A three pelican morning...

I had a nice 1-1/2 mile morning walk on my county road. Wish I'd taken my camera along. As I approached the wetland/stream area a threesome of pelicans in formation flew overhead slowly and majestically. Then a blue heron rose from the reeds and flapped its large wings as it circled the marsh. No camera! But I stopped walking and soaked in the spectacle. Sorry I can't share pictures. :)

After my walk I did a few stretching exercises. I highly recommend this book to my "well-seasoned" readers. (Like me.) My mom sent this to me years ago. It had been packed away since my last move and I recently came across it in a tote in the barn. I really needed some exercises for keeping joints working freely and stretching muscles.

Audrey finally got her cast off yesterday! She's enjoying her new-found freedom. I took this photo earlier this morning as Audrey and Hazel did their morning chores, which include keeping the horse's water tank full. 

My car went kaput yesterday. I, being the car expert that I am, thought maybe my transmission was going out. But Adam, after a quick inspection, said it was my muffler. Apparently it's rusted out and will need replacement. Adam and Micah have a good, reliable and affordable mechanic who is also a friend of theirs. So, we're going to have him look at it. So glad for family next door to help me through such moments!

For those who read my blog regularly you know my house is about 50 feet from my daughter and son-in-law's house. This photo (not great) was taken out my living room window. Those are the kids' bedroom windows facing me.

Anyway, about 10 p.m. last night, as I was sitting in the living room watching TV, I heard a little 2 year old voice shouting, "Mama, where are you?" (Micah was in the shower. How dare her!) Then it switched to "Daddy!" and finally to "Grammaw! Grammaw!" (Remember, it's hot and everyone's windows are open. He was standing right by the window yelling as loud as he could.) I texted Micah and said, "Is Chuck (aka Thatcher) yelling 'Grandma!'?" She texted back, "Ha ha. Yeah. He doesn't want to go to sleep and he thinks you'll come over and save him!" LOL. No fear. He was surrounded by family. He just likes to get vocal sometimes. It sure is fun having grandkids next door! :) Micah's got 3-4 weeks until baby #6 arrives. Oh boy! Fasten your seatbelts!

What am I reading, you may ask? A book that I highly recommend.

Bob and I have been watching Charles Krauthammer for many years. I've always respected and liked him, but I like him even more since beginning this book. (I'm only on page 87.) This book is a compilation of 2-3 page pieces he wrote for newspaper columns over many years. If there was anyone who had an excuse to have a negative outlook on life, Charles was one of them. But did he? Definitely not. He was paralyzed from the waist down in a diving accident while in college and was confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of his life. (He passed away a few years ago.) It took him three years to learn to write again. He finished medical school while in the hospital and while undergoing therapy and earned his PhD in psychiatry. Although Bob and I knew him mostly as a political analyst this book has revealed that he was a multi-faceted, good-hearted, joyful and very down-to-earth person. I find myself weeping and laughing, but mostly with a small smile on my face, as I read these short essays. (I really appreciate the shortness, BTW. A quick bit of uplifting writing to read when you get a moment.) He was a lovely man. 

And speaking of lovely, we'll segue to the latest artistic endeavors. But before I show you my ATCs...here's a bit of art by Adam. This is what he painted on Sully and Thatcher's bedroom wall! Love it!

It was loosely based on the technique used in this painting he did in high school.

And on to ATCs. These are starter cards for the Continuous Random Round Robin. (Two more players will add things to them.) The background text on these cards is German in a gothic font and I thought it was really interesting that someone had written a translation of the text in pencil between the lines. (Sorry, but I find that sort of thing interesting, ha ha.)

These next cards were for a Postage Stamp ATC swap. The stamps had to fit the theme "Heads".

Oh, look what I found in a local Little Free Library box. I did have to go through and censor a few photos with washi tape, lol. But overall, it's a fun and interesting book with lots of really gorgeous illustrations. I don't think I would have paid for it, but when it's free...why not?

A few more ATCs. These were for a Pick-a-Theme (PAT) swap. The four people I made cards for asked for themes of: At the lake; bats; owls; and rabbit and moon symbolism. (I had to Google that last one. I guess it's sort of a pagan thing. Oh well.)

And so we come to the end of another blog post!

That's all I've got, folks. :)

Shalom and love to all!

I'll be coming by for a visit soon.