blue willow china

Last May, Todd and I were in New York City and while he was doing his “conference thing,” one of the days I was exploring the DUMBO neighborhood, just across the Brooklyn Bridge from Manhattan. I found a really cool store there called Fishs Eddy, known for its quirky vintage dishware, glassware, and home accessories.

I wandered around the store, and when I reached the back, there it was, a HUGE display of Blue Willow dishes.

Boy, oh boy, did that bring back memories.

My grandma had a set of Blue Willow dishes, and when she died my mom brought them home with her. Mom loved pretty china and collected quite a few sets over the years, most of them purchased at estate sales. When Mom left this earth, she had nine complete sets of fine china. One of those sets was the Blue Willow that had belonged to her mother.

I was the one who had the job of finding new homes for all those beautiful sets of china. My sister took one set, my two sisters-in-law each chose a set, and my two daughters each said they would like one as well. (By the way, those dishes are still in my storage room). No one wanted the Blue Willow. I advertised the dishes, someone inquired about them, and I took them up on their offer. It was sad to let the set go, but I found comfort in knowing that someone would appreciate and use them, and in some small way Mom’s love of beautiful dishes would live on.

Standing there in Fishs Eddy and looking at that huge display of Blue Willow, I realized how much more than dishes they had been. They were pieces of my family’s story - my grandma’s, my mom’s, and mine, and for a moment I was back in Mom’s kitchen, surrounded by memories.

I stood there for a bit, smiled at the Blue Willow china display and walked away with a reminder that sometimes the things we inherit aren’t meant to stay with us forever. Sometimes their purpose is simply to connect us to the people we love and bring back precious memories.

happy birthday to my #4 child

Happy Birthday, sweet child of mine! (This was our song for the mother/son dance at his wedding). He always makes me laugh....even when he was in trouble he could make me laugh and charm his way out of being grounded for life. He always gives me a big hug...even when it wasn't cool to hug your mom he would hug me in front of his friends...and he still does. I've watched you grow from a little rascal to a remarkable young man and now to the best husband and dad. I love this kid. Wishing my fun and forever boisterous boy a happy, happy birthday!

the friday feed: sweet corn

A true taste of summer is now a memory. Sweet corn season has officially come to an end - the last ears were sold on Sunday.

People have been stopping by the stand, asking (and hoping) to find a bin full of corn, but nope. Those days are behind us for another year.

Sweet corn is such a special seasonal treasure. My favorite way to enjoy it? Right on the cob with butter and salt. Simple and perfect.

 

20 points

20 points here! 

Yesterday was my birthday, so I guess, according to this chart, I’m showing my age… but I’m not going to share 😊

Here’s a clue: I’m a Baby Boomer—the only generation in human history to have experienced a fully analog childhood and a fully digital adulthood.

We grew up without the internet, smartphones, or social media, and then watched the world transform into one where those things became part of everyday life. No other generation will ever cross that particular bridge again.

• The first time I used a fax machine was during my first real job after college.
• Rotary phones…the first phone number I remember was when we lived in Owensboro, Kentucky. 683-0669 or MU (Murray) 3-0669.
• I still use my AOL address. 
• I have a film camera but haven't used it for a long time. 
• I send postcards to my grandchildren and friends when traveling. 
• When I was pregnant with our first child, Todd and I had gone to my parents' house for Sunday dinner and I didn't feel well. I laid on my brother's waterbed while they enjoyed a nice steak dinner. We went home and about seven hours later our son was born.
• The car dealers still put a paper mat on the front seat floors when I take my car in for a service. Restaurants also used paper mats.
• I still enjoying flipping through a dictionary.
• VCRs...I think we got one in the early '90s when we had a house full of kids. My girls wore out their Beauty and the Beast video cassette.
• I wish I still had my typewriter. They're making a comeback.
• I use a checkbook on occasion. To show you how much we use it, our current checkbook register dates back to 2020. 
• I still write in cursive but print a lot, too. Schools stopped teaching cursive around 2010. I disagree with the powers that be who made that decision but hey, it's a digital world now so I guess I'm one of those cranky ladies just showing my age.

wednesday's words and wanderings and wonderings

There's that quote..."Not all who wander are lost," and that's me. There are those times, though...

Alex the farm's bug-ologist, is a very talented young man. He taught himself to crochet and this is his current project. It's going to be a cover for his bed.

The sunflowers are slowly dying so I'm taking photos everytime I'm at the farm.  I love the flecks of yellow in the center of the flower and in the second, of course the bee and then the sun illuminating the furry stem.

The City of Kettering has started a food compost drop-off. I keep a little 1.3 gallon compost bucket by the kitchen sink and it fills up quickly! I do keep a larger bucket in the garage to maintain a once-a-week drop-off.

Another sign of fall...the arrival of pumpkins at the farm. These are the "Instagram" pumpkins; the everyday orange pumpkins will arrive soon.

Last Friday was Dayton's Greek Festival and we got our fill of gyros, dolmades, spanakopita, and loukoumades. We took a tour of the beautiful church. I wasn't in the best spot to take a photo of the main dome, thus the decapitation of Christ the Pantocrator.

And lastly, this guy and his watchful eye stand at a major intersection in town. I wish he could ticket all the red light runners!

more farm insects

I've posted a lot of photos of the bees and butterflies on the zinnias and sunflowers at the farm. They're so pretty. There are other insects, too...spiders!

This vertical line in the orb web is a "trashline" created by a trashline orb-weaver spider. These spiders build a vertical line of discarded prey remains, molt skins, and plant bits through the center of their web. The clustered, lumpy pieces along the string also frequently include the spider's own egg sacs. The line helps hide the spider from predators by breaking up its silhouette or making it look like a piece of drifting trash.

Well, hello! No itsy-bitsy spider here!

The other day, Alex, our resident bug-ologist, said, “Hey! Come over and look at this. Wanna see a wolf spider?”

“Ummmmm…sure. Why not?”

This guy was camping out in one of the tomato trays. Sure glad I wasn’t the one emptying that tray!

As creepy as they may look, wolf spiders are actually good to have around. They eat roaches, crickets, flies, ants, and plenty of other insects. Wolf spiders hunt on the ground rather than spinning webs and are wonderful OUTDOOR neighbors!

monday's mulling: clash of the seasons and other thoughts

Welp… it’s already happening. It’s the second week of September, and here comes Christmas!

I needed some wrapping paper for a shower gift, and this is what greeted me at the Hallmark store: a mingling of Christmas and Halloween. Red and green mixing with orange, black, and gold. Quite the color combination. And FYI, Christmas is only 103 days away.

The Halloween/Christmas combo was the first thing that caught my eye. Then I headed to the wrapping paper section in search of something suitable for a bridal shower. Wrapping paper and ribbon used to cover a good portion of the walls, but that’s no longer the case. I wasn’t impressed with the wedding paper selections, so I chose a fun, colorful design instead.

The ribbon selection was even more scarce, but I managed to find a combination that would work. This was a bridal shower and ribbons are needed for the practice bouquet at the wedding rehearsal - and to keep up with the superstition of breaking ribbons while opening gifts to predict how many children will be in the couple’s future. (She broke three and one of them was my sabotaged ribbon 😁).