mirth & merry ~ in a quiet country way

Whimsical cows from my big sis, Randi, and a new book

from my favorite local author.  And a discovery that the 

book has an autograph, a "bless you" from Michael.

This quiet dairy farm often offers me the answer, even when

no question has left my lips.  

here's to hope

                    Wishing you the magic of this season...

                    and that hope will remain as we enter the new year.

vintage holiday memories

Each year, when I unpack my Christmas bins, these two

almost always bring the most joy to me.  They are from my

childhood...and I think of them through the eyes of a much

younger Kari.  

What will we pass on as Holiday memories, to be some

day unpacked & cherished?  I wonder...

holiday finds

Dave & I went on a little local antiquing jaunt yesterday.

With snow on the way, we stayed close to home.

After years of collecting, my choices to keep are now select.

I base my choice on patina, sweet detail, color & how the item touches my heart.

These were some of my Saturday finds...

A dala horse tin cutter.

Little bunches of mushroom picks.

An ironstone pitcher with green detail.

When I make a connection to something I know I will keep,

it usually is with no thought of how the item will fit or where it will go.

I just know it will.  

I know I will smile to see them become part of my home.

jingle all the way

heading into the holidays with hope to not get lost in the "busy"...

sun up

to hibernate

There are four distinct seasons in Wisconsin...
we now prepare for one of the hardest.

But, there is a part of me ready to hunker down, to be forced inside...
to hibernate.

dusk

                     There is still beauty all around us!  

my dear hearts

I sit here typing, kitten in my lap...my dear Lucy.

I have learned that our farm would be empty if there

were not dear sweet furry souls that shared it with us.

We buried one of our dearest hearts on Friday...our 

Taffy goat.  She called Meadowview Farm home for 

almost 10 years (a long life for a goat).  When we 

brought her home, we promised to make her life a 

happy life.  We promised to care for her.  In turn, we 

received such love back.  So, tears for a soft white 

sweet girl goat.  May her memory be for a blessing.

Squirrel Away Savings

   Stop over to my booth at the Hixton Schoolhouse Antique

      Mall for a 30% off sale (includes items marked firm)!

   The sale ends at the close of business on Friday, Nov. 4th!
      Sale extended through 
       Friday, November 11!

Midnight

I take pet ownership seriously.  We care for & love our

animals...investing in their well being.  So when an older stray

black cat started appearing in the barn, I was not too pleased.

Would he fight with my cats?  Would he bring illness?  

Dave called him "Midnight" - it stuck.  And over time, he stuck too.

Midnight found the stairs to our hayloft a safe place to watch from, 

and eventually join in the evening meal from...with his own dish on

the upper most step.  Over time, I coaxed him down to a lower step

to pet him.  He was an older boy...rough around the edges, wide at

the face, scarred.  After a meal, he would lay on his back, just barely on the

stair and reach out with his paw.  I learned to not worry about him

biting or scratching.  But he was a fighter, no doubt...just not in the solace 

of the barn that had slowly become home to him.

For over a year, Midnight joined our cat family in the barn...often running

across the soy bean field when my blue car turned into the driveway.
Eventually he joined the other barn cats, rubbing against my legs as a form of

socialization, and maybe a gentle thanks.  

Midnight now takes his own place in the chapters of this farm, and in the 

memory of this old heart.  He taught me not to judge too quickly.  

I still watch for him across the soy...and suspect I always will.

Sale!

           Sale through November 4th in my booth at the

                    Hixton Schoolhouse Antique Mall!

lessons learned on a farm

So, here are some things I've learned at our farm:

• A good pair of boots are essential
• Hay is not the same as straw
• Walking out to the barn can ease your mind
• Pigeons love silos
• The sky just seems larger
• And the life of a barn cat is measured in months, not years....

Farewell Sweetie -- we will miss your dear purr.

a bittersweet season

            little bits of orange...

             greens to browns to russet tones

           and a jack-o-lantern here & there

Oh...and I also vote!

she rises

I have learned that courage can be found in the quietest of places.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  

I will wear my pink with pride too.

Welcome sweet Autumn!

She arrived while we slept.  Quietly falling into our morning as if 

she had been there always.  I had felt her presence in the dark clouds the eve 

before...and looked to the sky with awe.  I woke early to greet her.

softly she arrives

bits of early autumn

ever so quietly, fall begins to arrive at Meadowview Farm...

               

kitty love

Daisy, Lucy, Hope, Chestnut, Luna, Pearl, Sawyer, Chippewa,

Sable, Sweetie & Midnight.  Kittens at Meadowview Farm.

I will take a sweet purr any & every day as I count my kitten

blessings.  Little soft noses.  Gentle little souls.

hold it

I use vintage bowls & baskets to hold everything.

Remotes are always better in Ironstone.

Magazines...in a harvest basket, of course!

Coasters find a home in a garden pot base.

Hold it, contain it, keep it organized in vintage!

the unexpected

Life is measured in how we handle the unexpected.

Living in the country often magnifies this.

Raccoons find their way into the seed & feed...rethink storage.

Snapping turtle in the pasture, out maneuver back to the stream.

Strong winds with only fields to our farm...bigger chainsaw.

The unexpected is also measured in moments of surprise.

Sunflowers around the farm, when we hadn't planted any.

Yellow flowers magically appear all along the fence line.

And morning glories, planted years before us, returning.

Nature reminds us that the unexpected never fits neat & tidy on 

our planner...but will & does guide & build how we measure our days.

knee deep in summer

It is sunflower time...and yes, they have planted themselves

again this year.  They are indeed the happiest of flowers.

       And on the vine, pumpkins & gourds begin...

                  With a deer to climb on too.

The neighbor stopped by...one of their bee colonies

took off today, just up & flew away.  He wondered if they 

had taken up residence at our farm.  No sign of them yet!

Summer is ripening & unfolding all around us.

morning greetings

This is what often awaits in the morning.  Ralphie loves

his bridge...and my timid Little Moo is always curious.

Good day my sweet boys!

boom!

Mom lived in the perfect place for July 4th...right across

from Winnequah Park in Monona.  When I was younger,

we could line up our lawn chairs right across the front yard

to watch.  The day would start with baseball games at the 

two diamonds...then Healy Lane & all the Trails would begin

to fill through the afternoon.  The small carnival, craft fair & 

beer tent were like beacons ~~ drawing in the people.  Each

laid claim to their piece of the park with a blanket.  By night

it was like a swarm, and we spent as much time, maybe even

more, enjoying the people watching.  And then with several

booms, the night filled with the lights of freedom, independence,

and pride.  My mom would announce, "I like that one!" or "That

was a good one!"...and we would hoot & applaud in symphony.

I was always befuddled by the number of cars that would leave

during the show...as if beating the crowd out was the grand prize.

For the Wind girls, that was the time when we brought out the sparklers, 

and with reverence & some fear, I would run the yard with spitting

fire in my very hand.  

Happy Birthday America!

there are moments...

       there is this path from the road thru the trees at our property 

     in northern Wisconsin...I never quite know what sight will await 

         when I enter the clearing ~~ this was my gift on Saturday.

pardon me as I climb upon this soapbox

A fashionista I am not.  I have always thought it would be cool to be stylish

or boho or professional chic...but at the end of the day, I don't have time

for that - it is just not a priority to me.  So I usually find a comfortable pair

of shoes, a roomy top, a comfy pair of pants and wear them out.  

So, with rare form, Friday night I went shopping.......for clothing.  Now I 

wish I could say it was because I had just shed extra weight or had been

invited to a Whitehouse gala, but it had more to do with a new job

around the corner.

Carefully picking out some comfortable & "cute" looking tops ~~ I headed to

the mirrors we all love in the dressing room ~~ and that is where this story

actually begins.  There were clothes strewn all about, every hook taken, piles

on the floor - even empty make-up boxes in the mix (theft).  I was stunned that 

women did this!  When I went to the dressing area nearer the "older women"

area, it was no different.  Seems manners fall away behind closed doors.

I grew up learning that we pick up after ourselves, just what you did.  As a teacher, I 

always made sure the kids knew "there are no clean up elves".  

When I went to check out, I asked the clerk if the dressing rooms were always

so thoughtlessly left.  She said that it was actually part of her job to pick them up

& on that Friday they were left better than usual by customers.  Wow!  Just wow!

So it may not be a big deal, but for this young women that probably spends a 

few hours a day picking up after pigs...I mean others, kindness starts behind

that dressing room door.  It is where we, as women, accept ourselves for who we

really are.  

porching it

We are ever so lucky to have a large three season porch off the

summer kitchen.  With 12 windows, it offers sun & breeze.  One

of my vacation "to dos" was to refresh the porch with its mix of

second hand furniture.  Dave repainted the floor a forest green,

which highlighted my love for green in all of the shades of nature.

I threw an old blue floral comforter over the comfy couch and made

sure that bits of red, green, and blue were anchored with white.

With two ceiling fans, a place to grab the right shoes or boots when

heading out the door & tables for eating or setting loads on their 

way in or out...this is a versatile space.  Yesterday, we added buffalo

check valances in a perky shade of Apple green...I will add more of this
color as I nip & tuck over time.

As I type this, I hear the rustle of the breeze through our cottonwood 

tree, one of several pairs of wrens singing, and the melody of a farm

yard wind chime.  Porching it!

for the love of Pinterest

I am loving the new look....loving it!  They are inspiration collages!

home

My home is an 1857 Federalist style brick house in Augusta, Wisconsin.

It is the love of my life.

My home is a 28 year old boy living on his own in Mill Creek, Washington.  

He is the love of my life.

I cry when I leave both ~ that is what makes them home to me...

there be mountains

Taking a little time off to visit my son, Ian, in Seattle.

We are taking in all the sites unique to this place.

And as we travel, Mt. Rainier travels with us.

pink it is...

   Sunrise...

   Sunset...