So I had a caricature done.

My friend and I went to the foodbank that our area Harvest for Hunger services to accept the recognition award for collecting 1,234 pounds of food from our elementary school kids.  It was a fun time to be had by all.  There was a roaming gentleman offering to do caricatures.  Here's the one he did of me.  I can't tell if it looks like me or not, but I can tell you that the hair is pretty accurate.  It was still a fun thing to have, so why not?  :)

Gardenish things - Part 2.

Don't be all ooey gooey.  I found this on the house this morning.  He's harmless.  He's a jumping spider.  I just never noticed that he has a heart on his back.  Huh.  I'd rather have him outside and NOT inside.  I don't do spiders like this on the inside.  He's not big, but he's hairy and fast.  He can live outside thankyouverymuch.

Gardenish things.

Hubs and K fixed my vine arbor.  She's a bit shorter than she was before.  Hubs has to bend slightly to go underneath. He's 6' tall.  That's fine with me.  He did a great job!

Volunteer dill coming up in the garden.  I'm going to leave the patch right there.  It isn't going to hurt anything and the butterflies will appreciate it.

We have a new chipmunk in residence here.  This is the entrance to the hidey hole.

I've had a discussion with the bunny rabbit gentlemen who reside under the shed.  It is perfectly fine if they would like to get to the strawberries first.  Same rule applies to them as the rest of us.  Don't just take one bite and walk away.  Don't sample them all as a buffet.  Eat what you want, but eat what you take.

Periwinkle!

Weeds!

We don't murder the dandelions here.  If we did, we'd have no grass.  We enjoy them instead.

This is the mystery plant that I planted last year.  When I saw these little flowers, I thought it was Forget Me Not.  I'm not thinking that.  They aren't tall enough or blue enough.  Any ideas?  Do share.

The blazing star DID come back!

Lily of the Valley are blooming.

The irises are nearing their end, but still have enough life left in them to keep for a few more days.

Hooray for good garden stuff!  I've found volunteer Rose of Sharon everywhere in one bed.  Where that is delightful, I might have to take a few out.  I'm also waiting to weed out one part of a bed to see what reseeded.

Have a great night!

If you've lived in Northeast Ohio for any length of time...

You have heard about the ladies that were missing.  Both Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus were kept in the media by their families.  We heard about both of these ladies every year when vigils were done.

The other evening I was on the computer with the TV on in the background.  I heard what sounded like a cheesy TV program having a news conference.  I looked.  It looked real.  I walked up and read the caption that I thought I read from far away.

My mouth hit the floor.

Tears rolled down my face.

Oh what these ladies have gone through.  We'll never know and we needn't know all the details.  Really, we needn't know any.  It isn't our business to know.

Hubs came in while my mouth was literally wide open and asked what was going on.

"They're alive!  I can't believe it!  They've been missing for an entire decade and they are alive!"

We're stunned, but thrilled.  Truly.

The DeJesus family has requested that retaliation not be taken against the Castro family.  They know that it was one of their family members.  One of the Castro family members was on crying apologizing for what the ladies have been through.  I think that it is important to remember that the Castro family has been victimized, too.

When things come up like this, I sit back and see what type of charitable collection is put up.  There is one to benefit the ladies and the 6 year old, as well as their families.

Cleveland Courage Fund- The Cleveland Courage Fund of the Cleveland Foundation was established after the discovery of three women held captive in a Cleveland home for a decade. Donations will go to qualified nonprofit organizations to provide services for these victims.

If you feel called to give, please do so.  100% of the profits will be donated.  If you would, please consider praying for these ladies, the 6 year old and their families.  They have got a rather long road to go.

Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus FOUND ALIVE!

These two ladies have been missing for over a decade.  They were being held in Cleveland, which is where they have been missing from.  They were just near downtown.

Oh PRAISE JESUS.  How I have cried.  I can't imagine the relief of the families.  Please pray for these girls and their re-entry to society.  One of these young ladies had lost her mother while she was missing.  Every year, they have held vigils.  The bodies were never found.  The family never gave up.

How HAPPY I am for all of them.

Please pray for these girls and their families.