early morning

the farm is waking, ready for this long weekend~

mornings like this only need a rooster.

Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend!

2013 Barn Sale count down underway

And so it begins!

The next weeks will be full!  My "to do" list is much longer then my "to done" list -- so, feeling a bit like a squirrel readying for winter. 

This is how the weeks ahead will look:

• gather, gather, gather -- vintage finds come rolling in!
• complete & hang posters -- all over the Chippewa Valley!
• update mailing list and send out postcards -- I still like the old fashioned way of card in hand!
• If I miss you with a postcard - my apologies, means you are not on my mailing list - yet...email me if you want to be with name & address:  Email
• untarp the hayloft and begin to unload bins!
• gather, gather, and gather some more!
• open prized seasonal & holiday bins in house -- my stuff -- begin to let go of some of my goodies for the sale!
• update this very blog with the SUPER SECRET password to 10% savings the morning of the sale!
• gather, gather, gather!
• cut corn stalks, harvest pumpkins, "fall up" the hayloft and farmyard!
• breathe.....!

Hoping you will be able to join in on all the fun!

When:  Saturday  October 12, 2013         9:00-5:00
              Sunday    October 13, 2013       12:00-5:00

                                     ****Sorry, absolutely NO early sales****

Where:  Augusta, Wisconsin
               S13181 County Road R

What:    Hayloft brimming with Antiques & Vintage Finds
               AND an Autumn Produce wagon from Amish neighbors

Specials:  20% Off from 2-5 on Saturday
                 30% Off all day Sunday

Join us at Meadowview Farm.  Meet Ralphie the goat & Acorn our ferocious Tom Cat!  Enjoy an apple from our little orchard while you walk the grounds - seeing how vintage finds can enhance gardens!  Climb the stairs to the hayloft of our 100 year old Danish Barn & fill up a basket!

P.S. -- I am feeling like this may be my last sale, I am not going anywhere, just realigning my life a bit.  I will head into (hopefully) my last surgery the week after the sale. 

                I will treat this sale as a true Celebration! 

Thanks for letting me dream with my eyes open!  Cross it off my bucket list once more!
Kari

meow

kittens, kittens & more kittens!

Off to their second Vet appointment ~~~~ now nearing 3 months old.

We are still looking for homes for 2 boys, email me if interested at....kitten mail

This is what 15 pounds of sweetness looks like!

the show must go on!

After dealing with a crazy two months of doctor visits, surgeries, recovery....with major surgery slated for next week ---- I had this epiphany in the wee hours of this morning.

This is me!  I am the driver of this "vehicle" called Kari.  I am at the wheel of my own fate.  I will steer this ship. 

So after consult with my surgeon this afternoon, to be followed by a visit with my surgeon & plastic surgeon this coming Friday -- I will be postponing surgery until October.  My surgeon decided it would not be "too dangerous" to do that (how's that for an answer).  My cancer, so far, has shown up as "noninvasive" -- so I figure where can it get to in an extra month?

I have too much to do right now, too much that I enjoy doing.  I will never get this time back, so I will take it with gusto!  I love Autumn and just will not give it away.

• I have apples and pumpkins to pick.
• I have animals to tend -- with a litter of kittens finding new joyful homes.
• I have my house to get in order before October -- as well as my work life.
• I have a body that needs time to rest and heal.
• I have a loving husband that has worked tirelessly to support me that needs to be allowed to rest.
• And dag nab it -- I have a Barn Sale to get ready for!

So, the show must go on!

**wow this has been one heck of an emotional roller coaster! 
Hang in there, bound to be bumpy ahead -- but oh such an adventure!

Here is my fabulous 100 year old Danish barn.

Behind that blue door is a hayloft just bursting with antiques and vintage finds!

 

I am so looking forward to this year's Barn Sale -- will be a celebration of sorts!

 

This is what greeted me on my drive home tonight!

We need only take the wheel & open our eyes....blessings everywhere - including you!

broken wing

"With a broken wing

She carries her dreams

Man you ought to see her fly"

Worked at the Hixton Antique Mall today, cried softly when I heard these haunting words from Martina McBride, as only she can sing them.  Only time I have cried since learning yesterday that I will go into my third surgery in about a week.  

Officially joined the Brave Girl's Club!

morning glory

When your health or the health of a loved one is precarious, then days, hours, moments often take on a new perspective. What cancer has taught me is that I need to honor time, to find magic in the rays of sunlight or the peak of a bunny through the Morning Glories. Time moves more slowly, thankfulness come with ease and blessings rain.

gratitude

Today I spent time in the barn playing with the new kittens. Acorn tends to them as only a big brother can. Wrestling, protective....he finally has brothers (5 of the 7 babies are boys). Two of the boys will venture on to a new home this month. But for now they play in their barn. I pick them up and smell their sweet straw laced fur, planting kisses on little noses.

I take fresh hay out to the goats, leaving little piles so each can feed or share as they desire. They work hard each day for their summer food, grazing their pasture...today the food is easy. They each watch me, showing their deep trust. Just days ago, Ralphie got over the fence and came up to the deck where he heard Dave's voice. He willingly followed him back and through the gate to his field.

I spend a bit of time in the hayloft, pricing finds from a Saturday trip north. Grateful that much of the major preparation for the October Barn Sale is done. My ambition in the spring is now appreciated. The stairs to the hayloft provide a resting place, sitting comes easy. I sit & plan...so many autumn ideas are gathered in my head.

I walk the yard, the sunflowers beckon....self seeded from last year. Pumpkins are on the vine, the Hydrangeas are ready to burst into bloom, apples show a peak of red in the trees. The sun makes me squint. The red Chicago brick of this 150 year old farmhouse provides the perfect backdrop for summer blooms.

I feel quite blessed today. I thank family & friends for such thoughtful & kind & caring words. I thank so many of you blogger friends for sweet emails & notes. I tend to be a very private person, and am ever so grateful that my sharing has touched your heart just a bit.

Today I rest and regain my strength. The pathology report from last week's surgery was not what we had hoped for.....so I will travel back into surgery again this week. But I am ready - or as ready as one can be.

Gratitude lays like a warm blanket across me.

change

I've thought to write this down, but something stops me. It is too private I think. Who will really care? This is just not the typical fluff one finds in the Blogosphere. C is for care.

So I pause, run the should I's in my mind. Still not sure, still feeling lost. C is for change.

C is also for cancer. There, I wrote the letters that form that word. That wicked word. That word that changes everything. And so it does.

I have recently been diagnosed with breast cancer. They found it early, my path is pretty straight through it to a healthy end. Surgery in early August....then daily radiation treatment through October. I am lucky to live close to the Mayo Cancer Center. I am lucky to have pretty good health insurance & a supportive employer. C is for courage.

C is for change. I plan to move forward, the Autumn Barn Sale will happen this year, but may be the last. I just don't know much beyond today. C is for change. C is for change. I wrap my mind around it and feel O.K. with it all. I will pause for this moment, then move on, feeling thankful that I can. C is for calm.

I have walked this path before with my parents....most of us will or have.  

I think what we ultimately learn is that cancer does not define us and it is not a battle we win or lose.  It just is.  And the only way through it, is through it.