A Tribute to a Tree - Part 2

First Post of the Day

My children love Morainewood, my childhood home on the Wabash. They have so many memories wrapped up there, visiting Apple Jack and Granny Slash, the big swing tucked back in the woods that Apple Jack hung from an ancient tree, sledding down the moraine, poking around on the shores of the Wabash, and more.

So, it's not really a surprise that Lisa drops by the property every now and then. She likes to walk around and spend some quiet time with her memories.

The witness tree, that venerable old oak, came crashing down during some high winds earlier this summer and Lisa took some photos for me when she last visited.

It smashed into the trees ringing the clearing 

and did a lot of damage to them.

The damage from the fungus was evident at its roots - see that hole where the fungus has been eating inside the tree?

The root system that came out of the ground was taller than Lisa (she's 5'8".) Massive roots for a massive and very old tree.

A second tree nearby also sustained damage from those winds.

Part of its top split off and toppled down next to the old oak.

When we lived in the house, it was a constant worry that "some day" the oak would come down and maybe even hit the house. It did once lose a large branch that came through the roof over the living room, but that was the only incident in the 50 years that Morainewood was our family home.

There is no longer a home for the tree to land on

and the giant oak is now resting on the ground. 

Since the land is being returned to nature, I hope the tree is left where it is lying so it can complete its life cycle in the way in which nature intends it to do.

Stay 'tooned.

Two Totally non-Tangential Topics

Second Post of the Day

Many of you guessed what we were doing when I posted this photo yesterday:

We were watching White Christmas on July 25th for Christmas in July with Lisa!

Lisa is a Christmas lovin' gal. She was due Christmas Day (although she came a few days later), and I really wanted to name her Noelle. I'm not sure that that influenced her love of Christmas, but here we are.

A few years ago we started watching White Christmas at the end of July and now it seems to have become an annual tradition for us.

Horse lover and collector that I am, I've always been very interested in the white charger and knight that Betty gives Bob near the end of the film.

Who made that piece? Was it a simple prop someone cobbled together? A commercial horse and knight that was found and used? And what happened to it after the film? Does it reside in an old warehouse or has it made its way into the hands of someone who values it? 

I've done a few searches in the past but never come up with any answers.

And then, in some surprising (and puzzling) news on the barn swallows nesting over my front porch...

After a day of no activity - no parents flying in and out, no head popping up out of the nest cup, no getting swooped on by birds when I dared to step out of my front door, no parents roosting for the night at the nest, no cheeps or chatter...

Sunday morning there was activity again - the parents were flying in and out again and a lone head kept popping up from the nest bowl!

How did that happen? And why did the baby not call for its parents the previous day? Why did the adults not remind us that the front porch was theirs and that we were trespassers? The nest area had gone completely quiet and with no activity.

Craig suggested that perhaps the Cooper's Hawk was nearby and the birds were lying low but other than that, we have no ideas. That nest was so quiet and we saw absolutely no activity for almost 24 hours. No parents overnight at the nest, nothing.

Regardless, we are happy to know that the baby barn swallow is still alive and being cared for. But then, who was the poor baby bird whose tiny wings I found?

I went back to look at them and took some pictures to examine more closely. The feathers were pin feathers and definitely those of a baby. But whose baby was it?

I have some ideas. The pavilion down by the lake has several sparrows' nests in it and last week those babies were fledging and fluttering around while we played frisbee with Pepper and Tammo.

I'm now wondering if the hawk took one of them and then flew into our yard with it. I've seen hawks with prey in our yard multiple times so it's possible.

Some baby bird had a very short life, and that makes me sad. But I am also glad that my barn swallow chick is still in the nest and alive.

I'm surprised, but very, very glad.

Stay 'tooned!

Coming to Indiana - The 2026 Family Bocce Tournament!

First Post of the Day 

Scroll down if you missed the accidental Third Post of the Day from yesterday!

Not only did Sarah want to make stepping stones, she asked if we could stop by Craig's family's graves while they visited.

The graves are in a lovely, out in the middle of nowhere cemetery about twenty miles south of Lafayette.

 

It's an easy detour as we headed down to Indianapolis, 

and since Craig and Sarah are avid genealogists, we made the trek out to Colfax.

Even a mowed cemetery lawn can defeat my walker so I stayed back with Craigs' parents' and grandparents' graves while he, Todd, and Sarah hiked up the hill to pay their respects at the much older family graves.

Craig's parents' graves. Finished, we were  back on the road to Indy.

Jenny was very excited to use the tablecloth she had embroidered and it looked lovely. So much work! But so worth it, too.

I am in charge of awards, and so I'd brought this year's ribbons to Indy with me. The trophy is always brought by the person who had won it the previous year - in this year's case, Lisa. (She hadn't arrived yet when I took this photo.)

After eating a pitch in lunch, the bocce tournament was organized and we began.

Trinity and Rick played the first round.

A win for Trin Bin! (Makes that long trip from Billings, Montana worth it, right, Trin?)

Next up, a mother/daughter duo. Yeah, I drew last year's champion for my first match.

And got squashed. Ah well - maybe next year!

Sarah drew Jenny's elementary school friend, Ellen, and they shook hands before their round.

Ellen has a Friesian and I always enjoy talking with her, but I was rooting for Gimmee.

"Wait! What?? I won? I'm moving on to the next round??" You sure are, Gimmee!

Craig then competed against Trinity. Hard to know who to root for when you are married to one competitor and Grammy to the other.

Which means you are happy regardless of who wins - in this case, Trinity!

Quarterfinals round: Lisa versus Trinity. Trin got some encouragement from her parents beforehand.

Trying to intimidate Lis didn't work - it just made her laugh.

The winner would go on to compete for the trophy; the loser would play again for 3rd or 4th place.

Lisa was last year's winner and very much wanted to repeat.

 

And she did it - she moved on to the championship round against...

Aunt Leslie. She who is already a two time winner herself.

Talk about some tension! 

It was a good three rounds.

And Lisa walked away...

The winner for the second year in a row!

Of course, we then had to have our traditional awards ceremony with everyone standing on the podium Jenny's front steps.

The mother/daughter duo from Montana got 3rd (Trinity) and 4th (Sarah.)

Leslie graciously accepted her second place ribbon, 

While Lisa took the blue ribbon and the trophy home again for a second year! 

And of course, ever since the Great Bocce Mishap of 2021, we always sing We are the Champions to celebrate the winners, and so the family broke into song.

Craig always gets to sing solo that fateful, final line that nearly took out Jenny's friend in 2021.

Big thanks to Todd and Craig for managing some rowdy, competitive family members on a hot July day. You are the champions, too!

Nash Finds His Lida Rose

Nashie has not been himself since Mama passed. Coming over daily to play with Tammo and Pepper has cheered him up a bit, but soon he is quiet and clearly sad again. 

Lisa even took Mama's bed from our home over to hers and would find him curled up on it. No doubt it was full of her scent and comforting to him.

He needed a companion, and so as soon as school let out for the summer, Lisa began looking for one.

Thursday, Lisa found Lila at the Humane Society. She had already looked at several dogs, but as she walked past Lila's kennel she felt she needed to stop and look at the little red dog inside it. There was an instant connection between them then and there.

Several meet and greets took place that day, including one with Nash and me, and both Lisa and Nash agreed that Lila was family. 

Soon Nash and Lila were racing around the yard together. 

They'd flop in the shade for a few moments, and then off they'd go, again and again. (Look at his smile - a welcome sight!)

Inside the house it was the same story.

I love Nash's quick bark to entice her to keep playing!

Lisa loves old musicals. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers is a favorite, and her first dog, Millie, was named after the main character in that film.

"Lila" is close to "Lida" and Lisa soon found herself humming the song "Lida Rose" from Music Man as she petted and interacted with Lila. And suddenly, a name for Nashie's new friend was found. Lila Rose or more simply, Rosie.

The video starts with dialogue and the actual song begins at 0:50.

She's settling in well, and seems just as happy as Nash is to have a friend and family.

Her story? One that made us all cry. She was found as a stray and brought to the shelter on the very day that Mama passed. Oh. My.

Coincidence? Maybe. But then again, maybe not. Maybe this simply was meant to be.