Kansas Dust Storm

Dateline October 6 2011

Ever heard of the "Dirty Thirties"? or the "Dust Bowl"?

For those of you who have never heard of this

 it was during 1930 to 1936 (and in some places to 1940)

where terrible dust storms blew across

the American and Canadian prairies.

It was caused by severe drought conditions and many 

years of poor land management.

If you'd like to read more on this you can go

HERE

Well starting on October 4th we had 3 days of what

I call a mild case of the "dirty thirties".

THIS is what we saw out our windows.

I didn't dare take my camera outside

until after it was all done blowing.

The only places that seemed to get hit by this

were the ones that were down wind of

fields that weren't planted with a second crop.

Because of our record breaking heat and drought conditions

this summer and fall and the fact that they cut down

the windbreaks to the south and west of us

and didn't plant those second crops

we got hit bad.

Just going outside to feed the chickens or collect eggs 

or run to the car got you grit in your teeth

and dust in your eyes and in your hair

not to mention make your

allergies flare!

Where the dogs would lay on the kitchen floor...

there was a little pile of powdered dirt.

That same stuff came into the house through a couple of 

places under our front door! 

When I realized what was happening I put a towel along

the bottom of the door but it was too late.

Some of that dust got into the house and I had JUST finished

dusting and vacuuming everything 

because my sister is coming to visit soon!

Oh well...I can't complain about being bored ;)

That pumpkin had just been put outside a couple of 

hours before this picture was taken...if that!

When I finally got outside to take pictures...every step I took blew up a dust cloud.

Below is how this stone is supposed to look.

When I went out to collect eggs at night while this was happening

it looked like a blizzard in the beam of my flashlight!

The poor plants were covered.

When you live in the country you expect dust.

We sure weren't expecting this though.

And here just before this happened I had gone around

and swept off all the window sills and porches 

and sidewalks and was thinking

"what a cute little clean cottage".

Two days later....it rained. For 3 days. 

Fortunately hubby had taken the leaf blower out and went

around the place blowing the dust off every surface he could!

We still ended up with a mess.

But hey...we finally got rain!

I'm connecting with Amy for 

Farm Friend Friday

Have a great weekend!

ps...things are finally turning green here after 1.5 inches of rain last weekend :)

Yes...3 days and only 1.5 inches of rain!

I'm sure I heard the tree's give a happy sigh though.

Pumpkin Inspiration!

Country Living

It's that time of year...my favorite time of year.

I LOVE fall.

The pumpkins and Mums and gourds are in the supermarkets

and farmers markets and everything is

geared towards the changing of the seasons.

I LOVE IT!

Now that I've bought a few pumpkins

I thought I'd look for a little inspiration to help get my

creative juices flowing.

So if you're trying to think of new ways to use your

pumpkins this year....here are a few

idea's for you.

Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart

I like the idea above for our farm!

Martha Stewart

The wreath above is made of corn husks!

Martha Stewart

I grew gourds like the ones on the right this year.

I don't think mine will be dry enough this year.

 Aren't they cute!

Martha Stewart

The arrangement above is called a 'mumpkin' :)

Southern Living

I love this idea of cutting a pattern in the outer skin

and cutting it away.

This would be a lot less messy plus the pumpkin would last longer.

Southern Living

Southern Living

Cottage Living

I'd love this front porch! 

Southern Living

Cottage Living

Well...now I need to get working on my own

pumpkin decorating.

If you haven't already started your fall decorating

I hope some of these pictures

have helped inspire you.

Happy Fall!

Have Fun!

Maura :)

More From Missouri

Last month I did a post about a trip my sister in law and I made to Missouri. 

We were looking for just the right cupboard for her kitchen and we

found it in Ozark MO. 

There's more than just antiques in Ozark...

there's 

LAMBERT'S.

Lambert's is known as the 

Home Of The Throw'd Rolls.

I have to say that it's one of the busiest and best places

I have ever eaten and I have never been there

where I didn't have to wait in line. 

This visit was no exception.

While we waited out front with the rest of the crowd

we saw 

this...

Isn't she a beauty! 

This beauty is a 57 Chevy Cameo.

Somehow I don't think she'd like living on a dirt road in the country.

After we had  our lunch in Ozark we headed to Springfield Mo.

to the biggest Antique Mall that Donna and I had

ever been to.

We were in Antique Heaven!

I wish I had a house large enough to hold all of these pine pieces.

Can you imagine that table in a big old farmhouse!

How about this wonderful butcher block!

More beautiful pine pieces. See the length of that table?!

Isn't this a different finish for a stove. I like that green mixing bowl too.

Donna and I both thought this cupboard was interesting.

It would work great in a kitchen or a bathroom

or where ever.

Loved the handle detail.

I always wanted a Hoosier cabinet

Love this coffee grinder.

How about the detail on this table leg!

By the time we were through the antique mall we were starving and beat

so we headed to McDonald's for a ....

....then we headed home.

We had a WONDERFUL time.

On the way we passed a few of these as we drove along the south edge of

Joplin Mo.

We decided to pull off the highway and see if we could see a bit of the damage

left by the tornado.

It was September 11th

approximately 3 1/2 months after the tornado hit.

I will post pictures later.

We are having a dust storm here on the farm....it looks like the 'dirty 30's'!

Please someone send rain!!!

I hope your weekend is a good one.

Maura :)