Whoa! What's Going On???

Two posts in three days? Dang... something has awakened an interest in life at least for the moment. I think I will share it with you all. Some background...Carol and I bought 4 okra plants last spring rather than planting from seed. Three died and one survived. Needless to say I knew I wouldn't get to pick enough for even a mess of okra for Carol and I so I just let it grow and watched it throughout the summer. I kept watching for the blooms because they are really beautiful, creamy white and look like a hibiscus. Okra likes to bloom early... I like to sleep late. I knew there were flowers that had to be making because they close up and that's where the babies start but my timing has just been off this summer because I haven't spent much time outside. Today I got a wild hair and went out to run the weed eater around the dog fence. I got about 2/3rds done before I had to take a break and I got to looking around at what I need to do for fall put away and clean up and happened to check out my okra to decide if I could make myself pull it up yet. I DO like watching things grow... I DON'T like pulling stuff up at the end of the season because things look so barren.

But I digress... not only was there an open flower on the okra plant, there were also buds, a couple of ready to pick okra and okra pods that were starting to break open and showing the b-b sized okra seeds. I got a couple of pictures to share with you all... Enjoy!

Family And Flowers...

You all know how I feel about family. We always have such fun and special times when we get together. We laugh, cry, tease and have been known to tell off on each other but always with love.

Left to right... Mary Catherine, the oldest daughter of my oldest brother... my sweet niece that I spent lots of summers with when she was little even before her sibs started coming along. Sometime I'll post up some photos of those times. Nancy Lu is the youngest and only daughter of my sis who passed away when she was 23. Nancy Lu was just shy of 2 years old. She was the first granddaughter after her mom and dad had had two ornery boys. She is also a Leap Year birthday girl. Then there's yours truly, leaning on my sweet Nancy Lu as I have often done in my life. My sis sent me this photo in a note and I just had to share it with you all. It was taken at Nancy Lu's home in Bethany, OK, Labor Day weekend. Mary Catherine and her youngest son (bless her heart she has four boys) drove my big brother up from Ft. Worth for a visit. My sister and one of her boys (she also, bless her heart, has four boys) also drove up from Weatherford, TX, for a visit. My middle brother, Walter, and my cousin Carol drove in from Meeker to join with us and have a mini family reunion for the day. Anyway I love the picture and wanted to share a bit of the fun with you all.


In my life, here in Oklahoma, fall and mums go together. My Carol's birthday is in September and I would imagine there hasn't been a birthday for the last 20 + years that she has not gotten at least one mum and usually several. For her 70th birthday last year she requested no gifts from friends that came to share that milestone. When they persisted her sister and I said just bring her a mum. They did just that. This one is one I brought home for her this year. There is a grasshopper hanging around on the right hand post of the flower pot.


This is one of the 70th birthday mums that we managed to keep alive through the heat of the summer.

What a payback for our efforts to keep it alive. It is a beautiful, clear yellow and has been full of blooms. Carol always has me trim off buds until the 4th of July and then one time after that she has me just pick off the buds, not cut them. Then we let 'em rip. I don't know where she got her info on doing the mums that way but it has sure worked all these years.


This is another of the birthday mums we managed to keep alive. This red isn't as densely packed as the yellow but it has really been strutting it's stuff and putting on a show for us.

We lost a couple of the other mums and several shrubs as well as our tomato and pepper plants but we are thankful for the ones we managed to keep with us until the heat wave finally broke and we started getting more normal temperatures.





I want to show you something new that is new to us...

The seeds were gifted to me by the young man that does my hair. Besides giving the best haircut I've ever had, Dude loves to grow flowers as much as I do.

I think I've told you about the quote that I've carried with me for probably 40 years...

"Not By Bread Alone: After Hippocrates", by James Terry White (1907) that reads:

"If thou of fortune be bereft

And in thy store there be but left

Two loaves, sell one and with the dole

Buy hyacinths to feed thy soul."


Dude said these are called hyacinth vines or some people call them Hawaiian bean vines.

The blooms look a bit like sweet peas or even kinda similar to little orchids.

After the blooms the vine puts on a purple seed pod and since this vine won't winter over in our Oklahoma zone 5-6 so I'll be collecting the pods to be able to grow some more next year. I'll have a lot of them so if any of you want to try these out e-mail me with your address and I'll send you some seed.

I had 8 or 10 seeds that I basically just put at the northeast corner of the trailer thinking it's already June and I don't know if these will make or not... If I had known then what I know now I would have also put a trellis with them. They are climbers and have gone all over. It's been great. Even in the heat the vines flourished. They were in the same bed as the mums so they did get watered but I was totally astounded at how well and how fast they grew. They new leaves are light green with purple veining.


These are the purple seed pods and there are a bunch of them. I would be interested if some of you that live further north would be able to grow this vine as it seemed to sprout from the seeds quickly and grew fast as a weed and all over the place. I didn't mind that because I like the looks of a wilder garden but next year I'll put a trellis for them to climb. I have an idea for one I'd like to make myself that I think would show off this little beauty. I'll keep you posted on that little project.


Well I've sure been way longer winded with this post than I have been in a long time and you know what? It feels pretty good! Maybe the meds are getting me back to somewhat my old self.

Let's hope so... and let me know if you want to try out some of these hyacinth vine seeds.

More Spreckles, Anyone?

I had such fun with my last post that I decided to post up my second choice photos...

Spreckles is such a cutie that I figure you all won't mind some photos that aren't quite as good as the first batch I posted. Not that they were great, just maybe a little sharper and such.

My silly girls were barking and Jenny was checking to see who was making all that racket. Spreckles was still eye-balling that tall thing with the black box in front of her face.








Here's one I snapped as Jenny was walking up to check for treats and the baby was paying close attention.

Are you sure it's okay, Mom? I want to meet this new person...














Mom says, dang, no treats I'm back to the grass but Spreckles had more studying she wanted to do.

She was really concentrating and taking me in so I was really careful to not make any sudden moves and just talked to her quiet-like telling her she was as sweet as her little momma.







We've had several inches of rain the last two days so I expect when I go out next week there will be some green grass in the photos. I was going to take pictures of the ponds out behind the house but they were down so low it was depressing so I chose to do the happy baby post instead.

Friday while I was there they had a semi load of hay delivered and that's the first time in a long time they've had to buy hay but the heat and drought of the summer is one of those things that the farmers and ranchers have all had to deal with this summer. So if you see beef prices increasing you all know their expenses went up---- a lot this year.






So you all enjoy the 'seconds' of Spreckles and Jenny out on a beautiful fall day and I'll get more pictures when I go out in a week or ten days again.

Happy Monday, y'all!

Spreckles...

Remember when I wrote about the new surprise baby? Way back in July... the 9th and how I had to get out to the country to take some photos to share of the little cutie patootie?

October 6th and I finally got out here for a visit. Took my camera out this afternoon and, just for you all because you are all so special to me, I took a bunch of pictures and she is even cuter in person. Or donkeydom or real life or whatever.



Here's the cutest 3 month old I think I've ever seen. Donkey or human. But then I tend to be prejudice towards four-legged critters because I don't have to worry about changing poopie diapers if I'm stuck alone with them for any stretch of time. Babies know, like cats, when people aren't comfortable with them or their poopie diapers, babies not cats. I wouldn't change diapers on a cat either but I digress...

We are talking about this little cutie.

Spreckles.




Check out these wonderful ears, the fuzzy forehead and the cute little nose... a baby's curiosity.























I love how she and her momma would act like they were grazing, all the while checking out that 2-legged critter with a funny black thing in front of her face...


I love how the little fuzzy butt stayed real close to mom while checking me out. I squatted down to be less imposing to the little girl and I talked to sweet Jenny who remembered my voice and ambled over to see if I had brought her treats like I did when I was living out here. I didn't have any but by mom coming to me Spreckles was way more comfortable for her photo shoot.




Okay, Ms. Gardner... I'm ready for my picture to be taken...

While this is not the best photo of her I had to put this shot in because I was telling Cuz and Walter how the way her fur was growing on her face made her look like she has 'mutton chops' growing down her little cheeklets.

Anyway, my girls and I are enjoying a couple of days of unfettered (unleashed) walks, the girls are smelling every leaf and blade of grass and are enjoying their strolls with Spud and sometimes Lucky, my cousin Carol's Jack Russell indoor dog and the found Lucky with the gimpy paw who watches over things on the outside.

It's been too long since we've been out to visit in the country but with the extraordinary heat of the summer and me feeling so lousy for so long... well, it has been too long away. After watching the girls run and buck with Spud I won't be staying away this long again. I will need to get treats for Jenny and Spreckles and start the spoiling again. It's too much fun to scratch their long ears.

Finally!!! Some Good News!

Maybe the GI does have a clue... I got my blood drawn yesterday and made my appointment this morning with my doctor and he came in with a small smile on his face! The highest out of range function is dropping and the two that were lesser out of range have dropped into high normal range. Yahoo!!!

The best part is I can go from 40 mgs. a day of the steroids to 30 mgs. a day for the next two weeks then drop back to 20 mgs. for 2 weeks until my next blood work and appointment. Thank you Lord... Those steroids wreak havoc with me, especially my rest and if I don't get my rest I'm a grumpy, growly lump that just wants to be left alone by all except my girls and sometimes even SueSue gets on my last nerve. Chloe is always sweet and wonderful and as content to lay around as long as mom wants to...

Reporting on the melatonin the shrink wanted me to try... I think it is helping me to rest better. I seem to be going to sleep easier and feeling more rested. I do seem to have more drowsiness to deal with when I do get up but once that passes I am feeling pretty good. I even started painting the kitchen. Will wonders never cease...

Anyway, let me say that I appreciate you all putting up with all this medical boring stuff simply to support my struggle with dealing with scary health things. More than I can say I am thankful for each and every one of you holding me up and being there when I needed to yell and vent and cry and know it's okay to let my guard down. More than words can say.

I've Been Too Long At The Fair...

I wish. Of all things I enjoy doing one of the top things on my list is going to the State Fair. It is one of those things that Carol and I both enjoy. We don't care about the rides but we love to go through all the buildings... Seeing all things from quilts, woodcarvings, photographs, butter sculpture, all sorts of crafts and foods... pies, cakes, cookies, canned goods, on to cut flowers, veggies of all sorts entered and hoping for best of show ribbons and recognition from their peers.

We like to look at all the things the school kids make, create, draw, paint and, again, cook and enter for perusal and judgement feeling their excitement emanating from their works or perhaps that's just my over-active imagination and recall from back in the olden days when I would enter poster drawing contests in grade school and be so excited, especially when news would come back that I'd won a ribbon... recognition for my creative abilities.

We also enjoy sampling a variety of "fair foods"... We both have our favorites and what we usually do is buy something, share it, wander and look some more, buy another food, share it and wander on to the next thing... for sure we always end up with a funnel cake, usually taking it to the car as we leave to munch on as we drive home.

This year none of the above happened. We would like for it to have happened, I mean we aren't getting any younger you know, but due to financial problems (van troubles that needed repair) and my feeling lousy and having doctor bills to pay... We didn't go to the fair.

But I digress... I've been too long from my blog. As I had shared with you all I have been having a hard time dealing with depression. I went to my GI on Sept. 13th for my appointment. My liver enzymes were still off, including another one that hadn't been up before. I've really got my doc scratching his head now. I told him that I really was not trying to be his difficult patient and he said if this keeps up I'm going to end up at the Liver Center at Mercy or Baptist Hospital. Geez. And as if I wasn't sleeping poorly enough, he jacked my Prednisone, a steroid, to 40 mg. a day and put me on Imuran, the long term med he had said he was going to prescribe after that first month of steroids got my ducts settled down which they didn't but he started me on the Imuran anyhow. It takes a while for the Imuran to build up in my system and he will start reducing the steroids a bit at a time. If any of you have been on an extended steroid regimen you know how it can mess with you. The news of possibly having to go to the hospital for tests was not exactly the news I was hoping for when I went to my appointment and I came home angry, frustrated and even more depressed. Am I ever going to feel human again?!

I called and made an appointment with a psychiatrist. I went to see him today. He upped my Cymbalta and also had me get some homeopathic stuff. Melatonin to try to help me rest and B-50 to help do something else, fish oil for something else and a prescription for folic acid to help with the liver. Don't misunderstand me... I'm more than willing to try this regimen for the next month and will try to document if it helps and at my next appointment we will determine if there has been any improvement in the depression. If so I will continue taking the vitamins along with the antidepressant and if not we will take the next step whatever that may be.

So I bit the bullet and took your all's advice and, better late than never, made the call for help. I hope that I will be able to soon report that the black cloud has lifted and is finally under some form of control. Better living through chemistry, don't 'cha know... Seriously I knew I needed some help to break the cycle but just kept putting it off thinking I could pull myself up by my bootstraps like I had in times before but I just didn't have the reserves this time. I think the extraordinary heat of the summer, along with the physical ailments that I've been dealing with the last 8 months just wore me down so I want to thank you all for standing behind me, encouraging me to get some help to deal with all this... You probably should have been kicking me in the butt to get me to move on it a little quicker but at least I'm in the works now and will follow through until at least my mind is better...

My next blood work and GI appointment is scheduled for the 27th of this month. I'll keep you posted on what is determined at that appointment. But I will post something between now and then so you all will know I'm still alive!

I will try to not stay quiet for this long again. Thanks to each and every one of you for checking on me and encouraging me. And I really, really mean it.

Another Ringy Dingy...Flower And Veggies...

My hens and chicks and other succulents came out strong and happy to show their colors, oh joy, oh joy. Spring is coming.

Let's burst out with all our blooms to celebrate!












Let's throw out beautiful color to welcome spring...











Fifty one days later. I've never lost hens and chicks to heat and am praying that these are not truly gone but will come back next spring.


















They look like someone tried to blowtorch them... and I guess in a sense that was true.












Sunflower turning it's face up toward the sun, celebrating...















Now... they can't even hold their heads up...















Ah, beautiful lantana. So bright and vibrant in it's color.
















This plant has thrived! It has at least doubled in size and has been blooming it's branches off.














The yellow and white lantana and the beautiful blue plumbago that so delighted me with the colors looking so good together...











These also have loved the heat. I wasn't too surprised about the lantana but the plumbago did surprise me. It looks so delicate but it must be tough as iron to have survived the heat.

I'll be getting more of both those plants next year just in case we have another hot one... but I'm praying that we don't have to go through another summer like this one in my lifetime.

I've shared with you now some of the good, the bad and the ugly. I hope your summer wasn't as tough on your garden as it was on ours. The weather forecasters think we here in Oklahoma will hit the 50 days over 100 degrees F. by Saturday, but having had a break with several rounds of storms will make the rest of the summer bearable.