Category: My Country Life

  • Belle and Max dashed off in the direction of a dry pond this morning on our walk, triggering a loud commotion as a mama wild turkey flew for the safety of a tree on the other end, squawking the whole way. Half a dozen small turkey-ettes followed her…squeaking, more than squawking. Of course, it could…

  • Dawn is waking to rain and thunder this morning. She must have pulled the covers back over her head because the Hollow is still dark outside my window, except for occasional flashes of lightning. On a normal morning, the puppies and I would already be out on the dirt road, saying hello to the new…

  •   1. Monday evening I went wading in Lake Travis. I had my camera and was shooting a fun multi-generational family while they ran and played and laughed. I took way too many photos and couldn't help editing as many as possible to share with them, to help them remember the fun they had that…

  • I'm not proud to admit this, but I missed church this morning because of the rain.  Right about the time Daniel and I were going to head out the door (Tom was still snoozing!) – already running late because we had to let the terrified dogs into the laundry room – the break in the…

  • 1. Whew! I made it through May without a major random health issue. Why is that surprising? Read "There's Something About May" to get the full story, but suffice it to say that I get a little paranoid beginning on May Day because in four of the past five Mays I've suffered from some weird,…

  • Saturday morning I woke to the sound of rain. Lots and lots of rain. I staggered to my computer and pulled up radar of our area. A huge green and yellow blob was blinking its way straight for us. A blessing for sure in this time of drought, two days in a row of serious…

  • Lately, when dusk falls, it finds me taking a break from the computer, folded into my rocking chair on the front porch, Belle snoozing beside me, camera at the ready, glass of wine in hand. It's a transitional moment between day and night. The front porch faces east, so there's no dramatic sunset, just a…

  •     Yesterday I helped a friend celebrate her son Ryan's graduation from the University of Texas.  We enjoyed beer, barbecue, and a cake decorated like Big Bertha, the large drum wheeled around at halftime performances, because Ryan was on the Big Bertha team for the Longhorn Band. I got to see all of my…

  • Here it is, my confession: I've fallen out of the habit of looking for those sweet! moments in every day. It hasn't been too much of a problem until now, what with The Wedding and Mother's Day and all, because they overflowed in sweetness. But today. Ah, today. A Monday by any other name would…

  • 1.   Remember this old farmhouse? I pass it on my way to work at the winery. It's weathered, but has wonderful stonework on and around it, a working windmill (at least it spins!) and outbuildings oozing in character. As far as I could tell it was abandoned, which made me sad, so I wrote…