A new year...

          May you find 2019 rich with blessings.

with a smile & a wink

Four tins of pictures...a mix of life.  From dinosaurs in the Dakotas to
our first & only dog - Silver Coin to an untidy row of aunts & uncles
staring at the camera.  And the Easter pictures, rare to find one with me
in it (as below with my mom's hands on my shoulders).  Even then, I
objected to scratchy dresses & floral hats...and was often in tears just
out of camera range.

But my sisters, always smiling at the camera.  My sweet Lori & big

sis, Randi....in every picture, smiling at the camera.  From their front

row as little Wind girls, to their long hair days in the 1970s...

every photo I pulled from those tins showed my strong, capable sisters

looking life right in the eye and winking.

So, I end 2018 with a rare Kari sighting & a smile & a wink.

I thank my Randi for bringing us back together again on Saturday.
And to my Lori, of course, you will always live on in my heart.

5410 ❤️

See those numbers, right there in that bowl.  Those are the house

numbers from my childhood home.  When we closed the door there

one final time, I gently took them down.  My mom's paintbrush 

strokes can still be seen.  They are a bit of my beloved past. ❤️

sometimes 5:00 a.m. is the best time

It is dark outside at the farm...the kind of night that feels like a blanket.

I am awake early, pretending my instant coffee is the real deal in my 

mug from the first Starbucks in Seattle.  The house is quiet, just the

ticking of the mantle clock.  As usual, my Lucy cat is at my side.  This 

quiet moment calls for reflection.  I will be anxious to say farewell to 

2017 in just a few days, hoping that bringing out a new calendar will truly

turn the page.  But, I suspect that it will not be quite so easy.  There will

be more 5 a.m. mornings, more reflection.  That will be my word & my

work in this new year.  

gifted...

                       ...at collecting, not baking!

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...

sorting, organizing, prioritizing

As a kid, I honed my organizational skills by sorting out 

our lazy susan full of spices, dad's tackle box and mom's jewelry.

I loved that my parents were always O.K. with this.  

Didn't matter that they might not find the cinnamon or that favorite pin

in the spot they had placed it last.  Their Kari was redoing their order,

sorting & establishing a new placement~~a new system.

I think I learned to not even ask, unloading & reorganizing the outside

storeroom or the medicine cabinet when the mood struck.  I needed

to empty it all out then put it all back.  

Such is life, we sift through stuff all the time....setting this aside, letting

go of that, establishing new order.  

I have learned, with time, to be less tidy with my systems.  

Like a Magpie, gathering pretties to line my nest may feel more cluttered than orderly.

Yet it is always with intent: this here, that there. Keep, keep, keep, let go.

Such is life.

when I was little

Every season was truly fun...

Snow forts dug in the snow piles at the driveway end.

Swinging for what seemed like hours.

Traveling by bike thru Monona, knowing each street.

Bare feet for the first time each spring.

Swimming like little fish at Devil's Lake.

Being with my two sisters.

Every day was delightful.

Today is my big sister's birthday.

Happy Birthday my Randi...

Sending so much love.

I have this bowl of vintage children's books

on our table.  A sweet reminder of sweet days...

with my sisters.

Kari

xxoo

onward...

Bidding farewell to 2013...

certainly a year I learned a thing or two about resiliency, compassion & courage.

Wishing you moments of reflection as you close out this year

and welcome the next.

May that blue bird of happiness fly your way!

Kari

pieces of the past...

Years ago, we lived in Sun Prairie next to Mrs. Reed.

She was a most wonderful neighbor...

we even built a special gate in our fenced yard just for her.

She would come over & sit & be "neighborly".

When she passed away in her 90s, 

the family asked what we might like as a memory keepsake.

We requested the blue spatterware bucket she would plant a geranium in, 

set near her gate each year.

We planted in it one more summer in her honor.

Now that bucket resides in my kitchen, filled with memories.

We also picked this one antique ornament, hers, now ours.

What I love most about pieces of the past is that they form a scrapbook.

Some are our own memories, some belong to others.

We cherish & honor them.

once again

I do love this moment...this time of the year.
Wonderful fresh memories of family, stories from friends, a heart full.
This is the final gift given.

And that door waiting to open - again.

It is a new door to a new year.

With anticipation, we wait.

May Day should be every day....

this is what I think: 
how lovely to wake each day to a basket of flowers on your door knob.  I would love a little nosegay, a wire wrapped bottle with a single tulip hung just so, a little gift of pansies waiting for a garden spot, a blue Ball jar tied with twine & filled with daisies. 
This is the special place I would like to live every day. 
A place where flowers find a way to you -- just because.

Here are my favorites from my Pinterest board:

picture credit

picture credit

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picture credit

Wouldn't it be just lovely if May Day was every day...

Here we go - again...

I must must must start this post with the fact that

the Barn Sale is right around the corner....

October 8 & 9!

And, all the information you need to know about it

is in the following post -- or under "Barn Sales" to the right.

It is indeed a bright spot on our horizon,

and we look forward to meeting all that attend.

However, part of the here we go again has to do with

the call I got on Thursday afternoon at my office from Dave.

It began with "You had better sit down."

Seems the north winds that were reaching gusts of 40-60 mph on Thursday

took down our gigantic cottonwood tree along our driveway.

Our neighbor, Rodney, saw it literally "blow up" at the midpoint,

scattering enormous limbs everywhere.

County Road R was closed down for several hours as they dealt with debris

and a downed power line.

We will be cleaning up for some time...
those of you that attend the sale will be able to see first hand the
volume and magnitude of this tree--
it was the eagle tree, likely over 100 years old -
one of the tallest vantage points in the area.

Our immediate thanks goes to:
Neighbor Rodney for clearing our driveway before we got home.
Dale, our electrician, who worked from the call he received at 4:45 until 9:45
to restore our power (the tree tore the electrical box right off the house).
My Ian, for hopping in his car & driving home 2.5 hours to help in the aftermath.
Ian's friend, Brad, for working after dark to begin to clear the area around the house.
And the crew from the electrical company who came out against company orders at
9:30 p.m. to restring the power line from the road to the house saying that
 "no farm will be without power overnight."

Yes, here we go - again...

Please do not worry, if you attend the Barn Sale, we will not make you cut wood -
although you are welcome to take a souvenir branch home with you.
(insert tired smile here)

Traveling south

4:30 a.m. - alarm sounds

5:30 a.m. - car heads out

destination - south

Madison, Sun Prairie & Columbus, Wisconsin

on the horizon.

8:30 a.m. - there they are:

The Dumpster Divas (and one Dude) and a sale to rival all sales!

John, Nan & Sarah

Madison Junking Celebrities.

They offer a once a year end of the summer sale in Madison.

*I arrive honking, elated to finally attend this event*
My pile grows as I shop all the vintage finds...
"darn" I think, left the bigger car & trailer home.

P.S. If you attend my Barn Sale...you might just recognize Sarah & Nan
(aka - the Barn Cats).

From here, I travel to Sun Prairie to gather up Jani.
*Yes, Jani from the blog
(not to be confused with Jenny from the hood)
& Barn Sale.
Lunch with a friend...
then off to the Columbus Antique Mall
(featured in the new edition of Flea Market Style magazine).
We shop for hours - but it feels like minutes.
Jani's find of the day - a vintage Santa...
a wish come true
(literally - Jani was just sharing that she was looking for these,
before the words came out -- there one was winking at her)

My day ends in Madison again -- with my very own Ian at my side.
Supper, 1/2 Price Books, shoe shopping --
whatever I do with that boy makes my heart sing.

Home by 10:00 p.m.
Tired, happy!
Traveled south
 -- with friends, family & finds
at the end of that rainbow.

Just as free, free as we'll ever be...

It poured -- skies just opened, and it poured.

Still, we grabbed our folding chairs, rain gear...

Ian drove up from Madison,

and we arrived at CountryJam just as they took the stage.

Early -- things were moved around, acts were cancelled or changed.

And then the blue skies returned and for three hours they sang to us...
three hours!

People danced, sang back and were happy.

And, to hear thousands sing the chorus..."free as we'll ever be" with the

Zac Brown Band

magic, pure magic...

Every now & again you capture that moment,

tuck it way way back knowing it is special & will

be cherished.

Standing there, last night with Dave & Ian and thousands

of other folks that had arrived in Eau Claire-

Didn't matter our ethnicity, socioeconomic status, political views...

under that one sky, with mud on our feet

we were all happy -- just happy.

And we sang...

This is how it rolls in the country -- in Eau Claire, Wisconsin
 on a wet, stormy Saturday night.

Jar full of memories...

I stumbled upon this idea somewhere for

A Memory Jar

a place to keep those sweet reminders of childhood.

Here 's the jar for my Ian (now 23).

His jar includes:

• a Ninja turtle
• a tiger that used to knock down Lincoln Log houses
• Legos
• a hockey puck

Not a memory box -- but a collection,

bittersweet...

all those memories mixed up

like a favorite recipe.

That's my Ian --

definitely the very favorite cookie

in my Sweet Shop!

Kari (aka mom)

coming home...

Saturday I traveled - to my sister's place -- my nephew from California home - a party, a celebration!
Tuesday I traveled - an antiquing adventure -- three hours each way.  Morning to Night.

As I traveled back last evening --
I felt this overwhelming emotion. 
Thoughts of Homecoming. 
Trying to define what that was, what that means.

I know it by the pull & tug of my heart:
Seeing Kevin, my nephew, with his son in his arms -- a homecoming. 
Watching as my own Ian, arrived at the celebration -- his blue car coming up the hill -- a homecoming.
Seeing my farm as I traveled back, tired from a day away -- a homecoming.

It is a warm embrace at the end of a journey.
It is a welcome that quietly calls to you.

At my own farm, my little Chestnut kitten waits under the birdbath near the porch.  All day she waits, listening for the squeak of the porch door or the flap of a wing.  "Homecoming" is defined in this little kitten's world as "there you are".  I like that definition about the best.  It can end with an exclamation point or a "..." It is faith & hope & celebration & joy -- all wrapped up in this sweet, enduring coming home.

What does homecoming mean to you?

Moo

Once upon a time...

but that is really not quite the start of this story, yet it is.

It is a story of this farm & what had been.

A hardworking dairy farm - before.

A hardworking farm family - then.

Starting & ending their day at the barn.

Today the memories remain in the stories that they share when they visit.

If you listen just so, tilt your head & squinch your eyes

-- you might just be able to picture 24 cows lined up for milking. 

The stanchions in the barn still stand ready.

And this little shelf awaits in the laundry room, just inside the door.

Facing the barn -- a tribute.

To hardworking farm families - thank you.

June is indeed  Dairy Month.

My sincere thanks...

It has been a year since I started this "blogging thing".

I remember wondering, who will ever be interested in what I might have to say?

I remember thinking -- well, at the very least I will have a journal for my own posterity.

And so I started....with the little picture above and

the little post found by clicking HERE

I took my first step.

And, there you were - those that have provided such

support -- thru comments, thru visits here -- whether vocal or not...

your support has mattered,

and I thank you.

I have grown over the past year --

I have learned the pace & content & climate

of this little world of my blog.

I look back at my own year, smiling often, shedding a tear at times...

ever with you at my side.

Thank you...

Really, thank you.

Kari

remembrance

I will never ever forget certain things: 

• The little slip of paper my father folded & refolded in the hospital table drawer-- a slip I would later find with our phone numbers on it...waiting patiently for a visit or a call.
• My mother calling across the nursing home table, "there's my Kari" when I arrived.  Always welcoming me home - no matter where home might be.

These are etched in my mind for forever...and I do remember embracing those moments, capturing & seizing those instances, knowing time is fleeting.  I remember saying to myself "remember this, remember this."

So now, I fold & refold my memories and call out to my heart's deepest deepest places --- because that is what we do on this weekend.  Yes, we may have an extra day off, and yes, we may have time for that first summer fishing trip or flea market....but we also have a bit more time to stop & remember.   I will.