My sister Alice was 5 years older and I remember most hanging around her from the age of four-five. Mom made a lot of our clothes on a portable Singer and Alice learned to hem and sew on buttons, then used fabric scraps for making doll clothes. She loved designing for one particular "lady" doll..I think it had been dressed in bridal gown originally. My sister was quite talented and drew paper dolls and costumes for them...usually elaborately dressed princesses or Victorian gowned ladies with huge feathery hats from book illustrations. I was then allowed to finish them with color pencils or water colors. Of course they all had names and marvelous adventures. My Mom would often join in...teaching us papermache for doll-size dishes and furniture, etc. It's the reason I still love a stash of fabric, ribbon and paper for projects of all kinds. A favorite pastime was reading...often aloud while some project was being worked on by the others. Mom read the longer books like Tom Sawyer or Treasure Island while Alice and I preferred short stories. My favorites were all the Red, Blue, Green. etc. Fairy books and Alice in Wonderland. We learned all of RLStevensons' A Child's Garden of Verses which I can still mostly recite today. Our main reason I think for working/playing so much together was our constant travel and frequent moves to follow my Dad from post to post during WWII. It was hard for Mom to feel comfortable letting us roam an unknown neighborhood...so she kept us busy around our own house. We often had to leave bikes, wagons and other toys behind when moving...art supplies were easily accomodated. We usually lived in tiny towns with no movie theatre or interesting shops...with gas rationed there were no trips to nearby larger towns, so all entertainment was homebased. My Mom told me Army families during WWII were often resented when moving into an area because of overcrowding schools, etc. and causing raised rents/prices. I'd imagine it was just easier to draw together as a family since we'd be moving on soon anyway...it was a tough time I'm sure for my Mom feeling isolated in a new place. It was not until my Dad went overseas and we lived in a very small farming community in VA that we were warmly "adopted" and were able to have good friends and feel at home running around the neighborhood. We finally replaced our bikes which we'd been unable to cart around with us...and I remember a small Army tent in the back garden my Dad erected before leaving...it was magical to have your own little "house" although all the neighborhood kids wanted to share it...lol I was never as daring or as active as many of you... I do remember jumping rope and hopscotch but that's about it. I still prefer card or word games...another childhood pastime. Even charades...my Dad could fake us all out at charades. josh

Shifferle, please excuse the belated response, but I just saw this thread while looking for references to Red Masterpiece, a rose I just ordered today own-root from Heirloom. My climate is completely different from yours, but here's my 2 cents' worth anyway. I have Papa M on its own roots. Mine is lanky, kind of tall, not at all a landscape bush, and the blooms blow very quickly on the bush. Also not the most prolific (mine is just 2 years old) but not horribly stingy either. Produces in flushes every 5-6 weeks, but just a couple or few at a time. If I manage to notice and cut the buds at just the right stage, they will complete the bloom cycle in a vase, and as cut flowers they are terrific! Mine have lasted a week and a half in my climate-controlled office. They start out rich deep red but transform into intense deep purple--not the ugly bluish faded red but dark purple. The scent lasts nearly the entire life of the cut flower. Beautiful form, too! BUT...seeing as you are concerned with spraying--which this one needs, I'll second the above comment about Deep Secret. This rose has considerably smaller blooms, and they don't last quite as long for me cut. But the fragrance is equally fantastic, and the bush is far hardier than Papa M. (a lot thornier too, but nobody's perfect, lol). The color is wonderful intense red in the center with black shadings on outer petals. The centers are not pinpoint exhibition, but the half-open blooms look wonderful. I'm about to replace Deep Secret with that Red Masterpiece I mentioned, because the heat here is too much for the plant--it looks dried out much of the time compared to the other roses; might be a bit susceptible to chemical burn, too, and I spray! But in your climate it should do great--at least give you quality spring and fall blooms and make it through the winter well. I've never seen disease on mine. Best wishes, whatever you choose. Mike

Well, since the Common Raven is considered a songbird (the largest in North America), I guess grackles are small in comparison. Be glad you don't have a raven landing on your feeder. I have another possible take on your crows-with-snake event. The crow broods are fledging now in my neighborhood and they're flying all around with non-stop nasal cawing (I flew to this tree! What do I do now? Where is everybody? I'm hungry, feed me!). Maybe your crow is delivering the snake lecture to the kids - "This long skinny floppy thing is dangerous! Watch out! This is how to deal with it!" Just a thought. Claire

What a cute bunch! Looks like they did great painting jobs too! Their Mama's will be so pleased.