I'm Dreaming Of...

Busy day ahead.  I'll be dreaming of...

~ a walk at the lake

 ~ with this fuzzy doll

~ we'll check on the melting ice and setting sun

~ we'll dance in the puddles and Katie will make me laugh so hard my sides will hurt

~ I'll be happy to see these bright red flowers that are so tall stretching to the sky

~ I'll be thinking of spicy food like this homemade spicy tomato soup; every spoonful makes me smile

~ aaaand... I'll have quilting on the brain fueled by a package that greeted me in the mail box today.

Luscious Strawberry Fields! 

The floral prints... the strawberries... the polka dots.  I can't wait to dive into this fabric!

What are you dreaming of?

日本のための多くの愛
Much love for Japan

Katie Dog Days: Snow Princess!

I have a busy day ahead.  Let's take a few moments together to take in the serenity and peace at the lake...

...then laugh at the antics of a pup reminding me of all the marvelous things life and snow have to offer.  How could you not want to run right outside with the promise of this pup to make you smile!!  Katie rocks!!

Hope you are having a lovely day!

FNSI and Saturday Happenings

I really ended up not doing FNSI this time around; at least not to the extent I thought I would.  Instead I ended up hanging with Mr. Happy last night and enjoyed a quiet evening.

I did play around with one block and  here is what I did...

I took two blocks that I had made with really tiny squares...

Sandwiched them right sides together...

Sewed 1/4 seam all the way around the outside...

Cut them apart again in triangles...

Looked at how I wanted to piece them back together...

Found a pinwheel that fits my Central Park pinwheel quilt...

And sewed it back together and pressed it.  The end.

Cute shot with the cow eraser... because, hey, why not?   And yes, that was about the extend of my FNSI (Friday Night Sew In -- see the button on my sidebar for more details and how you too can join us next month!)

My morning started off with a hawk sighting in the backyard.

These guys were going through as I was making up sunny-side-upside-down eggs (over easy) with dipping soldiers!  The family ended up being five total with two babes in the mix.  Adorable!

It's been cold and here is the result of some icicles dripping off the roof a then freezing again.

Katie thought the ice was yummy.  Roar!

The sun was shining (thank you!!) and the sky a beautiful kiss me blue!

I spent the afternoon sledding with my sister (in law), her bf, and the mister, and my father (in law) and the dogs... I could not have asked for a better day!

I heard a good quote the other day that went like this... "Bloom where you are planted"

Makes perfect sense, right?  Sort of like be happy with what you have or make the best of things!  Hope that you are having a lovely weekend and laughing so hard your sides and cheeks hurt!

Down by the lake

The light is lingering just a tiny bit longer these nights, which means I am able to sneak in a dog walk before it's too dark.  In NY, we do have the time switch coming up which means we will really have daylight for a walk starting next week!  (I am still mourning my lost hour from the whole spring back thing, but I'm excited for more daylight in the evening!)

What I'm getting at is that this week is the first week (in awhile) that Katie and I could head down to the lake near the house to see if we could catch the sunset.  We were a tiny bit late, but it was still gorgeous!

I have always had a thing for silhouetted tree's and this snap captures some beautiful ones!  It looks so serene and peaceful doesn't it? 

In this one, you start to get a better feel of the ice loosing it's grip on the lake. 

I think Katie was very happy to be down by the water sniffing around!  Ha! And check out her "get the camera outta my face" attitude in the second one.  She has so many expressions any more!

This lake was one of the things that really pushed me over the edge to buy our house.  I never dreamed I would be within walking distance to something so beautiful!

I can already see so many memories in the making: fishing, swimming, laying at the beach, going to the dog beach for Katie to swim, reserving the beach for a summer party, grilling, mingling with neighbors, and we can put a small boat in the lake! 

On the shore their was a flag flapping in the wind that caught Katie's attention.  It's faded, and a bit torn, but bubbled up so much pride for me. 

You see I'm a military brat (child of parents who were in the military), so I still get hit with that emotion from random things.  You should see me tear up at a football game after seeing the color guard salute or a fly over.

I also thought these photo's would make a nice contribution of Midweek Blues which is hosted by Rebbeca at The Dusty Cellar.  These aren't the bright cheery blues I ususally think of.  These are more moody, deep, and thoughtful.

Anyone can play along, link your post of any interpretation of blues: colors, moods, music, poetry...be as creative as you like!

Tiny Crystals

These are the tiniest little ice crystals all dancing about in their frozen glory. Seeing something so tiny, yet so detailed = so cool!

Another reminder to slow down and take a look at all the amazing things around us!