A Good Day For Tatting

With hot, hazy skies, and temps to match it was a good day to be in the house where it was in the low seventies despite 95 degree weather outside. Built of cinder block in 1910 the house cools down quite nicely when the windows are opened at night as long as the temperature outside drops to the sixties. The key is to close the house up before the sun peeks above the horizon in the morning.

I make a habit of checking on all the animals several times a day when I know heat can cause discomfort, and to make sure water is available to all. Today the animals really felt the effects of the heat. Even in the shade the chickens were panting and holding out their wings from the side of their bodies. The rabbitry was too warm for comfort, so I moved the rabbits to a shady area under the big elms where they could feel a breeze on their ears, and thus, cool their blood. The goats and mare seemed to fare better than the other animals. The heat didn't keep them from grazing in the sun although shade was available for lounging.

Even though the coolness in the house felt good when I came inside, I couldn't resist being outside off and on throughout the day. If the sun is shining, I'm usually outside working. But today I sat in the shade with a cold, iced tea and tatted awhile.

What is nice about tatting is it doesn't take up much room. With just a small shuttle (or needle) and a ball of thread I'm good to go. And if I stop to do something else, I can pick up where I left off just by counting double stitches. So, in my ventures to and from the house to sit in the shade, or out to check on the animals it was a good day for tatting.

To Hear Her Laugh...

She talked about Uncle Gary regularly. He was quite handsome, and she loved him dearly.

Twice a week she gets her hair done. She felt it was important for a woman to look good.

She would tell me to eat right and get my sleep. And she meant it. She knew what would happen to a body if it wasn‘t cared for. And she would tell me at least twice a day, “you know, you’re not getting any younger”. She would laugh every time.

We share a love of books. How they look on the shelf, the feel of them in our hands, the smell of the pages as we turned them. We agreed that reading a book was the best.

Her precise and well designed quilts are beautiful. She inspired me to create quilts of my own.

Guaranteed she would tell me she loved me at the end of every phone call. I am so thankful she is a part of my life. Our visits were wonderful. Spending time with her made me realize how much I love her, and wish I would have taken the opportunity to develop a relationship with her when I was younger.

I pulled the photo albums from off the top shelf and took them to the kitchen table. As we sat there looking at old family photos she would tell me about relatives I never knew, and about ones I remember as a child.

She would tell me stories of when her and my mom were growing up beginning in the late thirties.

When I was in Hadley the first week of May we began to write out our family tree. With Mom's help I hope to  fill in the rest. My Aunt Louise passed away May 25, 2012.

Oh, what a joy to hear her laugh.

Pencil drawing I did of Aunt Louise
when she was young

Miss Kitty's Kitties

When I ventured out to take care of the animals Saturday morning (April 21) Miss Kitty was waiting for me at the rabbitry door. Looking down at her I noticed her belly wasn't as wide as she is long. She had finally had her kittens. But where? As usual, she was all purrs. She wasn't giving me any answers. I wouldn't find out where her kittens were until that evening when I went out to take care of the animals again. At that time she wasn't around so I called her a couple times and found her making her way to me behind the rabbitry up on the roof. Ah ha! I knew then her kittens were close by. So, searching I went. They weren't under the goat feeder or in the goat hut. They weren't in the first huge tire, but they were in the second one. The tires are full of sawdust and straw in the center, and right up under the rim was her kittens. Actually an ideal spot to have them since they are out of the weather, and when the sun shines they are comfortably warm.

Miss Kitty's kitties