New! Children's Literature
Available in Hardcover
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Gina McKnight, Monday Creek Publishing Author, Freelance Writer, Equestrian, Blogger, and Poet! Welcome to my international blog about horses, writers, authors, books, cowboys, equestrians, photographers, artists, poets, poems, and more horses. As seen in #FloridaEquineAthlete, #ArabianFinishLine, #HorseGirlTV, #LivingRuralTV, #AmericanHorsePublications, #trueCOWBOYmagazine, #HayNetUK, and #GirlGab.com...
New! Children's Literature
Available in Hardcover
Follow on Facebook @ mmdean323
Instagram @ mmdean323
@ Monday Creek: McKnight Family Farm www.gmcknight.com |
For many years,
Whitmore’s Greenhouse stood as a paragon of horticultural splendor in the
quaint town of Buchtel. The Whitmore family, arriving as immigrants, wove a
rich tapestry of history and creativity, their horticultural prowess renowned
throughout southeastern Ohio. Even in the heart of winter, their greenhouses
teemed with vibrant life, inspiring the local community with a boundless
enthusiasm for gardening and the earth. Now, the greenhouse lies dormant,
yearning for rejuvenation, a revival.
Emily Ann Whitmore, a
cherished friend of my mom, often served as the impromptu pianist at our
church. Her voice resonated with a boldness as if she were performing directly
for the Divine. When she played the piano, it wasn’t mere playing; she pounded
the keys with such fervor that the notes seemed to penetrate your very soul.
Emily frequently ambled the quarter mile to our farmhouse to visit my mom. On
one visit, she gifted me a topsy-turvy doll crafted from fabric scraps,
complete with an embroidered face and handmade lace—a true homespun treasure.
Emily, a vivacious spinster, relished visits with my mom, but most of all, she
adored my mom’s pies and cakes.
It was a Saturday near
Christmas, the air brisk and festive. My mom had prepared a beef roast for our
Sunday dinner. We raised our own Hereford cattle, and my mom was a culinary
virtuoso. With the winter chill, she used our back porch as a makeshift
freezer, placing the cooled roast in a covered aluminum pan to await reheating.
That evening, our
family attended a Christmas party, returning home late. After taking our bathtub
turns, we retired for the night. The following morning, my mom went to retrieve
the roast from the porch, only to discover it had vanished! The pan and the
roast had mysteriously disappeared, thwarting her Sunday dinner plans.
For months, the enigma
of the missing roast dominated our conversations. The following March, Emily
Ann visited. During their chat, my mom mentioned the perplexing disappearance.
“Oh!” Emily exclaimed,
raising her heavy eyebrows in surprise. Her hands, spread to her chest, explained,
“I thought you made the roast for me! It was delicious!”
Ever gracious, my mom
responded that she was glad Emily had enjoyed the roast.
Mystery solved, the
story of the missing roast remains a cherished family story. We were happy that
Emily felt comfortable taking our Sunday dinner, and we were thankful to have
it to give.
JULY
·
Pat
left for 4-H camp, Dr. Wright drove
·
Frank
Johnson removed shoes, trimmed feet, Cricket and Shah
·
Pete
treated Cricket for founder, Persimmon dictycide
·
Cooked
leg of lamb, Roland, David, Jerry here for lunch/dinner >worked in hayfield
·
Toledo,
toured Knepper furniture and art stores, cookout at Knepper’s cabin
·
Mom,
Dad arrived, went to the motel to see them
·
J
birthday, glass cutting set, cards $14 > dinner, Oak Room
·
Took
J to Pam Brooks, Tar Hollow 4-H camp, Mom/Dad rode along > Made apple pie
from apples from Shirley M, Nelsonville > dinner here roast beef, cabbage,
fried rice
·
Fed
rabbits, sheep > picked up Pat at Mimi/Bart’s motel room (Sunset Motel)
·
Left
for Philadelphia 7 am > Mon thru Thurs, visited museum/battlefields, Ben
Franklin Hotel > Pete meetings > toured Independence Hall, U.S. Mint, Elfreth's Alley, old candy store, wax museum, Bets Ross House > lunch at Chinatsu,
toured zoo, Museum of Art, Sound and Light Show Independence Hall, Ben Franklin
Institute, Museum of Natural Science, toured AVMA exhibits, Valley Forge
encampment museum, Hershey’s Chocolate own > arrived home 11 am
·
Fireman’s
Festival, Amesville
·
Bedded
down sheep shed, Pete put up “goat shelf”
·
Athens
roads flooded, come back Peach Ridge, Pete, Pat, me, picked 10 quarts
blackberries, saw doe, 2 fawns
·
J.L.
Adams here overnight
·
Picked
blackberries over at Phillips, Dutch creek, 10 more quarts, saw snake
·
Went
to musical, “Sing Out Sweet Land” with Hartley’s > Pizza Hut
·
Pete
x-rayed Apple’s knee
AUGUST
·
Picked
blackberries > froze blackberries > made pies
·
Got
crib out of attic for J L’Heureux
·
Vinton
Co Jr Fair, watched sheep judges
·
Jessica,
Song, 1st Novice 199 ½; Pat, Kanga, 1st Novice 196 ½
·
McDougal
Homecoming, took roasted lamb, blackberry pie
·
4-H
practice match
·
Oakhill
Centennial Celebration, Davis’
·
Worked
Kanga, Song
·
4-H
Dog Show, Nick Nichols, Judge; Tom, Betty Horst, Stewards
·
4-H
Parade
·
Pete
brush hogged, Pete to Marietta
·
Lamb
sale, Fair
·
Picked
up rabbit, drive-in “Daring Dobermans”
·
Church
of Good Shepherd, lunch Dolen’s, Pete put up hay
·
Work
J with Song > “Sultan” Perry Miller here
·
Lunch
– root beer stand, J P swimming
·
Grazed
Apple by road, wrote letter to mom/dad
·
Pete
freeze branded 7 on Apple
·
Amish
“Tour” Dave Coen family, Millersburg
·
Worked
Apple briefly, flies bad > cleaned horse, sheep barn
·
Picked
up pork, took pork to Warmke, Wright
·
Cleaned
out alleyway of barn down to cement, took all day!
·
F.
Johnson trimmed Apple, Maverick, shod Sailor, Shah
·
Dewormed
horses, did not do burros
·
Took
corn to be mixed > J P swimming
·
Worked
with Jackie Bennett
·
Visited
Jessie, Mansfield, Gary put bands on J’s back teeth
·
Worked
Apple, picked berries, Tom Brooks here overnight
·
Rode
Sailor, worked Apple
· Rode to Dow Lake, Rode Sailor, Jen, Chris, Guy Worthington
·
Rode
Cricket, Dorothy and Heather Wright rode along > saw copperhead in trail at
Alice Browns > dinner Perkins, Rome Warmke, Pete, et al
·
Led
Apple with pack saddle
·
Ellen
Izor here, gave Christ, Katrina a ride on Cricket, fed geese, etc. > Parade
of the Hills dinner, Hartley, Abdalla’s
·
Church
of Good Shepherd, Dolen’s lunch, Marshall here briefly, Pete went after
bulldozer > Jerry, David Hartley here for supper > put complete pack
saddle on Apple > wrote letters
·
4-H
meeting > showed Lassie Method and H.S. movies
·
State
Fair, dog show, cat show, horse show, etc.
·
Rode
Cricket > took children to Dow Lake
·
Worked
with Jackie Bennett > rode Cricket, led Apple with complete saddle pack, saw
deer, J rode Shah > shut Shah, Cricket up for night
·
Rode
Cricket, J Shah, trails to tree rock
·
Rode
Cricket up pasture hill, combed out mane, work with Apple’s feet > J, P
party at Jennifer’s > shut Cricket, Shah up for night
·
K.
Foster picked up crate, same fox between house and barn > rode Cricket over
jumps, up back hill
·
Rode
Cricket, brought Preak back
Please forgive typos, name or place misspellings; transcription from
vintage handwriting sometimes requires a magnifying glass and random
interpretation.
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