Craig's home...

and things went very well for them...

it looks like a future daughter in law is in the makings...

Jody had 3 horses of her own and then boarders them for others...

Craig loves Canada...

Jody's family all live on 77 acres there...

they run pretty much a self contained farm...

like they used to here...

they raise their own food and food for the livestock...

DH picked Craig up at St Louis late Wednesday night...

they got home around 2 am and it was just after 3 am before I got in bed...

Thursday, we all went shopping in Paris...

Walmart, Kroger and tried lunch at a place we used to go, but it has changed hands...

won't be going back...

'nough said...

came home and worked around here for a bit...

took off yesterday for Tuscola...

DH needed to get his safety glasses for work fixed...

Craig needed his sticker for the car...

we shopped at a new Dollar General and it was so nice and big and clean!

a bigger selection of items than any other DG that I have ever been in...

then we went to the outlet mall...

stopped at the kitchen gadget place...

drove around and  there were many empty store fronts...

but lots of people grabbing back to school clothing and shoes...

we ended up doing a late lunch at Monical's...

its a pizza place, but so awesome...

we tried something new...

lasagna, family size...

DH got a salad to go with his and Craig wanted extra breadsticks...

it came with 5...

we all ate our fill and brought home half of it...

the family size was $17...

as cheap or cheaper than a pizza...

the mower guys were here when we got back and so was Doug...

we unloaded and put things up...

Doug had some of the leftovers for supper and then went home...

:)

I think we will be taking them with us the next time we go...

got a load to do today around here...

want to rest up tomorrow...

Craig heads back to work Sunday morning...

DH on Monday...

weather has been perfect...

its 62 here this morning...

humidity is gone, too...

hope your days are blessed...

the sun's coming up...

Craig and Jody in the West Edmonton Mall (largest mall in North America)

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada...

with the paper that had 3 of my photos in it from the 4th of July...

one being on the front page there...

the editor/owner of our weekly paper has a theme called...

News Travels...

when you leave town, you take the latest paper with you...

and get a photo, like this, with the paper and send it to her...

and she publishes it in our weekly newspaper...

meanwhile, back on the prairie...

glads are blooming in their first year...

rose moss is doing good...

loves the sun and the hot...

my view looking down from the deck...

going to like playing in this area and changing it up from year to year...

the ball back in its place...

things are blooming...

and need dead heading...

progress!

I have 3 more bags of seed to sew...

liking this buttery yellow color...

still tweaking here...

but its really a great place to play...

especially on rainy days...

no mud!

we have the cooler days back...

its 62 right now...

and the humidity finally left...

its been awful here...

Craiger lands in St Louis late Wednesday night...

DH will make the 3 hour trip to pick him up...

they won't get home until 2-3 in the morning...

DH headed to work at 4:30...

getting up at 3 in the morning is not fun...

so heading back to bed to finish my night/day?

he took another 3 days off...

so after today...

I have him for five days...

except for the St Louis trip...

and its going to be cooler...

hoping to get some down time while he is off this time...

maybe...

:)

an awesome morning...

before the heat came, we had a stiff breeze, clouds and some raindrops...

which let us knock out a few things...

one right after another...

more dirt in the low places...

the new grass is coming in thick and soft...

waiting for it to seed before we mow...

got a new hydrangea to replace the azalea that we lost with the standing water...

Lime Light...

got the swing put on the frame...

its going to be a month or so before we can get it painted...

the ferns are loving all the hot and humid days and nights...

DH found 5 more gray blocks so we could finish the checker board pattern...

I love it...

roses are blooming and after being dusted, are doing much better and no sign of the Japanese beetles...

these crazy things keep blooming and blooming and blooming!

no sun this morning for the morning glories to open up...

but after lunch...

the sun popped out...

and did it get nasty...

105 heat index!

the worst day so far...

inside digging the central air!

babies update:

Wingus and Dingus did hard food this afternoon with no problems...

they did really good...

and seemed to really like the kitten chow...

so no more bottles for them...

in a bit, I will put in water and hard food bowls in their kennel...

:)

if they do good this next week...

they can be adopted out by next weekend...

:)

weekend blessings!

here they are...

we ended up with 5 new babies yesterday...

they are Annie's babies...

our Annie...

who was supposed to be fixed a couple of months ago through the rescue we work with...

time after time, it was planned for her to go and things fell through...

the rescue is broke...

completely broke, so we were going to pay for her to be spayed...

through their vet that does all the vetting for the kittens...

when the kittens with special needs cannot be adopted out...

they stay with us and we have kept those that rescue helps with...

Annie was one of those double adoption fails...

and from now on, will be ours from here on out...

as soon as the babies are old enough, we will have her spayed...

when we first started working with this rescue group...

it was wonderful and everything worked...

we bottle fed and as soon as they were ready...

they were picked up and moved onto the next stop...

whether it be adoption or the next foster home until they were adopted out...

they were so good about vetting and testing as soon as we could get them big enough...

picking them up when they were on hard food and water...

so we were "open" to take in more bottle feeders...

people who bottle feed are hard to come by...

you have to be home all the time when they come in and are nursing every few hours...

the rescues provide the food and all that you need most of the time...

but our contribution to the program...

besides the time and energy...

is to do this on our own...

and they do help us with our vetting...

we get things done at their cost...

and there are rules you have to follow...

and its been good for a long time...

but the last year or so...

it hasn't been like this...

there is no where for them to go when they are ready...

and we are "stuck" with litter after litter...

so I post them online and let them go for free to good homes with people who WILL vet them on their own and provide them with all they will ever need...

its not easy to do and we are getting so tired of doing this alone...

so we made the decision...

no more...

BUT...

the two that came in came from a neighbor who found them in his garage...

and we do have a coyote problem here...

they would have been killed if left on their own...

their mother is feral...

and we do have a reputation here...

people know we do this and they get dropped off here...

that's fine...

and the rescue will let us vet at their cost for them to get them so we can get them where they need to be...

which is a big help or we couldn't do it...

and all of this is not the fault of the cat part of the rescue...

its the dog part...

the people in charge of the dogs have spent all the money in the rescue...

the dog part and the cat part and the seed money to start the group that was donated years ago...

which you are not allowed to ever spend...

you spend the interest off of it and raise more money in other ways...

and its totally sad when people do things the wrong way...

adoptions are down but the lack of spaying and neutering is way up...

litter after litter proves that...

and people don't seem to get that...

we are fighting a losing battle...

and it won't be long before they will all have to be put down because there is no where for them to go...

and the animals lose...

we simply need more foster homes...

more intelligent people running things...

especially those in control of the money...

and more vets who will step up and stop charging really high fees for having things done...

people won't adopt when it costs more to vet an animal than it does to go to a doctor yourself...

and we know they are over charging on most things...

or they do adopt and never see a vet...

and those people who just want one litter out of their pet and then call us when it happens and they cannot find homes for them and won't keep them their selves...

so, that is why we are not doing any more from the rescue...

and there will be few from around here, too...

we just do not have the resources to keep doing this...

and homes for them are going to dry up when I have used all my connections to get them homes...

PLEASE...

spay and neuter...

donate to your local shelters...

money, food, supplies...

most of the time the budgets are low or gone...

take a furrball home with you!

each one going out makes a big difference...

sorry for the rant...

but I hope this explains where we are right now and what's going on...

and why we have to stop doing what we do...

on a large scale...

pray we can find all of these babies good homes...

babies!

Annie is having her babies...

sorry the photos aren't the best...

but I don't have time for a do over...

4 and 5 showed up just a bit ago and I believe there is more coming later...

will keep you updating and things change...

crazy day here...

she is having them in a box under my computer table here in the kitchen...

she has to be near me and away from the others...

she is doing good and all deliveries have been very easy... 

and...

they are born on Doug's girlfriend's birthday!

Happy Birthday, Paula!

have blessed days!

Happy Tuesday!

got a new table over the weekend...

going in the kitchen...

need to scrub it up and the top most surely needs painted and the inside of the drawer...

will see what else gets it...

going white...

but love the color...

maybe the top and the legs white and leave the rest like it is...

rose are blooming but the Japanese beetles are destroying most of the blooms right now...

we have had a really nice break in the heat...

but its almost over...

onions from a neighbors garden...

we have a heat advisory for Wed- Sat...

one glad is blooming and another will be...

so far...

DH did ok getting back to work after being off...

we haven't heard much from Craig at all...

got some laundry to do today...

and puttering...

napping...

still painting on the frame for the swing...

one more turn should do it...

the bowling ball  gazing ball was turned last night and the bottom painted...

so DH can return it to its pedestal this evening...

making BBQ chicken tonight for supper...

with tons of grilled onions...

got Chinese on the menu sometime this week...

have a sweet day!

what a weekend!

and it went yellow...

very yellow...

and it went there...

going yellow, too...

green beans...

and we have grass...

here and there...

the gully washer we got moved the seed around...

new swing...

DH got it on sale last night for $20...

spraying the frame today...

black...

this will go white later...

and the neighbor found these 2 in his garage yesterday...

Wingus and Dingus...

a little hissy going on around here...

been busy and been sick off and on...

working my butt off in between...

DH had 5 days off...

so different without Craig around, but he is having a good time in Canada...

things are going good around here...

nice a quiet...

really quiet...

have a good week!

he made it fine!

I have nothing ready to post...

but wanted to thank you for the prayers for Craig...

he made it safe and sound!

having a pretty bad day here...

feels like tummy flu...

woke up with it in the middle of the night...

DH is home on vacation and is taking care of me...

:)

prayers for Craig...

he is flying out of Indy this morning...

layover in Minneapolis...

and then onto Edmonton, Alberta, Canada...

will be there 2 weeks...

to meet up with Jody...

a girl he met online...

they have been friends online for 3 years...

this meeting it to see if there is something more than friendship...

in return, if there is something there...

she will come here for 2 weeks in the spring...

Craig has not flown before...

so this is really exciting for him...

I just hope he enjoys the trip there and his time in a new place...

Jody lives on a ranch with cattle, horses, bees and a couple green houses...

it there are no "sparks"...

they will remain friends...

:)

they have this all figured out...

DH took today off to take him to the airport...

and then the rest of the week...

he will have 5 days off, but the heat and humidity will keep us in most of the time...

I will be on "icky" mode...

only out in the early mornings and late evenings when its cooler...

and inside the rest of the time...

I will get a start on the fall house cleaning...

so when fall comes around, I will be outside without much guilt...

:)

stay cool, but still have fun!