Kitty, I am so sorry that you lost your little bunny. It is so hard to give up on them. This has been a very difficult summer for our animals. Horrendously hot and so very dry....we are way behind on rainfall. The hot spell was off and on (seemed mostly on) for July and most of August with 108 being the highest temp we reached. The past week has finally seen a bit of a turnaround. We have had three spates of rain with a total accumulation of about three inches. Things have turned green again. We lost four of my little grey Japanese bantams one day despite regular water changes and a box fan blowing on them. Then, the youngest of our three peacock chicks just faded away. The other two are doing great, though, and I just had to giggle when I saw one of them "courting" the other one. Wish I could have gotten a picture. He was draggging his wings, with his tiny little tail stuck straight into the air while he was slowly circling the other chick. He was just about a month old so they do learn early in life. On August 19th the last of our summer's guests left for home so we have been trying to readjust our lives a bit. The first arrived the second week of June and we did not have a dull moment for two whole months. Three sets from Florida and finally, my son & family from North Carolina. While they were here we did some house searching for them and his wife did some job interviews. They are planning to move here in November. We did find an old farm house for them to rent about six miles from us so they will have a place to land until they get their house built. Great fun. I fell late in July and fractured my right wrist. Am a bit osteoporotic and the break was not cleanly across the bones but caused some splitting. It has been the most painful break of my life. And, having a cast on my right arm (am right handed, of course) during this 100+ degree weather has truly been something I do not want to repeat. Even with the guineas working tirelessly we have had a bumper crop of teensy-tiny, little ticks this summer. Just out in the yard a half an hour today and got two on me. Looks like we will wait until after frost to finish cutting the winter's wood supply to avoid the ticks as much as possible. Am sending in reinforcements! We just turned twenty lavender and pearl guineas out of their pen for the first time today. Here's hoping they can find the little blood suckers! My young americaunas will be the next of our little group to be "freed". We got ten little pullets in May that look fully grown now. Funny looking girls, with those fuzzy faces. Jude, would give a bunch to be able to pick blackberries with you. Ours burnt up on the vines before they got a chance to ripen. Here's hoping for next year. Sure good to catch up with you all again. More later!

Jaz, I wondered why you were being critical... until I saw it was the setup. HA! It's been party central and I am worn out today. LF and I changed clothes all weekend long. First we got up and dressed in ordinary go to the grocery store clothes. When we came home, LF and I were to go to my eldest brother's birthday luncheon across town, so we changed into clean clothes, smoothed the hair down and cleaned our faces. We had italian from salata to dessert with espresso. I was stuffed. Then we went to the mall (oh my gosh, the whole town was there shopping for back to school clothes) with my mom since we'd come so far and we were in the same place at the same time. I only bought two pairs of earrings. Afterwards, LF and I had an hour break before the next wardrobe chnage. It was a going away party at the bosses house. He cooked a 15 pound ribeye with bernaise sauce, new potatoes, greens, and a salmon with hollandaise. Dessert was brownies, three kinds of ice cream, chocolate sauce and three kinds of berries. While we were at the bosses house, E went to see the old friends in the Boro. Every vehicle there as an SUV or a van, with the child to adult ratio 3:1. They had burgers and beers. Sunday, we had Nick over and grilled out. Much slower and just one friend was nice.

The other day, I'd tried tried tried to invite friends over, to no avail. The electricity out, the cable out, no landline, only sporadic cell service. Her landline didn't work at all the other day and had left her cell phone at another friends. So today was the first time we could get together. I furnished chocolate pudding cake, school lists, chapter books we'd finished (always pass on books you've read, right?), extra scisssors so they wouldn't have to buy any, but in return, they gave me the biggest laugh I've had in forever!!!!!!!!!!! E's father really really really loved the monkeys of see, hear and speak no evil. It made me cry to see the bottle. After they went home, I laughed and laughed, because I finally read the cork. Pinot Evil. Life is about friends, right? Well, they bring surprises that make life worthwhile.

Well The Box Is Back Home : )) my father was so excited about the mail man comming to the door with this big box :)) & of course I had to open and show him all I recieved in the box as you know he can't see well any more but he sure can smell :)) he ask you all sent me a soap store :)) ladies you all are wounderfull & I want to take this time to say sorry if a few were a little disappointed in the box but you know every robin is different & we take chances when we sign up for any robin :)) I want to say thank you all just for playing. anyway I know you all want to here what is in the box just don't know where to start. so will pull one at a time out and list it as I go if I have no name next to the item that is for I don't know who put it in the box ok:)) 1 A welcome Stone / Debbie 2 4 Norman rockwell cup's/ earthly mystery gift 3 Purfumed Soaps / Diane 4 blue Gloves mystery gift / Doris 5 A stain Glass butterfly candle holder/ debby 6 25 prs of earrings mystery gift / veeja11 7 U S Flag 8 Window vase 9 Mini Windwhirls for garden 10 ladybug welcome sign 11 plant coaster 12 heart to heart cookie cutters 13 dog Biscuit cutter,recipes cards, recipe 14 Cards & envelope cow collection 15 2006 calendar planner :)) 16 Knee cushion 17 25 peat pellets :)) 18 Skipping Christmas 19 party invitation 20 Silver Picture Frame 21 Yellow Poem Flower cd holder 22 Velvety Blue pouch/braclet or necklace :)) 23 Bottle of candle lite /simmering liquid 24 Laundry line fresh scent room freshener :)))/ diane 25 country Bouquets 16 mo / 2006 calendar 26 Orange & gold note book 27 Hummingbird flag :)))) 28 A baggie full of many type of seeds 29 pr of green gardening gloves 30 encore 500 piece puzzle of lupines :)) 31 Canning ,Pickling &preserving Book 32 Better home & gardening cook book :)) 33 3 taste of home books ladies Thank you for sharing with each other . Doris I love the Gloves with the cold we all have been having I'm surprise they made it to me :)) love them trully. Debbie as for the stone daddy says put it anywhere but not where he can stub his toes :)) Veeja11 as for the earrings I cannot wear them any more with so many birds I would not have NO ears left to wear them but I do have 5 little Niece that come to visit & like to play dress up. :)) earthly well what can I say except thank you for when I get a place to put up my Norman rockwell Plates the cups will be going right along side . My Uncle Bill who had passed away left me with over 50 collectible plates many were rockwells . thank you . Your all great players in my book for this box didnt get lost :))) we made it all the way . thank you all who played . HUGS susie