The power came back on around 4:00am and I drifted in and out of sleep till the sun hit the top of the far hill across the road. I didn’t lollygag around...I had work to do. I got up and started putting things in the truck when the auctioneer called to say he needed me out of the house to show it to potential buyers. I was packed, had breakfast, and headed for home by 9:30.

\n\n\n

Yesterday was our first hot day. Mr. FixIt was busy pressure washing the picnic table he bought for my first birthday together. We brought it home from the farm and it needed a good scrubbing. While he was busy with that, I started unpacking the truck and putting things away. As the day went on, I wasn’t feeling well. I had a suspicion I had one of those fairly common “ladies issues” that may need antibiotics, so when I was finished emptying the truck, I grabbed my purse and told Mr. FixIt I was running over to the quick care clinic in our little town.

\n\n\n

I was hot, dirty, sweating buckets, and on the way there...I had a full blown anxiety attack. My heart was pounding. I was sure I was going to have to pull over and be sick. I could hardly stand to sit in the waiting room with my mask on because I couldn’t breathe. They called me back and weighed me and I almost fell over. I’ve crossed my boundary by nearly two pounds. My head started throbbing. I thought I’d cry. The nice lady asked me to sit on the table so she could check my blood pressure. I half-jokingly told her I was sure it was high because I was really anxious at the moment. Yeah...it was 167/100. Now I really wanted to cry. I just wanted my antibiotic and go home.

\n\n\n

While I waited for the doctor to come in, I closed my eyes and slowed down my breathing and attempted to calm down. I knew what this was all about...I’d been working hard trying to avoid having too much time to think about things. And, grief avoided has to come out sometime. Mine chose in the truck on the way to a doctor I didn’t know.

\n\n\n

There was a quiet tap on the door and a tiny little woman came in...young, dark hair pulled back, concern in her eyes. She introduced herself then sat down across from me in her scrubs, crossed her legs like she was preparing to meditate, folded her hands in her lap and said...softly.

\n\n\n

“What’s troubling you today?”

\n\n\n

Oh, empathy...it opened the floodgates and I told her how hard I’d been working and how the farm is being sold even as we speak and I couldn’t buy it because I’m too old to do the kind of work it needs and it’s not mine to begin with but it’s the home of my heart and it’s just killing me to let it go.

\n\n\n

She handed me a wad of tissues. 

\n\n\n

“It sounds like it’s been really stressful. Especially because it’s all happening TO you, you know? You don’t really have any control in it, do you? You’re grieving a loss as important to you as your loved ones.” 

\n\n\n

I laughed and said, “Yeah, and I write about grief! I should learn to listen to my own words.”

\n\n\n

She smiled. “You know then...it’s hard to face grief. But, face it now, or face it later.”

\n\n\n

We talked for a while and it turned out I didn’t need antibiotics...I needed more fluids because I’d been working hard to avoid thinking and ended up forgetting to drink and I was pretty dehydrated. We came up with a plan that would make me feel better, and I headed home. I finally sat down in front of Mr. FixIt and unloaded and told him how upset I was. 

\n\n\n

I took a cool shower, turned on the AC, and lay down for a nap. I had a dream. I’ve never dreamed of my Aunt Peeps before. She’s the elderly aunt that I came to the farm to help in the first place. She passed away a year ago. In my dream, I was walking through the farmhouse and she popped her head around the corner in the kitchen. She was young, her hands didn’t shake. Her hair was brown and in curlers. She was wearing her signature one-piece jump suit that she always worked in. She had a skillet in one hand, a spatula in the other and she jumped in surprise.

\n\n\n

“Oh! It’s YOU!” Then, in her very best teacher voice, she said, “You need to just settle down, child. It’s going to be just fine!”

\n\n\n

With that, I woke up. I reached over and picked up the phone. 8:07pm. The auction was over. My cousin Becky texted. “Did the people you really like buy the place?”

\n\n\n

I was almost afraid to look. I told you about them in Sunday morning’s post, and I told you there was more to the story. The lovely couple came and I immediately had a good feeling about them. We shared stories about the old home places in our lives. I suggested they should try to buy the farm. They said they wanted to so they would have more room for family when they come for visits. I told them how very attached I am to the place and how I come there often to recharge and write. They said, “Well...this will work out great! You can come here whenever we aren’t needing the place. Just keep your key!” We talked about God and how He puts us in the right places at the right times. When we parted, I called after them...”Don’t forget...we’re going to pray on this!” He told me their names...I smiled and said, “Nah...from now on, you’re Frank & Beans! Everyone who ever came to this house when my grandma was alive got a nickname.” They laughed and said the name was actually quite appropriate.

\n\n\n

I finally worked up the nerve to go look to see who had the winning bid and my heart soared! I know it’s not official till papers are signed and all, but....

\n\n\n

Welcome to The Farm, Frank & Beans!!! I know you’re going to love it just as much as we all have!!! Now I can relax knowing “home” is not so distant from me after all and I’ve made some forever friends.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

\nRomans 8:28 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-19T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/19/ask-and-ye-shall-receive.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","The Farm","God"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/18/my-grandma-had-a-dream.html", "title": "My Grandma Had a Dream", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

She was only fifteen when she ran off with the hired hand on her daddy’s farm and got married in Oakland, Maryland. She finished eighth grade, and could read and write and cipher. PopPop was twenty-two. He also left school when his daddy died young, leaving his mama to raise five little boys under the age of ten. He was the oldest and he needed to help feed his little brothers.

\n\n\n

Grandma always dreamed of having a farm of their own where they could raise their kids and feed them with what they could grow. She was a farm girl, after all. I have pictures of her riding the plow horse when my great grandfather put up hay for their cattle. Grandma saw that long drink of water in my PopPop and the rest, as they say, is history. 

\n\n\n

Life has a way of happening in spite of what you plan. I’m still learning of their early years. I know they were married in 1921. Her first born was a little boy, named after his daddy. He was born sleeping in 1924. I do not know where he was laid to rest, but I do know that my mom was born the following year in Indiana where PopPop and Grandma had gone for work. Their second child was born in Illinois the year before the Great Depression began. They had two more children before they headed back home to West Virginia. They had six children before the Depression ended.

\n\n\n

As I moved things around yesterday, preparing to pack up the last of my belongings, I noticed something was taped to the window frame in Grandma’s room. When I took a closer look, I smiled. I’m sure the rest of the article clipped from the Journal Star of Peoria, Illinois is somewhere in my papers. I remember it was a photo of some flowers in a garden...Lily of the Valley, to be exact. They reminded Grandma of home, so she cut that picture out and vowed to find her a farm where these delicate little flowers could grow. She finally did, sometime between 1932 and 1934.

\n\n\n

West Virginia was home to both of them, and they soon found a place back on the hill on this very farm. Eventually, they purchased the farm and moved down off the hill into the present house. Grandma always said...this farm was her dream and she never wanted to live anywhere else in the whole wide world.

\n\n\n

When my grandma became older, my Aunt Peeps took this clipping and taped it to the window frame in Grandma’s bedroom where she could look at it. She always called this place her little slice of heaven, and my aunt wanted her to see her coming heavenly home as something loved and familiar.

\n\n\n

As I sat on the front porch during my dinner break, it started raining. I threw a handful of old English Walnuts into the yard to lure the squirrels out for a treat. I noticed a little scuffle under the rhododendron and soon, out popped mama robin with three fledglings chasing her...wanting to be fed. They’re big enough to eat on their own...but they wanted the comfort of something familiar. I could relate.

\n\n\n

You see, even though I’ve been saying I let go of the farm already, it’s obvious to anyone reading my posts the last couple of weeks...that wasn’t quite true. It’s the same as these little fledgling robins...I need to leave the nest, but I want the place to feed me. I once climbed a cliff with Hubby #2. When I looked down, I froze. He tried to talk me out of my fear but I was escalating. Finally, he calmly said...

\n\n\n

“Well, you can figure out a way to move on from this point, or you can buy real estate here.”

\n\n\n

I got the same message yesterday from a very dear friend. She shoots from the hip and kicks me in the butt when I need it.

\n\n\n

“Look, you’re going to either need to buy the d*** place, or move on. You can’t stay where you are.”

\n\n\n

They were both right...unless I’m prepared to buy the real estate where I am...and I just can’t. I mean...I COULD, but I shouldn’t, I have to find a way to move on. I’m finding little bread crumbs...marking the trail in the direction I need to go. Finding this little snippet of old, crackly newspaper with my aunt’s shaky writing on it let me know I’m on the right track. It says...

\n\n\n

“Mom’s Lily of the Valley”

\n\n\n

It was a picture of what she dreamed of having one day. This was it...her special place. She made sure I loved it like she did. And now she’s leading me on to great adventures elsewhere. (It’s more accurate to say, my memories of her are inspiring me. I’m not ACTUALLY having conversations with dead people.) I’m not sure what the next adventure will look like, but I know who my traveling partner is...my sweet Mr. FixIt. And, as he says...

\n\n\n

“There’s always an adventure with Ginny McKinney!”

\n\n\n

My story isn’t finished yet, but I’m telling you what...I am so grateful to have had this little slice of heaven to call my home and to love with all my heart, whether I owned it or not.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Everything on earth has its own time and its own season.”

\nEcclesiastes 3:1 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-18T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/18/my-grandma-had-a-dream.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Wisdom","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/17/it-was-the-best-of.html", "title": "It Was the Best of Times...It Was the Worst of Times", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Charles Dickens was speaking of the events leading up to the French Revolution, of course. And my little slice of reality is nothing in comparison. However, whenever we are going through hard things, our things are the hardest things because they’re OUR things. Grief has many sources, and it’s no small thing to walk away from your family home.

\n\n\n

I’ve been at the farm since Saturday afternoon. I thought I’d get a lot done yesterday, but I did not. And that’s ok. I sat on the front porch most of the day, staring at my grandma’s huge rhododendron. It isn’t lost on me that THE most beautiful peak of bloom is occurring during my last official day here. Tomorrow evening is the close of the auction. I’ve asked everyone I know to buy the farm so I can still come here. Who knows the fate of this land besides God? I just have this wonderful feeling it’s going into the hands of someone who will love it the same as I do. I’m going to stand on that conviction.

\n\n\n

I was a sponge yesterday...soaking up every ounce of love from this place. I awoke to the beloved sound of a gentle rain on the tin roof...even though we had no such rain predicted. I drove over to the service station-diner-convenience store-tire center early to get some butter. I forgot to bring some over and I want pancakes on my last morning here. The time passed all too quickly and just as the light began to change, I snapped this shot of the perfect blossoms on the perfect bush in the most perfect place I know. I sat on the porch and watched the chipmunks chasing each other around the yard. A flicker kept sweeping in to the old, rotten stump of the poplar tree my PopPop planted years ago...snatching an insect here and there, then flying on. A big, fat rabbit slowly made its way along the base of the spirea along the ditch by the road....nibbling on the new grass and avoiding the bee balm and flags.

\n\n\n

The neighbor across the road was planting his garden. It’s always so lovely because he keeps the deer out with an electric fence. Otherwise, it’s nothing but a salad bar for critters. His wife came out with Molly, their one year old lab pup who is full of boundless energy. Bees from the hives down the road buzzed from flower to flower. I happily munched on my sandwich, sharing some chips with the chipmunks. Four-wheelers came one by one down the road...heading back home after a fun day of “muddin’” on the area’s many dirt roads that lead to old oil and gas wells and timber cuts. 

\n\n\n

As night fell, I talked with Mr. FixIt. I told him I saw him on the security camera planting OUR garden. I laughed and told him he can’t get away with anything now that we’ve put those in! lol We hung up and I came in, locking the doors behind me...just as Grandma did over the decades she lived in this little red house in the holler. This is my last day. The last night I’ll spend in my grandma’s house. Even if it DOES sell to someone I know and even if I DO get to sleep in here again...it’ll be different. It won’t be ours...mine. Not physically, anyway.

\n\n\n

Life is still lovely...and it will go on. More stories will come. I’ll remember things I haven’t told you about the old home place. And...more likely than not...I’ll tell you stories I’ve told you before. I’m of that age, you know. It’s one of the joys of growing older...you get to tell stories with freshness because you can’t remember who you’ve told them to before. Probably easier on me than you, come to think of it.

\n\n\n

The barred owl came to talk softly to me in the growing darkness. He didn’t give his usual full call....just a short “coo” to let me know he was there. Then, ever so slowly, he made his way from tree to tree...getting further and further away...till I could just barely hear him in the woods on the far hill. Fitting, I think....that things get softer and further away as I let this lovely place go.

\n\n\n

Tomorrow morning, you’ll read of my last night here...but it’s surely not the last you’ll hear about the farm.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“I will bless you with a future filled with hope—a future of success, not of suffering. You will turn back to me and ask for help, and I will answer your prayers.”

\nJeremiah 29:11-12 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-17T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/17/it-was-the-best-of.html", "tags": ["Faith","Grief","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Wisdom","Farm Life","Insight"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/13/the-open-house.html", "title": "The Open House", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Kitchen

\n\n\n

My goal was to have the house clean and presentable for the Open House yesterday, and I have to say...I was so proud of the way it looked when the auction agent (Wayne) got there. They arrived about 3:15 and needed to get back up on the hill to show the property lines to the one who hadn’t been there yet. Wayne took a quick look around the house and he was so pleased. The first time he saw it was when Mr. FixIt and I were at the beach so nothing had been done. It was in quite a state of disarray.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Kitchen - My uncle made this cabinets after they rolled the house down onto the new basement

\n\n\n

None of us have ever seen it so empty, but it didn’t seem forlorn or depressing to me. It seem light and airy...like it could breathe in the sunshine. It was a beautiful, cool day. Members of the family or the sellers aren’t supposed to attend an open house. I didn’t realize that’s for our own protection against any liability. They are licensed and insured and that is their business. I really liked Wayne. He was genuine and personable. After he glanced at the house, he said, “I have a gift for you. You’ve worked so hard, you deserve a present!” He went out to his truck and brought me a wonderful Yeti travel mug! That was very kind of him.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The Dining Room

\n\n\n

I had another truckload packed by the time they arrived, so all I had to do was put my overnight bags in and head home. I sent my cousin Katie the pictures of the house when it was ready and asked her to show my uncle today when they go help him mow. The house was always a shrine of sorts. It seemed like once we lost our Uncle Sonny in the plane crash, the house never changed much after that. Other than replacing worn out furnishings, it always looked the same year after year. The pictures were all hung in the same spots, the curtains were replaced by identical curtains. It was eerily comforting because you always knew you were home when you walking in the door. It still smells like old wood and dust and lemon oil.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Living Room

\n\n\n

I haven’t heard if anyone showed up to the Open House. I hope so. I hope lots of people want it and they just fight over it and cause a bidding war. Not necessarily because it will bring in more money, but because it would show someone loved it enough to fight for it. I talked to my uncle last night to let him know the place looked nice for them and he said, “It’s kinda depressing, isn’t it?” I told him about talking to Grandma at the cemetery the other day and what she “told” me. I could hear his voice quiver. I said, “I know it’s hard because it’s HOME and it’s always been there. But, you know...that land saved a whole lot of people, myself included.” I thanked him tremendously for letting me live there and heal after losing Mr. Virgo. It was honestly like a medicine I took straight into my soul.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Grandma & PopPop’s Bedroom where I sleep. You had to walk through their room to get to the bathroom. Grandma always reached her hand out to touch mine when my mom walked me through.

\n\n\n

So, the days of time at the farm are winding down. I’ll go back over one last stretch...maybe Friday. My last night there will be Monday because the auction ends on Tuesday at 7:00. I don’t want to sleep there after that...it won’t seem right. Oh...the stories we have! I’m looking forward to going over to see my uncle and sit with him and ask all the questions I’ve never asked. I want to know everything. For instance...I had no idea the back property line went clear over the back of the hill and across the creek and up the other side a little ways. No idea! All these years I thought it ended at the road on the other side of the old home place. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The Boys’ Room

\n\n\n

Today? I HAVE to finish the taxes! Mr. FixIt is working away on the entryways in preparations for the carpet installation tomorrow. He has one finished. One to go. It’s always something, isn’t it? 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The Girls’ Room

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”

\nProverbs 16:3 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-13T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/13/the-open-house.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/12/froggy-went-a-courtin.html", "title": "Froggy Went a Courtin’", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

When I was a very little girl, my PopPop would sit me on his knee and sing “Froggy Went a Courtin’”. When I grew up, I thought everyone sang it this way, but apparently not. I have no idea if this is something he made up, or if this is an old Appalachian way. When I googled it, I learned the song PopPop taught me is a lengthened version of the bridge. So, I’m going to include a link to me singing it the way I was taught and to a recording of Elizabeth Mitchell & You Are My Flower from her fourth album with Smithsonian Folkways. Hers is decidedly MUCH better than mine...but here it is for posterity!

\n\n\n

Me:   https://youtu.be/mZI1OnUyP2M

\n\n\n

Smithsonian:   https://youtu.be/0XIT_xMHKJI

\n\n\n

I can still remember sitting on his knee when I wasn’t any bigger than this little sprite. And now? That little towhead I’m teaching is our great granddaughter! Where did the time go? I taught it to my babies. I sang it to my grandbabies. And now...here’s a new generation begging me to “Do it again!”

\n\n\n

Oh, this back porch. Right behind me there was always an old wooden rocking chair. Maybe another old dining room chair or two. We spent many a night out there...us kids running around catching lightning bugs in a jar or eating watermelon till it dripped off our chins. We’d have seed spitting contests because my Uncle Bud would warns us not to swallow them or vines would grow out of our ears! 

\n\n\n

This is on the cool side of the house as the sun sets on the other side. You could always be sure to feel a cool breeze coming down out of the holler, brushing over us so blissfully. We might find a toad in the hostas Grandma planted out behind the new cinder block bathroom they built for her. Later on, a big upright freezer sat on this porch for many years, along with an old wooden table with linoleum nailed to the top that could be pulled out into the yard whenever we needed a place to work. 

\n\n\n

I remember an old wringer washer that was powered by a hit and miss engine that sat out here. There was one memorable fall when we made apple butter in a copper kettle over an open fire just off this porch. At one time, there was a double washtub with a washboard and a bar of lye soap. The old smokehouse used to sit right off the back yard. Now it’s up near the barn and “leaning towards the peach orchard”, as my grandma used to say.

\n\n\n

This is the porch where my PopPop played “Turkey in the Straw” on the fiddle I have at home. My great grandpa danced a soft shoe across the porch while he played. I have his walking stick and his spats. I gave his bowler hat to my cousin Tammy. This is the porch where grandma sat in a chair and waited for us to get out of the car and run into her embrace when we came home from so very far away. She cherished having her family around. Consequently, I came home every summer, dragging my babies so they could learn of the never ending love that springs from this place.

\n\n\n

I know my kids have fond memories of the farm. I also know, it couldn’t possibly mean the same thing to them as it does to me. This was “home” to me...it was “vacation” to them. My oldest grandchild had a bath on this back porch when she was nine months old in the same galvanized tub I had MY Saturday night baths in. My youngest daughter and I took “moon baths” in the yard, not ten feet from where I’m sitting here singing. We’d get a bucket of warm soapy water, strip down in the dark yard, wash off, then pour buckets of cool rainwater over us so we would cool down enough to go to sleep.

\n\n\n

Just shy of 67 years ago, my grandma carried my chubby one-year-old body in one arm and my birthday cake in the other and made a beeline for the yard. She wanted to get a picture of me digging into my cake with the single candle. Everyone else just sat there, mouths agape, wondering if there would be anything left to eat for dessert once I was done with it.

\n\n\n

The fact that I got to share the farm today with our great grandchildren, and got a video for them to remember, means the world to me. After all, what are memories shared?

\n\n\n

Well...stories, of course!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

\nMatthew 13:12 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-12T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/12/froggy-went-a-courtin.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/11/every-yearits-the-same-thing.html", "title": "Every Year...It’s the Same Thing!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Ok, those of you have followed me oh, these many years know what happens every single year at tax time. I wait till the last week, then I sit down to do the taxes and the doggone computer decides it needs to choose THAT EXACT MOMENT to download thirty-seven updates plus a scan of the hard drive, then there’s an error downloading something and you’re on hold with tech support for three years and the whole thing makes me wonder why on EARTH I stopped drinking! Ok...that may be a small exaggeration...but still, all day on the computer and I was no further getting the taxes done than when I started. Except now my computer has every shiny new update created by mankind!

\n\n\n

You might say...why don’t you do the updates ahead of time? At which point I would politely reply, “I did! About three or four weeks ago, I downloaded all my transactions from my bank and balanced the account....the first time I’ve done THAT in years! I also updated my security software and scanned my hard drive and cleaned the trash off it and defragged it. I was ready! But, nooooooooooo! Microsoft had to release a zillion new updates right at tax time. I’m blaming them. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

\n\n\n

One thing I did while I watched the little hamster wheel turn on my computer screen was...knit. I figured if I had to be close by to hit “yes, I want this program to change my hard drive”, I might as well get something productive done. And it’s the darnedest thing...I didn’t have a bit of trouble with the pattern. I figured I’d be ripping out every other row. I think God took pity on me and let at least one thing go smoothly yesterday!

\n\n\n

As I was checking my calendar, when I discovered...to my great dismay...that May 12th is TOMORROW! The open house at the farm is tomorrow at 4:00. OMGosh! I have SO much to do to get the house in the shape I want it to be. So, the taxes get moved to the back burner, again. And today I will work my hiney off and get this place ship shape!

\n\n\n

I took a break in the afternoon and took a walkabout. The iris along the driveway have started to bloom. It was a cool day and the sun popped out every now and then. If West Virginia would stay 74 degrees year round, I’d be a happy girl. But before we know it, we will go from meat locker to microwave and it will be so sticky hot. I’ll enjoy this as long as I can!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.”

\nLeviticus 26:4 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-11T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/11/every-yearits-the-same-thing.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/10/making-memories-every-day.html", "title": "Making Memories Every Day", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
Heaven
\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt and I both have full calendars this week. I’m over at the farm, continuing to clear things out and make it presentable for an open house on the 12th and he’s at the Ponderosa, getting the family room ready for the new carpet that’s being installed on Friday. He’s also preparing to put in an electric line from the building to the deck so we can hang our strings of market lights on the pergola. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
Rhododendron
\n\n\n

I have all the old blankets bagged up to take to the Humane Society for the doggos. They’ll love having comfy, clean bedding while they’re waiting for their furever homes. All the things that are being thrown away from the “Girl’s Room” upstairs have been bagged and piled on the back porch, waiting for another load to go to either the Ponderosa or the dump. Most of the items from the “Boy’s Room” have been staged to either pack or bag up as trash. Then, the only thing I have left to do is vacuum and the upstairs is finished.

\n\n\n
\"\"
Screendoor
\n\n\n

Next on the list is the basement. Oy! That’s something I’m not looking forward to because it is an absolute mess down there. So much has already been hauled out, but there’s still WAY too much down there. Not all of it is mine, of course...but I’ll get it as organized as I can and throw obvious trash away. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
Farmhouse
\n\n\n

I swore when I was finished downsizing at my house I would never do this again. Not only am I doing it for the farm...we also have to do it at the Ponderosa. Once we have the farm taken care of, there won’t be that mowing hanging over our heads once or even twice a week. That’s going to free up a bunch of time for us.

\n\n\n
\"\"
Grandma
\n\n\n

My Mother’s Day was lovely. Everyone either called or texted their greetings. It was a dreary, rainy day so I was just as happy spending it indoors finishing up the last week of this project. Saturday, however, was STELLAR! The sky was an amazing blue with big puffy white clouds. I walked around and snapped some photos with the freshly mown grass. Grandma’s rhododendron are popping out a little more every day. I’m going to take some of the flowers over to the Ponderosa with me. I remember when Grandma brought some of them up from Aunt Myrt’s house and planted them on the hillside. She LOVED her posies. And now I’ll love them. I can propagate them and share with the cousins later.

\n\n\n
\"\"
Turkey/Chicken
\n\n\n

I knitted for a while in the afternoon. The pattern for this shawl is such a booger to follow. I count the stitches after every row and I cannot tell you how many rows I’ve ripped out because they aren’t coming out right. Grrrrr. My friend Gail told me to use stitch markers, but I haven’t had time to go to town to get some. I know I could use safety pins, but I have packed those. So, I’m doing the best I can while still enjoying the process. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
Mush
\n\n\n

Today’s agenda? The taxes. Finally!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“And thus you shall greet him: ‘Peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have.”

\n1 Samuel 25:6 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-10T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/10/making-memories-every-day.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Downsizing","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/06/time-marches-on.html", "title": "Time Marches On", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I’m kind of entering a countdown now with the farm. My ability to stay here whenever I want is coming to an end. Consequently, I’m spending as much time here as possible. I came out Tuesday. My cousin Tammy came out yesterday to help me go through my aunt’s things. We bagged up all of her clothes and shoes. The sizes are very small as my aunt was fastidious with her weight. I’ll bet she never varied more than a pound or two save for the “freshman 20” and the wasting of old age. And, for someone as incredibly frugal as she was, there were many designer pieces in her closet. She had grand style.

\n\n\n

Tammy was my first best friend, other than my brother. She’s a little younger than me but we share a lot of the same characteristics. She reminds me so much of our grandma. She works hard and loves gently. She has six little grandchildren here and one in Heaven. They are as much the apples of her eye as we were of Laura Belle’s. She’s warm and no nonsense and tells you like it is and is SO funny. I was tickled to pieces to have her all to myself at our grandma’s house for a few hours.

\n\n\n

We packed her van so full, I warned her not to slam on the brakes or everything would come crashing down on her. She took an old dresser. Being the oral historian of the family, I shared the history of this particular piece of furniture. Our great grandfather was a wheeler-dealer and dabbled in cattle and auctions and orneriness. He was...let us say...colorful. Big, tall, brawny with a deep timbre to his voice, he would gather us up on his knee and recite “The Village Smithy” to us when we were children. He was a former watchman and worked his way up to the state patrol. At one time, he did his rounds on horseback. He was a bit of a dandy with the ladies, as well. I was both enamored and scared to death of him. He died when I was sixteen.

\n\n\n

I do remember a time when I was a child, for some reason Grandpa was staying here at the farm. By this time he had terrible arthritis in his hips and could barely walk. (He had one of the first hip transplants ever done.) Because of this, Grandma and PopPop gave up their bed and let him sleep on the main floor. The only light in this room at the time was the ceiling light and apparently that wasn’t good enough for him. He brought an antique dresser of quarter-sawn oak from Virginia and set it up in the same little tiny bedroom where I am writing this post. He drilled a hole in the top of the mirror frame and installed a light socket so the could have a light that wasn’t right in his face when he read in bed. Of course, that ruined the value of the piece...except, we have the story that goes with it. 

\n\n\n

There are some things money can’t buy.

\n\n\n

I walked around the farm a little in the afternoon. We had two-and-a-quarter inches of rain in the gauge. The creek is still running muddy and everything was pristine in the late afternoon sunshine. I peeked quietly at the baby robins in the nest in the big rhododendron bush by the old gas light out front. When I looked at the photos later, I thought something was wrong with one of the babies. It’s eye was pale and the surrounding area was stark white. After studying it for a while, I realized...the sun was dappled, shining through the leaves and branches and budding flowers in just the right way to create that illusion.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It is definitely much cooler after the rains of the last couple of days. I had to turn on the furnace and the electric blanket. But the window remains open. The barred owls have been very vocal this trip here and I want to soak up every sight, sound, and smell. I’m counting down the days...dreading when the last one comes.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell; they sing among the branches.”

\nPsalm 104:12 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-06T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/06/time-marches-on.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/05/because-im-happy-or-the.html", "title": "“Because I’m Happy....” or The Gift from Beyond", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I’m very careful about what I take from the farm. I know what is mine. I also know there are some things no one would mind me taking...little things that don’t mean anything to anyone else but me. Anything bigger or more significant, I ask if it’s ok. For instance, I asked to have my grandparents’ bed. I was going to keep the dresser...I may still...but it definitely needs some work. I asked for the big round mirror in the living room. It used to hang on the other end of the wall, but the TV was taller than the mirror and it didn’t serve its purpose anymore. Grandma always brushed her hair out by that mirror. I have countless photos with that mirror in the background. I also asked for a small chair side table that my uncle made years ago. Well, technically Mr. FixIt asked me to ask my uncle if we could have it. 

\n\n\n

I remember when my own mother died. I was living in Colorado and was here for a week for the funeral. I had to begin making arrangements for my brother’s living situation. The last evening before I went back to Colorado for a couple of weeks, I was heading to town from the farm. As I left the house, my aunt said she would go in and clean out mom’s house for me while I was gone. I assured her she didn’t need to do that, but she was quite insistent. We went back and forth over it for a while and, rather than argue, I stopped at the hardware store, bought new locks for the doors and installed them before I left town. 

\n\n\n

I dropped a letter in the mail the day I flew home, explaining I needed to go through things and while I certainly appreciated the gift of her time, it was something only I could do. It was part of my grieving process. She was so incredibly angry...and hurt, I imagine. But, I knew she would not take no for an answer. It had to be this way. Because of that experience, I’ve been very careful here not to step on toes. While I have an emotional attachment to many things in this house, so do the rest of the family and they own the farm...not me. They’ve been very generous with me. And I’ve been so blessed to have the time here these last few years. That is a gift in and of itself.

\n\n\n

I was cataloging some of the items that I wanted to remember before I brought them back to the farm yesterday afternoon. There was one thing I really wasn’t sure if I should just go ahead and keep or not. It was a travel golf putter that had a telescoping handle. I have no idea why my aunt had it, but I think Mr. FixIt is the only golfer in the family. I was showing it to him and he said he’d never seen anything like it. 

\n\n\n

“I’d love to keep it, but I think Aunt Peeps would be really mad if I did.” I said.

\n\n\n

She died a year ago.

\n\n\n

Now, this is one of those things that are just too eerie to ignore and since I have a witness, you’ll just have to believe me that it really happened. As soon as I said Aunt Peeps would be mad, my Alexa device started playing “Happy” by Pharrell Williams...all on its own. Mr. FixIt and I looked at each other...mouth gaped open and eyes wide. I squealed and started dancing around the living room....laughing. My aunt was no nonsense...you didn’t sit around and cry in your beer. You just got HAPPY!

\n\n\n

Ok, ok...I’ll keep it. Thanks, Aunt Peepsie!

\n\n\n

(You can watch the Official Music Video for Happy...HERE!)

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold.”

\nProverbs 3:13-14 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-05T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/05/because-im-happy-or-the.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Gratitude","Downsizing","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/03/snips-snails-puppy-dog-tailsand.html", "title": "Snips \u0026 Snails \u0026 Puppy Dog Tails...and Snakes...and Mice!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I’ve never had the pleasure of raising a boy. I love all the boys in my life immensely. But, I didn’t have to do all the things boy moms do like go to the ER every other week or follow along behind them catching everything that falls. I was treated to Teddy Bear Teas and “Let’s Put on a Show!” That was my mom life. Don’t get me wrong...dealing with girls’ hormones while you’re dealing with your own can be a trip. And don’t get me started about girl drama. But, I admire Boy Moms. They earn their crowns in an entirely different way. This little guy is as sweet as they come and his younger sister was a peach...my kind of energy. I guess I’m just a girl mom.

\n\n\n

I met my uncle and his youngest granddaughter and her family over at the farm yesterday. First, let me tell you....when my fully vaccinated uncle got out of that truck and we hugged? Ohhhhhh, I wanted to cry, it felt so good and so....normal! They weren’t there five minutes till we got the barn unlocked and they set to emptying out the loft of assorted Model A parts and forge blowers and pumps and lawn mowers and windows. They filled several blue plastic barrels and half the gooseneck trailer. Then we started in the house, then the cellar...both upstairs and down. The house is beginning to get that hollow sound of vacancy. It’s a little eerie...a little sad...just so, different.

\n\n\n

While they were in the barn, they came across a couple of black snakes. And Katie was digging through a box of books when she uncovered a mouse nest with two tiny little baby mice...not an inch long. I hope mama mouse got back to them in time. In all the time I have been at this farm, I’ve seen one garter snake and a fellow driving up the road stopped and killed a copperhead out front. Granted...I never necessarily went looking for them either!

\n\n\n

I had already gone through a lot of the stuff in the house and staging it so it would be easier to get to. They picked and chose those things they wanted to take home with them. And all too soon, they were climbing back into the truck to head home. Uncle Bud is in his 80’s now and....my oh my...he is the spitting image of my PopPop. Well...what I imagine my PopPop would have looked like at his age. He passed away when he was only 71.

\n\n\n

By the time I got home, and got the truck emptied of yet another full load, I was exhausted and hurt all over. I made hamburgers and a little potato and macaroni salads, took a hot shower, and I was D.O.N.E! I am not doing anything except knit today...period.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“We love because he first loved us.”

\n1 John 4:19 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-03T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/03/snips-snails-puppy-dog-tailsand.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/05/01/a-face-with-no-name.html", "title": "A Face with No Name", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

When I was rummaging around in the box with my late uncle’s flag, I found this photo at the bottom of the box. I don’t recall ever having seen this picture hanging in Grandma’s house. The frame is long gone...broken along the way somewhere with no money to replace it. When I looked at the photo in person, I didn’t notice a name written anywhere. But, now that I look at the snapshot I took of it, there may be some faint writing along the bottom of the woman’s white dress shirt. I’ll have to take a closer look when I go back to the farm on Sunday and maybe my uncle will recognize her.

\n\n\n

I brought another truckload of stuff home yesterday. The boxes were so heavy and cumbersome and by the time I loaded and unloaded, I hit the wall and ended up sleeping for a couple of hours. This health issue has knocked down my typical go get ‘em stamina down a peg or two. I hope to build that back because there is much to be done around here and finishing up at the farm.

\n\n\n

As I was bringing the last of the tubs for this load down from the upstairs bedroom, I noticed a huge scrapbook tucked behind an old mirror leaning against the wall. It was in a white plastic trash bag. I pulled it out and my aunt had stuck a note to it with my mother’s name. I put it in the truck with the rest of the stuff and looked at it when I got home.

\n\n\n

When I was cleaning out mom’s house after she died, there were countless scrapbooks with newspaper clippings that caught her fancy glued into them. Articles from the local newspaper about people she knew or happenings in the valley that were interesting to her. She loved to cut out patterns or stories from magazines. It was certainly a treasure trove of stuff that interested her. I looked carefully and the only thing that was familiar to me was an announcement for my first in-law’s 25th wedding anniversary celebration. That I’ll cut out and sent to Hubby #1. I’m sure he’ll enjoy that. It’s a shame to toss something like this scrapbook, but if I hold onto everything anybody I’ve ever known has owned or loved, there won’t be any room in this house for US. Things have to go. Much of what I’m bringing home from the farm will go. I just need to take the time to go through it and I didn’t do it out there. Now I’m out of time.

\n\n\n

When I finished packing up the truck, I went to check the mail. As I walked down the driveway, I noticed a white car pull up to the big sign announcing the impending auction. It was the neighbor from down the road. Jean used to walk with my aunt several days a week when Grandma was still living. She told me it just broke her heart to see the farm leaving the family. We sat there along the roadside for a good half hour...reminiscing and sharing stories. She loved my family and, like many who watch their contemporaries pass before them, she expressed her loneliness. I try to call her every time I’m at the farm. Now I’m going to set a reminder in my phone since I won’t be going out there after the farm changes hands. 

\n\n\n

My uncle is coming to the farm on Sunday with one of his granddaughters and her family to get another load from the barn. I’ll be there to help and we’ll go through the house to figure out what to do with the furniture that’s left over. It’s not worth much but maybe someone can get some use out of it. My cousin will come next Wednesday to get some more of my aunt’s things. It won’t be long and everything will be gone. I’ll sweep it all out...and that will be that.

\n\n\n

On a brighter note, I received the extra yarn I ordered for the shawl I’m knitting and I’m making great progress. Mr. FixIt kept the home fires burning while I was gone and he started cleaning out the pool last evening to prepare for summer. Time marches on.

\n\n\n

Today is May 1st! Happy May Day!!!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Ask rain from the Lord in the season of the spring rain, from the Lord who makes the storm clouds, and he will give them showers of rain, to everyone the vegetation in the field.”

\nZechariah 10:1 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-05-01T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/05/01/a-face-with-no-name.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Downsizing","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/04/30/protecting-the-turf.html", "title": "Protecting the Turf", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I had a pretty productive day at the farm. The cabinets still had tons of food in them that had long ago gone out of date. It was one of those jobs I kept saying I’d get to, then there was always something more pressing to do. I’m amazed the place wasn’t infested with mice, but there wasn’t a single sign. My cousin dropped off some contractors bags for me and I filled two of them only half full and one I can’t even lift. I’ll have to use another bag and divvy up the goods so I can haul it out.

\n\n\n

Once that was finished, I moved upstairs. There’s still quite a lot of my clothes up there and several boxes that need sorting through. When I got one of the closets empty, I noticed a box on the floor in the back. I lifted it out and put it on the bed. I found some pictures of my mom. There were several bags of things with names on an envelope tucked inside to tell the person who found them just who they were intended for. My Aunt Peeps was incredibly organized. I attribute that to never having had children. Nothing was EVER messy or out of place!

\n\n\n

I noticed a cloth near the bottom with embroidery on it. I lifted the bags out of the way, and there...wrapped ever so carefully...was the folded flag that draped my Uncle Sonny’s casket. He was killed in 1955 in Germany. His plane crashed during a routine training mission. It was a loss that changed everyone and everything in the family from that date forward. There were some papers, a letter that accompanied his personal effects home, and some odds and ends. I didn’t dig further. But I did pick up that flag, and held it close to my heart, as I am sure my grandma did on that sad, sad day so long ago.

\n\n\n

I tucked everything back safely in the box and set it aside. By this time, it was getting time to eat a late lunch, early supper. I took my meal to Grandma’s chair and sat looking out the window at the view she cherished. Suddenly, I heard something. I picked up my phone and quietly went out on the porch to listen. There it was again...one of the Barred Owls that woke me up in the middle of the night was calling in the middle of the day. (Watch the VIDEO here.) They do that when they sense something encroaching on their turf...especially when they’re nesting. In this case, it was probably a Great Horned Owl. These two breeds dislike each other and clear out when visited.

\n\n\n

I brought my lunch out on the porch and listened while the rain pattered on the roof. The noise was amazingly joyful and it lifted my heart. I’ve done remarkably well not crying over the loss of the farm. That is, until Wednesday night when the rain started. Ohhhh....I will miss that sound desperately. I texted Mr. FixIt. I told him I am going to need a substitute place to recharge and write...even if it’s on our own property. Like a She Shed. I asked him if he could put on a roof just like this one and he assured me he could.

\n\n\n

It’s been easier today. As things are torn up and tossed, gathered and tucked away, and distributed here and there, the house seems less like Grandma’s house and more like a tired old building...long past its prime. It’s funny...when you take the rose colored classes off, the walls look a little grimy, the linoleum a little tired, the furnishings a little shabby. Water spots speckle the ceiling tiles from leaks long since fixed. Pictures that were strategically placed to cover holes in the plaster have been removed...exposing the evidence of a hammer missing the nail sometime in the past. The windows are filmy from years of gas heat and neglect. 

\n\n\n

Dismantling the old homestead doesn’t dismantle the many wonderful memories me and my cousins share. One son and one daughter survive of the original six children and this was the actual home they lived in growing up. Grandma used to say, if it wasn’t for her dairy cow, her children would have starved to death during the depression. This ground saved them all, just as it saved me. In a totally different way, but it saved me just the same.

\n\n\n

Sitting here with this old place, nurturing it as it prepares to leave us, is like sitting with an old friend who is preparing to make her transition to the great beyond. We say our goodbyes in our own way. Mine is making sure Grandma would be proud of the way I took care of it when I had the chance. She and I will rock on a porch in heaven one day, stringing beans, and talk of the place that was sheer heaven on earth to her. And to me.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.””

\nRevelation 21:4 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-04-30T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/04/30/protecting-the-turf.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/04/29/full-moons-and-hoot-owls.html", "title": "Full Moons and Hoot Owls", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I never sleep well when the moon is full. It was going on 1:30 yesterday morning when I finally dozed off. I was awakened a couple of times by a bird calling in the Carolina Spice Bush along the creek bank. Bless its heart...it almost sounded like it was questioning why it was singing at such a crazy hour. It was quite pretty. I couldn’t identify it as I was unfamiliar with the call, and...it was the middle of the night. I really wanted to sleep.

\n\n\n
\n\n\n

Barred Owls at The Farm - turn up volume!

\n\n\n

Then, at 4:00...a couple of Barred Owls decided to have a conversation very close to the bedroom window. I grabbed my cellphone quickly to record them for you and it came out great! Now, that kind of sound I don’t mind getting woken up for. Unfortunately, I couldn’t go back to sleep. So....I laid there. Not tossing and turning. Just...listening. I was still awake when the first tentative morning song came. Gradually, one after another, birds were trying to outdo each other and it was a veritable chorus. I wish I would have recorded that one...perhaps another time. I was so enthralled, I didn’t think of it. 

\n\n\n

I never realized there was a pattern to the morning songbirds. They start out a little soft...a call here, a song there. Then, one by one, more and more birds join in till it’s like an entire orchestra playing the crescendo of a symphony! Finally, the bird go about the business of the day and head out doing what birds do and for the rest of the day, there is a steady background of chatter. If you focus on the birds all day, it can become overwhelming.

\n\n\n

I finally got up and made coffee. I told you I had to give up coffee before I had my surgery? Then, for about two weeks after, I could drink it again. And now...I’ve slowly gotten to where it made me sick again yesterday morning. I was going to dig in to work, but decided to take a truckload of stuff over to the Ponderosa. When I got there, I emptied the truck, woke up Mr. FIxIt, and laid down to try to sleep for a while. 

\n\n\n

I woke up feeling great, so I headed back over here to the farm and will pack up some more stuff. Each load I take out, I feel less like a burden is hanging over me. You eat an elephant one bit at a time...that is the same way you get a big job done. As I write this, there is a storm heading this way so I’m hurrying to schedule the post before it hits. Storms take the electric out frequently here in the country. 

\n\n\n

Hope you all have a wonderful day!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.”

\nProverbs 14:23 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-04-29T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/04/29/full-moons-and-hoot-owls.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/04/28/hiding-in-plain-sight.html", "title": "Hiding in Plain Sight", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt got an early start on the tractor yesterday. I could see him on the security camera, sitting in the driveway, threading the new drive belt on the mower deck. I jumped up, grabbed my coffee, and headed out to join him. He got the mower deck on and running, but the new belt slipped off twice and it really shouldn’t do that. I took the push mower into the fenced area of the back yard around the pool and started mowing. It was rapidly heading to 80 degrees by the time I was half finished. 

\n\n\n

After a quick rehydration break, and checking to see if Mr. FixIt needed any help, I made quick work of the yard and checked back in with him. He ordered a different belt from the tractor company, but I talked him into heading out to the farm with me to mow before the rain starts today. I left before him so I could be first in the driveway, because I’ve decided to stay at the farm for a few days and get some sorting and packing done.

\n\n\n

This was the first time I was going to see the farm after my cousin came and took a lot of their things...grandma’s dining room table, the old buffet, the oak secretary from the living room. I knew it would look so different when I went in, and I prepared myself for an emotional homecoming.

\n\n\n

As I drove through the backroads, my eye was continually drawn to the hillsides around me. There, standing like misty clouds of white in the shadows of the tall, leafless trees stood countless dogwoods in full bloom. I’ve lived in the country here for several years now, and I cannot remember seeing SO many dogwoods. They made me smile.

\n\n\n

It occurred to me...so many beautiful things in this life live in the shadows. Here are these huge poplar, sycamore, hickory, and all manner of deciduous trees that will soon be fully leafed out in all their glory...showing off, bending in the breeze, their fresh spring green foliage shimmering in the sun. For now, they are still mere buds on bare grey limbs. But there, underneath them...the dogwoods are dressed in their lacy dresses, floating Ike dancers on a stage for all the world to see if they just look.

\n\n\n

As I am wont to do, I looked for what God was trying to tell me as I drove the familiar route to the home of my heart and it didn’t take long to make the connection. It was God who brought me here in the first place. He knew my heart was broken from losing Mr. Virgo. He knew my servant’s heart wanted to help my elderly aunt. He knew we were both stubborn, cantankerous women...oil and water. He knew there would be a parting of the ways. And...He knew my destiny was to cross paths with Mr. FixIt.

\n\n\n

My life was so tenuous when I came here. I practically had nothing more than what I could carry, and TOW-Wanda. I didn’t have a long range plan because I couldn’t see a life for me after losing my husband. I felt my children were older and didn’t really need their mom and my grands were busy with school and friends. And to be honest? I didn’t think I could possible live much longer anyway because my heart was broken...as was my spirit.

\n\n\n

God knew just what He was doing when He brought me here. I had the opportunity to come off the road and live on this hallowed ground where my grandparents lived. This was my healing place. This was where I danced among the tall trees...tenuously taking steps out onto the stage in my lacy dress. Just like the sweet dogwoods on the hills that surround me as I write this.

\n\n\n

We often are overshadowed in life by the bigger things, the brighter people, the seemingly more important stuff. We hide in plain sight until it is our time to shine. Will I be sad when the farm sells? Of course...there will be a part of me that will always ache for THIS home. But, it won’t break me. God gave me seven whole years to call this place home. It is my touchstone to the past and these years have been such a tremendous gift to me. I did a lot of healing here. My sweetheart came to court me here. We sat many times on the front porch in the quiet evenings and listened to the night sounds...the heady aroma of the woods washing over us. You can’t buy that kind of love. This is GOD love, this farm. That will ALWAYS be mine because God poured that all over me and into me...every moment I’ve been here.

\n\n\n

From now till the day I die, whenever I see dogwood trees blooming among the naked trees, I will remember this sunny, perfect April day and the many blessings God gave me on this little patch of ground.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.””

\nGenesis 28:15 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-04-28T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/04/28/hiding-in-plain-sight.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Grace","God"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/04/26/the-strawberry-shed.html", "title": "The Strawberry Shed", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I’m gearing up for a busy week both here on the Ponderosa and out at the farm. Both need mowing desperately. This is the time of year you can almost hear the grass growing. Warm days and spring rains bring everything to life here in West Virginia. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, you have to stay on top of this stuff or it can so get out of hand.

\n\n\n

We’ll bring Pumpkin home from the Kitty Hilton today. We sent her favorite kitty food with her this time in hopes that she isn’t as skinny as she was the last time we brought her home. There are errands to run in town, but I may send Mr. FixIt in to do those while I run the mower over the fields. I find it quite meditative and enjoyable. 

\n\n\n

We’ll go out to the farm Tuesday and mow. I’m anticipating driving separate vehicles so I can stay for a few days. There’s so much work to do out there, and I truly need some alone time to let out the tears that I’ve been holding in since I saw the auction listing. All that just makes saying goodbye more real. I am so pleased we have till July 3rd to vacate the premises, though. There’s a little more time.

\n\n\n

Today’s photo from the farm came from the sale website and I had to share it. This is what we called the Strawberry Shed” where the ladies sorted the strawberries as they came from the field. Then, sometime in the mid afternoon, PopPop would take me with him in the old Ford pickup and take a load of strawberries to the local Farmer’s Market. Women would line up and grab the berries off the conveyor belt before they even got in the store. That rusty metal rectangle on the side was lifted up and hooked to chains to create an awning to shade the berries and keep things cool inside. I’d love to take that off and use it as a decorative piece someday...either in a family room, dining room, or sunroom...or maybe in the garden. But, now that it’s in the auction piece, I don’t think I could get it. I’ll have to make due with photos and memories.

\n\n\n

I’m making great progress on the shawl I’m knitting, but I’m finding I simply cannot follow the pattern if the television is on. I do much better if I wear my headphones and listen to my “writing soundtrack”...the sounds of a roaring fire and a thunderstorm. I discovered the pattern is for a short shawl and if you want a longer version, which I do, you need to buy three more skeins of yarn. They didn’t have one of the colors I needed at the shop where I bought the kit, but I found another website and got two skeins on sale. I have someone special in mind for this piece and I’d like to have it finished before her birthday.

\n\n\n

So, we’ll hit the ground running and see what we can accomplish with the gift of this week. Yesterday was a lovely day of rest and I thoroughly enjoyed my recliner and my knitting. 

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“He has filled them with skill to do every sort of work done by an engraver or by a designer or by an embroiderer in blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, or by a weaver—by any sort of workman or skilled designer.”

\nExodus 35:35 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-04-26T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/04/26/the-strawberry-shed.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Choices","Change","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/04/14/the-things-that-take-my.html", "title": "The Things That Take My Breath Away", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Redbud Out on the Two Lane

\n\n\n

Unless you have driven down a country road in West Virginia in mid April and been treated to the magnificence of a full on display of redbud and dogwood...you are seriously missing out on God showing off! Some years are better than others and the stars must be aligned just right this year because they are show stoppers. And, no matter how hard I try, photographs just do not do them justice.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Violets Growing Out of a Crack in the Sidewalk

\n\n\n

As soon as I had breakfast down me yesterday, Mr. FixIt had the mowers loaded up on the utility trailer and we headed to the farm. By the time we got there, the morning dew was dry and it was smooth sailing getting the lawn mowed. I think back to the year I lived there on my own and had to mow with a push mower. Land sakes...it took ALL day and I was exhausted. And it’s only about an acre. I once thought of getting a riding mower for out there, but never did. Let me tell you...a riding mower makes short work of that yard. Poor Mr. FixIt uses the push mower and trims around the edges where the riding mower can’t reach. He also mows the ditch out front along the road and when we’re done, it’s a showpiece! I did a load of sheets while we were mowing and once they were finished, we headed home.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The Lawn Always Looks Great Freshly Mown

\n\n\n

As we pulled in the driveway, I told him not to put the riding mower away when he took it off the trailer. I could NOT believe how much the grass has grown since I mowed it last week. We quickly set to the chore and had it knocked down long before dark. But, man were we tired. Mowing is a lot harder on the back the older you get. I bought Mr. FixIt some pretty strong CBD lotion for his back and he swears it works. So I decided to try it myself last night. I’ll let you know how well it works.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Our Redbud at the Ponderosa

\n\n\n

I also started bringing home some tubs of my belongings from the farm. There’s still a lot of stuff out there that I brought with me from Colorado, and since I haven’t touched it since 2014, you can imagine just how badly I need it, right? The last thing I wanted to do was drag that stuff to the basement last night, but I had to. The tonneau cover on the back of my pickup doesn’t keep the bed dry and we’ll be getting rain again today. Heavy boxes and my poor sweetie couldn’t carry one more thing so it was left to me this time. I just slid them down the steps, one step at a time. It wasn’t all that bad.

\n\n\n

I turned off the gas heaters out at the farm now because we are long past the threat of freezing pipes. In exchange, I turned on the dehumidifier. It’s that time of year when it will start getting hot enough to bring up the humidity and left to its own devices, that house will get moldy inside and that just will not do. There’s so much to do there to get ready to sell and I know it’s not mine, but my uncle lives on the other side of the state so I need to at least get my part done. 

\n\n\n

So, that’s it for another day of farm life. I have a new appreciation for REAL farmers. Those who raise animals and hay and crops and work from sunup to sundown. This is just pretend farming, but I love it just the same. It is wonderful when you lay down at night with the bone weary satisfaction of jobs well done. I do love that!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.”

\n2 Timothy 2:6 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-04-14T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/04/14/the-things-that-take-my.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/04/12/listening-to-the-night-sounds.html", "title": "Listening to the Night Sounds", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I love the sounds of spring. From rain on the roof to the happy chirping of frogs in the wet areas around us, Unfortunately, TOW-Wanda has a leak that needs fixing so we can’t sneak out there and “camp” till she’s fixed and I’m really missing that! I don’t know if we’ll have the time to get her down to the dealership to get fixed before we leave...mainly because it’s supposed to rain every day this week, except Tuesday. We’ll have to mow out at the farm that day. 

\n\n\n

The night sounds are different here at the Ponderosa than they are out at the farm. You don’t hear the frogs out there like you do here. But, we have neighbors that live closer now and we hear. Their dogs barking periodically. I’ve learned I can pretty well mask them with a fan in the window, but this week is cooler, so it may be a little less comfortable in the bedroom. The farm has the ever present sound of the creek. Sometimes it’s just a trickle...sometimes a roar. The biggest difference is the sound of rain on the tin roof of grandma’s house. There’s nothing that compares to that.

\n\n\n

When we finally sell this house and build in town, I’d love to have a roof just like the one at the farm. Then I can hear that sound again whenever it rains. I don’t even know if they still make that kind of roof, but I can dream. At one time, I wanted to build an exact replica of Grandma’s house....but, it’s two stories and a basement and for practical reasons surrounding aging in place, we’re going to have to opt for a ranch style home. I’m going to have my favorite picture of the farmhouse printed and framed and present the family with copies this summer. And I’ll keep one in our home...perhaps over a fireplace. A place of prominence...a place of honor.

\n\n\n

We had a busy weekend. We installed another security camera and we got the pump hooked up on the pool. You wouldn’t think that would amount to a lot of work, but believe me, it took all day Saturday. We have two more cameras to hook up and the pool to clean. We have to mow at the farm and get things ready for our trip to the beach. There’s never a dull moment around here!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house.”

\nProverbs 24:27 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-04-12T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/04/12/listening-to-the-night-sounds.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/04/11/in-search-of-the-silver.html", "title": "In Search of the Silver Linings", "content_html": "\n
\"Grandma’s
\n\n\n

The Farm

\n\n\n

Yesterday we talked about letting the farm go and the inevitability of change in our lives. I read the lovely comments and encouraging words you left me on my post and it gave me much to think about throughout the day. When life hands me lemons, I start looking for all the different ways to use them. There are so many ways to make a lemon sweet and more palatable.

\n\n\n

When I took over the farm in 2016, I also took over the utilities. When I no longer have that to deal with, I’ll have at least an extra couple hundred dollars in my bank account. That’s a good amount of camping I could be doing. Also, we won’t be responsible for the mowing and that will give us a lot more time and less pressing need to always be here.

\n\n\n

You know, normally I never would have had the opportunity to spend more than a week or two at the farm when I came home for vacations every year. After Mr. Virgo passed and I came back to West Virginia to help my elderly aunt, I had a taste of life in the country. It only lasted ten weeks that go round, but it was enough to let me know it was the life for me.

\n\n\n

When I returned to West Virginia in the summer of 2016, I was presented with an opportunity I couldn’t pass up. My uncle was taking my aunt to go live with him and he needed someone to live at the farm and take care of it. He asked if I could come off the road and stay there for him. I didn’t have to think twice. 

\n\n\n

Having all this time to live in my grandparents’ house was such a gift from God. I did a lot of healing there. Not only from the wounds of losing my husband, but of losing so much of myself over the years. It brought me back to my simpler roots. I remember, as a doctor’s wife...talking to one of my lifelong friends. Apparently I needed to be brought down a peg or two because she reminded me, in no uncertain terms, that she and I had the same roots in the red clay of Appalachia and it would do me well to remember that.

\n\n\n

I’ve never forgotten that conversation. Living a simple farm life after downsizing humbled me in a way nothing else has. As I read stories on Facebook yesterday, I was reminded of the most basic point. I am letting go of a house. I have friends letting go of their children, of their marriages, of their livelihoods. I have friends who are in life and death struggles with health concerns. I am letting go of a HOUSE. I’m not planning a funeral, yet I will grieve. I am not burying a loved one, yet I am bereaved.

\n\n\n

It isn’t lost on me the way God is helping me through this. Daughter #1 and her girls will be here the week before we have to vacate the farm. We are planning a gathering of family to say goodbye to the old girl...and to the long line of loved ones who called her home and are no longer with us. Little is staying with us while my daughter takes Big to go see colleges. You see? I get to not only share the farm with Little, but I get to share my heart and the stories of her ancestors and instill a love and appreciation for what came before her. She and I have never been together....here. It’s extraordinary how well orchestrated this is. God is so good!

\n\n\n

It is a natural process in life to grieve the things we lose that bring us such love. And, just as I have learned to keep Mr. Virgo’s memory alive within me, the same will be true of the farm. I will remember the sights, sounds, smells, and every little feeling that creaky old house gives me till the day I part this earthly plane. When I hear rain on the roof of a camper, I’ll be transported back in time to a little red house in the woods. When I lay my head on a pillow where I can hear the rushing sounds of water in a creek, I will close my eyes and remember.

\n\n\n

When I hug those I love, I give away bits of the love my family poured into me. That love comes from an endless source...a fount of remembrances of love and joy and faith. I carry the farm within me. I AM THE FARM and THE FARM IS ME.

\n\n\n

We are one and we are love...simply because, we were loved. By the family and by the land upon which we stood. For we are but sojourners here.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

““The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine. For you are strangers and sojourners with me.”

\nLeviticus 25:23 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-04-11T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/04/11/in-search-of-the-silver.html", "tags": ["Faith","Family","Overcoming Obstacles","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Love","Wisdom","Peaceful Moments","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/04/10/the-one-thing-you-can.html", "title": "The One Thing You Can Count On", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Spring flowers on my walkabout on the Ponderosa.

\n\n\n

Besides God, there is only one thing for absolute certain you can count on in life, and that is change. Mr. FixIt doesn’t like change. I usually relish it. I find change exciting and challenging and it can lead to many adventures. But there’s one change I’ve been dreading and the time has come to face it.  My uncle is selling the farm.

\n\n\n

I’ve known it was coming. And I asked him to put it off a year so we could have a family gathering this summer to say goodbye to the old girl. He was gracious to accommodate me, but we can’t keep putting off the inevitable. Grandma’s farm has been an integral part of my life. I have become who I am because of the love in that home. My roots grow deep in that West Virginia red clay.

\n\n\n

I’m so grateful to have had all this time to spend out there. I think I’ve photographed every square inch of the place so I’ll forever have something to look back on. I have indelible memories of time spent there over my nearly sixty-eight years. I have stories and more stories...as you all well know. I imagine you feel you know the place, too. 

\n\n\n

From the stumps of trees my PopPop planted to the three story barn he and my grand grandfather built...from the cinder block cellar house to the basement they rolled the house down onto when I was six...from the original tin roof to the old smokehouse now teetering precariously by the creek...the farm is as much a part of my life as any of my loved ones. It’s almost as though it is a living, breathing entity...which in some ways, I suppose it is. 

\n\n\n

We ran to town yesterday to get sand for the pool filter and pick out carpet for the family room when my uncle called me to break the news. It makes me sad, but not as much as it would have had I not been so blessed to have had the last several years to be free to stay whenever I want. I have called around to let family members and close friends know it’s going to be sold. It would be ideal if someone I know buys it. Then, at least I could come back for a visit from time to time. 

\n\n\n

Then again...maybe it would be best to just make a clean break. To not watch what someone else does with the place. I mean, I have to look at the plus side. I’ve been paying the utilities out there for the last five years so that will be a little extra back in my pocket every month. And, we won’t have to mow out there any more. That will be a huge weight off my shoulders. Still...it’s hard when the home place is gone. My last tangible connection to my family member who have gone on to their rewards.

\n\n\n

What was it I said about change? Ahhhh, yes...I relish change. 

\n\n\n

Just not this one.

\n\n\n

This one will be hard.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: - a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;”

\nEcclesiastes 3:1, 6 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-04-10T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/04/10/the-one-thing-you-can.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Change","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/03/31/what-is-that-noise.html", "title": "What is That Noise?", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I like quiet. I don’t like the television blaring or traffic humming or weird mechanical noises you often times get in a house. So, when I get to have some quiet time out at the farm, the last thing in the world I’m going to do is turn on the TV or listen to music. Consequently, I have discovered my tinnitus has cranked up a few notches since the last time I stayed out here on my own. I can really hear the ringing when everything else is still.

\n\n\n

The refrigerator crapped out sometime last fall, so we bought a small dorm fridge and that thing is so quiet, you don’t even know it’s there. The old fridge used to run all the time...rarely cycling off...and it was just on the other side of the wall from Grandma’s bedroom. Fortunately, I sleep with earplugs or I’d never last a night. But now it’s so quiet, all I can hear is my ears ringing...and birds...and the occasional car going up and down the road. 

\n\n\n

We are supposed to get hard rain here today. I finished the laundry last night and put it in my truck so I don’t have to drag it out in the wet. I do love to hear the rain on the tin roof here. There are two levels of roof here so when there is a gentle rain, it drips down off the upper edge down onto the lower porch roofs. That’s when you hear a dripping “plink” sound that is somewhat like a wind chime. And of course, when there’s a good rain, the creek runs hard and loud about ten or twelve feet from the bedroom window.

\n\n\n

I sleep with the bedroom window open, no matter what the temperature is outside. I have an electric blanket on the bed and it makes for cozy sleeping. I’ve read it’s healthier to sleep in a cold room and I believe it. Between always having fresh air and wearing masks, I haven’t had a cold in two years. I usually have one or two every winter and this is a welcome change. I do believe I’ll continue the mask wearing in public during cold and flu season from now on.

\n\n\n

Speaking of the bedroom window, the shade has long since deteriorated to the point you cannot put it up or down. There is only a sheer curtain and the window is right beside the bed. Now, granted, you’d have to be about eight or nine feet tall to see in that window, but I always kinda feel exposed when I sleep here alone. I went upstairs to look for something to cover it with and came across this narrow twin sheet. I put it up and laid here feeling the good quality of the fabric. Who know how old it is. Then I noticed a marking stamped in the corner. Turns out, it is a top sheet from an old Pullman sleeper car. I have no idea where it came from or how it got here. My grandparents were NOT travelers. I do have two aunts that would have traveled by train and I suppose it could have made its way here through them. My best guess is, my great grandfather brought it. He was all the time buying lots at antique auctions and dragging the stuff over here. It very likely could have been in a box of things he brought here in the ‘50s and ’60s. However it got here, it’s pretty cool and works perfectly as a window curtain.

\n\n\n

We are supposed to get down in the 20’s the next three nights with a chance of snow showers. March came in like a lamb so I suppose it’s going to go out like a lion! It’s always shocking when you have a nice day in the mid 70’s then crash down into a hard freeze. But this too shall pass and before we know it, there will be days so hot we can’t breathe and we’ll be wishing for some of that cool air. Staying in the present and enjoying what we have is always the best way to live. I’ll be heading back to the Ponderosa sometime today so I can see what Mr. FixIt has gotten himself into while I was gone. It’s kinda funny...my phone pings me when motion is detected on the security camera and there was my sweetheart, mowing and trimming around the yard. 

\n\n\n

It’s the last day of March already! Hokey smokes...time flies!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.”

\nColossians 3:14 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-03-31T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/03/31/what-is-that-noise.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/03/30/my-home-away-from-home.html", "title": "My Home Away From Home", "content_html": "\n
\"Daffodils\"
“Grandma’s Daffodils “
\n\n\n

I pulled into the drive at the farm at 2:30, shut off the truck, and opened the door to get out. Before I could move an inch, the sounds and smells of spring washed over me and I had to lean back and take it all in. The Caroline Wren in the old cherry tree called “Cheer! Cheer! Cheer!” as I watched a fat chipmunk scamper under my kayak. Squirrels rustled in the dried leaves at the base of hickory and oak trees, scavenging for nuts to munch on. The sky was crystal clear and the air was crisp. I smiled and a let out a contented sigh.

\n\n\n

I’m home.

\n\n\n

It’s just one of my “homes”, but this one rests so solidly in my heart. I’ve never known a time when this farm WASN’T home. Whether I was a little kid scrambling up the hills looking for moss and rocks. Or a young bride bringing her first baby home to meet her great grandmother. Or any other time I’ve walked in the back door and into my family’s embrace. 

\n\n\n

So many are gone now. PopPop in ‘71...my first experience with death. Grandma in 1999. Mom in 2004. Uncle Bob in 2008. I have one aunt living and once she is gone...I will be the matriarch. This place is woven out of memories and hard work and sacrifice. As I lay propped up on the pillows in my grandparents’ bed writing this, I can still see them laying here in the dark as my mom quietly walked me to the bathroom in the middle of the night. 

\n\n\n

Grandma would whisper in the dark, “Are you ok, pet?”

\n\n\n

“Yes, Grandma.”

\n\n\n

As we walked back through she’d whisper, “Sleep tight.”

\n\n\n

“You, too.”

\n\n\n

Grandma called me “Pet”. My brother was “Geddy Lee”. My cousins were “Tissy Rae”, “TimTam”, and “Trinket”. She had a nickname for everyone and always made you feel like you were the very center of the universe. She was never happier than the days when everyone was here at the same time. That happened less and less often as the grandkids grew and had families of their own. We all came together a year or so before Grandma died so she could have us all here with her one last time. I will always hold that memory close. After this last year and not seeing my own children and grandchildren, I have a much deeper appreciation for what she felt during those gatherings.

\n\n\n

When Daughter #1 and Co. come this summer, I’m hoping to gather as many of the family together as I can. This house is living on borrowed time. When Aunt Peeps died last year, she requested no funeral or memorial. But, she didn’t say we couldn’t have a picnic! I think it’s high time we get together and honor this old farm and all those who have called it home and gone before us to their heavenly rewards. It’s time to say goodbye to a piece of my past.

\n\n\n

I’ve never known a time when this farm wasn’t “mine”. Unfortunately, that time is coming. My uncle is aging and can’t do what needs to be done. If I were 30 years, even 20 years younger, I’d buy it. But, there’s just too much work to do to bring this old gal back to life. I have a 2nd cousin 1x removed that would be the perfect person to buy this house and keep it in the family. This is something I’ve been praying on. If it’s meant to be, it will happen. But, for me, the days here are numbered. 

\n\n\n

I’ve been working on letting go for the last couple of years. It won’t be easy when I can’t stay here whenever I want. But, really...nothing will ever take away my lifetime of memories in this little slice of heaven. I think my blood is the color of the faded red paint on the rough sawn timbers or the red clay soil. The place is as much a part of me as my hands and feet. 

\n\n\n

It is my heart.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.”

\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭24:3-4‬ ‭ESV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-03-30T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/03/30/my-home-away-from-home.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2021/01/11/day-putting-on-the-brakes.html", "title": "Day 301: Putting on the Brakes", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I asked Mr. FixIt on Saturday night if he’d like to go out to the farm with me yesterday to check things out. I like to get out there several times a month to make sure everything is ok and to pick up the mail. And, I like to just sit for a bit and breathe in a bit of the peace that place gives me. 

\n\n\n

It was a beautiful day to go for a drive. The sun was shining and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. It was chilly...in the 30’s...but a perfect day to go to my happy place. Especially after the week we’ve had. There was quite a bit of mail...the Livestock Market Quarterly and the flyer that tells you what farms are open and what they are selling. There was the usual advertisements, a couple bills, and the new phone book. Typical fare.

\n\n\n

Everything looked good. I checked all the rooms, windows, and doors. There were four new messages. One was telling my late aunt she was eligible for a Covid vaccine on Tuesday. A couple hung up. And one was a man named John. He said we didn’t know him, but he was calling to give us the Good Word and share a couple of Bible verses. I didn’t think to write them down. I should have.

\n\n\n

While I was wandering around the house, Mr. FixIt was checking up around the barn. He called me out to look at something. The ground between the barn and a drain pipe that goes across is very soft and always wet. It never gets sun and the only thing that really grows in that soil is a luxurious ground cover that’s about two to three inches thick. It sits like a dense carpet on top of the wet earth below and easily peels away like the skin that forms on pudding. 

\n\n\n

I walked up to where Mr. FixIt stood, staring at the ground. 

\n\n\n

“What do you suppose did this?” he asked.

\n\n\n

I wandered around, looking at several places where the ground cover was disturbed. At first, I though perhaps coyotes had been digging for moles or voles in the soft earth. But I quickly ruled that out when I could find no foot prints. I studied the claylike soil that was exposed. There were two large cuts, with two smaller cuts within each. The smaller spots nearby were punctures straight down in the loamy material.

\n\n\n

Eureka! What we had here was a fairly large deer came running down through the area between the barn and the house, put on the brakes for some reason, and skidded through the slippery clay and ground cover...trying desperately to stop. My guess is, he lost his footing and danced around a bit till he got his bearings before he continued on. I would have loved to have been there to see that!

\n\n\n

One our way back home, we came around a curve only to be greeted with a pickup truck halfway in our lane. Mr. FixIt yelled. I might have said a bad word. I had no place to go but over the bank into the creek, but fortunately the guy swerved back into his lane and I moved back into mine. Our hearts were in our throats for a while, let me tell you. I thanked Jesus for getting us through that.

\n\n\n

These twisty turny roads of West Virginia can be dangerous and I will definitely breathe better when we are able to live a little closer to town. It will still be a bit before we can do that, but in the meantime, I keep my cross hanging in my truck and pray God keeps us safe.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Don't be afraid. I am with you. Don't tremble with fear. I am your God. I will make you strong, as I protect you with my arm and give you victories.”

\nIsaiah 41:10 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2021-01-11T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2021/01/11/day-putting-on-the-brakes.html", "tags": ["Faith","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/12/18/day-be-careful-what-you.html", "title": "Day 279: Be Careful What You Wish For", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I was browsing photos in a Facebook Group I belong to the other day. It was one of those “You Might Be From __________ If...” pages. People post stories and photos. There are a precious few of the “old guard” who grew up and know those pictured. But there are far more who come on and say... “Does anyone recognize the people in this photo?” Those are the sad ones because the elders are dying off without labeling the photos or teaching the young’uns who were in them.

\n\n\n

My grandma was pretty good about writing the names of folks on the back with the stub of a pencil, most likely whittled to a point with my PopPop’s pen knife. This particular photo caught my eye because I’ve seen it all my life. It’s the old one room schoolhouse that was a couple of miles from the farm. My mom and one of her brothers are in that photo and I smiled at the memories that came rushing back to me.

\n\n\n

We have that photo somewhere in the family archives, and now, thanks to modern technology, I have it safely ensconced in my iPad and the Cloud. I can still see Grandma in her rocking chair by the front window, looking through her “picture book” and walking down memory lane. She would point and name everyone, then tell a story or share their nickname. Everyone had a nickname. Just yesterday, my baby cousin asked me what Grandma’s name was for me. I was “Ginny Lynny” or just “Pet”. She was “Trinket”. 

\n\n\n

This particular photo was taken shortly after the Great Depression. I want to say it was around 1936-37, judging by the size of my mom and her brother. When Grandma saw pictures like this, she shared with me the hard stories. Stories of struggles and just trying to get by. She would tear up when she said their milk cow was the only thing standing between her children living or dying of starvation. They never wasted a thing. Shoes were resoled at home because there wasn’t money for a cobbler. Clothes were sewn from flour sacks and mended and handed down. Grandma had a baby every two years till she nearly died after the last one and they saved her life with an emergency hysterectomy.

\n\n\n

It was right around this time when Grandma and PopPop managed to scrape enough money together to buy the farm that I still take care of. When they moved down off the hill into that house, Grandma said she felt like a queen in a castle! She didn’t have running water or an indoor bathroom for twenty more years. They had an old wringer washer with a hit and miss engine out on the back porch. My earliest memories are of Grandma carrying buckets of rainwater she heated on the stove and pouring it in the washer. 

\n\n\n

She used lye she made from ashes and mixed it with rendered fat from butchering to make soap that was used for everything. Wash was done once a week. You started with the delicates when the water was still clean and soft and you ended with work clothes. PopPop worked in the pipe yard on old oil and gas well pipe and parts. He was always sticky and stinky with black creosote and a hard day’s sweat when he got home. Those work clothes had to be boiled and scrubbed on a washboard by hand to get the most of the grease out of them. I remember they were always an army green or khaki color.

\n\n\n

Once the clothes were as clean as they were going to get, Grandma used the rinse water to scrub the floors of the house and the last bit was thrown out on the porch and worked with a broom to get what mud they could off the steps. It was a hard life she lived, working from sunup to sundown doing as much hard work as any man, then mending clothes and sewing on buttons at night after supper. 

\n\n\n

I look at that picture of my mom as a little girl, and I’m humbled. The “going back in time” I get to do at the farm at my age is a walk in the park compared to actually living the life they lived. You hear people say “It was a simpler time.” Simpler? Be careful what you wish for. Simpler in those day meant they didn’t have the time sucks we have now. They didn’t have TV and computers. They were lucky to see a newspaper or a magazine. They didn’t know what was happening in Asia or the Middle East or Africa unless a missionary happened to be traveling through trying to raise a little money for an orphanage somewhere. However, their lives consisted of hard work and more than their fair share of sadness. And fortunately, I come from the kind of people whose glasses were always full to overflowing and I heard of all the goodness of life.

\n\n\n

What are we giving our children’s children’s children to know about those who came before us? What are we handing down from our great grandparents’ days? What are we teaching them about long lost skills like growing our own food and preserving it or making our own clothes and tools? Part of the purpose of this blog is sharing the past along with the stories of the present. You’ve followed along in my grief journey after losing Mr. Virgo. You’ve been here for the adventures in the camper and traveling the country as a widow trying to heal my broken heart, one campfire at a time. You shared in my joy when I found love again with my best friend from high school and remarried. Interspersed with all these events are the stories of my roots. I share them with you here because many of you grew up with similar lives and they spark your own memories. Some of you couldn’t dream of living such a life and it’s like reading a history book. So, why do I share so much of myself and my family’s history?

\n\n\n

Because...one day, I’ll be dead and gone, and my grandchildren and their grandchildren’s children will read these stories and know from whence they came. I don’t have great material wealth to leave to my family...to the world. All I have are my experiences and my knowledge and my wisdom...the lessons I’ve learned along the way.

\n\n\n

I’m the storyteller.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Love should always make us tell the truth. Then we will grow in every way and be more like Christ, the head of the body. Christ holds it together and makes all of its parts work perfectly, as it grows and becomes strong because of love.”

\nEphesians 4:15-16 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-12-18T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/12/18/day-be-careful-what-you.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Strong Women","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Wisdom","Aging","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/11/25/day-and-waiting-some-more.html", "title": "Day 256: And Waiting Some More", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Grandma’s Christmas Bells

\n\n\n

Well...fiddle fiddle, as my mother used to say. I waited around yesterday, hoping the phone would ring and I’d get the results of my Covid test. By 12:30, I decided to call the number where I left the message on Monday. The kind lady not only directed me to the nurse’s line, but she also sent her a message stating the importance of my call. I left a voicemail and asked that she call me back.

\n\n\n

About an hour later, I received a call from Christina, the nurse. She asked again for my name and date of birth, then told me she had no record of me in her system.

\n\n\n

“I have to be there! You all even called me back to get my information.”

\n\n\n

“I’m sorry...it’s just not here. Where exactly did you receive your test?” 

\n\n\n

“In the back there...by the ER.”

\n\n\n

“Ohhhhhh....you had that done at ______________.”

\n\n\n

“Yes, I did.” I said. “Ummmm....where are you?”

\n\n\n

“I’m over here in _____________.”

\n\n\n

“Well, that makes sense. Do you have a tent out front?”

\n\n\n

“Yes,” she said.

\n\n\n

“Well, the first woman I spoke to when I was driving over told me to come to the tent, but there wasn’t one.”

\n\n\n

Oy.

\n\n\n

I got the correct number from her and called. And....the results aren’t back. All of the results for the day were already there.

\n\n\n

“I’m so sorry. You’ll have to try again tomorrow.”

\n\n\n

Which is today. Which is the day before Thanksgiving.

\n\n\n

OY!

\n\n\n

I had to call my sweetheart and tell him. He is the most understanding man on the planet. I’m so tempted to just go home because I feel fine. The only thing I am experiencing now is it tastes like I have a mouthful of nickels for some reason. The Vit C or Zinc, perhaps. But...what if? What if it was positive? I sure don’t want my sweetie to get sick. Of course, even if it was positive, the longer I’m here, the less contagious I would be. So, today I’ll make an executive decision...one way or the other.

\n\n\n

I love my breaks away...but three days and I’m ready to get home. I always used to think “old people” were such fuddyduddies wanting to go home, sleep in their own beds. Now it’s ME. Now, how did THAT happen??? lol

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Gray hair is a glorious crown worn by those who have lived right.”

\nProverbs 16:31 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-11-25T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/11/25/day-and-waiting-some-more.html", "tags": ["Health","The Farm","Aging"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/11/24/day-still-waitingand-waiting.html", "title": "Day 255: Still Waiting...and Waiting...", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I finally gave in and called the little clinic where I had my Covid test done on Saturday. I know they said three days, but I was hoping it might have come in. No such luck. As a matter of fact, I left a message and it wasn’t returned. So, hopefully it comes in today. My back still hurts some, but the rest of the symptoms seem to have abated, so I’m thinking it was just a run of the mill virus and not the BIG one.

\n\n\n

I puttered around the house yesterday out at the farm. I decided to put the Christmas decorations up. I have a couple of trees that light up that Mr. FixIt gave me the first Christmas right after we started dating. I went to Colorado that Christmas and was gone a month. When I got back, I pulled in the driveway and the trees were on the front porch of Grandma’s house. It was the first time I’d seen lights out there since I was a little girl and I sat right there in my truck and cried. It was the sweetest thing.

\n\n\n

I pulled the trees out and put them together and ran the extension cord out to the front porch. No matter how I hooked it up, they wouldn’t light. I tried plugging them into the light receptacle. Nothing. I even brought them back inside and purged them into the house. Nope. When I have them set up out here, they run 24/7 for at least 6-8 weeks. I’m sure they just burned out. Unfortunately, they aren’t the kind of lights you can change, nor is there a fuse. So, I’ll just have to come up with something else for the porch this year.

\n\n\n

When I was living here at the farm, I saw a couple of boxes of Christmas stuff in the basement. I went down there yesterday and rummaged around and found them. There wasn’t a lot that was really usable, but I salvaged what I could and put them out on the dining room table to brighten up the place for the holidays. Grandma always had pretty tablecloths for the old round dining table. Most of them were practical flannel-backed vinyl, but one of them is this printed cloth one for Christmas. I also found the three red plastic bells that have always hung on the front door ever since I was a very little girl. They don’t work anymore either, but they’re out there...bringing back the memories. So, we’re all decorated on the inside. 

\n\n\n

While I’ve enjoyed my respite here at the farm, I am really ready to go home. I miss my boyfriend! I had the opportunity to have long conversations with family and friends the last few days. We talked about marriage and how we get into a groove when we are together all the time. Bring in a global pandemic and keeping to yourselves and that adds a whole new layer of togetherness. BC...before Covid...Mr. FixIt bowled two nights a week. BS...before strokes...he worked odd jobs with his friend Harry. I traveled and camped and spoke publicly. We were used to having some separation. So, yeah...any breaks away only make us appreciate each other that much more when we get back together.

\n\n\n

I’ll hang around today for the phone call. I’m just certain it’s negative. It has to be...if not, we’ll be spending Thanksgiving alone. I need to get home and prep some pumpkin and make some pies! Thanksgiving is just around the corner!

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“I have provided all kinds of fruit and grain for you to eat.”

\nGenesis 1:29 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-11-24T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/11/24/day-still-waitingand-waiting.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Baking"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/11/23/day-waiting-it-out.html", "title": "Day 254: Waiting it Out", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

As I hunker down here at the farm, an alert came over the phone. Rain is coming. Plink. Plink. Plink. You hear the first drops hit the tin roof. Before long, you know it will sound like bacon frying. If it rains hard enough, it turns to a roar. I smile as I remember all the rainstorms of my youth in this house. There was this one time when it rained in the back yard, but not a drop in the front! 

\n\n\n

If it rains hard enough, I’ll hear the water running in the creek outside Grandma’s bedroom window. But, as I write this, a gentle rain falls. I don’t watch TV, but when I want to feel cozy here on a chilly day, I turn it on and find the channel that plays a blazing fireplace...complete with snaps and crackles. There’s nothing better than the sounds and sights of a crackling fire AND rain on a tin roof.

\n\n\n

I’m still here, waiting for word from the results of my Covid test. I still have a cough. I still have a backache. I’m still really tired. I know it’s something...probably just a cold...but I can’t risk making my sweetheart sick. So here I sit. My friend Diane called me the other night and told me our little town is delivering Thanksgiving meals. I called and ordered two. When I get home, I’ll make a couple pumpkin pies and we’ll call it good.

\n\n\n

Yes, it sucks to not have our family around for the holidays this year. But, imagine what it was like during the 1918 influenza pandemic? For us, it means no TV...no Hallmark Christmas Movies or football games or even reruns of Andy Griffith. No electronics, no internet...few diversions. In 1918, the first wave was relatively mild with few deaths, the disease lasting about three days. When it came back in the fall, it killed with a vengeance wiping out entire families. No promise of a vaccine. No lifesaving super meds. Covid is rising rapidly here and I’ll do everything I can to keep it from hitting my home and my family. If it means empty chairs now, it increases the odds of full chairs down the road.

\n\n\n

I’m praying my test is negative. Because, if it isn’t, I’ll be having Thanksgiving here at the farm alone and my sweetheart will be at the house alone, as well. My gut tells me it’s negative. I just don’t feel sick enough for it to be Covid...at least from what I hear about symptoms. Still, I’ll wait it out, listening to the rain on a tin roof, and feel so grateful for this safe place...this “home of my heart”.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.”

\n

\nIsaiah 32:18 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-11-23T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/11/23/day-waiting-it-out.html", "tags": ["Health","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Peaceful Moments"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/11/22/day-can-you-sayquarantine.html", "title": "Day 253: Can You Say...Quarantine?", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I woke up yesterday with a stuffy head. I didn’t think I felt too bad till I attempted to get out of bed. Then I felt as though I perhaps had been in a tractor pull...sans tractor. As the morning wore on, the cough and the sneezing started. I just didn’t feel good. I went on the DHS website and took their assessment questionnaire and it advised I go in for testing. My initial thought was, “Yeah...I’ll see how I feel tomorrow.” Then Daughter #1 happened to send a video chat request. After hearing my story, she strongly suggested I go get tested. 

\n\n\n

Now, remember...I’m out at the farm. I can’t go near Mr. FixIt. So I called the nearest clinic and were told they do Covid testing. The gal said to “come to the tent and call this number. I’ll take your info and send someone out to do the swab.” It was about a twenty minute drive out to this little tiny rural hospital/clinic. I pulled out the envelope with the phone number, opened my phone screen and...zero cell service. I don’t know what they can get there...but it’s not Verizon. And, there was no tent. I drove around the buildings until I finally found three parking spots with “Covid Testing Parking” on a piece of printer paper taped to a pole.

\n\n\n

I gloved and masked up and timidly went in the front foyer of the emergency department. The lady came and asked what I needed. She sent me back out to the truck, and came out about five minutes later with the test kit. This swab only went in about a half inch or so. It wasn’t the foot long swab that goes a full 4-5 inches up your nose. I don’t mind that, except I do want what is most reliable. She sent me home with directions to isolate till I get the results in three days when they’ll call me.

\n\n\n

Now I’m doing what I can to feel better. Zinc and Vitamin C for immune boosters, anti-inflammatory for pain and fever reduction, fluids and rest. I have a stack of magazines and my electronics and my little mini-fridge of food. I was really looking forward to getting back home to see my sweetheart. I know I love a break and a little R&R, but now I’m missing my “boyfriend”. 

\n\n\n

It’s not all bad, though. I have another stretch of time to love on this house. The same house my grandma adored. It was the Taj Mahal to her. I look around at this old bedroom. The holes in the plaster where nails hung pictures till enough of the plaster was lost and the nail no longer held. I try to remember what was hung in each spot. A calendar from the feed store, perhaps. Or, more likely, a school picture of one of us kids. 

\n\n\n

Grandma was what we called “picture poor”. She might not have had a whole lot, but that woman always had film in her camera and every trip to the farm involved pictures. We would stop and get her pictures for her from the store and take them to the farm with a sack of groceries. After lunch, we all gathered around to look at grandma’s pictures. No one said a word about her photography. She had a habit of standing so far away from her subjects, you had no idea who they were. But, they were always standing in front of some flowers. Grandma loved her posies.

\n\n\n

Resting here in her bed, I listen for her voice coming back down the halls of my memory. Her laugh. Her sayings. Her quiet judgment. Her gentle love. Her strong hand that she didn’t mind swatting your backside with when you acted a fool. I see her on a sunny day with freshly washed hair glistening with streaks of silver against the dark hair of her youth that refused to leave entirely. She washed her hair in a bucket of rainwater heated on the stove. She rinsed it with cool rainwater she dipped from the barrel at the corner of the house. She kept an old enamel saucepan hanging on a nail precisely for that purpose.

\n\n\n

When my children were very small, she would get the step stool for them. They stood on the stool and combed her long hair over and over till it dried. Then she would whip it around and around with a few swift turns and pin it into a bun. I smile at that thought because I’ve taken to wearing my own silver-streaked hair in a bun, too. One of these days, when Covid is over and we are free to do as we will, I will have a family picnic here at the farm to celebrate. And, maybe my own little three-year-old great granddaughter will stand on that very same stool and comb MY hair.

\n\n\n

The circle of life. 

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Children are a blessing and a gift from the Lord. Having a lot of children to take care of you in your old age is like a warrior with a lot of arrows.”

\nPsalms 127:3-4 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-11-22T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/11/22/day-can-you-sayquarantine.html", "tags": ["Health","Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","Comfort","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/11/21/day-praying-praying-praying.html", "title": "Day 252: Praying, Praying, Praying", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

When I left the house Wednesday morning, I headed to the clinic to drop off a specimen then headed out to the farm for my R&R. I had to sit in the clinic for an hour in the main waiting room. People were spaced apart and wearing masks. But, still...I was inside in a medical clinic...for an hour. I wasn’t really happy about it. All I wanted to do was drop off the specimen and leave. But, rules is rules, right?

\n\n\n

I realized as I headed to the farm...I totally forgot to pack a cooler with some food. I stopped at McDonald’s and got some breakfast sandwiches, and at the Dollar General on the two-lane on the way to my destination. I was only planning to stay two nights, so that was plenty. I had boatloads of laundry to do and was finishing up the last of it yesterday morning, when my nose started dripping. My throat felt scratchy. I was coughing a little. 

\n\n\n

Uh-oh.

\n\n\n

I didn’t like the sound (or feel) of that. If I picked up something in that waiting room or Dollar General or McDonald’s drive-thru, I sure as the dickens didn’t want to take anything home to my sweetheart. I called him, and thankfully...he feels just fine. I told him how I was feeling and that I thought I’d better just stay put till I make sure it isn’t anything to be concerned about. I hope it’s just allergies from this dusty old farmhouse.

\n\n\n

There is a small service station and convenience store about seven miles from the farm. I wore two masks and gloves and didn’t come anywhere near anyone when I got there. I grabbed some food really quickly and was in and out of there in a whipstitch and headed back to the farm. The laundry is done and hanging in the bathroom, air drying the knits. I have a stack of magazines and my iPad and phone. I have plenty of food to last a little while. I’m sure it’s nothing and I’ll be heading home to Mr. FixIt soon.

\n\n\n

But, in the meantime...we wait.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“From the church leader. To my dear friend Gaius. I love you because we follow the truth, dear friend, and I pray all goes well for you. I hope you are as strong in body, as I know you are in spirit.”

\n3 John 1:1-2 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-11-21T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/11/21/day-praying-praying-praying.html", "tags": ["Health","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/11/19/day-a-little-rr-at.html", "title": "Day 250: A Little R\u0026R at The Farm", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I can’t remember the last time I got away for a couple of days at the farm for a little recharge time. Mr. FixIt is doing really well these days and I’m feeling a little braver in going off on my own for a little bit. Not too far, though. I’m only eighteen miles away, so if he needed me, I’d be there in a whipstitch. And, as he said...he has plenty to do to keep himself busy while I’m gone as there is never a shortage of work around the Ponderosa.

\n\n\n

I had to run to town this morning, so by the time I did that and a couple of errands, it was after 2:00 when I got to the farm. The big refrigerator out there never worked again after the power was off for several days from the tree falling over the line. I have no idea how old it was, but it had certainly seen its better days. When Mr. FixIt and I went to Sam’s this week, I picked up a small dorm sized fridge to bring out here. All we really need is room to keep enough food and drinks cold to feed the two of us when we stay out here for a few days, so small was better.

\n\n\n

It took a good two hours to clean, move the old fridge, and set up the new one. I brought four big baskets of laundry out to do today. I also brought a stack of magazines since I never seem to find the time to just sit and read them. I don’t know how to describe the feeling I get when I come out here. It’s like taking a king-sized step back in time. I connect to that little girl that lives inside me. I touch my grandparents, my mom, my people who have gone before me.

\n\n\n

I sleep in the same bed they did, in my grandparents’ room. I look out the same window. It restores something primal in me and heals my heart. This year has been rough all the way around. But it’s been full of opportunities, too. Opportunities to touch people and be touched by them. To practice trusting God. To lean into my relationships...especially with my family. To continue to build on that foundation with Mr. FixIt that will carry us through good times and bad. 

\n\n\n

Still, I’ve come to appreciate the introverted aspect of my extroverted personality. I love people, and I thrive on service. Now I recognize...and don’t fault myself for stepping away to recharge. It doesn’t make me selfish. It makes me smart. Because, I know I can give so much more when my cup is full and I have to fill it with peace and quiet. No TV. No noise. No expectations. 

\n\n\n

Just me. 

\n\n\n

And God.

\n\n\n

And the little red house on the farm.

\n\n\n

?

\n\n\n
\n

“Generosity will be rewarded: Give a cup of water, and you will receive a cup of water in return.”

\nProverbs 11:25 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-11-19T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/11/19/day-a-little-rr-at.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Peaceful Moments","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/10/24/day-slips-and-dips-in.html", "title": "Day 225: Slips and Dips in the Road", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

West Virginia notoriously has really bad roads. Because of the large amount of rainfall and the fact that country roads are most often on the sides of hills, roadways often slip right off and head down the slope. Sometimes “Single Lane Ahead” signs are placed before the slip with times stoplights to give people turns to drive through until the funds are available to fix the problem. We are a poor state, so roadwork is prioritized and these country roads are often way down the list. 

\n\n\n

There is one road in particular that we cross to get to the farm. It cuts a lot of time off the trip and it’s a pretty good two-lane blacktop. However, there is an area not far from the intersection that started to slip really bad in the last couple of years. They patched it a couple of times with extra asphalt, but that’s just a temporary fix as the soil beneath the road continues to slough away. Usually, when a big project is going to be carried out that will interrupt traffic flow, there will be some sort of warning released to find an alternative route. My person who usually warns me of such things had surgery this week, so we were clueless when we headed to the farm to mow early yesterday afternoon.

\n\n\n

When we got to the road construction, we were diverted down a small country lane alongside the river. Mr. FixIt says we have driven out this road, but with my head injury from the truck accident three years ago, I often don’t remember places we have been together, especially in the year or so following the accident. I was driving like I’d never seen the place so I had no idea what lay ahead. The “road” is seriously one lane of crumbling asphalt. And a narrow lane at that. I have a big F-150 pickup and was pulling the utility trailer with the mowers on it. I assumed, since the road was so narrow, the flaggers would have folks take turns driving either direction. But, nooooooooooo. Every time we passed a car...and there were plenty of cars...we each had to get two wheels off the road in order to pass. 

\n\n\n

There was one place, near an intersection halfway through this detour, where there was no place to go on either side. That’s when I met another truck, towing a utility trailer. And a big SUV. And another big truck hauling a bass boat. I just stopped dead in the road. I had about six cars behind me so I couldn’t back up. The truck coming at me started inching backwards...uphill...into a turn. The folks behind him followed suit. Finally, there was just enough room for me to slip by them. I thanked them profusely for helping me out, and in typical country fashion, there was a slight pause as Mr. FixIt and the driver greeted each other and exchanged pleasantries. He knows EVERYONE. lol

\n\n\n

We finally made it through and I told my sweetheart, we needed to wait long enough to be sure they were finished working for the day before we returned. Road crews will typically finish up around 4:00 around here...especially on a Friday. It was 4:30 when we came around the bend and there was the flagger, directing us back down the single-track lane. I was not happy about it, but what choice did I have. Fortunately, the traffic was thinned out and it wasn’t quite quitting time so we didn’t have a lot of trouble coming back. 

\n\n\n

This is country living. You take things in stride and do the best you can with what you have to work with. I’ve grateful our road made it up the list and is receiving a complete overhaul so the slip with finally be fixed with a long term solution. Fortunately, I think this was the last mowing we’ll have to do this year out at the farm. The grass really hadn’t grown too much, but there was a carpet of fallen leaves that needed mulching up and now it looks ready to put to bed for the winter. Everything else looked great at the farm. We took a break in the mowing and spent some time just enjoying the place. I stretched out on Grandma’s bed and stared out the window at the last of the falling gold drifting past the window on the breeze. Another growing season done. Another goodbye to a year with as much time spent at the farm as was possible. Another Indian Summer complete. Today the weather makes a change and things cool down. Rain will be coming in and soon there will be nothing but bare branches reaching up through a thin blue sky. It’s time to get something else done besides mowing.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Everything on earth has its own time and its own season.”

\nEcclesiastes 3:1 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-10-24T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/10/24/day-slips-and-dips-in.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Gratitude","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/10/09/day-my-word-of-the.html", "title": "Day 210: My Word of the Day...Obstreperous!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

On our way out to the farm yesterday to mow, we stopped by Charlotte’s barn with a big bag of apple peelings for the chickens. Oh...they LOVED me! I can’t remember when we went last, but the grass was SO long. And, it’s changed again. It’s gone from this rough fall grass to very fine grass that grows really fast and stays damp. Oh...it was a booger to mow! I had to go over it and over it and over it dozens of times to mulch it all up because we don’t bag it. It took forever, but when it was finished, it was so lovely. The late afternoon sun was golden as it reflected off the leaves turning the red farmhouse a deep garnet glow.

\n\n\n

I did a load of laundry while we were there because the water and gas are free and it lets me stay at the farm longer. I started the load then went out to mow. When I came in and checked on the washer, it was humming but not moving. I fiddled with it for a bit then realized I had not turned the pump on! I ran out to the cellar house and plugged in the pump and we were back in business in no time. 

\n\n\n

The neighbor across the road called me a couple of days ago to say there was a box on the front porch and he moved it to the back to get it out of sight. It turned out to be a box from Misfits Market that was delivered to the wrong address. I took it to it’s rightful owner and hope it isn’t completely spoiled. Have any of you used Misfits? From the advertisements, it looks pretty neat. You receive a box of vegetables that may not look as pretty as the ones in the store, but they’re still perfectly useful. I’ve been thinking about checking into it. Maybe when we get back from the beach. My daughter gets a box of vegetables every week from a warehouse in Denver and loves it, but we don’t have anything like that here.

\n\n\n

We stopped on the way home and picked up some supper and sat at the park having our weekly date night. It was a little chilly to sit on the bumper, but the leaves were still beautiful and the river was as smooth as green glass. Believe it or not, I’m not always the nicest person to be around when I’m getting read for a trip. I have my head in the clouds, thinking of a million things that need to be done. When Mr. FixIt talks to me, I don’t hear it half the time in the days leading up to vacation. This week has been a challenge with the added chores surrounding canning. When we finally sat down last night, I looked over at him and said, “It’s a darned good thing you love me because I can be a real snot.” He objected vociferously. “You are not a snot!”  I looked at him and grinned. “Ok...I’m obstreperous!”

\n\n\n

I sat there mulling that over. 

\n\n\n

obstreperous: adjective

\n\n\n
    \n
  1. resisting control or restraint in a difficult manner; unruly.
    2. \n
  2. noisy, clamorous, or boisterous
    3. \n
\n\n\n

Yep...that’s me. There’s not much of anything delicate and ladylike about me, although I can clean up and be presentable in public. I wasn’t always this “free to be me”. Mr. FixIt has brought that out in me in a big way and sometimes I still feel like I need to rein it in so as not to be “too much”. For FAR too many years, I was “too much”...too loud, too boisterous, too...too...too. I stifled myself to fit a mold till I got lost down inside. Not anymore. Maybe it’s age. Maybe it’s the times. Maybe it’s Mr. FixIt embracing my every quirk. I don’t know. All I know is...now I’m obstreperous...in the very best of ways!

\n\n\n

T-minus one day and counting. SO much to do today, I hardly know where to start...but I made a list. I can’t live without lists anymore. I’m just at that age. I tell Mr. FixIt, we have one brain between us and it’s a good thing we have each other...obstreperous or not!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Always be joyful and never stop praying.”

\n1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-10-09T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/10/09/day-my-word-of-the.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Wisdom","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/09/12/day-battling-west-virginia-vegetation.html", "title": "Day 178: Battling West Virginia Vegetation", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The area where we removed the biggest trees.

\n\n\n

Colorado has snow. West Virginia has dense foliage. Both are a result of moisture. Both are beautiful. And, both can be a king-sized pain in a horse’s patoot! We went out to the farm yesterday to do battle with the tough fall grass that grows in September. It’s so hard to cut. Then, instead of weed eating, I took the pole saw to several small trees and wild grape vines.

\n\n\n

The trunks of most of the trees were around an inch or so across, but there were a few that were around 3-4” and they were more cumbersome. You really have to stay on top of things around here or you soon have a veritable jungle surrounding you. The Rose of Sharon at the back corner of the house had grown in so close, you could hardly walk through there. That had to be trimmed back, as well as some of the branches still attached to the tree that fell. They were encroaching in the yard where I like to mow so they needed to go.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The larger brush pile.

\n\n\n

Old blackberry canes, multi flora rose, wild grape vine, Virginia Creeper, sumac, pig weed, sycamore...all rapid growing and invasive. Of course, as soon as you get them cut, you have to haul them off to the brush pile or the grass will die where they lay. One tree was absolutely woven into the shrubbery with wild grape vines...just like weaving fabric. That one was a lot of work to get out and we had to chain it up to the tractor to pull it out of the road and into the yard where we could cut it up in smaller sections. I know I’m going to be sore today. For those of you who may not know what a pole saw is, it’s literally a small chainsaw on the end of a telescoping pole so you can reach low lying limbs without a ladder. Ours extends to about twelve feet so you’re trying to wield this thing around over your head and hold it steady while it chews through four or five inches of wood. It’s hard work, trust me.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The smaller brush pile.

\n\n\n

I also ran a couple of loads of laundry while we were there, and we didn’t even leave our house till the bread was baked. We were supposed to go to the class picnic today, but with Covid and the new warnings to hunker down for the fall and winter, we just decided not to go. Some people say you can’t let fear keep you from living your life...we only get this one trip...make the most of it. My answer is, we are not living fearfully. We are living scientifically informed. Just wear the mask so we can get this over with. There...that’s my PSA for the day.

\n\n\n

These nights are “false fall”...a series of cool evenings that are great for sleeping in the camper with the windows open. There are so many who cannot open their windows because of the smoke. We are blessed here. Lots of moisture. Lots of vegetation. Lots of work...but so worth it!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.”

\nGenesis 1:11-12 ESV\n
\n\n\n

#HardWork, #Vegetation, #WestVirginia

\n\n", "date_published": "2020-09-12T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/09/12/day-battling-west-virginia-vegetation.html", "tags": ["Strong Women","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Farm Life","Marriage"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/09/08/day-getting-things-done-for.html", "title": "Day 174: Getting Things Done for Winter", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

You can see the tree to the left that fell and crushed the old meter box. You can also see the old iron bridge that went across the creek to the outhouse.

\n\n\n

My Colorado family has checked in and they are expecting snow today! I think they said it will be the earliest measurable snowfall in twenty years. I must say...I certainly don’t miss that! I miss my kids and my Colorado peeps...and I miss the beauty of the Rockies...but I do NOT miss snow and cold...not one bit. Still, snow will come to West Virginia one of these days and getting ready for it is what a proper country gal does.

\n\n\n

I wanted to make another batch of jam yesterday, but we decided we had better go to the farm to mow and finish building the enclosure for the gas meter. I found out why there is a cover for it. The holler up behind the house works like nature’s air conditioner as the cool air sweeps down through the woods past the house. That’s great in the summer, but in the wintertime, that same air flow brings frigid temps with it. There is a good deal of moisture in natural gas and the water condenses and lays in the gas lines. If it gathers at the meter and the temperature takes a nosedive, the line can freeze and shuts off the gas to the house. Then, there’s no heat and the water lines are the next to go. 

\n\n\n

We’ve been really lucky the last few years to have fairly mild winters, but you never know when one will be harsh. The little shed surrounding the gas meter protects it from that downdraft through the holler and helps to keep the gas running. We finished rebuilding it yesterday and got it in place and if I do say so, we did a pretty good job. We decided not to mow out there. The grass hadn’t grown nearly as much there as it did here at the Ponderosa, so we didn’t even unload the mower.

\n\n\n

Oh, we did have one little bit of excitement on the way over to the farm. I’m the one who hooked up the little utility trailer and loaded the riding mower and lawn mower while Mr. FixIt was busy doing something else. I checked everything, just like I do when I hook up the camper. I did notice the latch that locks the hitch in place was a little hard to put down, but I finally got it. Well, we stopped at the Piggly Wiggly for some lunch supplies and when we went over a bump, the trailer came unhooked! Thank God we were going very slow or that could have been a problem. The safety chains did their job and nothing was damaged. We got it hooked back up and didn’t have any more trouble.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Dehydrated mushrooms. I was surprised how easily these dried.

\n\n\n

I emptied the dehydrator and put the mushrooms in a jar before we left for the farm. These will be really nice to throw into soup, stew, and spaghetti sauce over the winter. Our dining room table is getting filled with jars of goodies. Mr. FixIt thought we should carry them downstairs, but I told him I want to take a picture of the bounty before we do that. I love looking at all the jars of healthy foods put away for the coming winter.

\n\n\n

It’s time to bake sourdough again and I think I’m going to try to cut the recipe in half and only make one loaf this time. I actually had to throw some away last time because it got moldy. I should have stored the extra loaf in the fridge, but there wasn’t enough room and I just got so busy canning, I forgot about it. I really hated to throw that bread away! If we had a pig or some chickens, that would have gone out to them. I still haven’t fixed up a compost bin yet. So much to do...so little time to do it.

\n\n\n

So, Labor Day is gone and we are heading into fall. I’m not minding it a bit this year. We don’t have a thing on our schedule till Saturday so we’ll see what we can get into here at the Ponderosa. I’m on the prowl for some half-runner beans to can!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Everything on earth has its own time and its own season.”

\nEcclesiastes 3:1 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-09-08T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/09/08/day-getting-things-done-for.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life","Baking"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/08/31/day-making-hay-while-the.html", "title": "Day 166: Making Hay While the Sun Shines", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Grandma’s Hydrangea full of Honeybees

\n\n\n

I thought for sure I was going to be a lady of leisure yesterday. But, nooooooooo! Even though it was Sunday, the Weather Channel App informed us first thing when we woke up what our day was going to entail. We had absolutely no other choice than to go to the farm and mow. But first, we had to go back to town. We got to the pharmacy too late on Saturday and then, when I opened up my brand new jelly maker, the knob for the lid was missing. Fortunately, they had another one and held it for me till we could get back yesterday morning.

\n\n\n

As soon as we got back home, we loaded up the truck and the trailer and headed to the farm with the mowers and assorted tools and materials we needed for a project we are working on. The grass was still pretty wet, but I went ahead and mowed anyway. It just meant I had to mow over it several times to mulch up the wet clumps of grass that gets left behind. It takes twice as long, but you do what you have to do.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The Gas Meter between the House and the Barn

\n\n\n

While I mowed, Mr. FixIt got to work on rebuilding the cover for the gas meter. The week after the tree brought down the power lines, a smaller tree fell...narrowly missing the gas meter itself. It basically crushed the old sheet metal “lean to” that covered the gas meter to protect it from the weather...and I suppose falling limbs, as well. Mr. FixIt took the pieces of mangled sheet metal and removed all the rotten wood and laid them out on the sidewalk. Then he took a heavy hammer and the rubber mallet and beat it back flat. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Rebuilding the Cover for the Gas Meter

\n\n\n

He measured and cut the wood to rebuild the frame. I finished mowing the front yard about the time he needed me to help reassemble the lean to. We realized when we got the sides and back done that we were going to need more wood. So, we put our tools away and I made lunch while he ran the weed eater. After lunch, I mowed the back yard with the push mower and he finished the weed eating. We were about done in by the time we loaded the mowers back up and headed home.

\n\n\n

That’s when Mr. FixIt said the back yard at the Ponderosa really needed to be mowed but he just didn’t think he had it in him to do it. I told him that was no problem...I could do it. We unloaded the mowers and I set to work. He emptied the truck and took everything inside and came out to run the weed eater around the fence, the sidewalk, and the pool. He can’t stand it if I’m working and he’s not helping.

\n\n\n

We finally finished around dark and that was the end of our day. I know it was Sunday and we aren’t supposed to work on Sunday. But, we enjoyed seeing the fruits of our labor and working together on a project. We talked about God and brought Him with us in everything we did. And, we thanked Him for Mr. FixIt’s improved health that allows him to do the things he loves to do. We are so grateful to still have access to the farm. We are so grateful for our health and our home and our relationship. So that had to suffice for our “Sunday Sermon” this week. We can watch our online church today...God will still love us.

\n\n\n

Oh, I wish you could have heard the honeybees on Grandma’s hydrangea bush out back! When I came around the corner of the house to take stuff inside, I could hear them from twenty feet away. A man down the road keeps about 25-30 hives so we have lots of bees which makes me so happy. The Rose of Sharon is nearly spent. There was another limb down from the huge old cherry tree out back so I told Mr. FixIt I need to get my vintage trailer out of there and bring her to the Ponderosa to work on before the snow flies.

\n\n\n

There’s never a dull moment around here and I’m telling you...TODAY I am taking the day off. After I make a pan of lasagna...and maybe an apple pie!  

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Honey is good for you, my children, and it tastes sweet. Wisdom is like honey for your life— if you find it, your future is bright.”

\nProverbs 24:13-14 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-08-31T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/08/31/day-making-hay-while-the.html", "tags": ["Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/08/18/day-ahhhhthats-more-like-it.html", "title": "Day 153: Ahhhh...That’s More Like It!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I can almost feel the stress melting off my shoulders by the moment. After the last few hectic weeks, and then backing off from social media, I am much more centered and relaxed. The fact that the nights have been cooler and we’ve been “camping” out in our field at the Ponderosa. Sleeping in my camper always makes me a happy girl!

\n\n\n

I worked on the website for a few hours yesterday while Mr. FixIt was at the dentist. When he got home, we hooked up the trailer and took the mowers out to the farm. We got about halfway there and the road was soaked. It was so cool to watch the steam rising up from the hot asphalt after the rain that had just passed through. It wasn’t too much further that the road was dry. We bet each other whether there was rain at the farm. I said there was...and I won. Not a bet I wanted to win, though. The grass was thick and wet and not easy to mow.

\n\n\n

When we were at the farm last time, we noticed that the internet wasn’t working. I called to report it and left my phone number but never heard from anyone. I sat down to call and was on hold for quite some time when I looked out the window to see the neighbor’s garden. Lo and behold, there on the bird seed bin was a brand new modem the phone guy left for me. I hooked it up and we were back in business in five minutes flat!

\n\n\n

Once the lawn was mowed and I had a good thirty minute video chat with Daughter #1, we packed back up and headed home. I told Mr. FixIt that I felt we definitely deserved ice cream after all that so we stopped at the Piggly Wiggly to get some. We happily munched out on a Magnum Double Caramel bar on the way home!

\n\n\n

As soon as we had everything unhooked and put away, I made a beeline for the camper to write. It was a little stuffy after being closed up all day, but it was soon cool and comfortable from the strategically placed fans. We don’t have a single thing planned till the 29th! I’ve been letting the tomatoes ripen and I think today is the day to get them picked and canned. Seriously, it won’t amount to much once I cook them down. As soon as the garden is finished, it’s camping time for us! 

\n\n\n

I feel a hundred pounds happier!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Our Lord, we belong to you. We tell you what worries us, and you won't let us fall. But what about those people who are cruel and brutal? You will throw them down into the deepest pit long before their time. I trust you, Lord!”

\nPsalms 55:22-23 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-08-18T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/08/18/day-ahhhhthats-more-like-it.html", "tags": ["Faith","Health","Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Wisdom","Peaceful Moments","Choices","Change","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/08/04/day-fall-down-fallout-fall.html", "title": "Day 139: Fall Down, Fallout, Fall Over", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I had to zoom over to the farm yesterday to meet the satellite guy. That was what I thought to be the final fix from the tree-falling fiasco of last week. The farm is really rural and there was a county-wide planned power outage yesterday from 7:00am to 1:30pm. This happens fairly frequently as they work on what is often quite old infrastructure. When the satellite guy arrived, the power was still off and didn’t come back on till after he left. He said we were doing this job on faith. Faith that he did the job right and it would work once the box rebooted. Sure enough, the power came on, and the TV worked. However...the internet would not come back on. I called and there was an outage at the main hub. Hopefully it comes back on and we don’t have to have another service call.

\n\n\n

I arrived at the farm before Mr. FixIt. When I pulled up at the house, I noticed the sheet metal “lean to” that protects the gas meter was crushed. When I looked closer, another tree had come down and just narrowly missed the gas meter by a couple of inches. I cleaned up the branches and threw them up behind the barn. Then I lifted up the tree. It really wasn’t too heavy because it was dead and pretty well dried up. I moved it to the side and dropped it...right on my foot! Let me tell ya...that thing was a little heavier than I thought when it landed on my toes. Just dinged them up pretty good and I’ll have some decent bruises out of the deal.

\n\n\n

We mowed and did the laundry and ate a lovely lunch on Grandma’s table. I cannot do anything there without feeling her love...for the place...for me. I know without a shadow of a doubt that she would be so incredibly pleased that I take such good care of her house. One of her kids complained to her once about this dusty old house. She told them in no uncertain terms that this house was like the Taj Majal to her. She used to cook on a hot plate on the stair landing of a boarding house. This place is the Ritz compared to some of the places she lived.

\n\n\n

Oh, she’s showing her age, this old house. She’s going on a hundred years old, I think. The kitchen floor is off kilter with a hump in the middle that makes you feel like you’re heading downhill when you cross over it. The refrigerator is on shims to keep it level. There are rain stains in the ceiling tiles my uncle put up back in the ‘60s. The house has four kinds of linoleum on the main floor. The walls are plaster and lathe on the main floor and a kind of cardboard looking stuff upstairs. I think the same curtains are up that Grandma hung when I was a little girl. 

\n\n\n

Grandma was a frugal woman. Having survived the Great Depression with six children, she learned how to make things last. I remember washing sheets in the old wringer washer downstairs and then she would take bits of material and sew up any holes or worn places in them. She used her treadle sewing machine and she made that needle fly. I always wanted to learn how to do everything she did. She wasn’t always a patient teacher because she had work to do, but she taught me a lot. It would be my highest complement to be even just a little like her. 

\n\n\n

We ended the evening mowing a little here at the Ponderosa and gathering a shirt bottom full of ripe tomatoes from the garden...still warm from the sun. I cut them in wedges and arranged them over cool cottage cheese with a couple good twists of fresh ground salt and pepper for Mr. FixIt’s supper. It seems like I am always busy doing something, but it feels like a much simpler life than I’ve ever lived before. I think it’s because it’s here...in West Virginia. Time is a little slower here...a little gentler...a little sweeter.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”

\nPhilippians 4:19 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-08-04T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/08/04/day-fall-down-fallout-fall.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Love","Aging","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/08/03/day-churning-butterand-other-crazy.html", "title": "Day 138: Churning Butter...and Other Crazy Notions", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I grew up churning butter in Grandma’s kitchen out at the farm. She wouldn’t let us use her good butter churn. She handed each of us a quart jar with some room temperature heavy cream in it and we had to shake and shake and shake till the butter began to separate from the buttermilk. It was hard work I’m telling you, but it was all part of Grandma’s plan to wear us out so we’d go to bed at a decent hour.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I now own both my grandma’s and my mom’s big Daisy Butter Churns. They sit on top of the fridge with Grandma’s only flower vase and my hand coffee grinder that I use when I’m camping. With it just being the two of us, and since I don’t have a dairy cow, I’ve never used the big churns for anything but decor and memories. Still, I had it in my mind that I wanted to churn small batches of butter to spread on my homemade breads.

\n\n\n

When we were up at Lehman’s Hardware on Friday, I found this little gadget in the kitchen store. I was intrigued by the design of it. The lid comes off and there is a strainer underneath. Then the bottom unscrews to allow you to remove the butter when you’re finished. You put heavy cream in the jar up to the line and let it set out overnight. Then the next morning, you shake it vigorously for around three minutes till the butter comes. You are supposed to take off the lid and just strain the buttermilk off, but I found with the warm temps in the kitchen and holding it in my hands, the butter solids weren’t terribly firm. I didn’t want to lose any of the butter when straining it off, so I poured a little ice water in to allow the butter to firm up a bit.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

After the first straining, I poured more ice water in and shook the jar to rinse the butter. I did this several times till the water I drained off was clear. The next step is fun. Using a small spatula, I scraped out all the butter into a bowl and began to press the butter to remove all the buttermilk. If you don’t remove all the buttermilk, it will quickly sour and ruin the butter. Once I was satisfied the buttermilk was out, I added a little salt and folded it in. It made just shy of a cup of butter. Then...I cooked breakfast.

\n\n\n

I have just about finished cooking the last of the coarse ground yellow grits I bought from Gaston’s Mill up at Beaver Creek State Park last fall. I combined 1.5 cups of the coarse ground grits with 1/2 teaspoon salt then poured 4 cups of hot water over it, stirred it together, covered with a lid and set it aside for twenty minutes. While the grits were soaking, I grated 2 ounces of Parmesan cheese and cut up a stick of unsalted butter. I didn’t use my freshly churned butter because I wouldn’t have had enough for the grits as well as toast.

\n\n\n

After the grits had soaked, I brought them to a boil over medium low heat then lowered the flame and stirred them with a rubber spatula for a full twenty minutes will they were very thick. I added the cheese and the butter and folded them together till it was fully incorporated. I popped the sourdough in the toaster, fried up a few eggs, and slathered the fresh butter on the toast. I like my grits in a bowl and put the eggs on top then cut them in with a knife and fork. A little salt and pepper to taste and it was a feast. Definitely NOT on anyone’s diet, but it was Sunday. Sunday is my day of rest and culinary indulgence.

\n\n\n

I feel like I’m living in an episode of Little House on the Prairie...and it’s SO much fun! The tomatoes are coming on fast. I’ll be canning later in the week. Today the Dish guy is coming to replace the satellite that got squashed when the tree fell at the farm last week. The work is never done around here!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“People who don't take care of their relatives, and especially their own families, have given up their faith. They are worse than someone who doesn't have faith in the Lord.”

\n1 Timothy 5:8 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-08-03T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/08/03/day-churning-butterand-other-crazy.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/07/29/day-the-many-faces-of.html", "title": "Day 133: The Many Faces of Grief", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I received a phone call yesterday from my baby cousin. She was the one who lived far away and came to visit us several times when we were growing up. She’s had her hands full...caring for her mom, my favorite auntie. And for her husband, who has been ill for quite some time. They are young...not quite sixty. I remember the first time I got to see her. She couldn’t quite walk and my aunt had her dressed in the sweetest little outfit with a matching coat. Her little curls stuck out from under the edges of the matching bonnet.

\n\n\n

We were all smitten with our “Trinket”, as Grandma called her. She was like a china doll and we didn’t even mind that Grandma paid all her attention to this little one. We knew she was special. Anyway...she called yesterday. Her beloved husband passed in his sleep Sunday night. My heart breaks for her because I know what she is going through. I know what she has ahead of her. I pray for her comfort and peace. I know she is very strong and capable and she will get through this. I just hate it for her.

\n\n\n

When I look back at pictures of us all those many years ago, we had no idea what was going to happen to us in our lives. She is now the third of us cousins to lose a spouse. Grandma lost her only love when she was sixty-five. She showed us girls how to live through that with strength and dignity and courage.

\n\n\n

There are so many faces of grief. It isn’t just the death of a person that grieves us. We can feel just as deep grief whether the source is a person, place, or thing. I’ve been grieving a potential loss the last couple of years knowing my beloved family farm will not always be “mine”. My uncle owns it and he is aging now. He cannot keep coming to fix it or put the money into it forever, so the time will come. 

\n\n\n

I was grieving that more this week since the tree came down and the house needed fixing. It made the “eventuality” come closer to the forefront. I have to admit, I became distraught over it. Then “Trinket” lost her husband and God whispered...”All things must come to an end and come Home to me.” 

\n\n\n

We can make all the plans we want. We can have dreams and adventures. And in the end, our best gift is the memories we made with the time we were given. I’ve been having a lot of fun with this baking and gardening and canning. And, as soon as that settles down, my focus is back on writing. I’m going to write the story of...The Farm: A Story of Love and Land. I’ll gather pictures and stories from everyone and we’ll have a book for the family to read and remember. Then we’ll have a grand reunion and say a proper goodbye to this home of my heart. 

\n\n\n

I have no idea how much time I have exactly for this project, but I’m giving myself a year. That should be plenty. And it will help ease my dependence on the old house. Someday she will not be ours...she will belong to another family. But, she will always and forever be the home of my heart.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. Though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely, how blessed you will be, sowing your seed by every stream, and letting your cattle and donkeys range free.”

\nIsaiah 32:18-20 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-07-29T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/07/29/day-the-many-faces-of.html", "tags": ["Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Wisdom","Choices","Change","Farm Life","Widow"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/07/20/day-mary-mary-quite-contraryhow.html", "title": "Day 124: Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary...How Does Your Garden Grow?", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The is the first year since I moved back to West Virginia that I am staying home all summer. I usually spend a month in Colorado with my kids, but Covid and Mr. FixIt’s health put a damper on that. So, the commitment to grow a garden took hold in the spring and...here we are. I gathered a handful of peppers off the three pepper plants yesterday. Peppers aren’t my favorite thing, but I wanted to put some banana pepper rings in my zucchini pickles this year to give them a little zing and there were several plants marked down at the greenhouse. Something happened to the labels, so it was anybody’s guess what kind of peppers I would end up with. It’s fun to take a chance once in a while, right?

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The zucchini and yellow squash are really getting big so I’m definitely going to pick them today and get those pickles in the jars before I run out of luck and one of my nocturnal visitors decides they’re hungry. The Passion Flowers are blooming as they climb up the old chain link fence.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

When I saw this meme the other day, I laughed. It’s so true. Growing anything is empowering. I remember all the times I had a garden in Colorado and how hard it was to grow much of anything. But, tomatoes? Lands...you could grow a tomato in the worst little square foot of soil and get at least enough to satisfy some of your cravings. I tilled and dug, planted and weeded, and watered those tomato plants and I was lucky if they came up to my waist. We have tomato plants out here in this garden that are taller than me...by a good foot and a half! The Romas are really putting on fruit fast now. They will be great for canning stewed tomatoes. The Big Boys and Better Boys are doing very well. There are some that are as big as baseballs now. There are some other varieties out there, but Mr. FixIt never saves the labels so other than the Romas, I don’t know what the others are.

\n\n\n

It has been so terribly hot here...and sticky with humidity. Once it hits 10:30 or so in the morning, it’s really difficult to do much of anything. I’m still having to water 2-3 times a day to keep the garden from frying. Thank goodness we had a couple of rain showers pass through last evening. We dropped over twenty degrees in a matter of an hour or two. Now it will be even more humid today, but we have to take the rain when we can get it. We do have some little pumpkins setting on. I’m looking forward to harvesting some “Wedding Pumpkins”. These are grown from seed salvaged from the pumpkins that decorated our wedding nearly two years ago.

\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Our ground is getting cracks in it. West Virginia soil has a lot of clay in it and when it dries out, it contracts leaving great cracks and fissures. I remember one year I came home in the summer to visit and there had been a really long hot and dry spell. The ground out at the farm had cracks in it that were 2-3 inches across. It’s not that bad here...yet. Maybe this little bit of rain we got will bring some of the grass back. We haven’t mowed in over two weeks here at the Ponderosa.

\n\n\n

I hope you had a good weekend and that you are staying safe and healthy.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops.”

\n2 Timothy 2:6 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-07-20T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/07/20/day-mary-mary-quite-contraryhow.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/07/14/day-the-books-from-beyond.html", "title": "Day 118: The Books from Beyond", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I have a mystery. But it has a backstory you need to hear first.

\n\n\n

If you’ve been following me for some time, you know I moved to West Virginia from Colorado to care for my elderly aunt who was living alone on the family farm. We tried it out for ten rather long and, dare I say, miserable weeks for both of us. She was a strong willed, independent woman who expected you to do what she said, when she said it. I’m not the type to take orders well, so when she invited me to leave on Christmas Day, I took myself on a totally different adventure for the following couple of years. 

\n\n\n

I didn’t realize it at the time, but Aunt Peeps was slipping into the netherworld of dementia which caused her to lose what little bit of a filter she had to begin with. Still, I had wonderful conversations with her over the years. If she liked you, she would do anything to help you achieve your dreams. She admired hard work and perseverance. She was a teacher...erudite and proper. 

\n\n\n

I remember when I was very young, she came to visit with photographs from Cleveland and Washington, DC. Grainy black and white snapshots depicting water fountains and lunch counters with signs over them that said “Whites Only”. I didn’t understand what that meant and she carefully explained racism to me in words a little girl might comprehend. She was quite adamant...as was my grandma...that we never, ever treat other’s differently. We are all God’s children.

\n\n\n

I grew up poor. Not dirt poor. Not welfare poor. But we didn’t have a lot of extras and ate from grandma’s garden quite a bit. I married my high school boyfriend and escaped what I felt at the time was the hell of West Virginia. When that marriage failed, I ended up marrying a young physical therapist who was heading into medical school. As our affluence increased, we rose higher and higher on the white privilege scale. Five years after that marriage ended, I met Mr. Virgo. He had worked his entire career in the hospitality industry at numerous Five Star resorts and restaurants around the world. So I was still in the realm of privilege. I had a housekeeper and a full length blue fox coat and a new car every couple of years. 

\n\n\n

I don’t believe I’ve ever been overtly racist, but there were many years where I just didn’t really give the struggles of ethnic communities much thought. And that is the essence of what is referred to as white privilege. With the onset of civil unrest over racial disparities, I have taken it upon myself to learn as much as I can on the subject so that I can better understand the plight of People of Color. I want to be a better human.

\n\n\n

After Aunt Peeps died, my uncle came to the farm to get some of her papers that he needed to settle her estate. These papers were in boxes in the closet upstairs in her bedroom. The next time I was out there, I went upstairs and there were a few items on the bed. There was also a day bed up there with several boxes of my own things. I didn’t notice anything of any import that day.

\n\n\n

Last weekend, when I was out there working on the taxes, it was so bloody hot and the air conditioner was not working. I went upstairs to turn the fan on in the bedroom opposite hers. As I was coming back out of the room to the top of the stairs, I glanced into Aunt Peeps’ room and noticed something I hadn’t seen before. There were two books laying neatly stacked on the pillow. I would have sworn they weren’t there before.

\n\n\n

I went in and picked up the books and my jaw dropped.

\n\n\n

“The Autobiography of Malcom X” by Alex Haley.

\n\n\n

“Black Boy” by Richard Wright.

\n\n\n

Two seminal literary works about the black experience in this country. Not at all the kind of books I saw my aunt reading as I grew up or when I lived with her. And certainly not anything I had ever seen there before. Where did they come from? Who placed them so carefully where I would be sure to find them? I have no idea. But I picked them up and smiled, tucked them neatly under my arm, and have set a goal to read them both to better understand.

\n\n\n

Ever the educator. Ever the fair-minded yet fierce educator. I believe my Aunt Peeps left me a gift...exactly the gift I needed at exactly the right time.

\n\n\n

She teaches...still.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“For God does not show favoritism.”

\nRomans 2:11 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-07-14T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/07/14/day-the-books-from-beyond.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Wisdom","Courage","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/07/12/day-its-marshmallow-season.html", "title": "Day 116: It’s Marshmallow Season!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
MARSHMALLOWS!
\n\n\n

It won’t be long before these tasty treats will be showing up in farmer’s markets everywhere, because....Marshmallows are in Season!!! That’s what Daughter #1 told her little sister when she was about four years old. They grow them big like this, then they cut them up in little pieces, put them in bags, and ship them off to stores. The weather has to be just right to get a bumper crop like this one. I was driving out to the farm yesterday, came around the turn...and there they were. Oh, there is NOTHING like fresh, vine-ripened marshmallows!

\n\n\n

I’ll bet you never heard of the Great Marshmallow Disaster of 1957. I guess it rained so much that summer the marshmallows just floated off down stream. And the ones they were able to salvage were a sticky mess. It was terrible. Little campers everywhere had to eat nothing but graham crackers and chocolate...poor dears. I believe they were scarred for life over that one.

\n\n\n

I can’t drive through the West Virginia countryside without pulling over and capturing them in their native habitat. When they’re wild like this is when they’re the sweetest. I’m thinking we should grow them here on our acreage and have an Annual Marshmallow Festival! What do you think?

\n\n\n

After my breathtaking discovery, I went to the farm and finally finished the taxes. I really struggled with them Friday. Then, after sleeping on it, I woke up yesterday morning and knew what to do. I just chucked Friday’s return and started over with a brand new one yesterday. And, wouldn’t you know it...I breezed right through the whole thing and it was easy peasy. Last year we had to pay out the nose. This year, we still had to pay a little, but nothing like last year’s...so I was a VERY happy camper when I hit “send”. 

\n\n\n

Every year, I tell myself I will be ahead of the game. I’ll have things organized. And, every year it’s the same thing. I spend days doing the online banking, reconciling the books, running reports, and finally getting the data in TurboTax...just under the wire. It’s stressful. But, I think the getting mad at myself for not being more organized makes it worse. Next year, I’m just going to accept the fact that I have far more important things to do all year than to stay anal about the whole thing. A couple of years ago, I created the most organized thing I will ever achieve surrounding taxes. I place a big, flat Rubbermaid container with a lid on my desk. Then, whenever I walk in with something that has to do with taxes, it immediately goes in that tub. At least everything is in one place when tax time comes around. That’s the best I can do.

\n\n\n

I’ll miss being out at the farm every day. I always love being out there. Since we made the commitment to have a cat and a garden, we really can’t run off and stay for any length of time at the farm. But, maybe when the garden is done, we can go out for a few days. We’ll take the cat...it’ll be an adventure!

\n\n\n

Now that the taxes are done, I can turn my attention to the garden. I have a few crook neck and zucchini squash I am keeping an eye on. I want them to get really big so I can make Bread & Butter pickles out of them. That’s the BEST!

\n\n\n

I’ll be baking today after church. I’m sending my girls some of mama’s sourdough bread tomorrow.

\n\n\n

Enjoy your Sunday!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“I think you should finish what you started. If you give according to what you have, you will prove you are as eager to give as you were to think about giving.”

\n2 Corinthians 8:11 CEV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-07-12T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/07/12/day-its-marshmallow-season.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/05/26/day-wow-what-a-weekend.html", "title": "Day 71: Wow, What a Weekend!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

As you know, yesterday was Memorial Day.

\n\n\n

We are surrounded by so much death and dying this year that it’s easy to lump it all into one basket. There are days to thank veterans and days to remember mothers and fathers. We memorialize 9/11 and undoubtedly, when this pandemic has passed, there will be some commemorative date to remember those who died from Covid. But, this is the day we traditionally remember those veterans who died while serving their country.

\n\n\n

This is my Uncle Sonny. He died on 5/5/55 at Landstuhl Air Base when the jet he was flying suffered mechanical difficulties. He apparently knew he was going down because he steered the crippled jet toward a newly plowed field to try and set her down. A wing clipped a tree and sent him cartwheeling into the ground. If he had ejected from the plane, the trajectory would have sent it into a crowded barracks and that is just not something he would have allowed.

\n\n\n

I was only two years old when we lost my uncle, yet I grew up understanding the clouds in the eyes of my family. He was a precious family member to me, even though I don’t recall having met him. I have many immediate family members in my life who served their country but none gave that full measure of devotion that my Uncle Sonny did. 

\n\n\n

Gone...but never forgotten....Lt. George Melvin Chadock.

\n\n\n

Our weekend was a whirlwind of activity and yesterday was spent getting the pump going on the pool and starting the cleaning. We ran to town to get flowers and decorated everyone’s graves. Then we went to the farm and mowed. Well, I mowed. Mr. FixIt used a hoe and cleared the leaves out of the ditch along the driveway. When we were done, we treated ourselves to an ice cream bar that I had stashed in the freezer there. I remarked to him on the way home...we have gone from meat locker to microwave in less than a week. 

\n\n\n

Today is mowing at the Ponderosa and physical therapy. And so it goes...round and round.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“...And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.””

\nMatthew 28:20 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-05-26T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/05/26/day-wow-what-a-weekend.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Holiday"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/04/18/day-the-transmogrification-of-the.html", "title": "Day 33: The Transmogrification of the World", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
The gorgeous woods of Beaver Creek State Park bring me back at least twice a year.
\n\n\n

You can ask anyone who knows me...especially my sweet hubby...CHANGE is my middle name. I can roll with the punches like the best of them. I can adapt, adjust, regroup, reform, revise, diversify, shift, twist, transform, remodel, and steer in a whole new direction. I’ve made myself over so many times, I am unrecognizable to those who’ve known me longest. But there comes a point where it gets “purt near impossible” as my grandma used to say...even for a flexible person like me.

\n\n\n

I can handle when things slow down. I can take it when certain items are unavailable. After all, I lived through the great gasoline, toilet paper and sugar shortage of 1973-74 in the UK. We were actually given ration coupons. I hate that this disease is causing so much hardship on the world. It breaks my heart the amount of death that lies in its wake.

\n\n\n

The first time I ever faced the visual shock of devastating change was in the late ‘80s, early ‘90s. I was on my annual trip to West Virginia to visit my family. I always stayed at the farm as much as possible when I went home and no trip was complete without a hike back up on the hill to the old Strawberry Shed. At this time, I could still walk up the trail behind the barn and walk through the woods. Now, old trees have long since fallen up the holler and blocked any way to get up through there, let alone finding the path since it’s overgrown.

\n\n\n

That one particular summer, I hiked back up on the hill and when I came out into the clearing where the old garden was, I dropped to my knees in disbelief. The woods were gone. Just...gone! They had been clear cut and nothing was left but stumps. Something inside me felt broken and I cried my heart out. Someone had killed my childhood memories and I felt violated.

\n\n\n

No one told me about the woods. No one warned me what the change would look like or that I should prepare myself. For them, it was a matter of course. Wood is a commodity on a farm and when you need to build a building or you need some money to live on, you make a withdrawal out of the “Bank of Nature” and cash it in. I knew this in my logical brain, but my emotional brain was devastated.

\n\n\n

Last fall, my dear friend Gail told us our beloved Beaver Creek State Park was going to close soon after our “What a Hoot” event with the Girl Campers. She said they were going to cut out some dead wood, thin out the woods to improve the forest health, and mitigate a couple of old holding ponds leftover from the days when the area was a strip mine. The plan was to fill in those two pits and cut some of the far trees so you could once again look down over the edge to see the Pioneer Village below.

\n\n\n
\"\"
The devastation of the clear cut woods in Beaver Creek State Park brought back the terrible image of my grandma’s farm when they cut the trees down without telling me.
\n\n\n

That sounded good. A healthy move. A needed change. It would promote healthy new growth and cut down on the terrible mosquito problem that infested the area in late summer. I haven’t been back up there yet. The state park is still closed for rehab. And, the pandemic has kept us from camping yet. Then, I saw the first photos from the park and I was once again hit in the gut with that familiar pain from such a visual change.

\n\n\n

The trees are just...gone. It looks like all of them, from what I can see. What was once magical is now just a memory. We can only hope that what is there will become beautiful again, but it won’t be in our lifetime. The changes we are seeing from the pandemic may also be far reaching. Many are unimaginable and hit us in the gut. Things are different. And more change will come. And some of it will be downright ugly and frightening, but....at the same time...

\n\n\n

The birds will sing.

\n\n\n

The sun will rise and set.

\n\n\n

The seasons will change.

\n\n\n

Babies will come.

\n\n\n

Elders will go.

\n\n\n

The water will flow from the peaks of the mountains to the valleys below.

\n\n\n

There will be fires and storms and earthquakes and disease.

\n\n\n

And there will be life.

\n\n\n

Resilient, strong, adaptable people will persevere. We may not live long enough to see how it all plays out but we can rest assured of one thing...

\n\n\n

No matter what is thrown at us in this life, we know the end of the story and good triumphs over evil. 

\n\n\n

It is finished. We just haven’t seen the end of it yet.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

\nJeremiah 29:11 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-04-18T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/04/18/day-the-transmogrification-of-the.html", "tags": ["Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Anger","Courage","Aging","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/04/17/day-the-hour-vacation-and.html", "title": "Day 32: The 24 Hour Vacation and Feel Good Friday", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
Quintessential spring...a robin’s nest with two sky blue eggs.
\n\n\n

We were supposed to leave today for the Outer Banks. For most people, this is a disappointment and an inconvenience to reschedule. For Mr. FixIt, it’s really hard to take. He has been going to the OBX every year since he was five...except for one. The Outer Banks is, obviously, his favorite place in the whole world. He has been uber excited ever since we got the the time share there. It meant we had a great place to stay and it’s booked the same time every year. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
A Jenny Wren’s nest is distinctively filled with dried moss.
\n\n\n

Except this year. He understands why. And he agrees it’s necessary. It’s just not any fun to have to give up everything. It’s small potatoes to what a lot of people are giving up. I’m trying to come up with special things to help him feel a little less trapped in one place, so we went to the farm to stay the night. We mowed on Wednesday, then just sat back and enjoyed the atmosphere.

\n\n\n
\"\"
Moss grows all over everything in West Virginia. It’s lush and green like a rainforest here.
\n\n\n

It is SO incredibly quiet out there. The spring flowers are beginning to peek out. As I was riding the mower over the lawn, I continually apologized to my grandma in a running commentary in my head. Ohhhh, she would have been so upset that we mowed the lawn while the Johnny Jump-ups were still showing their pretty little purple faces. She made my Uncle Bob wait till they were gone before you could mow. I’ll bet this is the earliest that lawn has ever been cut.

\n\n\n
\"\"
Little Fiddlehead Ferns uncurling in the morning sun.
\n\n\n

I made a country breakfast yesterday in Grandma’s kitchen. We had hominy, bacon, eggs and toast. Have you all had fried hominy? Do you even know what hominy is? Hominy is made from dried whole corn kernels that have been soaked in lye to soften the hard outer hulls. Then the kernels are rinsed well and cooked like beans. I have never made them from scratch. I’ve always bought them in a can. I drain them and fry them in some butter or a little bacon grease.

\n\n\n
\"\"
The view from the back of the barn.
\n\n\n

I had some thin crispy bacon and fried eggs ready when the hominy was done. I like to mix mine all together. Mr. FixIt likes to eat them separately using the hominy like fried potatoes. It doesn’t matter how you served them...they’re delicious!

\n\n\n
\"\"
My ‘67 Franklin...one of these years I just KNOW I’ll get her fixed up!
\n\n\n

After breakfast, I grabbed my second cup of coffee and headed outside for a walkabout to see what’s blooming. Moss grows over everything here because of the moisture and the shady holler. There aren’t a whole lot of wildflowers out yet. There are still a few fiddleheads coming up. I thought I found the asparagus, but the lookalike shoots I found were milkweed. I read that you can eat them, but I would prefer to leave them for the monarch butterflies.

\n\n\n
\"\"
Giant Snowdrops have bloomed at the front corner of Grandma’s house for as long as I can remember.
\n\n\n

While I was in the garden, I got a closer look at the cherry blossoms. They don’t look like they got nipped too bad from the frosts we’ve been getting. As I was walking back up to the house, I passed the big rhododendron and startled a robin from her nest. I got up high and zoomed my lens in to peek in the nest without disturbing it and there were two sky blue eggs in it! When we were replacing the tarp on the ‘67 Franklin on Wednesday evening, I uncovered an old Jenny Wren nest on top of the air conditioner. It was abandoned so I removed it and look a picture of it. Their nests are distinctive because of all the moss they use to construct them. 

\n\n\n
\"\"
Cherry blossoms over by the garden. I used to hear stories about where these cherry trees came from, but I’ve forgotten. I have to remember to ask my uncle.
\n\n\n

When we finally wrapped up all the chores at the farm, we headed back home. As soon as Mr. FixIt unloaded the riding mower, I mowed both big fields before it got too dark and cold. I noticed there towards the end that my shoe was wet. When I pulled the tractor up to the garage, Mr. FixIt flagged me down. It turned out the dipstick for the oil had loosened and oil was spattering all over my leg and shoe. I had to go in and strip just inside the door to keep from tracking oil through the house and jump in the shower. What a mess!

\n\n\n

Country living...it’s a peaceful life, but the work is never, ever done. I wouldn’t trade it to live back in the city for any amount of money. I’d much rather have deer and possum for neighbors. And I wouldn’t trade Mr. FixIt for anyone to quarantine with!

\n\n\n

Oh, and today is “Feel Good Friday”. What good news do you have to share this week?

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.”

\nProverbs 4:23 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-04-17T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/04/17/day-the-hour-vacation-and.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Peaceful Moments","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/04/16/day-the-redbud-and-dogwood.html", "title": "Day 31: The Redbud and Dogwood are Blooming!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
The redbud are blooming!!!
\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt and I have been watching the weather reports very carefully the last week. We needed to get out to the farm to mow so we have been waiting for a dry, sunny day. Yesterday and today both were forecast to be beautiful, but...there was a 60% chance of rain last night. The ground at the farm is very soft and since it’s in a holler, it just doesn’t dry out very well. A heavy riding mower could easily tear up the lawn if we weren’t careful so we decided to go yesterday.

\n\n\n
\"\"
The wispy purple-pink of redbud are so ethereal mixed with the spring green. One of my favorite color combos.
\n\n\n

As I was gathering things up to leave, I asked Mr. FixIt if he would like to go spend the night at the farm since we were going out anyway. This coming weekend is when we were supposed to go to the beach, so we have both been feeling the disappointment of changed plans. This would be a nice little getaway and feel like at least we saw something other than our own four walls.

\n\n\n
\"\"
The first mowing of the spring out at the farm.
\n\n\n

As soon as we drove into the driveway, we saw the tarp on the vintage camper had been ripped off in the wind. We knew we needed to get that fixed as soon as possible so we quickly got the lawn mowed then headed to the closest town with a hardware store to buy a tarp. The drive there was stunning. The sun was shining. It was just warm enough to have the windows open and the wind blowing through our hair. On the way home, we stopped to pick up a pie and ice cream for dessert. I also finally had the opportunity to snag a shot of this really cool dry-stacked rock wall I’ve been eyeing for the last couple of years.

\n\n\n
\"\"
I think this big pine is going to have to come down before too long. It keeps leaning out over the yard.
\n\n\n

Every time I had the opportunity, I stopped and took photos. After Mr. Virgo died, I realized I only had a handful of photos of him. He was always the photographer so we didn’t get many pictures of him. I’ll never make that mistake again. Now I take pictures of everything and everyone. I have hundreds of photos of Mr. FixIt and since I’m taking photos of him, I end up taking pictures of a lot of other things, too.

\n\n\n
\"\"
I drive past this dry-stack rock wall frequently and finally got a picture of it.
\n\n\n
\"\"
We have a lot of cherry blossoms. Now if we could just keep the birds out when they’re ripe in order to actually have some for pies.
\n\n\n

One of my friends from Grandma’s church posted a picture of a batch of Redbud Jelly. Unfortunately, I don’t have the stuff to make it at the moment, but I’ll have it for next spring! 

\n\n\n

Stacie says it’s really easy to make and has such a delicate taste. And, my oh my...isn’t it just beautiful? I’m thinking Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits and Redbud Jelly are definitely on the menu for Spring 2021!

\n\n\n

Here’s the picture of Stacie’s jelly and the recipe she sent me:

\n\n\n
\"\"
Stacie’s Redbud Jelly. It’s as pretty as a picture!
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I hope you are finding things to look forward to today. When we were at the hardware store yesterday, we bought seeds to plant green beans. The last three springs, the rabbits have eaten them. Now that we have Pumpkin the Guard Cat...we haven’t had any bunnies in the yard so maybe we will have beans this year!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.””

\nHosea 6:3 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-04-16T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/04/16/day-the-redbud-and-dogwood.html", "tags": ["Health","Uplifting Stories","Hope","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Presence","Peaceful Moments","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/04/11/day-here-chick-chick-chick.html", "title": "Day 26: Here Chick, Chick, Chick", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
My friend Aimee bought tiaras for her chicks...because that’s just the kind of farm princess she is!
\n\n\n

All my life, I’ve wanted to have chickens. I remember chickens when I was a little girl. I used to think they were out at Grandma’s farm, but my Aunt Peeps says she never had them. Interestingly, Aunt Peeps got her nickname from a book about a little chick that went “Peep, Peep, Peep!” She had that book memorized when she was a toddler and my PopPop always called her Peeps and it stuck all these many years later.

\n\n\n

When Hubby #2 finished residency and joined a medical practice, our first house was on two acres out a two lane blacktop on the way to the ski area. We boarded horses and had a big garden that was really not much more than a salad bar for the deer and raccoons. I really wanted chickens but we lived in a subdivision with covenants. The developer of the property said we could have them if the neighbors agreed. All but one did, so I couldn’t get them. 

\n\n\n

My best friend had chickens at her house. She also had ducks. She lived in town and was not allowed to have roosters. The chicks were sexed and they assured her there were no roosters. Needless to say, we found out that was pretty meaningless when they became adolescents and started crowing. She tried every one she knew to give the roosters away and finally decided we would just butcher them and freeze the meat.

\n\n\n

This was a really sound idea, except for two things. They were fancies and by the time they were plucked and cleaned, they weren’t any bigger than a pigeon. And....you never EVER butcher birds you have named. I do believe my friend is still traumatized and that was over thirty years ago.

\n\n\n

No situation ever presented itself where I could have chickens till I moved back to West Virginia and lived out on the farm. I was just at the point where I was considering getting some then I ran into Mr. FixIt and we started dating and traveling so chickens were put on the back burner...so to speak.

\n\n\n

I have considered having chicks here at the Ponderosa, but again...travel gets in the way. I always go to Colorado in the summer to see the kids. But this year, I’m not sure I’m going to get to. Maybe this is my year. Or, maybe I’m past it. I don’t know. I had to share this picture with you, though. My friend Aimee is who I want to be when I grow up. She is an animal magnet and has some baby chicks this spring. Aimee is a free spirit, hippy mama, earth mother, gypsy farmer...she’s artistic and beautiful and colorful, to put it mildly. So...Aimee did what Aimee does.

\n\n\n

She bought tiaras for her chicks. They’ll fit right in with Daisy the dog who wears a pearl necklace instead of a collar and Gypsy the guard pony that protects the goats from the coyotes and John Boy, the rescued boxer/mastiff mix that cost them about a gazillion dollars in vet bills. I’ll tell you what....those are some lucky chicks right there!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“He gives food to every creature. His love endures forever.”

\nPsalms 136:25 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-04-11T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/04/11/day-here-chick-chick-chick.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Strong Women","Positive Energy","The Farm","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/04/08/day-a-moment-of-peace.html", "title": "Day 23: A Moment of Peace", "content_html": "\n
\n
\n\n

“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.\"”
‭‭John‬ ‭3:8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n\n
\n
\n\n\n

I slept a deep and dreamless sleep at the farm. I went to sleep with the sounds of owls and the occasional night bird. I awoke to the sun striking the the tippy top of the far ridge, the glorious choir of songbirds echoing down the holler from the woods above. What little bit of spring rain we’ve had trickled quietly in the creek outside the bedroom window I had propped open with an old bottle. My breathing was steady...my heartbeat was slow. I was feeling quite zen in the moment.

\n\n\n

I stretched and yawned and gazed out the window, then I received an alert on my phone. My brother/friend Greg was texting from Costa Rica.

\n\n\n

“Hey...wish me happy birthday, sis!”

\n\n\n

OMGosh! Why wasn’t his birthday on my calendar? I’m challenged in this area. I sat up, pulled the covers up around my chin, brushed my hair back, and hit the little camera icon. I have never tried a video chat on Instagram before, but there is a first time for everything, right? After three rings, there he was. My curly-haired buddy with the sparkling blue eyes...retired attorney, world traveler, born in the same hospital as me and delivered by the same doctor. We grew up right across the Ohio River from each other but didn’t meet until 2002 at a board meeting in New Castle, Colorado. Go figure.

\n\n\n

His gap-toothed smile is charming, his innocent youthfulness belies his age. Greg is truthfully the little brother I never had. I adore my older brother. I didn’t get to do the things with him some sisters do. He didn’t play football and look out for his little sister. He didn’t reluctantly drive me to school or protect me from boys he didn’t approve of. My older brother was born with a developmental disability and cerebral palsy. I would never trade him for anything in the world. I was HIS protector, so God sent me Greg to do the other stuff.

\n\n\n

When Mr. Virgo died and I returned from my three month excursion in the wilderness and backroads of Colorado, I couldn’t sleep in my house. I didn’t want to sleep in my bed...our bed. So I kept Little TOW-Wanda out front, plugged in, and essentially lived out there till I finally had to park her in storage for the winter. Greg and I were both night owls. If he saw me online at some ungodly hour, he sent me a text to see if I was ok. I can’t tell you how many times he walked the six or seven blocks from his house to mine at 2:00 in the morning to just sit with me in my camper. 

\n\n\n

We propped pillows up at each end of my bed, he at one end...me at the other. It was getting chilly so we threw a quilt over our legs. Sometimes we listened to music. Sometimes we shared pictures on our phones. Sometimes I cried and he sat quietly and listened. He’s a good brother...as much a brother as any. And I got to start my soft, zen-like day singing happy birthday to him and catch up with each other’s lives. It was delightful.

\n\n\n

When we finally said goodbye, I padded into the kitchen to make my coffee, threw in another load of laundry, and sat in Grandma’s chair to watch the world play out in front of me. I took a deep breath. No television. No news. No “press conferences”. No updates. I could just as easily have been sitting in a cabin in the woods in 1886 as remote and distant the world felt. This is what I was talking about a couple of weeks ago when I posted on my personal FB page... “Should married couples socially distance from each other? (Asking for a friend.)” I was trying to be funny...sort of. 

\n\n\n

I love Mr. FixIt completely. AND...I know myself. I need a break away from time to time to recharge and catch my breath. I need to NOT hear a television for, at the very least...24 hours. I am a much happier person when I get these little breaks...and when I’m happier, Mr. FixIt can’t help but be happier, too. It doesn’t take long and we can’t stand being apart. But oh...that twenty-four hours is delicious.

\n\n\n
\"\"
Grandma’s Spirea
\n\n\n

I finished my laundry and gathered some things up from the kitchen that I wanted to take home. The pots and pans I left at the farm are much nicer than the ones over at the house, so I gathered the good pans up to bring home with me. The next time we go back over, I’ll take the older pans from here and leave them at the farm. No one comes there but us, and we will do fine with them. I also brought my blender and my handheld KitchenAid mixer. Some knives and my wonderful crock with my spatulas and wooden spoons. And the red teakettle I bought a few years ago when I came back to the farm full time.

\n\n\n

By the time I got the car packed up, it was nearly 3:00 in the afternoon. I drove home and mowed the back yard for Mr. FixIt. It was warm and sunny. When I was done, I stretched out on the bed in front of the fan for a power nap. We had supper and sat out on the deck under our new pergola and played with the cat. 

\n\n\n

For twenty-four hours, coronavirus was far away. Scary things were far away. Death and dying and illness were far away. I had the mental health break I needed and came back feeling stronger and more centered and rested. It’s important to take care of our mental health...always, but especially now. 

\n\n\n

What are you doing to help with your mental health? What are your self care rituals?

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”

\nJohn 14:27 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-04-08T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/04/08/day-a-moment-of-peace.html", "tags": ["Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Peace","Wisdom","Presence","Peaceful Moments"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2020/03/30/day-when-times-are-hard.html", "title": "Day 14: When Times are Hard", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
“This brush fire was alarming when it was only a couple of miles from the farm.”
\n\n\n

When times are hard, the little extra things that come along can really add up and become overwhelming if you aren’t careful. Some days are just out of control. Actually...they all are lately. But yesterday was a winner. We had a great day. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, it was warm enough to have the windows open to air out the house. Then, about 3:00 in the afternoon, the power went out. It was a really windy day and this often happens at this time of year in the country. A tree comes down on a power line, and depending on where it is, it may or may not be an easy fix.

\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt decided to go out and mow since our binge-watching of West Wing was interrupted. I decided to gather up my laundry and head out to the farm. When I pulled off the main road onto our little country lane, I smelled smoke. Not half a mile in, there was a column of white smoke and several firefighters and local people were working on a brush fire. A tree had come down and knocked a live wire down into the fallen leaves. The entire hillside was in flames and my cousin’s wife had a generator in the back of her truck running a pump to get water up from the creek.

\n\n\n

We’re really out in the boonies there. We don’t have city water out that road so there’s no fire hydrants. Most houses that catch fire just burn to the ground. While this fire wasn’t immediately threatening any structures, there were some not terribly far away. The farm is another two miles down the road so I’m certain there is no danger there. 

\n\n\n

Needless to say, when I got to the farm, there was no electric. I called to check on an elderly neighbor down the road. I called my uncle to let him know about the fire but that I didn’t feel there was a threat to the house. And then I called Mr. FixIt to tell him I was just going to turn around and come home.

\n\n\n

When I got back down the road to where the fire was, a fire truck was now parked across both lanes and I couldn’t get through. I don’t think they would have let me through anyway because now the fire was down at the edge of the road and the little valley was filled with thick, white smoke. I took a few pictures and headed back out the road to go the long way around.

\n\n\n

I thought I would stop in the little town near the Ponderosa and pick up a gallon of milk but the power was still off and all three stores were closed. I got home and Mr. FixIt was almost finished with half the mowing. He asked if I wanted to take over and I jumped on the tractor for my first mow of the season. The weather was perfect and I got as much mowed as I could before dark. 

\n\n\n

Mr. FixIt ran an extension cord from the generator into the house so I could have a lamp in the kitchen. I didn’t want to have the refrigerator door open very long so I grabbed half a kielbasa, an onion, and a can of sliced potatoes. I chopped the onion, sliced the sausage, and added the potatoes to a skillet with a little butter in it and fried it all together. In five minutes we had a quick meal from stuff we had on hand...and it was so yummy!

\n\n\n

We moved the lamp to the living room and I headed to the bedroom to write. I can’t hear the frogs over the generator. Actually, there’s not a more annoying sound than a generator running as far as I’m concerned. But it was music to my ears when I think of so many who don’t have that luxury. I’ll wear my earplugs and call it good.

\n\n\n

It’s just another thing. A small inconvenience. Maybe it was God’s way of saying...”Get outside and away from the television and the news!”

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;”

\n2 Corinthians 4:8-9 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2020-03-30T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2020/03/30/day-when-times-are-hard.html", "tags": ["Faith","Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Fear"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/12/13/definition-of-a-wv-holler.html", "title": "Definition of a WV Holler", "content_html": "

\"Grandma’s Grandma’s farm is at the mouth of a holler. No one lives back up the holler anymore.

\n

It’s “Feel Good Friday” and I want to share something with you.  We often talk about the hills of WV where my roots run deep. We talk about Grandma’s farm and the home of my heart. I tell you stories and memories that warm my soul and hopefully yours, as well. If you grew up like I did…you’ll be able to relate. And if you didn’t, you’ll be able to see how the luckiest of us were raised up.

\n

I belong to several Appalachian pages on Facebook. I love the pictures and the stories as they stir up memories as old as the hills. When I read the writing of one of these hill folk and it particularly moves me, I simply must share. This piece was written about the hollers of Eastern Kentucky, but that’s not all that far from here and aptly describes our neck of the woods in WV, too. I hope you enjoy!

\n

The Definition of an Eastern Kentucky Holler…..

\n

Someone from outside my area recently asked me about our Eastern Kentucky hollers, and I have been thinking of how to best describe them to those not familiar with them.  The simple answer is that a holler is a lane that follows a narrow valley between the hills.  But if you’re from the hills of Eastern Kentucky, then you know there’s a lot more to a holler than that.  

\n

Most hollers are just dirt roads with a little gravel spread on them every now and then.  They were never intended to carry heavy traffic.  A holler is generally very sparsely populated because that’s the way we like it.  We guard our privacy and we’re pretty wary of strangers.  Often there’s not another house in sight of your house.  

\n

But we still know our neighbors.  And when one needs help, then you help.  If someone is sick in the holler, then you pitch in to help until they get back on their feet.  If someone has a problem, then you listen.  When someone claims you as a friend, then you’re loyal.  And if you make a promise, then you’d better make good on it.

\n

There aren’t any mansions In a holler.  In fact, most houses in a holler are modest ones.  And almost everyone has a barn, and a couple of other outbuildings.  Some have chickens and cows and goats and a couple of horses.  And they all have at least one dog that runs to the road and barks at every car that passes by.  

\n

Most people in a holler have a front porch.  And they actually sit on it.  They shell peas and string green beans and peel apples on the porch.  And people stop by and sit on the porch with you.  They laugh and talk and cuss a little bit about crooked politicians.  And in the dusky evenings, they come with fiddles and flat top guitars and five-string banjos.  And, good Lord in heaven…..what music they make!  Sometimes the music drifts up and down the holler and it’s so pretty it just makes you want to cry!  But instead of crying, you find yourself humming along to the lonesome strains of the Orange Blossom Special. 

\n

A lot of the houses in a holler have been occupied by several generations of the same family over the years.  There is comfort in living in the house where your grandpa was born, or playing in the creek where your daddy used to swim.  Something stirs down deep inside of you when you know you’re walking in the steps of your forefathers.  And you never really feel alone as long as you know that your people lie buried on top of the hill that holds you so closely.  Never underestimate the way that the hills cradle you.  They will rock you to sleep at night, and awaken you in the morning with a happy heart and a joy in your soul.

\n

If you live in a holler, you get recognition every day.  And you’re never invisible.  People always wave at you when they see you on your porch or in your yard.  And if they don’t see you outside, then they will blow the horn when they drive by your house….just as a way of saying “howdy”.  And if a few days pass and they don’t see you, then they’ll stop by to check on you.  You can count on it.  And you can count on them.

\n

If your house is the first one as you turn up the holler….then you live at the mouth of the holler.  If your house is the last one where the holler dead-ends…then you live at the head of the holler.  And responsibilities fall to you according to where you live in the holler.  For example, if you live at the mouth of the holler and you see a strange car that doesn’t belong to anyone you know and it’s heading up the holler, then you call the people who live above you and let them know that there’s a stranger headed up their way.  That’s just common courtesy.  If a vacuum cleaner salesman comes to your door, then call and let the others in the holler know so they’ll have time to let the big dogs out of the house before the salesman pulls into their driveway. 

\n

If anyone invites you to have a meal at their table…accept their offer quickly.  And if it’s a house where an old woman runs the kitchen, get to the table just as fast as you can. And get ready to be amazed!  Because if you live to be a hundred years old, you will never have a finer meal than one served up in an Eastern Kentucky holler.

\n

There is a certain etiquette adhered to when you drive up or down the holler.  If you meet another car in an extra narrow spot, then one of you has to back up to a wide spot so the other can pass.  And when you are finally able to pass each other, you stop and roll the car window down and you talk until another car comes along and you have to move on.

\n

If your neighbor slides out of the road in the winter snow, or if he gets stuck in the mud, then you try to push him out.  If you’re unable to push him out, then you get your tractor out of the barn, attach a big chain, and pull him out.  Again…it’s just common courtesy.  

\n

If someone in the neighborhood dies, you get to their house quickly with huge boxes of food.  You make a pot of coffee.  And then you make another one.  And you stay beside your neighbor for as long as you’re needed.  You don’t even have to say a word, you just have to be there.

\n

There are other unwritten rules to holler-living.  If a forest fire breaks out, you become a firefighter.  And not just to save your own house, but to also save all the other houses in the holler.  If the creeks start rising, you don’t leave anyone behind to face the muddy waters alone.  And when storms come, and they will, you will find no better friends than the ones who are going through the same challenges that you’re facing.  

\n

There’s a lot more to be said about an Eastern Kentucky holler, but if I don’t tell you another thing, you need to know that a holler is more than a narrow isolated lane that runs between the hills.  A holler takes you to the place where you have always been loved and where you’ll always be welcome.  A holler takes you to the place where you can find comfort and peace and a sense of belonging.  It takes you to your roots and to your family and to the truth of who you are.  A holler takes you home.  

\n

Written by Roberta Stephens

\n

January 4, 2017

\n

In sweet memory of the hollers I have loved

\n

❤️

\n
“‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.””\n

Revelation 21:4 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-12-13T02:30:29-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/12/13/definition-of-a-wv-holler.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Love","Wisdom","Choices","Feel Good Friday"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/12/11/its-a-kiss-christmas-keep.html", "title": "It’s a KISS Christmas - Keep it Simple, Santa!", "content_html": "

\"Shiny “Simple and elegant…vintage Shiny Brite ornaments like these hang on our tree here at the Ponderosa”

\n

Wait! How can it possibly be just two weeks till Christmas Day??? It seems like I was on the RPod Tour yesterday and now we are sliding into the home stretch and the year will be over. I went to the farm Monday midday to write. I fell asleep to the sound of rain on the tin roof. I couldn’t help it. Not only was it soothing, but it’s my happy place and I’ve been running around like crazy this year. I just enjoy it so much. 

\n

I woke up yesterday morning and looked at the weather reports. When I went to sleep it was 61℉ and raining. By morning they were predicting snow in the afternoon. I had limited groceries with me so I decided to pack up and head back to the Ponderosa. When I walked in, I heard the carpet shampooer running in the basement and that can only mean one thing. The basement flooded again. I went down and helped my sweet Mr. FixIt clean up the mess.

\n

Once we got the worst of it done, I sat down to write. I have deadlines to meet every couple of weeks and I had a lot of work to do. Several hours later, I turned off the computer. I’ll finish this morning. Mr. FixIt baked some peanut butter cookies. We watched the news. We read the mail. We got our first Christmas cards yesterday. I haven’t even thought about doing ours yet. I haven’t gone Christmas shopping. I haven’t baked cookies or made special gifts. Nothing.

\n

I used to feel really bad about myself if the holidays weren’t visions straight out of a Hallmark movie. I have SO gotten over that. The house is decorated…enough. Did I get the Christmas Village out on the dining room table? Nope. It’s ok. If my friends and family get a New Year’s letter from us, is it going to be the end of the world? Nope. It’s ok. If the kids get cash cards instead of intricately wrapped gifts, will it make the holidays any less bright? Nope. How about if I buy a store bought cheesecake instead of making fifteen dozen cookies…does it take anything away from our celebrations? No.

\n

Because…all the decorations and the hoopla, the frenzy and the manic late nights aren’t what this holiday season is about anyway. It’s about love. And celebrating Jesus. And gathering the family and holding them close. I started a new Christmas tradition for Mr. FixIt and family when I came into the picture. I make a big pot of chili and homemade cinnamon rolls. It’s low key. We exchange modest gifts. And this year, we’re going to have a White Elephant gift exchange as a fun activity. If you’ve never done that, it’s a lot of fun. Here are the rules:

\n

Each participant supplies one wrapped gift, usually of similar value. The gifts are placed in a central location, and participants determine in which order they will take turns selecting them. The first person opens a wrapped gift, and the turn ends. On subsequent turns, each person has the choice to either unwrap a new present or to steal another’s. When a person’s gift is stolen, that person can either choose another wrapped gift to open or can steal from another player. To avoid never-ending circles, each gift can only be stolen once per turn. The game is over when everyone has a present. Generally, it is recommended to have at least six participants for the gift exchange party. With a larger group, game play may be more protracted.

\n

It’s a KISS Christmas…Keep it Simple, Santa!

\n

❤️

\n
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”\n

Matthew 6:21 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-12-11T02:30:37-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/12/11/its-a-kiss-christmas-keep.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","New Ideas","Gratitude","Comfort","Holiday","Wisdom","Peaceful Moments","Choices","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/12/10/love-to-the-rescue.html", "title": "Love to the Rescue", "content_html": "

\"Friends\" “One of my besties! Deneene and her sidekick, Griffen the Grey, came for a visit. She’s good for what ails ya!”

\n

I wrote in yesterday’s post about feeling “in the ditch”. I struggled for a few days with grief waves triggered by a traumatic loss in the family. Then, in swept my dear friend Deneene with lots of love and her trusty sidekick, Griffen the Grey. Griff is a nine month old French Bulldog who wriggled his way into my heart when we visited Deneene and her husband Mark in South Carolina this summer. 

\n

I had been greatly anticipating Deneene’s arrival for the last week and when she walk in the door, all the “holding it all in” released with her big bear hug. I had the gas stove in the family room fired up so it was nice and toasty. And I had the TV on with this really great ten hour YouTube fireplace video running in the background. We have a huge TV because the family room is huge. It used to be a two car garage, so if you want to read the fine print at the bottom of the screen, you need a big TV. When Deneene walked in, she said she could see the fire blazing from the road leading past our house. I was glad no one thought the house was on fire and called 911!

\n

We didn’t stay up too late and talk because my friend is a new grandma and had just spent a week at her daughter’s helping out with the new baby. She was pretty tired so we said goodnight early. Deneene is not a real morning person, so when Mr. FixIt and I woke up at 8:30, I told him to be really quiet so as not to wake her. I forgot that puppies get their mommies up really early and she had been waiting for US to get up and keeping Griffen quiet.

\n

When I heard them talking in the family room, I quickly dressed and went into the kitchen to cook breakfast. Scratch biscuits with homemade sausage gravy and eggs. OMGosh! It’s been forever since I fixed that and it was SO good. I made Paula Deen’s Cream Biscuits. They are love in the palm of your hand. Look up the recipe. Super easy! And sausage gravy couldn’t be easier to make than mine. Fry a pound of sausage till browned, sprinkle about a third of a cup of flour over it and stir till combined then slowly pour enough milk over it to loosed it up, adding more milk as it cooks, stopping when you get the right consistency. 

\n

As we sat and ooohed and ahhhed over the delicacy before us, we slathered butter and local orange blossom honey over the rest of the biscuits till there were just three left. I tucked them in a bag for Deneene to take with her to nibble on the road. Deneene raved over our hospitality and I told her it was the best B&B this side of the Mississippi…and it’s free!

\n

We said our WV goodbye. She announced she should be leaving. We told another story. She said she really should get going. We hugged and talked about when we would get to see one another again. She gathered up her things. I made sure she didn’t forget her biscuits. We walked to the door. We hugged again and declared it had been too long since the last visit and we shouldn’t wait so long next time. She double checked if she had everything. I asked if she needed a bottle of water for the road. She picked up her bags and we had another long hug at the door. As she walked through, we noticed she had set down the biscuits when she put on her coat so we retrieved them for her. If it hadn’t have been raining, we would have walked her to her truck and the goodbye would have lasted another fifteen to twenty minutes. Thus is the nature of goodbyes in the country. It’s a goodbye full of love!

\n

I called after her, “Don’t forget to text when you get there!” If it was dusk, I would have said, “Watch for deer!” That’s West Virginian for “I love you!”

\n

Deneene honked from the road as she drove by and I waved madly from the front window. And she was gone. My friend whom I helped through her own grief had come and returned the favor. I felt so much better after her visit. I have a big deadline to meet this week so after Deneene left, I packed up and went to the farm where I turned the TV to the same fireplace video. I survived another wave and I’m on to the next thing. Such is the nature of grief. It just gets incorporated into life and you move forward. Thank you for your support yesterday. You have no idea what that means to me. I wish everyone who grieves had cheerleaders like you to support them through their journey.

\n

❤️

\n
“My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.”\n

John 15:12 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-12-10T02:30:55-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/12/10/love-to-the-rescue.html", "tags": ["Faith","Family","Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Love","God","Peace","Wisdom","Courage","Choices","Change","Be Joyful!","Widow"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/11/17/bathing-on-the-back-porch.html", "title": "Bathing on the Back Porch", "content_html": "

\"Back “Bathing on the back porch was all I knew at the farm till I was six.” (not my photo)

\n

This picture makes me smile. I found it on one of the Facebook pages I follow about Appalachian life. I remember in the days before Grandma had indoor plumbing, she would fill a canner full of spring water, heat it up on the kitchen stove, and fix a bath for my brother and I when we stayed with her. In the winter, the old galvanized tub was brought into the kitchen so we wouldn’t catch a chill. And in the summer, we bathed on the back porch. It was a great way to cool off and prepare us for a night of blissful slumber. I would pad up the staircase with bare feet, dressed in a clean cotton nightgown, and Mom would tuck us into bed…one on each side of her. I would drift off to the sounds of the night…a screech owl, katydids, crickets, and the sound of the creek bubbling over the rocks just at the side of the house.

\n

When Daughter #1 was little, I felt I was ever so much more sophisticated than my countrified counterparts and bathed my daughter in the indoor bath…you know, like civilized people. But, by the time Daughter #2 came around, I started to appreciate and embrace my Allegheny roots. By this time, my daughter was big enough she couldn’t fit in the old galvanized tub so we took things a step further. It was always August when we went to WV for a visit and it was hotter than blue blazes so we took what my daughter called “moon baths”. We waited till dark, went outside, and stripped down to our “all-together” as my mama used to call it. Then we washed from a bucket of sudsy water and poured buckets of cool rainwater over us to rinse. It was heavenly.

\n

In 2004, my mom died after a brief illness and I went home to take care of her estate. I was there for several months to clean out the house and remodel it as best I could to sell it. During that time, Daughter #1 brought Big to West Virginia for a visit. When we went to the farm, I pulled out the same old galvanized wash tub and drew a bath for my granddaughter on the back porch. This picture made me smile at all the memories that came back to me. I sent it to Big yesterday (who will be 16 in February) and told her the story of the old tub. My Colorado peeps are pretty well gentrified so she was astonished at such a primitive upbringing I had.

\n

There aren’t many opportunities to walk down memory lane with my kids and grandkids. They live busy lives and don’t get here often so I take time when I can to share the past with them. I think it’s important for them to know their roots go deeper than the Rocky Mountains. Their past stretches back to the ancient Appalachian Mountains…to a place time forgot…on a little old porch of a little old house in a holler in the hills.

\n

❤️

\n
“Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him.”\n

Psalms 127:3 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-11-17T02:30:16-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/11/17/bathing-on-the-back-porch.html", "tags": ["Family","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Humbled","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/11/15/date-night-at-rural-king.html", "title": "Date Night at Rural King", "content_html": "

\"WV “What a beautiful night for a date at Rural King…my favorite farm store!”

\n

A couple of days ago, Mr. FixIt needed to go into town to get a special drill bit. He’s back to working on our master bath! We have to fit in home jobs when the grass isn’t growing and he’s finished with all the outside jobs he does. When the weather turned cold, I came in off the road from my camping tour and we set to doing the things around here that have been put on hold.

\n

The big outside job Mr. FixIt has been working on is the huge covered front porch he built on the front of his ex-wife’s house. One of my bonus granddaughters told me there are people who don’t understand how I’m ok with that. Well, first off…she’s paying him, so it’s a job. But, beyond that, why on earth would I, or SHOULD I be upset by that? 

\n

She is the mother of his children. They share grandchildren and great grandchildren. She’s a wonderful person and I just love her. Our granddaughter told the person she was talking to that she thinks it’s awesome that we all get along and talk to each other. It makes it so much easier for the family if they aren’t being torn by split loyalties. Couples may divorce. But you don’t divorce your family. And as far as I’m concerned, we are all family.

\n

Anyway, he’s finished with all but just a little touch up over there and that has to wait till spring for good weather. And now we’re focused on getting things done at home. That prompted the trip to town. He asked if I wanted to ride along with him. Listen, this man knows me. He didn’t have to ask twice to get me to go to Rural King and Lowe’s. 

\n

I love home improvement stores and farm stores. I needed to get a heated water dish for the kitten just to make sure she always has fresh water available. Rural King has them…AND free popcorn! As we came out of the store, the entire sky was bright pink all the way around us. It was like being inside a big pink bubble. I love the sunsets at this time of year. They seem to be so vibrant. After the fun stops, we went to our favorite pizza place…Pete’s Pizza. Honestly…the best pizza I think I have ever had comes out of this little family owned restaurant in Mineral Wells, WV. 

\n

I went to the farm yesterday to make sure all is well. I unplugged the pump in case the gas should go off and a pipe should freeze and burst. Wouldn’t want to flood the basement and burn out the pump. This cold spell has kept the Asian Lady Beetles at bay and I only swept up about a half a cup of them this time. I still haven’t been brave enough to go upstairs to look.

\n

When I went into the cellar house to unplug the pump, I saw there was a lot of white, hairy mold growing on the wood of the old potato bin. The cellar house is no longer water tight so it’s always damp in there. Next summer, when we have a dry spell, we need to open up that door and air it out. I also need to spray the mold with a bleach solution, I think. I will do some research on that. It isn’t the black mold that is so toxic. Maybe I’ll take the dehumidifier from the bathroom and put it out there for the winter. That would solve two problems. First, it would decrease the humidity. But a dehumidifier also puts off a fair amount of heat…enough to keep the pipes on the pump from freezing when we get a REALLY cold snap.

\n

When you live in the country, and you have an endless list of chores that need doing, you have to find your date nights where you can get them. Mr. FixIt is a lucky man…I like hardware, power tools…and pizza!

\n

❤️

\n
“The Lord will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.”\n

Deuteronomy 28:8 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-11-15T02:30:39-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/11/15/date-night-at-rural-king.html", "tags": ["Family","Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Forgiveness","Choices","Change","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/11/12/shelves-of-memories.html", "title": "Shelves of Memories", "content_html": "

\"Jelly “The antique jelly cupboard from the farm now houses my quilts.”

\n

When I showed you my beautiful jelly cupboard that I recently moved from the farm, many of you asked to see it when I had the quilts inside. As I sat working in the living room at the Ponderosa yesterday afternoon, the warm sunshine streaming through the big windows made its way to the cupboard. The shelves sat empty and glaring at me. I set my work aside and went on the hunt for my quilts. They have been put away since the wedding a year ago and it was about time they were brought out for all to see.

\n

I am of the mindset not to “save the good china”. I want what few antiques I have curated to be displayed and used in my everyday life. Part of this is because my kids more than likely will not be interested in them. And partly because one of the lessons Mr. Virgo unwittingly taught me was…life is short. Use the crystal and the quilts.

\n

When the unfortunate parting of the ways came on Christmas of 2014, just ten weeks after I arrived to help my Aunt Peeps, I didn’t know what to do with the cherished items I brought from Colorado. Five thousand pounds of stuff I didn’t believe I could part with became an albatross around my neck. I couldn’t leave it at the farm and I couldn’t take it with me on the road. My good friend, Steve, let me store a lot of it in his basement. And I decided many of the most cherished family keepsakes should go live with my cousin, Tammy. That way I can visit them and she can enjoy them.

\n

My quilts were one of the things I simply could not part with and I carefully stored them away for the perfect way to display them again. Once they were safely tucked on the aged bittersweet colored shelves of the jelly cupboard, I sat back to observe my handiwork. I realized something heartwarming. 

\n

For the last few years, I have been dreading the day when I can no longer visit or spend time in Grandma’s old red farmhouse. That day will come…when, I don’t know. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my life, it is that change is the only thing we can count on in this earthy plane. As I sat and looked at the worn wood the color of a caramel apple, I realized I could feel the farmhouse. I could see the hump in the floor where it’s settled over the years. The old faded linoleum that made cleaning much easier. I could hear the squeak of the stairs and the way the spring squeals when the screen door slams. I could see the boxes of Wheaties that Pop-Pop kept on the top of the cupboard for his dessert after supper. I could hear the faint sound the doors made when I reached in as a little girl…taking the mishmash collection of dishes out to set the table or putting them back in after hand washing and drying.

\n

In that moment I realized that, even though the house may someday be inaccessible to me, this jelly cupboard is the heart of what is left of the beautiful childhood memories created within the crooked walls of a crooked little house in West Virginia. And…it is mine. Combining households with Mr. FixIt has definitely expanded our “footprint”, however…we each have things that are our personal possessions. While I don’t believe I will ever accumulate “stuff” like I did before Mr. Virgo died, what I do have will be things that are beautiful, useful, and that bring me joy. 

\n

❤️

\n
“That precious memory triggers another...”\n

2 Timothy 1:5-7 MSG

\n", "date_published": "2019-11-12T02:30:47-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/11/12/shelves-of-memories.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Strong Women","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Aging","Downsizing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/11/05/beetlesnot-beatles.html", "title": "Beetles...not Beatles", "content_html": "

\"Asian “This year’s crop of Asian Lady Beetles is massive.”

\n

We went to the farm yesterday with one of our granddaughters and our great granddaughter. They’ve never been there. And I haven’t been there for over a month. This is the time of year for the Annual Asian Lady Beetle Infestation. The last few years they weren’t so bad. But this year is another massive invasion and I was appalled at the carnage in the house. 

\n

The front porch was covered. Literally covered with a carpet of a mix of dead and creepy crawly beetles. The Asian Lady Beetle looks very similar to the common ladybug but they are not the same thing. These were brought in to help control aphids, and…like many good ideas…things took a turn when they a) showed no interest in aphids, b) nothing in its right mind would eat these stinky things, and c) they multiply exponentially.

\n

They seem to love to nest in dead brush and trees…something we have an abundance of in Appalachia. They also get in crevices around windows and under eaves in old country farm houses…like Grandma’s house. They make their debut on the first hot day after the first frost of the season. Along about 2:00-3:00 in the afternoon, you can look out and see them swarming in the sunshine. You can’t hang clothes out because they will just glom all over them, leaving behind their little yellow “signatures” that will NOT come out. And they LOVE whites!

\n

We swept them up and dumped them outside by the dustpan full. We sucked them up with the vacuum cleaner. And the more we swept, the warmer it became outside, the more they swarmed. It was an entirely losing battle and we finally gave up. These little suckers bite, too! They bit my great granddaughter several times and she kept coming to me to put my cold bottle of soda on them to soothe her.

\n

I did some laundry, turned off the dehumidifiers, checked the furnace and cranked it up, and prepped for winter. I called the exterminator to come and check for termites and treat the place if we need to. I walked the grounds with the girls, telling them stories of my youth. Then Mr. FixIt helped me load my jelly cupboard up to take home with us.

\n

\"Jelly “My grandma’s jelly cupboard came home to live with me today!”

\n

If anything would ever happen out at the farm, I want to make sure those sentimental things that I highly value are safe and secure with me. I was given this jelly cupboard by my Aunt Peeps. It’s really the only thing at the farm that I’ve ever wanted. I remember being no bigger than my great granddaughter when my grandma and mom took me to an auction down the road from the farm. 

\n

I was maybe two or three years old. I was sitting in a little blue wagon and they bought me a hotdog. They pulled me all around as I happily munched on my treat. Grandma had her eye on an old jelly cupboard that had multiple layers of white enamel pain on it. She bought it for the winning bid of $5.00. When they got it home, Pop-Pop used turpentine to strip the paint. I can still remember my fat baby hand holding a scraper, my Pop-Pop’s weathered and work-worn hand over mine showing my how to scrap the wrinkly paint that had loosened. 

\n

When he was done, he set a nice coat of varnish that has weathered to a lovely golden color that accentuates the wood’s grain. They painted the inside a garish orange that I hated…until it finally aged and weathered to the most delightful pumpkin color. This cabinet speaks autumn to me and it has usurped my aunt’s rain boots as my favorite possession.

\n

There was a time after Mr. Virgo died that I wanted nothing. I would have been happy to have a handful of favorite things and a toothbrush. I have slowly accumulated things I love. The difference now is, these things are carefully selected and must meet the following criteria.

\n
    \n \t
  1. They must give me joy. \n
    2. \n \t
  2. They must serve a function. \n
    3. \n \t
  3. They must be beautiful. \n
    4. \n
\nOur kids don’t want all that heavy brown furniture our grandparents handed down. They don’t want boxes of books or pictures of people they do not know. They don’t want Aunt Maude’s tea set with the little butterflies on it. They just might want a sturdy wooden jelly cupboard. And, if they don’t, I know people who do that I can leave it to. In the meantime, it sits in a place of honor in the family room at the Ponderosa. It will house my collection of quilts behind the original glass doors that we so very carefully protected as we traveled that winding West Virginia road from the farm. My heart is so happy.\n

❤️

\n
“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”\n

Proverbs 22:6 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-11-05T02:30:31-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/11/05/beetlesnot-beatles.html", "tags": ["Family","Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/09/02/the-tug-of-war.html", "title": "The Tug of War", "content_html": "

\"Angel “Angel on one hand, devil on the other…trying to have their way with me.”

\n

Mr. FixIt and I haven’t had a lot of time together this summer. I was gone a lot and, even though he joined me for three weeks in Colorado, we both have been working nonstop at this and that since we got home the first week of August. Here it is September already and I’m already preparing to leave again.

\n

We miss being together and we both know the importance of devoting time to our relationship. It’s been really nice this weekend because we took three days off for some much needed R&R. When I woke up yesterday, I was tired. My allergies have been giving me fits creating fluid in my ears which sometimes makes me dizzy. I laid in bed for twenty minutes telling myself it was perfectly fine to stay home…we didn’t have to go to church. I mean…it’s just this once, right? We go almost every Sunday when we are home. That deserves a day off to sleep in. I just didn’t feel good. I didn’t feel like going.

\n

As I let these thoughts run through my mind, I was almost convinced to turn over and go back to sleep when a stern “voice” shook me from my reverie. 

\n

“When you don’t FEEL like going is exactly when you NEED to go!”

\n

I quite literally jumped out of bed.

\n

Ohhhhh….my thinker was what was “sick”. Church is the place it gets healed.

\n

When I’m thinking I don’t need to go to church is exactly when I need it the most. And yesterday, I am not kidding…church felt like plugging in my jet pack. I got fed the energy and grace and love and lessons I needed and I left there convicted. Convinced the place to feel better is to draw closer to Jesus, not turn over and go back to sleep.

\n

It’s not enough to go every Sunday and get plugged in, hoping the charge lasts till the following Sunday. That obviously didn’t work last week because I easily could have opted out. My tug of war pitted the proverbial angel on one hand and devil on the other…each trying to pull me to their side. I know I can’t ever go wrong when I choose Jesus.

\n

The key is to draw closer…constantly. The Bible says we are to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). The way to do that is to turn whatever you are doing into worship. Whether you are singing in the choir or scrubbing toilets, it can be done with a tone of worship and praise. And when we pray, we are to devote ourselves “to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving” (Colossians 4:2)

\n

Just that boost, and the conviction to keep close, has given me rest and regeneration. I feel so much better and not nearly so overwhelmed by all I need to accomplish in the next two weeks. I came to the farm after church…to my place of meditation…to the home of my heart…and enjoyed a quiet evening while Mr. FixIt bowled. Today, I’ll go back home and get some work done. Perhaps I’ll pressure wash the deck!

\n

❤️

\n
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”\n

Romans 12:2 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-09-02T01:30:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/09/02/the-tug-of-war.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","God","Peace","Wisdom","Fear","Courage","Aging","Choices","Widow"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/08/15/the-metamorphosis-of-grief.html", "title": "The Metamorphosis of Grief", "content_html": "

\"Country “The Farm. Clockwise from top left: Drying the laundry on the front porch is a country thing, Elderberries, A Rose of Sharon appeared from nowhere, Life is Simple, An Appalachian Pour Over, Blue granite pan used for dipping water out of the rain barrel.

\n

Living in the country, you see many examples of metamorphosis. Where there once was a hairy caterpillar, there becomes a moth. Where there once was a striped green worm with a spiky tail, noshing on a milkweed leaf, there becomes a monarch butterfly. Where there once was a grub with legs, crawling up a tree and developing a hard shell, it soon splits and a locust emerges to call in the autumn season…signaling it’s time for school to start.

\n

Just as there is a time for everything in its season, so it is with grief. I was thinking about this yesterday while I was trimming back the wild grape vines threatening to overtake the farm. When this blog began, I was fresh in my grief. I promised you then I would be honest and speak to you from my heart about exactly what it was like…at least for me…to go through the loss of my husband. There were times when it was so painfully ugly that it had to be difficult to read. Yet, so many of you have been here from the very beginning. 

\n

This blog goes through a metamorphosis every time something changes in my life. What started out as a method of pouring out my pain, morphed into learning how to navigate that. It changed and grew just as I changed and grew. It’s not just a grief blog, although there are hundreds of posts in the archives about grief. There was a time, when my grief had subsided to a nagging undercurrent, when I thought maybe I should just quit and make it all about grief. Just leave it there. But I couldn’t stop writing. 

\n

Writing became a part of me…as much a part of me as my hands and feet, my heart and lungs. So I decided to take you with me when I traveled, when I stepped into the dating arena, when I got married. I thought…ok, maybe I’m done now. Maybe I’ll just stop here. But, I kept living…and each new day brought a new experience, a new insight, and new lesson. And it became my devotional. 

\n

In a good cake recipe, bland ingredients like flour get mixed with sweet ingredients like sugar and butter. If baked with nothing else added, you wouldn’t have cake…you’d have some hard, flat, dry cardboard. But add eggs and leavening….take your time….and mix it well….and it rises high and beautiful. My life…my stories…my experiences are the flour and sugar. The scripture at the bottom of each post…illustrating my thinking in that particular moment…that’s the leavening. The eggs. The ingredient that makes the finished product perfect.

\n

I know it’s not a grief blog so much anymore, even though I touch on the topic from time to time. That’s the nature of metamorphosis. Things are always changing…even grief. The numbing pain of the first year, the sharp pain of the second year, the personal growth of my third year, the stretching of my wings in the fourth, the explorations of the fifth, and finally…being remarried in the sixth…my grief has gone through its own metamorphosis and has settled into an undercurrent. A background noise that I have become accustomed to, yet it’s still very much there. 

\n

❤️

\n
“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”\n

2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV

\n", "date_published": "2019-08-15T01:30:57-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/08/15/the-metamorphosis-of-grief.html", "tags": ["Faith","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","New Ideas","Gratitude","God","Wisdom","Aging","Change","Widow"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/08/14/the-farm-is-failing.html", "title": "The Farm is Failing", "content_html": "

\"Green “The farm is the home of my heart…but it’s aging rapidly.”

\n

Mr. FixIt and I have been back from Colorado for a week now. We talked over the weekend and decided to go to the farm for a couple of days because I haven’t been there since the third week of June. I really miss the farm when I’m away and can’t get there. Then, Monday morning came and there was so much to get done at the Ponderosa. Still…the farm…

\n

I decided to bring the dirty laundry and come to the farm on my own for a couple of days. Mr. FixIt is capable of taking care of himself and, while he misses me…he understands my need to be at the farm sometimes. He’s a good guy.

\n

There was a hard rain come through yesterday. I sat on the front porch and watched and it was soon over. The sun came out and the green dazzled my eyes. Everything was so clean and fresh. I sat for the longest time and just scoured the hillside and surrounding area…looking for differences.

\n

The power line coming to the transformer on the pole in front of the house is noticeably drooping down low over the road. A tall vehicle could easily catch that. I’ll have to report it today. Also, the big pine tree on the bank seems to be leaning further out there over the driveway. I pulled up older pictures from the same vantage point to verify both the line and the tree. Something’s going to have to be done with that, too.

\n

I noticed Monday afternoon, there’s a wild grape vine on the power line between the house and the cinderblock building. None of that was there before I left for Colorado. This monsoon summer has created an overgrowth the likes of which I have never seen here. It’s like a tropical rain forest.

\n

When I did a walkabout yesterday, I noticed another tree on the hillside across the creek from the house that has split in half. But it appears the uphill half is actually falling up the hill. That has always been the main concern here. This little holler is so narrow, and the ground is shale and very soft. It wouldn’t take much to bring trees down on this house.

\n

Maybe the earth is taking her back. Maybe it’s the natural progression of old farm houses. I do know, to bring this place back to life and prosperity would take far more money than it’s worth. And, a ton…an absolute TON of work. We’re not OLD…but we are 66 and 67. The other day, I told Mr. FixIt…if we were just 30 years younger, we could do so much with this place.

\n

I think what I have to do is start saying goodbye to the old home place…in earnest. I know there will come a time when it isn’t safe to stay here without cutting down a bunch of trees…without upgrading the electricity…without shoring up the beams in the basement and the attic. My time here is getting shorter…I can feel it. I’m working on girding my heart in preparation.

\n

It’s like the old man who can tell it’s going to rain by the pain in his knee. The only difference is…this pain is in my heart.

\n

❤️

\n
“\"Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?”\n

Haggai 1:4 ESV

\n", "date_published": "2019-08-14T01:30:36-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/08/14/the-farm-is-failing.html", "tags": ["Family","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Love","Wisdom","Courage","Aging","Presence","Warning","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/05/27/memorial-day.html", "title": "Memorial Day 2019", "content_html": "

\"George “He was a soldier. He was a son.”

\n

They called him Sonny. He was their bright ray of sunshine. Smart, sensitive, talented, destined to go far. When Grandma and Pop-Pop got the telegram that their Sonny was gone, part of them died in that moment as well. People said they were never the same. I wouldn’t know what they were like before. I was not yet two when Sonny’s plane went down.

\n

Sometimes I think I remember him. But then I realize it’s his pictures and the loving stories told about him that made my Uncle Sonny alive for me. I was told he loved me. He told my mom he wanted a picture of me on a bearskin rug in my “all-together”…in other words, a chubby baby with a hundred fat rolls, buns up on a blanket. This was back in the days when something like that could be done without thinking the person admiring the photo is a pedophile.

\n

Mom complied and I was told he kept that photo in the cockpit of the plane. But, mom told me a lot of things that turned out to be untrue. For instance, she said he was shot down by Russians. In 1955. Over Landstuhl Air Base in Germany. She said grandma was comforted when she received his personal effects and his wallet didn’t smell like smoke. She was comforted that her boy didn’t burn.

\n

Many years later, when the internet was new and I was helping my mom with her beloved genealogy, I started digging into the crash that took Uncle Sonny’s life. I think the only thing I had to work with at the time was a dial up modem and CompuServe. After meticulously searching, I came up with an aviation archaeologist. He specialized in finding reports on old plane crashes. I believe I paid him $40 and a few weeks later, I received a thick packet in the mail. 

\n

The archaeologist came up with the official Air Force report of the crash and in the process of reading it and asking questions, I got a lot of answers. First, he definitely was not shot down by the Russians. Secondly, pilots do not fly with personal effects, meaning…neither his wallet nor my picture accompanied him in the cockpit that fateful day. That was information I didn’t share with the rest of the family. I don’t remember if my Grandma was still living at this time or not. There’s just some things you don’t need to discuss after some sense of resolution has been met.

\n

There was information that I found disturbing. Sonny needed to log some flight hours. The only plane available that day was an old fighter jet that was on it’s way to become a static display. In other words, it was past its usefulness. In the three days leading up to the crash, four separate engines had been installed. 

\n

The morning of the crash dawned gray and foggy. Uncle Sonny went through the usual preflight check. The ground crew walked around the plane and somehow, someone failed to notice the intake baffles were in the wrong position for the weather conditions. When he took off, he flew around the base a couple of times without incident. Then someone noticed a shift in the engine sound and looked up. The plane had slowed down considerably and was losing altitude.

\n

No one can know for certain what went on in the cockpit that day. The witness on the ground said he couldn’t understand why my uncle didn’t eject and let the plane go down. It wasn’t until the full investigation that it was determined the trajectory of the plane would have sent it into the barracks where countless airmen would still be preparing for their day. Instead, Uncle Sonny steered the plane toward an open potato field that had recently been plowed. I’m sure, with his farming experience, he knew that would be a fairly soft place to land.

\n

As he struggled to keep the engine going and the plane aloft, he noticed a gap between the trees surrounding the potato field. It was narrow, but if he tipped his right wing at the right moment, he could just squeak through. Unfortunately, the sudden dip in the right wing caused the engine to stall even further and the tip of the wing hit the ground. This caused the plane to cartwheel.

\n

Uncle Sonny was found still strapped in his ejector seat in an upright position…as though he were waiting for someone to come by and have a chat. His helmet was cracked from the impact and he died from blunt force trauma. And, even though his wallet wasn’t with him and neither was my bare butt photo…he didn’t burn. It was over quickly.

\n

In my opinion, my Uncle Sonny was a hero. I’m sure he saved countless lives that day. But there was no award, no medal, no call from a grateful President. Maybe that was best. Grandma was not one for making a fuss. “Fools names, like their faces, always seen in public places.” She was a private, unassuming woman with great dignity.

\n

Sonny was laid to rest on a hilltop cemetery fifteen or so miles from the farm. One by one, our loved ones joined him. First Pop-Pop, then Grandma, then my mom, then Uncle Bob. I go twice a year to see them and I always hang around him a little longer. I wish I could have known him. I am comforted knowing there was such a beautiful homecoming when the Lord came to take the others to join my Uncle Sonny and Jesus.

\n

This day is so much more than another day off, another reason for a party. This is the day when we honor the fallen…all who gave their lives in the line of duty. Not just military. We remember all who have gone before us and we decorate their graves. Thank you…for giving your all. My heart is with those who had to go on without you.

\n

❤️

\n
“For the greatest love of all is a love that sacrifices all. And this great love is demonstrated when a person sacrifices his life for his friends.”\n

John 15:13 TPT

\n", "date_published": "2019-05-27T01:30:40-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/05/27/memorial-day.html", "tags": ["Family","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Strong Women","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","God","Fear","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/05/24/thunderbolt-and-lightningbugs.html", "title": "Thunderbolt and Lightning(bugs)", "content_html": "

\"Dew “Dew on the grass. Lightning bugs. Whippoorwills. It’s springtime in West Virginia.”

\n

I saw the very first lightning bugs of the season on May 17th. It was the first night Mr. FixIt and I slept in the new camper. Then it got cold and I didn’t see any. But I saw a couple more last night. Some folks call them fireflies. We loved summer when we were kids…for so many reasons. But one of the best things was catching lightning bugs and putting them in a canning jar.

\n

PopPop would poke holes in a jar lid. We’d put a little grass in the bottom of the jar so the lightning bugs would feel at home. Then us kids would run all over the yard catching the little critters when they swooped up out of the lawn at dusk. We would capture as many as we could and then take the jar to bed with us to watch the magical little lights flash in the dark.

\n

Sometimes before bed, my Uncle Bud would bring a watermelon out of the cellar house and cut it up in thick slices. He’d cut each slice in half so we had a semi-circle of red sweetness to cool us off. Grandma would let us use the salt shaker and sprinkle a little on before we ate it. To this day, I can’t eat watermelon without salt. We had contests to see who could spit a seed the farthest. Uncle Bud always warned us not to swallow any seeds or we’d grow watermelons in our bellies. For a long time I thought pregnant women weren’t eating watermelon the right way!

\n

Once the watermelon was finished, grandma ran a basin of warm water and we washed up and headed to bed. If it was the peak of summer, we wore little seersucker babydoll PJ’s to bed with just a sheet to cover us. We didn’t know what air conditioning was. We were lucky to have a fan in Uncle Bob’s room that sucked all the hot air out of the house. When it was cool enough, someone turned off the fan.

\n

I remember so many summer nights with my jar of lightning bug on a chair by the bed, listening to the night sounds out at the farm. Whippoorwills. Owls. Peepers and tree frogs and bull frogs. When I was really little, we heard bobwhites. I think I might have heard one or two since then.

\n

This is why I love the farm. These memories. They’re as thick as cobwebs and unavoidable. West Virginia. The country. It all just brings me so much peace. I am so grateful I listened to that inner voice and came home when I did. I have never been so happy as I am here…in the home of my heart.

\n

❤️

\n
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”    James 1:17 NIV
\n", "date_published": "2019-05-24T01:30:58-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/05/24/thunderbolt-and-lightningbugs.html", "tags": ["Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Peace","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/05/17/farm-life-is-a-good.html", "title": "Farm Life is a Good Life", "content_html": "

\"Flora “Clockwise from top left: Grandma’s peonies, a row of tiger swallowtails, the peonies out by the road, bearded iris alongside the house, the view from the road, tiger swallowtail up close”

\n

As I was washing the breakfast dishes yesterday, something outside the kitchen window caught my eye. I stood quietly and studied the branches in the cedar and maple trees that frame my view of the yard. Suddenly, I saw it again. A fledgling house wren just took it’s first tentative flight from the nest. It snuggled in amongst the leaves, trying not to draw attention to itself. Mama came flying down and sat beside her brave baby. Soon, she swooped down to the grass and picked up a bug and brought it back to the little one. And so begins the feeding and teaching till this little fellow can survive on his own.

\n

I smiled as I dried my hands and set to my morning chores. Mr. FixIt would be home soon and I needed to get things together to go out to the farm. I packed a couple of bags and gathered the laundry to do while we were out there. I took my morning coffee out on the deck by the pool. Then I wandered over to the garden. I sprinkled the plants with rabbit repellent. I caught sight of a chipmunk darting around the corner of the big building out back and wondered if the repellent works for them, too. 

\n

When Mr. FixIt got home, I helped him get the riding mower and the push mower on the utility trailer. Why we didn’t think of doing this two years ago, I’ll never know!

\n

When we got to the farm, we unloaded the mowers and I hopped on the riding mower. If you remember correctly, when I was mowing the farm by myself it took me a good five hours. I had to mow thirty minutes then cool off and rehydrate…over and over till I was done. I literally finished mowing in less than fifteen minutes with the riding mower! Mr. FixIt took the push mower and mowed the ditches out front and the perimeter of the yard. The edges of the lawn are too soft to use the riding mower. It could collapse the creek bank and take me with it.

\n

When we were finished, I cooked a good supper of pork chops, lima beans, and Amish potato salad. We sat down to watch the news and there it was…bad storms coming. We were prepared to stay a night or two, but until we fix that drain at the bottom of the steps, we have to be at the Ponderosa if there is a threat of heavy rain or else we’ll have a flooded basement.

\n

I washed the dishes and was getting things ready to head back home when Mr. FixIt called to me to bring my phone outside. There, on the driveway, were six or seven tiger swallowtail butterflies, intently feeding on something. I have no idea what. When I startled them at one point, they rose up and circled around and around us for several minutes in a dazzling butterfly dance. Then, just as quickly, they settled back down in the same spot. It was magical and went on for forty-five minutes or so. 

\n

We finally had to say goodbye to the butterflies and head back to the Ponderosa. Sometimes farm life is a hard life. But, it’s really a good life.

\n

❤️

\n
“May God give you heaven’s dew and earth’s richness— an abundance of grain and new wine.”    Genesis 27:28 NIV
\n", "date_published": "2019-05-17T01:30:58-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/05/17/farm-life-is-a-good.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Love","Peace","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/04/17/a-good-tired.html", "title": "A Good Tired", "content_html": "

\"Spring “Spring flowers make my heart sing!”

\n

Now that the taxes are done, submitted, and accepted, our attention can turn to other things….mainly, mowing. With the rains we received over the weekend, the grass growth was remarkable and it couldn’t be put off another day. We had a neighbor brush hog the far field last fall when we were preparing for the wedding. That field is really rough and needs to be mowed really regularly or we’ll have to resort to the brush hog again. I got about half the field mowed at the Ponderosa then we had to head for the farm. Mr. FixIt mowed while I hauled dropped limbs and did laundry. It was 7:30 by the time we were done and ready to head back home. 

\n

This is the kind of tired that feels good. When you do a good solid day’s work and you have something to show for it. When your muscles are sore and you’re hungry and you know you’re going to sleep soundly…that’s a good day’s work. We still have much to do to prepare for our trip but once we are there…it’s beach time, baby. I can’t wait to see Ben & Sue…my son-in-law’s parents. They are joining us for the week and it’s going to be SO much fun. They are the dearest people and we can’t wait to show them all around the Outer Banks!

\n

I do have a favor of you. I have an appointment with the orthopedist today for this pain I have in my foot. I think it’s a Morton’s Neuroma and if so, I will likely need a shot in the ball of my foot, which…as you can well imagine…I am not looking forward to. I am preparing myself with lots of prayers and meditation. Please add me to your prayer list that everything goes smoothly, the pain is little to nonexistent, and that whatever they do, it takes care of the pain and I can get back to exercising regularly! Thank you in advance!!!

\n

I’ll let you know how it went!

\n

❤️

\n
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.””\n

Jeremiah 29:11-14 NIV

\n 

\n", "date_published": "2019-04-17T01:30:15-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/04/17/a-good-tired.html", "tags": ["Health","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Hope","Positive Energy","The Farm","Growth","Comfort","Courage","Aging","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/04/10/bad-night-great-day.html", "title": "Bad Night - Great Day", "content_html": "

\"James “Resist the devil and he will flee.”

\n

I remember back in the first two to three years of my grief, I often had what I referred to as “bad nights”. Nights were especially difficult from the beginning. Too many hours stretched ahead with too much time to think…especially since I had such a hard time sleeping. It didn’t take much to send my mind chasing rabbits and soon a thought would have me in a tailspin. I spent SO many nights alternating between gripping the mattress and throwing up. All. Night. Long. It was brutal.

\n

Thankfully, that finally evened out. Partially from time and healing, but mostly because I got a grip on my anxiety once I learned it’s source. Some may call it a trick of the mind, but I have been much more successful in not only controlling my anxiety, but sending it packing altogether. Prayer and petition to God to come in and bring me comfort helps tremendously. One thing has really helped me and the old me would have rolled my eyes with a “Right…sure…ok.”

\n

That one thing is banishing Satan. The enemy comes to rob, steal, and destroy. He is the force behind the thoughts “You can’t handle anything.” “You will always have anxiety.” “I’ll make sure you are miserable all the days of your life…this will never get better.” When I feel anxiety creeping in, I talk out loud now. I just tell the old goat to get the heck away from me because I don’t believe his stinking lies. 

\n

The second thing I do is listen to praise music. I have discovered if I’m having anxiety and I start playing praise music and singing along, the anxiety dissipates. I cannot be anxious and upset while praising Jesus.

\n

And…I’m human. Sometimes I forget to do those things and I get caught with my guard down. That’s what happened on Monday when we drove by my dad’s house and saw it had been torn down. I immediately felt sick and I let things spiral. I felt horrible and out of control. I could hardly eat a thing and that night, after writing my post, I tried eating a bowl of cereal and immediately got sick.

\n

I did excuse myself to the guest bedroom so as not to interrupt Mr. FixIt’s sleep. I took something to settle my stomach and I read the Bible and listened to praise music. And I asked God to send his angels to wrap their wings around me and keep me safe. I immediately fell into a deep sleep and awoke refreshed and feeling much better.

\n

I knew I needed to spend some time at the farm, though. The Farm is my touchstone. I drove out and sorted through my papers to prepare the taxes. I drank coffee and walked around the yard looking at Grandma’s posies. Once the paperwork was sorted, I took a little snooze in Grandma’s bed and finally headed back to The Ponderosa.

\n

Mr. FixIt did yard work all day. The field looked like a well manicured golf course. He wanted to show me some things so we walked the entire five acres, hand-in-hand, marveling at the spring beauty. We inched through a rose bramble to look for arrowheads on the creek-bank. We moved an old fallen tree. We found violets in the grass and looked for frogs in the ditch along the road.

\n

Last night, just before bed, we went out back in our robes and slippers and held hands while we counted stars. The “bad night” of the night before wasn’t even in my memory. It had been banished with a stern warning…spoken aloud…”Get away from me Satan…you have no dominion over me!” He isn’t as powerful as he would like you to think he is. He can’t read our thoughts so we must speak aloud to him.

\n

Every time I get closer to Jesus…every time I raise my hand in church and further commit my heart to Christ…the enemy swings hard. He does this for the precise reason…he knows I’m a threat. He knows who lives in my heart…who is my true north. And he hates that. That’s ok. I can do hard things. I can have a “bad night” if it means I get so much greatness on the other side. 

\n

❤️

\n
“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”    James 4:7 NIV
\n", "date_published": "2019-04-10T01:30:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/04/10/bad-night-great-day.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","God","Peace","Wisdom","Courage","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/03/25/into-the-woods.html", "title": "Into the Woods", "content_html": "

\"Satellite “A satellite view of The Farm….lots and lots of trees and hills.”

\n

You have seen pictures of the farmhouse I’ve been caring for…the home of my heart. I’ve tried to describe what the 74 acres looks like. “Lots of trees and woods” is a bit of an understatement and it’s hard to picture if you are unfamiliar with the dense deciduous woods of West Virginia.

\n

I went on Google Maps and took a satellite view of the farm. I wasn’t able to get all the land in one picture without making the house look so small you couldn’t see it. But, that little red dot in the lower left corner is the map pin on the house. And those dense woods you see there is maybe two-thirds of the farm itself. Inside those woods are trails and roads, creeks and rocky outcroppings. And somewhere off to the right about one-third up from the bottom is the strawberry shed where we sorted berries for the farmer’s market.

\n

The ground gains elevation rapidly on both sides of the house and comes together in a “V” and on up the hills to the back of the farm. The little creek that comes down off those hills and runs right past the bedroom window roars when there’s been heavy rain. It crosses under the road through a two or three foot culvert and joins the bigger creek across the road. That flows on down to a larger river, to a larger river, to the Ohio River to the Mississippi River, and finally to the Gulf of Mexico. Water from our farm. Isn’t that cool?

\n

Well, in theory it is cool. But this is the time of year for massive flooding so our rushing creek water gets added to thousands of other creeks and the drainage backs up. Our watershed isn’t related to the flooding in the Midwest. Their flooding is of epic proportions and people are still trying to dig out from under that.

\n

Before Parkersburg built the flood wall, town used to flood a lot. When I was a little girl, around five years old, the creek that ran beside our house overflowed its banks and we were evacuated by rowboats going up our street. Since then, a lot of mitigation work has been completed and they don’t see that kind of flooding anymore.

\n

We are supposed to be getting rain all day again. A little cooler today, but soon….soon we will enjoy long stretches of warm spring days and we can spend more time outside. The forsythia is just started to bloom. Whole hillsides are covered with bright yellow daffodils. They were an inexpensive flower that farm wives could afford to put in their yards to brighten up their little corners of the world. As a matter of fact, you drive along country roads and you can tell where houses once stood by the evidence of daffodils in a square or rectangle…surrounding the perimeter of a house long gone.

\n

The grass is greening up. Mr. FixIt and I remarked that we’ll be mowing before long. And, the spring onions are sending up their shoots in clumps all through the lawn. The first time or two that we mow, it will smell strongly of onions when we pass over them. When I was a little girl and we milked cows, the milk smelled and tasked of onion. NOT want you want to eat on your !Cheerios! The butter also smelled like onions…not quite so bad if you were putting in vegetables, but yucky if you were putting on biscuits with jelly.

\n

I love, love, love this time of year. Time to roll up our sleeves and get stuff done! 

\n

❤️

\n
“Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.”    Deuteronomy 32:2 NIV
\n", "date_published": "2019-03-25T01:30:28-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/03/25/into-the-woods.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Love","God","Peace","Change","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/03/24/sunday-memories.html", "title": "Sunday Memories", "content_html": "

\"Hanky\" “Grandma always carried a fresh hanky wherever she went.”

\n

I was looking through my picture albums on my iPad yesterday. I sometimes browse to find old memories that stir up a story for you. This one did just that. I’ve been writing about The Farm since early on in this blog. Grandma’s farm holds a king-sized piece of real estate in my heart so my stories often center around my memories there. And, since I am knee deep in editing my rough draft for the book, I have been writing and re-reading these stories.

\n

For as far back as I can remember, my grandma tied a shiny dime in the corner of a clean hanky and gave one to each of us kids to take to church. The hanky for our little noses…the shiny dime for the collection plate. Then Pop-Pop gave us each a stick of Beeman’s gum. Actually, we only got half a stick till we got older. I can remember when I ‘graduated’ to a full stick…I felt so grown up.

\n

\"Bethel “Bethel Chapel…the little church on the hill. I drew this picture June 28, 2001…sitting on the sidewalk out front.”

\n

The little church-house up on the hill has been there since June 9, 1914. It hasn’t had a lot done to it in all those years. Two rooms were built on the back for classrooms and an indoor bathroom…something we didn’t have the pleasure of when I was growing up. The windows have been replaced. The belfry was listing to one side so it’s been shored up. It has been painted countless times over the years. When my cousin Rick and his wife Charlotte got married, my Aunt Peeps painted that church all by herself so it would be fresh for the wedding. That woman loved to paint!

\n

I have some really wonderful memories of that little church. And I’ve had some of my most traumatic there. This was the church where the little circuit preacher literally scared the pee out of me and I headed off to find God some other way. That led me to eventually becoming Jewish for twenty-seven years, and now…here I am…full circle and back to my roots. This was also the church where my parents were married, where my Pop-Pop was one of the lay-ministers, and where his funeral was held. Many Sundays I sat in the hard wooden pews as a little girl with my feet dangling mid-air, clutching my little hanky and worrying out the knot to get my dime ready for the collection. Many Sundays, Aunt Idy played the rickety old piano…it’s keys sticking and horribly out of tune. 

\n

Aunt Idy lived in a crooked white house. She was a tiny, frail little thing…never married. She helped care for her invalid sister and brother and she was my grandma’s best friend. Once a week, Aunty Idy called to get the latest “news” for the Ritchie County Gazette. She wrote the column about the latest goings on up Dutchman road and Grandma always cringed when she saw something about herself in the paper. She abided by the rule “Fool’s names, like their faces, always seen in public places.” It was usually something like “so-and-so had a visit this week from such-and-such from somewhere” or “Mr. & Mrs. Somebody went to Parkersburg this week to see the doctor. All were given a clean bill of heath!” Thank God Grandma never told her about hemorrhoids!

\n

Grandma’s hankies. I have a couple of them somewhere in my things…the things I couldn’t part with. I don’t know that my kids will be interested…or even my grandkids. So, maybe when it’s my time to go, I’ll tie a shiny dime in the corner and go looking for Grandma. 

\n

❤️

\n
“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. As it is written: “They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor; their righteousness endures forever.””    2 Corinthians 9:6-9 NIV
\n", "date_published": "2019-03-24T01:30:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/03/24/sunday-memories.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Prayer","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Grace","God","Peace","Wisdom","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/03/07/feed-me.html", "title": "Feed Me!", "content_html": "

\"Cardinal\" “A redbird just makes my day!”

\n

I fixed my coffee and sat down at Grandma’s window to read my morning devotions before I commenced editing the rough draft yesterday. A red flash caught my eye and I looked out to see a cardinal at the feeder. It didn’t take long for me to realize both feeders were empty. I set my coffee aside and dragged the big seed bin from the corner of the dining room out to the front door. I used to leave this bin out on the front porch till one day I noticed the lid was getting chewed up. I used a bungee cord to tie the lid down to keep the critters out but the raccoons were about to get in out of sheer persistence.

\n

I quickly filled the feeders and was happy to get back inside out of the 17 degree chill. It was snowing to beat the band five minutes earlier, but now the sun was out. It left little warmth, unfortunately, but my…it did look pretty on that new snow. I dragged the seed bin back into the dining room and tucked it behind my chair and sat back down. In moments, Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal swooped back in, their feathers puffed up to trap air and keep them warm. They looked pretty fat and sassy, but I knew they appreciated breakfast.

\n

I heated up my coffee.

\n

I found myself wishing I had done more for Grandma when she lived here all those years after Pop-Pop died. Oh, I bought her a new stove once and a refrigerator. I talked to her on the phone one day and she was remarking how hot it was and her fan stopped working. I went online and ordered a fan and she received it the next day. She thought I was some kind of miracle worker. I never could get her to understand internet shopping.

\n

In her later years, when she spent so much time sitting in her chair in front of this very window, her Bible lay open on her lap as she studied her Sunday School Lesson. She would have loved to have had these bird feeders out on her porch then. The birds would have been so close she could almost reach out and touch them. This made me chuckle at another memory.

\n

When grandma took pictures of the family when we gathered for visits, she stood way back so everyone fit in the frame. None of this “scooch together, guys”. Nope…she would have moved back as far as she needed to to get everyone in the picture. This is why, unless you were present on that particular occasion, you only have the vaguest idea WHO is actually IN the photo. You can’t make out any facial features. If you blew up the pictures a hundred times, you still couldn’t identify anyone simply because it was too far away to gain any kind of focus.

\n

But SHE knew who was there. She never forgot a thing. She was sharp clear up to within a year or two before her death. She never forgot a gathering…they were just that important to her. She always wanted us to all get together at her house, at the same time. She reveled in her family. I understand that more now than I ever have. I miss my Colorado family. I enjoy my West Virginia family. Couldn’t the two states be closer?

\n

I finished my devotion, in front of Grandma’s window and another thought came to me. I wish I would have accepted Jesus while she was still living. She would have loved that. ❤️

\n
“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!”\n

Psalm 133:1 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-03-07T02:30:52-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/03/07/feed-me.html", "tags": ["Faith","Family","Uplifting Stories","Prayer","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Wisdom","Peaceful Moments","Writing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/03/06/a-change-of-scenery.html", "title": "A Change of Scenery", "content_html": "

\"The “Running out of propane sent me running for the farm.”

\n

I had a lovely, slow start to my morning yesterday. I had a full day planned out in “the office”, reading and editing the rough draft. Went out and turned the furnace on ahead of time to warm it up since it was a frigid 17 degrees. I fixed my coffee, gathered my book bag, kissed Mr. FixIt goodbye, and headed out to TOW-Wanda.

\n

I wasn’t out there 20 minutes when it seemed to be getting colder instead of warmer. I got up and checked the air blowing out of the heater vents…barely warm. I lit the burner on the stove and even on high, there was barely a flame. I was very close to running out of propane. So, I shut it all down, packed everything back up, and headed back in the house.

\n

As I’ve shared before, we are in the midst of renovating the master bath, which usually has Mr. FixIt hopping. However, with it being 17 degrees, he wasn’t very motivated to go out to the building and cut drywall. I knew I would be tempted to blow off what I intended to do and just hang out with my buddy all day. Instead, I announced there was a change of plans.

\n

Since my book bag was already packed, I decided to come to the farm for a few days of intense editing time. After a snooze in the recliner, Mr. FixIt found the motivation to work on the bathroom…since his playmate wasn’t going to be there. It sounds like a win-win, I do believe. I arrived, fixed some lunch, and carried my coffee to the front window where Grandma always watched the world go by. My portable desk on my lap, my iPad open and at the ready, I found my gaze continually pulled to the view before me.

\n

There is the clock I bought Mr. Virgo for his last Christmas. There is the little birdhouse my dear friend Charlotte gave me. You can see the newel post my Uncle Bud made for Grandma when I was a very little girl. He had a penchant for all things cedar. Out front, the bird feeders were attracting the usual flock of chickadees, finches, and tufted titmice. The doves gathered around on the ground below, scavenging what had been knocked aside by the others as they looked for their favorite tidbits among the seeds.

\n

I kept hearing a banging sound I couldn’t identify. It sounded like the popping sound the old gas stove made before we switched out for the new one. I sat in the bathroom for twenty minutes waiting for it to kick off and back on but it never did. I sat in the bedroom and finally heard the sound again. It came from the front of the house. I walked around out front and couldn’t find anything and just as I was coming back inside, a gust of wind knocked something on the front porch and duplicated the sound. A little repositioning and the problem was solved.

\n

The deep gong of the only wind chime I can tolerate let me know the breeze is picking up. It’s cold and white outside, but in here, it’s warm and toasty. We have free gas at the farm. My Pop-Pop always said, the free gas was worth more than the farm itself. I believe he is correct, from a strictly monetary and convenience standpoint. But I would beg to differ in the real value of these 74 acres. This is…and will always be…the home of my heart. It’s old. It’s drafty. The roof leaks in a couple places, but not bad. The linoleum flooring is cracked and has holes here and there…it’s pattern worn and faded. 

\n

The original double hung windows are single paned in desperate need of a good washing. The nail heads show through on the old plaster and lathe walls. The boards creak in just the right areas to play the same tune I’ve heard all my life as I wander through the rooms. The pump kicks on out in the cellar house, reminding me our water doesn’t come through some treatment plant but is filtered through the sand and limestone far below my feet. It’s been briny ever since they capped off the wells on this property over 60 years ago.

\n

As I write this, propped up in Grandma and Pop-Pop’s bed, the window is cracked open just enough so I can hear the soft gurgle of the creek beneath the bedroom window. You don’t really have to have the window open to feel the wind blowing outside. All you need to do is stand near the front or back door and hold out your hand. The wind blows around the edges quite easily.

\n

A thought has been nagging me for a week till I finally figured it out. My grandma died 20 years ago March 2nd. It is so hard to believe she has been gone so long and I miss her every day. I think that’s one reason I love this farm so much. I know SHE loved it, and I loved her. This is where I feel closest to her.

\n

Ok, so…I didn’t get as much done yesterday as I would have liked. That’s ok…my heart is full and my spirit is warmed by the rich memories these walls hold for me. I’ll take getting recharged here over stressing about edits…any day of the week. Today will be another day and I can start refreshed…coffee in hand…warmth in my heart. ❤️

\n
““But watch out! Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen. Do not let these memories escape from your mind as long as you live! And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren.”\n

Deuteronomy 4:9 NLT

\n 

\n", "date_published": "2019-03-06T02:30:11-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/03/06/a-change-of-scenery.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Love","Wisdom","Presence","Peaceful Moments","Writing","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/02/10/saved-again.html", "title": "Saved Again", "content_html": "

\"Grace “Knowing who saves me over and over brings me peace beyond understanding.”

\n

I finished my laundry and packed up the car. I had a last minute conversation with a wonderful woman I met recently. Then I headed home from the farm right about dusk. This photo looks like it was pretty light out, but it was dark, dark, dark when I headed into the home stretch on the two-lane country road. It was so dark, you were right on top of deer before you saw them, even with the brights on. Something ahead of me caught my eye. Not three seconds ahead of me, a big tree fell and crossed both lanes. Fortunately, I was going slow and didn’t need to slam on my brakes. I am well aware I missed this falling on me by the skin of my teeth.

\n

I happened to be on the phone with Mr. FixIt when I saw the tree fall. There was no one else on the road. He reminded me to put on my emergency flashers. I sat there for a few minutes as we discussed my course of action. I could wait there for someone to come along and either pull the tree off the road or cut it up and haul it off. Or, I could turn around and go back where I came from. There were two routes available to me. One took me through a long area with no cell service. The other took me across a road that had a number of mudslides this week. Ultimately it would take me clear into town and then I’d have to take the interstate south and back out another two-lane. A long, long drive in the dark and still there were areas with no cell service. I decided the shortest route would be best and I headed back toward the farm, but…when I got there, I had already dodged umpteen deer and for the first time in a long, long time, I was worried about driving in the dark, alone.

\n

When I got to the farm, I called Mr. FixIt and told him I planned to stay another night and I would be home in plenty of time to go to church. He agreed that was a good plan. That’s when I confessed I was actually worried about driving out here in the dark and I couldn’t understand why. I mean…nothing scares me. Three years ago, I wouldn’t have given this a second thought and would have looked at it as an adventure. But now? Now is different. Now it’s not just me. Now I’m not so foggy, not so careless with my existence. Now there are not only my children and friends who love me. Now there is a man and a bonus family that look to me with love and acceptance. It’s not that my life had no value, but even three years ago, the depth of my grief made it difficult to appreciate the time I had ahead of me…the family I already had that were still here and needed me. I have been awakened in the last two years. Awakened and earnestly appreciative of every precious moment I am given on this side of the grass.

\n

Moments after my call to Mr. FixIt, a friend sent me a message that Rt. 5, the alternate route I was preparing to travel, was now closed with a large downed tree. It would be quite some time before that road was cleared. Heavy equipment was being brought in to move the tree off the phone lines. So, it seems my guardian angel was quite busy last evening keeping me from harm. I thanked God all the way to the farm for always caring for me and for the protection he afforded me last night.

\n

And…over the last three days, I have written six chapters and 10,831 words on my book. I’ve written this book three times, at least. And every time before, it was a struggle. I’d read it and re-read it till I was sick of it and it never really spoke to me. It always seemed to me to come out flat…like I just wasn’t reaching the sweet spot where the story flowed. I’d put it away for months at a time, pick it up, and find the same problems. It wasn’t working. I have finally figured out why.

\n

I was approached nearly three years ago by a literary agent who was interested in my writing. We signed a contract for a book. I remember when we were getting acquainted, I told her my writing was faith-based and she suggested perhaps I should use a Christian publisher. She didn’t have those connections. I thought about it for a few moments and said no, it might be good if the book was out in the general populous because it could reach many who perhaps struggle with faith. We moved forward with the contract. In the following three years, two things became apparent to me. One, my social media presence hasn’t grown as fast as I had hoped and two, my faith has deepened and now I know I want a Christian publisher. I think God waited for me to decide to include him in the book before he made it clear which direction to go. And before he opened the floodgates of words.

\n

I have struggled for over a year with the decision to part ways from my agent. That dark voice kept whispering, “A bird in the hand, you know.” I finally stopped listening to that voice and paid attention to my gut…my inner God-voice…and send her an e-mail last week expressing my desire to change directions and head for a Christian publisher. She totally understood and felt that was the direction I should go and wished me well. So, now I have no agent, but I have the freedom of knowing I did the right thing and the trust that God will get this book out of me and onto paper.

\n

This time, writing is different. The words are literally falling out of me. I’m typing as fast as I can. Nearly 11,000 words in three days is phenomenal! The biggest difference I notice is, this time it’s not slaying me to write it. I feel the healing of the past three years and I know this is the right time. I’m really excited about that! ❤️

\n
“‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’”\n

Jeremiah 33:3 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-02-10T02:30:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/02/10/saved-again.html", "tags": ["Faith","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","God","Wisdom","Fear","Courage","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/02/09/the-farm-and-me.html", "title": "The Farm and Me", "content_html": "

\"window\" “The Farm is my ultimate happy place!”

\n

If the weather hadn’t turned colder yesterday, I would have spent the night out in TOW-Wanda last night. But, with a low of 17 degrees forecast, I opted for the next best thing and headed to the farm! I made sure Mr. FixIt had everything he needed, filled him with more cold meds, propped him up in his recliner with a cover and a heating pad and made my escape. He still has some potato soup to warm up and I promised I’d be back sometime today. I could sit and watch him suffer and watch TV, or I could write. With his full support, I chose writing.

\n

And write I did! As of the time I am typing this post, I’ve written 7141 words since Thursday morning at 11:00. That’s a lot of words! The goal when you write is just to get the rough draft down. Write it all out…worry about editing later. That is the most difficult part for me. I want it perfect the first time so I don’t have to go back over it again. I don’t know anyone that works for.

\n

I stopped at my cousin’s barn on the way out here yesterday to leave 80 cans of cat food and a 40 pound bag of dry cat food. Yes, I was prepared for the winter and had just purchased all that a few days before the cats were moved to their new home in the big barn. So, they were gifted cat food aplenty! I was thrilled to learn the kitties are hanging out there and haven’t wandered off. I saw Kitty Boy, the young short hair. My cousin said they were both there last night when he fed them. There are six roosters down at the barn and they all get along fine. This makes me happy!

\n

The farm is my time machine. Every time I get to stay here, I am swept back to my childhood. I get to feel all those really great feelings again. This farm and TOW-Wanda are my happy places. Right now, as I write this, I am propped up in Grandma’s bed. I cracked the window open when I first got here so I can hear the water running in the creek. We’ve had a lot of rain this week so the runoff is pretty high. 

\n

I’ve been really surprised we haven’t lost more trees out here. There are mudslides all around these parts this time of year. The ground freezes hard and when it thaws, it’s aerated. Then the heavy rains come and the ground gets so saturated, all it takes is a good windstorm and trees get uprooted. Mud and rocks slip down, sometimes covering the road…sometimes taking the road along with it. 

\n

As Mr. FixIt came home from bowling Thursday night, he called me to say there was a huge tree lying across the road at the top of a hill less that two miles from the house. He managed to turn around and, knowing every backroad within fifty miles of here, made a quick shortcut that would bring him back out on the two lane just past the tree. We were asking on the phone as he drove when he said, “Whoa, whoa, whoa!” I asked what was wrong and he said he drove right into standing water on the road. He wasn’t driving too fast…it was just there before he knew it. It’s easy to see how people can get caught up and swept away in high water when you have little to no warning it’s ahead. Thank goodness, he got right through and was home in no time.

\n

I stopped at the Piggly Wiggly on the way to the farm and picked up a few things. I had a small steak and baked potato for dinner. Yummmm! I’ll spend today writing and doing laundry before I head home. I hope you all are planning a wonderful weekend! ❤️

\n
“My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer.”\n

Psalm 45:1 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-02-09T02:30:22-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/02/09/the-farm-and-me.html", "tags": ["Faith","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","God","Courage","Peaceful Moments","Writing","Choices","The Cats","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/01/29/moving-day-for-the-felines.html", "title": "Moving Day for the Felines", "content_html": "

\"Long “Boy Cat…a beautiful, long haired farm cat…moved to my cousin’s barn yesterday.”

\n

I have been in a bit of a dilemma the last couple of months. We have had an inordinate amount of rain in West Virginia this year. We have a leaky stairwell with a very slow drain at the Ponderosa. So, when it rains…especially those long, soaking rains that last multiple days…the drain easily becomes overwhelmed and the basement floods. We have two sump pumps, but someone has to remain here to make sure they are operating correctly to keep the water level down. This is something we wanted to fix last summer, but Mr. FixIt really couldn’t use a jackhammer that soon after the reconstruction surgery he had on his hand last winter. It has to wait till this coming summer and that means we are tied here.

\n

Boy Cat and Kitty Boy, the two farm cats couldn’t come live at the Ponderosa. We live on a very busy highway and they know nothing about busy roads. I was too afraid they would be hit and killed here. I left them at the farm and traded off with my cousin and his wife, taking turns feeding them. The plan was to stay at the farm for long stretches which would give my cousin a break from feeding, but the weather hasn’t been cooperating and being newlyweds…we like to be together. As the weather has deteriorated into icy winter storms, my trips have become fewer and farther between.

\n

Last summer, Charlotte offered to take the cats to her farm, but then she got a new rabbit and we were afraid the kitties would hurt her bunny. When another bunny arrived, it was a definite now, as nature would have it, the bunnies died…one after the other. First, to a predator. The second to old age. The other day, Charlotte called and renewed her offer to take Boy Cat and Kitty Boy down the road to be the resident barn cats. I was so grateful because the barn has lots of hay to burrow down in, lots of mice to catch, and someone to love on them every day. AND…I can go visit anytime I want!

\n

I’ve grown to love these two boys, and this just seemed like the most loving and responsible thing to do. They have been neutered so they aren’t going to produce a bunch of new feral kitties. Charlotte really has a way with them. Boy Cat will rub on my legs but has never let me pick him up. Charlotte can pick him up and love on him whenever she is there. Kitty Boy is still too skittish, but I’ll bet she will have him in her lap one of these days. I just bought a huge bag of cat food and 80 cans of soft food so I’ll deliver that the next time I’m over there. I will also give them the feral cat boxes, the electric heated pads for inside, the cat carriers, as well as the heated water dish. These barn kitties are royals…I’m so happy they have someone to love on them! ❤️

\n
“The righteous care for the needs of their animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.”\n

Proverbs 12:10 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-01-29T02:30:46-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/01/29/moving-day-for-the-felines.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Choices","Change","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/01/24/precious-memories.html", "title": "Precious Memories", "content_html": "

\"Mom\" “My precious mother…gone fifteen years now. I miss her so much.”

\n

Fifteen years ago today, my precious mom left us unexpectedly. She had been ill for only five days, refusing to go to the hospital as she had no one to watch my brother. He has cerebral palsy and always had lived at home with her. She was fiercely protective of him. She died of multiple pulmonary emboli…blood clots in the lungs. If she would have had proper medical care, I believe she would have lived longer. Then again, perhaps it was her time to go. Either way, as those of you know who have lost your mother, it is a dreadfully difficult thing to go through.

\n

I posted some pictures on my Instagram account (@GriefMaven) yesterday and the setting is such that they also posted here. I entered them in Apple’s photo contest for pictures shot with an iPhone. One of the pictures is of my grandma’s house, which was also my mom’s house growing up. I believe she was a teenager when they moved there. Before that, they lived in the old home place back on the hill.

\n

Mom and her siblings walked down off that hill every day and from the time they went to high school, rode the bus twenty-eight miles each way, then walked back up the hill when they got home. It was a hardscrabble life for Mom and her family as they lived off the land…six kids, Grandma and Pop-Pop, an old milk cow and a horse to plow. Pop-Pop worked in the shop down the road…welding, fixing things, delivering pop, working on trucks for the oil fields.

\n

We went to the farm yesterday. I sat quietly in the living room, listening to the old house speak to me in a language I have heard since my earliest days. My eyes ran over the old linoleum on the floor, its pattern looking like carpet, faded and worn through in places. The sheers on the windows let the pale light from late afternoon highlight the dust motes in the air. The familiar smell of wood and old cotton and gas stove comforting me as I remembered so many days shared with her there.

\n

My friend Sharon, who is also a newly discovered distant cousin, saw the picture of Grandma’s house here yesterday and said it brought tears to her eyes. She said it made her think of an oldtimey tune her mother used to sing as she did her household chores. She posted a link, but I’m going to share it here as well. In honor of Wanda Belle…my mom, my friend, my champion. I loved her so…I miss her still. 

\n

Precious Memories…how they linger…

\n

❤️

\n

youtu.be/JUiqncJE_…

\n
“\"Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.\"”\n

Proverbs 31:29 ESV

\n", "date_published": "2019-01-24T02:30:44-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/01/24/precious-memories.html", "tags": ["Faith","Family","Grief","Prayer","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Love","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/01/13/the-kitchen-window.html", "title": "The Kitchen Window", "content_html": "

\"Kitchen “The view out my kitchen window at the Ponderosa allows me to watch the birds at the feeder.”

\n

When I was growing up, I spent as much time out at my grandma’s farm as I possibly could. I never minded washing dishes at Grandma’s because there was a big window over the kitchen sink. I’ve moved many times over the years and was always so pleased when the kitchen had a window over the sink. It didn’t really matter the view…as long as I could see out and open it for some fresh air, I was a happy camper.

\n

I was thrilled when I found out Mr. FixIt’s house has a window I can gaze out as I wash the dishes. He keeps a bird feeder full for me so I can watch the birds fly in and out of the surrounding trees and brush to light just beyond where I stand. Yesterday, there were several cardinals. There’s nothing prettier than the flash of a redbird swooping in and landing just in front of me. Their brilliant scarlet plumage against the new fallen snow is breathtaking. They say a cardinal is a sign a loved one is visiting from heaven. If that is true, our house was a busy place yesterday. There were also chickadees, tufted titmice, a pair of mourning doves, and the occasional downy woodpecker added to the mix.

\n

In the late summer, early fall, the deer gather under that tree you see out there in the yard and eat the fallen crabapples. In the late spring, Mr. FixIt puts up the hummingbird feeder and fills it for me. He loves the birds as much as I do.

\n

We didn’t get the snow that was predicted…as least not by the time of this writing last night. Mr. FixIt has half the bathroom subfloor put down in the master bath. He came in from checking the mail and handed me a package…a canvas print of Daughter #1 and her family. Now I need to plan a family portrait wall!

\n

If it’s slick this morning, we’ll stay home and watch church on TV. I must say, it was very nice to not leave the house at all. It was a beautiful day filled with knitting and love. It doesn’t get much better than that! ❤️

\n
“I know every bird in the mountains, and the insects in the fields are mine.”\n

Psalm 50:11 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-01-13T02:30:17-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/01/13/the-kitchen-window.html", "tags": ["Family","Overcoming Obstacles","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Love","Peace","Presence","Peaceful Moments","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2019/01/11/its-a-winter-tree-ok.html", "title": "It’s a Winter Tree, Ok?", "content_html": "

\"Winter “My Winter Tree reflecting in the window as the snow falls outside.”

\n

I went to small group last night and the leader apologized as we walked into the family room. The tree was still up.

\n

“It’s a Winter Tree. I like it.” 

\n

You don’t have to sell me, sister! I love my tree and I’m not planning to take it down any time soon. Kathy and one of her granddaughters took all the colored ornaments off her tree and put up all white ornaments. Yeah. No….I’m not that picky. As long as it has all white lights and it’s pretty, that puppy is staying right where it is…no apologies needed.

\n

I was the first to arrive at Bible study. A new gal, Michelle, joined us and arrived just after me. We sat near each other and chatted as I knitted, cozy under a comfy throw in front of the fire. When I told Michelle about the farm and where it was, she said she had family from out that way. I asked what the last name was and she rattled off my grandparents’ last name! Two questions later and I knew exactly where she fit in the family. What a treat to get caught up with that bunch. They were related through one of my Pop-Pop’s brothers. 

\n

I’d say it is a small world, but it’s the hills of West Virginia. If we aren’t related to you, hang on a little bit. There’s still single folks gettin’ married. This is what I always missed…what I always searched for in Colorado. I can’t tell you how many times I actually followed people with WV license plates just to hear their accents and see if I knew them. Oh, I missed home every day that I lived out west.

\n

When we stay at Mr. FixIt’s house, we are in the county between the one I grew up in and the one where grandma’s farm is located. I don’t know very many people here. Mr. FixIt, however, has lived in his house since 1979. He knows EV-RY-ONE! Seriously. He’ll run into town for a quick errand and come back three hours later because he ran into five people he hadn’t seen in a coon’s age. I can’t get frustrated about it either because it’s the life I’ve always wanted. 

\n

It was a good day. ❤️

\n
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”\n

Hebrews 10:24-25 NIV

\n", "date_published": "2019-01-11T02:30:14-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2019/01/11/its-a-winter-tree-ok.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Love","Peace","Choices"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/12/16/the-pleasure-of-needlearts.html", "title": "The Pleasure of Needlearts", "content_html": "

\"Vintage “A lovely display of vintage hotpads and dishcloths.” Photo Credit: Pinterest

\n

Staying out at the farm brings out the nostalgia in me. My grandma didn’t have fancy things. And when she sewed, her aim was function, not fashion. She mended sheets, shirts, and work pants. She often used old blankets, and even old quilts, as the batting for new ones. She sandwiched the old between fabric if she had the money…sheets if she didn’t. Then she tied them with colorful yarn or perle cotton every few inches. I found a pair of knitting needles and some yarn in her work basket but she said she had never mastered the craft.

\n

Every once in a while, someone would give Grandma a pretty little handmade potholder like the ones in this picture. She hung them on the fridge with a magnet and never used them…they were too pretty. She also had hand-knit dishcloths. Those she used. And I love them! When I first really picked up knitting, I practiced by making dishcloths. They are soft and absorbent and you can have a simple one made up in an hour. They make lovely hostess gifts at the holidays. Here is a page with twelve easy dishcloth patterns. I use a cotton yarn called Sugar and Cream for my dishcloths. ❤️

\n
“As soon as he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.”\n

1 Samuel 18:1 ESV

\nhttps://www.allfreeknitting.com/Dish/Learn-How-To-Knit-With-a-Knit-Dishcloth-Pattern-Patterns-For-Beginners

\n", "date_published": "2018-12-16T02:30:08-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/12/16/the-pleasure-of-needlearts.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Love","Peace","Presence","Art"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/11/20/driving-down-the-road.html", "title": "Driving Down the Road", "content_html": "

\"Country “Country roads…take me home!”

\n

Remember this summer when I shared the pictures of how terrible the road was out to the farm? The compressor station back behind the farm is finished. No more heavy trucks hauling super heavy loads out the road and back. It was a long year. They started building the road out to the station site this time last year.

\n

The road had gotten so bad I was really afraid I was going to blow a tire or break an axle or, at the very least, knock my truck out of alignment. I just had to drive really slow and try to dodge the worst parts or come to a complete stop if there was oncoming traffic.

\n

I was told by multiple sources that our road would not be fixed until the routine paving time came up on the schedule. I was also told the county did not negotiate road repairs into the contract with the company building the compressor station. Essentially, I figured good, hard working, lower income West Virginians would get screwed again.

\n

In late summer, a local company came in and cut out large rectangles of mangled asphalt and rebuilt the base. But, they didn’t put anything on top so it was no time before these big rocky rectangles became just as bad as the road was before. Pretty soon, someone else came in and blacktopped over those messy rocky rectangles and I thought, “Good! At least there aren’t deep holes anymore. I can live with this.”

\n

While we were gone on our honeymoon, my cousin’s wife, Charlotte called to give me an update on the kitties. Then she said, “Wait till you see what they’re doing to the road! You won’t believe it!” I rolled my eyes. What now? “They’re paving it!!!”

\n

Sure enough, each time I’ve gone out since the wedding, a little more and a little more was blacktopped and things were finally improving. I went out yesterday and they are not only finished…the lines have been painted and a very nice shoulder has been laid down. If I could have done a jig, I would have…but I was driving.

\n

I didn’t have to yell and scream at a meeting. I didn’t get upset other than grumble under my breath and complain to you all a little bit. I didn’t have to write letters or threaten law suits. I just talked to God whenever I drove over that wretched road and said, “Lord, please place it on the hearts of the people responsible for making this mess to come back here and make it right. This isn’t fair to all these people out this little old road. They work hard and most of them don’t have much. Please make this right.” I have no idea who actually ended up getting this job done, but I am grateful for a good, solid road going out to the farm now. 

\n

Prayer works. Even in the most ordinary things. ❤️

\n
“The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride. Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.”  Ecclesiastes 7:8-9 NIV
\n", "date_published": "2018-11-20T02:30:21-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/11/20/driving-down-the-road.html", "tags": ["Faith","Overcoming Obstacles","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Wisdom","Humbled","Presence","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/09/27/not-today-devil.html", "title": "Not Today, Devil!", "content_html": "

\"Sunset\" “I think Mr. Virgo was smiling at me today!”

\n
“And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, \"This is the way, walk in it,\" when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.”  Isaiah 30:21 ESV
\nFor those of you who have been reading this blog from the beginning, you will remember my reticence to mention God in my posts. I was very, very busy trying to make sure I didn’t offend anyone. And, of course, that is still very much my focus. But as time has passed, I have let God into my writing more and more. I always SAID I was a faith-based writer, but I really wasn’t walking the talk. That all changed one day when I got a text from God in church. That was a great story. Anyway, I’m all about Jesus anymore and I just let out what needs to come out and I don’t worry so much about it anymore.\n

Our Pastor frequently talks about what happens when you are truly a Christ follower. What happens when you make God the center of your life. He always says, “If you put God at the center of your life…are truly following him with all your heart…watch out! Because there’s nothing the enemy hates more than someone putting God before anything else. He attacks and causes all kinds of destruction and whispers lies 24/7 trying to convince you if God REALLY loved you…these bad things wouldn’t be happening. And, of course, it isn’t true. Nothing the enemy says is true.

\n

Mr. FixIt’s truck had a recall and when they started tearing it apart, they found all kinds of other things wrong. He’s going up today to have a look at it with the mechanics and make a decision. Then, after I helped Mr. FixIt with some things around The Ponderosa yesterday, I drove to the farm. By the time I got there, my wheels were squealing really loud. I had hit a pot hole on this wretched road just before, so I have no idea what’s going on.

\n

I know exactly what is happening here. I was led by God to do the right thing and moved back to the farm till after the wedding. I can feel it to my bones that it’s the right thing to do. And then…the enemy strikes! First, Mr. FixIt’s truck then mine. In the week after we put God first. It is so clear. However, I’ll tell you like my friend, DaShara says…”Not today, Devil…I am a Child of God!” 

\n

I know we’re on the right path. And the enemy can throw roadblocks up every step of the way, but we will persevere. We will not be deterred by the likes of him! He who lives within me is greater than he who lives in the world. Everything will work out with an even greater outcome than previously imagined. Amen! ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-09-27T01:30:57-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/09/27/not-today-devil.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Wisdom","Courage","Choices","Change","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/09/23/what-a-day.html", "title": "What a Day!", "content_html": "

\"Fall “The last of the flowers at the farm.”

\n
“Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.”  Proverbs 16:3 NIV
\nWow...I don’t know how I could possibly top yesterday’s wonderful response to the news of our upcoming wedding. Thank you all so, so much for your kind words, your genuine joy, and certainly for all the prayers you offer me. They worked! All day long, my phone would send me a notification saying someone else had responded to my post and it really made my day. \n

As I sat down to organize my day over coffee on the front porch, my calendar reminded me the wedding is three weeks away. Two weeks and six days now, to be precise! I started gathering addresses for invitations, but I was worried people would be making plans. So, I texted a lot of people with a picture of the invite and prefaced it with…”Well…THIS is happening!” I have almost all the invitations addressed…all but Mr. FixIt’s list. Moving right along! 

\n

We want a very simple, country wedding. Low key, comfortable yet still a little classy. I really wanted to do this at the farm. This farmhouse would be such a beautiful backdrop. We discussed it and decided there’s really only room for cars…or people. Not both. We decided to have the wedding in the big field over at Mr. FixIt’s house. The trees should be at their peak that weekend. We’ll have a tent down by the creek and it will be lovely. 

\n

In keeping with my “Stories, not Stuff” theme, we are keeping this low cost. I mean, really…the whole thing is supposed to be about our love for each other, not a bunch of fussy foo-foo stuff. I’m not going to share all the details beforehand because there has to be an element of surprise. I will tell you this. I went online to print our invitations and when I saw how much it cost, I thought I could do much better using a local printer. I’m pretty good with graphics, so I got the invitation set up, sent it of to Mr. FixIt to get his opinion, then sent it via email to Office Depot. Fifty invitations with envelopes and rush delivery was over $100 online. Office Depot? Less than $20…including envelopes…and I was out the door in twenty minutes. Score!

\n

After sitting scrunched over the desk all afternoon…pen in hand, I went on a walkabout and took a picture of those flowers I was telling you about the other day. They have faded out to more of a pink color now. Anyone have any idea what this is? They’re one of the last flowers here at the farm. It’s gotten cool and we are due for rain for a few days. Fall is officially here! ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-09-23T01:30:27-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/09/23/what-a-day.html", "tags": ["Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Wedding"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/09/20/the-velvet-blue-of-dusk.html", "title": "The Velvet Blue of Dusk", "content_html": "\"\"\n
“\"Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”  Matthew 6:34 ESV
\nThis is the time of year where the days are noticeably shorter, yet the weather still screams “summer”. After a lovely day at the farm, Mr. FixIt and I had to drive back over to his house to get my truck. He has a job to do in town the next few days and we didn’t even think of having two vehicles till yesterday afternoon. I love having him around. I also love some alone time at the farm. I have the best of all worlds. \n

I threw some old carrots out on the lawn where the deer were gathered the other night. I sat out on the front porch at sunset to watch for them to come get their treat. As I sat there waiting, I tuned my ears to the sounds around me. There was a cardinal darting in the underbrush along the creek….chattering at the cats who must be nearby. Tree frogs, katydids, and locusts provided a chorus for free. I haven’t heard crickets here like I usually do. They didn’t show up at the Ponderosa till earlier this month. I thought that was odd. 

\n

I heard a passenger jet flying high overhead as we are on a flight path to somewhere. The occasional vehicle passes. Thankfully the traffic has slowed considerably due to the stage of construction on the pipeline and compressor station. And, of course, the condition of the road warrants slowing down. 

\n

There are very few flowers in bloom now. There is some sort of small purple flower in the ditch along the driveway. Some leaves are changing already. The dogwood have hints of pink and crimson. The berries on them aren’t red yet. There are little flashes of yellow at the tips of some branches on the hillside across the road. The incessant humming of the refrigerator is in the background. 

\n

This is the time of year when I am called out to the front porch to soak in every moment I can before Jack Frost sends me indoors. There wasn’t a breath of a breeze. The humidity was nearly 60%. It was still 84 degrees at 7:00pm. A Jenny Wren scolded the neighbor as he took his dog for a walk around the perimeter of his property. The wild turkeys in the woods across the way have gone to roost. 

\n

Another day is done. I’ve avoided the news. I’ve embraced the peaceful surroundings at the farm. I’ve seen pictures loved ones have shared. This little one had her first day of Girl Scouts. That one is recovering from surgery. Another one was out feeding the chickens. I am filled with grace and a peace beyond understanding. It is well. It is well…with my soul. ❤️

\n

 

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-09-20T01:30:40-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/09/20/the-velvet-blue-of-dusk.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Presence","Change","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/09/19/strawberry-jam-and-biscuits.html", "title": "Strawberry Jam and Biscuits", "content_html": "

\"Berry “Berry Baskets bring back special memories of my grandparents’ farm.”

\n
“For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything.”  Hebrews‬ ‭3:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬
\nOne of the things I stumbled upon at the Country Living Fair over the weekend were these sweet little berry baskets. Oh, my...did they bring back memories! When I was a little girl, my uncle was going to college at WVU majoring in Vocational Agriculture. He was always doing something around the farm to help my grandparents. He added the cinder block building with a cistern to collect the rainwater from the roof for drinking water. There was a well here on the property and it had wonderful, sweet water...until they capped the old oil and gas wells on the property. Something they did caused the aquifer to fracture and the water became briny and undrinkable. For a long time, we had to drive several miles with two big milk cans and haul water from a local spring. Then Uncle Bud helped my grandparents build the cistern and we finally got good drinking water on the farm again.\n

My uncle also put in a septic system, built a basement, rolled the house on top, build a cinderblock bathroom and we joined the civilized folks with indoor plumbing. I was about six years old when all this occurred. After the barn, the cow shed, and the pig stye were built, the next thing on the agenda was to try to make this land not only support us, but pay us. Uncle Bud planned out and planted a huge strawberry patch up on the hill. He and my great grandfather built a nice structure with a long window down one side. The window was hinged and opened outward to make an overhanging awning with a counter. The pickers would bring flats of strawberries to this shed to be sorted and cleaned to take to the Farmer’s Market in town. At the corner of the building was a huge water tank that collected water from the roof of the strawberry shed to be used to clean the berries.

\n

These little berry baskets took me right back to those long summer days spent out at the farm…the very farmhouse I am sitting in as I write this. Oh, those berries were the sweetest things I had ever tasted. You didn’t even need sugar. They were deep red all the way through. And they were huge! One filled my little hand. Grandma wouldn’t let me pick them because I had a tendency to eat the berries and step on the runners. Runners are what makes more plants and more plants means more berries which translates to direct profit. I was relegated to the kitchen to cook for the pickers…which served me well as I got older. I learned to cook at grandma’s elbow…standing on the red kitchen stool.

\n

Grandma made big, fluffy buttermilk biscuits and would slice them open, slather them with fresh churned butter and sugar, then add a good portion of sliced strawberries. She always had a jar of top cream in the fridge and would whip that with a hand cranked egg beater and add a little sugar and vanilla. Then she would spoon out this soft whipped cream on the top of our little biscuit “shortcakes” for a dessert fit for a queen. What I would give to have one of those…made by her loving hands and served with a peck on the cheek. I miss my grandma so much and feel closest to her here in the home of her heart.

\n

We were planning to come to the farm today to mow anyway, but last evening my cousin called to say someone had been seen sleeping on the porch of the community building down the road. I started to ask if we could just come on out last night, but I stopped mid-sentence. It was almost dark and we’d already had a busy day. Mr. FixIt picked up on it though. He asked if I wanted to come out right then and I really did. We packed up the truck and off we came. It is worrisome to drive these country roads after dark. There are so many deer out at dusk and the early night hours. When we pulled into the driveway, the only company we had at the farm were four deer out on the front lawn. I was a little worried because the front porch light was burned out, but that was quickly fixed and nothing had been disturbed.

\n

We stay here often enough to let people know the place is occupied. There’s someone here every day between us and my cousins. We were going to go camping this weekend, but staying here at the farm is as good as any vacation for me. The memories are as thick as buttermilk here and there is truly no place like home for this hungry heart of mine. ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-09-19T01:30:20-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/09/19/strawberry-jam-and-biscuits.html", "tags": ["Family","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Wisdom","Presence","Peaceful Moments"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/09/18/holding-things.html", "title": "Holding Things", "content_html": "

\"Crocks\" “Crocks waiting for a new home.”

\n
“Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4 NIV
\nI’ve been thinking a lot about my grandma lately. I’ve been so busy the last three weeks that I haven’t had a chance to spend much time at the farm. Mr. FixIt and I were thinking of going camping this weekend, but for a number of reasons...not the least of which is being just plain tired of running around...we’ve decided to head to the farm for a much needed respite.\n

The change of seasons are especially beautiful there. As things come to life in the spring and the dark grays of winter turn to buds of green, my heart soars because I’m heading into my favorite season. I’ve always had a little more difficulty accepting the changes of fall because that mean the dark days of winter are close on its heels. Mr. Virgo always told me, “It’s all in your head. It’s just a matter of what you tell yourself. If you say you hate winter, then guess what? You’re going to hate it!” He was right, of course. So, this fall, I am planning some really special things that will make the season joyful and beautiful. I’m going to do some heavy fall decorating this year. I want to get pumpkins and bittersweet, corn shocks and straw bales, Indian corn and maybe even some clear twinkly lights and dress up the farm. Won’t that be pretty?

\n

I’ll take you along with me as I pick and choose. Maybe we’ll go to a pumpkin patch. Maybe we’ll find a cider press. Whatever we do, we’re going to make this season extra special so I won’t dread winter. Just like grandma’s old crocks that used to hold things, I’m going to use my heart as a vessel to hold beautiful things and make new memories! ?

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-09-18T01:30:53-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/09/18/holding-things.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","New Ideas","Gratitude","Peaceful Moments","Choices"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/09/11/listening-to-the-still-small.html", "title": "Listening to the Still Small Voice", "content_html": "

\"Sternwheeler\" “Sternwheelers left the festival early this weekend due to threat of flooding.”

\n
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.””  Joshua 1:9 NIV
\nThis time last year, I had just wrapped up my first Sisters on the Fly event that I hosted here in West Virginia...WV Riverboat Rendezvous. It was timed to coincide with the Sternwheel Festival in Marietta. There were twenty-three women in attendance and we had a blast! Lots of activities from riding a stern wheeler over to Blennerhassett Island to touring a Victorian Mansion to learning how to clog while listening to WV’s Number 1 Fiddle Player. We churned homemade ice cream and had an old fashioned weenie roast. We took a tour of an abandoned oil and gas town. The weather that weekend was fabulous. No rain, reasonably cool weather, and a wonderful campground made for a really fun weekend. \n

All year, I toyed with the idea of doing it again. While it was indeed a lot of fun, it was a tremendous amount of work. Every time I thought about getting started organizing it, that still small voice said, “No, not this year.” I was afraid I was disappointing others who might want to gather again this fall, but I just couldn’t shake the thought that it wasn’t meant to be this year. If I would have forged ahead and not listened, the event would have come, not only on the heels of my hospitalization last week, but also a wicked bad storm hit over the weekend. Our rain gauges, both at the Ponderosa and at the farm, were topped out at six inches and overflowing, so who knows what we actually received? The point being…I listened. I was told no. And I abided by that. 

\n

Everyone who camped with me this weekend with the Girl Campers got home safely with no weather problems. I was so grateful to have had that time with my friends without all the stress a large event causes. I went to the farm yesterday and did laundry in preparation for this week’s trip to the Country Living Fair. Mr. FixIt and his daughter came out to join me. We went through some of the boxes of my treasures and had so much fun looking at things my dad brought back from the war and some old family photographs. We played cards and told stories of growing up. It was such a pleasure to feel the farmhouse warm with the love of family. 

\n

There was one point where I opened one of the boxes and laying right on the top was the bill from the ambulance company that took Mr. Virgo to the hospital the day he died. I looked up at Mr. FixIt’s daughter and sighed. She, too, is a widow. She looked at me questioningly. 

\n

I closed the lid to the box and smiled. “There are still some things that bother me,” I said. “This is the ambulance bill. Today would have been his 68th birthday. I don’t need to go through this box today.” She gets it.

\n

Still…it was a good day, all in all. I just had to leave well enough alone.

\n

And today…we remember the fallen. 9/11. We will never forget. ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-09-11T01:30:57-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/09/11/listening-to-the-still-small.html", "tags": ["Family","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Wisdom","Downsizing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/09/03/feeling-stronger-every-day.html", "title": "Feeling Stronger Every Day", "content_html": "

\"Psalms “I love Psalms.”

\n
“Worship the Lord your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you,”  Exodus 23:25 NIV
\nRemember that song? You never realize how sick you were till you feel better. My medication list just got longer...for the next twelve days, at least. But it’s a small price to pay at this point. \n

I went to the farm yesterday to look for something and do some laundry. When I walked up on the back porch, I noticed the cats had left a Ritual Sacrifice to the Food God. This one was of the rodent variety. Not sure of the significance, but it is their way of showing love…however icky. At least it wasn’t one of my pretty songbirds. As I was feeding Boy Cat, he shot past me and made a bee line for the driveway. I knew he was after something and soon he came back proudly carrying a frog to present to me. Of course, as soon as he set down the frog in front of me, it took off. I managed to shoo that cat enough to give the frog a chance to make his escape and soon Boy Cat was happily munching on his real supper.

\n

As I walked into the house, I saw all the boxes. I have to tell you, my heart sank for a moment. I was so sick last week that I actually forgot for a moment they were out there. They’ll have to wait for a while though. Winter is coming fast enough and I’m not going to miss out on a moment of this gorgeous weather coming up. We are to have a very hot week, then things should cool off. There are already a lot of leaves changing around here. Spots of gold are everywhere and leaves are falling on some varieties of trees. I won’t mind cool nights. They make sleeping so much better.

\n

The grass desperately needs cut out at the farm and I was actually smart enough to refrain from trying to mow it myself. I consider that a major accomplishment. I am not always to responsible. Unfortunately, I have shared this virus with Mr. FixIt and he’s feeling pretty miserable this evening. I certainly hope I can get him through this quickly. I don’t think he will have the same lung issue with it because he doesn’t have asthma like me. Thank goodness! I’m sterilizing everything because these respiratory viruses can live on surfaces for ten days. That’s how people keep getting reinfected. 

\n

Well, it’s Monday. Go out there and make it a good week and be good to each other. A smile can be such a blessing to someone that it bounces right back on you! ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-09-03T01:30:27-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/09/03/feeling-stronger-every-day.html", "tags": ["Faith","Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","God","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/31/here-i-go-again.html", "title": "Here I Go Again...", "content_html": "

\"Storage “All that’s left of forty year’s accumulation.”

\n
“a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,”  Ecclesiastes 3:6 NIV
\nThis stuff was out of sight, out of mind for much of the last three years. My very sweet friend, Steve, let me store this in his basement. He seldom went down there, it was clean and dry, and it was safe and secure. On occasion, I would go over and gather a few boxes and bring them to the farm. Winter clothes, camping gear, important papers, pictures...little by little, things were sorted and either saved or sent on to live with someone else via a charitable organization.\n

Steve was never in a hurry to reclaim the space I was using because, as a widower, he didn’t have any more enthusiasm for going through things than I did. Over the years, his kids have brought things to store and the basement became more and more crowded and cluttered. Last Christmas was the straw that broke the camel’s back when he had to crawl over things to get to his outdoor decorations. We agreed I would have everything out this summer. As you know, summers are so hot and sticky in West Virginia. And I traveled a lot. And I had surgery. And Steve works weird hours. One thing led to another and I didn’t get it done. I promised everything would be out by the end of August. 

\n

So, there it is. Other than a few things at the Ponderosa, my two campers, and my pickup…everything I own is sitting right here. This is all that’s left after the purging of forty years of accumulation and selling my house. It’s been a full four years since I downsized and I’ve learned a lot about myself and what I need to be happy. I thought I’d share a few observations here today.

\n
    \n
  1. \n

    I’ve learned downsizing is not for everyone. That’s ok. People love their stuff. They worked hard for it. They find comfort in it. I get that. I was really on a bandwagon when I faced downsizing, not only as a lifestyle choice, but as a necessity. I preached “Live with less!” Vehemently. My fervor hasn’t died for me personally, but I now realize I came across as perhaps a little insensitive to those who cherish their personal belongings. If that is you, I apologize. 

    \n
    2. \n
  2. \n

    I have a few…but very few…regrets. First, if I had known my stint at the farm helping out my elderly aunt was only going to last 10 weeks, I very likely wouldn’t have purchased such a big travel trailer. I really miss Little TOW-Wanda. At 16’, she was easy to pick up and go with at a moment’s notice. Not so much with the big behemoth that is TOW-Wanda Grande. Second, there are a few pieces of furniture I parted with that I would love to have now. But, I never would have dreamed I would fall in love again and live the life I am living now. Besides, I really do have everything I need.

    \n
    3. \n
  3. \n

    And, speaking of falling in love again, I have a significant other who hasn’t fallen in love with the idea of simplifying…yet. We are in the early stages of discussing the merits of downsizing, and he is beginning to understand that means you don’t get to keep everything. I totally understand where he is with that. I held onto my stuff for a long, long time…even when my spouse(s) hated the clutter. Mr. FixIt is coming around. It has to be at his pace, at his comfort level, or I’ll come across as trying to make him get rid of everything. I remember what that feels like and it’s isn’t nice.

    \n
    4. \n
  4. \n

    When you have less stuff to take care of, you have more money and time to get out and enjoy the fun things in life. That is the best lesson I’ve learned from my own experience downsizing.

    \n
    5. \n
  5. \n

    Remembering to be grateful for what I DO have keeps me from missing what I don’t. It keeps me thinking in terms of abundance rather than deprivation.

    \n
    6. \n
\n

Now I face these boxes. Part of me says if I haven’t opened them in four years, what possible use do I have for their contents? I could just take them to a shelter…or to the dump. But, of course, I cannot do that. I have to go through them. I can, and will, be ruthless as I pick and choose what must be kept, what can be given to family members who would appreciate the memories, and what can go to someone else who will love them as much as I did. This is now my cold weather project. I’ll have it done as soon as possible because, I had the farmhouse clean and neat and tidy. I want it back that way quickly.

\n

I find an uncluttered environment equates to an uncluttered life for me. It eases my mind and will certainly make things easier for whoever will be in charge of going through my stuff when I’m dead and gone. I promised myself, and my kids, that I would never leave them with a mess like I was left with when my mom died. As wonderful as she was, she was a pack rat of the highest order and it was such a chore to clean out her house AND deal with the grief of losing her. I don’t want to do that to anyone. So, here I go again! ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-31T01:30:38-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/31/here-i-go-again.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","TOW-Wanda!","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Wisdom","Presence","Downsizing","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/30/and-the-thunder-rolls.html", "title": "And the Thunder Rolls", "content_html": "

\"Lightning “Lightning over West Virginia”

\n
““My heart pounds as I think of this. It trembles within me. Listen carefully to the thunder of God’s voice as it rolls from his mouth. It rolls across the heavens, and his lightning flashes in every direction. Then comes the roaring of the thunder— the tremendous voice of his majesty. He does not restrain it when he speaks. God’s voice is glorious in the thunder. We can’t even imagine the greatness of his power.”  Job 37:1-5 NLT
\nThe heat and humidity in West Virginia raises the heat index and brings us these amazing thunderstorms. It’s one of the things I always missed in Colorado. Oh, you get storms there...sure. But they don’t sound the same as storms in the rolling hills. There is an echo you just don’t get out west. And I love it!\n

The last couple of days we have been moving some boxes of my “stuff” from my friend Steve’s basement. We got the last load moved yesterday. Good thing, because it rained last night and we would have had to carry these heavy boxes up a hill instead of driving the truck down to the back of Steve’s house. That’s one thing about lawns here. If they’re wet, you sink down in them.

\n

\"Lightning “Lightning over West Virginia.”

\n

On the way back from picking up the last load, Mr. FixIt saw a house on fire a little over a mile from the Ponderosa. As often happens in outlying rural areas, the house burned to the ground and was a total loss. Fortunately, no one was at home when it burned so there were no injuries.

\n

We took he last load out to the farm and no sooner carried the last box in when the electric went out. No wind. No storm. Just off. This, unfortunately, is NOT uncommon. We waited a while and when it hadn’t come back on after thirty minutes or so, we headed home. We stopped and visited neighbors along the way. That’s something I miss from my childhood. Someone was always stopping by to talk. Now, there are whole neighborhoods who don’t know anyone’s name. That’s sad.

\n

As we were nearing home, I caught a glimpse of lightning in the far off distance. As we got closer, it was obvious a great lightning storm was coming. We stopped on top of the hill so I could video tape the light show. In all my years of photographing nature, I have never caught lightning in a still shot, so I just captured stills from the video and called it good.

\n

My summer cold is easing up a bit, I think. This thick, humid air doesn’t really help that. The rain is supposed to usher in some cooler weather for the next couple of days, and I’m all for that. ❤️

\n

\"Lightning “Lightning over West Virginia.”

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-30T01:30:26-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/30/and-the-thunder-rolls.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Peaceful Moments","Downsizing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/25/the-boys-in-the-hood.html", "title": "The Boys in the ‘Hood", "content_html": "

\"Farm “The farm cats chilling out on my picnic table.”

\n
“For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.”  Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:1‬ ‭NLT‬‬
\nWe had to mow at the farm yesterday. The growth of the grass has slowed down a bit here in West Virginia. We’re back to once a week now instead of every four days. I stripped the bed and did laundry between my turns on the mower. If we tag team, neither one of us get overheated.\n

When we arrived, they were working on the road right in front of the house. What a mess. Now when the traffic goes by, huge white clouds of dust rise up and billow over everything. It was so bad you could taste it. The only upside…and it is a stretch to find any upside in this situation…the only upside is, the cars and 4-wheelers can no longer fly up the straight stretch in front of the house. I’m always afraid one of those 4-wheelers is going to roll and kill the rider. No helmet at fifty miles per hour. Oy!

\n

We ate the last of the ribs for supper last night. What a treat they were! I did figure something out though. When I smoke ribs, I’m going to have to smoke a BUNCH of them at once and freeze some because…it took three hours to clean that smoker yesterday. That’s a lot of work to have it gone so quickly. I recently purchased some products from Norwex. They have special cloths that you can clean without using cleaning chemicals. They also have a sponge with a metallic scrubby surface. I used their cleaning paste and that scrubby sponge and the smoker looked brand new when I finished. I used the polishing cloth on the glass and there is no smoke film or baked on grease splatters at all.

\n

When the yard was done and the laundry folded, we packed up and headed back over to the Ponderosa. As we were leaving, I couldn’t resist snapping a photo of the boys hanging out on my picnic table. They are obviously from the same lineage. They are two years apart. The longhair is Boy Cat…he’s the elder. The shorthair is Kitty Boy…he’s the feral one who won’t let you near him. He was being uncharacteristically chill yesterday and didn’t bat an eyelash when I scooted closer to catch this photo. These two are inseparable.

\n

When we got home, the great grand baby was there with her entourage. We hadn’t seen her in nearly a month. She’s just now going through separation anxiety so she didn’t want to have anything to do with anyone but her mommy. It was wonderful to see everyone and wrap up a productive day with some relaxing family time. 

\n

Simple days like this seemed impossible after losing Mr. Virgo. He was estranged from his family and mine lived nearly three hours away. We didn’t get to have these impromptu family gatherings. After Mr. Virgo’s death, I wasn’t sure I would ever have another relationship. I know it’s different for everyone after loss. I didn’t expect this, but I am grateful to have this life. It is rich and full. 

\n

❤️ ***Little Khloe got to go home from the hospital yesterday. She will be home a week then return for outpatient chemotherapy. So, I can go back to using my signature red heart. ❤️

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-25T01:30:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/25/the-boys-in-the-hood.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/19/im-hearing-voices.html", "title": "I’m Hearing Voices!", "content_html": "

\"Brer “Brer Rabbit better stay out of my tomatoes!”

\n
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”  2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NIV
\nThe other day when I was out at the farm doing laundry, I sat on the front porch with my coffee and wrote my post. There was a little traffic, but nothing like earlier in the summer so I wasn’t paying any attention. I was gazing around when suddenly, I hear someone whistling. Sound direction can be deceiving with all the woods and hills and hollers so I couldn’t quite tell where it was coming from. I carefully scanned the neighbor’s place across the road to see if they were home but there was nothing. The whistling sounded all the world like it was coming from behind our farmhouse. I sat very still and suddenly I could hear voices. Two distinct voices having a conversation, but I couldn’t tell what they were saying. It only lasted ten seconds or so and was gone. It was quite eerie, but I shook it off and went on with my writing.\n

As I was driving home…suddenly, I heard the voices again. I could catch a word or two, but could not get the gist of what was being said. I checked my phone because it kind of sounded like when you set your phone down but don’t put it on speaker. You can hear the conversation, but not clearly. It wasn’t the phone. I glanced at the radio to see if perhaps it had come on. Nope. It wasn’t the radio. This went on for several minutes. 

\n

\"Work “Work truck on the two-lane.”

\n

I was stuck behind one of the pipeliner’s trucks and he was going SO slow. There was a whole line of cars behind me. I was hoping he would pull over and let us all pass, but no such luck. This was a big, boxy truck with a lift gate and tools and outdoor lights…obviously someone who does a specific job at the well sites. As we approached the sharpest turn on the road, he slowed way down and I came up close behind him. There it was again! Only now, it was louder and clearer. One of the voices said, “Where are you?” The other answered back, “I’m driving out 53.”

\n

I couldn’t believe it. I started laughing out loud. The truck in front of me had a large speaker on top and the driver obviously had it turned on and was talking over the radio to someone! Anyone within a country mile could hear it. He must have gone up the road earlier and that’s what I heard when I was sitting on the porch. I must say, I was quite relieved. I knew this wasn’t a spiritual conversation, so it was good to have an answer.

\n

Mr. FixIt and I went for a nice walk out the road after supper last night. As I was waiting for him to finish painting a sign for the camper we are selling, I got a good shot of Brer Rabbit here. I don’t know if he was over in our garden or not. Something has been nibbling on our tomatoes. They are about at the end of their growing season, but I hate to lose any. I cooked a big batch of stewed tomatoes on Friday night. Have you ever had creamed tomatoes? Also called tomato gravy. Oh, my gosh….SO good. You just stew your tomatoes till they’re nice and soft. Cook them down a little, then thicken them with a white sauce and serve it over biscuits or toast or even mashed potatoes. Yummmmmmm!

\n

\"Cool “Very cool tree out the road from the Ponderosa.”

\n

This really cool tree is out the road from the Ponderosa. I love how it’s growing out of rock that looks as though it’s been stacked in a dry wall. I imagine what kind of animal might sleep in the recesses beneath the roots. Raccoons, perhaps. Fox? Could be. I doubt it’s something like bears, although it is not unheard of to have a sighting in this neck of the woods, but highly unlikely. It was a beautiful day…cooler with intermittent rain showers. I can feel fall coming. It’s whispering down the hollers…”Soon, soon.” ?

\n

In recognition of our little friend Khloe, who is fighting leukemia, I’m using an orange heart while she is in the hospital getting chemo. (orange is the color for the leukemia awareness campaign) Fight those icky cells, Brave Girl!

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-19T01:30:59-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/19/im-hearing-voices.html", "tags": ["Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Peace"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/18/round-two.html", "title": "Round Two", "content_html": "

\"Goldfinch\" “Goldfinch on the thistle sock. Life on a farm is full of wonder!”

\n
“You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.”  Isaiah‬ ‭55:12‬ ‭NIV‬‬
\nSince the power went off in the middle of doing laundry Thursday, I went back out to the farm yesterday to finish up. The weather is tropical rainforest sticky and more rain is in the forecast. I set up my iPad on my little red café table on the front porch to write while the clothes were in the wash. \n

One thing I have noticed the last few weeks is the drastic reduction in heavy equipment traffic. It’s a darned good thing because there isn’t much left of the blacktop on this old country road. Depending who you talk to, they may or may not repave. They are currently digging up the worst spots and filling the large rectangular spaces with base and gravel. This has eliminated the deepest holes, however it has left the entire road a washboard of gravel and old asphalt. I’m hoping we will get a new road by winter but I’m not holding my breath. I’m just grateful the heavy trucks have pretty much stopped. 

\n

As I sat on the porch writing this, again I was struck by how deeply I love this old farm. My uncle owns it and I take care of it for him. When I tell him how much I dearly love being here, he just shakes his head and says, “Well, I don’t know why…but I sure am grateful you’re there to take care of the old place.”

\n

I sat with my coffee and let my eyes run over the landscape. The Jenny Wren in the shrubbery along the creek scolded Boy Cat who was napping beneath the branches. The little Goldfinches flitted in and out to eat from the thistle socks. A Hummingbird buzzed in front of me then zipped out to the feeder hanging on the shepherd’s crook. Mourning Doves balanced on the power line, waiting their turn to scour the ground below the feeders for the seeds the other birds didn’t want. A Buzzard circled silently above, scanning the area for some unfortunate, yet tasty, road kill. The Cicadas and Katydids whirred constantly in the background, reminding me of some terrible case of tinnitus.

\n

The mail was delivered by the nice lady in the Subaru with the yellow flashing light on top. The air was so thick and heavy with humidity, it felt like velvet. The only saving grace was a breeze…an indication of the coming rain. The incessant drone of a weed eater came from down the road. So many of the neighbors here are aging and can’t take care of their properties like they used to. They die or move away and a newer, less “industrious”, population takes over. Houses decline into disrepair. Weeds take over the previously manicured lawns and gardens. 

\n

A flash of red caught my eye as a pair of Cardinals swooped in to browse the ground in front of me. A Downy Woodpecker tapped a staccato beat on the dead elm out by the road. It reminded me to see about getting someone in to cut it down before winter. The dryer buzzed and shook me from my reverie. My chores continue. This old farm continues. Life continues to enthrall me here on this journey. And I am grateful for this peaceful moment. ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-18T01:30:26-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/18/round-two.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Peace"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/17/summer-freshness.html", "title": "Summer Freshness", "content_html": "

\"Summer-fresh “A summer-fresh supper…Silver Queen sweet corn, fried green tomatoes, and Amish potato salad.”

\n
“Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce.”  Jeremiah 29:5 NIV
\nYesterday we went to the farm to mow and do laundry. Mr. FixIt outside, me inside. We have one of those fancy schmancy washer dryers at the Ponderosa. You know, with the water savings and a gazillion buttons...setting for things I don’t even understand. And, there’s no agitator. Just this little flat, bumpy circle on the bottom. The first time I did laundry here, everything black had white soap residue all over it. It didn’t matter how many times I rinsed, I couldn’t get rid of it. Then, it takes forever to dry a load of clothes. When one load takes a total of three hours, I don’t understand the savings.\n

Mr. FixIt has tried to show me how this thing works, but I just don’t get it. And, since I have to go out to the farm a few times a week anyway, I just take the laundry out there. There’s a regular old Kenmore washer and dryer out there. The water and the gas are free and I can get four loads done in the same time it takes to do one at home, and no white residue on the black clothing. Win-Win.

\n

Mr. FixIt had finished mowing and was sitting on the porch cooling off while I filled the bird feeders. We walked back in the house. I had just put the last load of laundry in when the power went off, immediately followed by a clap of thunder. It thundered like nobody’s business for an hour and a half. It never rained much but the electric didn’t come back on, so we headed home.

\n

I’ve been promising Mr. FixIt fried green tomatoes all week. As soon as we got home, he went out to the garden and picked some tomatoes, including some green ones. He shucked the corn while I sliced and batter dipped the tomatoes and slipped them into the electric skillet with hot oil. Dinner was wonderful…one of those quintessential summer meals. Fried green tomatoes, Silver Queen corn on the cob, and Amish potato salad. Another beautiful day in paradise…West Virginia! ❤️

\n

 

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-17T01:30:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/17/summer-freshness.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/10/the-dog-days-of-summer.html", "title": "The Dog Days of Summer", "content_html": "

\"Hydrangea\" “Gigantic Hydrangea in the backyard at the farm. One of my favorites!”

\n
““As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.”” Genesis 8:22 NIV
\nAfter meeting a group of friends for lunch yesterday, I was leaving the restaurant when a gentleman seated with his wife in a nearby booth stopped me. He said he couldn’t help but overhear me talking about the storm I heard during the night. He wanted to tell me they had been driving home to Ravenswood and got caught in the storm. He claimed it was the worst storm he had ever driven in but in ten miles, it was gone. Storms here are either small, isolated pockets...or weeks-long, grey deluges, it seems. There is no in between. Anyway, I told him my dad was from Ravenswood. His wife kept saying “You look SO familiar to me!” I sat down with them and we connected the dots until, indeed...we found the common denominator. They thought my dad’s name was familiar but couldn’t quite place him until I showed them his photo on my phone. Then they remembered him quite well. This guy’s grandfather’s property bordered that of my Aunt Marge. My cousin Donna was his nurse when he had surgery a couple of years ago. It is a teeny, tiny little world here and you have to be darned careful what you say about folks. We’re all related!\n

After lunch, Mr. FixIt and I went to the farm to mow. We are in the last bit of the Dog Days of Summer…a period of 40 days from July 3rd to August 11th. This period coincides with the rising of the Dog Star…Sirius…at dawn. The Dog Star doesn’t determine our weather, but the Ancient Egyptians used this celestial event to predict the annual flooding of the Nile River. It does coincide with some of the hottest, most sultry weather of the summer. 

\n

\"\" “The beautiful Rose of Sharon at the back corner of the farmhouse. This and the Hydrangea have been here as long as I can remember.”

\n

When I was growing up, my grandma used to warn us that dogs “go rabid” at this time of year and you’d best avoid any contact. I was scared to death of dogs growing up. We had a little beagle for a short while when I was quite young…3 or 4 maybe. We called her Honey. One day she was gone and I never knew what happened. I expect my Mom, who was NOT an animal lover, made short work of finding Honey a better place to live.

\n

My aunt had an Irish Setter. A beautiful dog with long, silky red hair and a brain the size of a golf ball. I remember running up the sidewalk to see my aunt and this monster dashed out from behind her and jumped up on me…knocking me down. I’m not sure who screamed louder…me or my mom. After that, I kept my distance from dogs. This was only further cemented when Atticus shot and killed that rabid dog in “To Kill a Mockingbird”…no doubt during the Dog Days of Summer. I was firmly convinced I would be mangled by some rabid beast and have to get a million shots in my belly button. No, thank you.

\n

Even though we have many hot and sultry days ahead of us after the official end of Dog Days, it marks an end of something. The long, lazy days of summer are coming to a close with the start of a new school year. The trees and bushes have that tired, yellowish green tone now. Leaves are already falling here and there. The big cherry tree behind the farmhouse is bare, save for a few hangers on…yellow leaves with black spots. I thought the grass was going to go dormant, but we have had a good deal of rain the last two weeks and we’ve mowed like crazy at both the farm and the Ponderosa. I was just telling Mr. FixIt as we drove out to the farm yesterday, we have so many things we need to do and can’t till the mowing is done. We are working so hard now, there’s no way to add much else.

\n

\"Elderberries\" “Elderberries ripen and are gone just as quickly, picked off by the various birds that frequent the yard at the farm.”

\n

When the grass was cut at the farm, I walked around and caught some pictures. The elderberries are ripening and the birds are clearly after them. The pinkish-purple Rose of Sharon are in full bloom, as are the ginormous Hydrangeas. I’ve never seenu Hydrangea bush as big as the one is in the backyard at the farm. It’s a good 12-15 feet high and just as wide across.

\n

It was another beautiful, hot, sultry summer day. They will be gone all too soon and we’ll be back to the gray, wet, cold West Virginia winter. I’ll take these sticky hot days any day of the week if it means I have green to look at. I hope you have a happy Friday and you are looking forward to a fun weekend full of love and laughter and sunshine. ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-10T01:30:17-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/10/the-dog-days-of-summer.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/03/afternoon-walkabout.html", "title": "Afternoon Walkabout", "content_html": "

\"Hooded “Hooded Warbler”

\n
“Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith!” Luke 12:27-28 NIV
\nMr. FixIt and I decided to walk up the road yesterday afternoon before we headed home from the farm. The heavy truck traffic from the gas pipeline construction has eased up slightly and the road repair crew had moved back toward the bridge, so walking was a little safer and more enjoyable. I was particularly interested in a mulberry tree down the road. I wanted to check if the berries were ripening so I could make some jam and jelly. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a single mulberry on the tree. Last year at this time is was loaded so the only thing I can figure is the late freezes this spring got them. \n

Just as we headed out for our walk, this beautiful Hooded Warbler darted into the spicebush next to the porch. I have never seen one and had to look it up to find out what it was. What a beauty…and such a sweet little song it sings.

\n

The photos, in order:

\n

\"Cicada\" “Cicada”

\n

As we walked along, I scanned the roadsides for interesting things to photograph. A cicada caught my eye, as did this black and yellow millipede. Creepy crawlies, to be sure. According to projectnoah.org, “Some millipedes emit liquid secretions of hydrogen cyanide gas through microscopic pores, so always wash your hands after handling.” Yeah…like I’m going to be picking THAT thing up! ? 

\n

\"Flat “Flat Backed Millipede”

\n

This is the most I’ve revealed of Mr. FixIt. Six-foot-one and sweet as can be. I love this guy! ❤

\n

\"Man “Mr. FixIt…ooooh, I love this guy!”

\n

When Daughter #1 brought her future husband to West Virginia to meet the family, we stayed in this sweet little cabin up the road from the farm. It is owned by my mother’s cousin. My aunt called it “Jack-in-the-Pulpit Inn” because of all the wildflowers around. 

\n

\"Old “Jack-in-tha-Pulpit Inn”…an old log cabin down the road from the farm.”

\n

Goldenrod or Ragweed made my grandpa sneeze like crazy. He just hated when it came in bloom, but they are so pretty alongside the roadways.

\n

\"Goldenrod\" “Goldenrod”

\n

Queen Anne’s Lace is one of my favorite wildflowers. If you look closely, you can see the “Queen’s Heart” in the center.

\n

\"Queen “Queen Anne’s Lace”

\n

I have no idea what this little butterfly is. I spend about ten minutes trying to find out and gave up. Anyone know? 

\n

\"Butterfly\" “Little Brown and Orange Butterfly”

\n

This one I know…it’s a Tiger Swallowtail.

\n

\"Tiger “Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly”

\n

Ahhhh, sweet Honeysuckle vines. When its hot in June, you can smell this from a mile away on a warm summer night.

\n

\"Honeysuckle\" “Honeysuckle”

\n

This little guy is a Red-Spotted Purple. People often mistake these for swallowtails, but as you can see…no “tail”.

\n

\"Red-Spotted “Red-Spotted Purple”

\n

These last two pictures show the damage to our road from all the heavy equipment running up and down the road all day long. I will be so glad when they get this pipeline and compressor station completed and the pipe liners move on down south.

\n

\"“Road “Road damage from gas pipeline equipment,”

\n

\"Road “Deep grooves in the asphalt from six-axle loads of rock.”

\n

Walkabouts are fun on the farm, and I truly love sharing the beauty with you all. It’s Friday! I hope you are going to do lots of fun things this weekend. Mr. FixIt’s granddaughter is getting married tomorrow so this is a BIG weekend for us. ❤

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-03T01:30:25-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/03/afternoon-walkabout.html", "tags": ["Family","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Peace","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/08/02/all-things-green.html", "title": "All Things Green", "content_html": "

\"Green “West Virginians cook their green beans for hours with bacon or salt pork and onion, salt, and pepper. The house smells divine!”

\n
“For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything.”\n‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭3:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬
\nOne of my fondest memories is sitting as a little girl on the front porch of the farm house, my grandma in the chair to my left. She had the beat up lid of an old roasting pan turned over in her lap and it was filled with washed green beans fresh from the garden. These were old fashioned string beans, not the stringless bush bean variety you find nowadays. They were a bit more work to prepare. You took a paring knife and cut the tip of one end almost all the way through and pulled. This removed the long, stringy piece from down one side. Then you turned the bean over and did the same thing from the other end. Then you snapped the bean in half, or thirds, with one hand and dropped them in a cooking pot.\n

When you were done, you rinsed the beans again, and filled the pot with clean water to barely cover the beans. You cut up an onion or two and threw that in along with a few pieces of ham, salt pork, or fried bacon and the grease they were fried in. You might add a little black pepper and salt if the bacon wasn’t too salty. You covered the pot and set it to simmer midmorning, adding water when necessary. Come suppertime, the house smelled wonderful and the beans were nice and tender. Here in West Virginia, we COOK our green beans. None of this crispy “al denté” stuff! Oh, there’s nothing like green beans cooked Grandma style.

\n

We have had rain every day this week and are expected to have more for the next ten days. The yards and fields have all been mowed, and while there are a thousand things we could have done over at the Ponderosa yesterday, I awoke with one thing in mind…rain on the tin roof of my favorite farmhouse in the world. I asked Mr. FixIt if he’d like to spend a couple days over here and he is such an accommodating guy. He knows how much I love it here. And, while I certainly don’t need his permission and could come here anytime I want, I do so enjoy it when he is with me. So, we packed up a cooler with some chicken I cooked the day before and some other sundries, grabbed our usually-always-packed overnight bags, and headed for the farm.

\n

Mr. FixIt had stopped at the produce stand Sunday afternoon and bought some fresh green beans. Ours didn’t grow in our garden this spring and we’ve been hungry for them. Unfortunately, when we opened the bag to cook them, they were all moldy. We were so disappointed. Then I remembered the neighbor across the road saying he had canned all the beans he was going to can out of his garden and I was welcome to come pick some whenever I wanted. It was pouring the rain down when I donned my boots, grabbed a big golf umbrella and a bowl and headed across the road. My neighbor’s garden is surrounded with electric fencing to keep the critters out of his garden. He said the other day he made the mistake of touching it when he was mowing and the new, higher power charger really packs a punch so I was extra careful. I unplugged the charger and tried to open the circuited gate wire, but I wasn’t strong enough and there wasn’t enough slack. I remember him telling me he had a solar charger and I wasn’t completely certain I wasn’t dealing with “hot” wires. The gated wire was low enough that I could step over it so I did so, gingerly. I set to picking and had to sort through older, woody beans to find younger, more tender ones and soon had a bowl full.

\n

I retraced my steps, being careful not to brush the wires, in case they were live, and plugged everything back in. I cleaned the beans like Grandma taught me, remembering her old, knotty fingers working over them, and soon had a whole “mess” of beans to cook up. Mr. FixIt had fried up the bacon for me while I was picking so I dumped that, and the bacon grease for good measure, into the pot. I forgot to bring an onion so I added onion powder, a little salt, and some black pepper and set the pot on the back burner to simmer. Before long, the familiar smells of my youth began to waft through the house. I had stretched out on Grandma’s bed for a little snooze, which came easily to the tune of the steady drumming of rain on the tin roof and the fans that circulated cool air through the house. It was heavenly!

\n

Supper consisted of the pre-cooked chicken heated up in a skillet with a little butter, a couple ears of corn, a fresh tomato from the Ponderosa garden cut in chunks, and the divine green beans with bacon. Top that off with a cold beverage while sitting on the front porch watching the rain and you have a meal worth more to me than any Five Star restaurant in the world! After supper, Mr. FixIt and I played Uno with his new set of cards that my brother sent him from Colorado. I am telling you what…that was a perfect day right there.

\n

As I wrote this last night, I was propped up with all the pillows on my Grandma’s bed, watching the rain and the evening birds at the feeder outside the bedroom window. Mr. FixIt was watching the evening news then Big Bang reruns. After the terrible news of the past couple of days, this was a welcome respite. My friend Jea is still very much on my mind and every time I think of her, I send up prayers for peace and whatever comfort she could possible attain in all of this. My comfort is knowing she has a relationship with God and that He will never leave her and her family.

\n

❤

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-08-02T01:30:56-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/08/02/all-things-green.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Peace","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/07/27/summers-bounty.html", "title": "Summer’s Bounty", "content_html": "

\"Garden “One day’s harvest of fresh tomatoes! I couldn’t grow this many in a whole season in Colorado!”

\n
“Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.”\n‭‭Genesis‬ ‭1:29‬ ‭NIV‬‬
\nThis is one of the very best things about West Virginia. You can grow just about anything here. The growing season is long, there’s plenty of rain, and the soil is rich. Our tomato plants are producing faster than we can eat these tasty morsels from God. I sent this picture to my son-in-law’s dad yesterday. Ben struggles over his garden, tending his plants with loving care, only to see them be destroyed by drought, hail, and vermin over and over. Sue said the picture would just make him sad.\n

I remember gardening in Colorado. I lost a 2,000 square foot garden to frost on June 23rd one year. I’ve stood inside and watched hail turn my garden into something akin to chopped salad in minutes, leaving nothing but sticks behind. I’ve watch as deer, squirrels, and raccoons snack on my veggies like it’s the salad bar at Shoney’s. It’s terribly disheartening. That’s why I started frequenting farmer’s markets and produce stands. I get the fruits and veggies I want and the farmer gets the money in his/her pocket.

\n

For as long as I can remember, I tried to make my way back home to live. I envisioned living on a farm, having a big garden, canning and putting up jams, jellies, pickles, and the like. I finally made it, and now I’m 65. Don’t get me wrong…that’s NOT old. Not really. But, oh…I sure wish I could have lived here when I was in my 30’s. When I had the energy to have animals. When I had the strength to build outbuildings and a barn. I could probably have chickens now if I wanted them, but I travel so often, it isn’t practical.

\n

I love living here. I love how green it is. I love the smell of rain on the air and the wonderful aroma of new mown grass. I love the sounds of the many varieties of birds that live in the woods surrounding the house. I love the crickets and cicadas that fill the night with their high pitched sounds. I love how the hills around you hug you close. I love the sounds of the water rushing down the creek outside the bedroom window after a hard rain. And the rain on the tin roof of the farmhouse. I love what humidity does to my skin…making it soft and supple. Oh, yes…I do so love it here. I love Colorado…I really do. I lived there for 40 years and did learn to love it. And I love and miss my Colorado family. But here? Here, I have come home…to myself. ❤️

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-07-27T01:30:49-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/07/27/summers-bounty.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/06/27/its-popsicle-time.html", "title": "It’s Popsicle Time!", "content_html": "

\"Popsicle\" “There’s nothing more soothing than a Popsicle when you are recovering from surgery!”

\n
“For I will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal, declares the Lord...'”\n‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭30:17‬ ‭ESV‬‬
\nI cannot remember a time in my life that didn’t include Popsicles. One of my earliest memories is my mom breaking a twin pop to share with my brother on a hot summer day. Orange was always my favorite, but grape runs a close second. Or is it cherry? I never liked banana. Other than that, it was fair game.\n

As I was recuperating from this surgery, some things became apparent to me. The last time I had surgery was in 1999 when I had my sinuses done. Not a pleasant surgery with nasal splints and sleeping sitting up in a recliner. But still, I was 46. It was a relative walk in the park. As we…ummmm, “ripen”…we don’t bounce back quite as fast as we used to. Anesthesia and 3-4 Vicodin over a 24 hour period and I was toast. The pain was well-controlled, but I just hate the feeling narcotics gives me so I switched to Tylenol. Everything was going along pretty well, except I was really tired. Then, Monday night the pain hit. A burning, stabbing pain deep in the area where the tumor was removed kept me awake all night. I finally drifted off around 5:00am and slept a couple of hours.

\n

As I lay there awake, I read the Bible, did my devotionals, caught up with everyone on Facebook, chatted with my son-in-law’s mom in the middle of the night, and Googled “pain after excisional biopsy of the breast”. It seems to be pretty normal to get to the fourth or fifth day and start feeling some pretty significant twinges in the surgical area. For one thing, all the numbing and anesthesia is completely gone. Things are starting to knit back together and that means some nerve pain as you heal. The area where my tumor was is directly behind the nipple and that is some pretty tender territory. Remember nursing? That little baby latching on with jaws of steel could send you through the roof. Imagine getting sliced and diced in that general area and no sweet baby to distract you.

\n

I gave up trying to sleep and headed to town with Mr. FixIt for several errands. When we were finished, we went to the farm so he could finish mowing. I spoke with my uncle on Monday and he and my aunt (his and my mom’s sister) are coming Thursday for an overnight visit. I needed to get the house in tip top shape for company so I spent the afternoon fixing up the three beds with fresh sheets, airing out the house, and sweeping up a winter’s worth of dead Asian Lady Bugs in the upstairs bedrooms. I washed bedding and fluffed and primped everything to perfection. I’m really looking forward to them coming and staying the night. It’s my first family company since I took over the caretaking duties at the farm. This is the aunt who lived at the farm for years and it is her first visit back since she went to live with her brother. I want her to enjoy it and feel pampered.

\n

I’ll make them some yummy treats for Thursday. His favorite is yellow cake with penuche frosting. Hers is butterscotch pie. I’m so excited to see them! We’ll drive up the new road behind the farm that goes out to the compressor station they are building. That might be bittersweet for them. I know it is for me.

\n

And now, the news we have all been waiting for. I received my biopsy report yesterday. The tumor was indeed a fibroadenoma. It is the most common benign breast mass. Benign = NOT CANCER! The other day I was talking about when I was prayed over and anointed. And it turns out to be benign. I want to point out something. Yes, God can still heal. He can perform miracles. AND…there are plenty of wonderful, GOOD Christians who pray faithfully and they still get cancer. Cancer doesn’t play favorites. It doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t care if you are rich or poor, black or white or any other color of the rainbow. It doesn’t care if you’re a Christian or a Jew or a Muslim or an atheist. It doesn’t care. Something triggers cells to multiply abnormally. It’s as simple as that. My faith tells me God can answer prayers. And sometimes…unfortunately…the answer is no and a bad diagnosis comes. It is one of the horrible thieves that rob us of life and health. I am very grateful that my (and your) prayers were answered in a positive way. Thank you so much for caring. Now I don’t have to worry about that anymore. Just rest and heal and head to Colorado in a week!!! ❤

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-06-27T01:30:05-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/06/27/its-popsicle-time.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Peace","Wisdom","Humbled","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/06/16/world-wide-knit-in-public.html", "title": "World Wide Knit in Public Day", "content_html": "

\"Knit It’s World Wide Knit in Public Day!”

\n
“It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭74:17‬ ‭NIV‬‬
\nWow...there’s a day for everything, isn’t there? I’m going to take my knitting with me and knit in the historic hotel lounge where we meet once a month. Maybe I’ll get my friends interested in knitting!\n

I was sitting on the front porch knitting yesterday when I heard a loud noise in the driveway. A flat, wet sound I was unfamiliar with. I looked over and Kitty Boy seemed to be really interested in something there. I went over to inspect his find and here was this tree frog. I’m not at all sure if this was what we call a “peeper”, because he sounded more like he was making objectionable gassy sounds to me. Anyway, I chased off the kitty and scooted that fat boy up into the woods where he belonged. Hopefully Kitty Boy will forget where he left him.

\n

There is so much work that needs to be done at the farm this summer. Mr. FixIt mowed the back half of the yard for me yesterday morning before he headed home. I stayed and cleaned and did laundry and knitted and saved frogs. I should go out and clear brush and trim prickly vines, but that didn’t sound at all appealing to me so I took a nap instead.

\n

I bought my ticket for Colorado yesterday, as well. You’ll be traveling with me again soon! The price of gas is outrageous so I decided to fly this year. I’ve been shopping for a good deal and I was getting kind of worried that it was getting too close to the trip to find one. But, lo and behold, I went on Kayak and found a fare on Frontier for $204!!! Of course, that’s without luggage or seat selection. I did buy the trip insurance, which I always do. That brought it up to $223. It would cost $90 to choose my seat. It’s a non stop flight. I don’t need to choose a seat…I’ll sit anywhere. As far as luggage goes, for the amount of money they charge to take bags, I’ll just go to Walmart and buy some shorts and shirts and leave them there. All I need to carry is my medicine, my wallet, and my knitting. Light weight travel. I’ve never done this. It ought to be interesting! I’ll let you know how it works. ❤

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-06-16T01:30:04-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/06/16/world-wide-knit-in-public.html", "tags": ["Travel","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Peace","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/06/15/walking-the-farm.html", "title": "Walking the Farm", "content_html": "

\"Wildflowers\" “Wildflowers along the back road of the farm.”

\n
“Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it. Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭96:11-12‬ ‭NIV‬‬
\nWhen Mr. FixIt asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday, I immediately answered...\n

“I want to stay at the farm for a couple of days!”

\n

We came out Wednesday evening and set to cleaning. It’s amazing how an old house gets itself dirty all on its own. We had a light supper, played a few hands of cards, and I enjoyed several phone calls for my birthday. Yesterday morning, I cooked a big breakfast and we headed up the hill for a good hike to burn it off.

\n

\"Crane “Building the compressor station on that far ridge.”

\n

It was noon before we got on our way so by the time we got to the top of the hill, the sunny stretch without trees, it was HOT! We carried enough water with us to get us back. We stopped at Mount Zion Church and signed the guest book as we always do. The hickory tree just next to the cemetery is loaded with nuts. I wanted to go on up the hill to see the compressor station, but I couldn’t believe the amount of traffic coming and going. We sat at the church for a while to catch our breath, then headed back.

\n

\"Hickory “Hickory nuts.”

\n

At this point, I was getting blisters from my hiking boots. A woman came by in one of the company trucks and I asked if she was going back down our road. She was…and we had a delightful conversation as I ogled the changes this construction has done to the landscape. Turns out, she is also a widow…her husband died of suicide nearly twenty years ago. She spoke of the breakdown she had afterwards and how she has no problem speaking about it as it raises awareness and calms the stigma surrounding mental health issues. I was very taken with her sunny, straight-forward disposition and she said she will look up Marshmallow Ranch and toot her horn when she passes by. I love that I can be five miles from nowhere and still reach people with a commonality.

\n

\"New “The new road past the old Mt. Zion Church, est. 1893.”

\n

When we got home (and checked for ticks) we went for a drive and circled around a favorite backroad of mine looking for blackberries and wine berries. We found them, but they are a little ways from being fully ripe. Hopefully the critters (two-legged and four-legged) will not get to them before I do…it’s always a race. We stopped and watched the Painted Lady butterflies swarming on the milkweed flowers that have recently bloomed. I didn’t see any monarchs, unfortunately. Maybe next year I will order some from the internet and plant them out there. There’s such a huge concentration of milkweed in the area…it would be a great place to cultivate some beautiful butterflies.

\n

\"Milkweed “Milkweed and Butterflies”

\n

We returned to the farm and checked our own patch of blackberries. Unfortunately, they are totally unreachable as they are tucked behind the burn pile that hasn’t been burned yet. My cousin’s wife Charlotte came to feed the kitties and got a surprise that we were there. We ended the day with a lovely dinner on the porch, another sunset, and more cards. When I’ve been at the farm for even a couple of days, I feel as though I’ve been on vacation for a week. But today it’s back to the Ponderosa and the chores.

\n

\"Wine “Wine berries growing alongside a country road.”

\n

How can it be Friday already? Hope you have big plans for Father’s Day Weekend! ❤

\n

\"Curvy “Curvy layers of sandstone.”

\n

 

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-06-15T01:30:02-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/06/15/walking-the-farm.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/05/25/things-that-make-me-go.html", "title": "Things That Make Me Go Ahhhhhhh", "content_html": "

\"Country “There’s nothing like a freshly mown lawn!”

\n

After getting through the initial stage of acute grief, I soon discovered there were two things that eased my broken heart. One was camping with the Girl Campers and sisters on the Fly. The other was working outdoors.. Oh, when I first sold my house, I was absolutely convinced I would never mow another lawn, but that is certainly NOT the case! This farm house has about the same amount of back yard as you see here in the front. And there isn’t a

\n

\"Rain “Rain gauge reads 4.25 inches!”

\n

riding mower here like there is at Mr. FixIt’s five acres. It was hovering around eighty degrees yesterday when we headed to the farm. I knew it was going to really need mowing. It’s been nine days since it was mowed last. In those nine days, it rained 4.25 inches. That grass was high…and wet! We took turns mowing and cooling off. It went a lot faster with two of us. Between laundry and the mowing, we were still there over four hours.

\n

\"Rhododendron\" “Rhododendron”

\n

\"Peonies\" “My favorite…peonies!”

\n

When we were finished at the farm, we took the weed eater to the cemetery and cleaned up the graves and decorated them for Memorial Day. They looked so nice when we were done. We brought the weed eater back to the farm and I went for a walk about to take pictures for you. I almost missed the rhododendron this year. They only last a few days and they are just a bit past their prime but still lovely. The ferns are vibrant green, carpeting the forest floor and hillsides. The peonies were Grandma’s pride and joy. I remember her walking me around the yard and cupping each delicate flower in her well-worn hands and smiling. She knew they were gifts from God, each and every one. She never had bird feeders when she lived here. I think she would have loved them. Mr. FixIt filled them for me. We fed the farm cats and I called them in. Boy Cat came on a run to see me. That always makes me smile.

\n

\"Peonies “Grandma’s peonies.”

\n

\"Fern\" “Fern”

\n

When we got back to the Ponderosa, I hopped on the riding mower and finished the last half of the lawn while Mr. FixIt made supper. We had a water main break a mile or so down the road yesterday morning so we are on a boil advisory. I told Mr. FixIt it would be a cold day in you know where before I would ever drink that water…it was muddy and boiling doesn’t fix that. That’s what we have bottled water for.

\n

\"Clematis\" “Clematis”

\n

These are the days that warm my heart and heal it even more. These are the days I long for in the depths of January. These days are treasures and I cherish them. I am so deeply grateful for every gift God has given me. ❤

\n

 

\n

 

\n

“Heal me, Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise.”\n‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭17:14‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-05-25T01:30:25-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/05/25/things-that-make-me-go.html", "tags": ["Grief","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/05/24/home-again.html", "title": "Home Again", "content_html": "

\"Beaver “Beaver Creek State Park, East Liverpool, Ohio”

\n

I’ve always promised my family and friends that I wouldn’t reveal where I am while I am actually there, especially if I am traveling alone. Even though Mr. FixIt joined me for part of this trip, I still adhere to that basic rule of safety. Beaver Creek State Park is one of my all time favorite camping destinations. Part of that is the surroundings. Part is the relatively close proximity to my home. I love the drive up Ohio Route 7 as it meanders along the beautiful Ohio River. And…if you’re on the Ohio side, you are looking at the rolling hills and dense woodlands of West Virginia beyond the smooth water.

\n

The best part of a Girl Camping trip is, of course, the friends you know and meet when you get there. These are friends for life and there’s a lot of love and laughter and encouragement that grows from those interactions. As I drove home yesterday, my heart was full.

\n

Mavis, my GPS, tells me it takes two hours and fifty-seven minutes to drive to Beaver Creek State Park. I left there at 11:00 and got home at 5:00. Granted, there was one rest area stop. But there were several places where the road was down to one lane due to land slides and we had to take turns. Then there was my LEAST favorite part of camping…dumping the black and grey water tanks. There is a really good dump station at the West Virginia Welcome Center in Williamstown that I always stop at. It takes me a good forty-five minutes to clean my tanks, but it’s necessary to do a good job.

\n

I had a few things going on with the camper this trip. One is, a leak has developed. Mr. FixIt got the ladder out for me and I think I found where the problem is. A seal on the top front edge of the camper is aging and cracked. The seals are only good for a few years and they need to be replaced so I guess it’s that time. When I was pumping up my tires before I left yesterday morning, I noticed the outside edge of one of them is shredding slightly. I need to check into that. Also, when I got home, I placed my hand on each hub and one was too hot to comfortably rest my hand on it. I need to tear into that and probably repack the bearings. There is a kind of hub you can get that has a valve on it and you can top off the grease before you travel just to make sure it is well lubricated. The downside of trailer ownership…constant maintenance.

\n

So, I’m home. The baby birds in the cypress tree out front are feathering out and they had their little beaks aimed high waiting for mama. The rabbits have eaten all but four bean plants in the garden, but the tomatoes are looking great. My pink dogwood is thriving. The irises and peonies are in full bloom. There is standing water around the yard from all the heavy rains in the last week. And, as I write this, I can hear the whip-poor-will in the hedgerow along the creek on the far side of the field. I’m sore all over from lugging and toting and hooking up and driving the camper so I’m calling it a night. When you read this, we’ll be mowing out at the farm and doing laundry. What a wonderful trip it has been. ❤️

\n

“May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us— yes, establish the work of our hands.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭90:17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-05-24T01:30:52-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/05/24/home-again.html", "tags": ["Travel","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","TOW-Wanda!","Camping","The Grand Adventure","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","goRVing","Girl Camper","Girl Campers"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/05/16/im-walkin-on-sunshine.html", "title": "I’m Walkin’ on Sunshine", "content_html": "

\"Coffee “Sitting in the morning sun, coffee in hand, Country Living Magazine…birds and roosters entertaining me. It’s a beautiful life!”

\n

One of summer’s delights in the east…a warm morning spent outside reading and sipping my morning coffee. We’ve hit the summer thunderboomer circuit early this year here in West Virginia. The skies are brilliantly clear in the morning. The humidity is high from the rain the afternoon before. The temperature soars by noon and the thunderclouds begin to build till they boil over. Thunder, lightning, hail, high winds all can play havoc with your plans.

\n

Mowing seems to be the big thing around here in the summer. I have to say, I did not miss lawn care and home maintenance in the years I traveled and lived in TOW-Wanda. It was a welcome break. But now that I have the chance to dive into the great outdoors and get dirty and sweaty, I have to admit, it beats going to a gym any day of the week.

\n

I mowed with the self-propelled push mower at the farm yesterday. What a workout! The yard is well over an acre, the temperature in the high eighties, the humidity sticky and thick. With my propensity towards heat exhaustion, I only mowed 15-20 minutes at a time, then took a break to rehydrate and lay in front of the fan. At that rate, it took me five hours to complete. It’s so beautiful when it’s finished. I took a few moments to just wander around and enjoy the surroundings. The rhododendron is just about to burst into bloom, as are the irises and peonies. The farm cats lazed around beneath the Rose of Sharon and the huge hydrangea bush along the creek. While the flowering quince is fading, the spice bush is in full bloom. I love this time of year.

\n

We are getting things geared up here at the Ponderosa to prepare for a summer of entertaining. Mr. FixIt has been working in the pool to get it open. We still need to pressure wash the deck but will wait for a dry spell. I’m heading out today for another road trip. This time I’ll be camping with the Girl Campers at a State Park in Ohio for a week. It’s a Mister Sister event so my mister will be joining me this weekend. I love camping with the girls! This year, our hostess…my dear friend Gail…is going to teach me to spin wool for sock yarn. I’ll have time to sit and knit on my socks and finally read my friend Michelle Cummins’ new book, The Reel Sisters. Peace and quiet in the beautiful woods surrounding one of my favorite campgrounds.

\n

As I sit here on the deck in the warm sunshine, a nice breeze blowing, listening to the rooster down the road, reading Country Living Magazine…my heart is overflowing with the blessings of my life. I’m such a far cry from the early days of my grief. The contrast is startling. The heart can mend itself…scarred, certainly. But infinitely full of hope. ❤️

\n

“So I rejoice, and I am glad. Even my body has hope.”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭16:9‬ ‭INternational Children’s Bible

\n", "date_published": "2018-05-16T06:39:50-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/05/16/im-walkin-on-sunshine.html", "tags": ["Faith","Travel","Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","TOW-Wanda!","Camping","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Peace","Wisdom","Humbled","Presence","Girl Camper","Girl Campers","Choices","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/05/12/mothers-day-weekend.html", "title": "Mother’s Day Weekend", "content_html": "

\"Mother’s “My mother’s love is with me always.”

\n

I went to the farm yesterday. I wanted to spend some time in my mother’s childhood home…the home of my heart. I miss my mom and I feel closer to her when I’m in the house she loved so much. Grandma’s house was the epicenter of our universe. She was happiest when she had all her kids and grandkids surrounding her. I can relate to that.

\n

My mom was special…as are all moms, right? She had a heart of gold. She had a laugh that I craved. She was simple. She was stubborn. She was pretty. She was generous. She loved with every ounce of her being. She took care of my brother till the Lord called her home. She was…good.

\n

We butted heads a lot when I was growing up…like most of us do. She insisted on doing things the l-o-n-g way and it made me crazy. She was an excellent seamstress. She basted everything together and was meticulous. I threw things together as fast as I could. That made HER crazy!

\n

She was a terrible cook. But she made a pineapple upside down cake that made you cry it was so good. When microwaves came out, she decided she had to have one to heat up her coffee. That’s when she switched to Folgers Instant. She bought the biggest microwave I have ever seen in my life…to heat up a coffee cup full of water. Oy. Did I mention she made me crazy?

\n

My mother taught me many things but most importantly, she taught me about God. It didn’t stick for a long, long time for me. As a matter of fact, I became a Christian after she passed away, so she never experienced that particular joy. I think the one thing I regret most as a mother is not teaching my children the love of God. They are grown, and they are lovely women. I try to live my life as an example. I love them and miss them very much.

\n

This is my 14th Mother’s Day without my mom. My kids are in Colorado so I won’t see them until I head there this summer. So, when I came back from the farm yesterday, Mr. FixIt had two dozen roses and a beautiful card with a handwritten note in it resting on the kitchen counter. What a sweet, thoughtful man this is. He just makes me smile!!

\n

If you are missing your mom today, my heart is with you, dear one. Losing your mom is such a sad, sad affair. If you are missing your babies, whether they live far away or further…in heaven…my heart breaks for you. I cannot imagine that loss. You are all in my prayers this Mother’s Day Weekend. ❤️

\n

“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭22:6‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2018-05-12T01:30:41-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/05/12/mothers-day-weekend.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Grief","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/05/09/like-a-boss.html", "title": "Like a Boss", "content_html": "

\"Brakes\" “Be prepared when you speak to a mechanic. Do your homework and walk in like a boss.”

\n

When you are on your own, you need to be proactive and assertive when you are dealing with people in service related businesses. I recently had to have brakes and rotors on all four wheels. While I did get advice from my trusted inner circle, I always do these things on my own. When Mr. FixIt wants to help me do things like this, I gently remind him that…while I appreciate it tremendously…I need to do these things because he may not be around someday when I need something done. This has been quite an adjustment for him, but I love when he brags on my capabilities to his guy friends.

\n

I have noticed a squeak in the new brakes the last few days so I took the truck back in yesterday to have it checked. It still was squeaking afterwards, so I’ll watch it for a couple of days then take it back again if need be. I don’t apologize to them. They need to make it right. That’s what I’m paying for. I know the small metal pin that squeaks when you need to have brakes replaced can sometimes be bent. Hopefully, it’s something that easy.

\n

Yesterday was jam packed. Errands all morning. Then Mr. FixIt and I walked the Quincy Hill steps. I mowed at the farm. And when I got over to his house, he was tilling in a garden for me. We bought some tomato plants Monday. I’m so excited! I haven’t had a garden in decades. The only down side is, there are a couple of sweet little bunnies who hang out in the area where the garden is so we’ll have to figure a way to keep them out. Do bunnies eat tomato plants? They are pretty aromatic. I’ve never gardened where rabbits were a problem. Ours was always deer lined up like they’re heading into a buffet!

\n

I love days like this! ❤️

\n

“And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.”\n‭‭Luke‬ ‭6:31‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2018-05-09T01:30:23-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/05/09/like-a-boss.html", "tags": ["Strong Women","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/05/08/my-favorite-wildflower.html", "title": "My Favorite Wildflower", "content_html": "
\n
    \n\"Trillium\"“Trillium - My Favorite Wildflower”
\n
\nIt’s a toss-up...trillium or Jack-in-the-Pulpit. I love them both, but since Jack-in-the-Pulpit doesn’t grow on the farm (at least, not that I have found) I’ll have to go with trillium. The pristine white, three-petalled blossoms come out in early May every year. The dogwood have bloomed, finally. Mayapple is up, but no blooms yet. I still haven’t ventured over to the ditch by the old garden to see if I can catch some sprigs of asparagus. The redbud is just about gone. It was amazing to watch trees leaf out in a matter of a couple of days this last week.\n

This is by far my favorite time of the year here in West Virginia. The world is coming back to life after a long, dull-grey winter with a vibrant spring-green not easily duplicated. The temps have dropped quite a bit from last week’s. I took the electric blanket off the bed last week when the night time temperatures weren’t going below the low 70’s. So, last night I had to dig around in the guest bedroom for something extra to throw on the bed. I came across an old “Bow Tie” quilt I bought at an antique store years ago. Some of the fabrics have become quite fragile, but these things are meant to be uses as far as I’m concerned. I love old quilts. I can always figure out a way to justify the expense.

\n

The other day, I was out cleaning up the camper preparing for the upcoming travel season. Remember how I told you Mr. Virgo sends me birds? Well, I came out the door to empty the dustpan and here was this little guy sitting there watching me. He didn’t seem afraid at all. I spoke to him gently and he stayed for a while then was gone. I didn’t see him coming or going. It was odd.

\n

I spent much of the day yesterday helping my friend Deneene begin the daunting task of downsizing and preparing to sell her house. It really brought up a lot of memories for me. Seems like forever ago. I came home and helped Mr. FixIt mow the Ponderosa. Then we grilled steaks for dinner. I added creamed new potatoes with peas, sliced tomatoes, and collard greens with peppered bacon, Vidalia Onions, and a splash of cider vinegar. It was a great day!

\n

I saw this little story on the Sisters on the Fly Facebook page yesterday. At some of our events, we hold a little “garage sale” by our tents and donate the proceeds to a charity, usually chosen by the event hostess. It seems this happened recently and a Sister brought a bagful of yarn and a half finished potholder. She explained to a lady looking over her wares that the yarn had belonged to her mother and she doesn’t crochet. The Sister bought the whole bag of yarn. Yesterday, she received a lovely note in the mail from her….with several finished potholders. The note read, “Now you can think of your mother. I hope you enjoy them!” I literally cried…what a sweet and loving gesture. This is why I love my girl camping friends. They have big hearts! ❤

\n

“For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.”\n‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭6:10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2018-05-08T01:30:07-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/05/08/my-favorite-wildflower.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Courage","Downsizing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/04/13/country-life-is-not-for.html", "title": "Country Life is Not for Sissies!", "content_html": "

\"Squirrel\" “There was a little squirrel…”

\n

Yesterday was the most beautiful so far this year. The temperature got up to 82…truly hot on the front porch at 5:00. I think this “cold” might be allergies. I was listening to the news and they said with the late spring rains and cool temperatures, the pollen counts have been held down. That is, until the last couple of days. It warmed up dramatically and the wind whipped the pollen count into a veritable poison soup for those of us allergic to everything outdoors. I don’t know what would have happened if I hadn’t already been taking antihistamines.

\n

I was sitting in the front window sipping my morning coffee and trying to decide if I was going to live or not when something outside caught my eye. A dark shadow passed by the window. When I looked closer, it was a vulture…sitting on my lawn. I swear he was looking at me. Dang…I knew I didn’t feel great, but…vultures? I was worried. So I went back to bed.

\n

With enough Benadryl on board to knock out a line backer, I snoozed half the afternoon away but woke up feeling much better. My cousin Charlotte stopped by to visit…my first “front porch company” of the season! She brought me a cute little camper birdhouse I can’t wait to hang up. New birds are showing up every day here at the farm. The brown headed cowbirds are back. And some really big blue jays. And, of course…vultures! Oy.

\n

I was wandering around last evening, checking out the flowers when I noticed Boy Cat chasing something…bigger than the usual mouse he’s after…definitely not a bird. I got closer and it was a….baby squirrel. I screamed. The cat froze, and for a moment, the little squirrel managed to get a couple of feet away. The cat and I stared each other down. I was praying for a little time for the baby to get to a safe place. The cat read my mind as I lunged for the little fur-ball and he took off like a shot. I grabbed a flower pot as the cat and I closed in but try as I might, I couldn’t get the pot over the baby! He scampered under the trailer with a blur of orange and white fur hot on his tail. The little squirrel wedged itself between the tire and the chock and I tried to shoo away the cat. He stood his ground like a Sherman tank. I made one last attempt by grabbing the baby squirrel’s tail but that spooked him and he took off under the camper. I scrambled around but I couldn’t get to him. I couldn’t help it. I really tried. But I had to get up and run in the house and close the door. I couldn’t watch. That was one determined cat. I can only pray the little squirrel got away.

\n

These are the norms of nature. Farm cats kill little wild things. And sometimes bigger wild things kill farm cats. The only thing that I am grateful for is Boy Cat didn’t leave a dead baby squirrel on my doorstep as a gift for his Food God. That would have done me in. ❤

\n

“The righteous care for the needs of their animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭12:10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

#Animals, #kindness, #farmlife

\n", "date_published": "2018-04-13T01:30:40-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/04/13/country-life-is-not-for.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Fear","Change","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/04/11/farming.html", "title": "Farming", "content_html": "

\"Burning “Burning an Old Tree Stump”

\n

With the onslaught of spring comes the inevitable chores. Yard work, cleaning out ditches. Picking up downed branches. Mr. FixIt is one of those guys who can’t be still…he has to be doing something. So, I asked him if he thought he could do something about that unsightly rotting tree trunk down at the end of the driveway. He did me one better. He got the lawnmower out of the barn and mulched up the leaves and got the first mowing of the season done. Then he went after the tree trunk. I am so grateful to have this man in my life. Not just for his Mr. FixIt capabilities…but for, everything!

\n

I remember when this tree was in its prime. My uncle says it died with the emerald ash borer infestation. Lots of trees around here did. Over the last decade or so, the trunk has very slowly rotted but not fast enough for me. I don’t have a chain saw. I didn’t feel like getting the hand saw after it. I have kicked chunks off of it, but that wood is still pretty hard down in there. Mr. FixIt decided we’d just burn it out. It was a sunny day, no wind to speak of. I must say…it was pretty impressive once it got going! It will take it a while to smolder down and be gone. Then later on I can plant a flowering shrub there like Hydrangea or Rose of Sharon. We have plenty of Quince and Forsythia so I don’t want to plant that. And I really don’t want to plant another tree. We bring campers in and out of this driveway so I don’t want branches blocking the way.

\n

Today is errand day and meeting my cousin’s wife for a big hug and a much needed visit. Every day brings us closer to warm summer evenings sitting on the porch drinking sweet tea. And every day brings us closer to saying goodbye to him whom we adore. This will be a bittersweet year. ❤️

\n

“The earth is the Lord ’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭24:1‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-04-11T01:30:11-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/04/11/farming.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/04/07/coveting-spring.html", "title": "Coveting Spring", "content_html": "

\"Daffodils “Daffodils by the Cistern”

\n

I set to work yesterday, determined to finish the taxes. I sorted through every bag of papers I brought to the farm with me, only to come up two papers short. By the time I discovered this, it was mid-afternoon so I texted Mr. FixIt. He was due to arrive in a few hours.

\n

“Change of plans.” I texted. “I’m coming home.”

\n

He is a patient and flexible man, thank goodness.

\n

\"Quince\" “Quince on the Creek Bank”

\n

I did a quick walkabout and caught some pictures of the flowers at the farm before I packed up the important stuff and headed to The Ponderosa. As I drove through the countryside, I marveled at the earth waking up all around me. I came around a bend and the pasture near an old, broken down farmhouse was dotted with daffodils. Great splashes of yellow spread out before me and I smiled. Someone…long ago…planted all these little bulbs in this field. I knew. There was once a woman who coveted spring as much as me. I could imagine her living in what may have seemed a hovel…or perhaps, a castle to her. She worked hard to keep her family fed and her farm in order. Maybe she bought a bag of little daffodil bulbs at the feed store with her egg money…an impulse purchase meant to bring joy in the springs to come. And, long after she was dead and gone, I swung around that bend in the road and thought of the nameless, faceless woman with a love for all things fresh and new.

\n

\"Daffodils “Grandma’s Daffodils “

\n

I whispered my thanks to her and drove on. ❤

\n

““Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.”\n‭‭Luke‬ ‭12:27-31‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-04-07T01:30:31-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/04/07/coveting-spring.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Peace","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/04/03/springtime-on-the-farm.html", "title": "Springtime on the Farm", "content_html": "

\"Daffodils\" “Grandma’s Daffodils”

\n

This is my ultimate favorite time to be on the farm. While there isn’t a chorus of “peepers” here like there is at the Ponderosa (Mr. FixIt’s land), there is a chorus of songbirds, owls, and the creek running outside the bedroom window to lull you to sleep at night. Not to mention the sounds of the rain on the tin roof here in this old farmhouse.

\n

The lay of this land is different than Mr. FixIt’s. His is a flat five acres with the house, pool and outbuilding tucked over towards one corner. He has a couple of creeks, but they aren’t close enough to hear at night. I believe there is more usable land at his place than there is in the whole of seventy-four acres at the farm. The farmhouse sits on a long, narrow strip of land nestled between two steep hillsides comprising what is colloquially referred to as a “holler”. The driveway runs up one side of the house to the barn and outbuildings and the creek runs down the other side. The hillsides are heavily forested with deciduous and evergreen trees. There are walnut, hickory nut, flowering dogwood, sycamore, poplar, oak, maple, cherry, and redbud all up and down through here.

\n

Grandma treasured her flowers and the first of them…the daffodils…have bloomed. Now that Mr. FixIt’s hand is healed from his surgery and he doesn’t have PT three times a week, we can spend more time here.

\n

I’m looking forward to our annual road trip to the beach in three weeks so I’m trying to get things caught up at both houses. Hopefully we will get a side trip in to visit my cousin and his family in Bristol, Tennessee. Not too long after that is the first Girl Camping event that I’m attending. Camping season is soon upon us. My big summer project is to finish reworking my ‘67 Franklin camper and I can finally have that vintage trailer to dress up and play in! Today is supposed to be in the low 70’s with some up and down temps until next week when we get some really warm weather coming in. I am so much happier when I can get out in the sunshine and leave the coat behind. ❤️

\n

“For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.”\n‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭61:11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

#spring, #flowers, #growth

\n", "date_published": "2018-04-03T01:30:38-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/04/03/springtime-on-the-farm.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/03/28/rain-on-a-tin-roof.html", "title": "Rain on a Tin Roof", "content_html": "

\"Fluffy “Boy Cat”

\n

Mr. FixIt and I both have a stack of things to do so we’re hunkered down in our respective houses working away. There’s taxes and banking, a new computer to set up, bills to pay, and writing deadlines. Every day I get a greater sense of urgency to copy my Facebook posts over to my website and it stuns me how much content is there. I know there is an end, but it’s nowhere in sight at the moment. I have been copying each post to the website for the last sixteen months. The backlog is entered up to September 2014, with a few blank spots I have to fill in.

\n

If you have to be stuck inside doing paperwork, at least the weather isn’t sunny and warm outside. It rained off and on all day yesterday and as I typed this post last night, a gentle rain pattered on the tin roof of the farm house. I cannot hear that sound without smiling. I know every sound, every creak, every settling whisper of this old house. When I am here, I am wrapped in the arms of family memories as comforting as one of grandma’s quilts. The weather forecast shows a prolonged rain pattern which is typical for this time of year in West Virginia. It’s mud season. So there will be a few more nights of rain song here at “Marshmallow Ranch.”

\n

The daffodils are almost open here on the farm. This little holler stays a good bit cooler than some of the surrounding area because we don’t get a lot of sun. Our flowers are always just a little bit behind. When I was copying posts over yesterday, there were several pictures of the farm in all its verdant splendor. I want time to slow down from now to October. I want to pay very close attention to the buds and flowers and leaves and not miss a thing. I want to stay present and mindful. We are heading into my very favorite time of the year and I am going to enjoy every second of it! ❤️

\n

“Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime; it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms. He gives showers of rain to all people, and plants of the field to everyone.”\n‭‭Zechariah‬ ‭10:1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-03-28T01:30:17-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/03/28/rain-on-a-tin-roof.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/03/27/peace.html", "title": "Peace", "content_html": "

\"Relaxing “Peace on the Porch”

\n

I don’t think you can see in this picture, but there are some forsythia starting to bloom on the far side of the bank and some quince on this side. Another day or two and you’ll really be able to see them. Not much green on the hillsides yet, but the fields and lawns are greening up nicely here in West Virginia.

\n

I came out to the farm for a little retreat because I have some writing deadlines. Yesterday, I worked on copying posts over to the website again. I have to spend some time on it every day and get it done before Facebook implodes. I’m up to the point in the blog where I am downsizing. Selling the house, getting rid of 95% of my personal belongings. Getting the house staged. I am not taking the time to read these posts as a rule, but a couple of the headlines caught my attention and I skimmed through two or three of the posts. OMGosh! I had totally forgotten how horrendous that whole process was! I am SO happy to be on the other side of it now.

\n

As I was writing yesterday afternoon, I had the doors open to let the breeze through and air out the house. All of a sudden, I heard the screen door in the kitchen open and close. I jumped up like I was shot and looked in and there was Boy Cat on his way into the house. He took one look at me and thought better of it and backed out slowly. I went in and shut the door because I don’t have a hook on that screen. Tricky boy!

\n

Then last night I was propped up writing this when I heard a mighty crash on the back porch and knew right away what it was. I had left the lid off the cat food can. I ran out and sure enough, there was a little possum in the can, munching away. I shooed him off and locked the lid on. Just a little while later, I had to break up a cat fight just outside the back door. Then not too long after that, I heard what I assume was the neighbor’s dog trotting up the creek past my bedroom window to see if there were any treats to be had. Sorry Mr. Doggy…Mr. Possum got here first!

\n

Such is life back on the farm. I love it here and especially miss it in the spring. We need to stay here more now that the spring flowers will be in bloom before long. Life is good…no matter where we are. ❤️

\n

““Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”\n‭‭Matthew‬ ‭11:28‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2018-03-27T01:30:52-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/03/27/peace.html", "tags": ["Faith","Grief","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/03/11/god-always-knows.html", "title": "God Always Knows", "content_html": "

\"Lewis “Lewis Cemetery”

\n

As I’m sure you can tell, I’ve been dreading the fifth angelversary of Mr. Virgo’s death tomorrow. I’ve been really struggling the last week…to the point one of my dear friends contacted me yesterday to see how I was doing. Actually, by yesterday morning I was feeling much better, but I still felt something was missing. I couldn’t put my finger on it. Then a chain of events happened that directed my day and by last night I was lifted back up and set on solid ground. Here’s how it went down.

\n

First, I slept a solid ten hours and awoke feeling refreshed. I’m not a terrific sleeper as a rule, but I slept like a stone. Mr. FixIt informed me a neighbor passed away and he needed to go to the funeral home. I assumed he would go without me, and quite frankly I didn’t think going to a funeral home when I was feeling down about my own loss was such a terrific idea. Then, he asked me if I wanted to go. We were at a funeral last weekend. Here, we were just going to the viewing. I didn’t know anyone, but something told me I should just go…so I dressed and went along.

\n

I was introduced around to the family. I hugged the widow and spoke quietly with her for a bit, offering what comfort a stranger (yet a fellow widow) could give. I stood at the coffin, thinking the horrible memories of five years ago would come crashing on my head at any moment…but they did not. Instead of seeing Mr. Virgo in his casket, I saw a man who was very much missed by his best friend and my heart went out to her. I felt honored to be there and not sick or devastated. My dread started to dissipate.

\n

We ran home to change and Mr. FixIt asked what I wanted to do. I told him I wanted to run over to the cemetery where my great grandfather is buried. I hadn’t been there since I was a teenager and I wanted to see if there were any other family members from my tree buried there. So, from the funeral home to a cemetery. What could go wrong?

\n

The day was brisk but sunny. As we drove out the two lane blacktop, we passed a field and I did a double take. There, standing in the middle of a pasture, was a young man…high school age, perhaps…with a music stand playing a trombone! The sight was so incongruous Mr. FixIt and I both burst out laughing. The cemetery was around the next bend and as we walked among the tombstones, the timbre of the trombone wafted gently on the breeze over the far ridge. I could not help but smile, feeling God was sending me a sweet gift.

\n

The cemetery was a sight when we arrived. All of the flower containers had been knocked over, flowers strewn among the graves, flags honoring fallen soldiers laying on the ground…some half covered with leaves. We were preparing to leave when I turned and said, “I can’t leave them like this.” So, we walked around, straightening up, calling the dead ones by name. I remember so often going to visit Mr. Virgo’s grave across the road from our house in Colorado. I laid stones around the perimeter…one stone from every trip I took. I realized one of the things I was missing…and hurting over…was not being able to visit Mr. Virgo’s grave tomorrow. Instead, God lead me to visit an ancestor I never knew. Again…the feeling of dread lifted more.

\n

We were so close to the farm, we decided to go on out. Whenever I am feeling down, that farm is my panacea. I fed the kitties and walked through the rooms…touching the furniture, the doors, my grandparents bed. I walked around the house and checked on my ‘67 Franklin camper…”Joy”. I turned to Mr. FixIt.

\n

“Can we take her over to your place soon and start working on her?” I asked hopefully.

\n

“You bet we can.” Mr. FixIt smiled and gave me a big hug.

\n

Lift, lift, lift.

\n

We stopped and visited my cousin’s wife at her barn. She was feeding the chickens and the big white rabbit named Isabella.

\n

Lift, lift, lift.

\n

We drove to town and had supper at my favorite diner.

\n

Lift, lift, lift.

\n

We came home and I sat down to write. My dear friend who had been so concerned about me yesterday morning called and asked if I felt better after my drive. I really did! You know…every year is going to be another year since Mr. Virgo died. There will be times of sorrow. There will be reminders and waves of grief. I know I have the added blessing of having Mr. FixIt in my life. His heart is big enough to hold me AND Mr. Virgo. Such a good, good man. Letting go and letting God lift me up was the solution all along. There’s nothing God and a little sunshine can’t fix! ❤

\n

“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you.”\n‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭60:1-2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-03-11T01:30:21-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/03/11/god-always-knows.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Grace","Wisdom","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/03/01/morning-walkabout.html", "title": "Morning Walkabout", "content_html": "

\"“Rhododendron “Rhododendron and the gas light”

\n

What an absolute treat it was to wake up out at the farm yesterday morning. Grandma’s bedroom is right along the creek’s edge and with all the rain we have been having, the sound of the water riffling along was like a lullaby. I slept so well and awoke refreshed and ready to face a busy day.

\n

Mr. FixIt and I did a morning walkabout on the property to check things out. He moved some fallen limbs from the ditch along the road and placed them on the burn pile. The daffodils are up about 8” high already and the grass is greening up nicely. I’ll need to mow before too long to mulch up the leaves that fell over the fall and winter. The rhododendron gets huge buds on them in the fall. They winter over and won’t bloom till late May or early June. They are still beautiful as they awaken from winter with a freshened shine to their leaves. They don’t drop their leaves like so many other plants. They just droop down all winter then stand up with their arms stretched wide in the spring.

\n

I am leaving today for a long camping weekend with the Girl Campers. We’ll be staying in cabins this trip. We try to get together in the late winter when the roads aren’t too bad. We work on whatever craft projects we have going. We make soups to share. These are some of the nicest women I have ever known and I look forward to these trips with great anticipation. I’ll share projects and recipes with you along the way but my writing may be a bit sparse this weekend as I take the time to kick back with my friends and relax.

\n

I do have some prayer requests for some wonderful people who are touched by illness. Please pray for healing, comfort, and God’s will. He knows who the prayers are for. Thank you all for your wonderful prayer support. There are many stars in your crowns. ❤️

\n

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”\n‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:26‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-03-01T02:30:16-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/03/01/morning-walkabout.html", "tags": ["Faith","Travel","Prayer","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","Camping","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Wisdom","Presence","Girl Camper","Girl Campers"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/02/28/west-virginia-wanderings.html", "title": "West Virginia Wanderings", "content_html": "

\"Woman At the WVU Basketball Game

\n

After having breakfast with a granddaughter who is a student at WVU, we headed off to explore the area further south where my ancestors were from. I have this thing for cemeteries. I am always curious as to who these people were. Do they still have visitors? Do they have people who remember them and tell their stories? Or has it been so long that all of their loved ones are dead and gone and no one knows to even look for them. Or…worse yet…no one cares.

\n

We drove through three counties before we finally found the cemetery I was originally looking for. But we found surprises along the way. First, when I was looking for my step-great grandmother…the only one I knew…I found she was buried beside her first husband, under his name. No mention of her last husband, my great grandfather. I am not surprised. He was a bit of a scoundrel and that is probably one bit of family history her kids would like to forget.

\n

The next place we stumbled upon was the West Virginia National Cemetery. I did not realize there are 135 national cemeteries under the auspices of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ National Cemetery Administration in 40 states (and Puerto Rico) as well as 33 soldier’s lots and monument sites. The West Virginia cemetery is vastly smaller than the most famous…Arlington National Cemetery. And still…the identical small white headstones stretched in meticulous formation across the rolling hills of green in a sobering reminder of those who have served our country, many giving their lives for the privilege. I was humbled by that.

\n

\"WV WV National Cemetery

\n

The last stop was Harmony Grove Cemetery near Grafton, West Virginia. I was looking for one set of great grandparents and had read the death certificate incorrectly. They weren’t buried there after all. As we were driving through on our way out, a name jumped out at me and I called out…”Stop the truck!” I jumped out and ran down a lane of old headstones. Somewhere I had caught a glimpse of the name Mauller, but it got lost in the rows and blended in. I retraced my steps from the original vantage point and there they were! I was so excited to find the graves of two of my 3rd great grandparents along with a couple of their many children. I talked to them and told them who I was and how I came to be. I even have a picture of “Tillie” in my family tree. I was really excited to get this surprise piece of the puzzle.

\n

\"Mauller My 3rd Great Grandparents

\n

I often use Find-a-Grave to research where my ancestors are buried. Most of the time, someone has snapped a picture of the headstone and I can add it to my tree. I’ve had a picture of these headstones for years but never saw them. But here’s the bummer part of the story. When I got home, I looked Harmony Grove up on Find-a-Grave and…would you believe…there’s about twenty more of my family buried there and I didn’t see them!!! It was getting late and Mr. FixIt and I were both getting pretty hungry and tired and I just didn’t do my due diligence. It’s ok, though. This allows for another nice drive in the country. AND…we had dinner at one of our favorite restaurants…Olivierio’s in Clarksburg. The BEST Italian food!

\n

To top the day off, we stopped at the farm to feed the kitties and decided to stay the night so I am snuggled in grandma’s bed as I write this, listening to the water in the creek, and feeling so rich and complete. We remarked at dinner that we feel like we’ve been on vacation for a week and it cost just a little over $100! What a wonderful break. And…this weekend is a Girl Camper trip so stay tuned for some camping (ok, cabin-ing) fun!!! ❤️

\n

“I thank my God every time I remember you.”\n‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1:3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-02-28T02:30:18-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/02/28/west-virginia-wanderings.html", "tags": ["Family","Travel","Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Love","Humbled","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/02/25/grandmother-faces.html", "title": "Grandmother Faces", "content_html": "

\"Grandma “Grandma and me at about the same age.”

\n

I met my gal pals for coffee yesterday…these magnificent ‘71 Divas Do Coffee. We started meeting once a month about four years ago to gather at a coffee shop and participate in a little “caffeine therapy”. I had a coffee group in Colorado that met once a week for 35 years and I really missed the camaraderie. I gathered up my friends and invited them out and now we can’t imagine not getting to see each other at least that once a month visit. There are now offshoots of the group that meet for lunch almost every week. Some of them meet to take care of a flower garden in the City Park. A few of them are going to drive down Monday to see a sick friend in Huntington. They are a grand group of gals with many common bonds…predominantly graduating high school together.

\n

Some of us were talking yesterday about how different our grandmas were when they were our age. And how we looked at them then as SO old. We are just heading into our Medicare years. We are active, healthy, and youthful compared to our counterparts when they were 65.

\n

Now, don’t get me wrong. My grandma was a hard worker. She could work circles around women half her age. But there were differences. Some grandmas in the ‘60s worked at home. They had raised their kids and their gardens…they washed clothes in a wringer washer and hung them outside to dry. They washed their kitchen floors on their hands and knees. They rarely went to the doctor. They baked their own bread, canned and preserved food from their land. They killed rattlesnakes and copperheads in the outhouse. They cut down trees and hauled brush. They wore sensible shoes and modest cotton house dresses with a belt and a pocket for their hankies. They may not have had much formal education yet they were smart in every way necessary. They knew their neighbors and they knew their bibles. They more than likely didn’t drink or smoke. They were a different breed.

\n

Our generation had many more opportunities than our grandparents’ did. We moved from the farm and worked a 9-5 at an office or nursing at a hospital. We worked hard, to be sure…but not necessarily at hard labor. We got better educations, better healthcare. We voted and protested and worked for women’s rights. We bought our food in a grocery store. We had modern conveniences like automatic washing machines and dryers and dishwashers and microwaves. We bought ourselves some time. We had clubs and entertainment. We had television and news of world events. And we inched ever closer to that glass ceiling.

\n

Fashion aside, 65 year old grandmothers now are vastly different than most grandmothers of the ‘50s and ‘60s. Did my grandma FEEL old when she was my age? Do our grandchildren SEE us as ancient like we saw our grandparents. It boils down to how WE feel and I feel younger in most ways than I did thirty years ago. I know that won’t last forever. I’m feeling the pain of arthritis in my hands and knees and hips. I don’t remember quite as well as I used to. I have to take a handful of pills at night. But, I’m telling you this right now…I won’t go down without a fight! Because…today is the BEST day…the ONLY day that matters. I’m looking forward to many more.  ❤

\n

“Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained in the way of righteousness.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭16:31‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-02-25T02:30:23-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/02/25/grandmother-faces.html", "tags": ["Strong Women","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Aging","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/02/23/blurred-lines.html", "title": "Blurred Lines", "content_html": "\"\"\n

We were driving out to the farm the other day and saw a for sale sign on a property just down the road. I went on the real estate sales website to look it up. I was curious to see if the property shared a boundary with the farm. There is an old homestead up there that I remember going to when I was a very young child. Grandma and Mom had taken me to an auction they were having. I was given a hot dog and placed in a little blue wagon and pulled all around. Grandma bought the jelly cupboard that’s in the kitchen. It was painted with several coats of white enamel and Pop-Pop let me “help” him scrape the paint off. That cupboard is the only piece of furniture I will inherit from the farm and I cherish it.

\n

I scrolled through the pictures in the real estate listing and it’s a beautiful property. The old home place is pretty dilapidated but it sits up on the hill in a huge meadow surrounded by trees. There’s about 150 acres, mostly treed hillsides. It has a steep price tag considering its location. But what interested me was that little “dog leg” piece you see out front.

\n

I remember my grandparents telling the story of how they bought a four acre strip of land out front that would give their farm direct access to the road. They bought that strip from their neighbor and friend for the grand sum of $1.00. I imagine Pop-Pop did some work for the man as payment. That was often the case back in the day. As I looked at this tax map of the property that was on the website, I got to thinking about that story and not knowing if our properties are adjacent, I made a trip to the County Courthouse yesterday afternoon.

\n

I started in the Tax Assessors office and was quickly referred to the County Clerk’s Office. After going back and forth at least three more times, I finally had enough information to answer my question. First of all, the long axis of the properties do not touch, save for the narrow strips in the front. That “dog leg” of theirs is 12.5 acres and I know ours is only four. I’m glad I got the information I needed but I also got an interesting lesson in the history of the area and how incredibly convoluted land lines are in West Virginia.

\n

The only land purchases I have had experience with were in Colorado. Being a much newer state, the land tracts started out much bigger. And everything is surveyed. West Virginia? Not so much. I could not find a survey or land plat for our farm or either of the adjoining properties. As I was searching through the deeds in the County Clerk’s Office, one of the county surveyors came in to do some research. The clerk and I were discussing how much a land survey costs and she asked him. He laughed. It could be anywhere from $500 to $10,000 depending on the size of the property and whether you can ride a 4-wheeler around the perimeter. That’s when I laughed. Most of the property out there is steep, heavily forested hillsides dipping down into narrow “hollers”. There’s no way a 4-wheeler could make it through that.

\n

The most fascinating thing I found was the description of the property lines on the deeds. This deed for the four acre piece out front was made on April 17, 1946 and reads like this:

\n

“Beginning at a stone pine in an original line, and a corner of _________’s lands, thence with said original line and using old call S. 9 E. 45.5 poles to a stone pile original corner; thence with another original line and using old call S. 83 W. 9. poles to a point in road; thence with said road N. 3 degrees 50’ W. 25 poles; thence N. 19 degrees 20’ W. 16 poles and 3.5 links; thence leaving said road N. 71 degrees 20’ E. 16.5 poles to place of beginning, containing 4 acres, more or less.”

\n

What?

\n

The surveyor explained it to me like this. He can decide he’s going to sell five acres of his place. He can go out, set four stakes, call it five acres and if the buyer agrees, you’re done. That’s because most property like that is bought and sold for cash. If the property is financed, it needs to be surveyed. And who can afford that?

\n

It’s a pretty crazy system and led to a really fun afternoon of research. When I was done at the Assessor’s office, I drove back out past the farm to where they are building the road out to the new gas compressor. I wanted to find out exactly where it was on this new map I had in hand. The flaggers couldn’t pick it out on the map, so I asked for landmarks. When they told me it was on the ridge above the old church, I knew exactly where it was and my work was done.

\n

Four acres for a dollar. We’ll never see that again. ❤️

\n

“The Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever.”\n‭‭Genesis‬ ‭13:14-15‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-02-23T02:30:17-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/02/23/blurred-lines.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/02/21/a-taste-of-spring.html", "title": "A Taste of Spring", "content_html": "

\"Burger “Burger al Fresco”

\n

One of the upsides of Facebook memories is documented progress. One of my readers shared a post yesterday that I wrote a year ago. I was declaring how gorgeous spring is in West Virginia. I observed the earth coming back to life, the shoots of spring bulbs exploding from the moist soil, the greening up of the world. I spoke of all the new babies being born in the fields surrounding the farm. And I talked about budding romances and how I was ready to try again. And here I am…a year later and in a relationship with a wonderful man. He is a constant reminder of how good God is to me.

\n

We awoke yesterday to the most gorgeous of early spring days. I had a dream. I don’t remember my dreams like I used to before Mr. Virgo died. And I seldom dream of him. I dreamt I was supposed to send Mr. Virgo a text every day with a scripture in it. Suddenly, he stopped responding to my texts. I looked everywhere for him. I asked everyone if they had seen him and they just stared blankly back at me. Six months went by and then a year, then three. No word. Then, out of the blue, someone told me he had “moved on”. I felt confused. Did he move on as in, he left me for someone else? When I was fully awake, I realized what “moved on” really meant. I had an instant wave of the creepy crawlies on the backs of my arms, then it went away and I was fine. Grief visits fleetingly sometimes…like a sparrow flitting in the brush just out of view.

\n

The temperature got up over 80 degrees. We had coffee by the pool and then headed to the farm. We cleaned inside and out. Mr. FixIt filled the bird feeders. I changed the spotlight on the three story barn. We stopped at the neighborhood grocer and bought a pound of fresh ground hamburger and sliced longhorn cheese. When we got home, we took the grill from the garage and put it on the deck by the pool and grilled burgers outside. It was sheer heaven to sit out in shorts and enjoy the evening.

\n

Some days get burned in your memory to keep for all time. That was yesterday. There were a lot of trees down from the saturated soil and the brisk winds earlier in the day. Baby calves lay in the muddy fields by their mamas. A cardinal sang in the forsythia bush by the side gate. Mr. FixIt took the drone he got for Christmas and went outside to “play” after supper. I heard a tree fall in the woods beyond the field. A rooster crowed in the distance. Neighbors waved as they passed by. My heart felt full and ached with the beauty of it all. Jesus promised he would make all things new one day. Spring is his way of giving us a taste of things to come.

\n

I am all too aware of how fragile this life is. It could be gone tomorrow. So I practice my word of the year and stay present. And I thank God for every moment. ❤️

\n

“He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.””\n‭‭Revelation‬ ‭21:5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-02-21T02:30:19-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/02/21/a-taste-of-spring.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Grief","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/01/26/do-you-hear-that.html", "title": "Do You Hear That?", "content_html": "\"Earth\"\n

When I first moved to West Virginia in October 2014, I was living in my camper out on the farm. Shortly after my arrival, I began to notice a low humming sound every night when I went to bed. At first, I thought perhaps something was wrong with some mechanism in the camper itself. Then I thought perhaps the furnace in the house was so loud I was hearing it. I ruled both theories out when I discovered it was continuous, not cyclical.

\n

The sound was similar to a prop plane running its engines about a half mile away. Or a diesel tractor trailer idling down the road. I asked my aunt and she gave me that “you’re kooky” look I always got when I said something…ok, well, pretty much whenever I spoke to her. She didn’t hear anything, she said. “It’s all in your head.”

\n

I may have believed that because I do have tinnitus…that high pitched whine I have from too many rock concerts and running machinery without hearing protection. This wasn’t high pitched though. It was low, droning, monotonous, maddening. When I learned they were doing deep drilling on the hill about two ridges over from the farm, I thought that was my answer. But I heard it other places as well. So that wasn’t it.

\n

I didn’t notice it so much when I lived up at the river. There was river and train traffic and highways on both the West Virginia and the Ohio side. And, I didn’t hear it in Colorado. Just here. In the country. I don’t remember ever hearing it growing up. After a while, I became pretty accustomed to it. If I did notice it bothering me, there is an app on my iPad that plays white noise or nature sounds and I just turned it on and drowned it out. I do sleep with earplugs but that’s really only good for higher frequency sound. They only served to dampen the ambient noise and accentuate the low pitched frequencies.

\n

A few months ago, Mr. FixIt was reading beside me and I put my iPad down and said, “Do you hear that???” He said, “Yeah…that low pitched humming noise? What IS that???” Finally!!! Corroboration! We searched the house. We went outside. We could not identify a source. It bugged us to no end. It seems to be louder on some nights than on others. Sometimes I don’t notice it. Last night it sounded like a plane getting ready for takeoff on the pool deck out back. Oy!

\n

I finally turned to the internet for an answer and came up with this article.

\n

http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/have-you-heard-the-hum-mystery-of-earths-low-droning-noise-could-now-be-solved-10182111.html

\n

Apparently, this is a phenomenon that has plagued certain people who can hear this low droning noise and others can’t. I’m glad to know there is some explanation for it. We are hearing the earth…vibrating. It gives me some comfort to know I am not alone and I’m not crazy, but it’s still pretty maddening. How about you all? Do you hear “the hum” where you are? ❤️

\n

“when the doors to the street are closed and the sound of grinding fades; when people rise up at the sound of birds, but all their songs grow faint;”\n‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭12:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-01-26T02:30:24-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/01/26/do-you-hear-that.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","New Ideas","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/01/23/january-walkabout.html", "title": "January Walkabout", "content_html": "\"Old\n

Although I am at the farm quite often, I only do a real walkabout once every month or two. I check the outbuildings for damage, do a quick inventory of the chores that need doing, watch for trees than need felled before they come down where I don’t want them, and get a feel for the land in every season. That way I am more aware when things look out of the ordinary and I can fix them right away. I’ve noticed the old tool shed has tipped more toward the barn so this summer I’m going to have to get down under the back corner with a hydraulic jack to even it up. The yard is yet again full of mole hills. I need to spread something to kill the cutworms they feed on and that will send them on to greener pastures. I need to get ahead of the poison ivy in the spring. It’s easy to spot the vines when the leaves are off. The vines are “hairy” and often grow up the sides of buildings and other trees.

\n\"Boy\n

Yesterday, Boy Cat accompanied me as I meandered about the lower land around the farmhouse. His soft mewing and purring let me know he was glad to see me, even though he rarely comes close to me. I am nothing more than his Food God…”The One Who Opens the Can”. He is very sweet and I’m always grateful nothing has gotten him in the surrounding woods where he hunts. I still mourn for Old Mama Kitty. The sad thing about losing farm cats…there is seldom “closure”. Kitty Boy, the youngster, has grown into a sturdy, sleek, shorthaired version of Boy Cat. He is as aloof as ever and will not be on the porch at the same time as me. He will sit still and look at me if I stand in the kitchen and look out the back door. Nothing I have ever done has won him over…he is truly a wild boy.

\n\"Winter\n

The hydrangea is heavy with dried flower clusters…some as big as luncheon plates. The tubs that caught rain at the corners of the house got caught in the freeze and unfortunately have burst their seams. I want to get a couple plastic fifty-five gallon drums to catch the rainwater. Here in West Virginia, you can have cisterns to filter and store rainwater for washing, cooking, and drinking if you boil it. In Colorado, it is against the law to catch rain because we do not own that water. It has been sold to drier climates downstream. They are dead serious about it, too. I noticed several honeybees in my bird feeder yesterday. The weather is warming up and they are browsing for something to eat. I’ll look up what to put out for them and do that the next time I’m at the farm.

\n

 

\n\"Deadfall\n

Hopefully the weather will cooperate and we can spend the weekend out there. Mr. Fixit built a dam in the stairwell going to the basement to keep the water from flooding in like it did week before last. We are due for some heavy rains in the next few days and we need to make sure that protects the basement before we leave for any length of time. Ahhh, the downside of country living…there is always something needing built, rebuilt, repaired or torn down.

\n\"Moss\n

Oh….and an update on the snowy owl. The rescue folks got his weight up and his wing healed nicely. They took him north to the south shore of Lake Erie over the weekend and released him back into the wild. They posted a slow motion video of him taking flight and heading off into the distance. It was a beautiful thing. He was a magnificent creature and there is every hope he will thrive as they released him in the southernmost region of his winter territory. Several other snowy owls were reported in the region so he should do well.

\n\"Boy\n

That’s all from West Virginia today. I hope you all are well and maybe enjoying a little “spring-like weather” before the next cold snap. It was in the mid-60’s yesterday. I’ll take that any day of the week over the frigid temps we faced at the first of the year. ❤️

\n

“Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.””\n‭‭Genesis‬ ‭13:17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2018-01-23T02:30:47-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/01/23/january-walkabout.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Peace","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/01/20/savor-the-sweet.html", "title": "Savor the Sweet", "content_html": "\"Woman\n

The first time I set foot in a trout stream, I was six years old. It was the summer before my life would be forever changed by the illicit touch of a stranger. The summer of 1960 found my family on its very first vacation. We traveled to the mountains of West Virginia and rented a small cabin for a week. I remember mom frying trout in an iron skillet. I remember my brother and I playing quietly in the shade of the many trees surrounding our camp. I remember my dad standing in the shallow middle, up to his knees, casting over and over with the flies he had meticulously tied at his workbench in the basement. And I remember the river. The North Fork of the South Branch of the Potomac River, to be exact.

\n

I didn’t have much experience with open bodies of water. Mom had instilled an unhealthy fear of water in me with stories of the time she saved her baby sister from drowning. She had no intention of ever having to save me, so I was banished from any water sports. And, it turns out…I’m a bit of a water baby. I remember one day in particular. Dad was out in his favorite fishing hole, patiently casting, and I stood at the river’s edge. I contemplated the ripples as they passed over the smooth river rocks. I gazed at the deep pools that changed to the color of emeralds where the sandy bottom lay two or three feet below. I delighted at the light dancing on the surface like a thousand diamonds and the trout flashing as they breached the surface to catch their next meal.

\n

That was a simple and peaceful summer…the last I would know before my innocence was taken from me. But, that is not to say, I have never found moments that have recaptured that sense of awe and wonder. I have…many times. Yesterday was one of those days that delivered sweet things…one after another…till I was overflowing with the beauty and simplicity of it all.

\n

I made my routine trip to the farm to see how the kitties are fairing. I checked the stove and the basement. I sat, as I always do, in the chair in “Grandma’s Window” and watched the birds at the feeder. I listened to the sounds of an old house…living and breathing…its bones creaking like the old woman that she is. I watched the pendulum in Mr. Virgo’s clock swing back and forth, reminding me I couldn’t stay too long. We had company coming.

\n

I stopped at the neighbor’s for a bit and delivered a small gift of French Truffles. We passed the time, catching up on the news of the neighbors and I left with promises it wouldn’t be so long till my next visit. I turned the truck toward home. I checked the mail and found a pink slip…a package had come and would be waiting for me at the post office. Mr. FixIt offered to go pick it up as I put the groceries away. I no sooner sat down till our company arrived.

\n

Mr. FixIt’s granddaughter and her family brought their baby to see Papaw and GG! I have inherited a whole passel of people in this relationship, including a son and his wife, a daughter and her man, three granddaughters (two of whom have significant others), a grandson and his girlfriend, and a great granddaughter. You know what that means, don’t you? I am a great grandmother! And…considering I am WAY too young to be one (smile)…I am GG. Great Grandma. Grandma Ginny. GG. It suits me. The baby is four months old and the most precious little thing. What a treat to hold and rock a little one again!

\n

Before long, Mr. FixIt came back with my box. I couldn’t wait to open it. It was a special introductory gift box from my dear friend, and fellow Sister on the Fly, Michelle McMullen Cummings with her newly published book, The Reel Sisters! https://www.thereelsisters.com/product/the-reel-sisters-gift-box/ Now I have two books to read, one published and one unpublished with an invitation to write early praise for its release. Both written by strong women I admire and I can’t wait to get into them! The reminder of these sister friendships warmed my heart as rocked and sang a lullaby to the newest member of our immediate family. I thought…”I will teach you to fly, little sister” as I sniffed the top of her sweet, soft head.

\n\"\"\n

I am enjoying getting to know and bond with Mr. FixIt’s family. As his granddaughter bundled up the baby and prepared to leave yesterday, she turned to me and said, “I like you. You make my grandpa very happy.” I like her, too. She reminds me a little of myself when I was her age. A young mother, in love with her baby, her life stretching before her like an endless summer. It filled me with a soft warmth. As I sat propped in our bed last night, typing away at the keyboard writing this post, that very happy Papaw came in with a small bowl of ice cream and a kiss on the top of my head. And I swear…my heart exploded with joy.

\n

The sweet simplicity of a life lived with boundless joy. My God has delivered me far, far from the pain life can bring. For now. There will be pain again. There always is. This is life, after all. The difference is, I have this now. I am building my insurance policy. These stories are money in my emotional bank…stories to look back upon one day and remember the joy I felt on a cold January day in the sun. ❤️

\n

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”\n‭‭James‬ ‭1:17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-01-20T02:30:14-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/01/20/savor-the-sweet.html", "tags": ["Faith","Family","Travel","Uplifting Stories","Grief","Hope","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Love","God","Peace","Wisdom","Presence","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/01/10/a-welcome-sight.html", "title": "A Welcome Sight", "content_html": "\"Winter\n

The sun! Ok, it was out for less than fifteen minutes at the farm today…but, oh! What a divine fifteen minutes that was!!! Ok, that is what is the hardest thing about living in the Mid-Ohio Valley as opposed to the Roaring Fork Valley. There is far less sunshine here. The sky stays grey for weeks at a time. When the snow finally comes, it stays till we can get a welcome respite of sunshine and warmth like yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Tomorrow is predicted to get up to 63 degrees! I will take that any day over the bitter, frigid weather we’ve had for the last few weeks.

\n

I know…you’ve heard me state before that I would never spend another winter in the cold and snow. Well, never say never, right? A year ago, I didn’t know I would be where I am in this wonderful relationship. I had a fair idea which direction it was going, but a year is a year and one never knows for sure what might happen. I’ve learned not to look too far into the future since losing Mr. Virgo. Other than…this is where I want to be and who I want to be with. That’s enough for me.

\n

This winter isn’t going like we thought it would when we made our travel plans last summer. First, Mr. FixIt had surgery on his hand and it turned out to be a much bigger deal than we thought it would be so that nixed not only the trip to Colorado at Christmas, but also the two month camping trip we had planned in Florida for February and March. He has hand therapy to go through now and there is still much he cannot do for himself. We’ve decided this is an excellent time to go through closets and boxes of stuff at his house and do a little downsizing. I have a great deal of experience in that department and I am happy as a clam to help out.

\n

In my effort to stay present this year, I’m going to go out today and tomorrow and enjoy every moment of warmth I can possible soak up. I hope you are getting a respite from winter in your neck of the woods. I am also keeping the people of Southern California in my prayers as they struggle with the inevitable mudslides that follow devastating fires. I’ve personally seen the effects of that in Glenwood Springs after the Storm King and Coal Seam fires. I saw on the news last night where they rescued a teenager from the basement of her home. She was nearly encased in mud. It was unbelievable. She had to have been terrified. My heart goes out to everyone affected by this disaster. ❤️

\n

“…Get up and pray…”\n‭‭Luke‬ ‭22:46‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-01-10T02:30:03-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/01/10/a-welcome-sight.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Peace","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2018/01/02/ramona-and-her-pet-burro.html", "title": "“Ramona and Her Pet Burro, Bob” or “How My Memory Has Changed Since Mr. Virgo Died”", "content_html": "\"Country\n

We went to the farm yesterday. On our way there, Mr. Fixit pointed out the two little burros huddling in a shed, trying to keep warm in the frigid 9 degree air. Seeing the little burros, my mind immediately went soaring back forty years to one of the favorite periods of my life. When I met Hubby #2, he was a Physical Therapist who worked across the hall from me. I was the X-Ray Tech for a small rehabilitation hospital in downtown Denver. He was also finishing some pre-med classes at CU Boulder in preparation for applying to medical school. We were young and in love and poor as church mice. Daughter #1 was three years old. We had no money so we were adept at finding activities that were free, or nearly so. It was cool to be poor struggling students.

\n

It was the late ‘70s. Trivial Pursuit was HOT and we played it a lot. H#2 told me about the Trivia Bowl that was held annually at UC Boulder. It was free, it was close, and it was fun. It was held in a large room. Two teams sat at tables on a makeshift stage and the audience stood shoulder to shoulder around a packed room…a rowdy crowd. I don’t remember a lot about that night. After all, it was forty years ago. But I do remember one team was called “Ramona and Her Pet Burro, Bob”. How could you forget that, right? I also remember one of the questions was,…”What were the tail numbers on Sky King’s plane?” What??? I knew I was witnessing trivia royalty when one young student slammed his hand down on the buzzer in a fraction of a second and shouted out…”N5348A!” You’re kidding! Ok, I Googled it just now…but I was in awe back then. Who remembers stuff like that?

\n

My memory isn’t what it used to be. You don’t get to Medicare age without losing a little something. It’s been made worse by grief and the head injury I suffered in February didn’t help matters. I’ll bet memory loss…or, “grief brain”…is the subject I address most often with those who have recently lost a loved one. I remember I thought I was going crazy or something was wrong with me when I couldn’t keep track of anything in the first couple of years after losing Mr. Virgo. I made lists and then couldn’t remember where I put them. Or my notes seemed cryptic and made no sense when I revisited them. It was a scary time. Will my memory come back? Will it get worse? What is wrong with me?

\n

I don’t remember who told me about grief brain (see???) but I do very much recall the overwhelming sense of relief I felt knowing it wasn’t just me. That’s when I knew for sure I needed to write this blog. Because not everyone has someone to mentor them and while I wasn’t far enough along to actually BE a mentor, I could share what I was learning and feeling along the way. One of the greatest gifts you are given from grief comes when you turn around and offer a hand to someone who is further back the road than you are. It is the price we pay for the grace we receive during our own grief journey.

\n

Memory…its a slippery sucker. I still will get a brilliant flash of an idea for a post that I just know will resonate with someone…and if I don’t write it down, or make some sort of correlation in my mind to remember it later, it’s gone. That is probably the single most frustrating thing I face when I write. I still have a hard time making myself write down ideas because I swear I’ll be able to remember. It’s aggravating. The tool that helps me most is the “Note” app on my phone. I can jot ideas down and when I hit a lean period and have trouble coming up with a topic, I go into my list and find something that is currently applicable. It’s not like it used to be. It never will be. But it works for the most part.

\n

Just knowing you aren’t alone in this is often all you need to relax into the flow and be present with your feelings. No matter how difficult your struggle, God is always there with you whether you feel Him or not. Knowing that can bring enormous comfort. ❤️

\n

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.””\n‭‭Joshua‬ ‭1:9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2018-01-02T02:30:57-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2018/01/02/ramona-and-her-pet-burro.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","God","Peace","Wisdom","Presence"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/12/12/change.html", "title": "Change", "content_html": "\"WV\n

One of the hardest things to deal with since losing Mr. Virgo is…change. And of course, that is the one thing you can absolutely count on in this life. Change. Things change. People change. Situations change. And, unfortunately…places change.

\n

I have to tell you, sometimes you have no way of knowing what God has up His sleeve when He leads you down a certain path. Why this way and not that? Sometimes we never figure it out. Other times, it becomes crystal clear. I love those times. Even when they break my heart.

\n

When I first came to West Virginia, it was just a year and a half after losing Mr. Virgo. I lived on the family farm but only for a few weeks. When my aunt decided she really didn’t want help, I went off on my own for a couple years. I never dreamed I’d have the opportunity to come back and be the caretaker of the home of my heart. When my uncle asked me to take care of the place for him, I jumped at the chance.

\n

I know God has a reason behind every move. There was a plan before I was born. I hadn’t really thought about why I got to live at the farm again. Until yesterday. Mr. FixIt and I have noticed a lot of heavy dump trucks going up the road lately. We heard this summer that they’re putting in a compressor station back beyond the farm so we surmised the work had begun. When we got there yesterday, I drove past the farm and went up the back road. It wasn’t long till we saw the signs. “Road Work Ahead” and “Flagger: Prepare to Stop”.

\n

It’s funny. You hear change is coming. You see what other places look like when they change. Yet, you’re completely unprepared when the change comes and it affects your world. I’m a go-with-the-flow kinda gal, but when I saw them cutting into MY earth, MY world, my HEART…it crushed me. I motioned for the flagger to come over. I asked for details. “What are they doing there?” “How far back are they going?” “How long will this take?” He was a young man. Respectful. He seemed to understand this was hurtful to me. He explained carefully what steps they were taking. I sat and stared till the tears stung my eyes then I had to go.

\n

I remember when they clear cut the back of the farm. I felt like this. But, trees grow back. This is a permanent scar that will never heal. As I sat and watched the big dump trucks back out the ridge to be filled with MY earth, the Holy Spirit whispered to my heart.

\n

“This is why you were given this time on the farm. You are here to memorize every inch of the place. You are here to document the passage. You are here to be a witness.”

\n

Change is inevitable. I know that. I’m doing better with change. I don’t like it. And I especially don’t like them messing with the home of my heart. But, I’m also a realist. I’m pragmatic. There is now going to be a paved road out to the back of this ridge. There will be easier access to the workable land and that will improve the value of the farm. That’s the upside. There’s going to be a lot of sound pollution, increased traffic, as well as some environmental risks. That’s the downside.

\n

I’ve always known my time on the farm is limited. I’ll still be taking care of it for the foreseeable future. And I’ll be saying goodbye to what it once was…one truckload of dirt at a time. ❤️

\n

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:”\n‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:1‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-12-12T02:30:30-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/12/12/change.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","New Ideas","Grace","God","Wisdom","Humbled","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/11/28/the-stick-tree.html", "title": "The Stick Tree", "content_html": "\"Christmas\n

You’ve all seen that spindly little Christmas tree Charlie Brown had, right? Basically a stick with some twigs branching off. As far back as I can remember, that was the tree out at the farm. My Uncle Bob was a simple man. When he was told to go cut down a pine tree for Christmas, he did just that. And being a practical man, he brought back one that was easy to carry and would not take long to decorate. He was the smartest of the bunch, turns out.

\n

Grandma didn’t have a lot of ornaments. I remember some of those made by Shiny Bright. There was a very old hand blown Santa that my fat baby fingers accidentally broke one year. sigh And, there was an angel that went on the top of the tree. Her dress was made of vinyl with a net skirt over it. Her upper torso, arms, and head were like a doll made of hard plastic. Her hair was spun glass. And her wings were silver pressed cardboard. Somehow, I managed to acquire that angel. I suppose because I’m the oldest grand daughter and got married first, I don’t know. But that angel has been with me forever. She is too fragile to put on top of a tree…I’m afraid the cardboard tube that slips over a branch might break. So, she gets tucked in a place of prominence on the front of the tree…up high enough to avoid any encounters with two or four-legged children.

\n

We always had a big, fat tree at home that my dad bought at a lot. I remember the excitement of driving around looking at Christmas lights then stopping at the lot to pick out our tree. I wore a woolen coat buttoned up to my neck, someone’s hand-me-down, I’m sure. I had a blue velvet hat that tied under my chin with blue satin ties. And, hanging on one side we’re two white balls made of real rabbit fur. I remember shaking my head back and forth to feel them bounce around. I wore that hat till it literally disintegrated. I wore rubber boots that fit over my shoes and buckles with an elastic string over a button.

\n

Dad would walk us up and down the aisles to choose the perfect tree…i.e. the cheapest without too many holes in it. Once the price was negotiated, an attendant would help Dad carry the tree to the Oldsmobile and strap it to the top with sisal rope. Once we got it home, there was trimming to be done before we could take it in the house. We had strings of lights with big reflectors that went on before screwing the big bulb in. This was a safety feature that kept the needles from touching the hot bulb and catching fire. And many of the ornaments hanging on my tree that I so carefully preserve were placed on those big, fat trees at the house on 55th Street.

\n

I remember feeling so sorry for Grandma and her skinny little Charlie Brown tree. Now I look back and appreciate the simplicity with a fervor. I use an artificial tree now. The first one I’ve had since Mr. Virgo died. I opted for a slender one. I thought I’d be putting it in front of the window at the farm. Instead, it’s over here at Mr. FixIt’s. I never would have dreamed. This is the fifth Christmas without Mr. Virgo. To have found this new love and new joy and renewed zest for life is something I am profoundly grateful for.

\n

It’s the simple things I crave now. Things held by loved ones long gone. Gentle, loving companionship. Soft music. A warm fire. Good food. And a loving God that made all this possible for me. I am richly blessed. ❤️

\n

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”\n‭‭Romans‬ ‭15:13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-11-28T02:30:45-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/11/28/the-stick-tree.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Holiday","Wisdom","Humbled","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/11/24/and-soit-begins.html", "title": "And So...It Begins", "content_html": "\"Christmas\n

The other day I found myself with a little time on my hands and stopped at the Blennerhassett Hotel for a Starbucks. The Easter Seal Parade of Trees was on display so I took my coffee and wandered among the holiday decorations, getting inspiration. There were some stunning trees this year. The trees are decorated by volunteers, sponsored by local businesses, and auctioned off to the highest bidder. It’s a wonderful fund raiser for the Easter Seal Society and helps provided needed services for area physically and developmentally disabled children.

\n

I grew up going to the Easter Seal Treatment Center. My big brother was born with cerebral palsy and went to therapy every week. He had physical, occupational, and speech therapy for as long as I can remember. One of my earliest memories was a play table with little doors. You went in and the door shut after you. It was designed to allow children with disabilities to stand up for a period of time. There were toys and puzzles you could play with on the table in front of you, but what really stuck with me was the milk and cookies we got at snack time. Even though I had no need of these services, I was allowed to attend many of the sessions because I totally understood my brother’s speech when others found it difficult.

\n

Mom learned to drive when my brother was first starting therapy so she didn’t have to rely on my dad to get us to school and therapy at the end of the day. I’ll never forget my mom’s friend Elaine trying to teach her to drive. I sat in the back as mom drove around and around City Park. At one point, we ran up an embankment and nearly hit a tree. Mom put her head down on the steering wheel and cried. She kept saying, “I can’t. I can’t do it!” And Elaine would pat her arm and say, “Wanda…you have these kids to take care of. Of course you can do this. Now, let’s try again.”

\n

Elaine was a saint. And…so was my mom. I look back now at what her life was like and I’m in awe of her. I wasn’t always a supportive child and I sure wish she was here now to receive this new appreciation I feel for her.

\n

Christmas is such a special time of year. I love bringing beauty and light into the long, dark nights of winter. We came back last night from our Thanksgiving visit with my family and will work today to get some decorating done before Mr. FixIt leaves for Florida on Saturday. This will be our second Christmas together…my fifth without Mr. Virgo. Bittersweet becomes more and more sweet with time.

\n

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I ate a lot, loved on my family, and took a nap!!! ❤️

\n

“You’ll take afternoon naps without a worry, you’ll enjoy a good night’s sleep.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3:24 ‭MSG‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-11-24T02:30:07-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/11/24/and-soit-begins.html", "tags": ["Family","Travel","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Holiday","Wisdom","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/11/21/my-accidental-love.html", "title": "My Accidental Love", "content_html": "\"Old\n

Old Mama Kitty is gone. I haven’t seen her in six days. She’s always at the back door, right at supper time. There were a couple of times this summer when she was gone for a day or two, but never six. She’s old. I know that. Just this fall, she seemed to be telling me she was tired. She has one leg that trembles sometimes…and not necessarily because of a chill in the air.

\n

Being a farm cat, Mama is tough. She doesn’t take any guff from the younger boy cats. If they get too close to her feeding dish, she has no problem swatting them away…claws and fangs bared. They give her a wide berth on the front porch, arcing around her, well out of kitty reach with sly glances from the corner of their eyes. She has probably been to the vet once in her life and that was when she was spayed. She’s never been sick that I know of. She will act like she wants you to pet her, then she swats you if you linger too long. She’s one tough kitty.

\n

I thought we’d lost her back in 2014 when I first came to the farm. I walked down to the road to get the mail and coming back, there…by the end of the driveway…was a yellow cat that had been hit by a car. I came up to the house to get my work gloves and a shovel. My aunt was still living on the farm at the time. I went to her and told her I was sorry, but Old Mama Kitty was hit by a car and was gone. I went back down and picked up the cat to take it up by the barn to bury it when…I saw the evidence. This was definitely NOT Old Mama Kitty. This was a boy! I wish I would have had the wherewithal to check that out before I told my aunt.

\n

I had only had one cat in my life before coming to the farm. Ginger was yellow with deep gold stripes. I didn’t seem to be allergic to her as a teenager but the older I got, the more indoor cats bothered me. Ginger went to another home when I moved to England after I was married. Mom hadn’t wanted a cat in the first place. She just tolerated her for me.

\n

I’ve always been more of a dog person. Dogs are easy to understand. Feed them. Throw the ball. Scratch the good places. Go for walks. They will worship the ground you walk on. Dogs have owners. Cats have staff. You are extra special if a cat loves you. It means you’ve met the criteria.

\n

The problem with pets is, unless you own a large bird or a turtle, they are going to die before you. And every time a pet dies, they take more of your heart away. I’ve had to put four dogs down in my lifetime. It kills me.

\n

I don’t want to think of Mama Kitty as “gone”. But, this is what happens with farm animals sometimes. They seem to know when it is their time, I think. I feel a little guilty though. I’ve been away a lot the last couple of weeks helping Mr. FixIt clean and paint his house. I was at the farm every day to feed the cats and spend time with them. Then, six days ago, she just wasn’t there. I called and called and called. It’s sad because I really came to love her. She’s been around forever. She was my Uncle Bob’s cat. He died in 2005. It’s like losing a family member. I know there is still a slim chance she could come back, but I really think it’s time to let her go.

\n

Pope John Paul II stated that animals have souls and are important beings in God’s creation. And, since souls can go to heaven, it isn’t a stretch to picture our pets running and jumping on us when we get there. I hope to see all my fur babies when I get there!

\n

I inherited Old Mama Kitty with the farm. She was my accidental love. And…I’ll really miss her. ❤️

\n

“His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’”\n‭‭Matthew‬ ‭25:23‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-11-21T02:30:28-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/11/21/my-accidental-love.html", "tags": ["Faith","Family","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","God","Wisdom","Aging","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/11/16/things-that-make-me-smile.html", "title": "Things That Make Me Smile", "content_html": "\"Antique\n

I was rummaging around in the basement out at the farm the other day, looking for painting supplies, when I saw the old stove in this great light and had to stop and capture it. I’m not sure why my Grandma did most of her canning down in the basement.  I know this past summer the basement was so humid mold was growing on everything. I had to buy a dehumidifier to put down there to keep the humidity below 50%. When she got this baby cranked up with a canner full of boiling water (not to mention the wringer washer) the condensation literally ran down the walls.

\n

There is a good-sized triangular patch of ground across the creek from the house that was the truck garden. This was where most of the vegetables for the table were grown. The canning vegetables, as well as the strawberries for the farmer’s market, were grown back up on the hill. There was a footbridge that crossed the creek to the garden. My uncle ran an electric fence around the garden to keep the deer out. Grandma grew a ton of green beans, corn, cabbage, cucumbers, onions, and tomatoes in that little patch of ground. The potatoes were grown on a similar, though much smaller, triangular patch along the end of the driveway. I spent many hours stringing beans and shucking corn, scalding and peeling tomatoes, and helping any way I could on canning days.

\n

One year we drove all the way to Virginia to buy peaches.  I remember they were as big as softballs. Mom was helping Grandma can them and neither one knew the other had stirred sugar into the syrup to pour over them in the jars. When they opened the first jar later on, they were sickeningly sweet. Mom felt so bad…she thought she had ruined Grandma’s beautiful peaches. But Grandma said, “Sis, don’t you worry about a thing. We’ll just make us some peach butter and not have to add any sugar.” They cooked them down and that was the best peach butter ever!

\n

Now, this old stove stands silently in a back corner of the basement…rusted and resting on cinder blocks for legs. This appliance was from a time of resourceful ingenuity… a time when you never threw anything away. You made do. You “recycled” by reusing. You reduced waste simply by being too poor to buy something better. The Baby Boomers were on the tail end of that generation. Ours was a disposable generation. Cheaply made plastic and paper products have filled countless landfills. Grandma didn’t even have trash service till very late in life. You burned what little paper you threw away. You fed table scraps to the cats or hogs. You reused the glass jars that you canned your food in. I’m glad this stove is still here…even though it doesn’t work…it would never be safe enough to use. But it’s like going into the museum of my youth when I go downstairs. And it’s one of the the things that makes me smile. ❤️

\n

“So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter.”\n‭‭2 Thessalonians‬ ‭2:15‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-11-16T02:30:12-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/11/16/things-that-make-me-smile.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Humbled"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/11/12/the-sentinels.html", "title": "The Sentinels", "content_html": "\"\"\n

We survived the first day of painting…barely! It wasn’t a problem working together. That part was awesome! We put on ‘70s music and be-bopped around the living room, dancing and singing and having a grand time making each other laugh. Till we had to move the treadmill out of the corner and into the middle of the room to paint around it. The part you walk on folds up and you pull back on the entire thing to make it stand on two wheels. This allegedly makes it move easier. Well, not so on carpet. I bent down and grabbed the front legs and helped Mr. FixIt move this thing several feet. I’m not sure what happened, but when we set the front end down, it came down like a shot and the handles slammed me in the side of the head so hard it literally knocked me off my feet and sent me flying about six feet. It didn’t hurt as bad as it surprised me. And of course, scared Mr. FixIt to death. I laid there on the floor for a couple minutes to let the bells stop ringing in my head and got up. I’m fine, thank God!

\n

We finished painting the ceiling in time for the kickoff of the WVU game so I left Mr. FixIt to his own devices and headed to the farm to feed the cats. The last couple of years, I’ve been trying to embrace fall and not hate it as the harbinger of winter. I’m trying to embrace winter, too…but, one thing at a time. As I drove across the two-lane, I made myself look at the landscape. In the past I would just feel sadness that the leaves were gone. This time, I asked myself to name something lovely. Suddenly…I saw texture. Where leaves were densely packed in the summer months, bare trees now stand and you can see the ridges and waterways that they line. “Name one thing that’s lovely.” The sycamore. They stand like ghostly sentinels, guardians of the creek banks, their white arms stretched toward the sky. Their limbs are crooked like a gnarly witch’s hand, the last of their dinner-plate sized leaves clinging curled and crispy to the uppermost limbs. Their round, light mustard-brown seed pods dangle like ornaments silhouetted against the sky.

\n

Once I noticed them, I saw sycamores everywhere. They were so beautiful. As I drove back from the farm, the sun was setting and the light turned rose-gold. The trees on the hillside looked like the tips of paintbrushes dipped in yellow and gold, orange and red…only the tippy-top leaves were left. Soon the winter winds will strip all but the most hardy leaves and the twigs and branches will create a mosaic against a thin blue sky. There was a hard freeze last night…a hoar frost still clinging to the frozen grass. As I pulled into the driveway at Mr. FixIt’s house, ten deer were out grazing in the field. I sat there for a while, contemplating. It was a good day. This is a good life. I am healthy, loved, secure…happy. I smiled and went inside to start supper. ❤️

\n

“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”\n‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:12-13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-11-12T02:30:11-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/11/12/the-sentinels.html", "tags": ["Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Peace","Wisdom","The Cats","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/11/09/what-have-i-done.html", "title": "What Have I Done???", "content_html": "\"Computer\n

OMGosh! I broke my absolute cardinal rule yesterday and…gasp…bought a piece of furniture! I know, I know…you all were with me when I downsized and I absolutely SWORE I would never accumulate “stuff” again. BUT…things are different now. A lot different. I’m not living in a camper, for one thing. For the last three years, my desktop computer has been riding in my camper, under the bed, in an airtight plastic storage tub. There have been numerous times I’ve needed to use it and I have to go out, prop up the bed, haul it out, and put it away when I’m done. Ok, ok…I’m rationalizing. Here’s what happened.

\n

I had to run to town yesterday for an appointment and on my way back to the house, I saw a sign that said “Grand Opening!” It was a consignment store. Who can pass up a good consignment store, right? My truck pulled in, all on its own. I had no choice but to follow. I browsed around and they had some beautiful pieces of furniture. I was first attracted to an old rolltop desk. It was small, and a little beat up. Mr. FixIt has a nice rolltop desk…much nicer than this one. I went on and looked at other things. When I came back around, I asked the clerk about the desk. He said, “You know, if it were me and I had the room, I’d be looking at this one. Much better piece of furniture.” He opened the doors and the drawers and showed me the solid oak construction. The top opens and there’s a place for the monitor, a drawer for the keyboard, and a separate cabinet for the CPU. It is in two pieces to make it easier to transport. The selling point for me was the price. The piece originally sold for $1800. It had been priced for sale in the consignment shop for $500…a decent price for a sold piece of furniture of this quality. However, it was marked down to $250. So, I own a piece of furniture.

\n

That’s two pieces, actually. I also own the jelly cupboard in the kitchen at the farm. Oh, and a recliner. Hmmmmm….I am accumulating. Not excessively, but still. It doesn’t feel as scary to put down some roots as it did in the first few years after Mr. Virgo died. I didn’t want to feel a sense of permanence then. Permanence meant real loss when things headed south. I needed to feel untethered…free. I didn’t have the strength to be needed…even by inanimate objects. As long as it fit in my truck and my camper, I was just fine. And like I said, things are different now. A lot of healing has occurred. Time has passed. A relationship has been established. A home is being created. Two homes, actually.

\n

Mr. FixIt lives exactly twenty-two miles from the farm. He lives on five acres out in the country. He generously shares his space with me. Mi casa es su casa. My house is your house. He is just as comfortable at the farm as I am at his place. And neither of us are giving up our space. We stay a little here, a little there, and then have our own space to retreat to when we need to recharge. It’s the perfect arrangement for the time being. I became very independent after losing Mr. Virgo. While I missed him, certainly…I also came to appreciate the stillness of my own breath. Mr. FixIt and I both like our alone time. Although…truth be told…whenever we are apart, we miss each other terribly. This whole relationship thing is growing on both of us. I suppose, for me, there is still an element of fear deep down inside. That “What if something happened to him” thing. I know I can’t live my life in fear. I won’t. But, there’s something to be said for taking your time in any given situation. After all, there’s no biological time clock ticking here. There’s absolutely nothing to be in a hurry over.

\n

Mr. FixIt and I have been together for a year now. I was thinking about this yesterday. I’m in a really good place now, emotionally. I haven’t had a “bad night” in a really long time. My anxiety level is at an all time low. I’m comfortable in my own skin. I’m happy. I am blessed. And…I am grateful. God has answered so many prayers. I think I’m just going to go along for the ride and enjoy…everything. Life is so sweet! ❤️

\n

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.”\n‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭13:4-10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-11-09T02:30:08-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/11/09/what-have-i-done.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/11/01/twinkle-twinkle-little-star.html", "title": "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star", "content_html": "\"\"\n

I think the first time I remember really looking at the stars was when Sputnik was orbiting overhead. My dad came and woke me up and said, “Come with me…I want to show you something.” He helped me into my coat and we stepped outside into the cool, night air. I was instantly alert, fully understanding this was unusual and an adventure. I shivered with the thrill of my dad sharing something special with me. That didn’t happen very often.

\n

I remember he held my hand and pointed into the night sky and said, “See the stars?”

\n

“Yes, daddy.”

\n

“I want you to watch for a special star…it’s going to move across the sky. Not fast, like a shooting star. But pretty fast.” He pointed straight up above us and said, “There! See it?!”

\n

It took me a few seconds of searching but there it was…a moving star!!! “I see it! I see it!” I shouted. It was, come to find out, the newly launched satellite…Sputnik. The Russians had beat us into space. I was only four years old when this little round ball went around and around our world. It was up there for twenty-one days…then it was done.

\n

I’ve been in love with the night sky ever since that night at Grandma’s farm, holding my dad’s hand in the dark. There was a reverence about it, a sense of awe at the magnitude of it all. One summer after Grandma died, I came to WV for my high school reunion. It must have been in 2012…the August before Mr. Virgo died. I was staying at the farm, even though it was a good hour’s drive after the party let out at midnight. It was a hot August night and when I stepped out of the car into the inky blackness of the night, I looked up and stopped in my tracks. The stars looked like a million diamonds thrown on a black velvet cloth. The distinct stripe of the Milky Way slashing across the sky fascinated me. I laid down on the wheelchair ramp my uncle had built two decades before and placed my hands across my belly and stared for the longest time. Shooting stars streaked across the sky at irregular intervals. Crickets and katydids sang their love songs deep into the night. An owl hooted far up the holler behind the barn. And there…there was a satellite. Then another. And soon, another. The night sky is littered with space junk and communication satellites and spies anymore.

\n

Now I have an app on my iPhone that identifies whatever star or constellation I point it at. It’s a lot of fun, especially when you’re out camping. There are several apps but the one I use is the free version of SkyView. The sky will never again be like that night in 1957 when I first shared an adventure with my dad. ❤️

\n

“who made the great lights— His love endures forever. the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever. the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭136:7-9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-11-01T01:30:17-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/11/01/twinkle-twinkle-little-star.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Peace","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/10/28/soupnatures-tranquilizer.html", "title": "Soup...Nature’s Tranquilizer", "content_html": "\"Homemade\n

It was twenty-seven degrees here at the farm yesterday morning when I sent Mr. FixIt off on a guys trip to North Carolina. This leaves me on my own till Sunday night. I love this man…I truly do. AND, I love my alone time on occasion, so I’m sitting here in the dining room, in front of Grandma’s favorite window, classical music playing softly in the background. It is lovely outside…nearly sixty degrees, sunny, the last of the autumn leaves clinging desperately to the branches like quivering field mice bracing for winter’s chill. It is warm and cozy in this little, old farmhouse and I’m snug as a bug in a rug.

\n

The other day I told you I was making pot roast in the pressure cooker. That night after dinner, I added a can of green beans, a small can of sliced carrots, a can of diced tomatoes, and the leftover potatoes from dinner to the crock pot. When I say “‘crock pot” and “pressure cooker”, I am talking about the same appliance that also is a steamer. When I got rid of most of my belongings and moved into the camper, I didn’t want to be without the conveniences of my kitchen appliances and there wasn’t room for everything. That’s when I ran across this wonderful gizmo that does it all. It’s not very big, but its big enough for two and leftovers aplenty.

\n

I put the soup on and frankly…I forgot all about it till I was heading to bed. I came into the kitchen to lock the back door and noticed it was still cooking. Too hot to put in the fridge, I took the soup…pot and all…out to my truck and set it inside for the night as the temperature got down into the thirties. The next morning, I skimmed off the fat and plugged it back in to have ready for lunch. It was wonderful!

\n

Mr. FixIt was heading into town after lunch to help his ex with something. I sent him off with a container of soup and some crackers for her. Why cater to the needs of an ex-wife? Because…divorce may change a relationship status, but you can still be family. There is Christian loving-kindness to be considered. She is moving this week into her first home of her own. I remember what that was like after my divorce. I wanted her to know she is loved and cared for. It is the same love and kindness extended toward me from my exes’ wives. You can be bitter and angry and full of resentment with a divorce. Or, you can embrace the new member into the family circle. I know that doesn’t work for everyone, but I choose love. I always choose love. ❤️

\n

“We love because he first loved us.”\n‭‭1 John‬ ‭4:19‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-10-28T01:30:02-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/10/28/soupnatures-tranquilizer.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Forgiveness","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/10/26/farmhouse-obsession.html", "title": "Farmhouse Obsession", "content_html": "\"Farmhouse\n

In 1982, Hubby #2 and I moved into an old brick bungalow that had been the farmhouse before the area around it was developed. It was drafty and poorly insulated. Three quarters of the basement was bare dirt floor. The brick support pillars down there were crumbling and frankly, it was a pretty scary place. But the rest of the house was charming. Dark hardwood floors and built-in storage, tall ceilings and a sun porch, large windows you could fling wide open to catch the cool evening breeze…it was the closest I had come to living in an actual farmhouse since I’d left home at the tender age of twenty.

\n

Hubby #2 was in medical school when we moved into this rental. Even though it was a farmhouse, it was on a very busy street in east Denver. I had a big garden and flower beds everywhere. We grew as much of our own food as we could and I was very much into Mother Earth News. I made our bread, yogurt, granola and tofu. What I couldn’t grow, I bought at the neighborhood farmer’s market. I canned dozens of jars of green beans, pickles, tomatoes, jams and jellies in my huge country kitchen which looked very similar to this one.

\n

I have a total obsession with these porcelain farmhouse sinks. There’s nothing better for canning than one of these babies. The sink was huge and deep…perfect for washing large quantities of fruits and vegetables. A water bath canner could sit right down into the sink for easy filling. And two dishpans fit perfectly side by side for washing and rinsing dishes. My grandma’s farmhouse doesn’t have one of these sinks but I imagine the first one I ever saw was in West Virginia. I run across them every so often here but haven’t found just the right one. The laminate on the countertops in the farm kitchen is lifting and needs to be replaced. I’m thinking if I ever do that, this kind of sink is going in. The plumbing under the sink is getting pretty fragile so when it goes, it’ll be a perfect opportunity to do a little updating. It is, to be sure, just an earthly tent…but the home of my earthly heart.

\n

Speaking of plumbing, remember when I told you about leaving the bath water running and getting distracted by a phone call? I actually ran the well dry and this terrible, black water started coming out of the faucet. I spoke with one of the locals here and he said this hard water gunks up the insides of the pipes just like cholesterol in your arteries. When I let the well run dry, the “spurting” of air and water essentially roto-rootered the plumbing. Before that, the water smelled and tasted awful. Now, while I don’t think I’d drink a glass of it, I can stand to brush my teeth with it…but only after I tested the water. It’s hard, and slightly alkaline, but there’s no lead, pesticides, or bacteria. It’s really amazing the difference in the quality, before and after.

\n

The pot roast from yesterday was wonderful and is in a crockpot for vegetable soup today. It’s cold and rainy and we were expecting our first hard freeze last night. It’s time to get out the jeans and sweaters and boots and jackets. The only thing missing is a fireplace but this old house is all wood and I wouldn’t dare have one. We did change out the stove in the bathroom yesterday with one that has a thermostat. Now it shuts off and on rather than being way too hot or freezing with the manual shutoff.

\n

The fire in Parkersburg is dying down but still has smoldering hotspots. More information is being released about the owners and what they were doing in there. And, more importantly, what they WEREN’T doing…like correcting past environmental and safety violations. The owner, who has at least four other of these warehouses in the area packed with God knows what, is conveniently out of the country at the moment. Fines had been levied against them for these violations to the tune of $80,000…$60,000 of which remains unpaid. They’re still evaluating the air quality results. The first class action lawsuit was filed Monday. And the circus begins. I pray for the first responders and the folks who live nearby and in the path of the smoke cloud, which shifted continually with the direction of the wind. I pray this gets sorted out quickly. I hear Erin Brokovich has been alerted. I hope that helps. ❤️

\n

“For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.”\n‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:1-5‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-10-26T01:30:48-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/10/26/farmhouse-obsession.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/10/25/comfort-food.html", "title": "Comfort Food", "content_html": "\"Pot\n

Today’s the day…time for the first “comfort food” meal of fall. Mr. FixIt and I have been working at our respective homes a lot the last week or so and haven’t had a day at home for a while. Today is trash day. It’s “install the new bathroom heater because we bought one without a thermostat, oh my gosh, what were we thinking” day. It’s a day to reconnect and play cards and visit. Today is “Pot Roast Day”. I’m pretty sure it’s a national holiday.

\n

I love pot roast. I love a good bone-in pot roast but haven’t seen one of them in a grocery store for years. Mr. Virgo always said the flavor of meat comes from the bone, but everything seems to be boneless anymore. My grandma used to can beef. On Sundays, she’d go get a couple quarts of canned beef, drain it, dredge the chunks of tender meat in seasoned flour and fry it in butter. Makes my swoon to think of it. You could cut it with a knife and it literally melted in your mouth. A nice brown gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, and buttered bread made the BEST Sunday supper ever!

\n

It’s cold today. It was supposed to get down to 32 last night with a high today of only 47. It rained like crazy yesterday and there was graupel associated with it. Graupel occurs when supercooled water droplets freeze onto snowflakes. It looks like tiny hail, but it’s soft. It’s common in Colorado but this is the first time I’ve seen it here in West Virginia. We’ll have snow before we know it. I’m getting there, but I’m not ready yet. The mower and the summer garden tools have been put away and the porches are cleared off. Progress is being made!

\n

I heard a great horned owl last night. Can Halloween be far behind? Have a happy Wednesday, dear ones! ❤️

\n

“While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease."”\n‭‭Genesis‬ ‭8:22‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-10-25T01:30:26-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/10/25/comfort-food.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Love"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/10/21/the-ice-cream-truckfor-adults.html", "title": "The Ice Cream Truck...for Adults", "content_html": "\"UPS\n

I finally broke down and got Amazon Prime. Living out here in the boonies makes shopping difficult sometimes…especially in winter. And, while I try to buy local at every opportunity, there are things that I’m not willing to compromise on like saving money. Prime gives you free two day shipping. It pays for itself quickly. Also, I love the music channel. I can ask Alexis to play “Kari Jobe” or “Contemporary Christian Rock” and she gets right to it.

\n

I’ve told you before but, since downsizing, I’m very careful about what I accumulate. It would be very easy to let things get out of control. If I run across something I think I might need, I jot it down on a list in my iPhone. If I haven’t thought of it in a couple of weeks, I figure I don’t need it and take it off the list. When I get four or five items on the list, I go on Amazon and put them in my cart but I don’t actually buy them. If I haven’t bought them in a week or two, I re-evaluate whether I really need that particular item. Often, my fascination with it wanes or I figure out how to use something I already have.

\n

I placed an order this week and the UPS man backed up my driveway this afternoon. Four boxes arrived and it felt like Christmas! I ordered some probiotics for the best price around. I bought Lisa Mora’s book called Vintage Trailer Style. (I’ve been eyeing it for months. Cute camper ideas.) I ordered a microwaveable corn bag to warm my feet up at night. I have a barley one but cannot find it anywhere. And I bought a small gas stove for the bathroom. You may remember I replaced the stove in there in the spring, but we got the thing hooked up before we realized the stove had no thermostat. I thought we’d get by, but a stove that runs all the time soon has this little house WAY too hot! This new stove is exactly like the other one but with a thermostat. We’ll get that installed this weekend…another winter prep job.

\n

I mowed the yard yesterday. I put the mower away in the barn so hopefully I won’t have to drag it out again this fall. I mulched the leaves into the lawn for extra fertilizer. I covered the air conditioner with heavy plastic for winter. I got the lawn chairs put away in the basement and worked on the back porch. It has become a catch all this summer and it was getting out of control. Still didn’t get the cat beds fixed yet. As I was writing this last night, Old Mama Kitty knocked one of the beds off the table and onto the cement porch floor. It sounded like a bear was getting into a trash can. I jumped and looked out the back door. When I went out, poor Mama came running like she needed me to save her from that big, bad plastic tub. ?

\n

We’re supposed to have good weather this weekend and rain comes Monday. There’s a meteor shower this weekend. Get away from the city lights to someplace dark and enjoy Morher Nature’s fireworks. ❤️

\n

“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.”\n‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:23‬ ‭NLT‬‬

\n

#UPS, #cleanhouse, #farmlife

\n", "date_published": "2017-10-21T01:30:23-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/10/21/the-ice-cream-truckfor-adults.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","The Cats","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/10/20/tea-time.html", "title": "Tea Time", "content_html": "\"A\n

I’m a coffee drinker but I can’t have it after about noon or I’ll be counting the spots on the ceiling all night. I can drink tea at night without a problem. Now that the weather is getting cooler, I share tea time with Mr. FixIt every evening. He catches up with the news on his phone. I sit here on the sofa, write my post and schedule it for 4:00 in the morning so you can read it when you have YOUR cuppa.

\n

I always liked tea, even as a young girl. But, I really got into it when I lived in England. I learned to drink it with cream and a side of “digestive biscuits”…England’s counterpart for graham crackers. I bought a Brown Betty while I was there…a sturdy, brown, earthenware teapot that keeps your tea at a proper temperature for quite some time. I was taught to put in a teaspoon of loose leaf tea per cup and add one for the pot. I poured my cream into the pot then fresh, boiling water. I let it steep till it was the color I like and poured it through a strainer to removed the leaves.

\n

I had my first child in the Royal Berkshire Maternity Hospital. My physician was Mr. Stalabrass (certain physicians are referred to as Mr. in Britain, or at least that’s the way it was forty-three years ago.) I had pre-eclampsia and had to be in the hospital for a week before I had the baby. Every afternoon, an aide would take your lunch tray, close the curtains and the door, and settle you in for a nap. Two hours later, she would come back with a warm face cloth and a tea tray…a lovely pot of tea, finger sandwiches, and sweets. It was divine! They should do that everywhere.

\n

I am working double time trying to give this house a deep cleaning before winter sets in. The water here at the farm is hard and has a lot of iron in it. It turns the porcelain dark brown and takes a great deal of elbow grease to get clean. I discovered a wonderful product called Zap. The tub hasn’t been this white since I was a kid and they installed running water in this house. Seriously…it’s probably some horrid chemical, but the bathroom looks great!

\n

I have to tackle the outside next, scrub the porches, and get the kitty beds ready for cold weather. But, first…another spot of tea! ❤️

\n

“Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise! Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work, they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter. But you, lazybones, how long will you sleep? When will you wake up? A little extra sleep, a little more slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest— then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit; scarcity will attack you like an armed robber.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭6:6-11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-10-20T01:30:02-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/10/20/tea-time.html", "tags": ["Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Humbled","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/10/18/a-birds-eye-view.html", "title": "A Bird's Eye View", "content_html": "\"Satellite\n

Have you ever gone on Google Earth and looked at the places you know? I remember one winter day before Mr. Virgo died. I was missing home…the dense, green woods and dusky purple mountains of West Virginia. Google Earth was still relatively new and they had just added the “street view” feature. I plugged in the address for Grandma’s farm, clicked on the little man icon, and…viola! I was “standing” in front of the farmhouse! I was SO excited! I quickly moved the map so I could “drive” down the two-lane blacktop the three miles, taking in every turn, house, and tree. It was mesmerizing. I could “go home” anytime I wanted to! I have “traveled” to Paris to see the Eiffel Tower, London to ogle Big Ben, Rome to see the ancient ruins…all from the comfort of the easy chair in my living room.

\n

The other night, Mr. FixIt was doing a little virtual traveling and he stumbled upon this. TOW-Wanda! MY camper…sitting right where I park her in the summer! I know approximately when this was. This is mostly uber cool…and, a little bit spooky in a Big-Brother-is-watching-you sort of way. It’s a good thing there was no nude sunbathing going on…for a vast number of reasons! ?

\n

This satellite photo was taken about fifteen months after Mr. Virgo died. I had been full-timing in my camper for about seven months at this point. I was interviewed yesterday for another episode of Janine Pettit’s Girl Camper podcast. This time we talked about full-timing…dream vs. reality. I’ll post a link when it goes live.

\n

Living on the farm has been such a treat that I’ve hardly thought about whether I miss all that time I spent on the road. The answer is yes…and no. Could I do that again? Yes! Would I? Maybe. I’m a lot more awake and aware now than I was back then. Grief brain may have clouded my judgement sometimes. But I’ve never regretted having that time alone out in the wilderness and backroads. I was so free and life was pared down to the bare essentials. There’s something to be said for simplicity. Janine asked me if I ever found myself lonely and I’m not sure I properly answered. I’m a people person. I’m gregarious and thrive in a place where I can have regular contact with people I know and love…friends and family that love me for who I am and I can let my hair down. I think that was the driving force behind allowing the Siren Song of the farm to lure me into planting some roots…at least for a while. And now…I have Mr. FixIt. We both love to travel and we never stay put for too long. But I’m looking forward to some nesting this winter. That’s the goodness of fall…it invites us to put another log on the fire, brew a nice cup of tea, and read a good book. The campers are put away for the season and I’m ready to be a homebody for a while. ❤️

\n

“By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭24:3-4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-10-18T01:30:29-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/10/18/a-birds-eye-view.html", "tags": ["Colorado","Travel","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","TOW-Wanda!","Camping","The Grand Adventure","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","goRVing","Wisdom","Girl Camper","Girl Campers","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/10/09/a-little-rr.html", "title": "A Little R\u0026R", "content_html": "

 

\n\"Ol'\n

We awoke to the sound of rain gently falling on the tin roof yesterday. What a welcome sound. Something else grabbed my attention. It was stuffy and still in the bedroom. I picked up my phone to check the temperature. No wifi. The power was out so the fan was off. This happens frequently here at the farm. I keep thinking I’ll get a generator but haven’t yet.

\n

Old Mama Kitty curled up at my feet while I sat on the porch, watching the rain. Every time we have this moment, I wonder how much longer we’ll have her. She’s about twenty-four years old now. I love this sweet little kitty.

\n

The persistent rain made me sleepy and I couldn’t get motivated to do much. I did put about half the stuff away in the kitchen that I had brought in from TOW-Wanda. The rest of the day was literally spent doing as little as possible. Sometimes you just need a day like that. Mr. FixIt is like the Energizer bunny. He never stops. I like to do a lot of stuff but when I need down time, I NEED down time. I sent him off to deliver a chair to his granddaughter and go bowling and I spent the afternoon/evening laying low. Just what the doctor ordered!

\n

The only downside of having a lay low, shut in kind of day was not going to church. The only upside to that is the Warehouse Church where we attend goes live on their Facebook page every Sunday night at 7:00 so if I can’t go for some reason, I can watch the sermon from home.

\n

Last night, Pastor Justin spoke on getting past your past. I dragged my past behind me like a sack of rotting garbage for years. I played and replayed every mistake, every misstep, every wrongdoing I ever did and berated myself for being a bad daughter, sister, wife, mother. It turns out, those were all lies…whispered into my life by the enemy. He has no power over the future, but man…does he know how to play the past. There are ways you can use the past. Learning from your mistakes and moving forward, letting the past “push” you into the person God has always intended you to be…THAT’S the only useful thing the past can give you. God uses those mistakes you made in the past to allow you to minister to others, to speak life over them, to demonstrate that you do not have to let your past define who you are. You can get past it. Powerful message. So, I got my lay low day, I had a nap under the sounds of a gentle rain on a tin roof, AND I heard a great message from God. What’s not to love about that? ❤️

\n

“Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”\n‭‭Philippians‬ ‭3:13-14‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-10-09T01:30:27-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/10/09/a-little-rr.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","God","Peace","The Cats","Monday Morning Motivation"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/09/28/grandmas-spoon.html", "title": "Grandma's Spoon", "content_html": "\"Grandma's\n

Some time after Grandma died, I was visiting the farm. I was cooking and rummaged around in the utensil drawer for a wooden spoon to stir something with. I grew up using wooden spoons and have owned many over the course of my life. I love them. I love the feel of the wood in my hand. I love the way they gently rub the bottom of the pan as you stir. I’ve learned how to gauge the proper thickness of a sauce or gravy by how the liquid coats the spoon. Placed across the top of a pan, a wooden spoon will keep pasta or potatoes from boiling over. Drape a wet dishcloth over the end and you can scrub the inside of a jar or bottle. They’re very handy.

\n

When I looked in the drawer in Grandma’s kitchen, there was a packet in the back wrapped in a flour sack dishcloth. Curious, I opened it up to find treasures. Grandma’s paring knife, potato peeler, and favorite wooden spoon had been wrapped and carefully put away. The paring knife was so thin and the blade was curved in an unnatural shape from the many times it had been run over a whetstone. The potato peeler showed wear from years and years of use. Potatoes were a staple in that house for at least two meals a day. But, it was the wooden spoon that got me. Stained red from a lifetime of making blackcap jelly, I held it in my hands as if it were fragile crystal. The end is worn flat from all the years of stirring back and forth, back and forth…making sure the sugar and pectin dissolved and the mixture didn’t scorch on the bottom of the pan. I could still see my grandma’s arthritic finger run over the jelly coating on the back of her wooden spoon. She pushed it along to see if it had reached the jell stage. Then she popped her finger in her mouth, licked it clean, and gave me a wink as she wiped her hand on her ever present calico apron over her ever present belted house dress with the hankie in the pocket. I never, ever saw her wear pants. Always a dress, with stockings, and sturdy black lace-up shoes with a sensible heel. My breath caught with the memory. I missed her so. I miss her still.

\n

My aunt noticed my reverie and asked if I’d like to keep the spoon. I was so touched…and thrilled. It occupied a place of honor for several years on the windowsill of my Colorado kitchen. It got tucked away when I downsized and sold my house. It made its way back to that same farmhouse kitchen in West Virginia when I finally settled back here. I remember unpacking that box of special kitchen items, taking extra care that the spoon didn’t get thrown away with the packing materials.

\n

The spoon now hangs on a pegboard over the kitchen sink. I see it every time I wash dishes and I think of my grandma and how hard she worked standing in that very spot. It’s like that wink comes all the way from heaven and I know she smiles that I am here. ❤️

\n

“She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. She gets up while it is still night; she provides food for her family and portions for her female servants.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭31:14-15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-09-28T01:30:53-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/09/28/grandmas-spoon.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Humbled"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/09/27/twolane-blacktop.html", "title": "Two-Lane Blacktop", "content_html": "\"WV\n

Yesterday was errand day. Up at dawn, I ran through my list of very important things that needed to be done for the camping trip I’m leaving on today. And, not surprisingly, there were a couple of things I forgot. Mr. FixIt to the rescue! Yet another of the many wonderful advantages of dating this good man! He stopped on his way to my place and picked my items up at the market.

\n

Driving back home on the two-lane blacktop, I always let my mind run through the points of note along the route. There’s the State Police barracks where I took (and failed) my first driving exam. (Not my fault, mind you…there was a hole in the muffler.) There’s the county line where I got carsick when I was seven. (I have no idea why that sticks with me, but it does.) There’s the last bridge of its kind between town and the farm. (It’s a lot like the old bridge that used to be where you turn onto the country lane to drive the last few miles to the house.) There’s the old country store where we stopped for ice cream on Sunday afternoons on our way back to town. There’s the turn where I had my wreck in February. My mind takes me through every turn and hill, reliving days long gone.

\n

One of my favorite turns brings me to a straight stretch that passes the old Nutter Farm. There’s a family cemetery on the hill across the road. Every time I drive through that stretch, I get the strangest feeling. It’s akin to the feeling you get when someone hugs you. I didn’t get to meet the particular set of great-grandparents that are buried there, but somehow I feel them when I drive by. It’s a little eerie, but comforting at the same time. My great-grandfather died in his early 30’s of a ruptured appendix and left my great-grandmother with four little boys to raise. Charlie and Sabina. I have always loved her name. Folks called her “Binie”, with a long “i”. I never knew her proper name till after my last child was born or I might have named her Sabina Rose.

\n

I know every turn, every pothole, every hill on that road. It stretches for miles all the way back as far as I can remember. I really get John Denver’s lyrics. “Country Roads, take me home to the place I belong…West Virginia!” I love coming home when I’ve been gone a while. When you’re there every day, you don’t notice how the house smells. But when you return from a long trip, it’s truly like stepping back in time to my childhood. It smells like old wood…damp and rich. It smells like old books and worn leather…slightly stale, dusty, and tired. It smells like iron skillets and well water. But it smells like family. It smells like home. I bought a scented candle when I first moved in last year and was decidedly dismayed when all you could smell when you walked in the back door was cinnamon apples. I stopped burning it right away and was ever so relieved when the familiar aromas returned a week or two later.

\n

I count every day here as a blessing…a gift that God has brought me. This place almost seems like my reward for having lost my sweet husband. As though God said, “You’ve suffered enough. Let the memories in these walls comfort you for a time.” I know it’s not forever…one day the house will pass from one to another and I’ll need to move on. Or, more likely, there will be that point in my life when I choose to live elsewhere. But for now…for this brief time…I will live and love and laugh in the home of my heart. And I’ll remember every nook and cranny, every squeak in the floor, every line in the worn linoleum. I’ll remember every bend in the road. ❤️

\n

“My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.”\n‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭32:18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-09-27T01:30:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/09/27/twolane-blacktop.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Humbled","Peaceful Moments"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/09/26/i-need-this-mug.html", "title": "I Need This Mug!", "content_html": "\"Possum\n

I think I finally got a handle on my possum problem here at the farm. I have been fiddling around with the cats’ feeding schedule and did some research online. I started feeding them once a day and unless they search me out asking for something in the evening, that’s all they get. By noon they aren’t eating anything anyway so I pick up their dishes and set them inside a galvanized bucket with a locking lid. Bingo! No more late night visits from a passel of possums!

\n

I think this is the week to bring in the hummingbird feeders. We need to encourage them to move along before it gets too cold. We have two really hot days coming then the weather turns cool. We have so many leaves falling. This year they seem to have just turned brown and fallen off. Not a lot of color in my woods.

\n

The grass is still growing. The lawn will need mowing again soon. The days are getting shorter and there is less and less light in this old holler. I changed the light up high on the barn yesterday in preparation for long, dark winter evenings. The dogwoods are full of red berries. It’s a beautiful time of year.

\n

My talk last night was well received. They gave me a mum for my yard. I’ll cherish that. Today is prep day for tomorrow’s trip up to the campground. I think this is the last hurrah for the camping season. Always a sad thing.

\n

Tell me about the leaves where you are! ❤️

\n

“And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years,”\n‭‭Genesis‬ ‭1:14‬ ‭NIV‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-09-26T02:55:32-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/09/26/i-need-this-mug.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Wisdom","Humbled"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/09/04/flatfootin-to-the-fiddle.html", "title": "Flatfootin' to the Fiddle", "content_html": "\"Appalachian\n

Y’all remember I came to West Virginia in October of 2014 to live on the family farm and help my elderly aunt. That lasted ten weeks and she decided she didn’t rightly think she wanted anyone extra around and I graciously bowed out. That’s when I moved around in my camper…first at the river then out to Colorado, South Dakota, Tennessee and all parts in between. I spent the better part of two years as a gypsy of sorts…writing, speaking, and healing my broken heart.

\n

That same aunt gave me a fiddle after my grandma died in 1999. She left it on the bed without fanfare. When I went to bed that night and saw the fiddle, I sat on the edge of my bed, cradling it, running my fingers over the worn wooden frets…tears streaming down my face. I remembered that fiddle well. I was a very little girl. My great grandfather, a moose of a man, was at the farm. He and my uncle and my Pop-Pop built the basement and rolled the old house down over the foundation on long well casing pipes from an oilfield. My uncle loves to tell me that story and I listen and laugh every time as if it were my first hearing.

\n

They had to jack the house up to put the pipes under. The new basement was slightly downgrade and they didn’t want it to take off and get away from them. They wrapped a chain around the pipe and attached a huge pipe wrench for leverage. Murphy’s Law tells you what happened next. The house did indeed start rolling and the only thing that stopped it from shooting off the other side of the basement was that wrench. The handle had been driven about two feet into the ground and worked like a brake.

\n

My great grandpa had gone down in the basement to monitor things from below and tell my uncle when the house was over the new foundation. When it took off, Grandpa start yelling to “Make ’er stop, boys! Make ’er stop!” There weren’t any steps in place yet, so as soon as my uncle had the house secure, he ran to the basement doorway and hollered for my grandpa. “I stopped ’er!” Grandpa cried. “By golly, I stopped ’er, boys!”

\n

My uncle shinnied down a ladder into the basement and there was Grandpa, wedged up between the floorboards of the first floor and the pipe! Seems he deemed it a good idea to tie a stout rope to that pipe and tie the other end around his waist so he could “stop ’er”. Well, the rope wound up around the pipe and drew him right up like a bucket from a well. Thank God that wrench caught or that would have been the end of Grandpa!

\n

Soon after the house was secured to the new foundation, the stairs were built, and they added a front porch and poured a concrete slab for the back porch and the new bathroom that was being added. One summer night, after all the work had been done, my Pop-Pop pulled out the old fiddle and played “Turkey in the Straw”. My great grandpa grabbed a walking stick, stuck his bowler hat jauntily on the top is his head, and started flatfoot dancing on the porch. I will never, ever forget the deep thrill I got watching that scene unfold before me as I clapped my hands with the beat.

\n

I’ve always wanted to learn to flatfoot dance…also called clogging, or Apache dancing. I’ve watched countless videos but haven’t seemed to get it right. One of these days I will take a lesson and finally learn. This is the week I am hosting a Sisters on the Fly event here in West Virginia and I am so excited to showcase our state and its fine traditions. We’re having an old-fashioned weenie roast and we’ll churn ice cream. We’re going on a sternwheel ride on the Ohio River. We’re touring two mansions and an abandoned oil and gas boom town. And, we’re having a catered barbecue. Our entertainment is a young banjo player named Jake Eddy. He’s bringing some friends for some Old Time Jammin’…that front porch informal style typical of performers who sit around after shows and play for the sheer enjoyment. At this point, he hasn’t been able to find a fiddle player but he’s hoping he can get one. So do I!

\n

I’ve added a link to some great flatfoot dancing if you are interested. This is going to be a tremendously busy week for me so you may not hear much from me till the 10th or 11th. I’ll touch base but probably won’t have time to write my usual daily essay. This is going to be great fun so hang on for pictures, video, or quick stories. ❤️

\n

youtu.be/xyqcHMPa1…

\n

“You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭30:11‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-09-04T01:55:32-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/09/04/flatfootin-to-the-fiddle.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Love"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/09/03/the-good-ol-days.html", "title": "The Good Ol' Days", "content_html": "\"Wooden\n

We were taking a break yesterday when Mr. FixIt started reading a story in Goldenseal Magazine. The Goldenseal has been around since 1975 and is published four times a year. It has wonderful stories about traditional life in West Virginia. And, since I’m living a pretty traditional life, I really love that magazine. The story that caught Mr. FixIt’s attention was about a clothespin factory in Richwood, WV. That got me thinking about all the clotheslines of my life.

\n

We always had clotheslines. The metal T-shaped poles were anchored in the ground with cement and lasted till they rusted through. We’d have to go out with a wire brush and a can of Rustoleum and paint them every other summer or so. Ours were always silver but the last time I painted them at the farm, I used black. I remember as a child, the clotheslines themselves were woven…a kind of rope-like material. Another was a thick aluminum wire that created a wiggly clothesline that never straightened out. Then, as we got older and the plastic generation set in, the lines were white, hollow tubes that pinched shut with the spring-hinged clothespins. Later came the plastic covered cable lines. Once we got away from the rope lines, you had to take a wet rag out and run it up and down the clothesline to clean them or else you got black stuff on your clean clothes. At least you did in the chemical-laden Mid-Ohio Valley where I grew up. (Our bare feet would be black with the fallout from Union Carbide!)

\n

The early clothespins were the peg ones then came the clip on kind with the spring hinge. I liked the peg ones because I would pretend they were dolls. I’d dress them up with pieces of material from Grandma’s scrap bag. I’d draw faces on them and, if we had any glue around, I might even give them some yarn hair. We always had a clothespin bag that hung out on the clothesline. It had a hole in the side where you reached in and grabbed a few pins and stuck them in your mouth to use as you needed them. You had to watch because sometimes wasps, or even birds, would make nests in the bags.

\n\"Grandma's\n

When you finished hanging your laundry, the wet clothes often made the lines so heavy, they stretched down and the clothes brushed the ground. In order to keep your clothes clean, you used a long pole with a nail in the side near one end and hooked up you clothesline, propping it up high. Hanging clothes in Colorado was awesome because it’s so dry there, a load would be ready to bring in, fold, and put away in an hour or two. Not so in West Virginia. The humidity of summer would make laundry turn into an all-day affair. And you’d better not get distracted and let the rain get on them or leave them out too late till they gathered the dew or you’d be doing the same clothes over the next day.

\n

Clothes that are hung dry aren’t nice and soft like the ones that come out of a dryer. They are stiff and scratchy. I hated to use towels that dried on the line. But sheets dried in the sun are heavenly! They smell so wonderful…like sunshine and Ivory Snow. Men wore work clothes when I grew up. Khaki, green, or blue…heavy cotton twill. They had to be put on wire pants stretchers to put a crease in them. That made ironing easier because most of the wrinkles were flattened out. Yes…I said ironing. Most of you have done exactly what I’m talking about. But some may not have, so I’ll continue.

\n

Ironing. The BANE of my existence as a child. My mom worked outside of the home once I was in school, so as soon as we were old enough to stay home alone, laundry and cooking and cleaning house became my daily routine. We didn’t have the luxury of using a dryer routinely. It was only used during the winter or very rainy days. All other times, Dad’s work clothes, our dresses, and my brother’s shirts and trousers had to be ironed. We had a “sprinkler”…a water bottle with a small perforated head on it that we would sprinkle the clothes if they were very dry and stiff. Then we would fold them, put them in a bushel basket with an oilcloth liner to hold in the moisture, cover them with a towel and come back to them an hour or so later. Before I came along, starch had to be cooked and added to the rinse water to give clothes a really crisp finish and nice, sharp creases. Once I was old enough to iron, we had spray starch in cans.

\n

Who remembers the load you forgot in the washer for a day or two? Oh, that smelled SO bad and you would often get mildew stains that never came out, no matter how hard you scrubbed. You were in big trouble if you forgot a load and ruined clothes.

\n\"Old\n

Grandma had wringer washers. I loved them, but I was not allowed to use them when I was little. They were dangerous because you could get your hand caught in them and get hurt. I remember how excited grandma was when my uncle brought her a good wringer washer…long after she had an automatic set in the bathroom. She missed the old way. She thought it cleaned better. I’d love to have a good wringer washer but the water in the basement doesn’t work like it used too. Too many years of hard water corroding those old pipes. I’d be afraid the spigot would break off in my hand.

\n

I still have my mom’s clothespins. They are in a copper bucket I bought many years ago. I put it on top of the jelly cupboard here at the farm. Mom’s pins got mixed up with my own, but I can pretty much tell which ones I used as a child. I found Grandma’s clothespin bag hanging in the stairwell going down into the basement so I hung it in the kitchen on a child’s wooden coat hanger I found in an antique store last year. I think this is why I love Rural King so much. They carry so many things that we used “back in the day”. It reminds me of “simpler times”, even though we worked harder. Not nearly as hard as my grandparents, but certainly harder than the average kids of today.

\n

The last picture is the clothesline in the backyard in front of the hydrangea bush. You can see a couple old clothespins…weathered and nearly deteriorated to slivers. I won’t remove them. Maybe my grandma left them there when she brought in a dish towel or two…or something she rinsed out by hand. Surely my Uncle Bob had cleaned the line with an old rag. I’m sentimental about things. There are clotheslines along the side of the house. There’s one on the front porch and one on the back for hanging things when it’s raining. Then there’s this one that runs from the back porch to the cherry tree. That one I don’t use. That one reminds me…of my loved ones long since gone. Of the halcyon days of summer when I thought life was SO hard because I had to hang clothes and iron and cook supper for my family. Of the “Good Ol’ Days”. ❤️

\n

“The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭13:4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-09-03T01:55:44-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/09/03/the-good-ol-days.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Love","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/26/back-on-the-farm.html", "title": "Back on the Farm", "content_html": "\"Grandma's\n

It’s been a year since I put down roots here on the family farm. Well, as deep a root as I can put and not own property. What a remarkable year! I battled fleas, painted walls, mowed, trimmed, pruned, cleaned, sorted, dehumidifier, and about scared myself to death that I had ruined the well or burned up the pump. I’ve learned to stop letting grief steal my joy. I’ve learned to let go of the fear of loss and clear out enough room in my life to accommodate the love of a sweet man. I’ve spoken in front of crowds, large and small. I started blogging for Sisters on the Fly as well as here on Marshmallow Ranch. I bought a vintage camper to fix up. I’ve been to Colorado twice, Florida twice, the Outer Banks, Tennessee, Savannah, Amish Country, and a fun trip to a WVU basketball game. I’ve been to concerts galore…Garth Brooks, SHEL, Brandy Carlisle to name a few. I’ve camped at some pretty cool places. I’ve been interviewed for podcasts and articles. I’ve lost some people in one way or another and I’ve gained more. I spent some wonderful time with my family. I’ve grown stronger in my faith. And I fell in love. All in one year! Whew!

\n

We got home from the trip to Indiana and It was almost dark. I had to back this camper up into the driveway and it was more challenging as the light faded. I got it in ok and Mr. FixIt was a real trooper coaching me along. He filmed it. It might be funny…I don’t know. I haven’t taken the time to look at it yet.

\n

We are going to a class picnic today so as soon as I walked in last night, I mixed up a yellow cake to bake. I’ll make Penuche Frosting this morning so it’s nice and fresh. I looked through Grandma’s notebook hoping to find her recipe but it wasn’t there. Her Brown Sugar Pie recipe was though. I’ll have to make that soon…it’s wonderful!

\n

As I sat and wrote this, Mr. FixIt asked if I could hear the owl. I couldn’t until I went to the front door. I recorded it for you and posted it last night so be sure you catch it. It’s the Eastern Screech Owl we heard the other evening on our walk. Oh…we visited with the neighbor down the road he other evening. He had a health scare while we were in Colorado and I was so happy to see him out working in his garden! It’s just another reminder how uncertain life is.

\n

If you are in Texas, or have loved ones there, you are in my prayers. Please check in and let us know how you’re doing.

\n

Yes…it’s been an amazing year on the farm, hasn’t it? Big things, little things, fun things, scary things. But we made it through. We’ll keep on keeping on and I’ll keep telling you these stories about this crazy, beautiful life I am privileged to lead. Thank you all for being here! ❤️

\n

“and having a reputation for good works: if she has brought up children, has shown hospitality, has washed the feet of the saints, has cared for the afflicted, and has devoted herself to every good work.”\n‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭5:10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

", "date_published": "2017-08-26T01:55:41-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/26/back-on-the-farm.html", "tags": ["Family","Travel","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","TOW-Wanda!","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Girl Camper","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/23/the-sky-really-is-fallingsorta.html", "title": "The Sky Really IS Falling...Sorta!", "content_html": "\"Squirrel\n

The other evening, I was sitting out on the front porch and hear something fall in the woods on the other side of the driveway. I looked up in time to see a green ball come shooting out of the woods onto the lawn. Curious. I sat, scanning the trees, and pretty soon another came down. I noticed a quick movement out of the corner of my eye and saw a squirrel darting from branch to branch. Now, I’m pretty good with identifying the fauna on the farm, but I’m not as astute with the flora. I watched to see what tree the squirrel settled in then got up to inspect the green ball. As it turns out, there’s a hickory tree on the bank, and a nice sized one at that. I gathered up a bucket full before I mowed the lawn yesterday and I’ll set them out to dry then take the husks off when they’re dry.

\n

Hickory nuts are really good in cookies. My grandma used to make raisin-filled cookies. I’m not home as I write this but I’ll try to remember to post the recipe one of these days. She would use hickory nuts sometimes. Or black walnuts. We would sit around the table and crack nuts and pick the nut meats out of the shells. You’d have to be pretty careful when you ate those cookies because sometimes you’d bite down on a piece of the shell. Grandma broke her dentures like that once. Scared the bejeebers out of me because I didn’t know about false teeth at the time!

\n

As more and more of the hickory nuts are maturing, the squirrels have gathered in the hickory tree and it actually sounds like rain with all the little bits of hull they are dropping as they denude the nut. Fortunately for me, these little critters lose their grip fairly easily and they drop the whole shebang. I need to get my coveralls and boots on and wade up that hill in the woods and see if I can gather more. Hickory nuts are a precious commodity in these parts. There’s a hickory tree back on the hill near the old Mount Zion Church. It’s alongside the cemetery so I don’t know that the tree actually belongs to someone. But I have seen a sign on it warning folks from picking up those hickory nuts. Testy. This brought me to do a little research. Will there be animals in Heaven? The Bible says there are horses in Heaven to equip the armies so if there are horses, then surely there are others. Dogs MUST got to Heaven…there are humans in those eyes. But what about the squirrel and the possum and the raccoon? I think if horses are in Heaven, and surely dogs are, then others must be as well. I think God made animals for our use and enjoyment. And Heaven is a place for joy!

\n

I saw another oddity yesterday. I came in from mowing and went to the kitchen to get a cold drink. I heard something really loud buzzing on the back porch. It turned out to be a locust that was getting attacked and stung by what looked to be a sand hornet. They were rolling over and over all over the back porch and every time they landed up against my metal cabinet, the sound was amplified tenfold. It was pretty impressive.

\n

We’re off on a road trip again today! TOW-Wanda is fixed so we’re running over to pick her up and camp for a couple of nights. Someone told Mr. FixIt the repair could cost $4,000 but it’s about a fourth of that. I have to tell you, Camping World in Richmond, Indiana is AWESOME! I would highly recommend their service department. Tell Matt Green I sent you! See you on the road! ❤️

\n

“For what happens to the children of man and what happens to the beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts, for all is vanity. All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return. Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down into the earth?”\n‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:19-21‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

Photo Credit: Pinterest

\n", "date_published": "2017-08-23T01:55:11-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/23/the-sky-really-is-fallingsorta.html", "tags": ["TOW-Wanda!","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/19/the-eastern-screech-owl.html", "title": "The Eastern Screech Owl", "content_html": "\"Eastern\n

This is not my photo, but isn’t this a magnificent creature??? Mr. FixIt and I went for a short walk after supper last night. It was just getting dusk and we heard the familiar trill of the screech owl. Their name is misleading as they do not screech…they trill and whinny. I’m including a link to a YouTube video where you can learn more about them.

\n

I received an e-mail from Camping World late yesterday afternoon. TOW-Wanda is fixed and waiting for us to come get her. I refuse to go Monday as that is heading right into eclipse country and I don’t want any part of that craziness. I saw a photo of what to expect in our area as far as coverage of the sun and it’s pretty darn close to complete so I’m not too worried about staying here. There is also a forecast for cloudy skies. So, there ya go. We’ll go Wednesday and come back Thursday.

\n

I came back from town yesterday and saw a school bus returning from its rounds. The locusts are buzzing like crazy and it takes me back to grade school. We didn’t head back to school till after Labor Day back then. The late August evenings were spent trying to eke out the very last bit of summer fun we could get before we had to return to the “three R’s”…readin’, ‘ritin’, and ‘rithmatic. Somewhere in our little town there is a family grieving their little eleven-year-old who got swept away in a rush of water after a hard rain Thursday night. I just spent much of the summer with Big and Little…they are thirteen and ten, respectively. I cannot fathom that kind of loss. It is beyond me. I pray for their comfort. ❤️

\n

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”\n‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

youtu.be/SyFJfmEgh…

\n", "date_published": "2017-08-19T01:55:06-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/19/the-eastern-screech-owl.html", "tags": ["Grief","Prayer","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/16/curiosity.html", "title": "Curiosity", "content_html": "\"Curious\n

You know what they say about curiosity…it killed the cat! I don’t know what Kitty Boy was after, but something sure had his attention yesterday. This old stump is what’s left of a poplar tree my Pop-Pop planted when I was a teenager. Poplars grow fast, tall, and straight as an arrow but they are pretty fragile in a storm. Long after Grandma died, my aunt was living here alone and a bad storm blew up. She said that poplar tree was twisting in a circle and she was just sure it was going to come down on the house so the next time her brother came, she had him cut it down. I understand why, but it broke my heart to see it gone. Thoughtfully, they left a tall stump and we use it for the rain gauge…and occasional cat perch. I noticed as I sat and wrote this last night, the rain gauge needs emptying. It’s at five inches. It hasn’t been emptied since before I left for Colorado in early July. I’m sure there has been some evaporation, but I know we had a lot of rain while I was gone.

\n

I noticed when I was mowing yesterday that the creek banks are eroding a lot this year. I pointed it out to Mr. FixIt last night. We’re going to have to line the banks with heavy stones to keep the creek from eating out into the yard and into the foundation of the house. The new dehumidifier is doing a great job and has reduced the humidity in the basement from 75% to 45-50%. That makes the whole house feel more comfortable. This house was built in the early 1930’s. And it was a cheaply made one, at that. The rough sawn timber siding has shrunk over the years and there are now gaps of nearly an inch between them. It has the original tin roof. The walls in the upstairs bedrooms are made of what looks like a stiff corrugated cardboard with several layers of wallpaper accumulated over the years. The basement is unfinished and damp and could use a good coating of a waterproofing product. There’s just a boatload of work that should be done, but here it sits…held together with spit and love.

\n

I was blessed that my friend Charlotte mowed for me while I was gone. It rained the last several days though so I couldn’t mow till yesterday. I swear I could have used a bailer on it! It was still pretty wet and the grass clumped up bad as I mowed. It kept clogging up the grass chute and I’d have to stop, turn off the mower, clear it out, and start up again. It was in the 90’s yesterday and I had to keep taking breaks. It took five attempts to get the yard done and I didn’t even attempt the area up by the barn. I don’t have a rake here. Well, there may be one up in the barn somewhere but this is snake and spider season so if it’s up there, there it’s staying for now. Mr. FixIt called before he headed to the farm yesterday and I asked if he could bring me a rake. He had to kind of piece one together from parts but it’ll do. As I am writing this, he is out in the yard, raking up those ugly clumps of wet grass so they don’t kill spots in my yard. What a good man!

\n

It sounds like a lot of work, doesn’t it? This farm…this old house…this home of my heart. It is. Things are always breaking or fumbling but I fix them and move on. Yesterday it was the water. I was running a bath and it was sputtering and sent bits of black sediment from the hot water heater. It’s old and fragile. I flushed it out for a while, checked the pump, and checked the heater itself. I think it was from sitting dormant for a month. After I flushed it out it seemed fine. Yes, there’s a lot to do, and it is hard work. But, I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything. Farm living suits me. It’s brought a pride into my life I felt lacking most of my adulthood. The kind of pride that comes with working hard and going to bed tired, and happy. ❤️

\n

“Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭37:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-08-16T01:05:28-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/16/curiosity.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Prayer","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Love","God","Peace","Wisdom","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/15/a-change-in-the-air.html", "title": "A Change in the Air", "content_html": "\"Early\n

Even though it is only the middle of August, there is a definite change in the air. There are leaves changing already and the woods have taken on the “tired green” of late summer, having spent their glorious stores of chlorophyll in the peak of summer. Yesterday dawned cloudy and relatively cool and soon the sky gifted us with a gentle rain that lasted most of the day. So much for mowing the lawn.

\n

I’m sitting on the front porch at the farm as I write this, watching the goldfinches fight over the socks of thistle seeds. Boy Cat and Old Mama Kitty are keeping me company as I listen to the rain pattering on the leaves in the nearby woods. The sun is trying to break through and make its first appearance of the day, just shy of 5:00. Since I couldn’t mow, I drove to town and ran errands. I am hosting a Sisters on the Fly event September 7-10 and I needed to make arrangements. I have 23 women signed up so far and registration is still open if you would like to attend.

\n

I felt much better today…stronger, better rested. I have been thinking about triggers and how they stimulate the grief response. At first, everything is a trigger. When you are in the acute stages of grief, your feelings are like a frayed electric cord, ready to shock you at the slightest touch. After some time, things even out a bit but it is still amazing how the tiniest thing can trigger grief. When you’ve had a long stretch without a meltdown, you can get a little complacent, thinking maybe you’re through all that. So  it kind of takes you by surprise when a new wave comes. That was what I felt over the weekend.

\n

As I was driving through town yesterday, I was coming up to a stoplight when I heard an ambulance approaching. I stopped and waited for it to come through from my left and make the turn towards the hospital. There was an elderly man seated in the front passenger seat and I suddenly flashed back to the ambulance ride taking Mr. Virgo to the ER from the RV dealership where he had his heart attack. I hadn’t thought about that drive for quite some time. For a brief moment, my eyes met those of the man in the front seat and I recognized that panicked and confused look on his face. There was a slight set of the jaw that was familiar. “Ok, ok, ok….let’s get this done. Be strong. Just breathe.” At least, that’s what went through my mind when I was in his shoes.

\n

I didn’t have a reaction to this trigger. I was prepared. It’ll be a while before I have another grief response, I imagine. I’m a bit more on guard now. That’s a relief of sorts. I hate when the wave comes unexpectedly. For now, I’ll sit on the porch and watch the rain as the light changes and the hummingbirds fight over the feeder…and wait for Mr. FixIt to call so I can start supper. History repeats itself and life goes on. ❤️

\n

“And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.”\n‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:15‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-08-15T01:55:29-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/15/a-change-in-the-air.html", "tags": ["Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/14/when-darkness-calls.html", "title": "When Darkness Calls", "content_html": "\"\"\n

I have some really great friends who look out for me. They each seem to have a role. My longest term friend “feels” when something is wrong and she needs to reach out right away. Others send articles for my reference and give me a heads up when I have a typo in a post. They know I cannot STAND typos. One sends me the funniest memes I have ever seen on the internet and spends equal time kicking me in the butt when I need it…which is more often than you may imagine. My old high school chum, Marion, sent me an excellent article the other day about what the first year of widowhood was like for Jodi of the blog Extra Grace Required. She listed the important things she learned that first year. If memory serves, I’ve written a few of those missives myself. We live and we learn and we grow as we crawl our way along on this grief journey.

\n

Just because I have found new love, doesn’t mean I have miraculously “gotten over” the loss of Mr. Virgo. It means I’ve grown. It means my heart has healed enough to make room for more love in my life. It certainly does NOT mean I never have a bad day or have sad feelings. And here’s what’s most important. My bad days or my sad feelings have absolutely nothing to do with my love for Mr. FixIt. It’s complicated loving two men…one here, one not quite so much. It’s easy to love this wonderful man I’ve known almost as long as I can remember. I just have to incorporate a lot of feelings at once which is made more difficult when I’m tired and not feeling up to par.

\n

One of the things Jodi noticed after her first year is, she feels the grief of others more easily. Before loss, grief is sad, you feel bad for the one who has lost a loved one, you have your own feelings to sort out about your relationship with the departed. But, once it has happened so close to home that your heart has literally been ripped out of your chest, the grief of others is not so easily compartmentalized. Someone close to me lost a son-in-law this summer. I spoke to the widow on the phone Saturday, giving some support, acknowledging feelings, commiserating, feeling. When she broke down into those guttural cries I still remember so vividly, my heart squeezed tight, my throat closed, my stomach churned, I got hot and sweaty, my fight or flight response kicked in big time. I held it together. I didn’t crumble….until late in the night. I couldn’t go to sleep. My head was pounding and my heart ached for this young woman who is so new in this journey. I tossed and turned. I used my Rescue Remedy. When sleep wouldn’t come, I changed course and walked around the dimly lit house until I felt I could settle down. I finally slept, but didn’t feel much better when I awoke.

\n

So, it was one of THOSE days. Out of sorts. Off my feed. I didn’t even want coffee…gasp! It was a tea and oatmeal and crackers and lay low kind of day. Not exactly a day spent mattress-surfing, but close. The best part was…Mr. FixIt was there to offer comfort and support and love. He was totally nonjudgmental. He is a remarkable man. He just listened and held me and that’s all I needed. After a while, I was feeling better. Not fine, but ok. I sent him home to do whatever he needed to do for the afternoon and I settled in with my thoughts and processed.

\n

Process.. That’s what this whole thing is. It doesn’t matter if it’s one year or five years or twenty-five…grief is a process. It doesn’t always hit me like this anymore…thank God. The biggest lesson I’ve learned in all of this is, when the wave hits, don’t fight it. Let it carry you to a place of self-discovery and love. And when you’re ready, dust yourself off, wash your face, and get back to the business of living. Because, that’s what we’re here for. ❤️

\n

extragracerequired.com/2017/03/2…

\n

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”\n‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:38-39‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-08-14T01:55:05-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/14/when-darkness-calls.html", "tags": ["Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Strong Women","Hope","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Grace","Love","God","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/13/west-virginia-date-night.html", "title": "West Virginia Date Night", "content_html": "

 

\n\"Rural\n

I remember a time when “date night” involved a little black dress and makeup. But let me tell you, a trip to Lowe’s or Rural King will do just fine, thank you very much. Last night was date night. We started out with a trip to the mall to run a couple errands and walk some laps. Sitting in the truck too much the last few weeks has taken its toll on my fitness level. We tried to eat at our favorite BBQ place but the wait was over an hour so we went for a quick bite at Qdoba. Then we headed for Rural King. Oh, I love that place! We had to clean out the bird seed barrel yesterday and throw the old seed out. It was filled with thousands of weevils. Something took off with my big bird feeder…raccoons more than likely but it could have been a bear. I got a new feeder and fresh seed. I also bought a handheld infrared thermometer to monitor my hub temps when I get TOW-Wanda back. That was a very expensive lesson.

\n

We went to Walmart and bought a dehumidifier for the basement so I can reduce the humidity in the farmhouse. I’ve washed all the surfaces that had mold and mildew from being closed up while we were gone. I used a bleach solution to kill the spores. I have the attic fan running to draw the excess heat and moisture out. The house had some mold and mildew this time last year when I arrived but this summer has seen more rain and everything was closed up for a month so it was much worse.

\n

We went for a little drive through City Park and headed home. We set up the dehumidifier with a hose down the drain in the basement. The monitor said it was 75% humidity down there. I set it for 50% so we’ll see how it does. I also bought a large tub of DampRid and put it in the bathroom. It’s a bucket of some sort of granules that absorb moisture from the air. The bathroom is typically a damp place, but ours is made more so by the washer and dryer being in there.

\n

The cats are fed. Phone calls have been made. Mr. FixIt is settled in his favorite chair reading the news. And I’m in the big chair in front of the window in the dining room. The evening is cool. The evening sounds of the insects and frogs are my background music. It’s date night in West Virginia…and I couldn’t be happier. God has blessed us with a simple life and abundant love. ❤️

\n

“addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.”\n‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭5:19-21‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-08-13T01:55:16-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/13/west-virginia-date-night.html", "tags": ["Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Love","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/12/hand-in-glove.html", "title": "Hand in Glove", "content_html": "\"Summer\n

I fit here. West Virginia is just the right size and shape to accommodate all that is…me! We were sitting on the porch last night contemplating the “traffic” up this little country lane. Maybe a dozen or so cars and trucks have come and gone. The light turned that beautiful golden of August, giving the tired green of the trees a gilding that brings a little life back in their weary veins. Old Mama Kitty munched out on that bit of pork chop I surreptitiously dropped for her to try to keep her from climbing Mr. FixIt’s leg like a young sapling, disturbing our Friday “date night” dinner.

\n

I love to cook. I didn’t for a long time, but cooking for an appreciative audience is delightful. Last night’s fare was pork chops, sauerkraut fried a golden brown, mashed potatoes, fresh corn on the cob, and home grown tomatoes. Oh my…be still my heart. Mr. FixIt rose to clear the table and rid up the dishes while I settled in to write this post. Norah Jones is crooning softly in the background. The air is still. A jet flies overhead, whisking happy travelers off to another place. Crickets, katydids, locusts, and tree frogs serenade us as we each settle in for our own interests for a bit.

\n

We are a perfect fit. A hand in glove relationship. Mr. FixIt comes out from cleaning my kitchen (seriously, is there anything sexier than a man cleaning a kitchen???) and taps me on the shoulder. He hands me a cherry flavored Tootsie Roll pop. I give him my brightest smile. He knows. He knows what I love. He listens. He cares.

\n

He got here about fifteen minutes before I woke up from my nap. He came in quietly, picked up the paper and settled into the rocker to read and wait for me to wake up. He would have waited much longer than fifteen minutes. He would never have disturbed my rest. When I got up and saw him in my dining room, I smiled and gave him a big kiss. I padded into the kitchen for a cold drink, and there…sitting in a jug of water…we’re two dozen beautiful copper-colored roses. Hand in glove. This man gets me.

\n

Learning to love and appreciate this man has not taken anything away from my feelings for Mr. Virgo. If anything, it has kept that love alive and in the forefront in many ways. When Mr. FixIt does or says something sweet and loving, I smile knowing how Mr. Virgo would love the way this man treats “his best girl”. Not by way of comparison. Mr. FixIt is his own man and I love him for his own merits. But, two dozen roses? Letting me wake on my own? Doing the dishes? Bringing me a cherry flavored lollipop? Oh yes…this man fits me and I am ever so grateful for the honor of loving, and being loved, again.

\n

I am home…and it isn’t all about the house, the land, the state, or even the man, really. No…it’s all about living comfortably in my skin and choosing the right guy to share it with. Hand in glove. Peace. ❤️

\n

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.”\n‭‭John‬ ‭13:34‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-08-12T01:55:47-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/12/hand-in-glove.html", "tags": ["Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Love","Peace","Wisdom","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/08/11/welcome-home.html", "title": "Welcome Home!", "content_html": "\"Gas\n

Is there anything more wonderful than the glow of the gas light in the yard to welcome you home? This light has burned continuously since I was a little girl. It’s had many mates replaced and several panes of glass. It’s had a coat or two of flat black paint and it can no longer be adjusted for the rust, but it’s the beacon that greets me when I come up the driveway here at the farm

\n

I ran errands this morning…mail, groceries, produce stand, coffee. Then made a beeline home. All the kitties came to greet me. Old Mama Kitty trembled at the sound of my voice. Boy cat sat a respectable distance and gave me his best throaty hello. Kitty Boy skirted me and settled at the barn with a mouse or some such critter.

\n

I called the neighbors to let them know I was home. They had informed me several days ago not to be too surprised when I come home and find four new kittens. What??? It seems they hitch-hiked up in the car and stayed. I think the mama took one back because it was back at their house down the road. That left three. I managed to catch two of them and delivered them back to their mama. I just didn’t have it in me to try to catch the last one. I’ll try today.

\n

It rained an extraordinary amount here this summer and many of the surfaces in the house are covered in a light mold and mildew. I need to get after it with bleach water. I also need a dehumidifier. I put the groceries away, fed the cats, sorted the mail, cleaned the fridge, and just about emptied the truck. I am spent. I don’t know if it’s age, or if it’s after effects of the concussion, or all the trouble with the camper, but this trip was a rough one for me…even with the help of Mr. FixIt. Thank God he was along. It was fun. I loved seeing the kids and I miss everyone already. But I swear…I’m going to sleep for a week!

\n

If you don’t hear from me for a bit, I’m laying low and catching my breath. I just wanted you to know I’m home…really home! God protected us and kept us safe and we are so grateful! ❤️

\n

““Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.”\n‭‭Luke‬ ‭8:39‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-08-11T01:55:35-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/08/11/welcome-home.html", "tags": ["Family","Prayer","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace","Love","God","Peace","Humbled","The Cats","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/07/05/a-room-with-a-view.html", "title": "A Room With A View", "content_html": "

\n\"Greenery\n

The last few nights have been insufferably hot and muggy in the farmhouse. There is a room air conditioner in the living room, but unless you’re sleeping on the couch, it doesn’t effectively cool down the house and ends up running up the electric bill to no avail. The best alternative is TOW-Wanda. Equipped with fans and open windows, it’s been pretty darned comfortable out there. I will miss this view of the bank along the driveway here at the farm. The lush green of West Virginia summers may bring bugs and humidity, but the foliage is a sight to see any given day of the week. Colorado is semi-arid so it is a sharp contrast from here. At least it’s a dry heat, right?

\n

I emptied out the belly of the camper yesterday and cleaned the floors. I reorganized the contents of the big tub of odds and ends I keep down there. After repacking, I cleaned out the fridge, scrubbed the floors and vacuumed the carpets. The pantry needs vacuumed and wiped out then restocked. The bathroom needs a good scrubbing and I need to organize the storage under the bed and in various cabinets. Since this new truck doesn’t have the torque the old one had, I need to be more conscious about my weight.

\n

I’ve made a list of last minute items for the trip. I’ll go into town for those today. Tomorrow I head out on another segment of The Grand Adventure. The longest Mr. FixIt and I have been separated was when I went to Colorado for a month at Christmas. We didn’t like it one bit. I so wanted to tell you about that homecoming back then but it was not the right time. I can tell you now. I flew in and out of Dayton because it is SO much cheaper and my dear friend Cindy lets me park at her house so I don’t have to pay for parking. That drive to the farm from Dayton felt like it took forever. I knew Mr. FixIt was at the farm waiting for me and I could hardly contain myself. It was after dark when I pulled into the driveway and I stopped dead in my tracks. For the first time since I was a child, the house was decorated. There were trees lit on the front porch and a large lit-up star on the second floor above the porch between the two windows! It made me cry. I jumped out of my truck and ran into the house squealing like a little girl. Mr. FixIt walked out from the living room and I stopped, mouth agape. He was wearing charcoal dress pants, a crisp white shirt, and a red sweater vest. He took my breath away and I knew…anyone who would do this for me was a keeper. He knew how much Christmas means to me and how much I love this house. He knew I missed having a country Christmas at the farm, so he made sure I had one on my return. What a wonderful guy!

\n

My babies live in Colorado. I have to see them as often as I can. In the meantime, Mr. FixIt has obligations he must attend to here. We couldn’t stand the thought of being apart two whole months so he’s flying out to join me for three weeks in the middle of my trip so he can meet the family. We’ll go camping and sightseeing as he has never spent time in Colorado. The kitties are covered, the farm is being watched, my sweetheart is coming to see me, and I get to spend quality time with my girls! What’s not to love about that? Sweetness. Sheer sweetness! ❤️

\n

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”\n‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭4:9-12‬ ‭NIV

\n", "date_published": "2017-07-05T01:55:46-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/07/05/a-room-with-a-view.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","TOW-Wanda!","Camping","The Grand Adventure","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Love","God","Wisdom","Peaceful Moments","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/07/04/the-fourth-of-july.html", "title": "The Fourth of July", "content_html": "

\"\"

\n

OMGosh! How does the summer fly so quickly and winter drags on forever? Yesterday was the quintessential perfect summer day. We had our first dinner party yesterday! This is something that, I have to tell you, absolutely thrills me to no end. Mr. Virgo was not one for socializing because he worked long hours and was exhausted when he got home. Mr. FixIt is a social butterfly just like me and we are looking forward to entertaining often. I invited my cousin and his wife who live down the road from the farm. Mr. FixIt told me the other day that he loves cabbage rolls and…I just so happen to make GREAT cabbage rolls! I haven’t made them in years. It was entirely too hot to turn the oven on so I cooked them in the crockpot. It worked out great. Tennessee tomatoes, fresh green beans with bacon and onions, fresh corn on the cob. Charlotte brought salad. A new tablecloth in a salmon pink quilt pattern and a basket of strawberries dressed the new picnic table Mr. FixIt bought me for my birthday. He set up the dining canopy for some evening shade.

\n

After supper, we went for a ride in the side-by-side. If you don’t know what that is, it looks like an ATV (4-wheeler) but has a front and back seat and can carry four people. It’s rugged and has a sturdy roll bar and cage around you as well as seat belts. We went all over the back roads up on the ridge behind the farm. All the way, my cousin was telling family stories I knew nothing about. They showed us where they are building a compressor station on a big gas line that is going down all the way to Louisiana. The compressor station will be built straight back over our hill and it will make a good deal of noise. It is upsetting to think that in a year, the whole timbre of the region will be changed forever. I think that’s why I’ve been led to live here…so I can really experience the peace I remember before it’s gone.

\n

Some of these backroads where people live are unbelievable. Little children running barefoot…not a care in the world, living in squalor while a ridge or two over are huge homes tucked into quiet groves of trees. We bumped and bounced around till we came to an area where the “road” was actually the riverbed. We were driving along holding our feet up because the water was up over the floorboards. Up steep hills and over places where cinderblocks were thrown into the deep ruts to hopefully allow passage. I was hootin’ and hollerin’ all the way. On the way back, I turned to my cousin’s wife and said breathlessly, “OMGosh! I feel like I’m sixteen!!!” What a great day/evening. We got back just after dark…exhausted and beat up but highly entertained. I hugged by cousins goodbye till I return from Colorado the end of August.

\n

I am immensely grateful for the infinite sweetness of this life. I am wealthy beyond my wildest dreams and it has absolutely nothing to do with worldly goods. I ran into a gal at the yard sale yesterday who lives out the road from the farm. When I told her where I was living she said she just knew someone new was living there because the house is coming back to life. I am so blessed to be living here at this time of my life. And to have Mr. FixIt and family and friends to share it with.

\n

Be safe out there today and enjoy your holiday! ❤️

\n

“You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭16:11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-07-04T01:55:02-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/07/04/the-fourth-of-july.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","Fun","The Farm","Gratitude","Holiday","Starting Over"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/07/02/towwanda-is-home.html", "title": "TOW-Wanda is Home!", "content_html": "\"Starcraft\n

First of all…OMGosh! Your response to my post yesterday was more than I could have ever imagined. Thank you all so much for the lovely comments, likes, and shares. You warmed my heart! I was so worried that introducing a new party to this adventure would change the dynamic and people would drop away. It turns out, more people tuned in so we’re off to a good start in this new chapter of Mr. FixIt and me! Of course, grief is a lifelong process so I will still touch base on how that affects me as we go along. Ever the teacher.

\n

There’s an interesting timbre to this new man. None of the men I have been with in my sixty-four years were mechanically inclined. Mr. FixIt, however, is a mechanical engineer and a lifelong camper. Imagine how difficult it was for him to sit back and watch as I hooked up and unhooked my camper. Oh…this is entirely new territory for this guy! He wanted to do the heavy stuff for me, and while I certainly could have sandbagged and let him, I still will be traveling alone some of the time so I need to keep up my skills and know for certain how things have been hooked up. I know, I know…control issues. I asked him sweetly to wait till I got what I needed to do done, then I would share some of the other duties. I also told him when we camp in his campers (he has two!) I will sit in a chair and watch him till he has a job for me to do. I made it up to him by doing all the cooking and fixed some pretty fabulous meals! He did a wonderful job changing out the gas lines for me and helped me troubleshoot the electrical bug we had. He doesn’t get the name Mr. FixIt for nothing!

\n

When we arrived home I told him I needed to back the camper into the driveway rather than pull it in like I usually do. With the vintage camper up at the end of the drive, there was no room to get the truck out and around the camper. Our road is a narrow country lane and the driveway is tight. I have to say, I totally impressed Mr. FixIt with my mad backing skills! He was bragging about me at dinner Friday night when we met 20 of our classmates at a local Italian restaurant. I don’t think this guy has ever run across a woman like me. He just looks at me in amazement. It makes me smile.

\n

I washed the exterior of the camper yesterday. It hadn’t been cleaned since I was in Myrtle Beach in September of 2015. It looks so much nicer now. I need to do a deep cleaning inside in the next few days, reorganize, and pack her up for the trip cross country. I leave Thursday. I am traveling alone so I won’t be divulging my exact location when I’m there, but I’ll be checking in daily to give you progress reports and tips for traveling solo in a camper. Mr. FixIt gets to come join me in a couple of weeks and meet the family. That’s exciting!!! In the meantime, he’ll be holding down the fort for me and keep the farm going.

\n

Back off girls…I saw him first! ❤️

\n

“Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load.”\n‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6:4-5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-07-02T01:55:39-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/07/02/towwanda-is-home.html", "tags": ["Travel","Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Sisters on the Fly","Positive Energy","TOW-Wanda!","Camping","The Grand Adventure","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","goRVing","Love","God","Wisdom","Girl Camper"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/26/that-one-day-in-june.html", "title": "That One Day in June", "content_html": "\"Collage\n

There’s one day in June. It’s perfect. The temp hovers at 80 with a nice breeze. The puffy clouds float in a clear, blue sky. The green is ever so slightly past the bright apple green of spring but not nearly the darker green that come with July’s heat. A green that is so intense and so pervasive you feel EVERYTHING is chock full of chlorophyll. From the moment you rise to the time to rest your head on the pillow again, the day is chock-a-block full of fun summer activities. Yesterday was just such a day!

\n

It began, of course, with church. Pastor Justin was away so the team leaders each came forward and spoke about the mission statement and the various guidelines our church works toward. It was informative and encouraging. Afterward, I changed into shorts (I still cannot force myself to wear shorts to church!) and headed to the park to walk. When I got out of the truck I saw a huge crowd and realized there was a car show going on. What a treat to walk around and talk to these auto enthusiasts and run into folks I know! Once I had seen all the cars and trucks, I walked two miles. As I did my laps and passed the baseball field, two teams started to warm up for an afternoon game. I stopped and watched a bit. Then I went to Marietta for a late lunch of Mexican food. I drove my friend home and headed out to the parsonage at the Methodist Church in Smithville for the going-away party being held in honor of Pastor Matthew and his fiancé, Felicia. It was bittersweet telling them goodbye. I have grown quite fond of them both but I know I will see them in Ohio. It was wonderful to share stories of how God is working in all of our lives and to spend a couple of hours win fellowship with some wonderful people that I have met through the local Revivals.

\n

I drove home in a soft rain then watched the sky turn scarlet as the sun set. It was a day to remember. I love those best. ❤️

\n

“He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near. “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.”\n‭‭Luke‬ ‭21:29-33‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-26T01:55:06-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/26/that-one-day-in-june.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","God","Wisdom","Peaceful Moments"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/19/weekend-walkabout.html", "title": "Weekend Walkabout", "content_html": "\"\"\n

We are truly knee-deep in June now here in West Virginia. We’ve been getting some rain finally. But oh my…it has been so hot so now it’s muggy. It is a pleasure to lay in front of an open window at night, though. When the cool of the evening comes in and you pull a quilt up to your chin, it makes for divine sleeping weather.

\n\"Magnolua\"\n

I went to town for the last Saturday evening service at my church till fall. I love going on Saturday night, going out to dinner with a friend afterwards, then taking a long walk by the river as the day cools off. It was a perfect evening.

\n\"Marietta,\n

As I write this, the thunder is rolling on the surrounding hills. I love thunderstorms! So far we have been really lucky and haven’t lost electricity. The cats are sitting at opposite ends of the porch. Old Mama Kitty has her nose out of joint because I scooted her away when she tried to jump up on me. She has never done that so I suppose I am now officially the Food Goddess of the tribe. I wouldn’t mind giving her a cuddle, but fleas and ticks have been a problem in the past and I found I was out of flea treatment when I looked. I must put that on my list.

\n

The turkeys are calling in the bottom across the road. A pair of cardinals are chasing each other around the locust flowers. An Eastern Bluebird has made his appearance the last few evenings and sits on the phone line a few feet from me as if he has no place better to be. Mr. Virgo has always sent me bluebirds. This one showed up the day I brought “Joy” home. His official seal of approval.

\n\"1967\n

I went to church at the little white church on the hill yesterday so I could say farewell to young Pastor Matt. He is taking a new charge, and a new wife we found out yesterday, to a small town north of Cleveland. I have grown quite fond of that young man. He has helped me reach something deep inside that has never been touched. I feel filled by the Holy Spirit through deep, fervent prayer and anointing. The last night I attended Revival, I was facing a situation coming up that normally would fill me with fear and dread and anxiety. I needed to be absolutely at the top of my game last week to help a friend through a scary medical procedure. At the altar call, I went forward and knelt and prayed that God would remove this fear from me completely so that I could be of service to my friend. I had no sooner knelt down when I felt hands on my back and shoulders. Pastor Matt’s father is a pastor as well and he put his arm around my shoulders and started praying loudly over me. Exultant, exuberant, fervent pleas went up asking for exactly what I was silently praying for. He shouted, “Lord, bring this sister the strength and courage she needs to go through what she is faced with this week. Let her be strong and fearless as she marches through what she needs to do!” This went on and on. I was stunned. How did he know? I felt like I had the wind knocked out of me and I could do nothing but bask in this praise and prayer surrounding me. I was totally drained when I got up and went back to my seat. And you know what? From that moment on, any dread, any anxiety, any fear left me completely. I helped my friend get through the procedure as though I’d had a sedative, I kid you not. It was downright supernatural. I want more of that. How could you not want more of that?

\n

I’m loving this space that I’m in right now. I’m walking in love and light and Spirit. It’s incredibly peaceful. As I sign off for the night, the lightning bugs are rising, the rain is falling, and the thunder rolls. I hope you have a wonderful Monday. Make a choice to have a good week. Lift people up. Pay it forward. Be good and kind to one another. Life is a beautiful thing…really appreciate it while you’ve got it. ❤️

\n

“When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.”\n‭‭Acts‬ ‭8:14-17‬ ‭NIV

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-19T01:55:26-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/19/weekend-walkabout.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Hope","Positive Energy","The Farm","Gratitude","God","The Cats","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/13/will-you-still-need-me.html", "title": "? Will You Still Need Me? ?", "content_html": "\"Laundry\n

I have waited a long time for this birthday so I could sing that Beatles tune! I have always loved my birthday. That one day of the year where it was all about me. My Grandma celebrated my birthdays with a homemade cake every year. It was always the same…a yellow cake with penuche frosting. (http://www.food.com/recipe/grandmas-penuche-frosting-22376) If you’ve never had it…you must, you must! I could literally sit and eat it with a spoon, warm out of the pan. Divine! We didn’t have that gosh awful icing in a can when I was growing up. Frosting was a handmade confection from handwritten directions that was handed down from generation to generation. I still have Grandma’s “cookbook”…a stenographer’s notepad with her eighth-grade-education scrawl, written with a stubby, hand sharpened pencil, no doubt.

\n

Mr. Virgo made a big deal out of my birthdays because he knew what it meant to me. He would call the girls ahead of time to make sure they remembered and invite them to a restaurant. Like Christmas, he would shower me with gifts that he remembered me saying I liked. He was a generous man. The girls have done a good job remember me on my special day. It may not be on the actual day, but when I get to Colorado next month, we’ll have a gluten free cake. I want a yellow one with penuche frosting this year!

\n

I received a beautiful gift last week…an early birthday present. A friend of mine said, “What you need out here is a good picnic table!” The next visit, I had one! What a kind gesture and a lovely gift! I am so blessed! Birthdays after loss can be sad affairs. I remember that feeling of loneliness and yearning I felt…especially the first couple of years after Mr. Virgo died. Now I make my own birthday celebrations and I make sure I include all those whom I love. I don’t wait for others to remember. People have busy lives. I’ve done that…waiting for others to remember me then being disappointed when they don’t. Not any more. I am quick to let everyone know it’s my special day because I want to celebrate with them! ? When I’m 64! ? ❤️

\n

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭90:12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-13T01:55:29-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/13/will-you-still-need-me.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","The Farm","Gratitude","Wisdom","Aging"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/12/motivation-monday-a-whole-lotta.html", "title": "Motivation Monday: A Whole Lotta Happy", "content_html": "\"Three\n

Yesterday was a really great day! I went to church with a friend and heard an amazing sermon about bridging the gap between churches. I attend a young church. The pastor said when he first got started, the other pastors around town were calling him and offering words of encouragement. The other pastors prayed for our success, which is how it should be. Then, we started to grow. Word got around town that the Warehouse Church was a place where miracles were happening and people flocked in droves. All of a sudden, those same pastors who had been “praying for our success” started talking negatively about our pastor. The thing about denominations is this…Jesus isn’t Baptist, he isn’t Methodist, he isn’t Church of Christ, he isn’t Protestant. He’s just Jesus. We should all be encouraging each other. There is a gap between churches. And there is a gap between Christians who are judgmental of other Christians. We need to bridge the gap. It was a wonderful service.

\n

I’m reminded of Rodney King when he was arrested in the middle of the violence taking place in LA in 1992. “People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along?” There have been episodes in the past that are as bad as, if not worse than, those we are dealing with now. Like grief, violence and anger and hatred seem to come along in waves. I’m desperately waiting for peace again because violence hurts my spirit. Look at these kitties. The two younger, orange and white ones, always make a wide berth around Ol’ Mama Kitty, and for good reason. She’d just as soon swat you as look at you, although she’s almost always sweet with me. After all, I am the Goddess of Food. But for some reason, last night these three were chummy. Kitty Boy, the youngest, was so happy and purring so loud he was actually making little mewling sounds. It was so sweet. What made this night different than all other nights? I don’t have any idea. But I’d like to bottle happiness and spread it around.

\n

We are to be lights in the world. Let’s go out there and keep shining, no matter what the climate is, ok? ❤️

\n

“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”\n‭‭Romans‬ ‭12:18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-12T01:55:03-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/12/motivation-monday-a-whole-lotta.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/11/what-lies-beneath.html", "title": "What Lies Beneath", "content_html": "\"Old\n

I was awake bright and early yesterday. I love staying at my cousin’s house up on North Mountain. They have a pavilion overlooking a pond. We had a cookout Friday night and a lovely visit. I went to sleep to the sound of whip-poor-wills and awoke to the lowing of cattle at dawn. I left around 8:00 and headed to visit my uncle and two aunts. I took my uncle for a ride in my new truck and ran errands. We had a nice lunch and I picked some sour pie cherries before heading home.

\n\"Sites\n

The drive back to the farm takes you through an area called Seneca Rocks. There are some really amazing rock formations. A climbing school teaches people to take advantage of the sheer, vertical rock walls. For the less adventurous, horseback rides are available that take you the long way around and very close to the top. You can hike the rest of the way up. I’ve done that before…it was amazing! There are two old timey stores and a restaurant. One of my favorite things is the old Sites Homestead…especially when they are holding a special event like yesterday’s quilt show. Women were sitting around quilting or preparing long rag strips to make rag rugs out of. I had a lovely conversation with the Heritage Gardener. I was going to quiz her to see if she knew what that awesome “hairy berry” plant was that I found this week and when I turned to her…there was a huge Wine Berry bush right there. Go figure!

\n\"The\n

As my new friend showed me around the homestead, she gave me a tour of the historic quilts. Most of the quilters were identified as well as where they lived, when the quilt was made, and the name of the quilt pattern. She made a point to show me this one particular quilt. It was hung so that the sun could shine through it. She pointed out the quilt within the quilt…a Double Wedding Band covered by a Dresden Plate when the old quilt got too worn. When I saw that, it reminded me of the resiliency of the Spirit. When we are tattered and worn, broken seemingly beyond repair…the Spirit cleanses us and makes us new again when we ask. It’s so simple…so remarkable…such a miracle. I loved the frugal nature of the quilter…nothing was wasted.

\n\"Sour\n

I arrived home as the sun was setting. I sat in the backyard and listened to my own whip-poor-wills. The mama robin swooping in to feed her nestlings. The kitty rubbing my legs, welcoming me home. The deer foraging on the hillside. The possum ambling out from behind the barn hoping to get a bite or two of cat food. I sighed…a contented smile on my face. Another day in Paradise! ❤️

\n

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”\n‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:17‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-11T01:55:02-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/11/what-lies-beneath.html", "tags": ["Family","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","God","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/10/something-about-the-light.html", "title": "Something About the Light", "content_html": "\"Hydrangea\n

There’s something special about the evening light of June in West Virginia. It takes on the soft green of the abundant foliage and spreads it through the air molecules…or, so it seems. As I sat on the porch Thursday evening, eating a late supper of salad with baked chicken, I couldn’t help but jump up and snap this shot of what Grandma called her snowball bush. I seem to remember the clumps of flowers being more rounded than this when I was a child. Do you suppose the plant has changed over the years and morphed into what we see here? It’s possible. Or, more likely, my memory has.

\n

It’s been quite cool here the last week. I even turned the furnace on the other evening. Once I start wearing shorts and flip-flops, it’s hard to go back so I suffer through it with frozen feet. It’s funny how 52° feels balmy in February but frigid in June. It’s all a matter of perspective, isn’t it?

\n

The new gas heater is installed and it occurred to me this morning as I was admiring the handy work…this stove doesn’t have a thermostat on it, just Off, Low, and High. I wish I would have noticed that before but it’s too late now. I’ll just have to leave it on low in the winter months. It’ll heat the bathroom and that end of the house just fine. Thank goodness this farm has free gas…one of the few perks to having gas wells on your property.

\n

I’m on an overnight road trip. I needed to come see my family before I head to Colorado in a few weeks. I love my Uncle Bud. He taught me to weld when I was ten years old. He knows how to do everything and I always learn so much from him. I’ll deliver my aunt’s mail to her. Not much still comes to the farm. They asked me to bring Grandma’s Bible but I think my mom had it and it’s in my stuff that’s in storage. I’ll have to bring it another time.

\n

I hope you all are having a great weekend! ❤️

\n

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”\n‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5:16‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-10T01:55:52-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/10/something-about-the-light.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/09/yes-siri-live-in-the.html", "title": "Yes, Sir...I Live in the Country", "content_html": "\"Coon\n

One of my biggest treats as a child was to go to Harrisville with my Pop-Pop. We would go to Stout’s Hardware for a part for the Gravely, or maybe seed potatoes and onion sets in the spring. This is one of the last old timey hardware stores around these parts. Still with the original hardwood floors, Stouts has one of everything and two of most. You can get parts for a pressure cooker, lawn mower blades, salt licks, marshmallow and weenie roasters, coon urine…. Wait! What? Coon urine?! Yes, just look in the photo closely. Right next to the flavor injector for your deep fried turkey, and the ginormous spatula, and the paper targets for shooting practice, you can buy your bottle of coon urine to spray on yourself when you go coon hunting so the little critters don’t get scared off by the smell of your Old Spice. This begs a question…does someone who coon hunts even WEAR aftershave? Does he shave? I don’t know. I have a picture in my head of people chasing raccoons around trying to get them to pee in a cup. Then I read this is synthetic urine. Ok, someone had to duplicate raccoon urine. How’d you like to have that job? “So, you’re Ann’s husband. What do you do for a living?” “I had to figure out what raccoon urine smelled like and duplicate it.” “Nice. Oh, look…there’s John. Will you excuse me?” Or how about one of the guys from Deliverance? I keep hearing banjos and envision speckled dogs with ropes tied around their necks, baying in the back of a rusted out pickup. Not that there’s anything wrong with coon hunting, I suppose. They’re varmints that get in the garden and the trash and make a general mess of everything. And, there ARE people who eat them. I probably have relatives somewhere who eat them. I really don’t want to know what kind of ground meat is in that SOS. Really…I don’t.

\n

I’m not stereotyping West Virginians as hicks who eat vermin and talk funny. We have a bad enough rep when the evening news chooses to focus on the basest of stories about us hill folk. But, I’ll tell you what…you know you’re in the country when you can buy coon urine and weenie roasters side by side.

\n

I made the trip to Stouts to look for those gizmos you screw into the overhead porch light that adds a couple electrical outlets. I want to string some outdoor lights on the porch for summer entertaining and Christmas lights in the winter. I figured they would have them if anyone did. They did. My fix-it friend installed my new ventless gas space heater in the bathroom yesterday. While the gas was off, I installed a new mantle and globe in the gas light in the front yard. I also needed sealant for my new wooden picnic table I got for my birthday. I borrowed Mr. Fix-it’s pole saw to trim out some of the saplings and weeds along the creek bank before they totally take over. Lots of little odd jobs getting done around the farm before I head west with my camper next month.

\n

I love country living…it brings me such joy! ❤️

\n

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”\n‭‭Romans‬ ‭15:13‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-09T01:55:47-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/09/yes-siri-live-in-the.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/08/the-walkabout.html", "title": "The Walkabout", "content_html": "\"Roosters\"\nI've been walking a lot the last three days and wanted to share some photographs I've taken along the way. Hopefully, you can get a flavor of June on the farm.\n\"Turtle\n

Yesterday was really chilly. So chilly, in fact, I had to draw the bedroom window nearly closed and drink hot tea. This has been one of those weeks where I either sleep like a stone or I’m awake all night. I hate those nights. It gives me too much time to think. In the past, my mind often led me down paths where I really had no business going and anxiety would rear it’s ugly head at me.

\n\"\"\n

One thing I have come to know through these Revivals is I have power over darkness. I can send Satan packing with my words. I am a scientist. I worked in medicine for decades. I was married to a doctor for 21 years. And…this I know…doctors do not know everything. When I went through that severe depression as my second marriage was failing, I saw a psychiatrist who spoke death into my life at every visit. He kept saying to me, “This is just the way you are. You have a chemical imbalance in your brain and you have to take all of these medicines every day for the rest of your life, just like a diabetic takes insulin.” It’s no wonder I couldn’t pull out of depression. Those words alone were depressing, let alone the circumstances in my life that were contributing to it. Once I got with a competent doctor, it took him an entire year to convince me I really didn’t have a chemical imbalance and I could safely go off all that medication. It took another two years…two years of withdrawal symptoms with this electrical “zapping” feeling behind my eyes…before I was safely off the medications. All told, I lost a decade of my life unnecessarily. It was wicked darkness.

\n

We get what we order into our lives. We can speak depression and anxiety into our lives and we can speak it out. I am not advising you stop any medications your healthcare provider prescribes. I am not giving medical advice. My spiritual path has set me free from the chains that held me captive for so long.

\n

Living a simplified life has opened my heart, expanded my mind, eased my spirit, and strengthened my body. I can walk freely these days and forge through the challenges life throws at me much more quickly because I know God is there with me always. I am filled with awe and wonder at this amazing life I’ve been blessed with. ❤️

\n

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”\n‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-08T01:55:56-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/08/the-walkabout.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","God"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/06/medicine-for-my-soul.html", "title": "Medicine for my Soul", "content_html": "\"White-breasted\n

The air was thick with the promise of rain. The breeze was cool enough to wear a light sweater. I sipped my coffee as I watched a little White Breasted Nuthatch zip back and forth between the feeders. My new addition of a dried wax worm cake is a big hit with some of my avian friends. I tucked suet balls in the old, rotting poplar stump where my rain gauge is perched. My morning walk was finished an hour before, my hair nearly dry from the brief rain shower on the second half.

\n

I sent a link for yesterday’s post to Daughter #2. She remembered the original story of Marshmallow Ranch. At least, she remembered the retelling over the years. She loved the picture of me sitting on the white-wrapped hay bale. She read the post and told me it was well written. As self-confident as I have become in these last few years, I still love that bit of validation I get when someone I love enjoys my writing. She was quick to tell me she was sorry I still feel like I’m living down the effects my illness caused my family when she was a child. She has long since forgiven all that. She is my baby. It is what it is. There is no such thing as yesterday and tomorrow. They are merely reflection or anticipation…both functions of the brain, but not real in the tangible sense. Really, the only thing we can experience is this moment…and, in this moment, I am not that person I was in the past nor am I the person I will become. That is liberating.

\n

As the day waned, my lack of sleep from the night before lured me to stretch out and let the birdsong lull me to rest. Afterward, I had a bite to eat then went to another Revival…this one in a neighboring community led by the same young evangelist from the Revival at Grandma’s church. So, we’ll be shouting some praises again this week…Hallelujah! ❤️

\n

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭51:10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-06T01:55:50-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/06/medicine-for-my-soul.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","God"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/05/in-my-own-voice.html", "title": "In My Own Voice", "content_html": "\"Woman\n

For those of you who are fairly new here, the whole thing started with this field. Twenty-two years ago, I brought the kids to West Virginia to introduce my future son-in-law to the family. Daughter #1 was about 19 and #2 was about 4. We went for a drive in the country, came around a bend, and here was this field filled with what looked all the world to be giant marshmallows. #1 told #2 that this was a Marshmallow Ranch. “This is where they grow the marshmallows really big then they cut them up in little pieces, put them in bags, and sell them at the stores.” she said.

\n

Years later, I owned a little needlework shop called Needles & Pins. When I made items to sell in the shop, I created an art division of the company and called it Marshmallow Ranch because it was cute and catchy. Three months before Mr. Virgo died, I revived the name and began making handcrafted jewelry and art out of antique silverware and maps. I opened an Etsy shop and started this page. When I became a widow, I really wished I had a grief mentor to walk me through the painful journey ahead of me. Since I didn’t, I decided to BE that mentor for others and began blogging about what I was going through, with an honest and open heart…no matter how ugly it got. I already had around 400 followers at this point so I just kept the name and that started four years of daily blog posts. It’s been an interesting, painful, challenging journey. It has also been filled with hope, love, and joy…something I certainly couldn’t see starting out.

\n

I didn’t really start speaking in my own voice until death whipped every ounce of pretense out of me. I had spent two decades as a Jewish doctor’s wife and never really felt “authentic” in that space. When you are raised in the home of an unpredictable alcoholic, you learn to tap dance for your supper. When you are born into a family with a child with a developmental disability, you learn to not give your mom any more trouble than what she is already facing. You learn to be the clown, to not rock the boat, to make everyone laugh. Above all else, I wanted to make my mom laugh. In so doing, I became a chameleon. I “changed colors” with my environment in order to fit in.

\n

When I couldn’t keep all the balls in the air anymore, I dropped into a deep depression and spent seven years in what has come to be known in my family as “The Prozac Years.” I cannot be held entirely responsible for my behaviors from 1993 through 2000. Prozac altered my personality and I didn’t care about anything or anyone…a fact I’m still making up for. I was much more genuine the seven years I was with Mr. Virgo, but still, I hid parts of who I was…from him, from my family, from everyone. Grief has a way of stripping you bare. Your heart breaks open wide and shatters to the floor in a million shards. At some point you realize you have come to a crossroads. Stay where you are with your heart at your feet, or pick up the pieces and put yourself back together as best you can. What better time to drop all pretenses and become the genuine “you” you were born to be? I would stand in front of the mirror and ask God to show me who He wanted me to be…who He had MADE me to be. And bit by bit, piece by piece, I discovered my genuine voice. It’s much easier to just BE than it is to try to fit in.

\n

That’s the peace you see on my face when you send me such lovely messages about my pictures. That is the genuine, real me…relaxed in my own skin for perhaps the first time in my life. What you see is God’s love shining through me. I’m merely a conduit, passing on the Light I have been graced with. My cup is full to overflowing. ❤️

\n

“Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.”\n‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭3:3-4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-05T01:55:48-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/05/in-my-own-voice.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","God","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/03/learning-new-things.html", "title": "Learning New Things", "content_html": "\"Nesting\n

My dryer hasn’t been drying my clothes lately. They toss and turn and tumble and take forever to dry. I just couldn’t figure out what was wrong. I cleaned the lint out of the lint trap and that didn’t help. I looked down the dryer vent and saw the beginnings of a nest and cleared it out and it worked fine. But, by the time I left for Florida, I noticed it wasn’t drying at all. I didn’t really have time to mess with it before I left and the whole time down there I kept thinking I was going to have to buy a new dryer. Well, remember I told you how nice it is to have guy friends that you can run things by when you have questions? I asked one of my handy fix-it dudes what could be wrong. He said to go look in the dryer vent tube again. I assured him I had already done that and it was fine. He said, “Humor me.” So, I went back and….look what I found!!! That bird had completely filled the driver vent with leaves, moss, grass plus the lint it had managed to catch. OMGosh! It’s a miracle the house didn’t catch fire. The dryer did what it was supposed to do…when it didn’t flow right, the heat shut off. Thank God! I cannot express enough how important it is to check these things often. I am going to the hardware store and buy one of those vent covers that will keep this bird out of there. I think she must have abandoned her efforts because there were no eggs in this mess.

\n

You have to learn how things work when you’re on your own. You might be able to have a family member or a guy friend or neighbor fix things, or you can hire them done, but you have to have some sort of basic knowledge about how the stuff works in your house in order to know when things need fixing. I happen to love fixing things and I am constantly learning how much I don’t know! When I called my friend back, I sent him these pictures and he was suitably impressed. I thanked him for making me take a second look. Then I said, “Hey…I need to get the oil changed on my truck. Is that hard to do?” He said he does his all the time. So, guess what I’M going to learn how to do today??? Pictures to follow!!! ❤️

\n

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭32:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-03T01:55:03-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/03/learning-new-things.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/02/taste-treats.html", "title": "Taste Treats", "content_html": "\"Tasty\n

When I was a little girl, this farm produced strawberries for the local Farmer’s Market. The berries my grandparents grew were known far and wide as some of the best available. They were huge, juicy, red ripe clear to the center and as sweet as sugar. Oh, my mouth waters thinking about them. Sometimes you couldn’t get more than five or six in the quart berry baskets. I wasn’t allowed in the berry patch. My hands stuffed those berries in my mouth much faster than they should have and I kept stepping on the runners because I didn’t understand their importance. But I watched every step of the production and took great pride in driving to town with my Pop-Pop and a pickup load of berries every afternoon.

\n

Another childhood memory from these parts is Ward’s Market, a fresh produce stand that also carries a good variety of Amish made and local delicacies. I had to make a run to town yesterday so I stopped on my way home to see what the market had available. I was thrilled to see home grown strawberries there! As you can see, this isn’t one of your mass produced, farm-factory grown berries. This baby is red straight through, and while the taste is not as sweet as Grandma’s berries, these have excellent flavor. Aromatic, succulent, still warm from the sun. Oh, my…what’s not to love about that?

\n

I found several items to add to my larder. Amish roll butter is my favorite. As little butter as I use, I choose the real deal over the plastic stuff you get in tubs at the grocery stores. Margarine was invented to feed cattle and they wouldn’t eat it so they added food coloring and feed it to us. Delightful. No thanks. I got a jar of sweet heat pickles and black raspberry jam, also made in Amish Country. Then there’s my favorite…Oliverio Hot Peppers in Sauce and Oliverio Spaghetti Sauce….made in Clarksburg, WV. Clarksburg has a high concentration of Italians and there are some wonderful Italian restaurants there. I like to mix these two jars when I’m making spaghetti sauce and add my own touches like black olives, capers, garlic, oregano, onions, hot Italian sausage, mushrooms, red pepper flakes, and three or four mashed anchovies filets. This makes a lovely Putanesca Sauce…a peasant style Sauce from Northern Italy. I’m planning to have a dinner party before I leave for Colorado next month and I think this will be perfect on the menu.

\n

After my foray into town, I mowed the lawn. I had arranged with a young man to mow while I was gone and he didn’t show up so I’ll need to make other plans for when I’m in Colorado. I hate mowing when it’s so deep because you can’t avoid getting clumps of grass everywhere. I ran over a snake with the mower and cut it in half. I really felt bad because it was a black snake and they help keep the rodent population down. I am, however, very glad it wasn’t a copperhead or a rattlesnake! I bought a couple suet feeders in town and set them up. I replenished my thistle supply so I fed the finches. I think everyone is going to be pretty happy out there today.

\n

As I was mowing yesterday, I got to thinking about how much my writing has changed through my grief journey. I go back sometimes and read my early stuff to see how far I’ve come. It’s pretty remarkable actually. There has been an improvement in my writing in general. I think that is to be expected when you write an essay every single day for four years. It’s like skiing. If you don’t improve after skiing every day for four years, you weren’t cut out to be a skier. I also notice my subject matter is much more diverse now. The blinders are off and I can see the world again. And I can interact with it. The reason I’m saying this is, there are new readers who find this page every day. Many of them are fairly new in this widowed life and they may just pass on thinking there is nothing here for them. I would encourage you, if you are new here, to scroll back through the blog to the earlier stuff. I’m sure you will find something to relate to. I guess what I’m getting at is…if you are hurting tonight, if you heart has been broken wide open, if the life you have known and hoped to live forever has fallen in pieces at your feet, please know my heart is with you. We have some really amazing people who frequent this blog. Wonderful, supportive, loving people who understand where you are. If you’re new, please find encouragement in the fact that, four years…three years…two years ago, I was desperately in pain. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t sleep, I ate my pain and put on drastic amounts of weight, and I really didn’t care much what happened to me. Sure, I had joy. I had insights. I had hope. But I certainly had pain. Please take encouragement in the fact that I can take great joy in planning a dinner party and filling the bird feeders and mowing the lawn. The life you want will not come to you. You must walk to it…kinda like an elaborate treasure hunt where the gift you find at the end is…YOU!

\n

Keep searching. Leap moving. Keep coming back. You’re going to make it, dear one. ❤️

\n

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”\n‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-02T01:55:57-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/02/taste-treats.html", "tags": ["Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/06/01/the-deer-and-the-cat.html", "title": "The Deer and the Cat", "content_html": "\"Green\n

Well, I saw something I’ve never seen before. I sure wish I would have had my camera ready fast enough. I was sitting out on the porch yesterday, enjoying the cool of the evening when I heard a ruckus on the hill you see here. The lawn goes to the edge of the creek there and then the hill goes up the other side. I heard something running through the underbrush over there and could just make out an orange streak barreling down the hill. Kitty Boy! He doesn’t show up but maybe three nights a week or so these days. Fixing him and feeding him and the companionship of Boy Cat doesn’t seem to be enough for this adolescent and he’s off galavanting the farms and hills. As I watched this fairly small cat making a bee line down through the woods, it occurred to me he was making a whale of a lot of noise. I looked on up behind him and hot on his trail was a doe! She almost got him but he jumped on down into the creek and the doe stopped just short of coming out of the cover of the thicket. She proceeded to stomp her front hooves on the ground and snort for a good five minutes before she was convinced the big bad kitty was gone. My guess is she has a baby hidden up in those trees and Kitty Boy got a little too curious.

\n

The hummingbirds were causing quite a ruckus of their own…buzzing back and forth in front of me as I sat and wrote my daily post. The evening birds were calling. I could see across to the old garden area…the birds have totally cleaned out the cherry trees. Grandma’s snowball bush was blooming and the purple and white clematis were making a show of themselves on the metal lawn bracket my uncle built for them years ago. Sumac with broad heads of yellow-green blossoms were sweet on the evening air. The sparrows and chickadees and titmice were darting back and forth from the shrubs to the feeders. Three pairs of mourning doves foraged on the ground below the feeders, picking up the excess seed discarded by the more aggressive birds above. The brown headed cowbirds were there, but they’ve stopped their watery plunking calls and the dancing on the phone line meant to entice the ladies. The wildlife are settling into the summer child rearing season quite nicely and there seems to be a different rhythm on the farm these days.

\n

The clouds came rolling over the far ridge in time to catch the evening sun, sending a golden light over everything. Two turkeys called back and forth to one another from opposite hilltops. Rain was coming. The air thickened with the dampness that gathers just before the shower begins. By 8:00 last night, as I was writing this, I still hadn’t managed to sleep more than an hour out of the previous thirty-six. I took a walk. A hot bath. I wrote. I meditated. I prayed. And, I am quite sure…I’ll sleep afterwards. Because…here comes the rain. ❤️

\n

“When he speaks in the thunder, the heavens roar with rain. He causes the clouds to rise over the earth. He sends the lightning with the rain and releases the wind from his storehouses.”\n‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭51:16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-06-01T01:55:08-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/06/01/the-deer-and-the-cat.html", "tags": ["Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Peaceful Moments","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/20/ick-a-tick.html", "title": "Ick! A Tick!", "content_html": "\"Tick\"\n

They say ticks are going to be really bad this year. A mild winter allowed more hosts to survive thus giving the tick population a head start. I’m out in the woods a lot so I try to be particularly careful. I have extended family members who have suffered from Lyme Disease for years after being told “It can’t be Lyme Disease…we don’t have that in Colorado.” Excuse me…they are cattle ranchers. They get cattle from all over the country. Are you telling me the ticks carrying Lyme Disease all jump ship when they see the “Welcome to Colorful Colorado” sign on the interstate? Not likely. It’s fairly widespread. And, sometimes it is of a variety that is not caught in the usual tests. Educate yourselves to the signs and symptoms of tick-borne illnesses and check yourself carefully when you come in from traipsing around in the woods and underbrush. That is one of the frustrating things about widowhood…no partner to help you check things out that need an extra set of eyes.

\n

I found this bad boy on my living room curtain. This is the first one I have seen this year and it was in…my…house. Go figure. I remember as a kid we’d pull them off the dog at my Aunt Marge’s house. They would light a match, blow it out and place the hot end on the fat body of the tick and it would back out in a hurry. You never want to pull them out. The head is imbedded under the skin and it can stay there and get infected. Another way to get them to release is to coat them in a blob of petroleum jelly. They can’t breathe and back out, but it takes longer. I don’t know about you, but if I have one of these little suckers on me, I don’t think I can hang around too long waiting for it to release itself.

\n

Mosquitoes are out, too. They can also carry diseases. There are sprays of course, but I prefer a deterrent without pesticides. I bought a big citronella candle the other day and that helps. I have found, though…like sunscreen…it doesn’t work if you don’t use it!

\n

I’m amazed I haven’t run across any snakes since I’ve lived here. A guy driving up the road killed a copperhead out front last fall, but I’ve never seen anything else. Of course, I don’t go rummaging around in the brush pile and the creek either. So, maybe that’s why I haven’t seen any. I’d just as soon not. I’m not really afraid of snakes, per se. I’ve never ever seen a poisonous snake (alive) out on the farm, but I know they’re there and I’d just as soon not make their acquaintance.

\n

Be safe out there, dear ones. There’s lots of fun to be had but exercising a bit of caution is a good thing. ❤️

\n

“He spoke, and there came swarms of flies, and gnats throughout their country.”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭105:31‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-20T01:55:25-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/20/ick-a-tick.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/19/fire-in-the-sky.html", "title": "Fire in the Sky", "content_html": "\"Sunset\"\n

With a big hill across the road, I don’t get to see spectacular sunsets very often. I was sitting on the porch Wednesday evening reading when I noticed the light changed. I looked up and caught this beauty! The temperatures have cranked up here in West Virginia, along with the humidity. When I mowed yesterday morning, even though it was only 70 degrees when I was done, I was whupped. I have discovered stuffing an ice pack in your sports bra does wonders for keeping your core body temperature down. I learned from a back country rescue member not to just drink water when you are overheated. The body will keep working to move the fluids into your bloodstream, further depleting your electrolytes. It’s best to drink some sort of sports drink as you exercise in the heat…and mowing is exercise, trust me! I like to use powdered Spark from AdvoCare in my bottle of water. I have had fewer problems with it than say, Powerade. I like Powerade but the last time I used it there was just too much salt and it made me sick. Little safety tip for the summer.

\n

As I was poking around in the old garden area last week, I found several asparagus stalks…tall, lanky, and leafed out. Somewhere back in the furthest recesses of my mind, I seem to remember grandma talking about asparagus that she had planted not doing well. There are probably only half a dozen plants out there along the ditch alongside the garden so my guess is, this was a particular delicacy that would not have been wasted on the unsophisticated palate of a 6 year old girl. I am going to place dowels or something alongside these plants to mark them for spring next year so I too can enjoy those first spring veggies. My favorite way to cook asparagus is to break off the woody bottoms, lay the spears on a plate, squeeze half a lemon and a drizzle of EVO over it then sprinkle with garlic. I cover that with plastic wrap and pop it in the microwave for two minutes. Then I test it to see if it’s done enough. If not, I add time in fifteen to thirty-second increments. Divine with grilled salmon or served cold on a salad.

\n

My neighbor across the road is planting his garden this week…last night was tomatoes and peppers. When I first arrived at the farm three years ago, I was really looking forward to the following spring when I could put in a garden. Since things changed with my aunt and I headed back out on the road in a different direction, I find I spend the majority of the summer in Colorado with my family so it wouldn’t work to have a garden right now anyway. I do believe I will try canning again this fall, though. I love seeing the rows of jars put away for the winter and there are some wonderful farmer’s markets and produce stands here. I’d love to take advantage of that.

\n

I was going to write a Friday Fitness post today, but my fitness routine isn’t as established as it was last year. I love climbing those stairs in town, but that is a forty-minute drive from here and you don’t drive 60 miles round trip every day just to exercise. I am getting plenty of exercise here on the farm…mowing and hiking. And I get at least three or four good walks in a week between the country road and the parks in town. I have maintained my 40 pound weight loss, even though my tone is not quite what it was with stair climbing. My diet has always been my downfall because I do love sweets and salty things, but as long as I stay away from fast food and gluten, I do pretty well.

\n

This is graduation weekend for many. Gas went up just in time. Camping season is upon us. I visited TOW-Wanda this week to retrieve some items I needed. It really made me itch to get out on the road with her! I’m taking her to Colorado with me right after the 4th of July. I’m not taking her on this Florida trip. I’m watching my Sister and Girl Camper friends posting pictures of their adventures. I’m seriously thinking of getting a little, tiny trailer so I am more inclined to pack up quick and go camping on the spur of the moment. If the right thing comes along, I will know it. Enjoy your weekend…get out there and have some fun! ❤️

\n

“It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.”\n‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭2:6‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-19T01:55:03-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/19/fire-in-the-sky.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/18/the-color-green.html", "title": "The Color Green", "content_html": "\"Cat\n

Seriously, could it get any greener than this??? This is my all-time favorite time of the year. The freshness of spring hasn’t left us yet. I’ve identified a new sound. Tree frogs! These aren’t peepers like you hear in the spring. And they aren’t the deep-throated bullfrogs. These frogs have a two second croak that reminds me of that musical instrument that draws a wooden dowel over a serrated edge. I love when it’s warm enough to go out first thing in the morning with coffee and last thing at night with something cold and refreshing. I can hear the neighbor’s TV down the road. Who would want to sit inside and watch television when you can live inside the “nature station”?

\n

The cherries are turning red across the creek in the old garden area. The birds are lined up in great anticipation for the taste treat of the year and I can guarantee you, if I were going to be home when they ripen fully, I’d be hard pressed to get enough for a pie before they’re gone. The clematis is blooming as are grandma’s peonies. I did not realize peonies have a scent. In the midday sun they give off a soft, sweet aroma that is quite lovely.

\n

I caught so many carpenter bees in the trap that I actually had to empty it tonight. I got a plastic container and added water and a generous squirt of dish soap and dumped them in. They cannot escape the soapy water. Now there’s room for more.

\n

As I write this, my “tribe” has gathered around me for my evening writing session. Kitty Boy has returned from his sojourns well and hardy. He doesn’t stick around house like Boy Cat. It’s rare for Old Mama Kitty to be gone long. She snoozes in the chair beside me whenever I come outside. I’ve never been much of a cat person although I had one as a teenager. These kitties have stolen my heart. Go figure!

\n

After my day of surfing the mattress Tuesday, I slept eleven hours straight that night. I woke up feeling much better physically. There is still sadness at the periphery…not for me, but for others. One of my fellow Sisters on the Fly lost her son Tuesday after being hit by a car as he crossed the road. He was to be married this Saturday. A high school friend lost a family member in a freak accident Monday when the tractor rolled over on him as they were cutting down a tree. People are getting out and doing things after being cooped up all winter. There seem to be a lot of outdoor accidents this time of year. Please, everyone…be safe out there. And say some prayers for the families of these beautiful people. Hold your loved ones close. ❤️

\n

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”\n‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:21‬ ‭NIV‬‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-18T01:55:46-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/18/the-color-green.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/17/my-resting-place.html", "title": "My Resting Place", "content_html": "\"Peony\"\n

Last week there were two mornings where the temperature hovered just a tad above freezing. I was so happy that my flowers and the cherry trees didn’t get nipped by Old Jack Frost. And just like that, the temps soared up to the 80’s yesterday. When it gets like that, it’s too hot to sit on the front porch after the sun crosses the house and starts its decent over the far ridge. It doesn’t go behind that ridge till just before 7:00, but after that…the porch is my domain again.

\n

I struggled a little yesterday. Loss encroached into the periphery of my life over the weekend and even though it didn’t affect my inner circle, sometimes other people’s loss stirs my own feelings. I so seldom have a bad day anymore. Really. I can certainly tell when I wake up, which way the winds will blow, and yesterday was a little stormy. Not bad. Not nearly like I’ve had in the past. My grief has always gone out through the pit of my stomach and I have learned to just let it pass. I’ve learned to listen to my body and give myself permission to have a mattress-surfing day. I had my “Emergency Down-Day Kit” at the ready. I rode the wave back into shore and as the house cooled, so did I.

\n

Riding that wave and finding my resting place reminded me of those long, dark early nights of grief when I would have what I referred to as…bad nights. There were nights when the only way I made it through was to visualize sitting at the feet of Jesus, resting my head on his knee, and letting him stroke my hair the way my mother did when I was a child. I knew that I was God’s child, and that my resting place was in that place in my heart where Christ lives. There was a woman who came to sing at the Revival last week. She sang a song she wrote about finding her resting place in Jesus. It is comforting to me when I learn I am not alone in this journey…that there are others who have struggled, who struggle still, and that I’m really ok.

\n

My grief is different now. It’s fleeting. It’s temperate. It’s diffuse. It’s not even filled with Mr. Virgo like it was. It’s more like a cloud of sadness that settles for a little bit then lifts and moves on. If I let myself delve too deep, I could stir up too many things and I’ve learned that doesn’t serve me well. I’ve also learned it doesn’t hurt me to indulge myself in this bit of reverie. It’s a giant emotional yardstick that illustrates how far I’ve come since March 12, 2013. It will always be there. I don’t know what stirred it this time…probably the loss I’ve seen in others lately. Today is a new day…I have tools…I have hope…I have love…I have God. What more could I need? ❤️

\n

““Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.””\n‭‭Matthew‬ ‭11:28-30‬ ‭NIV

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-17T01:55:55-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/17/my-resting-place.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","God","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/16/oh-fireflywherefore-art-thou.html", "title": "Oh, Firefly...Wherefore Art Thou?", "content_html": "\"Fireflies\n

Fireflies are disappearing, apparently. As with many species, human encroachment and the loss of habitat as well as light pollution have disrupted the reproductive cycle of the Lampyridae. Mosquito-borne illnesses like West Nile and Zika, among others, has prompted more communities to spray pesticides in the evening hours right when the “lightning bugs” take flight in their mating ritual dance, thus decreasing their numbers dramatically. Fireflies like longer grass so cutting your lawn too short might decrease their numbers. There are natural influences on this entertaining insect, as well. Moist, temperate climates are preferred over hot and dry. The increasing warmth of the earth is causing a shift in the populations of many species. Even earthworms (which, by the way, are not native to North America) have had an effect on the decline of firefly numbers.

\n

I have been waiting for the dance of the firefly with great anticipation. The familiar rising glow symbolizes summer to those of us who grew up catching them in jars or in chubby, little-girl hands. They are synonymous with watermelon and moon baths and bare feet in the grass. I always brought my girls home in the summer so they could experience those time-honored traditions that I enjoyed as a child. They still remember those trips.

\n

I sat on the porch yesterday with my coffee, writing this post, and was struck with the cacophony of sound that met me. From the neighbor down the road mowing to the carpenter bees trying to make their way to my trap to the raucous calls and tapping of the woodpeckers in the dead tree out by the road, summer is fast encroaching on the farm. There are so many layers of sound now. The recent addition of flying insects has added to the complex symphony I enjoy with my morning reverie. The sudden appearance of a red tailed hawk or a crow being chased by robins adds to the entertainment. Old Mama Kitty lays at my feet, occasionally jumping at a curious hummingbird or passing butterfly. I saw my first grasshopper of the season as I typed this. This isn’t a bad life.

\n

I’m preparing for another adventure this week. A really BIG road trip! I’m leaving for Florida this weekend. I’m not taking TOW-Wanda on this trip. I have another opportunity to use a condo on the beach. I am so grateful! I am available for speaking engagements as I travel so if you have a church or civic group that would like to host me, let me know. I will be speaking at a church in Crescent City, Florida on June 1st.

\n

I think I’ll wash the sheets and dry them in the sunshine today. Won’t that be lovely? ❤️

\n

““ ‘All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be regarded as unclean by you. There are, however, some flying insects that walk on all fours that you may eat: those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid, cricket or grasshopper. But all other flying insects that have four legs you are to regard as unclean.”\n‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭11:20-23‬ ‭NIV

\n

Photo Credit: stevendavidjohnson.com

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-16T01:55:24-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/16/oh-fireflywherefore-art-thou.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/13/caught-in-a-trap.html", "title": "Caught in a Trap", "content_html": "\"Wasp\n

This has turned out to be a really intense and power-filled week for me. I have been attending an old-time Gospel, Spirit-filled Revival this week at the little white church on the hill and I’m telling you what…it’s been both exhilarating and exhausting. I don’t even feel like myself. I’m sure you’ve noticed my fired-up posts this week. I don’t usually go all preachy like that, but I’ve been just feeling so inspired all week and I’ve learned to listen. With that in mind, today’s post is toned down a bit but still faith-based, as all my essays are. I noticed my numbers dropped off a little after yesterday’s post. I know…not everyone wants to have religion with their coffee. I get that. There will be plenty of travel stories and farm stories and memories to share down the road. This is Revival week, and since I write about what I’m experiencing every day, this is what you get this week.

\n

I went out for my morning walkabout yesterday. Out of nowhere, Boy Cat made a beeline for me and started rubbing all over my legs. He has never, ever done that (see the video from yesterday) and he tagged along with me for most of my walk. I took a bunch of pictures of all the wildflowers that are currently blooming. I walked down the road to visit a neighbor. As I was strolling along, I noticed this wasp trap hanging in a tree. If you look inside the trap, there…hanging at the top…is a wasp on a nest. Inside the trap. It reminded me of something young Pastor Matt preached about this week. God v. Satan, Light v. Dark, Good v. Evil…whatever you call it, light banishes darkness, not the other way around. I know in my journey, I ran as far away from a relationship with Jesus as I possibly could. For some reason, God was ok…but Jesus scared me. Probably because of that hellfire and brimstone preacher of my youth. I mean, I felt Jesus knocking at the door of my heart…politely waiting to be invited in. But, I would get so anxious and worked up about it, I could only go in the other direction to avoid the whole thing. Little did I know at the time, surrender would have been the ticket to freedom from all that.

\n

As my journey took me further and further away from God, I became more and more blind, more and more deceived by the darkness. Once I got so far out to sea and turned around to look for my saving Grace, I realized how far from shore I really was. I was in a trap of my own making…believing the lies, living my life, building my nest there…much like this unsuspecting wasp is. Living in that trap wasn’t all that bad on the surface. I had a nice house. I had a new car every couple of years. I had an essentially unmonitored bank account. On the surface, I had everything. But on the inside, I was a barren wasteland. I was living in the Sahara Desert with no water…no food…no spiritual sustenance. The Darkness can lure you in with comforts then it closes the door and locks it and you can never get out. I am blessed to have found my way back before It was too late.

\n

The path I’m walking hasn’t been one I’d necessarily have chosen for myself. I never wanted to be a widow. I gave up a lot to get to where I am. Aside from Mr. Virgo’s death, I wouldn’t change a thing because I’m in a good space right now. I’m not living in a trap anymore. I have shed the chains that bound me. And I’m living free…standing on the promises of God.

\n

I missed Revival last night and will again tonight because of a prior  commitment. I’ll go back Sunday night for the grand finale, though. I’m going to my church with a friend tonight to avoid the Sunday crowds and then out for dinner to celebrate Mother’s Day early. It’s still cool and cloudy and raining here. May is like that. I hope you have a grand start to your weekend, dear ones! ❤️

\n

“The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭145:18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-13T01:55:58-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/13/caught-in-a-trap.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","God","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/11/weeding-my-garden.html", "title": "Weeding My Garden", "content_html": "\"Two\n

Well, I went to Revival again last night. I do not believe I have ever in my life felt the energy in that little church that I have felt this week. I’m talking fire. Whew! You do come away with a spring in your step after a big dose of the toe-tappin’ spirit. I tried to imagine my Grandma and Pop-Pop, my mom, Aunt Idy, Uncle Red, Aunt Myrt…sitting in their seats, listening. They were all so…reserved. Let me tell you…these beautiful people were anything but reserved.

\n

Pastor Matthew opens with song and prayer, then invites anyone who would like to speak to please do so. Last night, a lovely couple were there and the gentleman rose to say something. He’s a hobby farmer. He raises cattle so he can see them, not eat them. He names them. His first cow he called “Blessings”. Two more came along and he named them “Shirley Goodness” and “Mercy”. There are more…all named with Biblical phrases. And, when he goes out to call in his cows, neighbors from far and wide hear him calling…“Surely Goodness and Mercy, Blessings” and so forth. It is his form of testimony within earshot of his neighbors.

\n

The man’s wife then stood to talk about her land. She helps her husband outside as she can. There is some Floribunda growing out in the pasture. It’s a kind of wild rose…its brambles used as a hedge row instead of fencing. It seemed like a good idea to our forefathers to plant such a thing, but they didn’t realize it would soon take over. And, it’s not good for anything…the cows can’t eat it. Something so seemingly innocent ended up needing to be rooted out. The wise woman with her gentle demeanor and her long silver hair reminded us that there are things we let into our lives…things that didn’t seem like such a bad idea till they turned into a pasture full of briars. Then you have to start plucking it out and getting rid of it. Once bad things get a foothold, it isn’t long till you have a mess in your life.

\n

I distinctly remember a particular day in my life when I made an unsavory life choice. That still small voice told me, “Don’t do this. You do this and nothing will ever be the same.” Oh, we’re a stubborn people, aren’t we? “You can handle it.” “It’s just this once.” “Nobody will know.” Lies. Lies whispered into our lives. Light and Dark. Up and Down. Good and Evil. It’s a balancing act. It’s a constant battle. I fall down sometimes. I wimp out because it’s not always easy. If there’s anything I’ve learned this week in the most unlikely of places for me to be, it’s this…I have far more strength and power than I ever dreamed of. We all have access to that power. It’s a gift. For me, that gift is the Holy Spirit and I’m grateful to have had this experience this week. It’s been empowering. ❤️

\n

“Come and hear, all you who fear God, And I will declare what He has done for my soul.”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭66:16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-11T01:55:50-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/11/weeding-my-garden.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Prayer","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","God"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/10/busy-as-a-bee.html", "title": "Busy as a Bee", "content_html": "\"Carpenter\n

Yesterday was a mowing marathon. I no sooner finished till the rains came. I barely finished before it was time to head to church again. Revival. Who knew I’d enjoy it so much. I have to say, I truly have never experienced anything quite like this. Last night’s sermon was about the Holy Ghost. I never really understood the Holy Spirit till just the last few years. There’s a contingent of women attending this Revival who have a more Pentecostal background and I mean to tell ya, it got downright lively last night. I felt exhilarated when I came out of there.

\n

As I was mowing yesterday, I was mulling over the events of the past couple of years. I’ve suffered from anxiety issues for much of my life. I remember my first panic attack in second grade. I was thinking while I mowed about the anointing I had the first night of the Revival and I wondered if I could have Pastor Matt pray over me about those anxieties. Then I just had this really clear vision that I have the power to keep that at bay by simply speaking it into truth. I have experienced the dark come at me when I step strongly into the Light. I turned and looked around me and made a decision. I walked the boundary of the yard and declared my borders. I declared out loud that no evil thing can cross this boundary. I turned to the house and raised my hands and asked God to bless this house and all who enter…their coming and their going. I must have looked like a crazy woman standing out there in the yard, hands up, talking out loud. But, you know what? I didn’t care! I’m tired of those dark things chasing me and nipping at my heels. So, I rebuked them. And it felt good. I felt so peaceful afterwards.

\n

Then I finished mowing.

\n

I discovered something very cool at Lowe’s the other day. Wood borer bee traps. And, they work! I have one on the front porch. I put it up after I filled the borer bee hole with silicone caulk. I have another for the back porch. In the meantime, I had to prepare my notes for today. I’m being interviewed for another podcast episode on Janine Pettit’s show…Girl Camper. We’re going to be talking about camping in Colorado. I’ll let you know when it goes live. In the meantime, Happy Wednesday! ❤️

\n

“Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ””\n‭‭Matthew‬ ‭4:10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-10T01:55:02-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/10/busy-as-a-bee.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Strong Women","West Virginia","The Farm","God"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/06/mistakes-or-lessons-learned.html", "title": "Mistakes? Or, Lessons Learned?", "content_html": "\"Faucet\"\n

Farm life. For this mostly city girl, there’s been quite a lot of learning going on the last nine months. I’ve learned to recognize the call of several different birds by sound. I’ve learned to pick up the cat dishes at dusk to keep the strays and other nocturnal critters off the back porch at night. I’ve learned who to call for pest extermination. Who NOT to call for handyman services. I’ve learned how to turn off the gas to the house, reset the regulator, and relight everything. I’ve learned how to mix the gas and oil for a two-stroke engine and how to change the reels on a gas trimmer. I’ve learned about numerous bugs, snakes, and varmints and how to keep them at bay. I can identify quite a number of trees, plants, and flowers. I’m feeling pretty accomplished over here.

\n

This house had a sweet water well dug before I was born. That all changed when they capped three wells up the holler behind the barn in the late ’50s. Somehow the aquifer was fractured and the water has been briny ever since. In the early ’60s, a cistern was built with an elaborate filtration system to catch the rainwater off the roof of the cellar house and that was the source of drinking water here on the farm. That is, up until my return last August. I discovered the water flow from the cistern was reduced to barely a trickle. My aunt had been boiling it and drinking it anyway, just as it’s been done for years. I have no idea when the filter was cleaned nor have I any idea when some bleach was poured into the reservoir. When I got here, there was cistern water in the fridge that was actually moldy so that was the last of that. I bought bottled water until I gathered about ten gallon jugs and now I fill up at a friend’s house when I’m in town. You learn to adjust when you live alone.

\n

One thing I was always told was to protect our well with everything I had. While we don’t drink from it, we do bathe, wash clothes, and do dishes with it. It is vitally important. The other day, I was doing some deep cleaning. The water here has a lot of iron in it so the tub and toilet turn red after a while. There is a powdered product called iron out that I use in the tub and toilet to remove the rust stains every six months or so. It was time. I turned on the hot water in the tub, put in the plug, and walked away to answer the phone. I promptly forgot the water was running. About 45 minutes later I went into the bathroom and was facing a tub full of black water. Air was coming out of the faucet with spurts of equally black water. OMGosh! My heart sank. I ran out to the cellar house and, thankfully, the pump was still running and not seized or burned up. I pulled the plug from the wall to give the pump a rest. I went to the porch and sat down to collect my thoughts.

\n

What had just happened? I ran the well dry, that’s what happened. For the first time that I knew of, the hot water tank emptied and the water dipped below the foot valve down in the well. So, what do you do when something happens that has never happened before? Why, you Google it, of course! Between Google and YouTube, I’m becoming quite a farm girl! I was somewhat reassured by what I read online. As long as I hadn’t burned up the pump, and we aren’t in a drought (it was raining buckets when I wrote this last night), the cavity where the foot valve sits deep in the well should refill. How long that takes depends on the well’s production rate.

\n

Thankfully, right about then I heard the crunch of tires on the gravel driveway and a much more knowledgeable friend pulled up. I told him what I had done. He assured me I did everything right (thank you, Google) and we decided to give it a couple hours to refill and see where we were. He wasn’t sure if we might have to prime the well. Turns out, we did not. We plugged in the pump, it whirred to life, and within a very short time, I could hear the timbre of the sound change indicating it was indeed pumping water. Once the dark water that represented the sediment in the bottom of the hot water heater and some air came through the pipes, the system was good to go and I breathed an audible sigh of relief.

\n

Another crisis averted. Another lesson learned. Don’t walk away with the water running or the tea kettle on (ok, I bought a whistling one so that would never happen!) Growing old is not for sissies. Turns out, neither is farm life! Even with mistakes and do overs, I feel pretty good about all I’ve learned while living here. ❤️

\n

“You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”\n‭‭John‬ ‭14:14‬ ‭NIV‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-06T01:55:30-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/06/mistakes-or-lessons-learned.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/05/at-last.html", "title": "At Last...", "content_html": "\"Rhododendron\n

I was sitting out on the front porch yesterday…drinking coffee, solving the crossword, checking in with friends, listening to the Norah Jones channel on Pandora, watching the spring showers blow through in waves. It’s been a crazy week with trips to town for one thing and another every day since I got back from my last trip. Yeah, I know…it’s rough. But, I was really relishing a few hours of peace and quiet before a friend arrived in the afternoon for a visit. It felt good to just BE for a little bit. Those moments always turn something on in my heart…like fine-tuning the dial on a radio to get the station perfectly clear.

\n

I was lost in reverie when Etta James came on with her sultry, smooth voice…“At Last”. Oh…there was a time when the mere thought of that song made me burst into tears. That was the song Mr. Virgo and I danced to at our wedding. The one…and only…time he ever danced with me. I can still remember the way my hand rested in his, the sparkle in his eyes, the early spring sunshine slanting through the panes of glass in the sun room of the restaurant where we were married. I remember the way the smooth, black and white tiles felt beneath my feet as he gently guided me in a four foot square…not standing still but not really dancing either. Just moving and sharing a special moment.

\n

I was so excited to marry that man. My second divorce had left me yearning for a loving connection, as if changing my name would be another chapter further into the story of my life…further away from the pain and heartbreak that had come before. Our relationship was sweet and trusting, a mutual love and respect that soothed my broken heart and made me whole again. Three weeks shy of six years later, my heart shattered again when he died right in front of me.

\n

Yes, there was a time when this memory would have caught me off guard and I would have been reduced to a puddle of messiness and pain. And, I’m sure there will be a time in the future when it triggers something that will open that wound again. Not yesterday. Yesterday, I smiled and remembered the way his suit coat felt when I laid my hand on his chest as we danced, his strength and confidence a source of comfort to me. I could almost smell his Halston cologne. I wish I could remember what we said to each other in that moment but it is lost to me. I wish he had liked to dance. I love being held in a tall man’s arms.

\n

I was brought back…to the porch, to myself, to this beautiful life I am living…by the stunning sweep of a Pileated Woodpecker landing on the dead tree stump in the front yard where I have the rain gauge. At last…I have come home to myself and I’m anchored in this moment without drifting back into the stormy abyss of grief like a sailor being washed from the deck in a restless sea. At last. ❤️

\n

“You made me suffer a lot, but you will bring me back from this deep pit and give me new life. You will make me truly great and take my sorrow away.”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭71:20-21‬ ‭CEVUS06‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-05T01:55:41-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/05/at-last.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","The Farm","Wisdom"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/05/01/gods-armor.html", "title": "God's Armor", "content_html": "

\"FallenComing home late at night means you don’t get to survey the grounds till morning. And, since the next morning was yesterday and I wanted to go to church, I didn’t get a chance to look around till afternoon. As I pulled up the driveway, I could see the top of this tree peeking around the end of the barn. There was a heavy storm here Friday night and it broke this dead tree off about four feet from the bottom and it came down right between the barn and the old pigpen. As you can see, somewhere along the line, some old furniture got dumped up behind the barn. And I put the straw bales from the kitties’ winter home up there after the thaw. Now I have a tree to cut up. It’s never a dull moment here on the farm.

\n

The grass grew a good 6-8" while I was gone and we are due to have thunderstorms the next couple of days so I mowed late yesterday afternoon…in 94° heat! This after I walked an hour and climbed the Quincy Hill Steps three times. I packed my sports bra with ice packs, drank a liter of Powerade and went for it. I should have raised the mower a bit because now there are clumps of grass everywhere. Sigh.

\n

The big excitement was driving home yesterday. I was coming around a curve when a guy flashed his lights at me so I slowed down. Up ahead, a state trooper was pulling people over. Everyone. I was confused and pull off the edge of the road when he drove down the line of cars yelling, “Get off on the grass! There’s a high speed pursuit coming!” I no sooner pulled into these people’s yard till an older model pickup came screaming around the curve up ahead with two state troopers in full on pursuit. The trooper who pulled us over swung around and joined in. I found out later it was a stolen truck and the guy had an outstanding warrant. He ran into a ditch and thankfully no one received serious injuries.

\n

Like I said, never a dull moment in my life. And, God was watching over me, yet again. Giving praise where praise is due. ❤️

\n

“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.”\n‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭6:11‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-05-01T01:55:57-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/05/01/gods-armor.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","God","Uncategorized"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/30/home-sweet-home.html", "title": "Home Sweet Home", "content_html": "\"Painted\n

The trip home was far less eventful than the trip last weekend. Thank God, there were no accidents along the way. I stopped for one last incredible latte at Sweet T’s in Duck and left behind the painted rock that I had found in Wytheville on the way down. I hope someone finds it and hides it somewhere else. I loved the sentiment on many levels…“Believe”.

\n

Even though the trip was uneventful, it was long and exhausting. Eleven hours with three or four stops along the way to stretch my legs. I saw things I’d never seen before. I drove through the tunnel under the Chesapeake Bay. That was pretty neat. A tad disconcerting to think of all that water above me, I have to admit. I saw the big aircraft carriers in Newport News. I loved all the bridges going across the expanses of water in the south. It’s so open and free. This week is “Bike Week” on the Outer Banks. I’ll bet I passed, at the very least, a thousand motorcycles on their way down to the beach and I counted my lucky stars they weren’t there during my quiet getaway.

\n

As I drove home yesterday, I was particularly struck by the beauty of Western Virginia and Eastern West Virginia. The hills are solid and green, green, green. That brilliant spring green that hurts the eyes. The redbud and dogwood were all but gone save for the highest hills. There’s still some in my little holler. And, I was greeted by blooms on the rhododendron!!! I can’t wait to see it in the light of day. There was a lot of rain while I was gone and the lawn needs to be mowed soon.

\n

Th truck was emptied and the items in the cooler were stowed away by 10:00 last night. Kitties had been fed and came to say hello. And, another adventure is in the books! I am grateful for the opportunity to go to the beach. I am equally grateful to be safely ensconced in my humble surroundings here on the farm. I find peace and joy wherever I go. ❤️

\n

“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭118:24‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-30T01:55:13-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/30/home-sweet-home.html", "tags": ["Travel","Uplifting Stories","Hope","Positive Energy","The Grand Adventure","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/22/rock-on.html", "title": "Rock On!", "content_html": "\"Painted\n

Oh. Em. Geeeee. What a day! I finished packing and hit the road with a full cup of coffee by 10:00. I got to mile marker 82 in I-77 when traffic came to a dead stop. I mean like, get out of your car and meet your neighbors stop. One of the most important things I recommend for travel is a smartphone with access to the internet. While my GPS neglected to tell me there was traffic congestion on my route, Siri informed me there had been a truck fire and emergency crews were working to put it out. Three hours later , I drove past this charred hulk of a semi, a tanker truck still hosing down its contents strewn all over. I couldn’t tell for sure but it was loose bags of something orange.\nI stopped in Wytheville, Virginia for gas and found this painted rock. It’s all the rage right now…paint rocks and leave them places. When you find one, you take a picture of it and say where you find it, then you hide it again. I know a lot of people who do this and it’s fun. I’ll take it to the beach and leave it there.

\n

I pressed on past Mount Airy where I had initially planned to stop but felt I needed to make up for lost time. I thought I could get a room near Winston-Salem but you couldn’t find a room within 100 miles of there due to a furniture show. North Carolina is big in the furniture manufacturing biz. Therefore, I ended up driving till 1:00am and found one of the last two rooms in North Carolina…if not the entire country! The wonderful lady at the front desk gave me a great deal for a large, comfy king-sized room and check out isn’t till noon….yessss!

\n

The floaters in my eye bugged the heck out of me till it got dark. I’m told my brain will get used to the floaters and I won’t notice them. That can come now, please. With that, I’m closing and hitting the hay. Tomorrow (today!) is another day! ❤️

\n

“You’ll travel safely, you’ll neither tire nor trip. You’ll take afternoon naps without a worry, you’ll enjoy a good night’s sleep. No need to panic over alarms or surprises, or predictions that doomsday’s just around the corner, Because GOD will be right there with you; he’ll keep you safe and sound.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3:23-25 MSG‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-22T01:55:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/22/rock-on.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Strong Women","Hope","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/21/life-on-the-farm.html", "title": "Life on the Farm", "content_html": "\"Dogwood\"\n

It’s been a heck of a time the last couple of weeks. A friend had a health scare, my houseguest fell last week and had to go the the ER (she’s great, camping this weekend with the Sisters on the Fly and has a great new campfire story!), another friend fell this week with another trip to the ER, then there was yesterday. Oy.

\n\"Trillium\"\n

I went for my followup visit with the neurosurgeon. My subdural hematoma is all healed up but I’m still getting wicked headaches. As I sat in the office talking to her, I had something weird happen to my vision in my right eye. Suddenly I started getting this weird flicker then floaters that swirled around like black tendrils of smoke in my field of vision. Freaked me out a bit, I have to tell ya. I stopped mid-sentence and said “Wait a minute…something’s wrong here.” I told her what I was seeing and she looked in my eye and said I had to see my eye doctor before the end of the day. I got in at around 3:00 and they did a thorough exam. The good news is, it was not a detached retina! It turned out I have a “posterior vitreous detachment”. It sounds a whole lot worse than it is. It’s not dangerous and there’s nothing that can be done for it. It doesn’t affect your vision except as it separates at which time you get floaters and flashes. Over 75% of people over 65 get PVD. I got it a little early. She doesn’t think it is related to my accident since it has been two months. I still was seeing one floater late last night but my brain will soon adjust to that and it shouldn’t bother me. I am at a greater risk of having a detached retina in the next month or two so I have to be a princess for a while and take it easy. The really good news is, it will not interrupt my beach time! I’m leaving today to drive halfway down and the rest of the way on Saturday.

\n

I wanted to share some more of the beautiful spring flowers that are doing their best to outdo each other. I sat on the porch last night and talked to Old Mama Kitty for a while. I heard a couple of very loud screams of a feline nature up behind the barn. It was definitely bigger than one of my farm cats. I’m thinking bobcat but there are mountain lions here as well. I don’t walk around the farm alone at night. I heard a whippoorwill across the road in the woods some time after dark. Hadn’t heard one since around 2013 so that made me really happy!

\n

Happy Friday…Happy Spring…

\n

…Happy Road Trip!!! ❤️

\n

“The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.”\n‭‭The Song of Solomon‬ ‭2:12‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n

 

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-21T01:55:42-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/21/life-on-the-farm.html", "tags": ["Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Peaceful Moments"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/19/lord-take-me-home-in.html", "title": "Lord, Take Me Home in the Springtime", "content_html": "\"Cherry\n

I hated burying my mom on the coldest day of the year. It was late January and while the sky was blue, there was a bitter wind blowing on that hilltop. My Aunt Rosie and I were the only ones at the cemetery. It was just too cold for any kind of formal gathering. I could not let them put her in the ground alone though. So, I stood with a borrowed coat wrapped tight beneath my chin, shivering in the thin, January light.

\n

In contrast, Mr. Virgo died in the middle of March, which is a lot different in Colorado than it is here in West Virginia. Still, the day we laid him to rest, the sun was shining and it was warm enough for a light jacket. It’s funny the way your brain works when your beloved dies. I distinctly remember thinking if he had to die, at least he died in the spring when the earth was coming back to life. I didn’t have to lay him in the frozen ground. And I didn’t have to go into my grief and compound it with seasonal affective disorder. These are the things I think about while I’m driving.

\n

A couple of nights ago, I slept out back in TOW-Wanda. While it was wonderful to be in the camper, it stormed all night long and the only thing I could think of was that huge, old cherry tree just outside the camper. Just like the message about the rockslide a couple weeks ago, I kept getting this feeling like I had to get TOW-Wanda out of there. I need to get this tree taken out before it falls on anything…or anyone…and they can’t get any equipment back up in there with my camper parked in the driveway. I have friends who have offered to let me park TOW-Wanda at their place, but I don’t want to impose, or ruin their grass, or disturb them with coming and going as I want to camp this spring and early summer. I found a place where I can store her securely and anytime I want to take her out to camp, they’ll pull her out for me and all I have to do is hook her up and go. Then, I drop her off, and they take her around back to park her. All for $35 a month. Perfect!

\n

I decided I needed to get this done yesterday as we are supposed to get severe storms the next few days and I’m running out of time before I leave for the beach. Getting this huge trailer in and out of this long, narrow driveway is tricky. One of the biggest obstacles is the electric lines going up to the top of the cellar house. They hang low over the driveway. In the past, I’ve had someone hold them up with a broom while I backed under them. I didn’t have any helper yesterday and being the EVER resourceful woman that I am, I had to figure out how to do it myself. I took a long 1x2 that I found in the cellar, taped a walking stick to it, then taped the broom handle to that and…voila! It worked like a charm! The electric line nestled in the bristles of the broom and stayed right where I put it.

\n

Now, backing up out of the driveway was interesting. I got down to the road but I was worried about hitting the pole on the other side of the driveway. It’s a pretty busy road for being so far out in the country and the only thing I could do was slowly back out onto the blacktop. I was almost all the way out when a guy in a pickup stopped and guided me those last few feet. Easy peasy! The new truck towed fine…just doesn’t have the torque like the old one had, which I expected.

\n

I needed to get back to mow. As I drove through the hills, I rolled down the windows and the smell of the honeysuckle, lilac, dogwood, redbud, apple, peach, apricot, pear, and crabapple trees was so incredibly sweet. It was then that I sent up my plea to God. “When it is my time to go, please take me in the springtime so my last day will be filled with beauty such as this perfect West Virginia day.” That is all I ask. ❤️

\n

“yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that."”\n‭‭James‬ ‭4:14-15‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-19T01:55:43-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/19/lord-take-me-home-in.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Prayer","Hope","TOW-Wanda!","West Virginia","The Farm","God"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/18/the-moon-bath.html", "title": "The Moon Bath", "content_html": "\"The\n

Bathing al fresco by the light of the moon was a necessity in the mid ’90s. Having a total hysterectomy caused me to wake up from anesthesia with complete menopausal symptoms on top of the surgical pain. I struggled for the next seven years till we finally got my estrogen level up to something I could live with. I had hot flashes that sat at a ten on the Richter Scale and no one wanted to be anywhere near me. I didn’t blame them…I didn’t want to be near them either. It was miserable.

\n

I brought my children home for visits with the family every single summer. If you have ever suffered through August in West Virginia, you’ll have some idea what Dante’s Inferno was all about. With the heat and humidity, one could not begin to imagine running a bath or taking anything but a cold shower. I’m not sure how it began, but along about the time my youngest was three or four years old, we started taking “Moon Baths”. Where that tub sits in this picture, there used to be a 50 gallon drum to catch the rainwater. A few years ago, it didn’t get emptied in the fall and when it froze, the bottom busted out of it. Since then, there’s been a galvanized tub strategically placed at either corner of the bathroom addition to catch the rain.

\n

One night back in the mid ’90s, I was so sticky hot and Daughter #2 had just about had it with the whole “let’s go visit grandma and watch eggs fry on the sidewalk” thing. I was carrying groceries in the back door when I looked over and saw that cool water in the water barrel and all I wanted to do was drop everything and stick my head in it. As soon as it was dark enough and everyone had turned in for the night, my Little and I grabbed a bucket of warm water from the bathroom and carried it outside. She looked at me with some trepidation. I smiled and said, “Trust me!” We gathered bar soap, shampoo, wash cloths, towels and clean night clothes and headed for the backyard. I explained, with great authority, that we were about to take our very first “Moon Bath”. I stripped down to my all-together and Little happily followed suit. We soaped up with the warm, sudsy water from the bucket, lathered our hair, then took that enamel saucepan off the nail and dipped fresh, cool rainwater over us to rinse off. We squealed with delight at the shock of water that felt so cold at first but soon felt perfect as we acclimated. Squeaky clean and refreshed, we dried off and dressed for bed. It became a nightly ritual and I think we continued to do that every visit till Little got too big.

\n

My time in West Virginia now is opposite of what it used to be. I spend my summers in the rather temperate climate (comparatively) of Colorado. It is semi-arid there and a shower indoors is not a bad thing. But, should I spend any hot August nights here again, you can rest assured I’ll be bathing in the moonlight at the corner of “ooooh” and “aaaah”! ❤️

\n

“Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree,”\n‭‭Genesis‬ ‭18:4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-18T01:55:10-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/18/the-moon-bath.html", "tags": ["Family","Strong Women","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/17/rain-on-a-camper-roofaaaaah.html", "title": "Rain on a Camper Roof...aaaaah!!!", "content_html": "\"Blue\n

I had company for supper yesterday which was lovely! A simple Easter meal of roasted chicken, fresh green beans cooked with bacon, mashed potatoes and gravy. It was delightful. After my company left, I looked up at the darkening sky threatening rain. My dishes were done, my leftovers put away, and nothing left to do but write. Now, I could write like I have for the last six months…OR, I could go camp out in TOW-Wanda! Guess which one I chose?

\n

I haven’t slept in the camper since October. It has the BEST bed…a six inch memory foam mattress I bought when I decided to get serious and camp full time. I really miss this bed! I grabbed my NA beer, a small bag of chocolate covered peanuts (hey, it was Easter!) and my phone, iPad, and a flashlight. TOW-Wanda had just had a good cleaning last week for company so she was all set! Fresh sheets, warm blankets, windows flung open for the breeze…just waiting for the rain.

\n

I’m heading into travel season and can’t wait! I leave next weekend for the Outer Banks of North Carolina. I’ve never been there so I’m really looking forward to it. I really lucked out and got a time share from a friend that wasn’t using it. I’ll let you know about the place after I check out. My favorite thing I’ve read about it so far is it has a Jaccuzi tub AND is just steps from the beach! Works for me!

\n

I’ll spend the last half of May and early June in Daytona Beach. I no sooner get home till I head to Colorado for the summer. I’ll be back in West Virginia in early September. I’m hostessing a Sisters on the Fly trip the weekend after Labor Day. I can hardly wait to show off my home state to the Sisters!!! It’s going to feel good to have some quiet down time this week as I prepare for the upcoming travel. I hope you all had a blessed Easter! ❤️

\n

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”\n‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:17‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-17T01:55:12-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/17/rain-on-a-camper-roofaaaaah.html", "tags": ["Travel","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","TOW-Wanda!","Camping","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/12/days-gone-by.html", "title": "Days Gone By", "content_html": "\"Outhouse\"\n

My friend V is an artist. We were going to paint yesterday but one thing led to another and we didn’t get to. I hope we can another time. When we explored the farm, V snapped several photos that I just love. This will bring back memories to many of you. When I was growing up in town, we had all the modern conveniences. But grandma’s house didn’t have indoor plumbing till I was six or seven. Up until then, this was the toilet. The bath was in a galvanized tub on the kitchen floor. Laundry was done in a gas-powered wringer washer on the back porch after many years of scrubbing on a washboard. The laundry hung on the line. I still remember how stiff and scratchy the towels were when they air dried but oh…the sheets were divine.

\n

When we were rummaging around in the barn, we found pants stretchers. Who remembers using those? We always used them on the men’s work pants. They are a metal frame that you slipped into each pants leg, then stretched it out tight till the pants were smooth and had a crease in the front and back. That was before permanent press.

\n

We also found an old telephone that was pretty cool. I do not recall seeing that in this house, but I wouldn’t swear it wasn’t from here. Those weren’t easier times and I will bet my grandma wouldn’t have called them simpler either. But it was an honest time where you went to bed tired, you burned your calories working, and you sure as heck didn’t have GMO’s on your plate. You were frugal and fixed things. You mended sheets, darned socks, took the buttons and zippers off worn out clothing before they went in the rag bag or the quilting stack. You didn’t sass back or you found yourself on the receiving end of a hickory switch. If you wanted something, you earned it. If you lied or cursed, you got your mouth washed out with soap. If you were good, you got to lick the beaters or ride to town to farmer’s market.

\n

Those may not have been easy times, but in many ways, they were the best of times. In others, they were not. Discrimination, inequality….I’d love to say they’re gone, but I’m afraid they’re not. Hopefully things will become more peaceful and loving again. It hurts my heart to see some of the things in the world. I have wonderful memories here and I get to live them all over again. Days Gone By are here again. ❤️

\n

“I remember the days gone by; I think about all that you have done, I bring to mind all your deeds.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭143:5‬ ‭GNT‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-12T01:55:31-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/12/days-gone-by.html", "tags": ["Family","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/11/fun-on-the-farm.html", "title": "Fun on the Farm", "content_html": "\"Red\n

I got my first company on the farm yesterday! I’m telling you…I was SO excited. I even bought a new vinyl tablecloth at Dollar General for the occasion! I picked up a potted hyacinth at the grocery store, dressed my bed in floral pastels, and the house looked positively springy!

\n

I love having company. It gives me a chance to cook. Open-faced cheeseburgers and locally made Mr. Bee potato chips for lunch and pork loin chops, brown and wild rice and fresh asparagus for supper. We roamed the farm and explored the old barn and found a few treasures. An old lantern, some spats and a hat that I think belonged to my great grandfather, and the rusty front of an old Model A Ford that I want to hang on the wall in the dining room. While we were driving out the dirt road at the back of the farm, V saw a flash of red and we couldn’t identify what it was, even with binoculars. She has no fear. I have an abundance of caution. Between us and this red thing was what I would consider snake territory but with great caution and beating on the ground, we carefully moved forward and got a good look at the plant. Now, to identify it. Anyone have a clue?

\n

I put the green twinkly light out back aimed up into the trees. It looks like a fairy land out there shining above TOW-Wanda where my company is all tucked in. I wanted her to be very comfortable here. V is the West Virginia Wrangler for Sisters on the Fly and we are planning an event for September in the Mid Ohio Valley to coincide with the Sternwheel Festival. Today we’ll be checking out venues. I love camping with my Sisters and I’m hoping this will be a well attended and fun event to remember! ❤️

\n

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”\n‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2:3-4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-11T01:55:06-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/11/fun-on-the-farm.html", "tags": ["Sisters on the Fly","Positive Energy","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/10/the-easter-parade.html", "title": "The Easter Parade", "content_html": "\"Tractor\n

This is what an Easter Parade looks like out in the country. Normally, I would be in town at church on any given Sunday. But yesterday I just didn’t feel good…wicked headache. I have company coming today and had lots to do, so I stayed home. A friend brought me some ginger ale and medicine for my tummy and I just fiddled around the yard and the house all day. It felt good to just lay low. I even missed a concert last night that I had been looking forward to. But sometimes self care wins.

\n

As I was pulling the overgrown grape vine out of the spirea bush out front, I heard a tractor coming up the road. I could see there was a wagon and horses and lots of people so I went back up to the house for my phone. I couldn’t miss an opportunity like this!

\n

The gentleman on the tractor there is a relative of mine…second cousin twice removed or some such thing. These are good country folk. Hard working, God fearing, fun loving people. They gathered after church and came up the road in a community outreach to invite people to the Revival in May. They stopped for a visit and gave me a potted petunia. It warmed my heart.

\n

I’ve changed a lot since I’ve moved back to West Virginia. I grew up here so I’m no stranger to the simple life. But I lived in Colorado for 40 years…well over half of that as a doctor’s wife. I got used to a different lifestyle. I drove a Mercedes. I wore a fur. I had a big house and didn’t have to work. I was a spoiled princess. After Mr. Virgo died, I didn’t want that anymore. I didn’t want the big house and all the stuff. I got rid of just about all of it. And bought a truck. And a camper. And drove and drove and drove in search of the real me. God knew I needed to “come home to WV”. When the opportunity to farm-sit came by, I didn’t miss a beat and gladly jumped at the chance to live in my Grandma’s house.

\n

I’ve come to appreciate simplicity. Country folk are good folk. I knew something had changed in me when my fur coat made me uncomfortable. It wasn’t me anymore. I feel more real than I have in most of my adult life. I’m so much softer and genuine. And happy. I couldn’t understand the allure of West Virginia before. I used to get so angry with my mother when I’d try to get her to come to Colorado to live. She insisted she live here. Now I get it. There will probably come a time when I’ll move back to Colorado to be near my kids. But not just yet. There is much more growing…much more healing…much more love to be shared here first. For now, I am home. ❤️

\n

“A pretentious, showy life is an empty life; a plain and simple life is a full life. The rich can be sued for everything they have, but the poor are free of such threats.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭13:7-8‬ ‭MSG‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-10T01:55:25-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/10/the-easter-parade.html", "tags": ["Family","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/09/spring-tonic.html", "title": "Spring Tonic", "content_html": "\"Girl\n

When I was a very young child, both of my grandmothers decided I was far too pale. There must be something wrong with me. So, they set to work with their home remedies to fix what ailed me.

\n

My paternal grandmother decided I had worms. She went to the spice cabinet and pulled out the powdered sage, dumped a heaping tablespoon into a teacup and stirred in boiling water. No sugar. No honey. No cream. Just sage, sage, sage. Sage tea. It was “good fer what ails ye”. I have no words to describe how horrible it was. And, I had to sit there till I drank the whole thing. Which I did. It isn’t polite to discuss the gastric ramifications of said elixir in mixed company. Suffice it to say, the physical response was proof to my grandmother that she was correct and now I would be fine. I don’t know about worms, but I can assure you I hate sage dressing, sage sausage…anything that’s been sitting in the same cabinet as sage. Horrid stuff.

\n

My maternal grandmother had an entirely different bit of magic in her arsenal. On the first good, warm spring day, grandma would take me hiking up into the woods behind the house. She would browse along, looking at young saplings, and before long, she’d reach down and yank one up, roots and all. Instantly the air was filled with a tangy sweetness that reminded me of root beer. She pulled two or three of these and we headed back to the house. After washing away the dirt, grandma took her trusty potato peeler and stripped away thin slices of the bark from the roots. She told me this was sassafras and it would clean my blood after the stagnant air of the winter.

\n

Grandma placed several of the slips of bark into an old coffee cup, put some sugar on top, and poured piping hot water fresh from the rainwater cistern over it and stirred the concoction. After steeping a bit, she fished out the roots and poured in a little cream to soften and cool the tea. It was deep pink and gave off the most delightful aroma. I happily sat on the kitchen stool, “whoooo-ing” off the heat, and sipping this nectar of the gods. I was in heaven!

\n

Needless to say, sassafras tea wins in the “good for what ails ya” category. Yes, if you Google it, there is scientific evidence if you take one of the components in sassafras and make a concentration a gazillion times stronger than you could ingest in a lifetime and inject into the abdomens of lab rats, they can get cancer. One cup in the springtime has never caused me ill effect and it’s a rite of spring for me so I’ll take my chances. There may be no proven benefits of sassafras tea, other than it can take me back to my grandma’s kitchen in one sip, no matter where I may be in the world. Sipping it here on the farm was a real treat yesterday as I sat in the sunshine and worked the crossword.

\n

And, hey…it tasted even better in my Girl Camper mug (although, in this picture, it looks all the world like “God Camper” which I suppose is even more accurate!) that I got from the Girl Camper herself…Janine Pettit!!!

\n

Spring…a time for renewal and growth, indeed. ❤️

\n

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭51:10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-09T01:55:22-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/09/spring-tonic.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Wisdom","Girl Camper"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/07/anniversaries-and-stuff.html", "title": "Anniversaries and Stuff", "content_html": "\"Daffodils\"\n

As is typical in the spring, yesterday was vastly different than the day before. Wednesday was a brilliant, sunny, warm spring day. After mowing the lawn, I sat in the sunshine on the porch and it got downright hot out there…80 degrees! Yesterday? Not so much. As the south braced for another day of severe weather, we received the aftereffects of the storm front as it came through. It was wet, grey and cold. The thermometer on the front porch hovered at 40° all afternoon and I was chilled through and through.

\n

I hit the taxes hard yesterday, determined I was going to struggle through them and finish so I wouldn’t have that hanging over my head all weekend. Thank goodness for TurboTax. It’s almost foolproof because there’s no way I can make heads or tails of the old way of doing them. Grief brain has changed the way my brain functions. That, and age. I just don’t have the patience. As it was, it took me a week and a half to get everything done. I swear every year I’ll be more organized but there I was again…searching through my newly updated and balanced check register, recording all my deductions.

\n

I always sit in my rocking chair in front of the dining room window when I write my blog post. As I sat gazing out at the ever greening countryside, listening to the steady hiss of a gentle rain on the tin roof, I sipped my afternoon tea and contemplated how different my life is now. Ten years ago today, I married Mr. Virgo. Ten years. A decade has gone by in the blink of an eye. Well, no…not really. It seems absolutely forever ago since that day, yet I remember it so well. We had been having daily snow storms leading up to the wedding and it was planned for outdoors. I was thrilled when it turned into a lovely, warm spring day.

\n

It’s supposed to be very cold here today…weather that doesn’t match my psyche these days. I’m in a good space. I have much to look forward to. I have people to love and to love me back. I have purpose and peace. I could sit here and feel sorry for myself. I could let my mind wander down a rabbit hole. But that does me no good. Today I take my truck in to get it worked on. Today I have things to do. Today I have a beautiful life and my cup is full. I’ll still think of that handsome man from time to time on this momentous day. But I’ll do it with a smile. ❤️

\n

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.”\n‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭13:4-8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-07T01:55:24-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/07/anniversaries-and-stuff.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","Strong Women","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/06/bird-watching.html", "title": "Bird Watching", "content_html": "\"Tufted\n

One of the most pleasant things about this farm is the multitude of birds singing all the time. From the earliest risers announcing the break of dawn to the owls hooting in the night, I have always been mesmerized by their chorus echoing up the holler and in the woods surrounding the house. I hung several feeders out front last fall and have enjoyed watching the various birds as they migrate up and down on their annual patterns. There were a few varieties that wintered over…the cardinal being my favorite. Black-capped chickadees and house wrens and goldfinches were frequent visitors with the occasional bird I have yet to identify.

\n

I mowed the lawn yesterday with my new mower. (Jackie…tell Don it’s a Troy-Bilt, not a Toro. Hey, it started with a T!) It worked like a charm and the yard looked lovely when I was done. I worked on the taxes for quite some time and finally took a break in the late afternoon to sit in the sunshine on the porch. The birds were having a field day out there so I went in to get my iPad and binoculars. My massage therapist asked me the other day to identify a bird from a call she recorded the evening before. I downloaded “iBird Ultimate” on my tablet and set to work. After two days, I discovered she had caught an American Woodcock with it’s repeated three-note croak common during mating season in the spring. I don’t know if you have ever seen one, but they are very odd birds. They hold their heads far back, have a very long beak, and walk in slow motion. Funny birds. Since I had the app at the ready, I decided to try to identify some of my afternoon visitors.

\n

I’ve been trying to identify a certain call for quite a long time now. It sounds “watery”, like a drop of water plunking down in a well. Kind of hollow, echoing. I could hear them in the brush but could never get a good look at them. Finally, they came to the feeder…only briefly. Just long enough to see they were Brown-headed Cowbirds. I looked them up, listened to their song that is recorded in the app, and sure enough…that’s what I’ve been hearing for years! It was actually pretty exciting!

\n

The most fun interaction I had though was with a Tufted Titmouse. Beautiful little birds. A blue-ish grey with a blush of dusty pinkish yellow on the sides of the breast, just under the wings, they have a peaked cap of feathers on top of their heads that looks like a jaunty little hat. Once I identified it, I played the birdsong on an endless loop and that little bird went crazy. Ok, I played a recording of the mating calls between a male and female. This guy fluttered all around the porch, staring at me, shaking his wings hard enough to make the dogwood tree quiver. He even flew in under the porch roof and landed on the clothesline not ten feet from me. He stayed around for awhile till he figured out I wasn’t an interloper invading his territory. Finally, he flew off into the woods nearby, but I heard him scolding and chattering at me for quite some time afterwards.

\n

The temperature got up to 80 out there with the sun preparing to settle behind the ridge across the road. It felt wonderful to just sit there and soak up some Vitamin D. The wind picked up with the approaching storm front and the trees on top of the hill danced and roared a muffled sigh. Another lovely day has passed here on the farm and my heart is full of love and hope. ❤️

\n

“Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.”\n‭‭James‬ ‭5:13‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-06T01:55:53-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/06/bird-watching.html", "tags": ["Positive Energy","Fun","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/04/05/decisions-decisions.html", "title": "Decisions, Decisions", "content_html": "\"Fork\n

I have friends who are really competent women. They’ve taken care of business all on their own for decades and seem to handle anything that gets thrown at them…with strength and grace. So why do I, as a widow of four years, stumble over something as inconsequential as buying a lawnmower? Holy cats! You’d think I was making a decision of epic proportions!

\n

I went to Lowe’s…twice. I went to Home Depot and Walmart. I went to Rural King…twice. Finally I went back to Lowe’s and bought the first lawnmower. I mean, a lawnmower is a lawnmower, right? Wrong! Apparently, there’s a great deal of importance placed on things like self-propelled, front wheel drive vs. rear wheel, a larger rear wheel, Honda vs. Briggs & Stratton vs. OHV engines, mulch vs. side discharge vs. rear-bagger. There was a time in my life when I would have just bought the most expensive one with all the bells and whistles. Oh, who am I kidding? I would have just payed to have it done. But those aren’t my options now. Decision-making changes with circumstances. I chose the 21" Toro with the Honda engine. It was on sale.

\n

Sometimes I can make decisions like a boss. I took the new truck in because there was a “catch” in the tailgate and I have heard a funny vibration a few times. They tried to tell me it was the turbo I was hearing. No, I told them. I know the difference. This was not the turbo. I went on a test drive and said a quick prayer that the sound would show up while the repair dude was with me. It did. A couple parts have been ordered and it gets fixed on Friday. I didn’t back down when they pulled the “Silly woman, you’re hearing things” trick. But I can’t choose a lawnmower?

\n

There are lots of changes and choices and decisions I have made since Mr. Virgo died. Some I have deeply regretted almost immediately. Some took a while before remorse set in. Others have turned out to be the most amazing blessings and have changed my life in delightful ways. Grief affects the way your brain works and I’ve come to forgive myself when I stumble in the decision making process. I’m not perfect, but I try to do my best. Most things are fixable so if I make a mistake, I’m never too far off course. I just have to remember to cut myself some slack and not be too hard on myself. ❤️

\n

“Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭11:14‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-04-05T01:55:55-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/04/05/decisions-decisions.html", "tags": ["Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/03/28/the-promise-of-spring.html", "title": "The Promise of Spring", "content_html": "\"Coffee\n

I have lived every moment of the last five months with this image in my mind. Not that I didn’t try to stay mindful and present this winter…I did. But, this…this is what my brain screams for from the moment the first frost withers the life from the foliage in the fall. My body yearns to sit here in the sunshine, listening to the deep tones of the wind chime in the gentle breeze, watching the birds zip in to the feeders. My soul remembers this. Sixty-three times I have experienced early spring mornings. Some I haven’t paid a bit of attention to. Sad to waste even one, really. They are God’s gift to us. His promise of growth, of provision, of new life.

\n

As I sat at my grandma’s old dining room table yesterday doing taxes, the view out the window kept calling me to come outside and enjoy this. The coffee was hot. I wore a sweater to ward off any chill that remained of the morning. As I sat there, enjoying the gurgling creek alongside the house, a beautiful black butterfly flitted around the porch. The pink of the flowering quince, the yellow of the fading forsythia, the vibrant green of new grass gave my winter-weary spirit room to breathe. I smiled at the many gifts I’ve been given in this life. The many opportunities to love, to learn, to grow.

\n

Sunday was an emotionally draining day. The worship experience at church was powerful and stretched my soul wide open. Then I sat in quiet contemplation as the rest of my family buried my father-in-law in Colorado. I wish I could have been there, but I will visit the cemetery when I go there this summer. A Sunday afternoon nap is always in order. Sunday night was spent in fellowship at Pub Church discussing forgiveness. There was a larger crown than usual. Forgiveness is a topic that touches us all in one way or another.

\n

As I sat on the porch with my coffee, I thought of Little and Pop and within seconds she sent me a text with a picture of him. I hadn’t seen it before. If he knew you were taking his picture, he would go expressionless. This one made him look so old and tired. It made me sad. I have a wonderful picture that I took at our last Christmas dinner with him. He is listening to the conversation with his new cochlear implant and has such a serene, peaceful look on his face. That’s how I want to remember Pop…enjoying the love of his extended family. I sent that picture to Little. I hope she’ll remember him that way, too.

\n

So, the break time came to a close and I went back in to tackle the taxes like a boss. I had to upgrade to Quicken 2017 then couldn’t get it to connect with my bank. In the process of walking it through with tech support, I accidentally deleted my checking account with 15 years of transactions. ? I have a backup, but after messing with it for a total of ten hours, I could not make Quicken set up a new account. So, since I do not drink, and there was no chocolate in the house, I shut the computer off and I’ll work on it Wednesday. There was a time in my life when I couldn’t walk away like that. Call it personal growth or self preservation, it was my best option. That and a bubble bath. Tomorrow’s another day! ❤️

\n

“My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.”\n‭‭James‬ ‭1:19-20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-03-28T01:55:37-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/03/28/the-promise-of-spring.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Prayer","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/03/23/almost-heaven.html", "title": "Almost Heaven", "content_html": "\"Red\n

This picture was taken when we were “knee deep in June”, as Grandma called it. That perfect time of the year where it’s not too hot yet and the trees are all leafed out. Right now, there is just a hint of green here and there but today was the last of the really cold days, I think. The weather is supposed to really warm up in the coming days. I can’t wait to see the dogwood and redbud in bloom! Those are my favorites.

\n

Right now there is a mattress and box springs on the front porch. I got the new one and before I good drag the old one out to the road, I had my wreck and haven’t been able to lift anything that heavy. I did take a truckload of trash to the dump yesterday but I didn’t have any rope to tie down anything that big. So, here I sit looking all the world like the Clampett’s! Hopefully I can get that out to the road next week and the trash man can take it.

\n

I love this old farmhouse. You can feel the love in every room. During the Depression, my Grandma lived in a place where she had a tiny little stove on the landing of a staircase. This was Shangri-La to her. The only sounds come from the creek, the wall clock, and my new wind chime that resonates with deep, meditative tones….the occasional car or truck going by.

\n

I’m getting my first stay-over company in a couple of weeks so I’m really excited about that. I love sharing the place and the stories. I remember when I came home for a visit one summer and my uncle had painted the house red. I was so upset. He had messed with my memories. Now I love the red. It has weathered to a great patina.

\n

I remember when they built the basement, jacked the house up, and rolled it on pipes down onto the new foundation. It used to sit another forty feet or so back. That was when they had an oil well derrick in the backyard and no indoor plumbing. It was a big day when they finished the bathroom, I can tell you.

\n

Enjoy this spring day, dear ones! ❤️

\n

“Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard.”\n‭‭Genesis‬ ‭9:20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-03-23T01:55:05-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/03/23/almost-heaven.html", "tags": ["Hope","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/03/19/the-legacy.html", "title": "The Legacy", "content_html": "\"Meme\"\n

It’s funny. When you are in a car accident, they tell you, “Go home and rest.” If any of you have been in a significant wreck, you know how difficult it is to actually do. There’s a million errands, doctor’s visits, insurance appointments, rental car, and then the shopping for a replacement vehicle. The last thing that gets done is rest and that’s when everything else is taken care of.

\n

I’ve finally had the chance to turn down the dial and relax at the end of this last week. Laundry, read a magazine, listen to the Norah Jones channel on Pandora, nap, and catch up with friends and family on the phone. I even watched a movie…Silver Linings Playbook. I made a wonderful quiche and shared half with my neighbors.

\n

As I sat last night in the living room of this sweet little farmhouse, listening to the rain on the tin roof, I could hear the low, Zen tones of the new wind chime I put on the front porch. It reminds me of the background music you hear in a spa when you get a massage. My heart was suddenly full and I felt such peace it made tears sting the back of my eyes.

\n

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my legacy. The one I’ve been given…the one I will leave. Having the opportunity to live within the home of my heart on the family farm has brought me a deep sense of peace. It has healed a place in my heart. I remember the day I walked back into this house with my grandma when she had to leave Pop-Pop at the hospital for the very last time. I remember her great love and her profound heartbreak. And I witnessed her strength. Her faith. And how she made peace with her loss. Something turned over in my own heart last night. It felt like opening my hand and letting a small bird fly away. A healing occurred in just that moment. That’s the nature of grief. Waves of grief are often met with periods of profound healing and insight. It was a beautiful thing.

\n

The legacy I was given was love and compassion. Living here during this time of healing is a gift from others who received that same love and compassion. My legacy is in my words…in my actions…in my heart that I readily share with others. I hope my grandchildren and their grandchildren and theirs after that will someday read what I have written and get to know my heart…get to know who I was long, long after I’m gone.

\n

Movies do this to me. Music does this. Rain on a tin roof does it. My heart melts and fills with love. And my life is full and rich and warm. I just wanted to share a little of it with you today and wish you love. ❤️

\n

“We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭78:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-03-19T01:55:46-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/03/19/the-legacy.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/01/15/rainy-days.html", "title": "RAINY DAYS", "content_html": "\"Rainy\n

I am always amazed at the amount of water shed from the sky here in West Virginia. After living forty years in the semi arid climate of Colorado, this is a shock to the system. Oh, the humidity is great for my skin. And I have stick-straight hair so humidity is the only thing that gives it a little body. But, man….dark, gray, rainy days can really wear on a person after a while.

\n

The creek has been running awfully high this week from all the rain. The ground is saturated. There’s a dead tree out by the road alongside the creek and it has shed some branches that have partially blocked the culvert. Unfortunately, I didn’t notice that till now and it isn’t safe to get down in there to clear it out so it will have to wait. I have a rain gauge out front. I haven’t emptied it since before I left for Colorado so it’s been at least five weeks. It is full to the top…twelve inches! I have no idea how long it has been full so who knows how much rain we’ve received? I walked the creek from the road to up behind the barn just before dark and I don’t think it’s going to flow over. And if it does, it will go over the road before it comes in the house. At least we didn’t get the ice storm they predicted.

\n

I’ve been glued to my laptop all week migrating content from FB to the new website. It’s slow going because I’m also backing everything up in a Word document. Rainy days aren’t so bad when you’ve got a nice cup of tea and some soft classical music in the background. I seldom curl up with a good book anymore, though. Ever since I started writing after Mr. Virgo died, I try not to read other people’s work. I find it taints my thinking and I don’t want to run the risk of inadvertently plagiarizing someone. Writing soothes me…it sharpens my mind and keeps me focused. It has done wonders toward healing my heart and spirit. I am very protective of my writing time. You can ask anyone with whom I have stayed in the last four years…I retire early even when I am a guest so that I may write. It’s therapy, hobby, recreation, and mental exercise. It’s as much a part of my day as breathing now. Early on, I would sometimes schedule a week’s worth of posts ahead of time when I traveled in case I was out of cell or wifi range. Eventually, I found myself writing anyway so I just write. It’s what I do. It’s what I love. ❤️

\n

“The words of the mouth are deep waters, but the fountain of wisdom is a rushing stream.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭18:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-01-15T03:00:05-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/01/15/rainy-days.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","Positive Energy","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/01/13/authenticity.html", "title": "AUTHENTICITY", "content_html": "\"Iris\n

As I lay here in the middle of the night, I can hear the creek’s up. We’ve had a lot of rain the last few days…better rain than snow as far as I’m concerned. I’ve had enough snow in my forty Colorado winters to last me a lifetime, thank you very much. The rain has stopped for the time being. Too bad. I love the sound it makes on the tin roof of this old farmhouse. From a gentle tapping to a deafening roar, there’s nothing quite so wonderful to sleep to than rain on an old tin roof.

\n

There’s something special happening to me as I live in my grandma’s house. It’s as though the hands of time are turning back…not literally, but my attitudes have shifted to match the rhythms of farm life. There is something sweetly innocent about this house and it’s breathing through my heart and soul. This creek…this rain on the tin roof…it’s the music of my childhood. How many nights did I visit grandma’s kitchen…my worn, flannel nightgown brushing my ankles as I sat on the folding red metal kitchen stool eating jelly bread before bedtime? How many nights did I snuggle up to my mama in the metal bed upstairs in the girl’s room listening to these same night sounds? I hear an owl…a deer browsing through the brush along the creek…the gas stove in the bathroom kicking on.

\n

This is as real as I have felt in a long, long time. This home holds no pretense. It is a humble affair of rough-sawn timber…poorly insulated. The bedroom walls upstairs are really nothing more than cardboard with wallpaper over it. It originally rested on stacks of rocks as a foundation with no indoor plumbing. Along the way, it gained a basement and water. But it’s still such a simple home. I can feel it’s pulse.

\n

If there is anything I strive for these days, it is authenticity. I haven’t always been authentic…true to myself. Living at my roots…my source…has put me in touch with who I really am. And I am anything but vanilla. I’m two inches of frosting with rainbow sprinkles. I’m tutus and cowboy boots…tiaras and glitter. I’m an enigma, to be sure. I want to live unapologetically. I agree with Iris Apfel, fashion you can buy, but style you possess. I didn’t always march to my own drum, but losing Mr. Virgo has given me license to be authentic…in my grief and in the way I live my life. My grandchildren roll their eyes at some of the things I wear out in public. This is good! I like showing them it’s ok to be bright and shiny when you age. I want them to know you don’t have to go quietly into the good night. I want them to remember me in a big way. ❤️

\n

“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.””\n‭‭John‬ ‭8:32‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-01-13T03:00:01-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/01/13/authenticity.html", "tags": ["Family","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2017/01/09/old-mama-kitty.html", "title": "OLD MAMA KITTY", "content_html": "\"Old\n

We’ve lost track how old she is. Twenty-three? Twenty-four, maybe? She’s old. And she’s sweet as sugar. She came along some time after the original “Old Mama Kitty” was found, cold and still, lying on a bale of hay in the neighbor’s shed. She, too, was ancient. She was my Uncle Bob’s kitty. Bob was born with a developmental disability. He lived and worked on the farm his entire life. A kinder and gentler man would be nigh on to impossible to find. His “job” was ring the church bell every Sunday…a position he took very seriously and performed religiously, so to speak.

\n

No one told Uncle Bob that his old kitty had passed away. They didn’t have the heart. But one day, this sweet kitty who looked exactly like the original, came strolling up the yard by the creek. Bob saw her and his face lit up like a Christmas tree as he exclaimed, “There she is! Old Mama Kitty back!” So, this kitty is Old Mama Kitty, too.

\n

I was really worried when I didn’t see her last night and again this morning. That isn’t like her. Usually she is right there when you feed her…waiting for that one brief scratch on her head that she will allow and a couple rubs against your leg. The last few days have been desperately cold here at the farm with highs in the low teens. These are outdoor farm cats, so I know they’re tough. But old kitties are more fragile. I decided I’d better do something better than the outdoor cat boxes I had provided out on the back porch. I went to Rural King after church and bought electric pet mats and a heated water dish. I fixed up their beds when I got home, in hopes that Old Mama Kitty would show up. I no sooner finished when here she came! I was so relieved! I went right out with a dish of the soft canned food she loves so much and she ate like she was starved. Within ten minutes, she had found her now warm little house and had curled up inside. It made my heart warm, too. I have grown very attached to her.

\n

When I returned from Thanksgiving, there was a tiny orange and white kitten here increasing my feline entourage to three. Come to find out, the little kitten belongs to the lady who feeds the cats when I’m gone. It must have hitched a ride in her engine when she was here over the holiday. She would love to have it back, but it’s been too cold to catch it, and now it is attached to Boy Cat so I doubt it would stay away at this point. The neighbor says that’s fine…as long as it’s well cared for. Interestingly, this little kitten’s littermate looks exactly like Old Mama Kitty. That would have been just too much synchronicity had that been the one that showed up.

\n

I have no idea how long I’ll have this old gal here. But I’ll love her to pieces..for my Uncle Bob. It’ll feel like losing him all over again when she is gone. ❤️

\n

“The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them.”\n‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭11:6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2017-01-09T03:00:32-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2017/01/09/old-mama-kitty.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Hope","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/29/widowhood-is-a-solitary-affair.html", "title": "WIDOWHOOD IS A SOLITARY AFFAIR", "content_html": "\"Prisma\n

I did something the other day that I absolutely SWORE I would never do again. I bought a television. I was at Sam’s Club picking up some things and there was an incredible deal on a 40" Samsung Smart TV. I’ve been wanting to watch some of my collection of movies and this seemed like a good deal. Besides the movies, it’s not a bad idea to stay connected when there is a tragedy…like yesterday’s emergency on the OSU campus. I have to say, I felt ill after watching the news for a short time so I checked back in occasionally for updates instead of staying glued to it.

\n

As I flipped through channels, I paused to watch a few minutes of ET: The Extraterrestrial. I remember watching that when it first came out and the cinematography seemed SO advanced. Now it is terribly dated. The scene I came in on has a TV playing the background while ET is raiding the fridge. There is a commercial playing where a young woman answers the phone and calls out to the rest of the family that it’s their uncle calling long distance from California. She tells him she’ll talk fast since she knows how expensive long distance is. He assures her it won’t be now that he can use the new “weekend rates”. That made me smile with memories.

\n

When I was about four or five years old, we had a big black phone with no dial on it. You picked up the handset and an operator immediately responded with “Number please.” I still remember one of my favorite aunt’s number started with HU for Hudson. One day my mom left me in the house while she went out to hang the wash. Even though I was little, I could read and soon found my Aunt Rosie’s number in Minnesota in the address book. When the operator came on, I “disguised” my voice and read the number off to her. My plan nearly worked but my mom came back inside and caught me just before what would have been an expensive phone call was connected. Lucky for me, I suppose.

\n

Here at the farm, there was a party line. I would sneak and pick up the phone to eavesdrop on Mrs. Clark talking to someone. Grandma would whup me if she caught me doing that. We lived in town just 30 miles away and it was a rare occurrence to talk to Grandma on the phone in those early years. We got a letter from her at least once a week. I still have some of them, written in her scrawling cursive. She would give us the news of the day, what was going on up and down the road. She’d let us know if she got a letter from any of the family. She’d tell us what was coming on in the garden and how many jars of this or that she had canned that week. Treasures that are lost in the era of the quick calls and texts of today.

\n

I sat down the week before Thanksgiving and wrote some notes out to some of my fellow Sisters on the Fly. I love handwritten letters. I bought some cards the other day and will try to get Christmas notes out this week. I may have a TV now, but it’s my last thought to turn it on. I’ll still live the slower life this farm affords me. It makes my heart more peaceful. ❤️

\n

“The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.”\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭15:4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2016-11-29T03:00:32-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/29/widowhood-is-a-solitary-affair.html", "tags": ["Grief","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/27/the-crazy-cat-lady-kit.html", "title": "THE \"CRAZY CAT LADY KIT\" HAS ARRIVED", "content_html": "\"Yellow\n

Oy!

\n

The “Crazy Cat Lady Kit” arrived while I was gone for Thanksgiving. I returned well after dark and emptied the truck. I had just settled into a long awaited bath when I heard the plaintive cries of a tiny kitten. I thought I was hearing things. I don’t have a kitten. I CAN’T have a kitten! I don’t WANT a kitten! After my bath, I went out back and sure enough, someone dumped a little orange and white kitten who was scared and looking for mama. I put out some extra food because it’s big enough to feed itself. But it was obvious it missed someone. It cried all night.

\n

In the morning, there was a pecking order established over the food. Old Mama Kitty rules the roost so she chased the kitten off the porch till she was finished eating. When Little Bit, the big boy cat, came out of the woods for breakfast, the kitten chased him off and set to chowing down from every dish available. Including the warm Half & Half I put out for it. Oh, no…I REALLY don’t want another cat!

\n

I set about my chores and was filling the bird feeders when Little Bit came out on the front porch and talked to me for awhile. He was definitely complaining about that little thing that was, even at that moment, weaseling it’s way into the farm family. He rolled around and looked cute for a little while just to make sure I loved him most. He won’t let me near him since he got flea medicine up his nose in August. But he’s warming up little by little. He doesn’t understand what happened to his peaceful breakfast. I told him I didn’t understand either. I don’t WANT another cat, I assured him. He looked at me steadily as if to say, “Yeah? How’s that working out for you so far?”

\n

So, the chores progressed and the kitten has a name.

\n

Tootie.

\n

sigh

\n

❤️

\n

(picture is not the actual kitten, but it looks just like it)

\n

“These fat cats have everything their hearts could ever wish for!”\n‭‭Psalms‬ ‭73:7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2016-11-27T03:00:12-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/27/the-crazy-cat-lady-kit.html", "tags": ["Fun","The Farm","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/24/give-thanks.html", "title": "Give Thanks", "content_html": "

\"Give “Give Thanks”

\n

I have more to be grateful for than I could possibly recount here, but I’ll list a few.

\n

LOVE - I am grateful for the deep love I have in my life. Those closest to me are my rocks and I can never adequately thank them for all they do for me. To give love is divine. To be given love in return is a precious gift I will never take for granted.

\n

SHELTER - While I have my camper TOW-Wanda that I’ve lived in most of the last two years, I am especially grateful to be given the opportunity to live on and take care of the family farm. The home of my heart…my uncle understands this is my healing place. A place where I am closer to those who have gone on before me. Another generous gift I’ll not take for granted.

\n

WORDS - I have the joy of writing an essay every single day. Even though now it is more like an obsession, really. I cannot imagine not writing…even for a day. It’s as automatic as breathing and brushing my teeth. And, as a result of my writing, I have all you good people to interact with on a daily basis and I love you all. Your support far outweighs any efforts I put into this and I am deeply grateful for this blog.

\n

MR. VIRGO - Three weeks before he died, we actually had a discussion about death and what we would want when the time comes. I remember telling him that if he died the next day, it would be a tragedy…but if I would have had him for one day, my life was surely richer for it. I am grateful we told each other often how much we loved each other. There are no regrets…only warm memories of having had a wonderful man in my life.

\n

MUSIC - My world started getting color and sound back in it about two years after losing Mr. Virgo. I am grateful for the opportunities to go listen to live music with my friends. I am grateful for a Bluetooth speaker so I can fill my house with music.

\n

And, last but certainly not least…

\n

GOD and my CHURCH - I wouldn’t even HAVE a life if it wasn’t for the Grace of God. And my life is enriched by Pastor Justin and my Church family at The Warehouse Church. They bless me every day and help guide me through my spiritual journey.

\n

I am thankful for so many things. My life is beautiful and sweet and peaceful. I am spending this holiday with my West Virginia family…those wonderful people who hold such special places in my heart. May you all celebrate Thanksgiving with loving kindness and gratitude. ❤️

\n

“I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.”\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭9:1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2016-11-24T02:30:52-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/24/give-thanks.html", "tags": ["Faith","Uplifting Stories","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","God","Wisdom","Choices"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/20/first-snow.html", "title": "First Snow", "content_html": "

\"Snowflake\" “Snowflake”

\n

This is a big turning point in the year…the first snowflakes. They excite us. The holidays are coming. The turkey is probably thawing in your fridge. You are making your menu. You’ve shopped for the food. You’ve pulled out the recipes. You’ve invited family and friends. The games are scheduled. The marching bands will be descending on New York City any day. The workers are preparing the floats and the giant balloons. Deer season is starting. And here they are…the first flakes of snow.

\n
\n

I was standing in the Cook’s Store in Marietta after lunch yesterday when I overheard a couple talking about a bundt pan. The man admitted he used his as a water bowl for his dog. I tried not to show them I had overheard, but I was shaking as I laughed silently. I couldn’t help it. The look of horror on the face of the woman with him was classic! They noticed me and suddenly we were all having a grand, knee-slapping laugh. It was fun. It released a lot of stress to interact with total strangers with abandon. No agenda. We chatted a while then went on our way.

\n

I moved to the la Cruset display in the front window and saw a beautiful red tea pot. I look out the window and caught the first snowflakes of the season. I could hear the tea kettle whistle in my imagination so I brought that little red teapot to the little red farmhouse. We will have many lovely moments together.

\n

I lay in bed in the pale flickering candlelight and heard the icy snow hit the dry leaves with the same sound of sizzling bacon and wondered if it will amount to much. How will it affect my drive to church tomorrow? The first flakes of snow. The harbinger of change.

\n

Winter.

\n

May she come in peace. ❤️

\n
“He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth,’ and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’ So that everyone he has made may know his work, he stops all people from their labor.”    Job‬ ‭37:6-7‬ ‭NIV‬‬
\n
\n", "date_published": "2016-11-20T02:30:10-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/20/first-snow.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Comfort","Grace","Peace","Wisdom","Presence","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/19/taking-a-moment.html", "title": "Taking a Moment", "content_html": "

\"Kicking “Kicking back on the porch at the farm.”

\n

I’m not slowing down till spring! I looked at my calendar yesterday and realized I have no down time till mid-January but that’s when I sit down with my web developer and work on my new website. That’ll take at least two weeks then I’m thinking of heading south for a little fun in the sun and avoid the incessant shades of a grey winter in the Mid Ohio Valley. Today is coffee with the girls and lunch out, tomorrow is church and live music with a gal pal. Next week is travel to visit family for Thanksgiving. The next week I travel to Colorado till the end of the month. So, today I’m chilling out on the front porch. “Chilling” is a misnomer as it is over 60° and the sun is shining. I’m sitting with my feet up and doing the crossword. I’ve set up the bird feeders so I can see them from my front window and I am definitely enjoying their chatter as they jockey for position. They flit back and forth from the feeders to the safety of the nearby snowball bush. Yellow finches, house wrens, chickadees, and tufted titmouse. The occasional cardinal or blue jay for color. The young farm cat sits on the creek bank scowling in frustration at the missed opportunities to grab a snack. I’ve placed the feeders high enough he can’t get to my birds. Asian Lady Beetles drop in as they are attracted to the warmth of the wood on the front of the house as the sun sets. They are especially draw to places of contrast…light next to dark…like you find around windows and doors. I believe the flea spray kills them. They light on the floor of the porch and are dead in short order. It feels good to just stop and sit for a little bit and soak up the sun and the sounds of nature. Before you know it, the world will be blanketed in white and we will wish for a day like this. ❤️

\n
\n
“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”    Philippians‬ ‭4:7‬ ‭NIV
\n
\n", "date_published": "2016-11-19T02:30:45-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/19/taking-a-moment.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Peaceful Moments","Choices","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/18/nesting.html", "title": "Nesting 2.0", "content_html": "

\"Jelly “My favorite piece of my childhood.”

\n

I gathered some of my belongings out of storage the other day and brought them to the farm. I kept my dearest antiques knowing someday I would either decorate TOW-Wanda or I would have a small home of my own again. I have postponed making this house my “home” for the last three months till I was fairly certain I wouldn’t be moving for a while. Now that I feel more secure in that, I’ve been nesting with a vengeance.

\n

\"Folkart\" “I bought this in an antique store in Carbondale, CO years ago. Perfect for my farmhouse kitchen.”

\n

I’m loving how cozy this place is getting. The items on top of the cabinets are special and I haven’t lived with them for two and a half years, at least. As I unwrapped the dishes Mr. Virgo gave me, I carefully cleaned them and placed them in the jelly cupboard so I can see and use them every day. The watering cans were in my flower garden in Colorado. They were literally the last thing I grabbed from my house as I left. The sap bucket on the far left was hanging here in the basement by my grandma’s old canning stove. The copper bucket on the far right holds my mom’s wooden clothespins. The crocks on top of the cabinets belonged to my late Uncle Bobby Joe’s grandparents…as did the little red rocking chair that was found in their barn years after they passed. The churns in the middle belonged to my grandma (left) and mom (right). The little lamb was my toy when I was a baby. The blue mason jar is a #13…rare because moonshiners broke #13’s because they were unlucky. The old lunchpail on the right belonged to my grandpa. The folk art “Homemade Pies” sign came from an antique shop in Colorado many years ago.

\n

\"Red “My favorite little red rocking chair…found in an old barn in West Virginia.”

\n
\n

I made the door decoration yesterday from a horn I bought in a junk shop. That and the two candles in the first floor window constitute my entire holiday decorating since I’m going to Colorado for Christmas again this year. I found the bird’s nest in the ditch by the driveway this fall and the boots were an old pair in a barrel downstairs. I bought the handmade broom at Country Living Fair. And the little “dress” hanging from the light over the sink is a reproduction and is actually a tea towel. (My windows REALLY need washing!)

\n

\"Old “Old hunting boots from the basement.”

\n

I have a picture hanging in my bedroom here that says…“It’s not the size of the house but how happy the home.” My home is where I lay my head and I always make it happy. It might be a thirty foot camper on the road through Tennessee. Or it might be on a ridge overlooking the Ohio River. Or it might be on a farm that hold memories so thick they feel like cobwebs when I brush through them. I am rich beyond my wildest dreams. Not monetarily…I’m rich with family, love, memories, health, happiness, joy, and words. These are my everyday gifts from God. I am so blessed. ❤️

\n

\"Antiques\" “Treasures!”

\n
“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.””    Hebrews‬ ‭13:5‬ ‭NIV‬‬
\n\"Antique “I made a wreath from an antique horn.”\n

\"Apron\" “Reproduction apron hanging from the light over the sink. Loving my farmhouse look.”

\n
\n", "date_published": "2016-11-18T02:30:12-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/18/nesting.html", "tags": ["Family","Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Peace","Presence","Downsizing","Choices"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/16/the-list.html", "title": "The List", "content_html": "

\"Ohio “Digital painting of the Ohio River at sunset.”

\n

I still suffer from “grief brain” to some extent. Or maybe it’s just the natural progression of aging. Or a combination of the two. I don’t know. What I DO know is, I have a whole list of things in my head at night when I lay down. I think of a dozen things I should have done during the day. And a dozen more that come to mind as my brain notices I want to go to sleep so it pops up and says “Here’s twenty-four things to remember in the morning. No fair getting up and writing it down!” So, it takes forever to go to sleep and…I wake up knowing there were twenty-four things and I remember, like…two. SO frustrating!

\n

I thought I was done with lists when I quit working and things got done at my leisure. Then Mr. Virgo died. My brain felt like I dropped a hair dryer in the bathtub while I was in it. I couldn’t remember anything to save my soul. It has gotten much, much better…but I think I will always have this lingering need to make lists now. And maybe write down where I park my car…and put my keys, etc. Now, I have to write lists, set alarms, send myself texts. If not, things get missed.

\n

The thing about lists now that I’m living 45 minutes from town is, I don’t shop as frequently so the lists get really long. And I end up spending all day running around from place to place. That was my day yesterday. I ended the day on a bright note, however. I met a friend for dinner and took time to watch the sunset over the beautiful Ohio River. And still, the moon is super. Thirteen deer on the road coming home last night. Today is trash day…and the beat goes on. ❤️

\n
“The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.”\n

Psalm‬ ‭65:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

\n", "date_published": "2016-11-16T02:30:53-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/16/the-list.html", "tags": ["Grief","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Wisdom","Courage","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/13/country-kitchen.html", "title": "Country Kitchen", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

When I left this place in 1973, I was like most teenagers. I knew everything. I knew how the world worked. I knew I loved my boyfriend and we had just gotten married. I knew we were going to be married for, like...EVER! I knew I was going to have a dozen kids and I was going to be an x-ray tech. And I was going to live far, FAR away from this simple place that lacked my worldly sophistication. After all, I left here and went straight to England to live in a foreign country and drink proper tea. I certainly didn't need these simple country people. I was on my way up.

\n\n\n

And, I didn't need them for a while. I had a baby overseas and I did fine. I set up housekeeping stateside and I did fine. Till that little starter marriage ran its course and then I wasn't quite so sure. That was the first time I decided to move home. I quit my job. I gave notice at my apartment. I called for the movers. Then I sat down and cried. I couldn't figure out what was wrong till the movers came and I sent his stuff and I stayed. That took guts. I knew very few people. I didn't have a job nor did I have a place to live. But I knew God would provide for me so I didn't worry about it.

\n\n\n

God did provide. I found a roommate. Then I found a job. And eventually, I met a nice man. Hubby #2 was in medical school when I discovered Mother Earth News. My mom wouldn't let me be a hippy so I really, REALLY wanted to be one in the '80s. I bought Birkenstocks. I wore maxi skirts. I taught myself to garden, can, and preserve. I made yogurt, bread, granola, tofu. I made quilts. I sewed my clothes. I even made my husband's ties. Then we moved to the country and bought a five bedroom log house on two acres and I considered myself \"a farmer\".

\n\n\n

I had a huge garden and cut and split cord after cord of firewood for the wood stove. Then baby #2 came and changed all that. Now, baby #2 is 26. I'm a widow and retired. I'm a writer, blogger, gypsy. And now, a farmer...again. And here I am, back in that country kitchen. The one I tried so desperately to get away from. I guess maybe I didn't really know everything back then after all. Heck, I STILL don't know everything. But I'll tell you one thing, this little country kitchen makes my heart sing!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.””‭‭

\nGenesis‬ ‭28:15‬ ‭NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-11-13T02:30:52-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/13/country-kitchen.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Wisdom","Aging"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/11/nesting.html", "title": "Nesting", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I've put off really making this house look more like my \"home\" since I wasn't entirely sure my aunt wouldn't be coming back here to live. Although no one can read what the future holds with any certainty, it is likely she won't return here to live...just to visit, perhaps. Anyone who followed Marshmallow Ranch in October 2014 knows I came here originally to live in TOW-Wanda on the family farm to help my aunt who was living here alone. That arrangement lasted until I made the mistake of hanging a painting she didn't like in the dining room. That was the beginning of the end of my stay. Which was fine. She just wasn't ready to have someone here with her and I had other things that needed doing. Now that she is unable to live here alone, she is with her brother and I am the caretaker at the old homeplace.

\n\n\n

This is the home of my heart and even though it has taken me off the road for awhile, it is a welcome respite. And now I'm feeling free to make some changes that better reflect both my personal tastes and the character of the place. This cupboard has been in the family since I was about four years old. My mom and grandma took me to an auction down the road. I was young enough to be pulled in my little blue wagon. They bought me a hotdog for a nickel and I happily became addicted to auctions as I munched away, eyes as big as saucers with the activity. Grandma bought this cupboard for $5.00...an amount not easy to come by when you're pretty much living off the land. It was painted with several coats of white enamel paint. Being mechanically minded, I was curious when Pop-Pop started stripping it. He let me \"help\" and I can still remember how the paint wrinkled as I pushed it with the scraper I held in my chubby little-girl hands. I not only became addicted to auctions, I developed an instant adoration of anything old and the magic of bringing it back to life. There's only one thing out of the entire farm that I absolutely want as my own someday, and that is this cabinet. It holds so many beautiful memories for me.

\n\n\n

This piece gets moved from the kitchen to the dining room and back...with the whim of the occupants of this little red farmhouse. Yesterday, it got moved back into the kitchen \"where it belongs\". That's where it was when I was growing up. So it's back home. I used to hate the color Pop-Pop painted on the inside. It was undoubtedly a bit of leftover paint he had under his workbench, or perhaps something he picked up from a neighbor. It used to be this garish orange. Now it has darkened to a beautiful deep pumpkin color. Perfect for a country kitchen. I steam cleaned the floors and scooted it into place, leveling it with paint stir sticks. Soon I'll retrieve my dishes from my friend's basement and place my treasured antique crocks on the top of the cupboard.

\n\n\n

Step by step, my meditation of the mindfulness cleaning and decorating brings me is creating a safe haven for me. I'm creating a place of comfort for visitors to share a cup of tea and a word of friendship. A place where I can write. A place filled with love clear to the rafters. It feels really good in here.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”‭‭

\nColossians‬ ‭3:23-24‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-11-11T02:30:29-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/11/nesting.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Memories","In the Kitchen"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/09/give-me-light.html", "title": "Give Me Light", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Ugh...I can't stand feeling like it's midnight when it's actually 5:27! I've had trouble with Seasonal Affective Disorder in the past so I'm always proactive when the time changes. A couple of years ago, I bought a \"Happy Light\" by Verilux at Sam's Club. The broad spectrum light helps keep the winter gloomies at bay. I sit down in the big rocking chair by the front window at 4:30 to write my post for the next day. I turn on my \"Happy Light\" that is strategically located to shine directly on me. Then I read and write until about 7-7:30. This extends my light exposure to the average day and really helps my mood stay stable. I also keep active. I've been maintaining my weight loss so my carbohydrate intake is low which also helps. I take St. John's Wort daily as a natural mood stabilizer and keep an active social calendar. I travel at least once during the winter and this year I am going to try to get someplace warm where I can stick my feet in the sand and get some warm sunshine in late January or early February. That's my recipe for feeling good all winter. Now, we'll see how that pans out.

\n\n\n

I've been busy with winter preparations here on the farm. I brought in straw bales to make kitty shelters on the porches. Yesterday, I cleaned and put away the patio furniture from out front, put fresh light bulbs in the outdoor fixtures, swept and cleaned the front porch, and moved the old ironing board I use for a kitty perch over to the living room window so I can see out the window in front of the rocking chair. I cleaned out the food from the pantry in TOW-Wanda and brought it into the house, tossing anything old and out of date. I got out my combo crockpot/pressure cooker/steamer and my George Foreman Grill and got them cleaned up, and worked on cleaning out kitchen cupboards. My next big chore is buying a steamer to clean all the floors. There is linoleum in all the living areas of this old farmhouse and a painted cement floor in the bathroom, all of which need a really good deep steam cleaning. Once the weather keeps me indoors, I'll paint and decorate.

\n\n\n

And then...there's this. We have a new president. Maybe your candidate lost. Maybe your candidate won. This is where grace comes in. Grace if you are on the losing side...and grace if your candidate won. Here's the thing...I don't put my faith in human beings. I put my faith in God. He has a plan. He doesn't make us privy to His plans. He has plans to prosper us, not to harm us. So...here's where you can demonstrate grace. Pray for the winner...by name. If that winner is not your candidate, pray twice as hard that God will touch hearts and minds and remind our president that the rest of us are still out here. 2020 is already in the works. Get involved. Do your best. Don't live in fear, dear ones. There IS goodness out there! Go find it. Go make it. But don't hide.

\n\n\n

My fervent prayer is for peace. I always pray for peace. I will not leave. I never leave a fight. Today...we are Americans.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun. However many years anyone may live, let them enjoy them all. But let them remember the days of darkness, for there will be many. Everything to come is meaningless. You who are young, be happy while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment. So then, banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles of your body, for youth and vigor are meaningless.”‭‭

\nEcclesiastes‬ ‭11:7-10‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-11-09T02:30:29-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/09/give-me-light.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Gratitude","Change","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/11/07/old-barns.html", "title": "Old Barns", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The countryside of rural America is studded with old barns. Whether currently being utilized or whether they are slowly being swallowed up by the earth, barns are a symbol of our agrarian roots. Big, Amish barns of Ohio. Quaint barns with hexes over the doors in the Dutch country of Pennsylvania. Small barns along roadsides with the remnants of \"Chew Mail Pouch\" advertising fading into the weathered wood. Red barns...white barns...barns of old grey wood bleached by years of sun and rain.

\n\n\n

I love barns. I love the smell of hay and manure...feed and sweat...leather and dust. I love rusty old farming equipment, especially the horse drawn variety. Barn cats sit on the stone stoop, waiting for a squirt of milk by the deft squeeze of a farmer's leathery hand. Cattle lowing and stomping away flies. Horses munching oats. Piglets grunting and rooting into their mama's belly during their evening feed. The crow of the rooster...the cluck of the hens. The coo of the doves and pigeons in the rafters. The haunting hoot of a barn owl keeping watch out for things that scurry to and fro.

\n\n\n

Old, empty, forgotten barns make me sad. Their dreary, empty windows belie the life they once housed. They were the bread and butter of farm life. They held a place of honor. It was a celebration to build one. It is a sad day when one dies and falls to the ground. As I drove through the countryside the other day, I caught glimpse of this barn. I pictured a woman putting a touch of beauty back in her aging barn's eyes by placing colorful mums in the windows. It made me smile. It reminded me that not all old and dying things are without love, be they human...or big, old barns.

\n\n\n

Take care of one another and share some love today. It could be a rough week coming.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“The Lord will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.”

\n‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭28:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-11-07T02:30:59-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/11/07/old-barns.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/10/31/surprises.html", "title": "Surprises", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

After the Annual Invasion of the Asian Ladybug, I was hoping my surprises were over for awhile. Ahhhh...no. I live on a farm now. This is not a life for the faint of heart.

\n\n\n

Yesterday started out on a lovely, although somewhat disappointing note. I had every intention of going to church but when I woke up at 10:30, I realized that wasn't happening. Instead, I cooked a leisurely breakfast of French toast. Gluten free bread is great for this as it has a very dense texture. I had a patty of hot breakfast sausage and fresh ground Starbucks. It was 65° when I carried my meal to the little red bistro table on the front porch. I took my time and relished the warmth of the morning knowing full well we could have snow in a month.

\n\n\n

Just as I finished my coffee, a shiny red pickup went up the road at a pretty fair clip. I heard him stop and back up and thought he was going to turn up the driveway. Instead, he stopped, pulled forward, backed up, pulled forward, backed up...all while looking out his window at the road. Curious, I walked off the porch and down to the edge of the road to see what he was up to. He noticed me, smiled, waved and yelled, \"Copperhead! It was on its way over to see ya!\" With a tip of his hat, Mr. Pickup was gone and I was left staring in disbelief at a mangled mess in the middle of the road in front of the farmhouse. Oh...ick! \"Ok...I can do this.\" I found a stick, picked up the leftovers of said dead copperhead and tossed it in the brush pile...undoubtedly with several of his living relatives. That is the first snake I have ever seen at the farm since I was a little girl and my grandma killed a six foot black snake in the outhouse. I developed the remarkable ability to avoid emptying my bladder for an entire weekend after that. At least...not in an outhouse!

\n\n\n

I put out straw bales on the porch yesterday with blankets over them to keep the kitties warm over the winter. I swept 500 ladybugs off the porch and the front of the house. And I set up a driveway alarm to let me know when a car comes up the drive. I can't hear anyone till they set foot on the porch and it startles me. Now I get to hear every deer that walks up the driveway at 2:00 in the morning. Brilliant. There isn't a setting labeled 'car' vs. 'deer'. I checked.

\n\n\n

So, where \"snake\" hadn't been on my radar, now I wear my rain boots to check the mail...even when it's not raining. And, I also know why grandma carried a hoe everywhere with her. We always thought she was just crazy about weeding. Turns out, a good sharp hoe can dispatch a copperhead nearly as fast as a pickup truck if you don't mind getting up close and personal. Good golly...fleas in the basement, spiders in the laundry (safety tip...do NOT leave your underwear on the bathroom floor on a farm! Just sayin'!), possums in the cat food, roving nocturnal deer setting off alarms in the middle of the night, raccoons in the trash, and now copperheads facing down pickup trucks. Nope...this life ain't for sissies. Not by a long shot!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“they help each other and say to their companions, “Be strong!””

\n‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭41:6‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-10-31T01:30:06-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/10/31/surprises.html", "tags": ["The Farm","The Cats","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/10/29/changing-seasons.html", "title": "Changing Seasons", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I usually dread the change from summer to fall because it means winter isn't far behind. Those of you who have been following me since early on know how much I hated the winters in Colorado. They say Colorado has three seasons...July, August, and winter. They aren't far off. In general, winter is better here in West Virginia. At least it doesn't usually snow till mid to late November. And once March hits, spring is close behind.

\n\n\n

This year is different for some reason. Maybe it's living at the farm, but I'm finding myself staying present with each passing day and enjoying it to the fullest. In the mornings I read my books...A Purpose Driven Life, The Prayer of Jabez, and the Bible (NIV). I pour a cup of coffee and sit in my grandma's rocker in front of the dining room window. She sat here in her later years, rocking and watching the world go by. She was close to the phone. She was a runner when the phone rang so when she got too frail to run, she sat here.

\n\n\n

The view out the window is the hillside across the road. The leaves are falling fast now that we've had a couple of frosts. When a gust of wind comes up the holler, the leaves fly like colorful ghosts on the breeze. The ground below is carpeted with wet, brown leaves giving off the smell of earth and decay...a pleasant smell that brings back memories of walking to and from school with my friends, our feet swish-swish-swishing through the fallen leaves on the sidewalk...our footsteps breaking them down over time to a coarse powder.

\n\n\n

Even though I am about 30 miles from town out on the farm, I have many friends from high school that I keep in touch with through my personal Facebook page and I never feel lonely. I get to town a couple of times a week, at the least. One of my high school friends is Marion...a very talented artist living in Cincinnati. There aren't many people in my social circle who bring grief up these days, but Marion sends me interesting articles when she sees something she thinks might be helpful for me...either in my personal journey or my writing. Yesterday she sent me an article about the various ways grief changes your life forever. There are many ways that I am forever changed. Just as my tolerance for winter seems to be changing, so is my ability to distance myself from my acute grief. It is a relief on both counts.

\n\n\n

My world is changing...literally and figuratively. And, it's good. It's very, very good.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night.”” ‭‭

\nGenesis‬ ‭8:22‬ ‭NLT‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-10-29T01:30:26-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/10/29/changing-seasons.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Presence","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/10/13/letting-go.html", "title": "Letting Go", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I've been having a little trouble with writer's block lately. It's not necessarily that the words won't come. I write...then, when I go back later and read it, I hate it. It's extremely frustrating because it's hard to make progress when you're writing the same chapter over and over. This happens once in a while and, as my agent says, \"Good writing can't be rushed.\" The harder I try to forge my way through it, the worse it seems to get. So, I have to practice, yet again, letting go.

\n\n\n

I'm a bit of a control freak. I don't like letting go. It leads me down paths that are sometimes dark...sometimes scary. Letting go isn't always easy. But, I'm reminded as I look out over the hills surrounding this little red farmhouse...there's something beautiful in letting go of what holds you tight. There's freedom in the wind.

\n\n\n

Our trees aren't of a brilliant hue this season. We had a long hot and dry spell in August and September so there isn't as much sugar in the leaves. The dropping of leaves is inevitable. The letting go has to come or there won't be the lush growth of spring. There has to be a period of dormancy. Without it, there would be no change. Maybe the lesson here is to make sure to feed and nourish your spirit in the growing season in order to see the brilliance and the beauty of the colors so letting go becomes more of a celebration.

\n\n\n

I always write my posts at night and schedule them to post at 4:00 so you have them early. Occasionally, it's after midnight and I inadvertently schedule the wrong day. That happened today. And, as is the case with much of my writing lately...I erased the whole thing and started over. But now...now I'm listening to rain on the tin roof of this farmhouse that I love. I'm snuggled under the throw made from the fur Mr. Virgo gave me. Coffee is in my immediate future. I'm letting go today. The words will come.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n

“\"Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭43:18-19‬ ‭ESV‬‬

\n\n", "date_published": "2016-10-13T01:30:22-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/10/13/letting-go.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/10/12/its-always-something.html", "title": "It's Always Something", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Just like Gramma Rosannadanna said...\"It's always something. If it's not one thing, it's another.\" This week's something is frustrating. When I went over to the wedding on October 1st, I remember walking into a store and looking down I noticed I was carrying the wrong set of keys. I had picked up my camper keys by mistake. The trouble is, I haven't seen them since and I can't for the life of me remember where I was when I last had them. I've replaced the keys to get in the camper. And, I have an extra truck topper key as well as the second PO Box key. What I am missing, and cannot seem to find the spare for, is the hitch lock for the camper. Those things are designed to keep people from stealing your camper and by golly this one is doing it's job! I have tried to retrace my steps. I know I had the camper keys the day I left for the wedding because I had to get my cowboy boots out of the trailer to take with me. Don't you just hate it when these memory glitches start showing up? I really need to get TOW-Wanda hooked up so I can take her to get the tanks dumped and clean before I winterize her. I would love to go camping again before winter sets in. Which brings up a new topic.

\n\n\n

Life changes on a dime sometimes and you have to create Plan B (and C, D, E, etc.) Since my aunt is unable to live at the farm on her own anymore, she has moved in with my Aunt and Uncle...her brother. My uncle has asked me to live on the farm and take care of it because he lives three hours away. Someone needs to be here to keep squatters out. While I love my gypsy lifestyle, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to live on this farm. It lives in my heart, this land. But that means I'm putting down roots, for a while anyway. I'm going to nest a bit. Jason Isbell sings a song with the line \"I'm tired of traveling alone...won't you ride with me?\" I'm weary. I've driven 45,000 miles the last two years and I need a break. I've seen a lot of places, met a lot of people, and done a lot of things. And I've kept myself busy and occupied. Putting down roots will give me the time I need to seriously write this book so I can move on to more projects.

\n\n\n

Life is all about moving forward, but sometimes you have to sit still to do that. Don't worry...there will be a boatload of stories to tell. I'm not going anywhere.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“He set the earth on its foundations, so that it should never be moved.”‭‭

\nPsalms‬ ‭104:5‬ ‭ESV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-10-12T01:30:36-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/10/12/its-always-something.html", "tags": ["TOW-Wanda!","Camping","The Farm","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/10/10/into-the-woods.html", "title": "Into the Woods", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My first real loss was when my maternal grandfather passed away. My Pop Pop was the absolute light of my life and when he died the summer I graduated from high school, I was devastated. Pop Pop showed me how to do everything he did on the farm and, being a bit of a tomboy, I took to it like a duck to water. I know this house like the back of my hand, but it's been a long time since I've walked the property lines of this farm and I was in for a workout.

\n\n\n

Last week I was told the timber was stolen off the farm. I was so upset...not only at the loss, but that it allegedly occurred on my watch. I told my uncle (who owns the farm) and he came yesterday to check it out. We walked a good portion of the seventy acre property. My childhood memory had the orchard and spring on the opposite side of the farm.

\n\n\n

It was so cool to spend the afternoon with my favorite uncle in the whole wide world. He told me so many stories. Like, the one where the old Model A they turned into a farm truck threw my Pop Pop out and rolled on top of him. This uncle and his brother, my Uncle Bob were there when it happened. Uncle Bob ran down and literally picked up the Model A so my Pop Pop could get out from under it. They went back later to get the tools out of it and the two of them together could not budge that thing. Adrenaline creates superhuman strength.

\n\n\n

As it turns out, the only timber missing were some oak trees that had fallen during an ice storm. No one had clear cut our farm. I can't tell you how relieved that made me. I love our woods. I'll be keeping a close watch up there to make sure folks know there's someone around and I'm not to be messed with. When they see tire tracks they know someone is watching.
I once toured the Philadelphia Museum of Art with an artist as my guide. Yesterday afternoon was much like that with story after story of this land and those that have spent a lifetime loving and caring for it. What an amazing experience.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.”

\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭21:3‬ ‭ESV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-10-10T01:30:36-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/10/10/into-the-woods.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Farm Life","Memories"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/09/10/the-river.html", "title": "The River", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

My time here on the river is coming to a close. There are a number of factors involved but the biggest is familial obligation on both parties. I'll be spending a larger amount of time out at the farm and with winter coming, there's just too much to worry about with the river house. If there was a frozen pipe like last year and I wasn't there for several days, the results could be disastrous. The possibility remains to return next year, but I have come to learn not to count on too much too far ahead. I will certainly miss this view and the ready access to the river.

\n\n\n

I'll miss the sound of the riverboats and the trains. I'll miss the peepers in the spring and the katydids in the fall. I will miss the change of light with every moment in the day. The way it plays on the water. The days the river is as still and flat as glass. The days deep in January when the river freezes and you can hear the barges breaking through like a perpetual ice maker in a fridge. The lap of the waves after the pleasure craft have roared by. The occasional sternwheeler going up or down river. The smell of raw green vegetation when the farmer harvests corn or plows the soybeans under to enrich the soil for next season. Yes, I'll miss my time here. And I am so grateful to my friends to have had this opportunity.

\n\n\n

This weekend is the Sternwheel Festival. Coffee with the Divas. Church on Sunday then a quick trip to visit my family over on the east side of WV. Back a couple days later then hauling the camper up to Columbus to get some warranty work done. Next weekend will find me at the Country Living Fair in Columbus, OH. If you are there, stop and see me with the Sisters on the Fly and that fabulous Girl Camper podcaster and GoRVing blogger, Janine Pettit! Back on Saturday, serve at church Sunday, then I'm co-leading a group discussion on The Prayer of Jabez at New Wineskins (pub church) Sunday night. Then it's back to the farm and settle in to write, write, write. Oh, and paint the roof, fix a leaky spot, wrangle fleas, trim weeds, spray for poison ivy, paint the dining room, kitchen, and bathroom... A farmer/writer/blogger/speaker/wanderer's work is never done!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”‭‭

\nJeremiah‬ ‭29:11‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-09-10T01:30:07-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/09/10/the-river.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Change","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/09/09/arrrrgh.html", "title": "ARRRRGH!!!!!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

The fleas are back!!! OMGosh! Seriously? I went downstairs to look for a container of some sort to hold birdseed to keep from attracting mice and, sort of as an afterthought, looked down at my ankles. There they were. Nasty little buggers! Not many, but more than one so it wasn't a hitch hiker. I'm still within the 30 day warranty so they need to come out and spray again.

\n\n\n

I have the bird feeders hung on the new garden hook out front. My friend hung a roll up shade on the front porch to keep the heat down in the late afternoons. It was 90 degrees when I sat down to write this yesterday afternoon. It has been so long since we've had rain, the earth is cracking open. The leaves are turning brown and falling off. It's hot and sticky humid. The kind where you can't get dry after you shower. I take moon baths. I stand out back and wash with the water in the rain barrel. I pretend there's no air pollution contaminating the rain water. ?

\n\n\n

This book isn't going to write itself so I'm back at it. I wrote the introduction yesterday and updated the proposal accordingly. I cannot write creatively unless I'm feeling inspired. It's a Gemini thing, I think. Extremely frustrating, to say the least. I just keep plugging away at it as I can. Fortunately, my agent understands that good writing can't be rushed. Thank God for that!!!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly.”

\n‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭14:29‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-09-09T01:30:39-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/09/09/arrrrgh.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/09/04/sunset.html", "title": "Sunset", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

There is something special about sunsets. For me, they are a gift from God. A reward after a good day. A gift of comfort after a bad one, with the reassurance there is still beauty in the world. I've been getting a lot of gifts from God lately. A beautiful bouquet of white flowers, dinner with a friend, Old Mama Kitty rubbing on my legs and purring her heart out when I feed her, quiet mornings on the farm sipping my coffee and watching wild turkeys running up the road. Yesterday morning, I looked up in time to catch a bald eagle flying overhead. It was a fleeting glimpse, but I'm sure that's what it was. Such beauty in the world.

\n\n\n

The yard needs mowed out at the farm. The thing about West Virginia, more rain equals more grass. The neighbor down the way mows for my aunt but only once a month. By that time, the place really needs a brush hog run over it. I bought a gas powered trimmer yesterday to run around my camper and to use at the farm. There's a mower up in the barn that I'm going to check out and see if I can get running. Mowing is good exercise and it will look nicer. And, it feels good to work hard and see the results of your efforts. Hard work never hurt anybody, or so said my grandma.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.”

\n‭‭Psalm‬ ‭65:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-09-04T01:30:10-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/09/04/sunset.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Be Joyful!","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/09/03/exploring.html", "title": "Exploring", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

After doing my morning chores yesterday, I decided to go exploring back on the farm. We referred to this part of the property as \"back on the hill\". There was an old road that we took up there for years but it's hardly even passable in an ATV. Pop-Pop had converted an old Model A into a farm truck and he'd take us back on the hill in it. That road was so steep we had to lay down in the bed of the truck with our feet on the tailgate to keep from getting tossed out. Amazing that we didn't get killed!

\n\n\n

I drove back the old oil and gas well road. I stopped at an old country church and looked around then headed for the familiar road leading into the back of the farm. I searched everywhere. Turned around and took another road but before long I realized that wasn't the right one. Turned around again and was heading out when I ran into a fella that lives down the road. I asked him if he knew how to get to the road I was looking for. He was very kind and went to get his four wheeler to show me.

\n\n\n

The ground is so grown up back there now, I almost didn't recognize it. It's amazing how quickly the woods will take over land. There's nothing but the roof left of the old home place. And this is me in the doorway of the Strawberry Shed. This farm produced the finest strawberries in three counties. We had quite a production going. My great grandfather built this shed. The workers would bring the flats of strawberries to the big window in the front (on the wall to my left). Women would take the flats, sort and cull the berries, and hand them off to be loaded onto the back of my Pop-Pop's truck for the ride into Parkersburg to the Farmer's Market. I had two favorite parts of the day...being alone with my Pop-Pop on that ride into town and being alone in the kitchen with my grandma cooking lunch for the berry pickers.

\n\n\n

I look back now at what a huge amount of work it was to grow and sell those strawberries. After paying for supplies, gas, and hired help, they couldn't possibly have made much money. But any little bit helped in those days. Now that I'm the \"farm keeper\", I needed to get back here and see what's what. The ground is posted \"No Hunting\" but there is evidence that hunters have stayed in that shed. I'll go back up in the fall when the colors are awesome and post pictures. Maybe I'll mount a game camera up there and see what kind of critters show up. It turned out to be an absolutely glorious day and I feel tremendously blessed!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.”‭‭

\nPsalm‬ ‭104:24‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-09-03T01:30:05-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/09/03/exploring.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Peaceful Moments","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/09/02/a-room-with-a-view.html", "title": "A Room With a View", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I'm getting into a routine here at the farm. I wake up, make my coffee, and take my reading to the front porch. This is my view. It is sometimes foggy early and it lends a dampening stillness. I sit and drink my coffee, read my devotional, say my prayers, and read a few pages of a couple of books. By then the newspaper has been delivered. I walk down to the road there and get it, read the news and check the classifieds and obits, read Dear Abby and my horoscope, then settle in to do the puzzles. Once I finish that, I get some chores done around the house or out on the grounds. At lunchtime, I drive up to the cemetery to write my post and read my messages. When I return to the farm, I write on my book. It is so peaceful and serene here.
I was thrilled to have the gas turned on again. Now there's hot water...and plenty of scrubbing being done!

\n\n\n

No word from the hotel regarding the roof rack issue.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.”‭‭

\nPsalm‬ ‭119:18‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-09-02T01:30:31-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/09/02/a-room-with-a-view.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Comfort","Peaceful Moments","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/09/01/farm-critters.html", "title": "Farm Critters", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n
\"\"
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-09-01T01:30:32-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/09/01/farm-critters.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/30/a-simple-life.html", "title": "A Simple Life", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I was amazed how easy it was to navigate in and out of Washington, DC. It took me longer to get my truck from the hotel garage Sunday than it did to drive deep into the Shenandoah Valley. I was inside for three days in meetings in the air conditioning so I didn't get out till Sunday morning. I walked around and saw the White House, the Washington Monument, and the American History Museum. I've visited DC many times and I'm always thrilled each time I return. Now that I realize how easy it is to get there from WV, I may go back and spend more time exploring.

\n\n\n

After staying overnight up on the mountain at my cousin's, I headed back to the farm yesterday. The very real concern of that roof leak came to the top of my list of things that need doing. I stopped at Lowe's and texted my friend who knows about such things to find out exactly what I needed. Armed to the teeth with paint and brushes, plus a flat of drinking water, I noticed the beautiful mums in the garden center and decided to buy one for the front porch. Mums mean Autumn is near. I love an all white bouquet, so I bought the white one.

\n\n\n

It's too hot to paint the roof just yet, but it'll be cooling off before long. In the meantime, I've been on a treadmill for weeks so I'm taking a couple days off to regroup. Sitting on the porch reading...that sounds wonderful. Save my place...I'll be back soon.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet.”‭‭

\nProverbs‬ ‭31:21‬ ‭NIV‬‬\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-30T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/30/a-simple-life.html", "tags": ["The Farm","Peaceful Moments","Road Trip"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/23/the-flea-conqueror.html", "title": "The Flea Conqueror", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Yes...yes, the fleas are gone! I am victorious!!! Ok, God and the Dodson Brothers are victorious...but I did my part in the wranglin'! I went back to the farm Sunday night. I went to the bathroom and found a flea on my ankle. I called the exterminator first thing yesterday morning and said, \"I still have fleas!\"

\n\n\n

\"Really?\" Mr. Exterminator Dude said.

\n\n\n

\"Well...there was a flea on my ankle last night!\" I said, rather indignantly.

\n\n\n

\"Hmmmm...one flea? Could it have been a hitch hiker?\" he asked.

\n\n\n

I realized I was going to have to actually put the phone down and venture down to the basement to check. That place has given me the creepy crawlies ever since the Great Flea Swarm of '16!

\n\n\n

\"Ok...hang on, let me go check.\"

\n\n\n

I skipped down the steps hoping my feet wouldn't actually have to touch the floor when I got down there but levitation has never been my strong suit. I tiptoed as fast as I could to the most offending area and stood stock still, willing myself to not break and run back before any hungry critters could detect my body temperature and come hopping over for a snack.

\n\n\n

\"Count to ten, Ginny. For crying out loud...you're a grown woman!\"

\n\n\n

...2....3......4.......5! Enough already! I glanced down at my feet. Nothing! Really??? I sat on the steps and pulled my feet closer, you know, just to make sure.

\n\n\n

Nothing!!! I'm a Flea Conqueror!!!

\n\n\n

I flew back up the steps and grabbed the phone.

\n\n\n

\"They're gone! They're gone!!! OMGosh! I could kiss you!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!\" I was absolutely giddy with excitement. Weren't fleas one of the ten plagues in the Bible?

\n\n\n

\"You're welcome, ma'am.\" he chuckled. \"You check again next week and if they come back you just call me, ok?\" Mr. Exterminator Dude sounded somewhat amused. I don't know why. Doesn't everyone want to kiss their exterminator? Thank you, Lord for banishing these evil little monsters from my beloved farmhouse!!!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“If you refuse to let them go, I will bring locusts into your country tomorrow. They will cover the face of the ground so that it cannot be seen. They will devour what little you have left after the hail, including every tree that is growing in your fields. They will fill your houses and those of all your officials and all the Egyptians—something neither your parents nor your ancestors have ever seen from the day they settled in this land till now.’ ” Then Moses turned and left Pharaoh.”

\nExodus 10:4-6 NIV\n
\n\n\n

Ok...not fleas. But close!

\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-23T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/23/the-flea-conqueror.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","Gratitude","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/20/change.html", "title": "Change", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Change is good. It keeps things fresh. But, we don't like it when others make the changes to our environment without our permission. I learned that lesson when I hung the painting in my aunt's house two years ago. It was the beginning of the end of my foray into home health care. If my aunt returns to live at the farm, I'm trying to keep the freshening up of the house less intrusive so as not to upset her in case she is able to return home. Her brother owns the farm and has asked me to live there if/when my aunt is no longer able to. He knows how much I love the farm and he needs a caretaker for it since he does not live nearby. I don't travel all over as regularly as I did the first couple of years so this works out well for both of us.

\n\n\n

Losing your independence has to be horribly frustrating and frightening. Losing control, finding yourself in unfamiliar surroundings...must be confusing. How do you talk about such things with people? Everyone is different and deals with those kinds of things differently. I would think coming from a place of love would go a long way in easing the bitterness of that particularly pill. I will be at my uncle's next week and scope out the situation firsthand.

\n\n\n

I'm going kayaking in the morning so I'm shutting down a little early. Go out and enjoy your Saturday!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:”

\nEcclesiastes 3:1 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-20T01:30:54-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/20/change.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/19/painting.html", "title": "Painting", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

This house is old. Really old. And there hasn't been regular maintenance done in quite some time, as you can see. In addition to ridding the basement of fleas, I am cleaning, clearing, and freshening the place up with a coat of paint. I'm not sure what kind of paint was on this wall before, but it's soaking the primer (the white paint) up like a sponge. It's going to look so much better when it's done! I'm trying to wrap this up before I head to Washington, DC next week for my talk at the International Conference on Positive Aging. I'm getting really excited for that!

\n\n\n

It takes an hour round trip to get to cell service and I need to get back to my painting before the afternoon rains. This weekend is Homecoming in my hometown so I'm heading back to TOW-Wanda tomorrow.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

““My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.”

\nJohn 4:34 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-19T01:30:47-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/19/painting.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/19/flea-update.html", "title": "Flea Update", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I went downstairs and vacuumed the basement today and took the bag out behind to barn to dispose of it. When I peeked inside, I saw NO live fleas!!! Monday will be a week since they sprayed so I'll check again then. If there is even ONE live flea, they're coming back out to spray! OMGosh! What an ordeal!

\n\n\n

I finished painting the living room yesterday. I need to do a little touch up then I can put it all back together and head to DC! Oh, the roof has a leak so I'll need to get up there before winter and do something about that. There's lots of work to do, without a doubt. But, it's a labor of love.

\n\n\n

I wish I could convey how incredibly peaceful it is out at the farm. It's wonderful!

\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-19T01:30:24-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/19/flea-update.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/18/ginny-lynne.html", "title": "Ginny Lynne", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

That is me on my first birthday. Grandma called me \"Pet\". I think she called all little ones \"Pet\", but I'm going to pretend it was just for me. I'm painting the living room while I wait for the toxic waste to nuke the fleas. It may be working. Of course, I'm probably going to grow a third arm out of my forehead!

\n\n\n

As I was painting I noticed it was getting really black outside. I'm beginning to be able to read the skies better out there now. I'm used to the wide open sky of Colorado where you see a storm coming from miles off. This one looked bad so I quit painting and quickly cleaned up. The pump on the well runs on electric and service can get dicey in the country. Good thing I did because I no sooner turned off the water till the skies opened up and we got a torrential downpour. We had a big crash of thunder, the electric flickered a couple of times, then went off at 6:00. It was still off at 9:45 in the morning when I headed to the nearest place for coffee and Wi-Fi. Yes...Wi-Fi! There's a little town east of me with a gas station, convenience store, restaurant and tire center. Good country breakfast, coffee and Wi-Fi. And they said I can stay as long as I want to! Wahoo!!!

\n\n\n

So, with a full tummy, hope for a flea-free house, and deadlines to meet, I leave you for another day.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“You say, “I choose the appointed time; it is I who judge with equity.”

\nPsalm 75:2 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-18T01:30:11-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/18/ginny-lynne.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Be Joyful!"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/15/say-cheese.html", "title": "Say Cheese!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Just a quick note as I finish up lunch on Sunday afternoon and head to the country. Trying to let some of the major heat of the day pass by before I go out and don my hazmat suit and tackle the basement. I went by my friend's house and picked up my paint so I can throw a quick coat on the walls to freshen up the place after the fumigation tomorrow. Please pray the flea infestation is eradicated and the house will be rendered livable yet again. Also, for a break in this dreadful heat! Not looking forward to the garb I need to wear when tackling this job!

\n\n\n

I'll be checking in periodically. Still soaring after such a fun weekend with so many wonderful friends!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.”

\nPsalms 19:6 ESV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-15T01:30:43-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/15/say-cheese.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","Fun","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/12/an-army.html", "title": "An Army", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

You guessed it...I used \"The Enforcer\" on my unwelcome house guests yesterday. It's one step shy of napalm! I sprayed every floor around the periphery then in the center. I kept it closed up overnight. I think I got what few there were in the bathroom from where I danced like a ninja when I found my legs black with the little suckers. Then I went down in the basement for the ultimate test and...those bad boys were STILL doing the Macarena down there. I think I may have decreased the numbers...slightly. That does it...time to call in the pros!!!

\n\n\n

Here's where it gets gross. It seems flea eggs can lie dormant for months and then...the VIBRATION from your steps triggers a mass hatching!!! Ewwww!!! He'll be at the farm first thing Monday morning. My instructions are to pick everything up off the floor and vacuum thoroughly before he gets there and take the bag outside to dispose of it. I'll treat the kitties once a month to assure myself they are flea free in case she brings the long haired one in this winter.

\n\n\n

In the meantime, I went yesterday and got my hair trimmed, a MUCH NEEDED pedicure, and a very cute pair of little strappy sandals on sale! This is a big weekend...my 45th High School Reunion!!! It's time to party and forget fleas for a while!!!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.””

\nExodus 33:14 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-12T01:30:30-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/12/an-army.html", "tags": ["Health","Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","The Cats","Farm Life","Control"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/11/you-scream-i-scream.html", "title": "You Scream, I Scream...", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

We all scream for ice cream!!! Ok, it's 92 degrees as I write this on Wednesday afternoon at 2:30. I'm sitting out in the McDonald's parking lot, eating an ice cream cone. Things are desperate! As I told you, Tuesday I set off flea bombs in the basement and the bathroom out at the farm. I kept the house shut up tighter than a drum for six hours...three times what was recommended. I went in around 8:00pm and opened the windows and started the fans running to clear out the toxic waste cloud.

\n\n\n

I intended to sleep in my tent up by the barn, but everything is infested with fleas and I couldn't run the risk of contaminating my camping gear and then bringing it back to my camper. So, I slept in the back seat of my truck. Now, before you look at me as that poor street person, this is one swanky truck! It's a full double crew cab and the back seats fold up leaving a large flat space that I spread out blankets and a sleeping pad. Comfy cozy!

\n\n\n

I went across the road to check the mail and the neighbor was standing out there looking at his garden (which is gorgeous, by the way!) and I told him about the flea issue. He said he never had much luck with flea bombs and to get this stuff called Enforcer at the Rural King. I went downstairs yesterday morning with great hopes the fleas would be eight tiny toes up but instead they were all doing the Macarena down there! Holy cats!!! Ok...time for the big guns! I drove back into town and bought 3 GALLONS of this stuff, industrial gloves, a respirator, rubber boots and a Hazmat suit! Well, ok, it's coveralls...but still. When I was heading back toward the farm, I passed the McDonald's and this here little ice cream cone was calling my name...and who am I to deny it a chance in the sun??? Besides...I am a Superhero!!! You may call me....

\n\n\n

\"The Flea Slayer\"...

\n\n\n

...I hope!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

\nRomans 12:12 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-11T01:30:21-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/11/you-scream-i-scream.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","The Cats","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/10/treasures.html", "title": "Treasures", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I'm sleeping in my grandparents' room. I think it's the same bed. Could be the same mattress the way it feels. My Pop-Pop essentially died in this house. By that I mean, he was probably already gone from the massive heart attack he suffered at the dining room table while Grandma was out in the cellar house getting the jar of green beans she was going to fix with his lunch. My Uncle Bob carried him out to the car and Grandma drove the 35 miles like a maniac to the State Patrol office, but the patrolman told me later he was gone long before they got there. An ambulance brought him to the hospital where I was doing my x-ray training and they pronounced him. They placed his coffin in the living room not fifteen feet from where I'm writing this. He rested there three days before the funeral, my grandma barely leaving his side...a position she had kept two months shy of fifty years.

\n\n\n

Grandma had her last stroke in this bed. My aunt said she talked all night to Pop-Pop and my Uncle Sonny who was killed when he crashed his fighter jet in Germany when I was two. They took her to the hospital the next morning and she was gone in a few hours.

\n\n\n

My Uncle Bob died in this bed. My aunt had heard him coughing in the night and was relieved when he finally became quiet, thinking he was getting some good sleep. My Uncle Bob was an angel unawares. Grandma had chicken pox or measles (I'm not sure which) when she was expecting him. He was born with a slight facial deformity, a very pronounced lazy eye, and a strong speech impediment. The kids made fun of him at school and Grandma would have none of that so she just kept Bob at home. He was strong as an ox and sweet as could be. He had a sense of humor and remarkable insight. He teased me unmercifully by mocking me if I cried which made me very angry as a little girl. But he taught me to play checkers and he loved I Love Lucy as much as I did. He never told a lie. He didn't know how. If I did something wrong, all Mom had to do was look at Bob and he told her everything. Yes, as a little girl, he made me angry. But as I matured, I realized how precious he was. What a gift he was to everyone who knew him. His headstone reads \"Manager of the Bell\" because he rang the bell in the church steeple every Sunday of his life till he got too sick to go. My aunt has buried two husbands, her parents, a brother and a sister and she said there's no one in the world she misses more than my Uncle Bob.

\n\n\n

I've thought a lot about him the last couple of days. I've thought about all of them since I've been here. This place is thick with memories. I was so afraid I had lost my connection here. But it's with me. It's the cloth of my past...the memories, this house, this land. As I laid in the bed that my family has shared over the years, I felt wrapped in their love, comforted by their energy that lives on in this place. No matter where I live, this will always be home.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.”

\n1 Thessalonians 5:13 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-10T01:30:03-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/10/treasures.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Change","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/09/giving.html", "title": "Giving", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I never really looked at staying on the farm as giving of myself, but I feel the gratitude of my family for caring for the place with the same love my grandparents had. Even though I wasn't able to stay here and care for my aunt the way I intended, I can care for the farm with all my heart and soul.

\n\n\n

I came to town to get a flea bomb. It seems my aunt let the farm cat stay in the basement all winter and now it's infested with fleas down there. Thank goodness it's confined to the basement. So, I stopped in to the family cemetery as I came over the hill since my phone started beeping and buzzing as soon as I hit a service area. I thought I'd take a moment and tell you a funny story.

\n\n\n

While my aunt was in the hospital, we had to report to the doctor something she told us earlier. It seems she's been hearing voices. They talk to her in the middle of the night and tell her the same thing over and over. \"Your house is on fire!!! You must leave your house immediately!!!\" We thought \"Poor thing...she's gone 'round the bend.\" As I was driving out to the farm yesterday, I was mulling that over in my mind. When someone is delusional and hears voices, they don't hear the very same things over and over. I remember her telling me something in the spring about a voice telling her to get out of her house because it was on fire. But she brushed it off as a weird dream and I didn't give it much thought...till now. I kept thinking, \"Why does this sound SO familiar?\" Well, suddenly it hit me!!!

\n\n\n

Two years ago, when I lived on the farm in my attempt to care for her, my uncle asked me to install fire and carbon monoxide detectors. My aunt insisted I only buy what was on sale and the only ones on sale that were combo units, get this....TALK TO YOU!!! Yep, that's right. When they go off, they say \"Your house is on fire!!! You must leave your house immediately!!!!\" I'm not sure what set them off...low batteries, high carbon monoxide from the gas stove she burns constantly, a full moon? Who knows? But that has to be what it was because it's the same message over and over. I bought new batteries but haven't put them in yet. I'm waiting till I hear voices in the night!!!

\n\n\n

(Face palm)

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end.”

\nDeuteronomy 11:12 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-09T01:30:05-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/09/giving.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","The Cats","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/08/home-of-my-heart.html", "title": "Home of my Heart", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Just a quick note to let you know I arrived safely. I had to run to the next little small town to buy a long distance calling card. I can't be TOTALLY cut off from the world! I'm going to sleep till noon tomorrow! I haven't stopped running since I got to WV. It's so peaceful in this little holler. Can't wait to sit on the porch and listen to the night. Talk to you soon!

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace.”

\nPsalm 29:11 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-08T01:30:59-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/08/home-of-my-heart.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Peaceful Moments","Farm Life","Memories","Healing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2016/08/07/looking-up.html", "title": "Looking Up", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Remember lying on your back on the grass on a hot summer day and looking up through the tree branches above you? The ground was lumpy and cool. The grass tickled the backs of your legs. Bugs buzzed around your ears. And your skin was damp with the salty sour sweat of playing Tag or Red Rover. There was magic in that cool shade beneath those branches. Something solid and comforting...as if the arms of Mother Nature herself were protecting you from the great big world of adulthood.

\n\n\n

Last night, I went to a concert on a hill overlooking town. A local musician opened and the main act was Ronnie Frugé, a true Cajun guitarist from the bayous of Louisiana. He told stories about his songs and entertained us for nearly three hours. I didn't have a blanket, but I laid my head back and looked up through the trees overhead and remembered those days when summer was waning and the new school year loomed large in front of me.

\n\n\n

I was always filled with this sense of change when I was on my back under those trees...a mixed feeling of excitement and dread. And that's what I'm feeling right now. For those of you following along for some time, you'll remember I came to West Virginia two years ago to care for an elderly aunt that needed help. It didn't work out for either of us and I moved on to other arrangements. She hasn't been feeling well lately so she's visiting her brother and I'm going to stay at the farm for a while. This is the home of my heart, the place that has always been my \"safe place\". Having to leave so abruptly two years ago affected how I saw the old homestead in my heart. I'm hoping by going back, I can regain some of the magic it once held for me. I want to connect with it again. So, I'm excited to go stay there. Yet, I'm afraid it will never be the same. I'll just have to see what kind of magic I can work while I'm there.

\n\n\n

And, here's the problem. There's no cell service on the farm. And, there's no internet unless I drive a few miles away to the family cemetery, which I have no problem doing. But, I'm thinking I need to just....be. Be present. Be there. Be disconnected. Be peaceful. Be introspective. I need to write without distraction. And then I'll be back Thursday evening to start my weekend of festivities for my high school reunion.

\n\n\n

I'm going to spend some time looking up through the branches of my life...of my past...and just stare at the sky for a while. I know you'll understand.

\n\n\n

❤️

\n\n\n
\n

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.””

\nJoshua 1:9 NIV\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2016-08-07T01:30:15-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2016/08/07/looking-up.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Aging","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2015/03/18/theres-a-mouse-in-the.html", "title": "There's a Mouse in the House!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

No, not in TOW-Wanda, thank you, God! My friend Janet and I were sorting through boxes upstairs in the cellar house out at the farm on Monday. I had invested in a really powerful ultrasonic rodent repellant last fall. I was certain it would keep mice out of my boxes but there was evidence I was mistaken. I opened a dish pack and was about one third through it when a very large mouse jumped out straight at me! I almost wet my pants. Now, I am not afraid of mice per se but their erratic movements startle me.

\n\n\n

I had made sure there was no food stored in these boxes because that would just ensure an infestation. I did find a bar of soap and some candles that had been nibbled on. Now, I can appreciate a good fur coat and that mouse was a fine example. Apparently soap and wax are good fur conditioners.

\n\n\n

I was jumping all around trying to find something to trap this mouse. A saucepan certainly didn't work even though my attempts had Janet in stitches. Eventually, I told her to move out of the way, I tipped the box over, and the mouse made his escape. Unfortunately, he did not go through the open door so there is a chance our paths may cross again in the coming weeks.

\n\n\n

❤

\n\n\n
\n

\"Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.\"

\nProverbs 10:4\n
\n\n", "date_published": "2015-03-18T01:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2015/03/18/theres-a-mouse-in-the.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Downsizing","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2015/02/18/nesting.html", "title": "Nesting", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Last fall, shortly after arriving in West Virginia, I was rummaging around in the top of the cellar house when my aunt called up to me to bring an old leather satchel down that was under the bed. When I got it to the house, she told me I was in for a treat. The satchel was filled with old letters written through a courtship. There were old keys, a little porcelain cup, a tiny plastic doll in a box, postcards, a pocket knife, a change purse. These were obviously someone's treasures. I sat late into the night, reading old letters, tracing my fingers over the rim of the cup, wondering about those two people from so long ago. I wondered who they were, what were their dreams, did they live happily ever after?

\n\n\n

Suddenly, an entire elaborate story popped in my head. I mean, full length Disney movie story and I could hardly wait to start writing it. Then one thing and another happened and the living situation changed at the farm so the story got put on the back burner…till yesterday. I knew there was a reason I made my dinette into a day bed. It's a perfect little nest…a sunroom…where I can curl up and write to my heart's content. And that's what I did with my day yesterday. The children's book is complete in my head…I just need to give birth to it. Writing is such a labor of love for me, be it here at \"The Ranch\" or off chasing the mystery of the old leather satchel. I am so grateful for the gifts of words.

\n\n\n

❤

\n\n\n
\n

\"My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer.\"

\nPsalm 45:1 NIV\n
\n\n\n

\n\n", "date_published": "2015-02-18T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2015/02/18/nesting.html", "tags": ["Camping","The Farm","Writing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/12/31/resolutions.html", "title": "Resolutions", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I don't like resolutions. They represent change and, as a widow, I've had just about all of that I can stomach, thank you very kindly. \"The only thing in life you CAN count on is change.\" \"Change is good.\" \"If you don't change, the view will remain the same.\" Trite platitudes, at best. Besides that, how do I know what I'm going to want to be doing in August? I don't know what I want to do TOMORROW let alone set myself up for the inevitable failure of another ill conceived resolution. I prefer to choose a word to focus on instead of resolving to change even more things in my life.

\n\n\n

Losing Mr. Virgo was the tip of the iceberg. The trickle-down theory of grief fallout is the gift that won't stop giving…like a tub overflowing on the second floor and you can't pull the plug or stop the flow of water. Surprise! Your life will change in ways you never could have imagined. Bam! Smack! Splash!

\n\n\n

I made a huge leap of faith this year. I sold my house. I sold or gave away practically everything I owned. I left my family and friends to come home to care for my aunt. And totally secondary to that, I came home to say goodbye to the family farm. I had it pictured. Awesome antiques. A great garden. Chickens. Rain on the tin roof. Idyllic. Iconic. A fairy tale life. Then…change.

\n\n\n

The thing is, I had expectations. I had a script. I had a plan. I just assumed God had the same thing in mind for me. This change, while unpleasant, is not necessarily a bad thing. If my storybook scenario would have played out exactly as I had it in my mind, then the final goodbye to this farm would have been devastating. It would have left me bereft, yearning for something I am not destined to have in the long run. As it turns out, the reality of the situation has allowed me to view the farm (and my aunt, as it turns out) from a practical, realistic vantage point and not through the rose colored lens of nostalgia. I can see the warts, so to speak. This is not a bad thing. The timetable just got moved up, that's all. Change. It's slippery. Sneaky. It can take away so much, so fast. But it can also give such beautiful gifts if you don't cower in fear. If you face the winds of change head on, the fog gets blown away and you can see so much further.

\n\n\n

So here's my word for 2015.

\n\n\n

Grace…an attribute of God. \"The love and mercy given to us by God because God desires us to have it, not because of anything we have done to earn it.\" I resolve to face the coming year, with all of its changes, all of its challenges, all of its surprises with grace.

\n\n\n

Grace. I love that.

\n\n\n

Thank you for all your posts and excellent insights you've shared this year. Everyone benefits when you post, share, and interact with each other. You are all incredibly brave and strong and beautiful. Thank you so much for traveling along with me. Your love and support have helped me more than you will ever know! May each of you face the changes of the upcoming year with grace…in good health and prosperity.

\n\n\n

Happy New Year!

\n\n\n

Ginny

\n\n\n

❤

\n\n", "date_published": "2014-12-31T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/12/31/resolutions.html", "tags": ["Overcoming Obstacles","The Farm","Growth","Grace","Wisdom","Courage","Choices","Change","Widow"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/12/30/born-to-sparkle.html", "title": "Born to Sparkle!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Do you ever look at your little girl pictures and wonder where your sparkle went? It takes a lot to dull my shine, but lately…I just haven't been feeling it. Then I came across this picture in my archives. Just look at this little girl! She's got her nekkid baby doll, a pretty dress with shiny party shoes, and she's at her grandma's house. What else IS there to life? She hasn't been molested or abused. She hasn't seen her parents fight. She hasn't dated or married or divorced. She hasn't had babies. She hasn't worried about how to pay the bills. She hasn't sat on the edge of the bed at 2am waiting to see the headlights signaling her daughter's safe return home. She hasn't comforted her bullied child. She hasn't held her grandchildren. She hasn't lost her mom. She hasn't met the love of her life. She hasn't lost him. She hasn't known grief.

\n\n\n

She hasn't known grief. But she will. She'll have trouble breathing. She'll step on that rake in the grass all too often. She'll feel the grief rise and fall in her chest like the tide. She'll reel with the pain and she'll learn how to take it. She'll vow never to hurt again, but she will. She'll vow never to love again, but she will. She'll think she can never sparkle again…but she will.

\n\n\n

She will.

\n\n\n

Because…look at this little girl.

\n\n\n

She was BORN…TO…SPARKLE!

\n\n\n

❤

\n\n", "date_published": "2014-12-30T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/12/30/born-to-sparkle.html", "tags": ["Uplifting Stories","Overcoming Obstacles","Strong Women","Positive Energy","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Wisdom","Forgiveness","Courage","Aging","Choices"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/12/16/itchy-feet.html", "title": "Itchy Feet", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

It's time to head back to the farm. I've been in Colorado the last 12 days. I had a wonderful trip and crammed a lot into a short period of time. I checked into staying longer but the change fee and increase in tickets cost as much as the original ticket did. I would prefer to save my money and come back on a separate trip.

\n\n\n

I'm getting itchy feet…cabin fever. Not about leaving my kids and grandkids again but more about wanting to get back out on the road and go camping. I'm really looking forward to exploring West Virginia. It's such a beautiful state. But I have so much to do when I get back to the farm so I must curb the urge to run.

\n\n\n

Please keep my friend, Debbie, in your prayers. She lost her beloved mother yesterday on what would have been her dad's 85th birthday. Loss is never easy, even when it's expected. You're never ready.

\n\n\n

❤

\n\n", "date_published": "2014-12-16T14:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/12/16/itchy-feet.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Choices"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/11/25/over-the-river.html", "title": "Over the River…", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

I spent the day yesterday baking. I made a yellow cake with penuche frosting. Have any of you had that? My grandma always had a yellow cake with penuche frosting at family dinners. It was baked in a sheet cake pan and I dearly loved that frosting. It's made with butter and brown sugar and confectioners sugar. Ok….it's just sugar…spreadable, caramelized, burry sugar! Then I baked a double batch of corn bread. This was for the Hunter's Chili/Soup Bean Supper at the community building last night. Yes, my friends…I'm sure if you have never spent time in our neck of the woods, you are not aware that yesterday started a national holiday. It was the opening day of rifle deer season! Schools actually SHUT DOWN for the first week. Grown men quit their jobs if they think their boss won't let them off for hunting season. People dressed in camo, rifles in their gun racks, muddy four wheelers in the backs of their muddy trucks, shots ringing out from every hilltop and holler. Man oh man…it's Carhartt Heaven here! So, we had our supper last night and the fellers sat around to chew the fat fer a while. The old guys telling these young whipper snappers how it was done in their day…each tale bigger than the last. What a hoot!

\n\n\n

Y'all are gonna think that's all I do…bake and cook. Well, I sure have been enjoying it and this farm brings it out in me since this is where I learned to cook in the first place. Tomorrow we head to the cousin's for Thanksgiving. I'm bringing all my ingredients with me to bake there. We were going to leave Wednesday but there's six inches of snow predicted so we'll go early. It was 70 degrees here yesterday…what an absolute treat!

\n\n\n

What is your favorite food memory of Thanksgiving?

\n\n\n

<3

\n\n", "date_published": "2014-11-25T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/11/25/over-the-river.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Baking"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/11/18/culinary-nightmares.html", "title": "Culinary Nightmares!", "content_html": "\n
\"\"
\n\n\n

Ok, true confession? I ate a squirrel and I liked it! Actually, I've eaten lots of squirrels. When I was growing up, shooting a squirrel and eating it was no different than catching a fish and eating it. Squirrel season is one of the longest game seasons and the one where many aspiring hunters get their start as a youth. I SO wanted to go squirrel hunting when I was a kid but I wasn't allowed because…I was a girl! Girls didn't hunt. It meant they'd have to handle a G-U-N and God forbid…that wasn't acceptable in my family. I did get to shoot a .22 at tin cans as a teenager but no hunting.

\n\n\n

I am not sure I could eat a squirrel now after living in Denver for so many years. They're like rats there. But I have such fond memories of my grandma's fried squirrel and squirrel gravy. There's not a ton of meat on a squirrel so you might have to freeze them till you get a mess of them. (For those of you who don't know, \"a mess\" means a bunch. As in \"She cooked up a mess a' beans.\" I know…you need a passport to come here.) My daddy taught me how to skin them and clean them. They have a very dark, fine grained, low fat, sweet meat. You quarter them, dredge them in flour with salt and pepper and fry them like you would fry chicken. Ok, now I'll TOTALLY gross you out…my mom would kill for the brain. (Ok, that totally grossed ME out!)

\n\n\n

There are old timey recipe books with other awful offal. Possum, coon, goat, rattlesnake…to name a few. Now, those I have not eaten. I have my limits! What are some odd things you eat or have eaten in your life?

\n\n", "date_published": "2014-11-18T02:30:00-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/11/18/culinary-nightmares.html", "tags": ["Fun","West Virginia","The Farm","Farm Life"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/11/14/kitties.html", "title": "Kitties", "content_html": "

\"little “Me with a little barn kitten.”

\n

We had our first flakes of snow yesterday. I have been here nearly a month and have spent a good deal of time winterizing the farm but I can’t say I’m excited about snow coming. Last night gave me a taste of what winter might hold. The power started going off and on at dusk. Finally at around 6:00, my second cousin up the road called to say the power company was at her farm and were preparing to go back up on the hill to fix the line and were preparing to turn off the electric. She wanted to make sure we had our flashlights at hand. The thing about losing electric in the country is…it could be an hour or all night or next week before power is restored. It’s just part of rural living.

\n

We made coffee and toasted honey buns by flashlight. I got out grandma’s oil lamp and put it on the dining room table. We sat around and talked way past what we thought we would. We discussed love and longevity. Loss and recovery. Assisted suicide and faith. Heavy, dark subjects approached honestly with a woman on her way to 83 who has buried two husbands. She is from a different time, a different generation, and offers me insight I may not find on my own. We lost a family member a couple of days ago and that prompted the “heaviosity”. My uncle in Chicago passed away on Wednesday after a couple of strokes and a no-win battle with dementia. God rest his soul and be with his family.

\n

One of my jobs yesterday was preparing winter beds for our two barn cats. I had made a trip to town Wednesday to buy two electric “pet pads” (outdoor “heating pads” for under the cat’s bedding). That evening I watched a video on Facebook about making beds for feral cats out of plastic tubs, styrofoam coolers and straw….items we already had in the basement. I had two cat beds put together in half an hour so I took the heating pads back yesterday. I bought a bale of straw and a French pie pumpkin, half price. I got a little cap to put on the valve on the line to the new gas wall heater. I got new work gloves and working girl’s heavy duty hand cream to battle the painful cracks in my skin. Ahhhh, the life of a farm girl. The work may never be done but the days are always interesting! <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-11-14T02:30:28-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/11/14/kitties.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/11/12/god-bless-this-trailer-home.html", "title": "God Bless This Trailer Home", "content_html": "

Look what came in the mail! Oh, my gosh…is this the cutest thing or what? Thank you, thank you, thank you Miss Vicky. You are the awesomest. Yesterday was the “Remembrance Day” for Vicky’s husband. He died 11/11 at 11am. She is a dear friend and my heart was so sad for her. RIP Rob… <3

\n

I’m another step closer to making my jewelry again. Some of you may not know my storage unit in Colorado was robbed before I moved here and my entire art studio and two footlockers full of power tools were stolen. I still have to settle with the insurance company but I needed to replace the main items so I could get some jewelry made. So, I went to Lowe’s to get what I need. I taught myself to make jewelry out of old silverware by trial and error. I came to find out there were easier ways of doing some things, but I couldn’t justify buying different tools. Since this is “starting out fresh”, I bought the perfect tools that will make my life easier. Can’t wait to get a studio set up and get to work!

\n

I stayed with a friend in town last night because we are going out to lunch today. As I write this at midnight, it has just begun to rain. Yesterday was glorious in the 70’s. The weather will start changing now and we could see snow by the weekend. Ick!

\n", "date_published": "2014-11-12T02:30:05-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/11/12/god-bless-this-trailer-home.html", "tags": ["TOW-Wanda!","Camping","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Downsizing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/11/11/the-country-kitchen.html", "title": "The Country Kitchen", "content_html": "

\"american “I love this American Folk Art piece I bought years ago in Colorado.”

\n

As I stand in my grandma’s kitchen, memories flood around me as thick as flies at a picnic. I stood at this counter on the old red kitchen stool, a feedsack apron, just my size, wrapped around my waste as I helped Grandma cook lunch for the field hands when the strawberries came on. She wouldn’t let me pick because I stepped on the runners and more got in my mouth than in my basket. She cooked lots of wonderful, wholesome foods fresh from the garden. We canned, pickled, dried, and preserved everything we could get our hands on or glean from the garden. When I’m washing dishes at the sink, I can hear the laughter filter down through the years when everyone gathered at Grandma’s table to break bread and count blessings. When I cook at her stove, I remember the way she took a couple of quarts of roast beef out of the cellar, dredged the chunks in flour, salt, and pepper and fried them in whatever fat was available. She never could make a gravy without lumps. That and pie crusts were the bane of her existence. She bragged about my pies and bread when I came home for visits. That was her way of asking me to bake for her.

\n

She always made me a special apple pie when I came home. A single crust, folded over like a turnover with very little apple filling because she understood my love for the crispy, slightly salty pastry. One year she walked slower to the kitchen. Her bent and worn hands slowly worked over the dough and she painfully pared the apples. It was the first time I really noticed her aging. She finished the pie, set it out to cool and watched with delight as I dug in. She caught my eye and I put my fork down, waiting for what I knew in my heart would come some day.

\n

“Eat that slow, pet…and enjoy it. It’s the last one I can make. Grandma’s old hands just don’t work like they used to.”

\n

We sat in silence for a bit, each contemplating the weight of her words. Me in my prime. She in her final years. I ate my pie slowly, savoring each wonderful bite, knowing it would be my last. Understanding the gift…the many gifts she gave me. Loving her for being mine. Hating Father Time.

\n

She would have loved this sign that I brought from my own kitchen in Colorado. The privilege of living on her farm is not lost on me and I will relish every moment I can be here. <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-11-11T02:30:19-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/11/11/the-country-kitchen.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/11/01/beauty-is-in-the-eye.html", "title": "Beauty is in the eye...", "content_html": "

\"aging “We Were Young and Beautiful…Now We Are Just Beautiful!”

\n

A couple of nights ago, my aunt and I sat on the sofa side by side and called my cousin to FaceTime and watched to little ones Trick or Treat. She is enamored with the marvelous technology of the iPad and the internet. We were waiting for my cousin to call back and I was showing her what they will see when we connect. She frowned a bit and said “Oh my! I look a hundred years old!” Then I quoted this caption to her. I looked at the two of us on camera. We are 21 years apart, she and I…exactly the difference in age between me and my firstborn. I look at her beauty and her strength and hope I have half her qualities when it’s my turn to be 82. She is a no nonsense woman. She is educated, erudite, lithe, and witty. There was a time when she and I butted heads. We are both strong willed and independent. We have both mellowed with age and loss. And we are both beautiful.

\n

As is wont to happen on special anniversaries, I had some tearful moments yesterday. It was nine years ago that Mr. Virgo walked in and stole my heart. I needed to do something special to commemorate the day. I met my high school girlfriends for coffee then went to the new farm supply store to stock up on birdseed for the winter. I got my hair cut then went to the mall. Mr. Virgo and I were particularly fond of Christmas ornaments made by Ne’Qua. They are glass and hand painted on the inside. We bought one every year we were together. Last year I bought my first one alone. The Hallmark shop in the mall carries Ne’Qua ornaments so I took my time looking at each one…tracing their curves gently with my finger…allowing them to pull me back to the vacations Mr. Virgo and I took. We always bought our Christmas ornaments on vacation so we could relive our travels when we decorated the tree together. After some time, I settled on the perfect ornament. A small one with a male and female cardinal. West Virginia’s state bird. An appropriate commemoration all the way around. Mr. Virgo would be pleased with the choice, I’m sure.

\n

It is important to have rituals. Continuing rituals that you shared with your loved ones maybe difficult at first. Maybe you need to change the way you do it. But rituals can keep your connection to your loved one alive and that is important to some people in their grief process. I was distressed early on in my grief process when certain memories began to fade. I later learned it’s a common effect of grieving to lesson the acute pain of the loss. The memories came back with time. Now I have another sweet memory for when I decorate our tree this winter. <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-11-01T01:30:53-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/11/01/beauty-is-in-the-eye.html", "tags": ["Family","Fun","The Farm","Comfort","Holiday","Aging"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/31/brush.html", "title": "Brush", "content_html": "

\"brush “The Brush Pile”

\n

This is my project this week. My uncle was here on Monday and he made quick work with a chain saw and cut this all down along the creek banks. However, I couldn’t leave it there to clog up the culvert and provide a haven for critters too close to the house. I’ve been hauling brush every day since and I have a couple more hours worth of work to do and I’ll be done. I’ll burn it in the spring when the woods are wet and the brush has had a chance to age a bit.

\n

We have a couple of trees that need to come down. One is quite small but situated so that it would fall across the electric line should it come down on its own. The other is quite large and down by the road. I’m going to see if I can get a state road crew to come take it out of there. I have a picture of this place taken about 55 years ago. The hillsides were clear quite a ways up to keep trees from crashing into the house, buildings, and barn. Over the years, the place has really grown up and needs some serious pruning. I’m just getting the bare necessities done at this point and will worry about the rest come spring. Just have to batten down the hatches for winter at this point.

\n

I have a wonderful book that I read many years ago and recently purchased a newer edition. The Encyclopedia of Country Living by Carla Emery is a wonderful resource manual for living off the land. It shows you how to do everything you can possibly imagine on a homestead. I bought my first copy of it in the ’90s. I’ve dreamed of this lifestyle since the ’80s when I started buying Mother Earth News magazine. I’m falling into a rhythm now. I get my work done by 3:00 in the afternoon then I sit down and read this amazing book and learn and plan and dream. Then I write my post for the next day and schedule it to go live at 4:00am. Then it’s time to rustle up some supper. The 5:00 news is the next item on the agenda, not that I enjoy TV or the news but it’s something my aunt does, so I will adjust to the ritual. Sometimes I stay in the house and watch Jeopardy with her, but usually I go out to my camper and read, chat online with friends and family, or make phone calls. I’ve discovered an app on my iPad that plays ambient noises to cover the annoying sounds coming from the drilling over the hill. I can blend sounds so I have chosen crickets, rain, and distant thunder. I slept much better last night.

\n

Today is a trip to town to meet some of my high school friends for coffee. “The Wild Wonderful Wacky Women of ‘71” are incredible and I’m really looking forward to seeing them. We “talk” to each other every day on Facebook offering laughs, encouragement, prayers, support. It will be fun to get together for some live facetime!

\n

Today is also Halloween. Nine years ago today, my handsome Mr. Virgo called me at my little needlework shop and said he was in town doing his shopping and he was going to come into my shop to meet me. We had been talking for three months and so it was time to meet in person. He walked in and we took one look at each other and fell in love. I miss him so much. I truly do. <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-31T01:30:07-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/31/brush.html", "tags": ["Family","Grief","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Courage","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/30/the-wellseasoned-skillet.html", "title": "The Well-Seasoned Skillet", "content_html": "

\"iron “A well-seasoned skillet is a joy to behold!”

\n

When I was growing up, my grandma filled her skillets with soapy water and set them to simmer on the stove while we did the dishes so that’s how I thought you were supposed to wash them. I gave up on cast iron cooking a long time ago because my pans were always rusty and pitted. Then Mr. Virgo, the trained chef, came along and taught me how to turn an old rusty iron skillet into a thing of beauty. There are two rules….season the pan correctly and NEVER let it anywhere near water!

\n

This skillet is one I bought at a second hand or antique store…I can’t remember where or when. Mr. Virgo loved fried chicken and this was nice and deep…perfect for frying. It was a gosh-awful mess when I brought it home. I followed his directions. First, I had to get the rust out. Using fine steel wool, I rubbed the pan till it was clean, bare metal. (If it’s more rust than this can handle, you might have to take it to a machine shop and have it sandblasted.) Now, this is the only time it’s ok to get this thing wet. Wash the skillet thoroughly with warm water and mild dish soap and scrub it really well with a bristle brush or a plastic scrubby. Dry the skillet immediately and swipe it all over with a thin coating of vegetable oil. Don’t use too much or your coating will be sticky. Pop your skillet upside down on the top rack of your oven. (You can put a cookie sheet or foil on the rack below in case you get any oil drips.) Heat the skillet for an hour at 350 degrees. At the end of the hour, turn off your oven, leave it closed, and take your skillet out in the morning when it’s cool.

\n

This skillet has a perfect season on it. I never, ever wash it. I baked corn bread in it yesterday to go with the soup beans and smoked ham hocks. While I was mixing up my batter, I had the skillet in a 400 degree oven with a couple tablespoons of bacon grease. By the time the batter was made, and rested for a few minutes to raise a bit, the skillet was hot. I poured the batter in. It should sizzle slightly but not put up a huge fuss. Bake as per directions watching closely because dark pans cook a bit faster. You do need to run a spatula under your cornbread before you tip it out on a plate or cake rack because the center will want to stick. Don’t cut your cornbread while it’s in the skillet unless you use Teflon utensils. You don’t want to scratch that pretty surface. Before you take your crispy crusted, golden cornbread to the table, use a nonstick spatula and scrape anything adhering to the surface. Remember, NO WATER. Once supper is over, use a paper towel to scrub the inside of your skillet. If it doesn’t want to come clean, use oil on the paper towel. If you’ve seasoned it right, it should come clean with just a wipe down. Store your skillets with paper towels or newspaper between them if you have to stack them. Store them in a clean, DRY cupboard. And, don’t worry…if rust shows up, you can always season it again.

\n

Iron cookware is often handed down through the generations. I have my mom’s, one of my grandma’s, and some of my own I have collected along the way. This one is by far my favorite. Oh, a word of caution…some people say it’s ok to cook acidic foods like spaghetti sauce in a very well seasoned skillet, but my rule of thumb is to never let tomatoes anywhere near my cast iron. The acid can strip the seasoning and give the food a funky, metallic taste.

\n

So, there you have the tutorial on the well-seasoned skillet. Treat your cast iron well and it will serve for generations to come. Old cast iron is collectible, but only if it has been well cared for. Now, I’ll tell you a story. (You knew THAT was coming, didn’t you?)

\n

My mom came home to the farm for the weekend when she was a young, single, working woman. My Uncle Sonny had been out “frog giggin’” the night before and was about to fry himself up a big pan of frog legs. Mom had never seen the process, and while she was revolted by the idea of devouring amphibian appendages, her curiosity got the better of her. She came into the kitchen just as my uncle dropped said frog legs into the iron skillet. Well, the legs started jumping and jerking with the heat and my Mom screamed, grabbed the skillet, ran out the door, and threw the whole mess in the creek…then sat down and cried. Uncle Sonny was mad at first to lose his hard earned delicacies, but he couldn’t help laughing at my poor mom, which upset her even further. Finally, Grandma came outside to see what all the ruckus was about. Uncle Sonny told her what Mom did and Grandma made her go down over the creek bank and fetch back her good iron skillet, which made Uncle Sonny laugh harder, and made Mom mad. But she went and got it, and as far as I know, refused to ever, knowingly, eat anything from that skillet…ever again! <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-30T01:30:29-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/30/the-wellseasoned-skillet.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","West Virginia","The Farm","Comfort","Downsizing","Choices"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/29/country-roads.html", "title": "Country Roads", "content_html": "

\"autumn “I love the way the trees change in West Virginia!”

\n

I hauled the brush from the cherry tree today. Then I gathered up my aunt and headed back on the hill. I wanted to see the old home place and to see if there’s any cell service on the farm. There is not, by the way, but it was a delightful drive. I love my new pickup truck! I put it in 4 low to get through some mud holes and “Free-da” went through it like butter! The colors are still beautiful, however we are predicted to get quite cold this weekend and the leaves will soon be gone. We may even get some of the “S” word in the form of flurries!

\n

When I got back from our little junket, I drove to “town”. When I say “town”, picture Mayberry. It is so fun! First stop was the bank then across the street to Berdine’s Five & Dime for a handful of Maple Nut Goodies….my late mother’s favorite candy. I love how tastes and smells can transport you across the ages. Next stop was the car wash to clean off the WV red clay mud off my beautiful white truck. Dollar General got some business as I stopped for kitty food and honey buns. Livin’ large here in the country! lol

\n

I stopped at the cemetery briefly on the way home to check messages. Today was the first time since I arrived here that I yearned to stop and visit with Mr. Virgo and drop off a rock for him. I still have the lock of hair that the funeral director gave me so I am going to find a quiet spot here on the farm where I can bury some of it and place a marker of sorts. Then I’ll have a place to go visit here as well. It is interesting that just a few weeks before he passed, we had a conversation about death and what we would want done. I asked if he wanted to be buried or cremated and he quickly answered “Buried!” I asked him why and he told me he wanted me to have a place to go visit him. I thought that was ridiculous at the time…such a waste of resources and space here on earth. However, once he was gone, I cannot tell you what comfort it has afforded me to go visit him where his body lies. I never dreamed it would be so. That’s why I think if I have a place here as well, it will offer me that same comfort. Funny what rituals do for us in our healing process.

\n

It’s my early day today…trash day! Pick up is at 6:15 and I’m going to put on a pot of soup beans and smoked ham hocks to simmer all day. Maybe I’ll make some hot rolls. I forgot to buy corn meal or I would make corn bread. I hope you enjoy your Autumn day! How is the weather where you are today? <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-29T01:30:59-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/29/country-roads.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/28/my-great-grandpa.html", "title": "My Great Grandpa", "content_html": "

\"grandpa “My Great Grandpa”

\n

 

\n

This picture hangs in the bedroom to the right at the top of the steps…the “Boy’s Room”. The other bedroom of course is the “Girl’s Room”. This is my great grandpa. He was one heck of a colorful guy. My uncle regaled me with stories of his escapades…some of which I’ve heard, some I haven’t.

\n

Grandpa Richardson used to be a Deputy Sheriff in Harrison County, WV. On his rounds across the county one afternoon, he was talking to this old feller who was complaining about a dog that had decided his farm was as good as any to take up residence. He told Grandpa he was gonna get rid of that dog and let it eat someone else’s chickens. (I apologize for the remark “get rid of” but that’s a colloquialism for “Find it another home.” Or “Take it to the opposite end of the county.” There were no rescues or shelters in those days.) The next week, Grandpa was down in the southern part of the county when he came alongside this very same dog and recognized it. So he opened the car door, called the dog, and it happily jumped in for a ride. Grandpa took the dog back over to the old feller’s house and let him out and went on. The next week, Grandpa stopped at this man’s place and was shooting the breeze when he looked over and said to the guy, “I thought you was gonna get rid a’ that there dog.” The old feller said, “Ya know, that’s the durnedest thing. I took that dog down to the farthest end of the county and let him go last week and you know what? I’ll be durned if that dang dog didn’t beat me home!”

\n

I had a really great day yesterday working alongside my favorite uncle. I’ve called him Uncle Dudley most of my life, even though he goes by Bud. I got up early and made sausage gravy and bicuits for breakfast and as soon as I had my work boots laced up, he and I were off and running. First thing we did was turn off the gas and take out an old heat stove in the dining room and mount a new one on the wall. With free gas (due to gas wells on the property) we have a couple of these stoves in the house. I grew up this way and we never gave a second thought to carbon monoxide. These are ventless stoves, however, there are so many cracks in the house there’s nothing to worry about. After we finished that up, my uncle went out with the chain saw and cut the trees and brush out of the creek and I hauled brush for about 4 hours. While I was hauling brush, my uncle went on to paint the roof with aluminumized paint/asphalt. Then I started emptying the boxes that were on the back porch. One of those boxes held the large painting that was in our living room in Colorado. I’ve hung it over the dining room table and it makes me smile. The pictures of various family members here in the farmhouse have always been hung haphazardly and my OCD tendencies got the better of me. I created a “Rogue’s Gallery” on one wall and we can rotate our photos with the seasons. The last gift I gave Mr. Virgo was a beautiful wall clock. I took down the old plastic Walmart clock in the dining room and hung the clock in a prominent place so that you see it first thing when you walk in the back door. And that was the day. Exhausting yet productive, invigorating…satisfying in a way that is only felt with accomplishing a goal and hard work.

\n

Yesterday was the perfect, perfect fall day. Warm, sunshine, and family working side by side. Life is so good! <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-28T01:30:38-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/28/my-great-grandpa.html", "tags": ["Family","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/27/the-auction.html", "title": "The Auction", "content_html": "

\"green “My Green and White Quilt”

\n

I cannot pass up a good quilt. Well, ok….I COULD pass up a good quilt. And sometimes I CAN pass up a good quilt, but yesterday was not that day. Oh, this one is so pretty! I love two color quilts and this is beautifully hand-pieced and hand-quilted with remarkable feathered wreath medallions in the white squares. It’s a double, it only has a couple of tiny stains along one edge and no wear. AND…I got it for $75! Oh, I love a good quilt, and a good auction, and a good bargain!

\n

When I was a little girl, my grandma had a quilt frame and I remember her and some neighbor women sitting around it here in the dining room, quilting and talking, and laughing. That must have been such a luxury to the farm women of those days…to sit together and stitch awhile and talk. Grandma would make me wash my hands and would thread the needle for me and guide my little hands to make the stitches. She used to tell me as an adult that she couldn’t stitch a straight line and she finally gave up and tied all of her quilts. I don’t know that there are any of hers left as her quilts were utilitarian and made to be used till they fell apart. I do have one blanket that’s on my bed in the trailer that she sewed a binding onto pre-quilted fabric and gave to me. I have the apron she made for me when I was little and would help her make lunch for the workers when the strawberries were being picked for market. I also have two pillow covers she made. I left her treadle sewing machine in Denver for my daughter to leave to her daughters. I love the circle of life. The continuity of stories, skills, family.

\n

My uncle and aunt came yesterday. He is patching the roof and installing a gas heating stove for us. I bought a small barrel shaped coin bank at the auction yesterday and he was enamored with it. It presented the same puzzle to him as it did to me which prompted me to buy it. It was a giveaway from Union National Bank of Sistersville, WV. And…it is locked. And…there is no key. It’s full of coins. And there’s folding money that you can see through the coin slot. But we can’t get into it. He tried to make a key but didn’t have the proper tools here so he’s going to make a key at home and send it to me. I love a mystery! There could be really great coins and a hundred dollar bill in it. Or there could be a dollar bill and a couple bucks in change. The only difference is the story! And you know me well….the only thing I love more than a mystery is a really great story! <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-27T01:30:49-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/27/the-auction.html", "tags": ["Fun","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/26/the-sunll-come-out-tomorrow.html", "title": "\"The Sun'll Come Out, Tomorrow...\"", "content_html": "

\"october “October Sunshine in West Virginia”

\n

It did yesterday, it will today, and the next few days as well! Wahoo! I didn’t get to the apples yesterday. I did do my laundry and emptied a couple more boxes then went to town to the pharmacy, grocery, and out to dinner with a friend. It was a lovely day…except for the arrival of the dreaded Asian Lady Beetles. As soon as the sun hit the house and the temp hit around 60, those suckers swarmed out of the woods! I had hung a sweater out to dry. (Yes, we have a clothes line on the front porch. We’ve got one on the back porch, the back yard, and the side yard. We are big on solar and wind energy here.) Well, in 15 minutes the front porch looked like the fly scene from Amityville Horror! I couldn’t get out there fast enough and my sweater was covered. Ewwww! I shook the beetles off the sweater and their hooky little claw feet stuck to the fibers and when I shook harder they put out their nasty stink alarm and started flying all around and landing in my hair and I’m dancing all over the porch with the heebie jeebies! Ok, lesson learned. Screw solar and wind…use the dryer during the dreaded lady beetle season. (shiver) At least there’s a bug spray you can use now to keep them from coming in the house. Of course, I’ll probably grow a third arm in the middle of my forehead from it but that’s a small price to pay to keep those nasty little creatures outside.

\n

Ten years ago, I was here in January for my mom’s funeral. My mom’s other sister was living in Las Vegas at the time and met me in Charlotte. We came the rest of the way together and there was one double bed left at the farm. We had no problem sharing. The problem was, with nothing to create a chemical barrier, the house was literally infested with these rabid little ninja beetles that spent all night (and I mean ALL night) tip tapping on the ceiling and windows and walls and…us. We didn’t sleep at all because we were afraid our mouths would open and we’d breathe in one of those objectionable beasts! The next night we slept in town.

\n

I have been told they aren’t nearly as bad as they used to be…that there’s less of them and the spray at least keeps their numbers down in houses. Back in the day, folks would have to use shop vacs to clean them up…every day. And you’re thinking…why on earth did this crazy woman move there? Eh, in the end…they’re only bugs. They’re a stinky nuisance and they bring out a childhood fear of hard shelled beetles tip tapping on the ceiling at night, but it takes a lot more than this to rattle me much. Like say…that big barn spider in the toilet the other day…but that’s a story for another day! <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-26T01:30:41-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/26/the-sunll-come-out-tomorrow.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Peace","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/24/old-mama-kitty.html", "title": "Old Mama Kitty", "content_html": "

\"old “Old Mama Kitty”

\n

This little gal has been the resident mouser around here for about 23 years. She spends her days on the front porch now, leaving the capture (and eventual presentation at our doorstep of many mice, moles, snakes, and bird)s to the younger generation. This summer there were three feral kittens and their mama who showed up and caused Old Mama Kitty all kinds of grief. We had to send the mother and two of the babies elsewhere and kept one little orange and white kitten to take over the mousing duties, leaving the old gal to take her much deserved naps on the lounge chair. We named her Little Bit because she was so tiny and dainty with such a quiet little voice. She was the one her mama brought from the barn and placed at my aunt’s feet. My grandma always said that the mama will give you the best kitten and she was right. While the feline matriarch will let my aunt scratch her back with her foot, Little Bit will climb up into your lap and purr like crazy. I’ve never been much of a cat person, but these two farm cats have captured my heart. Old Mama Kitty won’t be with us too much longer, but hopefully Little Bit will provide us with years of devotion.

\n

The neighbor’s golden retriever, Willy, is traipsing around my trailer as I write this. He’s young and sleek…a gorgeous deep reddish gold. His paws rustle through the leaves and I can hear him panting at the door, hoping I’ll come scratch him behind the ears. Thankfully, our road isn’t terribly busy. I’d hate it if something happened to him.

\n

Yesterday was really fun. I called up my younger daughter on FaceTime on my iPad and my nearly 83 year old aunt was mesmerized. We didn’t get a paper today so I pulled it up online and showed it to her. I chatted with my cousin’s daughter in the evening and found out she can FaceTime as well so we’ll get to see her baby. That must seem amazing to one who has never operated a computer. Not that my aunt is uneducated, mind you. She reads the top news and financial magazines every week. She was one of the first Head Start teachers in Washington, DC. She’s been around and is quite interesting to talk with.

\n

I had a totally indulgent day of rest yesterday. I believe I will get a few boxes emptied today. I have a barrel of apples in the cellar and I need to make some applesauce for winter days. Maybe I’ll bake a couple of apple pies. I also need to get out for a walk and enjoy the nice weather predicted for the next few days. I have the new Lehman’s catalog to look at and I’m going to order a seed catalog or two for planning the garden for spring.

\n

Today marks the end of my first week as a farm girl! I think I’m settling in just fine. <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-24T01:30:45-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/24/old-mama-kitty.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Peace","Choices","Change","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/23/tough.html", "title": "Tough", "content_html": "

\"wildness “May the angel of wildness disturb the places where your life is domesticated and safe.” John O’Donohue

\n

When the truck was delivered yesterday, the driver really didn’t want to leave the trailer and come all the way back out on Monday to get it. He peeked in and asked how many feet I had reserved. When he saw it was only five linear feet and it was all boxes he asked if we couldn’t just go ahead and empty it. I got that “Let’s see what she’s made of” look and I jumped right in. I was lugging boxes up those stairs and going back for more. NOT the way I had that scenario played out in my mind, but here we were. I did call in reinforcements who showed up when we were down to the last ten boxes. (Definitely not their fault…they were originally scheduled for tomorrow.) When we were done, there were four men and me standing around admiring my new trailer and truck. I said something about being tough and the boss turned around and said “Little girl, you dragged that thing clear across the country! I’D say you’re pretty dang tough!” (me = big smile)

\n

I’m so proud.

\n

Today, I rest. <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-23T01:30:42-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/23/tough.html", "tags": ["Faith","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Courage"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/10/17/wild-wonderful-west-virginia.html", "title": "Wild, Wonderful West Virginia!!!", "content_html": "

\"west “Welcome to Wild, Wonderful West Virginia!”

\n

I crossed the Ohio River before dark singing “Almost Heaven….”!!! I went to a rest area and cleaned out the tanks. Headed straight to Outback to have a great big, juicy burger and fries, called my cousin and my aunt to let them know I’m here, texted the kids, and called a friend where I was invited to stay the night. I’ll head out to the farm today so I don’t have to drive in the dark on twisty, curvy roads!

\n

Now, here’s the deal…there’s no WiFi at the farm yet. Also, no cell service…so I’m going to be unplugged for awhile. There’s much to be done to settle in. My belongings will be delivered on Wednesday so I need to prepare a space to store it all. I need to figure out the best place for the trailer to be parked and get power to it. Much work to be done and I need to decompress. While I certainly didn’t push myself, the last few months have been fairly stressful. I’m going to enjoy some downtime with family and friends and I’ll catch up with you as I can!

\n

Thanks for traveling along with me. You all really kept me company during this amazing journey! I love you all!!! <3

\n", "date_published": "2014-10-17T01:30:27-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/10/17/wild-wonderful-west-virginia.html", "tags": ["Travel","Overcoming Obstacles","Hope","TOW-Wanda!","Camping","The Grand Adventure","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","goRVing","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/08/05/the-farm.html", "title": "The Farm", "content_html": "

Here are some pictures from the home of my heart!

\n

\"\" \"\" \"\" \"\" \"\" \"\" \"\"

\n

\"the “The Farm”

\n", "date_published": "2014-08-05T01:30:32-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/08/05/the-farm.html", "tags": ["Family","The Farm","Downsizing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/08/04/a-simple-life.html", "title": "A Simple Life", "content_html": "

\"simple “A Simple Life”

\n

I’m back! Here it is, August 4th already…can you believe it? Those three weeks literally flew by. I’ve missed you all even though I did peek in from time to time. And I am rested, refreshed and rearing to go!

\n

I’m still snuggled up in bed, preparing my mind for the onslaught of civilization. I’m listening to the morning call of a whip-poor-will knowing full well in a few hours I’ll be hustling through busy international airports. I’m not looking forward to it…and I LOVE to fly. I want to pour a cup of coffee and go out on the front porch, the familiar stretchy squeak of the screen door spring the only sound louder than the morning birdsong. I want to see old Mama Kitty curled up in the corner, one eye opened slightly in protest over the crude interruption of her peaceful slumber. I want to listen to whip-poor-wills every day for the rest of my life.

\n

I need to head to Colorado. I need to settle some business. I need to snuggle my babies and spoil them a little bit. I need to do the really big purge and get rid of the things in life that weigh me down. I am so grateful to my son-in-law’s mom for sitting me down and telling me to look at what I want my life to look like and make it that. I will miss my kids and grandkids and my Colorado family like crazy, and I will travel to see them as often as I can. But I also know I need to live where my heart sings…where I can stretch out and be free…where I can own a piece of God’s country. It’s time to go home.

\n

Money will only stretch so far. When you have x-amount of dollars to spend on housing and you have a choice of a repossessed HUD home in a dicey neighborhood or a hundred acre farm, tell me…where would you go? What are you willing to let go of in order to set your heart free and give it wings? How far are you willing to fly?

\n", "date_published": "2014-08-04T01:30:07-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/08/04/a-simple-life.html", "tags": ["Family","Uplifting Stories","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Love","Peace","Presence","Downsizing","Choices","The Cats"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/08/01/mister-bee-potato-chips.html", "title": "Mister Bee Potato Chips", "content_html": "

\"mr. “Mr. Bee Potato Chips”

\n

You know those special foods you can only get at “home”? Well, ours are pepperoni rolls, Ruben’s Deli Hot Italian Hoagies, and Mister Bee Potato Chips. My sister/friend Patty in Florida has put in a special request for some Mister Bee’s so off they went in the mail today. While I was at it, I just went ahead and shipped some back to Colorado for the kids…and my brother/friend Greg…and my brother Gary…and, ummmmmmm…ME! :-) I’m going to be somebody’s best friend come Monday!

\n

I can’t believe I fly back to Colorado on Monday. :-( This has gone all too quickly. The only consolation is….I get to see my girls AND it won’t be long till that house sells and I can come back!

\n

Here are some more WV photos!

\n

\"west “West Virginia Cousins!”

\n

\"\" \"\" \"\"

\n", "date_published": "2014-08-01T01:30:45-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/08/01/mister-bee-potato-chips.html", "tags": ["Family","Travel","West Virginia","The Farm","Gratitude","Comfort","Grace","Peace","Downsizing"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/07/24/west-virginian.html", "title": "West Virginian...", "content_html": "

\"find “Find yourself, and be that.”

\n

It is amazing how quickly things can change. A few weeks ago, I was convinced I was going to move to the Denver area yet deep inside, my heart just wasn’t in it. I kept feeling I was missing an important opportunity, and I was.

\n

I left WV when I was a fresh-faced 20 year old bride. I moved to England to be with my soldier husband. When that tour was over, the next station was Denver. I hated Colorado then. It was hot and dry and without the lush, green landscape I was used to. I stuck it out because I was at that age when I wanted to be ANYTHING but what my parents were.

\n

When my husband and I parted company, I stayed on in Denver alone…scared to death but determined to give my daughter something different than what I had grown up with. And it was ok. My kids are Colorado kids but they are good people and independent thinkers. I did right by them. But did I do right by me?

\n

I’ve yearned to live back in West Virginia for the last 30 years but couldn’t move. My ex-husband didn’t want to live there and I had kids at home for 33 years. Mr. Virgo would have moved with me, but he worked so hard to get out to Colorado, I didn’t have the heart to take him back east.

\n

Now, I’m alone. My beloved man is gone, my brother has the life he so richly deserved and my girls are 40 and 24. My grandchildren are 10 and 7 and I have never lived near them so our time together is precious.

\n

After being here a week, I have decided to move back home. My elderly aunt lives alone on the family farm and can’t take care of herself anymore. When my son-in-law’s mom told me a couple weeks ago that I need to picture what I want my life to look like, then make it that…my answer was that I want it to look like WV, not Colorado. So, I am close to getting an offer on my house and I will have 5 weeks to close then I’m coming home!

\n

I cannot tell you the total sense of peace that has come over me with this decision. I have a huge support system here and I’m going to live here for as long as I can. I will visit Colorado and my babies as often as I can. So, another adventure at Marshmallow Ranch begins!

\n", "date_published": "2014-07-24T01:30:16-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/07/24/west-virginian.html", "tags": ["West Virginia","The Farm","Courage","Choices","Change"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/04/25/west-virginia-here-i-come.html", "title": "West Virginia, here I come!", "content_html": "

\"saudade “West Virginia, here I come!”

\n

I’m going home. I’m taking three weeks and heading for the hills. I’m going to visit family, hang with friends, get away in the woods, feel my roots dig deep in the red clay. This is where I get refreshment for my soul. This is where I find the Fountain of Youth. This is where I find my smile. I want a small piece of it to call my very own. I will look to see what I can find while I am there. I could spend a good chunk of the year there easily enough once I retire. I could find a place to park TOW-Wanda and feel right at home. Yes….I’m feeling energized and looking forward to wonderful changes in my life!

\n", "date_published": "2014-04-25T01:30:59-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/04/25/west-virginia-here-i-come.html", "tags": ["Family","Travel","The Farm","Growth","Gratitude"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2014/04/17/farm-fresh-eggs.html", "title": "Farm Fresh Eggs", "content_html": "

\"fresh “Farm Fresh Eggs”

\n

Once you have farm fresh eggs, you realize what terrible reproductions you’ve actually been eating. They are rich and the yolks are a deep orange and they stand up in the pan, not like those pale yellow things that just lay there.

\n

I swear I remember my grandma having chickens when I was very little, but my aunt says she has no recollection of that. I know we had extended family with chickens, ducks, geese, guinea hens, and pheasants. I have always wanted chickens but have never lived where I could have them. One of my dearest friends had chickens. They lived in town and city council had just approved a certain number of chickens per household. The only thing was, you couldn’t have roosters. She got a batch of fancy chicks and was assured they had been sexed and there were no roosters. Well, when the time came, there was a great deal of cock-a-doodle-dooing coming from the chicken coop and the town officials were on her. She tried like crazy to find homes but everyone had their quota and we ended up butchering them, thinking we would at least have some chicken meat out of the ordeal. No such luck. They were so scrawny they might as well have been songbirds. And the whole episode was thoroughly traumatic for all involved.

\n

I have a cousin in WV who had a couple of huge chicken houses where they produced fertilized eggs for the poultry industry. We went to visit once and I was shocked at the sheer volume of chickens and the noise. They did a great job of keeping it clean but man, it was a lot of work picking eggs every day. I asked my cousin if she would send us home with some eggs. I was SO disappointed. I pictured them being like farm eggs but they were worse than store bought because their only purpose was reproduction, not food.

\n

Speaking of eggs, besides the obvious upcoming Easter holiday, Passover is this week. At the Seder, the traditional meal on the first and second nights of Passover, a Seder plate is laid out with, among other things, an egg to symbolize the arrival of spring and new growth. The Last Supper was a Passover Seder. I would like to wish my family and friends a Happy Passover. I have been so busy this week, I forgot to say anything.

\n", "date_published": "2014-04-17T01:30:40-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2014/04/17/farm-fresh-eggs.html", "tags": ["Strong Women","The Farm","Gratitude","Grace"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2013/07/24/clematis-on-the-farm.html", "title": "CLEMATIS ON THE FARM", "content_html": "\"White\n

I have been running around like a chicken today. Trying to get everything done before the next round of travel. This was taken in the front yard at my family farm. My grandma loved flowers. My aunt told me that all the flowers on the hillside beside the house had been lovingly transplanted from the old home place back on the hill. Grandma was a wonderful woman and was a perfect role model for her family.

\n", "date_published": "2013-07-24T02:00:29-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2013/07/24/clematis-on-the-farm.html", "tags": ["Family","Grief","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm"] }, { "id": "http://mashmallowranch.micro.blog/2013/07/19/smokehouse-on-the-farm.html", "title": "SMOKEHOUSE ON THE FARM", "content_html": "\"Old\n

Oh, my gosh! I passed 600 likes!!! Thank you all SO much for joining me on this amazing journey. I’m taking a little break here at home doing some deep cleaning that didn’t get done in the spring. I’m enjoying practicing mindfulness as I do each chore. Very Zen, cleaning the stove!

\n", "date_published": "2013-07-19T02:00:07-06:00", "url": "https://marshmallowranch.com/2013/07/19/smokehouse-on-the-farm.html", "tags": ["Grief","Positive Energy","West Virginia","The Farm"] } ] }