I've been tagged!

My friend, Kim has tagged me to list five addictions. Only five? I have way more than that, but I'll play by the rules. Here goes:

1. collecting stuff... whether it be antiques, books, ephemera, charm bracelets, tin flat-backed cookie cutters, or pottery, I'm always on the lookout for more.

2. cross-stitching, especially samplers. My other blog is confirmation of that!

3. reality TV. My favorites are The Bachelor, The Amazing Race, and Big Brother. My husband doesn't get it either, Kim.

4. potatoes...mashed, fried, scalloped, and baked. I've never met a potato that I didn't like.

5. lastly, but not least of all, I have to say dogs. No surprise here. I could never imagine not sharing my life with at least one, or two, or three.

I'm now going to tag these five people: Rowyn, Kelcey, Sue, Cindy, and Becky

Fast Food

One of our regular visitors is enjoying feasting on this seed mitten. It looks like another is patiently waiting for their turn. My sister gave us some great gifts for feeding the birds. I've been saving these until the leaves all fell off the Arizona Ash tree, so I could actually see them as they dined. So far, only the finches have been able to partake, but I have no doubt that I'll see a dove swinging from it eventually.

A very special gift

As you all know, I love charm bracelets. I love the tinkling sound they make. I love the process of collecting the charms, and I love the stories they tell. They are little works of art that you wear. This Christmas saw one more added to my collection. My dear, dear friend Patti gave me a vintage bracelet that had belonged to her late mother. I was very fond of Nessie, and it goes without saying that I am extremely touched by this gift. Patti believes that the bracelet dates back to WWII. Two of the charms are a Jeep and a tank that says U.S.A. It also has several movable charms like a carousel with horses that go round, a grand piano, teapot, and mailbox that all open. My two favorites are a push mower with blades that turn and a wringer washer that spins. There is even a miniature spark plug, which is very appropriate since Patti's family made their home in the Detroit area. Thank you, Patti. I'll treasure it always.

e-i-e-i-o !

We are back from our trip to the frozen tundra, I mean Iowa. It was 13 below on the day we arrived. I stepped out of the car, my eyes started watering and I swear the tear turn to ice on my cheek. Talk about a shock to the system! Despite the cold and the two day drive there and another two back, we had a wonderful time with our family. I didn't get to go sledding or snowmobiling, as it was just too cold. Drinking wine by the fireplace seemed to make more sense. I did get to take some photos of the farm animals. All of them cooperated except the sheep, they wouldn't stand still. Here are my favorites:

I was surprised to see the Llama, but they are great at herding the sheep.

Definitely a white Christmas

Greetings from the snowy Midwest! As I sit here, on a farm in central Iowa, there is the white stuff as far as the eye can see. We are visiting family, and it is the first time I will have seen a white Christmas in over 20 years. I like snow...it's the cold that goes with it that I hate. Having lived in the desert for so long, you totally forget what winter is like in other parts of the country. Ruby and Scarlett are not sure what to think. They do not like getting their feet cold and absolutely would not even think of going to the bathroom in the snow. We had to take them to a barn every time they needed on the first day here. We are making progress though. They've figured out if they go really fast, they can get back inside that much faster. I can honestly say that I never expected to blog about the dog's bathroom breaks, but oh well.
Today might be a first for me. I heard talk about everyone going snowmobiling. That ought to be fun until I get stuck in a snow bank.
Have a wonderful Christmas everyone.

London Revisited

I have the hardest time coming up with things to blog about lately. Everything that I've made has needed to be kept secret. I'm fairly sure that a certain someone will guess that this gift is for her, but she should have it by now anyway. That is, if UPS came through. I saw the idea for these bulb forcers in Country Living magazine. They are made out of 1 liter bottles. The top is cut off and then inverted into the base. You fill it with water and then the bulb, in this case daffodils, roots and eventually sprouts a flower. I thought it was really clever and inexpensive.

I used some scrapbook paper with a map of London, one of my very favorite places, and then added a few embellishments. When we were were in the UK, we couldn't believe all the daffodils everywhere. I hope this gift evokes memories of a special time.

Live Love Photography

Since I still can't post pictures of anything that I've created recently, due to the fact that they are Christmas gifts, I'm going to brag, I mean blog, about my beautiful and very talented daughter-in-law instead. Her name is Tina, and she has recently turned her passion into a new business. Live Love Photography is now up and running. There are many of us who take photos in our family, but we started to notice that Tina's were getting better and better. Before we knew it, she started creating these wonderful videos of family get togethers and holidays. There is no better way to capture and remember a special event. Please check out her new website, and enjoy her galleries of photos.