Strawberry Pickin'!

A couple weeks ago we took the grand daughter 

to pick strawberries for the first time 

at "Wild Things Farm" in Pocola, OK

She loves strawberries, so she was pretty happy to get to pick some. It's a great way to let kids know that not all food comes from a grocery store shelf.

 Strawberries as far as the eye could see!

They have over 90 acres of fruits and veggies.

2 of the gallon size buckets were all we needed.

 It was pretty warm out, but at least there was a nice breeze. 

 They have fun things for the kids...

a day camp, petting zoo, a lake for fishing, and lots more.

 I loved their pink peonies!

 The peacocks were camera shy.

There were lots of goats, and even a newborn donkey.

The blueberries will be ready next week. We are going back then!

Meanwhile, I have been eating strawberry shortcake like crazy!
Here's an easy recipe.. I use the Hostess shortcake ready made.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend!

Thanks for stopping by!

julie

Trip to Crystal Bridges

Hello All!

We took a trip to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art 

this week in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Thought y'all might enjoy a look at this wonderful exhibit of Artist's work from all over North America.

There are several beautiful nature trails on the grounds, 

each with a different theme. 

Click on the flowers photo for more about the trails.

There were so many excellent works of art! 

 I wish I could show them all!

Too many to keep track of!

I love this country farm family painting.

This was the view looking in to the center of the building.

Art from the colonial period.

The restaurant in the museum, Eleven, uses local produce.

Very reasonably priced, too. 

George was there! 

...and so was "Rosie the Riveter" by Norman Rockwell!

She seemed to be a favorite among the visitors.

Modern Art also. This is a BIG piece of red glass.

This was a very interesting family portrait!

For lots more info on Crystal Bridges just click here to go to their website!

Hope that you all enjoyed my photos!

Have a good weekend!

~julie~

In the Pink

It's the 1st day of Spring!

I thought that you might enjoy a taste of what's to come.

These are photos from my garden a few years back.

 Hydrangeas are my favorite!

It was the 1st year that we grew some green zinnias.

They looked so pretty with the pinks.

Clematis are fragile, but once established, they come back every year!

 

Of course, morning glories are super easy to grow!

Petunias in pink

Looks like we are having an early spring this year.

It's been raining tons since yesterday.

Things will need to dry out a bit before anything gets planted.

Hope to have some fresh new floral pics in the months to come!

Happy Spring!

julie

Possum!

Woke up this morning to this little visitor! The dogs had been barking about 2 am this morning, but we just thought they needed to go out. Well, turns out they must've seen this baby possum getting IN!

I heard something fall off the shelf in the hall, turned around to look, and there was the baby possum trying to scramble over to the closet! He really was a cute little guy, only about 7-8 inches, not counting his tail. DH put him in a box and turned him loose out in the yard. Yikes! I hope he doesn't try to visit again! We think he may have been in the attic and who knows how he got in from there!

Here's a photo of 2 of the "barkers!" We are babysitting the grand dogs for our DD and SIL while they are on vacation. These 2 are pretty spoiled! Not by us of course!! The chocolate cocker spaniel is from when DD and her hubby ran a dog rescue. They have 4 spaniels.

Flea Market Friday is postponed for this week at least.

Just too many dogs, possums, and craziness around here.

I did get a new HP All-In-One yesterday. That's keeping me busy. I am scanning ALL of my dad's old family photos from way back in the 30's-40's, etc. It's fun. I love those vintage pics!Dad is 93! He wants to make cd's for all the kids to keep, before the photos disentegrate.

Hope everyone has a fun, safe Memorial weekend!!

Revisit the Eagle Cam

Good Morning All!

This is just a quick post for those of you that were following the Eagle Cam at the Sutton Center in Oklahoma. That baby is so BIG now!! A Happy Mothers Day to Momma Eagle ! She has weathered thunderstorms, hail, high winds, and even Poppa Eagle, and she still seems so calm through it all! :) You should take a look!!

EAGLE CAM

Happy Earth Day!

This says it all. Enjoy your day!

Got Hummers?

Well, no, I haven't seen a hummingbird yet. But, by now one usually has dropped by to see how many feeders we have out. We are late this season!! They will be up and ready for the scouts by tomorrow!

Meanwhile these are photos from the Butterfly Festival at Mount Magazine Lodge in Arkansas taken in 07.

This is the gorgeous view from the lodge! It was overcast, but still wonderful!

One more photo of one of the many feeders at the Nature Center!

Here's a link to a great site about Hummingbirds:

Hummers Here!

Earth Hour

This event is tomorrow night (Saturday,the 28th) at 8:30 pm. Still time to participate by just turning off your lights for one hour. Sounds like a good idea, saves energy and romantic at the same time! Check it out!



The Empire State Building will also be turning off its lights for one hour. Here's an article on it.
http://www.panda.org/?160441/Empire-State-to-be-Empire-Statement

Spring is Here!

Yeay! Spring is officially here! Sorry, NYC! I noticed it was snowing there this morning! It won't be long though! :)

Here's some pics of my "barely" blooms. Now this was from about a week ago, so I need to get back out and take some more photos. The daffodils are already gone!

The little bee (if you can see him) is my favorite! I can remember as a child there were SO many bees in the yard, you could not go out there barefoot! Yes, I got a sting or two! But I saw this lone little bee the other day working very hard going from flower to flower. Honestly, I did not see another one!! Surely there are more SOMEwhere out there! Our grass has not been cut yet, because what would be left for the bees...for now anyway!

And what would spring be without Baseball!! This is at Baum Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas! Everyone is wearing the green caps for St Patricks Day! Go Hogs!

Thanks for visiting! In the process of a blog makover!! More to come soon!!

Hope y'all have a wonderful weekend!

Eagle Cam...eggs!

Happy Sunday!

I love birdcams! Check out this link to the George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center's Eagle Cam near Stillwater, Oklahoma. Scroll down a bit to see the video. The eggs are set to hatch around March 15th!!

Eagle Cam!

Enjoy!

Spring Yet? YES!!

I think it may be here! It feels like it anyway! Right now, at 1pm, it's 79 degrees! We've been out cleaning up around the yard. I remember now that we haven't done much in the way of exercise lately! Oh my, we both had to come in and take a break!

We have a pair of hawks in the neighborhood (the park is only a couple blocks away) They KNEW it was spring! They were flying back and forth, diving and calling to each other all morning. So fun to see all the birds busily making their nests,too.

Ok, I guess I'd better get back out in the yard. More spring *adventures* to come! :)
Is cleaning the yard an adventure?

Afternoon in the Ozarks

It was a bit hazy & overcast, but none the less a gorgeous Fall afternoon in the Ozark National Forest! We went up the "Pig Trail," which has winding curves over the mountains on scenic Highway 23, near Ozark, Arkansas.

This is Mulberry Mountain, where the Ole Applegate Arts and Crafts Festival is held in the Fall.

It's hard to tell in the photos, but this is a very large place!
The photo below is the music stage.

A view from the bridge of the Mulberry River.



Looks like rain.

Love the old barns!

Here's a link to the Lodge there if you ever want to visit!

Lots of great fun in the Ozarks!

Mulberry Mountain Lodge

Hope that you enjoyed the photos!