Molly the Mouse and Friends

Molly the Mouse

Feels happy and free

Whenever she sits

High up in a tree.

Abe and His New Hat

Abe...now 16 months old...is loving his new friend, Fox the Hat.

~Cute~

The Hittyville Alphabet

C if for Chef

 Chef Henri hails from Paris, France where he grew up in an overcrowded orphanage.  Henri...as he was called then...often spent his days in the kitchens of the finest eateries of that amazing city and watched the top chefs create the most delicious meals in the world.

 Granny Pickle "discovered" Henri while visiting France long ago.  She told this talented chef about Hittyville and the Cafe she was about to open and asked Henri to become her chef...with complete freedom to create the menu and rule the kitchen.

He accepted and a dream was realized.

Chef Henri is now the chef of The Hittyville Riverboat...with Granny Pickle's blessing...and can be found serving up heavenly meals on an everyday basis.  The ship's Cafe is open when she docked or at sea.

And then there are all the special events the Hittyville Friends hold on the riverboat.

It is a glorious life for a poor orphan boy from Paris.

Picture of the Day

Most every Saturday morning, Joe and I enjoy a cup of tea and spend some laptime with our dog children.

Pixie is the oldest of the four and also the most aloof.  Her hearing is unbelievable and she starts barking way before her sisters realize the mailman is driving down our country road.

I do believe Pixie would rather be an "only" dog and am thankful she tolerates Gypsy, Tibs, and Daisy with politeness...however restrained.

~Love~

Miss Hickory's "Roots"

 One of our Lyn-Way friends was telling us about the hickory nut cakes his mother made for him years ago.  My daughter, Brooke, was curious about what a hickory nut looked like in its shell.

The hickory nut comes from various hickory trees.

 Last night, our friend gave us some hickory nuts to keep...in and out of their shells.

 I am VERY familiar with the hickory nut because of the Newberry Award winner book, "Miss Hickory" by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey.

I LOVE this book!

 In fact, Hittyville has their very own Miss Hickory and her friend, Crow...also a character in the book.

Miss Hickory was one of the founders of Hittyville.  She has lived along the banks of Meadow Creek for as long as she and anyone else can remember.

Miss Hickory is pleased to announce her younger sister, Carolyn Hickory, has just moved to Hittyville and will be sharing her homestead.

Miss Hickory was carved by Judy Brown and she has a real hickory nut head.  Carolyn Hickory was created by my dear friend, Paulette Morrissey.

I think I will attempt to make my own Miss Hickory from one of the nuts our friend gave us.

~Our Lyn-Way friends are the best~ 

The Hittyville Alphabet

B is for Beekeeper

 Papa Gnome is known far and wide for his delicious Happy River Honey.  Badger keeps his eyes on the hive for Papa Gnome...The Happy River Bears like to "sample" the honey when no one is looking.

Honey is Papa Gnome's loyal companion and official "taste tester" of the honey.  She has a gift for determining just when the honey is ready for consumption.

 The Gnome Family includes Peter, Johanna, Papa, and Mama.

There are always Animal Friends in, out, and around the Gnome Homestead.

Uncle is Papa Gnome's brother and best friend.  Uncle is the official "taste tester" of his brother's famous Happy River Honey Ale.

We understand the ale is also used for medicinal purposes.

~Those Gnomes~

A Picture a Day

I don't know if you can see the net over the pond, but it is that time of year when Joe protects the water from all the falling leaves.  There are areas for the frogs to enter and exit as well.  Joe also put the heater in the pond.

This is always a sad few weeks for the Hittyville Friends, especially Lewis, because there is nothing more beautiful that a Fall Boat Ride.

A Reminder

Yesterday, the news was depressing...Ebola, ISIS, Stock Market plunge, etc...and then...last night...we saw a rainbow.

The promise of hope lifted my spirits.

The Hittyville Alphabet

A is for Adventurer

 Hitty Gertrude Bell is a renowned explorer, anthropologist, archaeologist, author, and museum director.

 Hitty Gertrude Bell is always researching, working on her memoirs, or planning a new expedition.

 Philippe is also a well known and respected explorer and has shared many adventures with Hitty Gertrude Bell.  He has proposed marriage to our busy Friend numerous times and Hitty Gertrude Bell's answer is always the same...Maybe after the next expedition.

Our Hittyville Adventurer enjoys her rare relaxing moments with her beloved camel, Persia, and her constant companion, Balto...from the lineage of the famous Alaskan sled dog of the same name.

Hitty Gertrude Bell has traveled all over the world and thinks Hittyville is the most interesting place of all!

Molly the Mouse and Friends

Molly the Mouse 

Has decided that Fall

Is really her favorite season 

Of all.

A Picture or Two A Day

I have been taking a random picture a day and putting each one into a scrapbook.  Now that I am back to blogging on a daily basis, I decided to share them here...

 I have been doing quite a bit of walking around the farm lately.

I save the Labyrinth Walk for times of contemplation...

I do, however, walk around the perimeter of the Labyrinth every day and this morning I took a moment to savor the beauty of the little daisies.

~Happy~

Hittyville Celebrates October

 Lewis loves YELLOW fall leaves almost as much as his beloved YELLOW dandelions.

 Grandpa Walton is telling John Boy he may be the official Hayride Driver this year.

John Boy is honored.

 Mama Gnome is trying to get a flying practice in with her little Bats for Hittyville's Oktoberfest celebration.  She has two new formations to teach them, but the winged friends would rather take their afternoon nap.

 The Scarecrow Family is busy picking pumpkins for their Hittyville Friends.

 Miss Hitty, acting in her official role as Governor of Hittyville, has invited the Von Trapp Family to perform at the Oktoberfest Concert.

Maria enthusiastically accepts Miss Hitty's offer on behalf of her musical family.  Time to practice!

 The Little Witches would like to borrow Granny Pickle's Hittyville Cafe kitchen for Halloween candy making again this year.

Granny Pickle would be delighted to share her kitchen.

 Captain Harlan has agreed to Abby's request to use the Hittyville Riverboat for a Halloween Costume Ball.  The Captain says if Chef Henri agrees to making the refreshments, the Ball is a go.

Chef Henri would be happy to serve up a Spooky Smorgasbord...as long as he doesn't have to wear a costume.

Abby laughs and tells her friend he already is in costume.

Drackie and Frankie have just heard about the Halloween Costume Ball party.  They are trying to decide what to wear.

Hmm...

The Hittyville Friends are enjoying this beautiful month of October, that's for sure!

The Three Amigos

It is a beautiful day to be a goat on Windy Ridge Farm.

The Escape Artist

Zorro and Snowy are taking a well deserved nap.

Yesterday, I noticed Zorro standing up straight and tall by the edge of the Gerbil Homestead...just staring out into the room.

What Zorro was actually looking at was Snowy, who was OUTSIDE of their huge aquarium home looking in!  As soon as he saw me, Snowy scurried away and I hoped the Have-A-Heart "trap" was close at hand.  I blamed myself for the escape because I had added a very large tunnel which must have been his launching point to get out of his home.

Joe set up the trap and within a couple of hours, Snowy was returned to his bosom gerbil family, which includes Zorro, Scout, and Ranger.

All's well that ends well....

By the way, I did remove the tunnel!

Journaling and More

Like all of us, I go through stages.  But in the end, I find myself going back to what feels right and makes life worth living.

Although I have an extroverted personality,  I love my own quiet time, when I can turn off the noise of the world and just be.  But after that recharging time, I start to miss interaction with others.  So back I go to Facebook, Twitter, my blog, online classes, and feel renewed and happy to be part of a bigger "society".

This time, I really felt the call of my Hittyville Friends to balance my quiet time, writing, art projects, etc. and get back to telling their stories.

And that feels right...just as it should be.

Hitty Jane Takes a Stand

 Hitty Jane has been hosting the American Girl Friends and was wondering when they would be moving on.

The Girls were under the impression they WERE home.

 Hitty Jane asked to speak to me privately.

My dear little Doll Daughter reminded me she is my companion and not a "regular" Hittyville Friend.  Hitty Jane also insisted I find a home for the American Girls and soon so she can get back to the life she was intended for and loves with her whole heart.

I was taken aback and felt terrible!  I thought Hitty Jane was enjoying herself.

I realized at that moment how much I missed her.

That afternoon...

 Miss Hitty and Granny held an emergency meeting and came up with just the place for the American Girls to stay...hopefully forever.

A bit later...

 I decided to speak with Mother Becassine...the house mother of The Storybook Homestead...and ask her if she would be willing to give a home to a group of wonderful American Girls.

 Mother Becassine didn't bat an eye and told me the Grils would be MOST welcome in their home.  Her "children" all agreed...the more the merrier!

And then...

Hitty Jane has thanked me for her reclaimed freedom at least a dozen times and can't wait for our next adventure!

~It's always about communication~

Father Knows Best

 Even though his father-in-law is retired, John likes to keep him updated on their construction projects.

Johnny is thrilled to hear there are some big drain pipes being stored in the Gravel Pit until next week.

He can't wait to tell Vicki and Cassi.

 Johnny, Cassi, and Vicki are thrilled about playing in the pipes and agree to keep their play area top secret.

And then...

 Johnny and Cassi think maybe they should invite Charlie and Mike to play Army with them.

The more the merrier...

 Vicki wants to play dolls in her pipe, but thinks it might be more fun if she invites Poppy and Jane with their dolls.

The siblings agree to let everyone play in the pipes.

Some things are just meant to be shared.

Meanwhile...

 Getta wonders where their three oldest children are.  She hasn't seen them for at least an hour.

John tells his wife not to worry.  He noticed Johnny listening to him tell Opa about the drain pipes.

By now, the whole neighborhood is probably playing in the Gravel Pit.

~Based on one of my MANY childhood adventures~

Let the Painting Begin

 Joseph Raymond the Gnome is still fast asleep, but Betsy is eager to get to work.

 All the paints and brushes have been collected.

Hopefully, Betsy will have her Gnome in full technicolor before he wakes up.

Gnomes are quite ticklish while being painted...

 Rosie is going to ask Dad for a ladder to reach Joseph Raymond's Gnome hat.

Rusty wonders why Gnomes sleep with their eyes wide open.

He will have to ask Joseph Raymond when he does finally wake up.

~To be continued~