Easter Bonnet

Easter bonnet??? Not really, but I saw this fun flowered blue and white hat at K-Mart yesterday and had to have it. Where will I wear it you ask. Well of course to orchestra. Our trombone player, who just happens to be a very attractive young woman, wears one made of grey wool to practice and we love it. I figured why not a nice flowered one now that spring is right around the corner :o)

More Dvorak

Here's the 4th movement of Dvorak's 8th Symphony done by my favorite group of young people: the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela. Have a listen to the darling gal play the really really difficult flute solo at 2:16. I am glad I'm not the first first. I practice it along with all the rest, but am not having much success. If anything happens to her and I end up having to do it ...good grief !!!!

Carneval

Eeeeeeeeek....this song is soooooo hard. I'ts Carneval by Dvorak and I don't think we'll ever be able to play it at the tempo. I do loooooove this slow part at 3:37.

Ayn Rand

I have yet to read Atlas Shrugged or any other Ayn Rand books, but she has always fascinated me. I came across this 5 part interview with Phil Donahue and had to share :o)

Part one

Part two


Part three


Part four


Part five

And for something altogether different, is the name of our country's president really Barry Soetoro?

Good Grief

Good grief...remember the old days when women tennis players dressed differently.

They said, "No, Hillary, don't do it. Please we're beggin' ya."She didn't listen. On top of that, I'm thinkin she's had way too many state dinners :o)

Now for something very different.

Mother

One of my sisters recently discovered this poem, written by our grandmother. It had been published in a book titled Evergreen Leaves, a collection of mostly women poets from the northwest, published in 1941, in Seattle. We think the location she had in mind was the farm where she grew up in Iowa.

The picture I included is grandma Dawn, taken in probably 1938, holding my sis on the right and the granddaughter of a dear friend on the left.

Mother

At meal time it was mother
Used to wash my dirty face,
Comb my tangled curls,
And tie my bib in place.

At bedtime it was mother
Tucked in little tired feet,
For mother’s hands were gentle
Though browned by sun and heat.

And in summer it was mother
Hoed the garden row by row,
Then by lamplight made our dresses,
Late at night would sit and sew.

Mother planned our schooling
And gladly went without
So we could have the chances
She had only dreamed about.

I can see the swing and hammock,
The old orchard where we played,
See the pasture with the footpath
To the creek where we had strayed.

But the picture that is dearest,
Is of mother’s wavy hair
As she bowed her head in blessing
When she said our evening prayer.

DAWN GOODNOUGH

Sleep Over

Last night was sleepover time for Bergen and Ingy because mama and daddy got to go out and celebrate their anniversary with a sleepover at Alderbrook Inn on Hood Canal. We moved the top of the guest mattress into my room and plopped it on the floor at the end of my bed. The girls brought their own pillows, pillow pets and blankets from home, so all they needed was one big soft blanket to throw over them and they were as snug as a bug in a rug.

Sewing

Bergen is having her first sewing lesson on her new sewing machine. A few months ago we were at the Goodwill and she found a toy sewing machine. We bought it, brought it home, put in new batteries and of course it didn't work, so we took it back, got our 5 dollars back and that was that. For Christmas I looked at small, cheap sewing machines for her, asked the clerk about them and she said in a nice way, that they were crap. So, I decided to splurge. I bought her the machine you see and a nice sewing box filled with sewing necessities, plus a pattern for her American Girl doll. We'll take things slow and easy and who knows, maybe she will learn to love to sew :o)

Side By Side

I check the Mt. Rainier site every morning and this is what I saw when I clicked on the west view. Two plows, side by side, clearing the way for anyone interested in visiting Paradise.

The temperature at 62 feet above sea level is 49 degrees at 8:00 am and it's pouring so I doubt from the looks of the trees and road that there was much snow to clear today.

Just for fun. And, for a bunch of nonsense, but fun comments, this is worth a little of your time :o)

Lovin Trains

Jacob absolutely adores Thomas and Friends so this book about the Little Engine That Could always gets a good going over when he comes to granny's house. To be honest, I think we "grownups" enjoy all the little engines just as much or more than the little ones do. As to which is my favorite..not sure if it's Thomas or his friends Spencer, Percy, Ferdinand, Molly, Henry, Hiro, Neville, or the many other take and play toys.

Orchestra Hard at Play

This is what the top row of musicians looked like at our Christmas concert when we played Three Noels. They always come up with a "concert hat" at each concert and of course stocking hats were in order for this one.

There is a new Gig Harbor online news site and the webmaster, Akiko Oda, was at our concert with her trusty video camera and managed to film a few songs. I like this one. We provided the audience with the words and music in their program, and by golly, they sang along and did so quite nicely.

Birthday Girl

Today is Bergen's 7th birthday, but yesterday was her party. She and 16 of her school friends, plus her little sis, filled Art and Soul for some painting, then cake and presents. I popped in for a minute to wish her a happy birthday and then got the heck out of there. As I walked back to my car, my thoughts went back to birthdays when my boys were young and I had an epiphany...that....girls are a lot quieter and more focused at age 7. If that had been 18 little boys crammed in that small room...forget it :o)

For Christmas I bought her an inexpensive Singer sewing machine, and yesterday gave her a sewing box filled with all the necessities, plus a pattern that says it fits American Girl dolls. Grace is her doll's name and poor Grace needs new clothes so let's hope granny can teach Bergen how to build a fine new wardrobe "o)

Heat Ball

I loved this article....I hate the curly french fry light bulbs and have been buying 60 watt incandescant bulbs when on sale. Okay..I have been hoarding them !!!! This enterprising fellow in Germany has renamed them and is selling them as Heat Balls. I think I will put Heat Balls on my shopping list.