bridesmaidia :-)

a few weeks ago all nine of the bridesmaids invaded David's Bridal to look  for their dresses

a great time was had by all.....and.....yesterday the dresses came in!

peter's almost 1/10th of a century!

some bunny loves me!

hershey kiss wedding favors

about 130 to go!

all right baby, snow might be in the forecast, but the lettuce is in!

and the kale and collards, too!

Our trusty backyard assistant, who better leave the digging to me! ;-)

fly surveying the yard

St. John Bosco quote of the week

“This was the method that Jesus used with the apostles. He put up with their ignorance and roughness and even their infidelity. He treated sinners with a kindness and affection that caused some to be shocked, others to be scandalized and still others to hope for God’s mercy. And so He bade us to be gentle and humble of heart.”

new bunnies in the house

Remarkable Trees of Virginia

Yesterday we began our quest for The Remarkable Trees of Virginia with Nicholas and Isaac.  Our first stop was George Washington's Birthplace.    Two  groves of red cedar trees were planted early in the 1900's to frame the site for boaters coming down the Potomac.  In the course of planting the trees, the original foundation of the Washingtons' house was discovered.  Here are Nicholas and Pete enjoying one of the groves in the bitterly cold weather.

 Here is Christine reading from the book about the Hackberry tree the kids are sitting under.  It is about 220 years old, not old enough to have been planted by the Washington family, but arriving on the scene soon thereafter.  The Hackberry has a knobbly, warty bark and convoluting branches that extend in a myriad of directions.  It produces a small berry relished by robins.

back at the grove

The hackberry is in front of a house that was built on the site in the 1930's.  We also got to tour the house which was full of furniture and details that are true to the 1700's, except for the one feature we enjoyed most of all:  central heating!

Afterwards, we drove to Westmoreland State Park, built a roaring fire, roasted hot dogs and marshmallows and enjoyed some knitting while the boys explored the environs and played football.

It felt like one of the coldest days of the year, but, with a sight like this, can spring be that far away?

Quote from St. John Bosco

We envy the shepherds who went to visit the grotto of Bethlehem to see Him, kissed His little hand, and offered Him their gifts. “Lucky shepherds!” we exclaim. And yet there is no reason to envy them, for their fortune is ours, too. The same Jesus they visited in the grotto is in our tabernacle. The only difference is that the shepherds saw Him with the eyes of the body, whereas we see Him with the eyes of faith. Nothing will please Him more than our frequent visits to Him.

Tundra Swans

We were able to identify the swans we saw yesterday near the Rappahanack River.  Tundra swans winter in this area, and return to the Arctic circle  to breed.  We were able to identify them because of their black bills.  The mute swan has an orange bill.

Westmoreland

Yesterday John, Jeanne, Peter, Ken and I headed down to Westmoreland for an outing. 

it was high tide, but there was still lots to see.

 bird prints in the sand--aren't they sweet?

 quiet time on the beach for Jeanne

could these prints belong to a racoon?

wintery scene

I meant to ask the ranger what these channels were used for.

An old house on the property

Ken spotted these lovely swans on the way home, and drove

on a little field road to get a better look.

we spooked them, but what a beautiful sight to see these

huge birds in flight.

Jeanne discovered a new way to hunt for shark's teeth.  In her coat, hat and boots, she stretched out on the sand and proceded to find 184 of the smallest shark teeth imaginable!  I guess they came from a prehistoric microdon shark.  :)

It was a lovely day with temperatures in the mid 40's, and we are so thankful to God for a great visit.

visiting falcons

mouse in the house II

John and Pete worked together to build a multilevel house for Santana Mouse.

Stairs and a living room--how convenient!

and that's the end of that!

John hits the jack pot

     Johnny went by himself to Westmoreland this week and found this handful of megladons.  What a day!!!

new mouse in the house

this is Pete's little mouse "Santana Mouse" (named for the famous football star Santana Moss) meeting Raboo.  Miss Santana has had a tumultuous week.  One morning Ken checked in on her and she was shivering in her cage, which we had left beside the sliding glass door.  It took several minutes in warm hands held near the heating vent and some nourishing cheerios to warm up the little body.  Then a couple of days later, she got loose in pete's room....after an hour of tearful, prayerful searching with Mom and Dad, no mouse had been found.  Then John, Laura, Mimi, Jeanne and Teresa joined the effort, and Laura spotted the AWOL mouse scuttling behind the clothes hamper.  Whew!  We were so grateful!  And Thanks be to God for hearing our prayers!  and Thanks be to St. Anthony for his intercession.

mouse in the house

last night after many tears, much prayer and searching, Peter's mouse was found in Pete and John's bedroom.  Thanks be to God for His Mercy, and St. Anthony for his intercession!!!!

can they coexist?