Yippe

Last year we planted this little tree and I noticed that the leaves were all drooping. We have had more rain than normal and thought it might be dying to you can imagine how thrilled I was when I walk up close to it and saw.......



Lot's and lots of new baby leaves!!

Church services

Many churches around the country is cancelling church services due to the virus but there are many services on TV and my church will be live streaming and you are welcome to join in.
https://vineyardnorthphoenix.com/?gclid=CIH7-IONmboCFcU7Mgod6ggARA

Keep the faith.

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James Parks

How I wish there was a picture of him to show but here is who he is...

Parks was born a slave on March 19,1843 in Arlington Virginia to Lawrence Parks and Patsy Clark.

The first graves in Arlington National Cemetery were dug by James Parks, a former Arlington Estate slave. Parks was freed in 1862 at the age of 19 years under the terms of the will of his former owner, George Washington Parke Custis. He still lived on Arlington Estate when Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton signed the orders designation Arlington as a military burial ground. Parks served in the U.S. Army from 1861 to 1929 (69 years) by working as a grave digger and maintenance man for the cemetery.

Prior to his death Jim Parks gave specific locations for the wells, springs, slave quarters, the slave cemetery dance pavilion, old roads, icehouse, blacksmith shop, and kitchens. He stated that all of his grandparents and parents were buried in the slave cemetery. At the time the article was written the Departments of Agriculture was in the process of uprooting the sacred ground for a farming area. It is not known what happened to the bodies interred in the slave cemetery.

At he time of his death he left behind one of the few slave accounts on record from much of the restoration of Arlington House was based. His testimony provided a complete record of the people who inhabited the plantation, the slaves and the Custis-Lee family.

When James Parks died on August 21,1929 the Secretary of War Dwight Filley Davis granted special permission for him to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. He was buried at Arlington. Rest in Peace.

Hidden treasure

Many years ago now I went to my local goodwill to find some cheap picture frames. I got several and one was really small with a picture of a girl with a balloon. When I removed the back I was shocked to find a beautiful hand painted picture...

This is what was written on the back

Looked it up and indeed her and her husband were painters. It is so small but so detailed..

Uplifting Wed. 101 via Pineterest

A President of first's

Stephen Grover Cleveland was an American politician and lawyer who was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, the only president in American history to serve two non-consecutive terms in office and the only President to marry in the White House in 1886.

Cleveland entered the White House as a bachelor and left a married man and father of two. His new wife was a beautiful young woman 27 years his junior named Frances Folsom. Frances was the daughter of a former law partner and Cleveland’s legal ward; Cleveland had literally known her since she was born. When she was 11, Frances’ father died and Cleveland became her legal guardian, remaining close friends with her mother. His pet name for Frances was Frank. Observers thought Cleveland would marry his friend’s widow and were completely surprised when, instead, he married Frances as soon as she turned 21.

In another White House first, Frances and Cleveland’s second daughter Esther became the first child born to a president in a White House bedroom.

Personal

Everyone's home becomes personal because of the individual likes and talents and history of  those that live there. That is why I like to have the antiques I have but I also have made a few items of decor.

This is a little embroidered piece I did many years ago and these two pictures are crocheted pieces then arranged into a picture

So what is in your home that makes it yours?

Uplifting Wed.100 via Pinterest

Quick, cheap and good

Hubby I normally only eat home once a week but we were both sick last night with colds and didn't want to venture out so I threw together this for us for dinner...

Pkg. of macaroni and cheese and a can of tuna and frozen peas and thawed blueberries with a little sweetener and ate on paper plates so no dishes:)

Guest room

I have my parents first bedroom set and it resides in the guest bedroom.

I have two twin beds and this between them.

This is them in this little picture that sits on the dresser

My mother acquired a huge stack of old sheet music so l I created a  collage with them

 and my hubby's Dad's tuning fork.

Here are a couple of pictures that are close to being antiques

Hubby as a boy

Little ole me and yes my Mom cut my bangs hahaha

Uplifting Wed. 99 via Pineterest

Piggy bank

Why is there a piggy bank?

A popular theory is that, in fact, the original piggy bank had absolutely nothing to do with a pig! In the Middle Ages, when metal was expensive, an inexpensive, orange colored clay, called pygg, was the common media for making pots and jars, and was referred to as a pygg jar, for example. One of these jars was often used to hold coins. Eventually, the pygg jar or pygg bank used for coins, surely accidentally, became known as a pig bank or piggy bank! The general consensus is that this evolution transpired a few hundred years ago in England when crafters were hired to make pygg banks and not being familiar with pygg they made pig shaped banks.







The oldest recorded piggy bank in the shape of a pig is claimed to be 1500 years old from Indonesia. If this is so, it precedes the pygg theory by around 1000 years! 










The modern piggy bank, whether made from ceramics, plastic, or metal, has been a very popular collector’s item and gift for children due to its appealing and humorous appearance. In addition to the smile or chuckle we experience each time we drop some change into our piggy bank let us be reminded by the lesson it teaches us! Piggy banks of old didn't have a plunger on the bottom so you could easily remove the coins, you would have to break the bank to get them but the famous phrase “break the bank”, has nothing to do with the piggy bank!

This is my hubby's piggy bank from when he was a little boy and it too doesn't have a plunger and there is a little coin yet in there.

This is a bank my folks had and it is not a pig but a snoopy dog.

Never had the heart to break it so it sits and collects dust. 


My hubby doesn't like to carry dimes, nickle's or penny's so he puts them in this little bank

And right now it is nearly empty

because he gave it all to the granddaughter when she was here last week. She said she thought there was $20.00 and he said $24.00......he was right.

"A penny saved is a penny earned"

Better late than never

My Christmas cactus bloom...

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What a view

A friend of mine took this picture this morning of this amazing moon!

A masterpiece from the Master....

Did you know?

Female hippos have a gestation period of eight months and have only one baby at a time, according to the San Diego Zoo. At birth, the calf weighs between 50 and 110 lbs. (23 to 50 kg). For its first eight months, the calf nurses while its mother is on land, or it swims underwater to suckle. When it dives, the calf closes its nose and ears to block out water. All hippos have this ability. Hippos also have membranes that cover and protect their eyes while they are underwater. 

This is a picture of hippo milk...it is pink!

Was surprised to learn that at 5 to 7 years old, the hippo calf is fully mature, according to the San Diego Zoo and the median life expectancy of a hippo is 36 years.

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A great way to start the new year!

Soup

I have made this recipe a few times and last time I made it I decided to buy two of all the ingredients so I would have them on hand. I was so happy to have them handy Christmas day when we decided we didn't want to go out and all I had to do was throw it together and within 30 min. we had soup and tortillas....yum.

It is good with tortilla chips, tortilla's or crackers.
You can find the recipe here

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from our house to yours!

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Arizona winter

For the most part we are a sunshine state but last week this was the view...

and it was a gully washer....

and made the pool dance.

Blue Whale

The blue whale is gigantic. Generally ranging in length from 80 to 100 feet (24 to 30 meters), the longest one ever recorded was a magnificent 108 feet long.





Here is a comparison picture for you...

2. How much does a blue whale weigh?

These gentle giants weigh up to 200 tonnes, or around 441,000 pounds.

3. They’ve got big hearts

The blue whale's heart is huge! It is about 5 feet long, 4 feet wide, and 5 feet tall and weighs around 400 pounds; its beat can be detected from two miles away. It is so big and adult can swim through it...

4. ...and tongues

A blue whale’s tongue alone weighs as much as an elephant.

5. How big are blue whale babies?

Blue whale calves are the biggest babies on Earth, easily, and at birth already rank amongst the largest full-grown animals. They pop out at around 8,800 pounds with a length of some 26 feet. They gain 200 pounds a day! Their growth rate is likely one of the fastest in the animal world, with a several billion-fold increase in tissue in the 18 months from conception to weaning.

6. They’re loud … and make long-distance calls for free

Blue whales, in fact, are the loudest animals on the planet. A jet engine registers at 140 decibels, the call of a blue whale reaches 188. Their language of pulses, groans, and moans can be heard by others up to 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers) away.

The oldest blue whale they’ve discovered  was calculated to be around 100 years old, though the average life is thought to be around 80 to 90 years.

Microwave poached eggs

I saw this recipe and decided to try it and to my great surprise it works!!!
Fill a large mug with water and crack an egg into it. There needs to be 1 to 2 inches of water above it. With a sharp knife poke a small hole in the yolk to keep it from exploding.
Cover it with  small plate and microwave for one minute. I had a glass mug that I used so could watch it cook and when it was done it floated to the top. I put it on top of a piece of toast and then smashed it to cover the toast and ate it like a open face sandwich...yummy!!! Should have taken a picture:(

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