With camera in hand

Photography is one of my past times

Nature & Landscapes are probably my favorite subjects

But I like capturing people moments too...

I have a lot to learn, especially when it comes to using all the features on my camera

but for now I will just enjoy what I do

Takin' pictures for fun !

The couch

Nothing better than a solid-made good old vintage (looking) couch.

I think the look is coming back...

and the kids love it :)

"Great Grandpa & Grandma's" couch... from the den

It's amazing the durability and quality of older furniture. This one came from Council Bluffs furniture. Not sure what year it was bought but it's been around as long as I have (no comment please).

The house is up for sale and things need to go.

Brice & Jennifer loved the looks of the couch and so they won the lotto and are proud new owners of a special couch.

It adds a special touch to their cute apartment

Thanks Brice I know how much you LOVE posing for "mom pictures"

and yes.....I did do a blog about it.

I need a good swift kick

Lord have mercy....

If I could only make up my mind

You see, I have all this card making (stamping) stuff that I've accumulated

over the last 20 years. When we remodeled the kitchen over a year ago all my stamping stuff (that was in the kitchen) went into Brianna's empty room with high hopes of making it my stamping room.

Right now It's a disaster,

I can't make up my mind what to do....

keep it or get rid of it, and if I did get rid of it....HOW

I dont want to go to a lot of work to do it.

I haven't made a card for about 5 years, but I kind of want to.

It comes right down to, I don't want to figure it out.

I really should hire a professional, but that aint cheap either

blah blah blah

I'm having second thoughts about getting rid of it...

I think if it was organized again and I could just pull up a chair, then I'd begin again.

Unmotivated, unwilling, no clue what to do first

any thoughts???

besides a kick in the butt.

Love at first flake

From this shot you can see a sweet little pillow that happens to match my decor

and goes perfectly in my living room chair.

and if you look closer in the next shot you'll see that it's the most appropriate pillow

for my living room chair....

...and it will stay there all year through.

Love at first flake

I received this unexpected (and perfect) gift last week from my friend Valerie

She said it made her think of me.... imagine that

Valerie, you know me well, especially my love for snow & winter

This will make me smile all the year through

Thank you friend

Oven "O" rings and Lime chicken

I recently purchased a George Foreman grill

I Liked the idea of the simplicity of it

and usually it's just the two of us so it works out good

at least until we step out on the deck this spring to stoke-up the "Weber"

I pulled out these chili-lime chicken burgers from Trader Joe's

and threw them on "the George"

Then pulled up another recipe from Gina's

LOW FAT BAKED ONION RINGS

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/03/low-fat-baked-onion-rings.html#more

I thought they were delicious

but if your expecting the deep fat fried effect you wont get that.

Regardless, they are tasty and crunchy, mmmmm good.

Yummy yummy

Thoughts of spring

Spring has sprung

Amoungst the snow and muck in my back yard shade garden,

the sprigs of my crocus's are poking out of the mud.

and...

The squirrel's have been busy digging up my yard

looking for their dumb walnuts

You all know I LOVE winter, but do you know that I despise Spring.

It's not my favorite, probably the season that I wish we could skip altogether

It's messy in a lot of ways....

It messes with your mind,

warm one day cold the next.

It messes with your surrounds,

wet and mushy everywhere

Rain, rain, rain (which isnt so bad if it's during the night)

It messes with your senses,

it smells like spring but what good does that do ya

You still cant really do anything outside, It's too messy.

mud & wet....blah

But that's just me, you don't have to agree.

Come late spring when...

everything dries up and the flowers start blooming,

When you can sit on the grass without getting a wet butt

When you can hang the clothes out on the line....

...I'll cheer up, I really will

For now I will sit in the peace of the evening and

find joy in the sound of thunder and the flashesof lightening !

One of my favorite things at night.

The itty bitty appetizer

There is another creative side to my oldest son...

He's a great designer (graphics that is)

Yep...that's his "Lacuna label" (proud mom moment)

But there's yet another creative side to him...

He cooks from time to time!

No recipe involved,

hence... the creative side of him.

Every wifes dream.... A guy who cooks.

Brice's little creative way to serve us up his concoction from supper the other night.

One burger....4 people, and...

we got us an appetizer before lunch.

Thin style bun, burger, ketchup, lettuce.....appetizer style

Brice tells me he got the beef from the butcher, threw in some spices, onion and some crumbles blue cheese. I have to say it was amazing... nice job Brice

A special birthday wish

Happy 20th Birthday Gavin

Click on the play arrow above to watch the video

20 years ago today at 12:01 am

Gavin Chandler Hemmer came into the world

9 lb 13 oz... just a little guy

He's still my baby.....

Things about my youngest...

He's brilliant

He has a gift in music

He loves sports

He's kind, gentle, and humble

He's sensitive, caring and quiet

He's funny, witty and goofy

age 2

Our wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,

your dreams stay big, your worries stay small,

You never need to carry more than you can hold,

and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,

We hope you know somebody loves you,and wants the same things too,

Yeah, this, is our wish. (my wish)

We Love you Gavin , Mom & Dad

So there's that little bench at the bottom of my front steps.

I love it in the winter, cuz it shows how deep the snow is

and I love it when there's no snow on it cuz that means I'll be barefoot, and I love being bare foot. (but I still love winter)

Wont be long now folks....and I'll be barefoot

I bet you thought I was gonna say it'll be spring.

Yah, that too.

Enjoying the last days of winter, but not totally giving in....

we all know what "old man winter" can do to us in March...

March 2008 snow storm

March 2007 snow storm

Dont be hatin'.... I'm just sayin !

snippets from the weekend

This weekend we had a solo visit from our eldest son.

(Jenny, his wife, had a girls weekend away in Grand Marais)

beautiful day for washing the car.

The little brother shot some hoops...the dad supervised.

Sunday my sis and her family were down visiting my parents so they stopped by on their way home to say "hi" and leave a very cool gift for our soon to be 20 year old.

I think he likes it !

I title this video "again....again"

Audrey's loving every minute with her Uncle Brice

Anybody got any oxygen.....

It's still a mystery

One evening last weekend I sat down to the computer and my eye caught this...

Do you notice anything out of the ordinary?

Look closer...

That's right, there are no ink cartridges in the printer

You say, "so"... there's no ink cartridges?

Here's the problem. No one in this house removed them, no one here has a clue as to where the ink cartridges have gone. The other important fact is that the area that the cartridges fit into is trashed. I found that out after I bought new cartridges to replace the " missing" ones.

After a few days I let it go....

I decided not to make myself crazy trying to figure this whole absurd thing out.

I had drilled Gavin to the point that he just looked at me with a blank stare and shook his head. (he thinks I'm nuts)

and NO....Audrey didn't do it. She can't even reach it and if she could it's not the easiest cartridge to remove....who ever did that found that out when they broke it trying.

So anyway...

here's our NEW and improved printer/scanner.

It has a wireless feature on it that I love, and

the ink cartridges are easier to replace....

...and steal

who ever you are, don't even try or I'll cut your hands off.

Those were the days

When I was just a little girl, I always wanted to be a boy.

Here's me looking like a boy with my two brothers.

I'm pretty sure theres no pictures of me in a dress.

Mom probably couldn't get me in one if she tried.

I distinctly remember mom telling me I had to start wearing a shirt when I started kindergarten. I was quite devestated.

I still wanted to be a boy.

I just wanted to play sports and hang out with the guys....and play more sports!

and I did

Post bulletin snapped a picture of me sandwiched in the middle of 2 boys.

The only girl participating in the city wide, punt-kick-pass contest.

Yep I was wearing a shirt, and yah...that's my bra showing through the fabric.

The post bulletin did a nice job of exploiting the fact that I was a girl and I had a bra on.

Wow, such a "news worthy" article.

They must of had a desperate moment.

My heart walks outside of my body

My three kids are adults but I'm not about to let go of those cherished pictures strung around the house of the days when they were small....and still here.

This is a shelf in our main bathroom.

I put these snapshots in the shelf years ago

but cant get myself to change them to more recent pictures

I've decided I like them to much

Thought I'd share the close ups...

Left, my oldest two on Easter morning

Right, my youngest

Left, My oldest & youngest (tubing at Pine Haven)

Right, My middle child & nephew (I love love love this picture of Brice & Ryan)

My sweet boys

***

Then there's the One year old pictures at the end of the hallway

I'm quite sure they'll be there forever.

Making the decision to have a child- it's momentous.

It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking outside your body

Elizabeth Stone

My pride...and JOY