Carol, I hate to say anything because clearly you are an intelligent woman who can think for herself and it’s not my place to advise you but I really wish you wouldn’t allow her in your home.

I don’t care one bit about how old she is or what she has gone through in her life or even that she is your husband’s mother.

Her behavior is inexcusable and it makes me so sad that someone is treating you this way.

You are so kind to everyone here and are always so positive, it is not okay for another human being to do the things she does to you, especially in the safety of your own home.

Tina

Carol, I think that we will all show up the next time she visits and have a serious talk with her. She can't do that to our friend or anybody for that matter.

You are so kind and friendly she obviously thinks that means she can have her way and you wont do anything.

She better watch it or you will eventually snap and give her a good beat down.

Seriously, I think it is time to write her a lovely letter and put her on notice in a kind yet firm way.

We are all behind you on this

Love to you

Yes Carol, I'm so sorry. Maybe it's not my place or any of ours. But there is no award at the end of it all for putting up with a bully. None. She may be your husband's mother but it doesn't negate that she is awful. There is no amount of kindness or patience that you can exhibit that will change they way she treats you. I have had to permanently end things with my own parents and my MIL because the bullying got so bad, I know it isn't easy and the weight of other people's expectations can be a heavy burden to bear but liberating myself was one of the best things I ever did. Anyway, we care for you and we're in your corner, no matter what you do.

Thanks, everybody for being on my side...which I knew 100% you would be. :) :) I agree with everything...in fact, I was determined (last night as I was trying to fall asleep) that the next time she does something/says something...I'll say that she can't come over anymore if she does something to me even one more time. That will cure it. She'd never risk that. So I have a plan!

She told me that she's going to be spending every day at our house this coming summer (yay and whoopee...now I can cook for her every day too). Although we do have the upper hand as she can't drive to our place...we have to go get her. But then, Holly was over at my m-i-law's place today and my m-i-l kept telling Holly what a great mother I am and what a great wife I am to her son. How I'm so patient and kind. So Holly asked her why she never tells this to me...m-i-l responded, "Oh, she knows."

So, anyway...I will stand up for myself next time. :)

Kristine - that's the great thing about Azalea's age....she probably didn't even notice that she was supposed to have people at her party. I'm glad she had such a fun time! You have changed the course of her life...and I'm so proud of you!!! I can't even imagine raising a child at 59. You deserve every blessing!! And I'm glad that she is part of that blessing. :)

Magpie - sounds like you did the right thing in cutting ties with the toxic people in your life. :) :) :)

Carol i think your patience and perservence is inspirational.

Kristine, i now have 3 little ones: 3yo,2yo, and 3month old.

they run me ragged and im 34. I cant imagine doing this past 40. i realize now this is why our bodies are able to have children younger haha

its 65 and raining today. snow predicted for sunday and temps in the teens!

JC, my admiration goes out to you with 3 babies. It is so much work with very little sleep.

The one thing about them being so close in age is that in the blink of an eye, they are all in school.

They will sometimes drive you crazy but ultimately they will be the greatest blessing of your life.

I have 4 adult bio kids that are best friends. Those teen years were tough as a single mom but we all managed to survive and thrive.

Carol, I am scratching my head at your MIL. She reminds me of a 12 year old boy vying for your attention but going about it all wrong . Maybe she thinks that she is being funny

I dont know

But you meed to be honest and tell her that it really bugs and hurts you and because of your health issues that she needs to give gentle , expected hugs only.

Magpie, I am so sorry that you had to disconnect from your family

That must have been a difficult decision for you. But, if a relationship toxic it needs to be reevaluated as to what you can live with.

Well, I guess the new normal is Azalea getting up at 6, no nap and bed at 7:30. Love that childs energyp

With all of the kid talk I have to add one caveat for those close in age. My older three were like jc’s- barely a breath in between then Jada came when the oldest was fourteen.

The first three played with each other and their friend groups were all of the same age so it was just a great big party all the time.

Poor Jada looked to us to entertain her and her memories and ties just aren’t the same. Like Kristine said, the olders are best friends while she is clearly in the little sister camp.

There are benefits to both but I think I prefer the crazy years

So true Oursteelers. Especially during a pandemic when we dont have normal family gatherings or church or the nursery at the Y.

Merry Belated Christmas Everyone,

i think I shall bever catch up reading about your beautiful lives over the Holidays! it is a joy to see what’s hapoening in your gsrdens and family lives.

Carol, I wish to give you my love and support regarding your MIL. i wish you would set some boundaries with your MIL, . she should not be handling you in any harsh way. You shouldnt allow her near you unless she can be ”safely respectful.” I wish you the best in dealing with her. You deserve to be loved! You ate a precious loving person and so very good!

It’s so lovely your plans for the holidays, your yummy baking-oh, sounded so good! I am so happy hearing about your daughters visiting, and the lovely crocheted roses.

Librarian,

Lovely rose bouquet. I see it’s snowy up your way and your family nade a snowman. Love seeingvall your baked cookies!!! Fun fun! and your happy chikdren!

Jim, Sweet photo of you and Gracie for Christmas! So lovely!

Sara, Lovely sunsets! is it still warm for you & bloomin’ roses?

Melodye, Pretty White Hollyhock. oh oh, I love Hollyhocks! I am so happy to hear Lou is doing better & the hospital has helpers for you at home! Yay! a Christmas blessing!

Kristine, Azalea looks so delightful frosting cookies! What a joy seeing her enjoy it!!! How precious! I miss having young children making cook at my home…. I used to do it every year. How soecial for you!

Oursteelers, Beautiful Christmas tree! Thank you for sharing!

Sheila, Love Turkish Delight! I also love Aplets & Cotlets! My fav candies! Pretty floral arrange gift! and your snow photos are lovely!

Diane, Gorgeous Abe Darby. My Abe is small-probably will replace it.,Yours is magnificent! i see you have snow, too & cant believe you will have -1F. . We are having a warmer winter…. All my snow melted a day afterwards….. it’s still 40F outside until Sunday then drops to 30F regularly. This year m’s wintervis the warmest yet! Kinda amazing.

Stephanie, what a joy to have roses still blooming. Love CA for roses! Must be lovely to have such nice wrather in So Cal! Love it!

———————

HOLIDAY FUN:

Well, Christmas was lovely! My son came home and I Facetimed my daughters & gentleman friend. I find I am so busy right now entertaining my son, plying flute and preparing fir a 3rd renter room. Today I am buying more furniture for that bedroom. photos coming….New Years coming up!

Collecting blue/white Talvera pots ( hand made in Mexico) to put outside come warmer spring. i received a few new ones for Christmas. 2sm, 2med, 2 karge Talvrra pots now… My newest Christmas presents….6 inch wide-2 sm Talvera pots…

I haven’t taken the time to post recently, but have been trying to stay caught up with everyone’s comments and pictures. Especially enjoy the pictures of Azalea and your children librarian.

Also the gorgeous photos from Diane and Sheila, so lovely! Sheila, I think your next to last picture would make a beautiful painting! Diane, your Abe Darby is too beautiful for words!

Kitty, thank you, sounds like you’ve got a lot going on.

Stephanie, beautiful December roses!

The weather has been somewhat cooler, but not bad. New Years Day is supposed to be rainy and cold, with temps in the low 20’s. Hopefully, it won’t last long, the temperatures are supposed to be warmer after that. We are supposed to have a couple of mornings in the low teens though.

Carol, I agree with everyone’s comments about your M-I-L. Sometimes I wonder why some people can’t just be nice! Life is so much easier that way! Sounds like you’ve got the right idea. You are someone we all care about a lot, and it’s easy to get ticked off at someone mistreating you. No one deserves that kind of treatment though! I love your knitted roses from Holly. You are such a creative family!

I am so anxious to winter sow some cold hardy annuals and perennials, but I guess I shouldn’t do it too soon!

Welcome back, Kitty. It's better to have good weather and be busy than be homebound like we are here. I'm glad your son made it home for an in person visit with you. I hope you're having some fun outings. Do you rent your rooms out through AirBnB? Does it bother you to have "strangers" around? I hope they all prove to be nice people. Thanks about Abe Darby, but mine should be bigger, too. Yes, our weather here is terrible right now. In 2016-7, we had a zone 5 winter (-20F) and endless snow, and we called it "Snowmageddon". Of course, Texas co-opted that name last year. I just hope we don't have a repeat of 2017. The snow has finally stopped for a bit, but will be starting up soon. Predictions are now 1F for New Year's Eve overnight and 4F the next night. I guess that's better than -1F. Next week the lows won't even get to freezing and all the protective snow cover will be gone. I want that cover for the bad Jan temps that I know are ahead. As I ate lunch today, here came three huge mule deer heading for the bird feeder (deer proof and empty). Out I went screeching and clapping with the deer tearing off down the hill. Just as that happened, the biggest hawk I've seen around here took off from our roof. Deer want the birdseed and hawks want the birds. I can't win. The birdies are now fed and watered and I'm watching for deer.

Carol, others have said it better than I concerning your MiL. Do not have her at your home every day next summer. I can't imagine such a thing. I should never complain about our cold after reading what your temps have been. It sounds like you had lots of sweet goodies like I did. I'm almost sick of chocolates and cookies. I haven't heard of Sweet Georgia Brown chocolates and it's a good thing I haven't. My favorite chocolates in the world come from a local candy shop that's been family owned and in business since before I was born. The grandson of the founder finally got to retire and sold the business. The new owners better carry on the high quality of their wares or they will hear from me. I first set foot in the shop when I was about six years old, and I'm still a good customer. It's a beautiful shop that sells lovely things besides their renowned chocolates. I love the knitted roses Holly made for you. That took some talent. Did she have a pattern? I've never seen patterns for knitted flowers.

Kristine, all that counts is Azalea having a great time at her b-day party. Tell her Happy Birthday from Diane who hopes she got all the stuff she wanted (hopefully, she didn't want a pony--ha).

Below is "Colette saying goodbye for the year". It was one of her last blooms,and it hung down from the arbor so when you walked under it, you got got thunked goodbye in the head, if you're tall like me. The other set of photos are some Golden Celebration showing off his grace close up. These photos are from 2021. Diane

ET

I agree with you, Diane, I would never have Carol's MIL over every day next Summer if I were Carol.

Sounds like another wood chipper accident ahead if she were my MIL.

Kitty, you never did say if T was composting in your backyard or what. Some of us need closure.

@Kristine LeGault 8a pnw It's okay, it really is better this way. I still have a wonderful younger brother that I care for a lot, and I feel all the love and support that I need with my spouse and kids (and dog!). I consider myself very lucky to have them as my family and I am not sad that I don't have more bio family still in my life.

Well, as if the complete lack of snow didn't feel like a bad enough omen, a huge grass fire broke out in a nearby town and it's spreading like crazy because it's bone dry and incredibly windy. Sigh. Who'd have thought we'd have such a fire in late December? Where is our snow?? How awful for all the people and animals over there.

Sheila 🤣🤣

Sheila, you are naughty with that wood chipper comment. Makes good mulch, right? I have to say that I burst out laughing when I read your comment.

Magpie, let us know when that fire is under control. That is strange for this time of year. Maybe some bonehead set off early New Year's fireworks. I wish I could lend you some snow. It's landing here before it gets to the Rockies. Diane

Whew, today is going to be a stinker, heatwise.. We are expecting 38C this afternoon, it is already 28C at 9.30 am. Must get out and water the pots and tubestock, or everything will be crisped.

Yesterday I had to have more bloodtests, those taken after the spiderbite showed reduced kidney function and my ankles are swelling but it is usually warmer weather when my ankles swell, Doctor says it could be due to envenemation from the bite, which has healed now. I had some not so great news at the optometrist on Wednesday, my blurry, misty eyes that I thought was eyestrain, are due to worsenig cataracts, so I have a referral to an eye surgeon for surgery in the New Year. The good news was the prescription for my lens hasn’t changed over the last year,so don’t need new glasses! whoopee! I hate getting new prescriptions for my lens, they make me feel disorientated and really nauseous.

Melissa is back from her house sitting, she showed me photos of the 6 Kookaburras that used to come to the balcony for her to feed them, plus all the Corellas,Lorikeets and Pied Currawongs that did the same. It looked to be a beautiful mountain dwelling with fabulous views. Wish it was my property, but don’t think I’d like gardening on such a slope, the gentle decline at the back of our house is enough change of level for me.

Carol, you M-i-L sounds like a really nasty person, who I would do my best to avoid,after giving her a piece of my mind. You are such a loving kind person you do not deserve such treatment. I’m happy your husband ran interference for you, it is his mother after all. What a cheek, telling your daughter what a good woman you are, but not saying it to you!. I adore those knitted roses. What a clever idea! Melissa gave me a lovely face serum for Christmas, Camellia and Rose. It is from a local producer, The Essentials Lab, Natural Botanical Products for Home and Body. When I put the serum on, I can smell damask roses all day and it makes my skin feel lovely and soft.

Oursteelers, I was a ‘lonely only’ and had to make my own amusements, I read a lot, helped my Gramps in the garden and as I was the only girl in the neighbourhood I learned to play football and cricket with the local boys. I would have enjoyed having siblings, older or younger, it wouldn’t have mattered. As it was, when I gained Steps I was 20 and away from home and so were most of them. We only met for family gatherings, but they were riotous, It showed me what I had missed. Your Jada will remember family gatherings the same way as she gets older. As Kristine said , the pandemic has forced solitude on us all. My grand daughter is in the same position, an only, and away from schoolfriends. Melissa arranged a playdate for her with friends yesterday, she really enjoyed herself. Melissa said she would arrange a pool party here for the friends if I was OK with the idea. So the party days from when Melissa and Carl were young are returning. Therei is only two years between them. They were great fun days, but sometimes I yearned for the quiet times that I’d grown up with. We humans are hard creatures to please!

Kitty, I’m glad that your Christmas was a happy one, and you can spend time with your son. Woman do you never stop for a rest!

Jc, I found that TWO children aged 6 and 4 ran me ragged at age 34. A third one would have finished me off before I hit 40.

Sheila, I LOVE Turkish Delight. My son in law gave me a big tin of Lindt chocolates for Christmas. It is on the kitchen table for all the nurses to have a pick through when they come to renew Lou’s antibiotic bottle. Gorgeous photos, I love your snowy yard pics that look suitable for a Christmas card.

Thats all for now, catch up later,

Melodye

@Diane Brakefield It was yet another case of the intense wind here blowing down some old power line. Makes me nervous. Living in this kind of prairie/agriculture area, there is a lotttttt of dry plant material around at the end of the season. There is definitely a season where we worry about fire danger, but we're usually done with that by now. At this time of year it is normally kind of soggy all over from snows. Right now it feels scary to have gone so long without precipitation, and still have big fires happening near enough to see all the smoke. We're forecasted to get snow tomorrow and I really hope it happens. But I wish it had happened today instead, for the sake of the people who had to get evacuated today. What a downer of a post, sorry.

In rose news, HCR updates their stock in 2 days for new orders and I'm going to be READY.

Mischievous Maglpie, sorry I missed your post. Thank you for the memory of your Grandma, I appreciate what she must have coped with, and wish she‘d had all the help I get. Even with all that it is still difficult at times, seeing someone you love change so dramatically. The nurses are still assessing his mental state when they visit,and report it to the hospital doctors, so we are hopeful that they will report this all to the RMH Neurologist to speed up his referred visit. Thank you,

Melodye

Sheila, Blood and Bone fertiliser! Right?

Melodye

Melodye, I think I'm missing some posts on this thread. Is Lou still doing a bit better at home? It is hard to cope with such changes in those we are close to. I have a lifetime of dealing with this, including being my mother's legal guardian. It's rough, and when you have your own health challenges, even rougher. Hey, I was an only, and so was my daughter. I can't speak for her, but I didn't mind at all and got taken everywhere by my parents. Some was good and some a little too much for a kid. I acquired steps when I was nineteen and away at college. The steps were older, married and had families, which I am thankful for. I figured out your predicted temp, and yow, it will be hot for you. I wish we could share a bit of our temps with each other to moderate things. That home Melissa was sitting sounds fabulous. I'd love it for the birds alone, which you Aussies name some charming names. I remember learning the Kookaburra Song at Scout camp, and I didn't know what a Kookaburra was, nor a gum tree (I was 10), but I loved the song. Of course, I learned 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall, too, which was not an approved Scout song. I've got some of the same eye trouble you have, so I am interested in how your condition progresses. But, I hope all is getting a little better for you.

Magpie, we live in fire country, too, since it's a desert here. We had a gully fire that came within a few hundred feet of our back yard, and worse, a fire across the road that would have burned us up but for the road which prevented it. That was way too close for comfort. Here is a photo of a giant pyrocumulus cloud from a big fire about 50 miles away a few summers ago. That is not smoke, but a type of cloud. How's your local fire coming? Diane

@Melodye Sartori zone 10a Melbourne It's such a terribly hard thing to deal with, I wish I could say anything that could help or comfort you. I hope that you always have safe havens of sorts in your life to help you recuperate from the trials of being human.

@Diane Brakefield Ah yes, I remember that photo. It's amazing. Here is a too dark, grainy photo of the view from my deck right now.

Magpie, have you checked your news? They have evacuated several towns, hundreds of homes lost, and thousands of people have been evacuated. There are 105 mph winds. This is outside Denver, in Boulder, and in some surrounding smaller towns. It's all over our news. I just watched Boulder burning. Stay safe and keep up on the news. Let us know updates. Diane

Yes, those same fires are what's partially showed in my photo above. I'll update later.

Magpie I just saw the same news. please keep us updated Prayers for your safety. I saw scenes like that growing up in Adelaide, the Hills always burned. 2 of my Step-sisters live up there now and I’m worried for them today. Stay safe.

Diane, I forgot to mention that Top Cream doesn’t resemble the Wedding Rose that much TWR never shows a pink flush, Ive put TC on my Wait for Release list though. My Abe still looks twiggy and ratty, But today there is another flower and 3 buds I hope they don’’t fry. I do not know where the energy to flower comes from. There is no new growth to promote flowers. I think he prefers cold wet Springs. My new Golden Celebration has one flower and several buds, but it was really droopy this a.m. I hope it will perk up later today for a photo shoot. Lamarque, which was severely cut back after the wind storm, is flowering nicely on the older wood that survived, and there is a lot of new growth with buds. I’m glad I didn’t lose it.

I’m putting on the sprinklers later tonight, the grass Charlie poisoned is now dry straw,, the wind has picked up here and there are always irresponsible neighbours with illegal fireworks plus the local soccer club NY celebratory fireworks down in the reserve, just asking for trouble. Not to mention the oily eucalypts behind our back fence. I will be watchful tonight.

Melodye

Oh Magpie, that looks pretty close especially with those winds

A year ago we lost a town south of us, it was fast and scary and devastating. Pack yourself a couple of go bags just incase. We will all be waiting anxiously for word.

Melodye, I have a cataract surgery coming up as well. I had one done a few years ago on the other eye surgery and it was a piece of cake. The prep took longer than the procedure

The bummer is that when I fell a couple of weeks ago I broke the frame of my glasses. So I need new frames put on my old lenses. I cant get new lenses until sevetal months after the cataract surgery .But this glue job wont last forever lol

Sheila, you cracked me up

Inquiring minds need to know.

They are cute so that makes up for the lack of sleep. sometimes!

my oldest really likes helping me prune old flowers and water the

plants- the middle likes helping me rake leaves and pick up sticks.

i for sure have 2 future gardeners. too early to tell on the 3rd.

good luck magpie, i know yall have to be on pins and needles, even though its not that close!

and carol, i dont have it in me to have ANYONE over every day! much less a diffiult relative. surely that will work itself out!

JC, thank you so much for sharing the picture of your gorgeous children. They are really precious!

It is so fun when they show intetest in helping.

Sending good thoughts Magpie-keep us posted when you can!

jc...I can't believe you have 3 kids under 4!!! That's like having triplets. Holy Macanoli!! As to my m-i-law...I was trying to be charitable. After almost 40 years, you'd think I'd have given up on that. Well, I finally have. Took me a long time to beat my niceness down. :) :)

Kristine - You did a great job to have 4 adult kids who are still best friends! Yeah, I've told my m-i-law countless times over the years that if she bothers my head or neck, I'm going to have a migraine. There were 2 times in our many years together where I actually got mad at her and showed my strength. One was when she was looking at a wedding photo of my parents and asked who the woman was standing beside my dad in the wedding gown. My mom (like all of the females in our line) gained a lot of weight. I told my m-i-law...who do you THINK it is? You can't be THIS stupid...you must just be cruel. Boy was I mad at her, because my mom was a few feet away. My m-i-law is bulimic and anorexic and weighs 85 lbs. She's a walking cadaver. She had all of these cartoons on her wall of fat women eating cake. Anyway, I digress. LOL The other time was when she asked if I still fit in the coat I was going to donate (it was from grade 6). I said "What do you THINK?" Do you REALLY think I still fit this coat? She smiled and said, "No." I'm sure you all agree...B*tch.

I think the real problem is that the love of her life was not her husband, but mine. Don was an only child (sister died at birth...horrible).

I can't believe that Azalea has given up on naps!! What a dynamo! :) :)

Oursteelers - yes, that's so true for the youngest...they just don't have the same connections/memories....like they belonged to a different family.

Kitty - thanks for the loving words and for the words of wisdom. So true! And this time she made the mistake of saying things to me while my husband was near...she'd never done that before. Thank goodness he supported me. He got quite annoyed with her. :) :) You still never slow down :) :) I'm glad that you are having so much fun! :) :) I think this pot is my favorite! Love!

Sara Ann - Exactly! :) :) Why can't we all just be nice? Thanks so much for your lovely words! Yes, I was so happy to get those knitted roses from Holly! I didn't know it was possible to knit roses :) :) Ooooh!! Winter sowing! You get an early start....I can't wait for summer!

Diane - Go, Diane, Go!!! LOL Excellent deer wrangling!! :) :) I think we should all do a combined video of the weird things we've done for our gardens, etc. LOL It'd be a hoot! Yes, sounds like the hawks know a good thing when they see it. You're just trying to have a slice of heaven...and these critters won't play nice. As to my m-i-law...let's just say that I won't go get her, and my hubby won't want to either. He always says he'd be in a mental institution if she ever lived with us. LOL And as to the temps...wait til you read the overnight temps (below) for tonight!!! Grab onto your sleeping bags!! :) :) What a cool thing!! To have had a fabulous candy store for most of your life right close by...and to know the owners through the years! :) :)

Yes, Holly found a pattern. If you (or anyone else wants it) she'll be glad to give it to you. :) Oh, thank you for the rose pictures to brighten my evening!! :) :) Stellar and exceptional as always!! :) :) That Ebb Tide...oh my!!

Sheila - Oh, I really laughed explosively from your comment about the wood chipper!!! LOL LOL I do have a vermicompost system that she would fit nicely into. LOL

Magpie - a grassfire in December!! Please be safe! I'm praying for rain/snow for you!

Melodye - Sounds like a hot one there in Melbourne!! Thirty-eight is just too hot! Darn spider bite!! Hopefully your kidneys aren't too badly affected. Cataract surgery is supposed to be painless and okay...but the idea of it is horrible! I hope it goes well for you and that you aren't too nervous about it. Really cool about the birds Melissa had on the balcony every day to feed...it sounds so exceptionally cool!! Those are birds that are so exotic and colorful....the best of the best birds! Thanks for the loving words...I feel really pumped up after reading everyone's comments here! I will stand up for myself!! :) Ooooh!!! You can smell damask roses all day long...does it get any better fragrance wise? Nope. :) What a great gift! Oh, I just read your blood/bone fert....we are all so bad. :)

105 mph winds!!! Holy cow! That's terrible!

JC - your kids are uber cute!!! Angels!! :) :) Yeah, my m-i-law may think she's coming over every day (she didn't ask, but told us)...but that's sooooo not going to happen.

Alberta weather report

Tonight and tomorrow night, extremely cold wind chill values between -40C (-40F) and -55C (-67F) are expected throughout much of Alberta.

Can someone please tell me when summer is coming. LOL

I won't start a new thread yet if we want to stay here so we won't miss Magpie's fire reports. Let me know what you all think.

Carol, like everyone else on here, I loathe your m-i-l. May she freeze to death tonight. No, that would make you feel guilty. (Heavens, that's cold!) Thank goodness she said something nasty to you in Dan's hearing.

jc, your children are gorgeous!

Melodye, what's happening to Lou sounds very scary - and your spider bite.

Diane, you really must make a book of your garden.

Magpie, I hope those fires keep away. And yes, I know what you mean about being happier without family. My mother actually had the gall to say she was proud of herself and my father for always putting me down! My husband's dying words to me, were that he didn't want my parents having anything to do with our children's upbringing. It was an enormous relief to me when they died.

Carol, the air-con is on full blast. indoors temp is 20C outside it is still 32C tonight forecast is 20C tomorrow 38C again. I think we all want to see Magpie’s fire reports. I’d tell your MIL that you will only have weekend guests for summer. I don’t like people in and out all day, every day.

Trish, What a rotten thing for parents to do to a child. I was lucky in that respect, my parents always gave me a confidence boost. I see you are having some nice weather, in time for the cricket, and for your gardening and other projects. Lou is a lot less grumpy now, he saves it fot the nurses, who all laugh at him. It gives Melissa and me a break anyway.I’ll be watching the Sydney fireworks on TV tonight, I checked, there are no local firework celebrations on record for tonight here here. Just as well, it is so dry around here. We don't want any fires starting in the reserve. The animals are all heat stressed and do not need the extra upset. Melissa said the Kangaroos were lying on the grass close to the path today, and didn’t move as she and Harry walked by. My bird bath is very busy, even had a grey butcherbird this afternoon, first one I’ve seen here. We can hear them them around though.

Diane, lovely Colette and Golden Celebration. My GC does not like the heat, still hang-dog looking this evening. The Teas are all fried, Mons. Tillier looks a wreck, but Honorine de Brabant, Chaucer and The Prioress are still soldiering on. Blue Emotion is still pushing out buds and flowers,but they fade quickly, once open. Elysium Fields doesn’t mind the heat though, it has flowered continually and no frizzling or drooping to be seen. A very good rose for me.

Well the illegal fireworks have started and it is only 9.45p.m. I hope the police are patrolling the neighbourhood. to catch the offenders. What a New Year wowser I am! I’m about to head off to bed to rest my legs until midnight.

Melodye

@titian1 10b Sydney Thank you. So far I've found it very rare that anyone understands my choice to cut them off. I appreciate you sharing your experience, and the solidarity. 💙

Magpie, what is the fire situation ?

I tried to look up news about it this morning, but couldn't find any info on percent contained or anything like that. From last night, around 600 homes had been lost and about 30,000 people evacuated. I don't know about now. We're forecasted to get snow dumped on us today, but it was supposed to have started hours ago and no snow as of yet... I hope it comes any second now and helps stop the fire.

Magpie, where is HCR in relation to all of this?

Close to the evac area the latest map is showing me, but not in it. But very close. HCR is in the blue x I drew on this evac map.

Thanks Magpie. So scary-I hope Matt and everyone are safe. I wasn’t expecting to be talking about fires this time of year!

Please let us know how uou are doing and when your snow arrives. Are you on the map?

No I'm not in the map, the wind wasn't blowing my way. We are safe in my household today. Thanks for asking.

Trish and Magpie, I hear you! I always wanted my dad to die...I'd dream of it. Thank God he's better now...he's actually wonderful. He had a heart attack when he was 50, and that totally changed his attitude. I've forgiven him. But if he hadn't have changed, he wouldn't be in my life now, that's for sure! Trish - what a horrible, horrible mom you had!!

Trish - the weird thing is that she's only like that with me. Beyond my family, everyone LOVES her...adores her!! They all say I'm so lucky to have her for a mother-in-law and I don't say anything.

Melodye - yes, she'll be in for a rude awakening if she thinks she's coming over every day...not happening. Oh the horror!! :) :) So we're having severe cold and you're having severe heat. Not much fun. I googled the grey butcherbird...what a cool bird...so pretty, yet intense. I showed it to my daughter on facebook. :) People who start forest fires (happened in California, I think) should go to jail for the rest of their lives. Fireworks are so dangerous with everything so dry.

Magpie -thank goodness you're still safe. Where is that snow you've been expecting!

Join here https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6213952/2022-seasonal-thread-winter for the new 2022 thread. :)

Good Morning, Friends,

HAPPY NEW YEARS DAY!

I am trying to read all your posts….. little behind….. but I’ll start w/…..

Diane, Love your Colette and gorgeous rose photos! ayour gardens arecsooooo amazing! Thank you for your loving warm welcome back. Enjoying vaca w/ny son and soooo busy prep for renters. i bought 3 bedrooms of newer furniture. Since I am in this big house alone most of time when sin is at college it is nice to have tenter company. i screen my renters very carefully and so far I have the nicest respectful women. Really have been enjoying them-so it’s working out nicely. one likes gardening & baking so should be fun when spring comes. So funny about Sheila’s comment about T-compost -very good idea! Giggles!

Sheila, Compost-Hmmmmm-great idea! Histerical! I needed to move T along…. I think he new to find a new pasture rather than mine-done! , he he!

New friend is J-and he’s a keeper possibly- (I kmow I am supposed to be careful, but head over heals about him-so lovely a match-kind-caring-generous-Christian-adore him! Too head over heals…. Oh, my, what shall I do? Enough wax rhapsodic! We mainly call, chat & Facetime as he’s in Florida and I’m in NY. However, we chat 3 times almost every day day-feels like he’s here. We mainly share Christian ideas and enjoy chatting about family, gardens, his work & more. We will see! But, I fill like the movie ”You got Mail,” ”Can’t help myself! He, he! Geez.

Carol, Love your compost machine! May I borrow it for T? He, he, giggles. So goad your hubby stood up for you! You deserve much family love & support. Thank you regarding my Talveta pot. The Talvera collection of pots should perk up my gardens in the spring when filled with roses & flowers. I already ordered 4 new roses for the pots. Love seeing your quilts! Hiw beautiful! Whatca joy to nake somethibg so beautiful fir your homes. love to employ you to make a quilt for me! I actuallyvam looking for one more new quilted bedspread and love some extra quilts for the beds, too.

.

Melodye, Wow, so you have warm temps! So hsrd to believe as I see US temps drop & sniw in tge PNW. Although, no snow here today at 50F-a surprise high today. Tomorrow 31F and 30F and lower from tomorrow on….Sorry to hear about your spider bite….. hoping you will recover quickly. Love hearibg about your Aussie birds… Kuckaburras…L how beautiful & exotic to me! Feeding them in the wild must be a dream setting….. out if story books it seems for me. I never saw a Kuckaburra before.

Magpie, Oh, My, what a beautiful deck & view you have! But the fires! Tgat’s nor suppised to be hapoening now! Are they near your property? I hope you stay safe! Wishing you blessings to orotect you and restore your area to it’s greenery and beauty.

Kristine, Sorry about your fall. Are you ok? I hope youvdidnt break anythibg besides your glasses. It is so difficult breakibg glasses…… I am buying them online now….. discount prescrption reading ir other from ”Designer Outlet.” They have Swarovski, Vera Wang, ect…. fun! I dint know if it nay help you with cist-tgey look nice and quality. Hoping your goasses last ubtil you may replace frame.

JC, Your children are so beautiful. Your daughter and son have such beautiful smiles, pretty strawberry blonde hair. Love their colorful seasonal outfirs for the holiday photo!

Trish, Lovely to hear from you. How are you? Improvibg in health and gardening?

Kitty, it's so nice to read your post and I hope your Christmas and New Year's Eve were fun with your son. I'm glad you are such a good sport about T and compost. We were mystified as to where he went--ha. But you're still considering the mulch/compost thing. It's an idea. Just joking. Thanks for your nice comments on my roses. I hope they come through these rotten temps OK. It was about 1F for a low last night. My friend had a -3F at her place, also out in the country. We had a good snow cover, so that will help, but it all melts off in a few days. Your renters sound like a good thing, and you can put the gardener renter to work this spring (for a rental discount, of course). I love the blue and white pots and anything blue and white. At my previous home, my living room was blue and white, and now the music room here is my blue and white. That includes blue and white transferware and other china. I've done some designs in blue and white, too. The pots I use are strictly utilitarian for the hot peppers, veggies, etc. Not fun. I'll continue this on the new thread, but have a great New Year. Diane

Kitty, thank you for the lovely update! Now I can rest easy.

Kitty - good luck with J!! <3 <3 And it's good to hear that you have renters that you feel at home with. :) :)

Thank you, Diane, Sheila, Carol,

Still chuckling over composting……. Loving Carol’s new ”Seasonal Thread!” Love Dianes, comments! Snow is coming down here is big flakes today…. I guess a bianket for my roses finally! See you on the new thread!

:) :)