Post Again Soon

I haven't posted for awhile.  A whole month has come and gone.  What have I been up to lately? I'm not sure but I have continued to take pictures.  I'll try to remember and promise to post again soon.

Birthday Cards

I have been trying to stock up on birthday cards so I don't run out and so I can share with others.
Here are some of my recent creations.

Easter Morning

Sarah, Bill and I went to the 6 am Sunrise Service at Christ Presbyterian Church.  We had some time to reflect as we walked around the church before sunrise (3 brisk walks), time to celebrate in the Sanctuary, and time for Communion in the Fireside Room. It was a great service and a great way to start Easter.
The flowers inside in the Great Hall were beautiful and a reminder that Spring is coming and soon we will have flowers and green grass outside.

Bill and Sarah - Happy Easter

Easter Cards

I made some Easter cards this month and even remembered to send out a few on time.  I sent cards and a package to my granddaughters in Little Rock too.

Finally Some Thaw

Here it is the end of March and it has been cold the whole month.  Finally toward the end of the week we had some warmer, sunny days and the snow is beginning to melt.  We can see the ground but all the flowers are still hiding.  April is just around the corner and we should finally see more signs of Spring.

We still have snow but patches of grass are beginning to show. Finally!!

How has your weather been?  Hopefully better than ours.

March in Minnesota So Far

March has been very cold.  We have had sleet, snow and ice.  Then we had more snow.
Temperatures have reached the 40's but have been mainly between 20 - 30 degrees with wind chill in the negatives.  In other words, winter still has a strong hold on our state.

Snow banks and cloudy skies

Our snowy car after work

Bill and I park the car in a local 'Park and Ride' and take the Metro bus to work everyday.  It has been a live saver this winter.    Although the snowy days have been frustrating, riding the bus takes the stress out of getting to work.

My boss shared daffodils with some of us at work.  They brought a little sunshine into our house.

Until April or May, we wait for Spring after a really long winter.

Happy Spring to you all.

A New Reading Goal - 12 Books from Need to Read

Last year I challenged myself to read all of Jane Austen's book. I completed all 6 books by June 21, 2012 (read my previous blog here).

As a new challenge, I plan to read all of the 21 books that I have not already read from the list in my previous blog:

1. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee 
2. True Grit by Charles Portis 
3. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
4. Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor
5. The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett 
6. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurty 
7. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
8. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams 
9. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
10. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
11. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
12. The Magus by Jon Fowles 
13. in our time by Ernest Hemingway
14. Different Seasons by Stephen King 
15. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
16. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
17. Red Dragon by Thomas Harris 
18. The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara 
19. Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner 
20. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald 
21. Charlotte's Web by E.B. White 

I have read (9):

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurty 

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara

Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White 

My goal to read (12):

True Grit by Charles Portis 

Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor

The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams 

The Magus by Jon Fowles

in our time by Ernest Hemingway

Different Seasons by Stephen King - great short story stylists - author's favorite

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Red Dragon by Thomas Harris 

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald 

21 Novels You Need to Read

I love to read and I hope you do too.
Books take us to a new place and time and they are a great escape anytime.
Stories help us understand where we have been and why we are here.
The following are some novels you really ought to read.

1. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee  -  this is really a good book about justice and deeply held beliefs, right and wrong, and the agony of growing up.
2. True Grit by Charles Portis - this is the story of Mattie Ross and her quest for justice with the rascally sheriff Rooster Cogburn. The story is a favorite and the book is genius.
3. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
4. Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor
5. The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett - this supposed debut of the hard-boiled detective novel makes the list because of the line that the statue was 'the stuff dreams are made of.' The guy could write.
6. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurty - about two strangely literate Texas rangers who decide to become cattle ranchers, and out - Sundance Butch and the Kid.
7. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier - You will love this story of psychological obsession and immortality by one of the most underrated writers of the 20th century.
8. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams - this is the sequel to 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.' Facing the end of life as we know it, is it too much to ask to find a good cup of tea and some biscuits?
9. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
10. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
11. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
12. The Magus by Jon Fowles - this is a story about this crazy part romance, part horror, part Gothic book, in which nothing and on one is what it seems.
13. in our time by Ernest Hemingway - the lower case name is correct. This is his first big published book of heart-breaking stories. You will see why his style was so imitated and why it never could by copied. Ever.
14. Different Seasons by Stephen King - great short story stylists - author's favorite.
15. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson - often sported as the best first paragraph in all prose, this story is still as paralyzingly scary as it was the day it was written.
16. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
17. Red Dragon by Thomas Harris - gruesome and terrifying.  Read it if you dare.
18. The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara - a Pulitzer Prize wining novel of the Civil War.  Story of the longest days of our nation's lives, three hot sunsets in Gettysburg, and why even the beautiful and brave can be wrong, and the glum, stubborn and foolish as right as dawn.
19. Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner - story of two couples, about loyalty and its limits as any I've ever read.
20. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald - story of the haves and how they think of the have-nots, because they are helpless to think of them any other way.  You might call it a 1920s tale of the one percent.
21. Charlotte's Web by E.B. White - those who think of this small book about a gallant spider's fight to save the life of a runt pig as a children's story are letting children have all the fun.

List and comments by Jacquelyn Mitchard, March 2, 2012, AARP Bulletin.

Shared from Minneapolis Star Tribune - Book Section, Sunday, February 23, 2013

Being Crafty

I have a new 'Making Bows Tool' and I have been practicing the fine art of tying bows for cards.  My friend Jan (yes her name is Jan too) gave me the tool and showed me how to use it.  Thanks Jan.

I thought I remembered how to make bows but of course I didn't.  I called on a second friend of mine, Carol and she sent instructions. I need all the help I can get!
Here's the tool and the bows I have created so far.

 

The tool

 The bows

 And here's Elmo!  He's a cute little lunch box I store scissors and adhesive in.

I am also making a Spring card for a card swap in early March. This is what I have so far.
I want the flowers to be bright and pop like the flowers in the photos behind them.
It's a work in progress.  I'll let you know how it turns out when I come up with a design I like.

Here's the stamp I plan to use and some of my flower photos from last summer.

What have you been creating lately to get ready for Spring?

Getting Crafty - A Room of My Own

We have two bedrooms in our home.  One is our bedroom and the other is for guests and crafts.  Sarah was living here for awhile until she found roommates and an apartment.  She moved out in December.
I am in the process of getting the bedroom organized for crafts again and I still have much to do.

The room is looking good again - it's just all the 'stuff' all over the house that I need to collect and organize in there.  I have President's Day off from work so hopefully I can get a project or two done.
I'll keep you posted on my progress.