The Cottage

Since Fall is falling upon us I take one look back at the place where all is simple and peaceful....the cottage. I love bringing a few books, my one pair of slippers, a few clothes and just relaxing....I rarely fix my hair and I can just be a mess. Games at night are the rule or tricky puzzles to keep our brains going. Here are a few shots of our place. This was September and the winter winds have already arrived so it looks a little fierce. Nothing like the balmy breezes of summer...but worth gazing upon with fondness.....

Keep away everyone !!

We love visiting lighthouses along the lake and climbing to the top!!!

The best kept secret of the midwest, which I am about to reveal, is Lake Michigan. Where in the world can you get fresh, clean water...beautiful white sandy beaches and hardly anyone in your way?? Yep, Lake Michigan. It only takes from 5 to 9 hours to go up the west coast of Michigan and stop at the numerous beaches and state parks. All the way up to the Sleeping Bear Dunes and on over to Mackinac Island...there's hardly a prettier place on the planet. We love to spend our summers there and enjoy a quiet and restful time taking long walks on the beach and over to the pier. Shopping in Pentwater and getting ice cream is a rite of summer. Here's a few pics just to give you the flavor...and no crowds. I saw a few great t-shirts this summer about Michigan. One said "Lake Michigan...shark free" and another said, "Lake Michigan, unsalted". So true. People always ask me if these are pictures of the ocean, HA, they have no idea how close a real paradise is to Ohio. But keep away, we want to keep it that way!

Can you say Stinker?

My granddaughter Kalle is the most adorable stinker on the planet. She can control just about all situations...and really has her grandpa wrapped around her little finger. She is destined to be a leader...even if she will be small.

Where does Peanut Butter Come from???

This is Crazy Richard in the factory checking on the finished product before shipping to the grocery stores.
The peanuts are cleaned and graded and put into these enormous bags for shipping to the peanut butter factory. The bags are only used once and then recycled.
This darling little peanut plant is only a few weeks old. It will get yellow blossoms that will then shoot out a stick that will poke into the ground. From that stick will grow the peanuts underground.
This tractor is planting the rows of peanuts. They are planted in rows of 2, close together. The Tractor is GPS guided and knows exactly where to go and how to make the rows straight. This farmer owns about 12 or 13 tractors and they cost over $250,000. each He's a small farmer compared to some others in Georgia. The best peanuts in the world are grown in Georgia.
This is afreshly planted field. Once the plants sprout they will be watered by big sprinklers overhead.

Nature finds a way !

Is this not the cutest bird nest? It's actually in our fake Christmas tree right outside our store entrance in Downtown Dublin. Not that Dublin is a sprawling metropolis but...people are in and out this door all day. There's 4 eggs, speckled blue, all neatly tucked into this perfect orb of sticks, mud, straw and cigarette butts. The nest started out with 6 eggs but 2 of them were unceremoniously kicked out one morning. We found them smashed on the pavement, unworthy and perhaps not viable. Mother knows best. We're all awaiting the hatching and hoping we don't make a wrong move and scare the mother away..and leave our 4 babies abandoned.

Why Crystal Bowersox won't win American Idol

I'm going out on a limb here but I think I can make this prediction, even though I'm going against conventional wisdom and just about every odds maker in Las Vegas. I don't think Crystal Bowersox will win American Idol and here's why:

1. Yes she has a great voice but what matters are the voters.

2. The voters for American Idol are like me. We don't like piercings and dread locks, sorry, but it's the truth. In the past we've voted out Jason Casto, that gorgeous chick with the blonde hair and heinous arm tatoo and even last season's Adam Lambert...well, he was tremendously talented but not really mainstream. Moms and Grandmas like me vote for mainstream.

3. Most mainstream winners are nice, clean cut, sing nice songs and don't have purple hair. You may get far with your kookiness but guess what....Me and my friends aren't voting for you. And yes, we have iPhones with unlimited AT&T texting plans and so do our nieces....who write down everyone's numbers and vote for the cutest girl and guy on the show. Just look at the untalented Tim Urban. The girls love him and he's a nice guy, but can he sing....? Not very well, especially compared to Crystal Bowersox but hey, she's got way too many things going against her. We'd even vote for her with those bad teeth (her parents fault) ...we voted for Elliot Yamin, but she won't win with that hair and that pierced face. At least I'm not voting for her. Yep, my girls and I voted for Donny Osmond on Dancing With the Stars and yes he won. I guess we'll see. I certainly like that Michael Lynch. He's a married man with a baby and an adoring wife, we vote for guys like him.

March Birthday Fun

It's just great to have Sundays at the Sonksens !! We love having the kids from the ward over!

Indoor Flowers 101

Not that I'm any expert, in FACT, I'm the one who always killed houseplants. I always told my family "don't give me live plants, I hate to water and they die". Well, I've found one plant that is great indoors, geraniums! I just dig up my outdoor geraniums in the fall (instead of letting the frost kill them). Plant them in pots with store bought potting soil and bring inside! Voile ! As long as they are in a sunny spot, they will bloom all winter. I even have one pink one from 2 years ago that is still going strong. Yes, I DO have a sunny room and that must be the key, but I think any reasonably sunny location will do. Last summer, 2009, I made sure to plant red and white geraniums outside so that when I brought them in, they would bloom by Christmas and not clash with the Christmas tree and trimmings. The year before I brought in all pink geraniums and they looked a little funny in December. I also recommend African Violets, they seem to be pretty kill-proof and sure look great when in bloom. Spring has sprung and my outdoors looks great, but my indoors has been blooming all winter long!

This is me and my wonderful Dad, Bruce Walborn. We are at my parents farm in Hart, Michigan at Christmas. It's one of my favorite places in the world and so beautiful every season. I love snow and they have tons of it. I love my Dad more than anything...what can I say? This past summer my daughter Kimberly said to me, "You really have an awesome Dad, don't you!" I said, "Yes, kind of like yours! Aren't we lucky girls!!!"

Hello 2010

I've discovered something about myself in the last few years...January is my favorite month! Not just because my birthday is almost here (in February) but because everything's over...the Holidays, the past year, the shopping and decorating...the craziness of working in a place that has a retail shop AND an online catalog business...and now it's time to relax!! I typically head right down to Florida to see the grandkids but it's freezing in Florida and their heater is broken (probably because I never knew they had one since they never use it). So...I've got a few projects going (top secret) and for all I care it could SNOW all winter. The more the better. I love it, especially since I don't do any of the shoveling. Bring it on...then I'll head to Florida.

Here's the January Birthday bunch from the Singles Ward: they are cute: Alyssa and her men.