Who Doesn't Need A Touch Of Spring?

Well, it's raining right now and the snow is slowly melting. The driveway has turned into mud and even though that's very annoying (muddy boots and all) at least we can see some bare ground again. The squirrels have chased the birds away from the bird feeder so it has been removed until next fall. This winter we were entertained by the antics of the different birds. The sparrows and wren can get pretty feisty with each other just like human siblings. They all claim the birdseed as their own. We were delighted with the cardinal population this year. At on point we had 2 females and 4 males out there at the same time. And quite often there would be at least 3 males showing up all at once. I'm sorry I didn't take pictures but every time I got near the window the birds would spook.

However, the geranium cuttings I took last fall and brought into the house have started to bloom. I guess that will have to hold me until the spring bulbs make their entrance.

I just heard a roar and looked up at the window. The rain has stopped and the snow is at it again. Sigh....

Hugs everyone! Have a great week.

Oh, That Pinterest!

This post is being written a bit later today than I planned. We received a foot or more of snow last night and my hubby had to snow-blow the driveway. Unfortunately the tractor-snow-blower got stuck and we had to wrestle to get it unstuck. It was not fun.

Also, I didn't post last week because of other obligations. One: My final test for my Bible course was due...had to study for it. Got 99%. Whoopee! Did the happy dance! Two: Our 45th wedding anniversary was last Friday and I prepared a special dinner for my honey. (We dined out the week before just in case the weather was too bad to go out in.)

On to my blog: I'm still in snowman decor mode. I have a snowman Pinterest board and picked a project to do this week with...yep, you guessed it...snowmen.It turned out a little different than the original. I had to substitute buttons and other embellishments but that made it more my own. See what you think.

Until my next post...Hugs!

Words and Phrases

Some people choose a word to concentrate on every year but one word isn't enough for me. I decided to tackle a phrase..."Organize My Use Of Time". I am so bad at this I'm compelled to improve. It's hard to believe how much time in my day is wasted. I know this because I can't seem to accomplish much and with a blink of an eye, it's already next week. Sigh.... With determination, I'll put that in the past and share my progress with you over the coming year.

In the mean time, even though it's close to the middle point in January, already the snow thing is getting old. No, I don't have cabin fever but I need a change from white to green so here are a couple of pictures that were taken in the summer months this year at a local park.

Now doesn't green look better than white to you. It does to me! This last picture was taken in my backyard this summer. We live in the country and wild life abounds here...sometimes.

An unexpected visitor.

Next week I'll share what else I've been up to. Hugs!

PS: I forgot to say returning to blogging is more uplifting that flowers and chocolate, but my husband doesn't need to know that! :) Hugs again!

WIP and other things

On my post I shared some quilt blocks I had been working on. I've finished another block to show you.

There are 2 or 3 more blocks to complete and then the hard part. There are many blocks that have to be 'set in' in L shaped corners. Oh, the joy. What did I get myself into? Another challenge Ollie!

Last week I was busy sewing up a storm. Among other items that I'll share in another post, I made a tote from leftover fabric that I sewed a sewing machine cover from and I used more of my favorite sheep fabric to make a tote to carry my drop spindle in.

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In closing I just have to make a comment about our winter weather. Yesterday at 5 PM one could see the green  grass  brown weeds in the back yard and hey, even the stones in the driveway. By 9 PM we had approximately 12 inches of snow and this morning it totaled nearly 2 feet. More on the way tonight and tomorrow. I think I'll spend the day sewing hibernating.

I've Been Here All Along

I've been a busy (sort of) gal.  Hubby was on vacation for two weeks. We went out to dinner for our anniversary, 42 years in the making! Then he spent some time doing repairs to our bedroom to prepare for new paint. We've lived here for 4 years and finally getting to freshen up our room. The old ceiling cornice was taken down and walls were patched. Then he went back to work and I started painting. Four days later, after I primed and painted walls, and I might add four days to recover, we were ready to put the new cornice up. Ha! My husband used his stud finder and marked where to nail. With the two of us positioned on ladders and the nailing gun in my husband's hands, up went the cornice. And slowly...it started to sag. Turns out the stud finder had failed to locate the proper positions. One ranting husband later, a new stud finder and, oh did I mention the new saw that cuts all kinds of angles, we are ready to try again. (Note: Husbands usually like new tools.) That chore is scheduled for next weekend.

Meanwhile, tomorrow I'm giving my demonstration on hand applique to the quilt guild. I'm all prepared and hope they enjoy my presentation.

We've had an unusually light winter here and amazingly my rosemary that I left out in the herb garden is still alive and well. My husband's not complaining because he only had to get the snowblower out twice this year. With a 350 foot driveway to clear, it can be quite a job.

Here is a little caterpillar that was crossing the driveway this week. Can spring be far behind?

I'll leave you with a picture I took through the back door the other day. It looked like someone had dusted the trees with powdered sugar. That was on Thursday. Today the snow had already melted and was almost gone.

Sunday Night

                        

My husband's week long vacation has wrapped up and he's gone back to work. We had plans to paint two rooms and put new shelving in the pantry. The plans were good but we only got to the shelves in the pantry. Actually he cut and positioned the supports for the shelves and cut the shelves to fit. This week I'll do a paint job in the pantry and hopefully have the shelves filled with supplies. I can't complain though because this dear man had to take time to snow blow our long driveway at least four times during his week off. Too much snow this year.

I've been scrolling through other blogs and trying to find why I like the ones I do. Sometimes it's the banner or the background. But I think my favorites ones tend to be those that have either a series of photos that were taken of projects in progress and those that give directions on making things. And I'm still trying to play with this blog again. I've left it alone so long I've forgotten how to do things.

                              This quilted hanging is in my kitchen.

This week I've spent a lot of time working on a quilted wall hanging  that is to be a gift for a friend who is buying a new house. The wall hanging is finished except for the hanging pocket and label. I'm also progressing on my snowman table quilt. A twin sized pieced quilt is basted and awaiting machine quilting. And then there is the mystery quilt that I started with my quilt guild. I've spent so much time on my quilting projects that I'm feeling a little burned out so tomorrow I'll take time to do some art journaling. Gosh, I guess I'm too busy.

First Snow

I looked out the window this morning and the first snowfall of the season had made it's way here during the night. Everything, tree, brush and weed, had been coated with what looked like confectioner's sugar.