Brooke's Classroom...Before and After

Front...Before

Front...After

 Back...Before

Back...After

 Window Side...Before

Window Side...After

 Door Side...Before

Door Side...After

This project was a team effort with Brooke directing each and every move.  

Awesome job, dear daughter!

Your future students are very fortunate to have you as their teacher.

Another Sunday With Abe

 Joe, Brooke, and I journeyed up to Cleveland to help Noah and Amy with their new house...but first...lunch!

 Abe enjoys eating in restaurants...thank goodness!

 Abe loves his Auntie Brooke...

 Abe is such a happy little guy!

Back home...

 I can't believe how much changes in one week!  Abe is walking greater distances all by himself.

 Abe's favorite pastime is playing with his blocks...and water cup.  Brooke got Abe the turtle when she visited the Columbus Zoo with friends on Saturday.

 I sang and Abe kept beat with his blocks.

 ~Love~

And then...

 Cassi stopped by and the girls and Abe drove over to her son's new house...just a few minutes away!

Perfect for a single guy...

 John's house also got a stamp of approval from Abe!

 Hitty Jane made friends with a firefighter and police officer.

My nephew is currently a police officer and was formerly a fireman!

 John's house has a nice deck and great backyard!

Wasn't it just yesterday I was helping my nephew tie his shoes?

Back at Noah and Amy's house...

 Joe spent the entire afternoon getting rid of all the unnecessary wires and there were TONS of them!

 Brooke helped with the yardwork.

 It made my heart smile to watch my children working together as a team...

 Cassi came up with some great landscaping ideas!

She really is a master gardener.

 Amy spent the afternoon sorting through boxes upstairs and trying to get Abe to take a nap.  Abe does not like naptime...especially when there is activity buzzing all around him!

 I relieved Amy for awhile and played with my beloved grandson.

We all had the best of days!

The Most Magical Doll of All

 Yesterday morning Hitty Jane discovered the secret sleeping spot of some of Hittyville's Fairies.  The Weaving Spiders create the most wonderful soft beds for our Fairies to rest in!

Little Felix was delighted to meet such a pretty young lady.

 Hitty Jane wanted to make sure the Fish Friends, who now live in Friendship Pond, were enjoying their new home.

She discovered all three of them playing under a rock.

 Grandmother Gnome was happy to give Hitty Jane a tutorial on the collecting of Rainy Day Mushrooms.

Hitty Jane found an abandoned bird nest on her evening walk and thought how much fun it would be to soar in the sky like her winged Bird Friends.

So...Hitty Jane's arrival has not gone as planned...at all!

My special Doll Friend is no longer an Ambassador to Hittyville.  This little wooden treasure has become my companion...at home and elsewhere.

She loves to visit Hittyville, but is more a part of my own daily life.  Ginny has gone back to living with her fellow Ginnys and Bleuette Friends and loves it.

I visit her often.

But...

Hitty Jane has captured my heart and imagination.  I want to create the most special of homes for her and yet...it would have to be something a bit unique because it appears she is not meant to be a Hittyville Friend, but a Doll Mother Friend.

Hmm...

I can't wait to see what adventures this day will bring with Hitty Jane by my side!

A Walk Around Windy Ridge Farm

 I thought today would be a good day to show Hitty Jane our farm.  We originally called our entire homestead Windy Ridge Farm.  A couple of years ago I tried to change it to Rabbit Hill Farm because of all the rabbits who share our land.

Some things you just can't change and I think farm names might be one of them...So we happily returned to calling our beloved homestead Windy Ridge Farm.  Actually, I was the only one who used the Rabbit Hill Farm name.  My family just couldn't bring themselves to stop calling our farm by the original name.

We are now back to "normal"...at least I am!

 Off we went...

 Hitty Jane could not believe how green the forest world is.

 My little Doll Friend was overwhelmed by Nature's beauty.

 Under our Black Walnut tree is a favorite resting spot for the many deer who live in our forest or pass through.

 Hitty Jane wonders where all the Fairies are today...

 The YELLOW flowers remind Hitty Jane of one of her new Hittyville Friends, Lewis.  She understands he loves ALL things YELLOW!

 And some people call these pretty posies weeds...

 Hitty Jane told me she had never seen a corn forest before.

I explained we call this area a cornfield.

It was such fun seeing the farm through Hitty Jane's eyes...

~It was the best of days~

My Love Affair With Toys

I have loved all kinds of toys as long as I can remember.  As a child of the 50's, I received toys only on my birthday and Christmas...and RARELY in between.  I was completely satisfied with my limited toy collection and cherished each and every doll and stuffed animal I did have.

I'm not sure what happened, but as an adult my motto appears to be "The More the Merrier"... 

And I still cherish each and every toy friend who joins my "family"!

A Napping Field Mouse

Just as I took this picture of the cutest little sleeping mouse, he opened his eyes and ran as fast as his tiny feet could carry him...away from me.

~Farm Life~

A Fun Filled Friday

My wonderful sisters, Cassi and Kate, journeyed from Bay Village and Avon Lake to see Brooke's classroom...after a nice lunch at Lyn-Way.

 Cassi totally appreciated all of Brooke's work and asked lots of questions.

 Kate thought the room setup would definitely inspire the students to enjoy math!

 I am so fortunate to have sisters who support their niece..big time!

And then...

 We spent some time taking in the beautiful view and reminiscing about our German grandmother who was quite a character!

Thanks for everything, Kate and Cassi!

Later...

 Joe decided it was time to restock our little pond.

Yesterday, he noticed 2 small frogs who seem to have made a home in the now healthy water.

 We are praying they survive!

 And then there were 3!

I keep checking on our small fish friends and they appear to be having the time of their lives.

A bit later...

 Someone else seems to have found their way to our pond!

 Cuddles is my newest Friend and her name totally fits her personality.

Hitty Jane and Ginny can vouch for that!

And finally...

As I said "goodnight" to my outside world, I came upon a sweet bunny.

~It really was the best of days~