365 Days and Counting...

 

It's a special day here on the hill for Millie and me.  We are celebrating another year of walking the trails without missing a day.  We just take one day at a time, step by step over the hills and across the meadows, then mark the calendar.  This date reads 365 walks, written in red.  It is worth remembering and recording here.

My weeks of semi-hibernation ended last week.  It was marvelous, and I accomplished much.   It had been my intention to not leave the farm at all during that time, but a couple of trips for food supplies seemed necessary.  I could have made it fine with what was on hand, but Dan thought we should go.  We will work on being better prepared next year.

With all of that behind us, I had a yearning this week to get out and about, which we did one day.  It wasn't any surprise that I found something for the shanty - a desk from which I can write and watch the birds.  I even have a good view of the garden which, hopefully, will soon be coming to life.  

The desk is a bit shabby chic, which isn't my style, but it was sturdy and fit the space perfectly. I could always strip off the paint or paint over it.  I had also been needing a place for two old canvas decoys that I once fell in love with.  They seem happy here.

When rearranging the shanty, I realized that I now had space for more seating, so I brought in a bench from the porch.  There is now space for five inside the Shanty and for two on the porch.   

Dried Zinnias from last year's garden still brighten up the Shanty. I am amazed that they are still so colorful.  I think my little tea party friends are going to enjoy our next gathering here when springtime and warmer weather decides the time is right.

 

I also have a new challenge going on (as though I needed another.)  It is a 365-day sewing challenge that I have pledged myself to.  I haven't missed a day of that since Jan. 1.  I am on a roll and enjoying tiny tucks and ruffles and lace for the girls.  I will be posting more of this work over at Linnie Butts & Co. when I finish a piece I am currently working on.

A Good Fire and a Birthday...

 

The winter storm has come and gone.   With the cold, there came a mixture of freezing rain, sleet and snow which now lays in a solid layer on the ground.  Trekking over the hill required some careful planting of the feet, for sure, but the Mill and I made it fine.  That was our 350th day since last February's snowstorm that kept us off the trail.  Millie made sure there would be no repeat of that this year. :~)   She keeps me honest.  (Dan did roughen up the trail a bit by driving ahead in his side-by-side.)

I pulled my gloves off to get a couple of shots of these shaggy beasts.  These were enroute to the pond for water.  

We were happy to get back inside to a warm fire.  I am always reminded of Ten Bears in one of my favorite movies, "Dances with Wolves."

"He only smiled and talked of simple pleasures.  He reminded me that at his age a good fire is better than anything."  

Tomorrow is Millie's birthday!  Actually, it is the anniversary of the day we brought her home from the animal shelter.  It's hard to imagine that she is already six years old.  I don't want her to ever grow old.  I have so loved and enjoyed this young, intelligent, energetic and oh-so-agile walking partner of mine.   

When these Australian shepherd mix pups showed up in our local paper as the Pet of the Week, we just knew we had found the pup we had been looking for.  When, that same day, we went to the shelter to see Millie, it was love at first sight.  I did not ask to see her brother, but I think he had already been adopted.  

I have about a zillion pictures of my sweet girl, so it was hard to pick a few favorites.  

Our very first trip to the pond...

Many trips later...

Millie's first snow...

Happy Birthday, Millie!  (Will you ever share the story of why you and your sweet brother were

tossed out on a county road on that cold Christmas Eve.  Did the two of you chew up the

family's Christmas tree and all the presents?)

She did love to chew on things, and once even chewed the wiring under our truck so it had to be taken in for repairs.  She won't talk to me about things like that, but we do have some good long talks about girl stuff.  

Millie and I Take to a Snowy Trail...

 

Day 329 (or Day 1,644 if one should count the day last Feb. 15 when, with cold sodden feet, we turned around before having reached the summit of our hilltop, as my son insists I should do.)

Millie was silly and cut all kinds of capers in the snow.

As though she had never seen snow before.

Surely there's something hiding underneath.

It was definitely a monochrome kind of day.  There seemed to be only two colors ~ black and white~ if those really are colors at all.

The farther we walked the harder the snow fell.  The Cannon I had brought along was getting wetter with each step.

Even the water had no color today.

The snow was not as deep near the pond.  Wasn't it somewhere back in Junior High that we learned about bodies of water and their effects on climate?

The snow was flying when we walked the meadow trails.  I was wearing two pairs of wool socks, and it was here that the outer pair decided to eat up the inner pair.  I limped on.  I wondered if Millie's feet were getting cold.

Of course, the old cow puncher was putting out hay for the cattle.  To see them following after the tractor always makes me think of "The Pied Piper."  I wonder if kids today even know that old tale.

The cattle had trampled the snow here on this part of the trail, having taken refuge from the snow in the woods.

Dot paused just long enough for a picture before going on to the hay.

The Shanty looked snug in its blanket of snow, so we didn't go in today.  Millie loves going in and hanging out with me when I potter about there.  

And, of course, there's the "Most Photographed Tree" again, all dressed up for a winter's shoot.  She (I call it a she, but I think it is a boy tree for it has never produced fruit.) wears all colors well in all the seasons, but I think I like her best in white.  The snow was fairly flying by now, so it was not the most becoming of her pictures.  

A Shepherd's Hut...

 

Riding shotgun, as we often say when one of us goes along to "get the gates," is a job that often falls on my shoulders.  It is during these times that I get most of the pictures that end up being selected for winners in our annual Photo of the Year contest.  This one will be hard to beat. 

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The first week of my Winter Hibernation has ended.  I have seen no one except one old Cow Puncher, which I might add is one of my greatest joys.   The mail carrier has been here a couple of times, but even he was gone before I had the pleasure of speaking to him.  I am not lonely.  

 Every day I have focused on being more creative and artistic in everything I do - the way I  dress and style my hair, the way I set the table and arrange the dishes in the cupboards, and even in the way I hang out the clothes to dry.    

This week, I finished reading the Thomas Hardy classic, Far From the Madding Crowd.  It was rather slow reading for me because I often had to go back and reread complete sentences or paragraphs in order to grasp the whole meaning, but I really loved this book. Mr. Hardy surely has a way with words!  I took notes, as usual, and jotted down passages that I liked, then copied them in one of the little notebooks.  I even made a couple of rough sketches.

The sky was clear - remarkably clear - and the twinkling of all the stars seemed to be but throbs of one body, timed by a common pulse.  The north Star was directly in the wind's eye, and since evening the Bear had swung round it outwardly to the east, till he was now at a right angle with the meridian.  - Thomas Hardy

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 But, silly me!  Why should I try to draw and paint a picture of what Mr. Hardy's words can paint thousands of times better?  Or, that I might see oh-so-beautifully on a wonderful clear evening by simply tipping my head and looking upward into the heavens. 

I almost threw the drawings into the trash, but then there was the shepherd's hut - such a solitary and lonely looking little abode that seemed to be setting right at heaven's door.- and I couldn't do it.   I can imagine Gabriel there playing his flute.  Take a peak here at this YouTube video.  This melts my heart!

I have managed to sew some every day, both by machine and by hand which I enjoy so much.  Millie and I have walked the big bad hill every day, and the hubby hasn't yet had to hang out the laundry.  If you happen to be flying overhead and see someone dressed in bright plaids walking beside her ever so faithful and beautiful Millie, it might be me. 

I have a new book to read.  How sweet it is to have friends looking out for me, keeping me inspired and supplied with reading materials.  I know I am going to enjoy this one.  These books make me appreciate Millie even more than I already did.  The wolves are her cousins, you know!

Thanks for stopping by.  Take care!

Mary

P.S. Don't forget to follow the link above to watch the clip of Far From the Madding Crowd.  You aren't alive if you don't love this one.

Looking Back... And Into the New Year

Here we are, Millie and Me, taking a long, last look at our old hill this year.  It was our 314th walk this morning since that oh-so-cold and snowy day last February 15 when I wrote on the calendar, "Our walking streak is broken!"  It had been 1,314 days since we had missed that daily trek.  I felt so sad when we had to turn back that day.  (My son said he thought we walked far enough to count.  He is a great supporter.)  I thought I would never count days again, but that's not like me.  I took another day off, and on the 17th I started counting again.  We now need a thousand more walks to get back where we were on that fateful day.  Will we ever get there?  Probably not, but we sure to heck are going to have fun trying. 

Here on the hill, we are all looking forward to a new year.  I plan to hibernate a bit and take life a little slower for the first six-weeks of 2022.  I want to read some and focus on a more creative year.  I asked the Hubby if he would help.  He replied, "I hope you don't expect me to hang out the wash."  :~)

 The picture below is from earlier this week when I pegged out the bed linens.  The Hubby thinks it is a great lot of work to do this, but I think it is a great lot of fun.  I love the contrast here of the leaves and the linens.  

It's always fun at year's end to look back at pictures taken over the past twelve months.  You know, as I have always heard, "A picture is worth a thousand words."  That's a good thing here for I seem to be better with pictures than with words. 

 The hubby and I have had a lot of fun looking back and have chosen a few of our favorites.  It was hard to choose a Photo of the Year, but we finally agreed on one that we thought deserved the honor.  

This Is Not Montana

Our Photo of the Year 2021

The Blizzard 2021

A Cow Puncher's Favorite

Our first day back on the trail.  Hubby made a pass through here in the tractor to pack the snow.  I still remember how hard it was to walk on those frozen tire tracks.  However, we still left some of our own tracks in the snow.   We were happy to see the sun!

The Old Homeplace

First Runner Up

We both really liked this one.

The Line Fence

We love the colors...

We walk past this little persimmon tree every day, so it gets photographed a lot.  It grows on a little peninsula that juts out into the pond.  No doubt, it is the perfect spot for the fairies that live there.  J. R. R. Tolkien would agree with that, I think.  

Mary's Favorite...

Take care, and happy new year.

I hope it's a good one.

Mary

"May you never be too grown up..."

 I feel safe to say that most of us are happy when the Jolly Old Elf is gone for another year.  He always leaves a tear or two in my eyes, a more compassionate heart, and a ton of inspiration for another year.  But, ah, just to know that there are 364 wonderful days between now and then.  (But, I am just now remembering how much fun we all had playing Bingo.  Maybe we should plan another game night somewhere in between...)

Blogging friends tear at my heart with their kindness and generosity.  And, wow, at their many talents!  I am humbled!  How I have enjoyed finding these cards in the old rusty mailbox at the end of the lane, as well as special greetings found in my computer's inbox.   

Oh, the joy of opening brightly wrapped packages to pull forth beautiful hand-sewn treasures like this wonderful, quilted piece.  I think I have looked at each meticulously placed stitch and have shaken my head in much love and admiration for the friend who hand stitched it.  I always say she is my mentor and reminds me a great deal of Tasha Tudor in her habits and talents, but not in looks. She has the philosophy of "Waste not, want not," and practices it in her everyday life.  I am quite sure she is leaving one of the smallest of small footprints on this earth.  How I admire her! 

Willa Cather once wrote, "...the irregular and intimate quality of things made entirely by the human hand."  I should like to surround myself with those things.  One of my blogging friends is a Master of It.  She makes her own soaps, weaves her own towels, makes her own hand-stamped greeting cards, and the list goes on and on.  I was fortunate enough to receive some of her soap which is just heavenly.  She really is like a sister!

The granddaughters gave me little notebooks like this one.  They know me well...better than I thought!  It kind of surprised me that they knew about them for I don't recall mentioning them.  There is a drawer full of them, so it may be that they have taken a peek at them at one time or another.  It's okay if they have for there's nothing there that I would mind them seeing.  

And, from me to me, and bought with the Hubby's money, I got these prizes from eBay.  What I am going to do with the Linda Brannock pieces, I have no idea.  Maybe just admire them, for they are quite wonderful.  I have already read some in the book and am enjoying it.  Good thing I have new books for taking notes.  (I had almost filled my last one with notes from the book about Wolves in Yellowstone.  I may never get over that one!)  

And, lastly, this little brown paper bag caught my attention when it was left here by the granddaughters.  The tag on it said, "Christmas Party Round Sack."   The paper is quite heavy and sturdy.  The back seam and the round bottom are sewn to form the bag.  One of the girls' Christmas presents was a machine for making doggie treats, so they brought some for Millie in the bag.  Of course, she loved it.  I have been calling her Millie 0-Six (0-Six was the star and the main character in The American Wolf.).  I am pretty sure she has been calling me Mary 0-Six. Yes, pretty sure!  I wonder if any of the wolves have one ear up and one ear down...

Until next time, take care and have a happy New Year.............  And, may you never be too grown up!

                                                                                              Mary