Where Birds Tread

Tufted Titmouse

I was thinking of renaming my blog Welcome to the Zoo.

Last night I was bitten by a bird. Yes, you read that right...bitten by a bird. Here are the events that lead up to this wonderful encounter.

As you know, our friendly flying squirrels are back. Actually, their neighbors that live just on the other side of the chimney (inside our attic) are also making us aware they are alive and well too. Yes, those stinkin' mice. I'm convinced they talk to one another through the woodwork. They are plotting the takeover of our house in the very near future. Did you ever read the Redwall series? And here I thought mice and squirrels were the good guys.

My husband thought he'd try and kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. Who knew that's exactly what would happen. Kinda. He has the live trap set-up on the flying squirrels' jumping tree. He baits it with walnuts, which they love, and catches one every couple of days. At least that's what happened last year. The mice have caught on and so they climb the tree, get inside the live trap, steal the bait, set the trap off, then leave through the holes which are big enough for them to squeeze through. In the end, he catches nothing. Well, a mouse trap on the tree should lure the mice, right? Wrong.

Mr. Wonderful came knocking on the front door early last evening. That's when I knew there was trouble. Do you remember one of my first blog entries about the visiting Census worker?

No one uses the front door!

As I opened the door, I saw the beckoning finger. "Come here." Instead of catching a mouse in the mouse trap, he caught a tufted titmouse. Yes, it's a mouse, but the wrong kind of mouse. He obviously didn't get the memo.

For a tiny little bird, boy, did he make a ruckus. He was hissing at me. I opened the live trap and gently put my hand around the bird. A couple of his toes were caught in the mouse trap. Ouch. He didn't like the trap, but I'm here to tell you he didn't like me more. His little beak grabbed hold of my thumb and dug in. As I held him and removed his toes from the trap, he let go of my thumb and bit me again, this time even harder! "Listen, buddy, I'm not the one you should be biting!" Even after I opened my hand to let him go, he was still holding onto my thumb with his very sharp beak. He finally realized he was free and flew off. Poor guy. I'll bet he had a story to tell his wife. "Honey, sorry I missed dinner, but I was hangin' out on that big tree over there when all of a sudden..."

My flesh wasn't punctured, but he left two red triangular welts. Who knew a sweet little bird could bite so hard? My husband told me that next time I should wear a pair of leather gloves. Uh, no. There won't be a next time. No more mouse traps in places where birds tread.

I suppose if my toes were smashed and someone grabbed hold of me, I'd probably bite them too.

And just what lesson are we to learn from all this? It's time to move.


P.S. I grew-up in the country and I'm telling you animals stayed in their domain. We did have cats though...lots of cats. Hmmmm. Oh, Mr. Wonderful? Mr. Wonderful? Mr. Wonderful?

Heaven's Glory

This is not what it looks like at my house...but somebody sees this every day!

I was up early and happened to look out our front window. The sky was black and the stars were twinkling. Right there in the northern sky was my friend, the Big Dipper. He hovers over the end of our driveway this time of year. I don't have to worry about anyone seeing me walk outside in my nightgown at 5 a.m., so that's exactly what I did. I just love gazing at the stars. I stayed outside long enough that my neck was getting a crick and my bare feet were starting to get a little numb. Yes, it was only 36 degrees. That's OK. That little cold jolt woke me up. Besides, my coffee was still brewing.

It reminds me of the time when I stood on the beach at midnight in Cancun, Mexico. Listen, this was long enough ago that there was only one hotel in Cancun. Yep. I'm old. I stood on the beach and could actually see the swirls of the Milky Way. If I could have been just a little bit taller, I'm sure I could have reached out and touched one of those stars. There was absolutely no light pollution. The sky, filled with millions of stars, went on forever. That sight is locked in my mind forever.

Psalm 19

1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.

3 There is no speech or language
where their voice is not heard.

4 Their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun,

5 which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.

6 It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is hidden from its heat.

7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.

8 The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.

9 The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The ordinances of the LORD are sure
and altogether righteous.

10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the comb.

11 By them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.

12 Who can discern his errors?
Forgive my hidden faults.

13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then will I be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.

14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight,
O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Amen. And amen.

Mile High Lemon Meringue Pie

My Aunt Mary Lou and Rachel


Mile High Lemon Meringue Pie made April 3rd


Last fall, my Auntie Lou came to our home and taught Rachel and me how to make a pie crust. Prior to this, the thought of making a pie made me sweat. I had tried it once or twice in the past and it wasn't pretty. Actually, disaster probably better describes the results.

My Aunt Mary Lou is a master baker. She can bake just about anything. We've often told her she should have opened a bakery. She could be the Next FoodNetwork Star! It seemed like any time we went out and happened to order a slice of pie for dessert, we always found ourselves comparing it to Auntie Lou's. Her pies are absolutely the best...hands down!

When you have a master baker teach you how to make a pie crust, well, it really changes things. I went from being intimidated to confident. Today, I can wake-up and decide to make a pie without even blinking twice. It's wonderful!

And just for the record, my Rachel makes the best pumpkin pie ever!

I have a sister-in-love that's a doctor. She delivers babies. She said when she went through med school, she was taught to "watch one, do one, teach one." I thought that was a great lesson as it certainly applies to many teachable moments in life. (Anyone want to learn how to quilt?!) When my Auntie Lou taught Rachel and me how to make a pie crust, she made one, then we each made one under her watchful eye. A few days later, another one of my sister-in-love's came over and I taught her how to make a pie crust. Watch one, do one, teach one. Thanks Dr. Mildred!

Anyway, here's today's recipe. I made this last Saturday for an Easter gathering on Sunday night. It was not only beautiful, but very yummy.

Mile High Lemon Meringue Pie

What you will need for pie filling:

9” baked pie crust, cooled
8 large egg yolks, whisked (should measure about 2/3 cup; add an extra yolk if necessary); reserve 5 egg whites
½ cup plus 1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
1 ½ cups sugar
2 ½ cups cold water
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ tablespoons lemon zest, finely grated (from 2 large lemons)
½ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 2 large lemons)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into 1 tablespoon portions

In a 4-quart glass mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, cornstarch and water, adding water slowly to blend well. Microwave on high for 5 minutes; whisk. Microwave on high for 3 minutes; whisk really well. Mixture will be thick and clear.

Add 2 or 3 tablespoons of hot filling mixture to egg yolks and mix well to temper; add tempered egg yolks to mixing bowl with hot filling mixture and whisk well. Add lemon zest, lemon juice and salt; whisk well. Pour hot mixture into cooled pie crust.

What you will need for meringue:

5 egg whites at room temperature
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon salt
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

I use a KitchenAid mixer—add egg whites to large mixing bowl along with cream of tartar and salt; beat until soft peaks form. Beat in sugar in a slow stream until completely dissolved. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and beat until meringue is shiny and stiff peaks have formed.

Mound meringue in center of pie (on hot filling) and be sure to seal all edges of the meringue to the crust. Using a spatula, create peaks and valleys all over the top of the pie.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes until meringue is golden brown.

Let cool completely before serving. Do not refrigerate this pie if eating within 24 hours. Depending upon humidity levels, meringue will begin to collapse the longer it sits. For best results, serve this pie within 8 to 12 hours (just my personal opinion!)

Enjoy!

Lucky Kitty

Miss Rachel with two little friends


Exactly two weeks old


Lucky Kitty with her four little babies

My little nephew recently named this mama kitty Lucky. Here's her story...

Three weeks ago today, my sister-in-love (thank you Mrs. Nagy!) called to tell me about a little kitty that had recently started hanging out at their back door. About two weeks prior, she found her all huddled up, practically starved. This was when there was still snow on the ground and it was very cold outside. My SIL did what anyone with a heart would do...she fed the little kitty. They quickly discovered this kitty was so friendly and just loved to be loved. She purred and purred when the boys would go outside and sit with her. Kitty was quickly moved into the garage in the evenings. It wasn't long before she realized everyone loved this little kitty. So she thought she'd better take her to the vet to make sure she didn't have any little kitty problems.

She received quite a shock to find out the little kitty was very pregnant and due any day. Sure enough, three days later, the kitty gave birth to four beautiful babies...three boys and one girl. And so she was named Lucky because, after all, she was very lucky to have found such a warm and loving home just in the nick of time.

I grew-up in the country. Our house was way back off the road which made the dumping of unwanted animals very easy. I cannot begin to tell you how many stray dogs and cats we adopted over the years. Witnessing the birth of kittens and puppies happened fairly often. I even remember one cat that decided to have her litter of kittens right in the middle of the living room of my doll house!

My kids have never held a newborn kitten...at least not until these little ones came along. My SIL called me the morning the kittens were born so we were able to go and see them. I've never seen such a proud mama kitty...when we walked up to where she was all nestled with her new babies, she turned over on her back and just purred as if to say, "Look at what I did!" It was wonderful!

No, we are not getting a kitten. While Mr. Wonderful has informed me that our home is not a dictatorship, he has also made it very clear to me that he absolutely positively without a doubt has no interest whatsoever in a cat! And so, there you have it.

Just to clarify, here are all the reasons why it's good not to have a cat:

• Mr. Wonderful doesn't want one
• No cat hair to clean-up
• No cat litter box to clean out
• No vet visits for spaying/neutering/de-clawing/de-worming/vaccinating
• No cat dander to torture allergic family and friends
• Jesse puppy would eat a cat for lunch

And here are a few reasons why it would be great to have a cat:

• A cat is a friend
• A cat is soft and cuddly
• A cat purrs
• A cat licks your ears and nose
• A cat is fun
• A cat lowers high blood pressure
• A cat makes everyone smile
• A cat would make both of my children very happy
• A cat keeps your lap warm when you're cold
• A cat eats mice and chipmunks and maybe even a flying squirrel or two
• A cat could scare away the brainless woodpecker that is still pecking on the chimney every morning...every single morning
• A cat could teach Jesse puppy that it's not nice to eat other animals
• A cat could make Mr. Wonderful realize just how wonderful cats really are

Oh well. Sniff. Sniff. Gotta go...I need some Kleenex.

Big Dreamin'

Today was yet again another wonderful Wednesday with Mrs. Nagy. Are you sitting down? We are in the midst of cross stitching and embroidering, but today Mrs. Nagy had something else in mind. Something new. We are, however, responsible for continuing our other projects at home.

First of all, she presented to us a quilt she was given last week by her son-in-love (that's what she calls him!). This is an unfinished quilt that, in his hands, represents six generations. She pulled out a little piece of paper which documented who was who and how it was this quilt came to be. It's almost 100 years old! It is absolutely stunning...truly. While looking at it, Rachel and I realize that every single stitch was put in place by some one's two hands. No sewing machine ever touched this fabric. I don't know anything about quilts or quilt patterns, but this one looked like a huge honeycomb. It had hundreds and hundreds of little hexagons that made a pattern of 121 flowers. Every flower was made with a different fabric! The quilt was lovingly given to Mrs. Nagy to finish. It needs batting and a back and, of course, quilted.

Can I just say that almost every Wednesday when we walk into her house, we find her seated at a huge quilting rack working diligently on her daughter's king-sized quilt made-up of beautifully colored triangles. Honestly, what a labor of love. I am amazed. It is stunning.

So, can you guess what Mrs. Nagy had in mind today? Yes, she was going to teach Rachel how to quilt. She had already prepared Mary Engelbreit fabric and muslin backing for two pot holders. She taught Rachel how to cut the fabric using a rotary cutter and she learned how to baste in order to keep all the layers together. She learned the quilting stitch last week (Mrs. Nagy asked her to sit at the king-sized quilt and help her!), so she's ready to start quilting in no time.

Let's pause here for a moment. If you are someone who knows how to sew, I realize you might be laughing right about now. But I'm here to tell you that I can hardly sew on a button. Just ask Mr. Wonderful. I had never before today looked upon a rotary cutter...I mean, are you kidding me? Anyway, if this post is just a little boring because someone taught you how to sew, then use this time to go and thank God for her. Really. I never learned. I cannot tell you how thankful I am that Mrs. Nagy is teaching my daughter.

So here I am, standing in the background watching. I can feel my little heart longing to learn how to do this. But remember, it's all I can do to cross stitch (you know, make little x's in a row). How on earth can I quilt. After a little while I muster-up the courage to ask very timidly, "Mrs. Nagy, do you think I could learn how to quilt? You know, I can't even spell the word sew." Mrs. Nagy is so gracious to me. She says, "You spell sew, s o. You'll do just fine!"

In a matter of minutes, I had fabric, batting, muslin, a basting needle, quilting thread, a thimble, a finger cot (for pulling the needle), and a stitching-hoop. My project is a little bigger (but actually simpler) than Rachel's. The fabric is probably 18x24 inches and actually has a pattern that looks like a mini quilt. Before we left today, I had basted together all three layers and started quilting. I tell you the truth!

Can I just say how excited I am? I'm driving home and having a silent conversation in my head as I envision wonderful things made with my own two hands. This is big dreamin' folks. Big Dreamin'. "I could make each of my kids a quilt!" "I could make my own grand baby a quilt!" Oh the thought of it...me quilting! Reality slowly starts to enter my mind and I take a big deep breath. "Let's not get too excited, Michelle. One thing at a time."

Mrs. Nagy, I adore you. You bring such joy into my life. I love that my daughter is learning such a wonderful craft while sitting by your side. And all the other wonderful life lessons we are beneficiaries of as we stitch and talk together. You are truly God's gift to us. Thank you for your gift of time.

Me, quilting?
Yesterday, no way.

Today?
Maybe, just maybe!

Free Medicine

I'm certain my children will one day need therapy. And it's all my fault. Really.

Most people don't know about this little secret I have mostly kept to myself. Hidden from the world, but not from my family. I guess until now anyway. It doesn't happen often, but when it does, yikes!

It happened again just this past Saturday.

I knew everyone needed lunch and got busy preparing food. In the meantime, I noticed five ladybugs crawling around my kitchen window...on the inside. You do remember me telling you about critters coming out of the wood work, right? Well, Caleb happened to be close-by, so I asked him if he would take care of the ladybugs while I made lunch. No problem. Actually, there were more than five and he even discovered a very strange-looking bug in the bottom of the kitchen sink. He called me over to look at it. Weird. Well, don't you know, just as he was finishing the ladybug task, he reached down in the sink with a Kleenex to nab the weird bug. At just the right moment, when his fingers were on the bug and he's completely focused, I reach over and poke him in the ribs and scream! Out comes a guttural scream, a jump straight up, and a look of terror on my son's face. It's hysterical. I'm doubled over laughing...and a few seconds later, he's laughing and has his arms wrapped around me. I'm laughing just thinking about it!

I love to tell the story about the first time I did this to my poor husband. It was right after we moved into our house. I can still see this incident like a movie in my head! He had gone down into our basement and discovered this huge thick spider web nestled up in the rafters. It was more like a cave made out of a spider's web. You knew there was something big in there, but it was very well hidden. He went upstairs, grabbed a can of bug spray and headed down the basement. I quietly followed right behind him. Honestly, I just couldn't help myself! You already know what I did, don't you?! Just at the moment when he went to spray the spider's cave, I grabbed his rear end and screamed. Who knew a grown man could jump so high and move his entire body about ten feet backward in less than one second! I love you, Honey. You are so much fun to scare!

Of course, I've pulled this on Rachel too. Keep in mind, these little stunts are so far apart (months and months or even a year or two) that it's not something in the forefront of their minds. I suppose that will change now that I've put this in writing! Rachel and I were sitting on the sofa watching Journey to the Center of the Earth, the new 3D movie. We had seen it at the theatre and I just happened to remember the very first jump scene. Yep, I did it again!

Many times as we gather and pray together in the morning, I often thank God that the walls of our home have heard more laughter and joy than crying and sadness. We truly love each other so very much. We love to be together. We love to laugh and have fun and be silly. I would like to think that someday my kids will look back and remember just how crazy in love their Mama was with them. Crazy. In. Love.

Laughter is good medicine. No prescription is necessary. And it's free. Unless, of course, your children need therapy sometime later in life!

Brainless

I was up very early on Saturday morning. It was a very late night for the family so everyone else was still in bed and I expected they would stay there for several more hours. I made myself a big cup of coffee and nestled up in my favorite spot on the sofa with my Morning and Evening devotional as well as my Spurgeon book, The Power of Prayer in a Believer's Life. Everything was perfectly quiet. It was still dark outside, but all the critters knew daylight was on its way. The birds were starting to sing and there's that wonderful spring smell in the air. I absolutely love quiet mornings like this one. Even Jesse puppy finds her happy spot on the rug in the kitchen and waits patiently for me to do what I do in the early morning hours.

All of a sudden, in the middle of my perfectly quiet morning, I hear a rattling noise. At first I thought it was a big truck going down the road, but it kept getting louder. Then it stopped. Then it started again. Can I just say this noise was a very loud and unusual noise! Not only was it interrupting my nice quiet morning, I was afraid it was going to wake-up the rest of the house (i.e., there goes my nice quiet morning).

Then I realize what it is. It's a woodpecker. We have lots and lots of woodpeckers around, so this is nothing new. We have a beautiful pileated woodpecker in our woods along with downy woodpeckers, red-headed and red-bellied woodpeckers and lovely northern flickers. I'm convinced, however, that this early riser either couldn't see straight or had knocked the sense out of his tiny little bird brain. He wasn't pecking at a tree. No. He was pecking on the galvanized steel chimney. This did not deter the little woodpecker though. He kept at it and kept at it and kept at it. I would have thought at some point he would have realized, "Hey, this isn't a tree...doesn't sound right, doesn't smell right, doesn't look right!" Nope. This woodpecker had obviously pecked one too many trees. I think his brain must have rattled inside his itty bitty skull just a little too much. I don't know, maybe an hour later, he finally gave up.

Do you know, that woodpecker was back at it again this morning. Great...just great. Last year it was the flying squirrels (although I keep thinking I'm hearing something up there again). This year, we're hosting a brainless woodpecker. Since the flying squirrels' home is right next to the chimney and sleep during the day, maybe these two varmints will get into it with each other and both will decide it's not worth the hassle...and leave. Let's hope so!