June 22, 2011

A Wonderful Prim Witch Giveaway

A Rusty Thimble Giveaway

Ok, it's not often I post twice in a day. In fact I'm not sure if I ever have. But, I wanted to tell you all about a fabulous giveaway I found this afternoon. Brenda from A Rusty Thimble is offering one of her wonderful primitive witch dolls as a giveaway on her blog. I don't tell you this out of the goodness of my heart. Oh heck no! I am only sharing to increase my chances of winning. I even included a button on my side bar for yet another chance to win. So what I am really saying is "Please ignore this post and do not go to visit http://www.therustythimble.blogspot.com/ because the doll is really not that wonderful. Quite plain and dull in fact. Forget you ever saw this. Please!"
Hmmm........... I was going to post a picture of the poor sorry thing but it keeps telling me the server won't allow. Well, the photo is on my side bar or you could just take a quick peek on Brenda's blog. That's http://www.therustythimble.blogspot.com/





rescues

The Not So Humane Human Race

Maybe it's the hormonal imbalance of being peri-menapausal (like wanting another baby), or maybe it's just that I am a little more educated than I use to be on the subject thanks to PetFinder.com. But, I find myself spending hours scouring petfinders.com looking at all the lonesome little faces needing homes. More likely it's this video I just saw on Facebook of a puppy mill owner in this country, the great lengths taken to get her prosecuted, and the unbelievable injustice her poor dogs recieved in this nations court system.

I won't lie. This video is difficult to watch and I had to go back a couple times to get through it. But, I think it is vitally important for people to know where those darling little puppies in the pet stores and from on-line breeders are really coming from. Please do click on the link below and watch. It's the same footage a court judge saw before delivering his sentance. At the end they tell you the sentance this woman actually got for torturing these innocent animals to turn a quick buck.


Please, please, please do not shop at and support any pet store selling pets. It's not just a matter of not buying a pet from them. It's important not to support their business in any way until they see the light and stop selling pets altogether. We must as nation,  join together to make our voices heard.

If you have room in your heart and in your home please go to your local shelter, humane society, look for a rescue for your breed of choice on-line, or go to http://www.petfinders.com/ to look for that special new member of your family. There are thousands in need. Large and small, young and old, pure bred and mutts. They are rescued from puppy mills and hoarders, picked up as strays who have wondered from home, or turned in to rescues when their owners have lost their jobs & their homes. They come from homes where well meaning people didn't realize the commitment and from seniors who loved their pets but found themselves physically unable to provide after a stroke or alzheimers. Some come from loving caring homes and some come from abusers. Some are strong and healthy and some have special needs. The thing they all have in common is they need loving, caring humane human beings to take them in and make them a part of their family. And if you want to help in another way, you could give financial support to a rescue for all their ever mounting vet bills. Got a stack of old towels you don't need or a pile of dog toys your fur baby has grown out of? A retired pet bed or crate stashed away in the basement? These are all items pet rescues would love to have and will put to great use. As for myself, I have sent in an application to a rescue for the opportunity to foster an unwanted pet. I can only hope and pray to be accepted and be posting my new fosters photo here soon.

Thanks for letting me rant. But then, who would dare get in the way of a peri-menapausal rant, right?   :o/

The Animals Savior by Jim Willis
*******************************
                  
I looked at all the caged animals in the  shelter...
The cast offs of human society.

I saw in their eyes love and hope, fear and dread, sadness and betrayal. And I was angry.

"God" I said "this is terrible! Why? Why don't you do something?"

God was silent for a moment and then he spoke softly,
"I have done something" he replied "I created you."


June 19, 2011

Make-Over Monday

Make-Over Monday

Finally! I got a make-over on my garage door. I hated the big blank white slate on the front of my garage and wanted a new carriage door from the day we moved in. Hubby couldn't get past the fact the the existing door was in excellant shape and couldn't see spending $1,200 to replace it. Men!!! So short sighted! Then one day he came home and told me about a new product the company he works for was making. Not only that, but they were having a fair to introduce the new product and offering it to employees at 1/2 the cost. It's vinyl window frames with dark smoked plexi-glass behind to look like real windows. Just measure and screw in place.
Before

After

Here is a link to the web-site for the windows Just in case anyone is interested -



The garage looked so good I decided it was about time to get a better looking vehicle to park in the drive.

Before
the Plymouth Voyager I bought used and have been driving for 10 years now. The air had quit, the wipers only worked when they wanted to, the passenger power window died,  there was a power steering leak, and every time I closed the sliding doors pieces of rust fell off. It was definately time for it to go.

After
The Nissan Cube
 Brand new and under $20,000. The best, of coarse, is the mileage. It's rated for 27 city but so far we are getting almost 34 mpg city. After nearly 18 yrs of mini vans this is soooo much fun to drive.


June 08, 2011

My Garden - The Peonies are Blooming

My Peonies

In my humble opinion one of the most beautiful flowers in the garden. If it rains the enormous blooms hang to the ground. In a heat wave the flowers only last a few short days. But what a glorious show they give when the conditions are right. Definately worth making a space at the back of the flower bed or set apart as a single breathtaking specimen.










These gorgeous bushes were one of the few plants on the property worth keeping when we moved here 3 years ago. The poor things were being choked out by landscape fabric and rock. I went around each one, pulled the 2" rocks back & cut away the landscape fabric. Then I created some planter boxes around their bases with some leftover cut rock from the walls of our koi pond we built.


Next I spread a nice layer of composted manure around each one. I suspect they have never been fed since they were planted. How could they have with all that rock and landscape fabric? And finally, I layed down 2 layers of newspaper and covered it all with some cedar mulch.

 I detest rock used as mulch in the garden. It's so hard to keep weeded and clean and the fabric beneath always breaks down after a few short years, making an even bigger mess. And then there's the escapies. The rocks that somehow make their way into the lawn for the lawn mower to hit. My first project, after painting, when we moved into this house was to rake and shovel all that rock around the pool out of there and replace it with mulch. Well, it only took me a day to realize that I was definately not up to the task. I also realized that replacing it with mulch would create a real mess in the pool on windy days. So............... rock it is.

Don't forget, you don't have to be outside to enjoy them. They also make great cut flowers. Today is 90+ degree's and a thunderstorm is forecasted for later. So, when I got up, I went out and cut a bunch. A vase for my mother, a vase for a cousin recovering for surgery, and a vase just for me.