Baker's heartbeat

  Not 10 years old yet, but close. I loved this dress! Baby Myla sits in elephant chair ... What life milestones will she anticipate? Back in the 1960s it was a big deal in my family to have a birthday party. My mother made a special effort for my 10th birthday in 1967. Ten years old is when a child's age is no longer in single digits. Ten years of age means one is in fourth grade, and it seems a lot older than nine years of age. My birthday is in December and the kids who were invited to the party enjoyed swimming in the indoor pool at a local hotel. Mom and an older sister were on lifeguard duty. I was born and raised in Minnesota but grew up in Iowa. Age milestones have been on the mind, recently, as the 62nd birthday just passed and I became eligible for Social Security. Looking back, the milestones have marched along in time: 1. 16 years old: Got a driver's license at the Cedar County Courthouse in Tipton, Iowa. 2. 18 years old: It was legal at that time...

The front bay window had numerous decorations, now all stored in a plastic tote. Christmas cards, on display during the season, were taken down. The holiday season this year was shortened by several days, but that didn't deter this avid decorator who remains (1) Stubborn about doing certain things at set times during the holidays; and (2) aims for inspiring magic in Christmas decorating. There were 26 shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas in 2019, six fewer than the year before. This has not been the case since 2002. On the bright side, we were blessed to have family visits for each holiday. That meant we still had autumn decor up until Nov. 30 and started decorating for Christmas on Dec. 1, finishing up about 10 days later. It also means that "un-decorating" for Christmas was/is a hated task. We finished up most of it on Jan. 8, 2020. It turns out the home decorations, gift wrapping, baking, writing and sending Christmas cards, readying the h...

Photos of a recent snowfall at Scott County Park, Iowa A few inches of snow that fell a few days ago provided a beautiful white coating on the trees and evergreens in nearby Scott County Park. The park, located about two miles from home, is more than 1,000 acres of space (scottcountyiowa.com/conservation/scott-county-park). Park View, the largest unincorporated community in Iowa, is located on the park's southern and southeast sides. The park includes a paved 2.4-mile loop of road used by runners and walkers, like my husband and me. This was a gorgeous trek early Saturday, with birds so evident against the snow-covered trees, and a sense of quiet wonder at the wintertime beauty. We walk in the park whenever possible but it was not on the Baker agenda for Saturday. However this type of snowfall is unusual; the temperatures was about 29 degrees Fahrenheit and the snow was warm enough to stick to tree branches. There was not too much breeze, but in a few places, the w...