Before - After

This is one of my favorites from a little photo shoot I did yesterday. This little gal is just a doll and I love the sprinkling of freckles across her sweet little face. But I know from past experience the subject isn't always real happy with their skin when I get the camera up close and personal. So I did a little editing and smoothed out already picture perfect skin and this is the results. What do you think?

BEFORE

AFTER

Precious Little One!

Caught this little one looking up at her grandma and just had to share.

I got it!

Last October my good friend Becky was selling her antique shop/restaurant and she gave me this faux mantel that she had in her shop. She saw me one day in the store and said, "I will just drop it by your house". Two days later my friend Becky passed away before she had a chance to bring me the mantel.

Now there wasn't anything special about this mantel, I had just liked it and thought I could put it in my Cottage Garden Studio but still nothing special...until Becky was gone, and then like all things, it was just one of the ways I could hold onto her.

The mantel went into her estate and my good friends were going to bid on it when it came up for sale at the estate auction. But that didn't happen! The mantel sold during the few moments that my friend had chosen to take some stuff to her car. The lady who bought it got it and an old wash stand for $14.00. My friend. being the good friend that she is, followed the lady around until the lady consented to selling it to me.

That was last Oct. This March I got my mantel. It cost a lot more than $14.00 dollars to get it from this lady but that was ok, it was a just a little part of Becky that gave me a connection to her, I would have paid much,much more just to have it.

So...............here it is. I can't wait to do something with it. Right now, well it just sits in a corner of the living room but soon it will have a place of honor.

October madness or where I have been all month!!

Oh how fast time does fly, I just can't believe that Oct. is almost over. Only 10 more days until Halloween......zooie I just can't believe that. So I have been busy - on my most favorite month. I almost let it pass me by, or so it seems so here is what I have been up too.

 I have been tending this garden - it isn't an Oct. shot but it will show a little bit of what seems to keep me busy any time I am not chasing around with the kids and grannies. The pumpkin patch continues on behind those trees. I planted three areas with pumpkins - because I LoVe Pumpkins - and fall and orange, need I say more.

  Here are some of their beautiful blooms. Ouch as I look I see one of those rotten goat head weeds hiding amongst the beauty. Don't they have just gorgeous blooms.

And  I keep tending those pumpkins, praying that they get to maturity, not to soon, not to late.

 I took  a trip into the Hills to see some of the beautiful fall foliage we one of my best buds Becky. We had a great time even though I swear we drove clear through the whole state of SD.

We chased trains by Hill City and we stayed in this cute little cabin pictured below. It was a great get away even if we were lost most of the time.

The beauty of it all, well besides the beauty of the scenery is that Becky let me stop any place my little leaf peeping heart desired and I got a chance to photograph some of the pretty places along the way.

This is Spearfish Canyon and it was just at peak season when we drove through it.

So I also spent time watching my favorite sport ever - FOOTBALL! And making it even better was that my grandson was one of the players. Taylor is in the red - he caught that pass despite the strong defense of the Hot Springs player.

I also got to spend time with baby Lu. It would have been a much better trip if I hadn't gotten sicker than a dog - probably the sickest I have ever been in my life......... but despite that we got in a little pre-Halloween fun. Most of our family is going to get dressed up for Halloween.

Don't know if the kiddos are going to enjoy it as much as we do but I sure hope so. I hope when I leave this world my kids and grandkids will remember that grannie liked to have fun. Those are NOT my legs - aren't they cool looking?

Did I say that I watched some football - oh yeah I did but this is Austin's football not Taylor's. I also made it to one of Jaxon's soccer games but took pictures with his mom's camera so.... I don't have any. Boo Hoo.....come on Brandi share!

Then there were birthday parties - well one that is. Mr. Jaxon turned 5 and his mom sure did put on one fun party. Jaxon said it was the 'best' ever.

Baby brother Cash had a pretty good time too!

The cakes were yummy, even if grandpa threw a football in the middle of it. We were after the little ones to not throw the football around the table and then gramps got the ball and look out. Luckily it didn't damage it to much.

And then.........back to the pumpkin patch - I don't know how many hours I have spent in the pumpkin patch, but a lot. However I love, love, love it and even more, I love when the grandkiddos come to the patch. My other love is to watch kids play in the pumpkin patch and we had some wonderful visitors. Pre-school, Kindergarten, First and Second grades all took a bus trip to the patch. We also have other wonderful friends who support our efforts a the Patch and we so appreciate them bringing their kids over.

 I like to photograph my pumpkins too - several pumpkins grew through the rows of corn and gave my little photographic heart something to play with.

And then there were the photo shoots. My great nieces Kamden and Kendall came to the patch for pumpkins and a few photo shots. Kammie is just a natural poser and sometimes we get some good pictures...........and............

...........sometimes we don't. Kendal didn't care for even one thing in the patch. No, that isn't true she loved laughing at her mom and dad trying to get her to laugh - she just wasn't too thrilled about me taking the photos, or the straw, or the wagon, or the grass....you get the picture.

And then there's my Jaxon. He is a good little poser for grandma.

Little Miss Adrianne picked her favorite pumpkin when she came to the Patch with her class.

But first she drew it! She looks so intent on making the perfect pumpkin!

Here they are enjoying the wagon and more pumpkins.

Mrs. Miller has been bringing her classroom down to the Patch for several years. We love it when they visit.

Since uncle Damion and aunt Daunee' weren't here to get their pumpkins Austin wanted to pick out theirs. UMMMM he thought that Damion would love the butt crack pumpkin.

And then Cash just couldn't decide which pumpkin to pick so we looked and looked. 

"Maybe grandpa, maybe not!"

"Oh I think I see the one I want!"

"You don't think it is perfect?"

"YUP - I want THIS one!"

"AW the perfect pumpkin - it makes me happy!"

More photo shoots - The Wendland Family!! Don't they look great? I love the red and the Husker theme!

AND THEN...........THE VERY BEST THING HAPPENED IN FALL!

One of my very best and dearest friend's daughter, who has been fighting colon cancer - was declared 

CANCER FREE -- YES THAT IS RIGHT - CANCER FREE

It has been the best October EVER!

A Beautiful Gift from a Beautiful Friend.

Hello blogging buddies, it has been some time since I posted a blog. With spring finally coming to the panhandle of Nebraska the last thing I have wanted to do is sit inside and blog. My yard has been calling my name, especially since last year with back surgery it was a little neglected. I wanted however, to share this beautiful gift that I received from one of my very best buddies. I have always wanted a tree rose but have been a little shy about the upkeep that one would take, and not really sure that it would do well in my part of the country. Everyone assures me that a little TLC and some strategic pruning is all this beauty really takes. So please have a look at my tree rose, I shall name her Twila, after my good friend. So I am joining in with Tootsie at Tootise time and Fertilizer Friday. Please stop by her site and see what wonderful things she has grown in her greenhouse.

I planted her in my little memorial garden dedicated to my mom, who passed away in 1983. This little garden is the entrance to my what will some day be my Cottage Garden Studio.

NOTE: Here is some info that I found out about the Tree Rose in my quest to learn how to take care of htis beauty. This info taken from: The Rose Magazine. Tree Roses are more properly called Rose Standards – a term believed to come from Victorian Europe when such techniques were commonly used in the rose gardens of nobles. Typically, the central cane, onto which the hybrid rose is grafted, is 32 to 36 inches long. (Miniature rose standards may be grafted onto shorter canes of about 24 inches. These are sometimes marketed as patio tree roses.) A graft is made to a rootstock at the bottom of the central cane. Another graft is made at the top of the cane to form the hybrid. The central cane (or standard) is usually supported by a stake. Pruning is also more important when growing rose standards. As you might expect, pruning is always important when changing the natural form of any plant or tree. Improperly pruning standards not only exacerbates pests and diseases, as it does with any rose, it may also create too much top and not enough bottom – thereby snapping or cracking the central cane. On some hybrids, it may be necessary to provide two or three support stakes until such time as the central cane becomes thick enough to support the weight of the grafted rose.

And speaking of trees, my little crabapple tree I bought last year for a piddly amount at a year end sale is doing it's best to add beauty to my back yard. It was late in the season when I made this purchase and my little 5' tree only cost me pennies. I wasn't sure how well she would do getting a late start and all but she is a healthy little 5'5" inch gal and doing well.

Happy Gardening All!