it is a New Year !

Well, it is now 2004! Wow the time seems to have flown! I must admit to being glad 2003 is done for though! It was a difficult year and I am glad to have a fresh one!

Well the weather here is so odd for this time of year. I do think we are in for a bad summer! My friends up north ask me what our weather is like here (I am a Missouri transplant by way of California) and I tell them we have 4 seasons just like they do. Ours just have different names. We have warm, hot, hotter and he!!. This is going to be a really warm summer I think. Plus we have had no rain out here for weeks. Lots of moist air but no rain. The ants are not even hiding underground it is so warm!

Well next week is my week to finish reorganizing my home. I had planned for it to be done already but having hubby and sons underfoot made it near impossible! As warm as it has been I have enjoyed having the windows open, and even caught a huge ($100) mistake on my electric bill. We have decided this year to keep an eye on the meter ourselves and found the meter reader had miss read it.

Would you believe I left the back door open for the pup to run in and out the other day and got 12 bees in the house? Bees are not supposed to be about in January!

I am looking forward to the MJ and the boys going back to work and school. I found some wonderful material on sale and plan to make aprons. I have trouble concentrating with the guys about though, constant interruptions and such! Plus my cutting table (my mother in laws old dining room table) is covered in ebay stuff at the moment! I am selling off some of my salt and pepper shaker collection. I am becoming more utilitarian in my “old age” and have decided that unless I love something or use it regularly out it goes! I plan to do the same with my clothes. I did the boys clothes after Christmas replacing some old yuck clothes with the new stuff they got as gifts.

I am toying with the idea of “breaking sod” with our pick and hoe now while the warm weather holds, I am still in hopes we will get some cold weather, and possible snow. This plot used to be a hay/cotton field so the ground, having been fallow for the last 5 years or so should be in good shape to plant in spring. There is a ton of “Johnson” grass around and some very pretty crimson tipped grass I want to spread as my normal yard turf, it is so soft! I am hoping to get in some grape vines and berry bushes this spring as well. I have so many plans for this home and yard and not being a patient woman I want it all done RIGHT now! Of course there is not much money to work with so I have to go slow and take it in small steps. I wish I had gardener friends close by to trade seeds and learn from! My closest one is Nita, and she is 90 minutes away!

 Well all I best cut this off for now and spend some time with my hubby and sons. It will be quiet and lonely here next week with the guys gone until I get used to being home alone again!

You all have a wonderful week!

~Hugz~

Mel