Summer In Our Own Backyard

Hello Friend! I hope you are well. Summer in the Missouri Ozarks has been mild enough most days that I’ve been able to take the cats outside in their little catio to enjoy some fresh air.  It’s always fun for me to take pictures of the cats, birds, and flowers. The last five pictures are from a special road trip last weekend 👰‍♀️🤵‍♂️💞!

Clemmy in the catio – Honestly, it’s impossible to take a bad picture of this gorgeous girl!
Frank is a study in elegant feline form.
Wally and Clemmy 🖤🤍
Three heads are better than one!
Those preposterous whiskers and bold black stripes… FRANK is such a looker!
Wally has the most darling, long, curly whiskers 😍!!
Clemmy’s whiskers are adorable too!  Her whiskers are more typical for Cornish Rex -wirey, short, curly.
Frank birdwatching from the comfort of the catio.
💚👀
💚👀
💚👀
Randomly got this shot with Wally’s tongue hanging out, it made me laugh 👅
My little patch of wildflowers has attracted all manner of critters…
… and the flowers are pretty too 😁
A pair of Goldfinches come to the zinnias on and off most days to forage for seeds, they are so light that they barely bend the stalks.
I’ve seen a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird quite often flitting around the various flowers sipping nectar.
🐝
Several butterflies, skippers, and moths frequent the blooms. Yesterday I noticed a rabbit had found his way into the backyard and was nibbling on some leaves.
Northern Cardinal ❤️. He’s a BEAUTY!
Aww, Dad House Finch showing his juvenile son where the snacks are. The young bird’s chest feathers are just starting to turn red, they grow up so fast.
I’ve had a pair of Mourning Doves bring their fledgling to the feeders over the last couple of weeks. I think this is the youngster, I have a hard time telling them apart.
It’s been so fun watching this male Downy Woodpecker grow from a fledgling to a grown up this summer. The cap on his head has slowly turned from brown to red and from a small dot to his whole crown.
Female fledgling House Finch – not my favorite bird, but she is a pretty specimen.
Chipping Sparrow, a plucky little bird 😊
Tufted Titmouse 🩶🤍
Female House Finch coming in for a landing
This little fella is a regular under the feeders
We attended our eldest nephew’s wedding this past weekend in Nebraska. It was such a joy to see them so happy and committed to their future together. We love you John and Riley!
When in Nebraska you go to RUNZA! (We’d never heard of it before but it was good 👍)
Frings – half fries, half onion rings
Cheeseburger Runza
The wedding venue was so picturesque, what a backdrop!

I hope your summer has been safe and happy.  May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

Around Our House

Fledgling male Downy Woodpecker – he was a marvelous creature and I love how he was showing off his wings
White Breasted Nuthatch
Female House Finch
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
The Chipping Sparrows are back!
My sister asked me to make a stuffed dog for her use at work. I went through my fabric scraps and thought these would go together well.
I appliqued the muzzle, nose, and eyes then used a zigzag stitch for the philtrum and mouth.
Aww, he turned out so Adorable 🩷!
After the puppy, I was inspired to use up some more of my mountain of cotton fabric scraps and thought I’d try my hand at book sleeves. This is one of my favorites 🤩
I especially think the pocket is handy AND cute
Whew, I certainly need to go through my scraps more often. I ended up making 49 book sleeves (!) and still have leftovers 🫣
I also had a lot of leftover canvas fabric and wanted to make something useful with it. Fifteen years or more ago my Mom, sister, and I made key wristlets. I decided to try it again and here are the first few I did. I think I ended up with about 25 by the end.
My Dad got a flat of strawberries back in May and shared some with us. My Mom always made strawberry shortcake with homemade pie crust so, of course, I do too.
On Memorial Day, we made the homemade ice cream recipe my Dad always made when I was growing up in the 70s and 80s. It was just as good as I remembered and it was fun to share it with Hubby 💕
Clemmy ❤️
Wally ❤️
Frank ❤️
Cats are cats are cats and cat naps are one of my favorite cat behaviors – so cute 😻
Wally keeping Clemmy close with a tail-wrap 🖤🤍🖤🤍
Beep-boop

May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

Sweet, Sweet May

Hello, friend!  I hope you are doing well. We’ve had a stormy spring in Southwest Missouri. Matter of fact, last week we had SIX confirmed EF-0 tornadoes in and around our city and the region of the Ozarks! Several people had property damage in our area and many trees were uprooted causing road obstructions and damaging electrical lines.  Clean up in our city is ongoing and some are still without power, though they expect it to be fixed in the next few days.  Thankfully, we just had a few branches down and never lost electricity. Tornadoes are a fact of life here and it’s wise to have a healthy respect for them and a safety plan.

On the upside, we’ve had a lot of rain making the leafy forests of the Ozark Mountains look like a lush, green sea. My plants have been thriving with the joy of spring too.

About three weeks ago I noticed a house finch with a yucky eye, a sign of a contagious infection among songbirds that can be passed easily at feeders. So, I took all the feeders down, disinfected everything, and raked the ground under them.  I just put the feeders back up a couple of days ago, I sure missed my little friends and am so happy everyone looks healthy.

House Finch, male
House Finch, female
Common Grackle
The Chipping Sparrows are back for the summer, one of my favorites.
Northern Cardinal, male
Northern Cardinal, female
A pair of robins nested in one of our evergreens in the landscaping near the front door.  I had fun watching them grow up through my binoculars, their Mom and Dad were excellent parents. I saw one of the babies stretching its wings in the nest yesterday and thought they might be close to fledging soon. Sure enough, the nest is empty today!
I made my hubby’s favorite cake earlier in the week. I had put the cake pan on the counter, turned around to get some ingredients out of the fridge, turned back to put them down, and this is what I saw. 😸 (Don’t worry, I washed the pan and Frank got to hang out in the bedroom while I made the cake.)
These three 😻!
It’s a snuggle fest every evening ❤️

May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

Enjoying Spring 2025

Hello, Friend! Spring is here again in the Ozarks.

Under our river birches.
Enjoying an early birthday gift from my sister 🥰. #hammockswing

A few blooms and seedlings around our neighborhood.

The birds are nesting, finding mates, singing, and eating a bit extra this time of year.

White-breasted Nuthatch and White-throated Sparrow
Frank is 7-months old and is in his I’m Cute But Destroy Everything phase 😜.
Wally is our gentle, playful boy.
Clemmy is sweet AND knows how to hold her own with the boys. She’s small but mighty!

I hope you enjoy this change of season wherever you are in the world.  May God be with you!        ❤️, Amy

February from My Window

Hello, Friend!  It’s a balmy 11*F/-11*C in Southwest Missouri with about 8in/20cm of powdery snow on the ground.  I’ve had a lot of birds at the feeders as well as many come by to eat the peanuts I threw out for them to enjoy.  It’s been especially exciting birdwatching because I’ve had two firsts for me, a Yellow-rumped Warbler and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 💛!

Yellow-rumped Warbler – a very inventive name 🤭
This little guy is so cute all fluffed out against the cold
He has been at the feeders a lot this week and made it easy for me to get some good shots.
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – This fella has been at the suet feeder many times the last few weeks but doesn’t seem to like the camera.  Every time I saw him and got the camera ready, he somehow knew and flew off just as I was getting him into focus.  He’s way cool, though and I love seeing him!
A male Downy Woodpecker and the Yellow-rumped Warbler
Starlings are nuisance birds, but when it’s this cold my heart goes out to them.  All of God’s creatures have to eat.  I love his green and purple splotches.
This gorgeous male Red-bellied Woodpecker is a frequent visitor
Look at that beak!
A pair of House Finches – I particularly love House Finches, they are personable, friendly, beautiful, and always sing sweetly.
A pair of Carolina Wrens – they like suet, sunflower seeds, peanuts, and berries
Tufted Titmouse – always on my Top Five Favorite Birds list
White-throated Sparrow – A winter bird in SW Missouri that summers in Canada and the northern USA.  Their song sounds like “Oh Sweet Canada Canada Canada”

No Amy’s Axons post is complete without cats!

Clemmy Clementine is our female Cornish Rex.  Hands down, Clemmy has the cutest little face I’ve ever seen AND is blessed with a sweet, loving, gentle disposition.  She loves to make biscuits and snuggle in our arms or on our laps.  Be glad you’re not her prey, though, because she’s a stone cold killer!  She’s the fastest, highest jumping, most athletic, smartest cat I’ve ever had!
This is Wally Cornwall, Clemmy’s brother.  He is the most affectionate, sensitive, cuddliest, gentlest, funniest, hungriest (😂) cat you could ever hope to meet.  Though he’s not quite as athletic as Clemmy, he’s no slouch and is always ready to play.  He loves to lick our faces, purr in our ears, and be held non-stop.  Wally is in a class by himself!
And last, but by no means least, is FRANK!  He is our five-month old kitten who wandered into our lives on Halloween night as a very sick, injured, 8-week old kitten.  Oh, my, he almost defies description!  Frank is extraordinarily curious and wants to be part of everything you do.  I’ve never had a cat with such an insatiable appetite to play or jump or chase – and if you know anything about the Cornish Rex breed, you know that’s saying something!  But, when he’s not playing or jumping or chasing, he’s sitting on one of our shoulders or lying in one of our arms.  He is always happy and always follows us around.  From the moment we rescued him and every moment since he has endeared himself to us.  He has brought us unbelievable joy and he is a wonderful gift from God!
The sunrise this morning over the snow we got yesterday was beautiful.

Stay cozy!  Thank you for coming by ☺️.  ❤️, Amy

Created

Clementine – Cornish Rex #1

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was  with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.” ~John 1:1-3

Wally – Cornish Rex #2

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”  ~Romans 1:20

🖤🤍

“O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom have You made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures.” ~Psalm 104:24

🤪

“Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they existed and were created.” ~Revelation 4:20

📷

“For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen.” ~Romans 11:26

🐈

“You are the Lord, You alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and You preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships You.” ~Nehemiah 9:6

🧺

“For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him.” Colossians 1:16

🖤🤍

“God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good.”                       ~ Genesis 1:25

💕

“But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.”    ~Job 12:7-10

Blue Jay

“Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.”                     ~1 Corinthians 8:6

Northern Cardinal (female)

“All the earth worships You
and sings praises to You;
they sing praises to Your name.” ~Psalm 66:4

Carolina Chickadee

“Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” ~Psalm 124:8

Tufted Titmouse

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and earth.” ~Genesis 1:1

🥜

“For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything.” ~Hebrews 3:4

🌿

“Ah, Sovereign Lord, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for You.” ~Jeremiah 32:17

House Finch (female)

“I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.”        ~Psalm 121:1-2

🦋

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom.” ~Isaiah 40:28

🪲

“For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” ~Colossians 1:16-17

I grew up calling this Fleabane

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” ~Ecclesiastes 3:11

Queen Anne’s Lace

“In His hand are the deep places of the earth;
The heights of the hills are His also.
The sea is His, for He made it;
And His hands formed the dry land.”           ~Psalm 95:4-5

Calm as a clam

“By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.”  ~Hebrews 11:3

Dandelion

“The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.  And God saw that it was good.” ~Genesis 1:12

🪞

“I am the Lord, the Maker of all things, who stretches out the heavens, who spreads out the earth by Myself” ~Isaiah 44:24

🐟

“Rich and poor have this in common: the Lord is the Maker of them all.” ~Proverbs 22:2

Perfect balance

“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God.” ~Psalm 90:2

Blue Dasher

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; His understanding is unsearchable.” ~Isaiah 40:28

Clemmy and Wally signing out 😴👅.  “Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!” ❤️, Amy

“Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be” ~ Psalm 139:13-16

February Snaps

Cardinal and House Finch

Tufted Titmouse

Eastern Bluebird

Mourning Dove

Male ⬆️ and female ⬇️ Red-bellied Woodpecker

Female House Finch
Carolina Chickadee

Clemmy Clementine 🖤🤍

Wally Cornwall 🤍🖤

May God be with you.  ❤️, Amy

Summer and MS: 😂

Hello, Friend! Yes, it’s been a while. I’ve been under the thumb of 5Gs of MS fatigue lately. I’ve been mostly home enjoying my usual favs: cats, hubby, birds, and flowers in our garden.

Pip, my little baking helper.
I’ve not been able to sew much because of fatigue this past month, but Pip supervised when I did.
Two of my favorite guys 😍!
Laudy is my sweet, little, blue snuggle buddy 💙
I’ve switched to safflower only seeds in the larger feeder. Neither grackles nor squirrels can or will eat it 🎉.
I also invested in a caged feeder for the premium seed mix, only small songbirds can get in. It’s been a win-win solution for both me and the birds. Only the birds I want can get the food and the bully birds now have no interest in hanging around because they can’t access it.
Doves (and Cardinals) love safflowers and can still eat spillage from under the larger feeder.
Of course, I still have a suet feeder up for woodpeckers, like this beautiful male Downy.
My Mom and Grandma always called these tickseed 💛❤️.
Purple Yarrow 💜

May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

Loving the Ozarks

Hi, Friend!

Hubby has been on break between semesters at the college where he teaches. It’s been so wonderful to have him home with me every day. We took a day trip to Bentonville, Arkansas Thursday and enjoyed the beauty of the Ozarks as well as our time together. If you didn’t know, Sam Walton opened his first Walmart on the square in Bentonville in 1962. The Walton family has greatly and richly (😉) invested in the town turning it into one of the coolest and most happening places in the Midwest.

Ice cream options abound. Hubby got me Milky Chocolate and Strawberry Buttermilk.
Hubby got himself a vanilla cone from this Walmart sponsored truck.
Hubby is a cycling enthusiast and has ridden a couple of the trails. They are building and adding mountain bike trails at the rate of a mile a week! Northwest Arkansas now draws hundreds of national and international cyclists every year.
Larkspurs
Salvia
There were flower beds everywhere 🌸🌼🪻
You can walk all the way up and around the outside of this building on the zigzag walkways.
Kid-friendly
Compton Gardens had lovely trails for walking and cycling.
Hubby got his exercise pushing me up and down the walkway at Compton Gardens (as shown here) and around downtown Bentonville. It was a hot and sweaty job. It’s a lot easier to get my wheelchair in and out of the car than it is to take apart and reassemble my scooter. However, we agreed it would be worth the effort to take my scooter on all future trips – I’m a bit of a handful 😜.
I wore a new dress I made this week from this beautiful floral and strawberry print jersey 🍓.

It’s starting to get warm and I’ve not been able to sit outside on the patio as much the past couple of weeks.

Our River Birches have fully leafed out. Almost all of the fuzzy seeds have finally fallen, which is a good thing because they are pretty messy.
This Mama dove has been sitting on her nest in our guttering for a solid three weeks. I don’t know if her babies are ever going to hatch.

Sadly, the following bird photos are the last at our feeders that I’ll be able to get for a while. I’ve had so many squirrels and grackles eating the seed that I’ve decided to stop for a while, it’s just too expensive. 😢. I am researching some other options and hope to get something else in place soon. I’ve really missed my feathered friends.

Carolina Chickadee
Northern Cardinal, female
Brown-headed Cowbird, female
Northern Cardinal, male
House Finches (male and female pair) and Downy Woodpecker, male
Common Grackle, seedus all eatus
Squirrel, Piggy, one of several
Best snuggle buddies ever, Laudy and Pip

Until next time, may God be with you! ❤️, Amy