Winter Time Fun

Went "sledding" the other day. Used one of those cheap plastice saucers. What am I doing? I'm old. I felt every little bump in my rear end. I tried out my ice skates today. That was fun. Hope to do more of that if the weather cooperates. They are saying it's going to be in the 40's and rain this weekend.

It's Colder in Wisconsin than in Southern California

So, I am not walking my dog in the bright motivating sunshine here at home. It's downright cold, but I bought Pancho a new sweater. He's not much of an outdoor dog unless it's sunny and about 75.

California Thanksgiving 2010

Went to California with my boyfriend and his kids over Thanksgiving. What a beautiful place and a wonderful time. I have so much to be thankful for. The weather was actually a bit cool, but considering that right now, back home, we're having snow and temps in the 20's and below, the weather there doesn't seem so bad. Bright motivating sunshine practically everyday. People riding their bikes, walking their dogs, all year round.

Fun Rec Room

This weekend, my boyfriend and I were playing darts in my basement, my dingy, dusty basement. He decided to get the ball rolling. We put stuff away , he mopped the floor, we arranged the chairs and hung posters on the wall. Now we're ready to have a fun time down here

Bathroom Renovation Phase II

I have the most talented, kind and nice boyfriend in the world. I'm not showing the pictures of the ripped out walls, the insulation he put in, the dry wall, etc. Here is my new shower, bright, clean, how wonderful. The next project will be to change out the sink, but this weekend, we're taking a break. No heavy duty house projects!

Voila, Makeshift Shower

Now I love to take a shower, Will love it even more when the walls go up.

Bathroom Renovation

Herbert's favorite pastime is sitting in the bathtub, drinking water out of the dripping faucet. Not anymore. My boyfriend spent all day Saturday and Sunday fixing my leaky plumbing, probably the original in the house from 1941! We took down the walls of crumbling tile, all the wet, smelly insulation, and put up shower curtains so I can shower until we get time to put the walls back in. I should say too, that with his creative problem solving skills, I got a functioning shower out of the deal too, when before, there was no shower. Love my new showerhead.

Fun At Farm Fest

Farm Fest, Sept. 2010 again. Went on a hay wagon ride, got a pumpkin, drank some milk. We got there too late to stuff a scarecrow, the stuffins were running thin. That's okay, because earlier that morning, we spread grass seed and straw at the park. We had had our fill of straw already that day.

Rummage Sale Trinkets

I got the little calf and horse at a vintage shop, but my boyfriend bought the big coke glasses for me, I bought the little ones and the purple glass and the smiley mug I got at the ice cream shop. My boyfriend also bought me the adorable snowman. I'm turning into a rummage sale, flea market, vintage shop junkie.

John's Root Beer Stand

Saturday I went to John's Root Beer Stand for the first time. I've only been living in this town for 18 years. Yummiest root beer, and the most delicious float I ever had.

Gazing Ball

My dog Marcel loved to sit outside and stare into space. My boyfriend suggested I find a gazing ball to put by his resting place. We saw some artisan balls at various fairs and flea markets, and they were really expensive. This one was a steal, and I love the color. It will be beautiful to look at whatever the season. If it was at Marcel's eye level, I think he would have liked it. I really miss him.

Welcome to Watertown

Haven't been back to my home town in quite a long time. It's been 30 years since I lived there. Had an opportunity to return for a baseball game. Couldn't resist going to Mullen's and having ice cream. They have been in business since 1932. They make their own ice cream. I don't even know why I wasted my time eating a cheeseburger first. Split a sundae with my boyfriend, and then we had to split a cup of Marble fudge, with gooey peanuts! Yum!

Happy Fireworks

The evening of the 4th, we lit off fireworks in the driveway. Some were pretty impressive! Got eaten alive by the mosquitos also. Why is it that the times you want to be outside the most is when they attack so voraciously! My new cologne this summer is Tropical Mist Off.

Delicious Cherry Cheese Cake and Cherry Soda

After the cave, we stopped in town for lunch. This restaurant was in a restored Victorian House. We ate on the porch. Got Cherries? Sometimes I just have to have Cherry Soda, and I couldn't resist the Cherry Cheesecake. My boyfriend ordered the carrot cake. We ate dessert first.

Cave of the Mounds

Thursday, July 1st, we went to cave of mounds. Hadn't been there since I was a kid. I'm not a cave enthusiast, but it was fun. Got my collection of rocks from the gift shop, when we were done.

Happy 4th of July!

I took a long weekend for the 4th of July holiday. Here is my house looking festive with the flag. I had these boring beige chairs and table. I chose the color, and my boyfriend painted them for me. What a great easy project to spruce up something bland. I like looking at the entry of my house in all seasons.

Barbeque

I'm not a whiz in the kitchen, and I'm rather afraid of fire, but I got this tiny little grill this weekend, a gift from my mom and Pete, and we grilled a steak and summer squash. Delicious and fun.

Flowers Finally

Okay, so, I think I will follow up and take a closer picture of the flowers. This weekend, we must have stopped a million rummage sales. What fun. Got the groovy pot with yellow flowers painted on for $1. The shepherd's hook for $2. Went to Walmart and bought the hanging basket, and the purple petunias and put them in the pot. Now my little backyard area has even more color.

Reading Chairs

My boyfriend found these chairs at a rummage sale. They fit perfectly in my piano/reading/computer room. We pulled in a footstool and relaxed and read a book in here this weekend. This is the coziest room in my house. Of course in the summer we want to be outside more, but for winter time, this will be a very warm and cuddly room.

Bike Transformation

Here is the bike after we painted it, put new hand grips with streamers, a new bell, and stickers ont it. Somehow, in my mid life crisis, we've created the bike I've always wanted as a kid. Funny thing is, I would not have liked this bike as a kid, but I think it's powerful cool now! I had great fun taking something that someone was going to throw away and tranform it into something useful and cool to look at!

Sundaes & Rummage Sales

Saw this bike at a rummage sale yesterday for $20. I had to get it. Don't need it. I have a very nice bike at home, but I liked this little treasure, because it's so retro looking. This is a picture of it cleaned up somewhat. My boyfriend loaned me a tool to use that helped me clean up the rust, and I took windex and wiped down the rest of it. We pumped up the tires and took it for a spin. I love the white wall tires. This afternoon, I'm looking forward to painting it a new color.

There's nothing like a Dusty Road Sundae and a lime phosphate for breakfast. We started the day at an old fashioned ice cream shop. We played old tunes on 78's on the juke box, and got our ice cream fix. The rest of the early afternoon we walked around town from one rummage sale to the next. It was a fun afternoon.

Took a Boat Sunday

Took a ride in this little boat on a little lake on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. It couldn't have been nicer or more relaxing. Just me and my boyfriend. Nice.

Spring Time

Yes, I admit, I'm at a loss for anything interesting to share lately. I've been struggling so much with my attitudes , whether at work, or in my personal life, it's been hard for me sit back and appreciate the smaller, unique joys in life. Around here May can be a fickle month. It can be beautiful and sunny and warm, and the next day, it can be rainy, cold and yucky. Yes, it can even snow, but I thought I would share one of my poppies. They are really bursting forth like crazy. I have a ton of them. Also, my boyfriend installed for me a new faucet. Gee, I guess I should have taken a picture of the old, rotting one that was there before, because then you could really appreciate why this new one is so nice. In the process of putting the new one in, I vacumed up some old plumbing parts that were under the sink, and my vacume died. That will be my next project. Spring cleaning with a new vacume. Yes, my life is exciting.

Easter Eggs

Haven't colored Easter eggs since I was a kid. Had a lot of fun drawing happy faces on the eggs. They are all good eggs after all!

However, I didn't eat them all, and then they turned into bad eggs.

Into the garbage can they went.

Happy Birthday To Me

I have the best boyfriend in all the world. My birthday was a couple weeks ago, and he showered me so many wonderful gifts and quality time. Here are a couple of the things he got me, flowers and chocolate, two of my favorite things in the world. I love him!

Winter Vacation

I know it's been a while since I've posted. I'm having computer troubles, and not a lot of free time. I was filled with anxiety about our winter vacation during the end of February. I'm not a big fan of winter. I took a snow boarding lesson, and spent a lot of time on my butt and being frustrated. The next day, I took a skiing lesson. After that, it's all I wanted to do. Of course, I went up and down the bunny hill several times. I did go up the regular hill once, and managed to ski down, but I had never been so scared in all my life. I'm thrilled to try new things, but like most people, I'm slow to change and get out of my routine. I went back to the bunny hill after that, but I look forward to doing more of this next winter. Maybe I'll progress even further.

Marcel

This is my dog Marcel. He passed away this past Thursday morning, Feb. 11th, 2009. He was my first dog, and my best friend for 13 years. This is a picture of him taken last spring, after he was diagnosed with heart disease. The medication prolonged his life almost a year, and he was a very happy dog up until the end. His heart gave out, and he died in his sleep. I was truly blessed to have him for 13 years. He was a happy dog, with a very pure heart. I will miss him very much.

Snow

So welcome,

The first snow of the season.

The ground lies in wait,

Welcoming its first soft, blanket of white.

Snow falls softly, coating the earth in candy cotton.

Freely falling.

Fresh.

Cold.

And then the deep freeze comes.

Bitter cold.

A multitude of angry flurries, blowing sideways, so thick you can't see.

White all around.

No shapes or colors.

Claustrophobic.

It clears.

So cold it hurts your skin to be outside.

The snow is hard and crunchy.

Unyielding.

Unforgiving.

Like shards.

Like a knife.

No longer soft and pretty and pleasant.

I long for spring.