The Garden work begins!

 As Mail Art card #71 awaits my return to my studio to be completed, I want to show you the work that has begun on our back yard/garden.  Some of you may remember, from previous posts, my lovely bench which sat in this corner by my garage.

 The walk way from the stairs to the back gate is now under a big layer of dirt. The plan is to make a few levels as possible. Previously, we had many levels and we had to navigate up and down and over loose bricks and slate to get around.

 Oh look, there's my lovely bench! This view from the kitchen window is so surprising, right? See our lovely glass piece hanging there. N and J brought it back from istanbul for us when they were there a couple of years back. It protects from evil. We want that!




Here's another angle from the window. I'll keep you updated as this moves along.  Since the landscaper is from Guatemala, I'm thinking that my Spanish will improve. Do you know how to say "bricks!"

Sunday Snow Day

We woke this morning to find that the sun was out and the snow had finally stopped falling.
Because the back porch door had stayed closed, we had snow piled against the outside of it. Look at that height!
I started to cook and to prep for baking. While I was in the warm kitchen, my honey worked his way to the garage, got the shovel and cleared, first the back walk, then the front walk. He was pretty pleased with himself.
He had lots of layers and said that he didn't feel the cold at all. Hmmm, okay, but to me 21F is quite cold, no matter how many layers I have on.
The Carrot Cheese cake turned out really nicely. Here's a picture of how a small slice looked. Very moist and cheesy. Last night's potato soup turned out good, too. Today, I made a tomato sauce and am making chocolate chip cookies right now. I added pecans and dried cranberries to them. I like being my own prep chef, using all my little bowls to set up my ingredients. It's like: make believe I'm doing a TV cooking show. I'm going to bring some of the cookies around the corner to my little neighbors. Yes, I plan to step outside! With enough layers, I think I can make it around the corner and back home without feeling too arctic.

What to do on a snowed in day?

The snow finally stopped falling in the late afternoon. Look how deep it got!
I baked a carrot cake cheesecake combination. Can't wait to taste it! I'm also making some potato soup. While preparing the soup, my doorbell rang. It was my little neighbor. She announced to my husband that her boots came off and her socks were all wet, so he popped them in our clothes dryer and she joined me in the kitchen. Her jacket was the same color green as my new nail polish, so naturally, I offered to paint her finger and toe nails. And naturally, she accepted my offer. What fun! Last night, I'd painted mine and got fancy with some addition of a dark purple squiggle. What to do when it's snowed in time? Amuse yourself!

Yarn-y goodness

I was having an azul kinda day on Thursday, so I stopped at The Yarn Lounge on my way home from visiting my shut-in friend. I went from feeling azul to feeling very sunny!! It's all of this yarn-y goodness that perked up my mood.

I got some Pagewood Farm Merino/cashmere hand-dyed yarn, with the color name : maple leaf. It's sock yarn but I'll use it for finger-less gloves/mitts.
I, also, got two different yarns from Plain & Fancy Sheep & Wool Co. of Henderson, TX. Hand-dyed variegated wool. One is called "confetti" and the other is "autumn leaves." They have no web presence it seems, but a search will get you their phone number & address.

They yarns feel so soft and the colors are just so scrumptious. The finished products will go into Fritzi, my Etsy shop. Come see me there when you have time.

Fairy lights, twinkly yard

I had a kind of rough day emotionally, spending time dealing with a friend's needs. When I got home, I parked the car in the garage and came out the side door into the yard and there was such a nice surprise for me. The neighbors yard all lit up. It made me feel so happy. Like I'd walked into a fairyland. I went inside and started dinner and told hubby that we would be eating dinner outside so bundle up for the chilly night air. He turned on our lights, too. It was sooo pretty.