Snowfall on a Saturday morning.  With nowhere to go and nothing to do, we just got to sit back and enjoy it.  Sure, there’s a lot to complain about when it comes to the weather this winter, but I still think snow is so beautiful.  Another benefit of snow days is the chance to hunker…

Happy to see the Year of the Rabbit hopping on in. (I had a few photos of bunnies in the snow, but I opted for wishful thinking.)

We still can’t call it “Snowpocalypse” here, but we did get snow to top off the ice that has encapsulated our world. Our poor little dogwood.  More photos are on my flickr page.  In a different zip code, a dear friend is actually in the middle of a true Snowpocalypse. Oh. My. Gosh. Check out…

Snowpocalypse has turned out to be a big, fat ice storm so far. Other areas have been whopped with snow, but we’re just coated with ice — and it’s been falling steadily all day long. This was our sweet little dogwood first thing this morning. With the street lamp behind it, the poor thing was…

This is how we’re choosing to wait out the “winter storm of historic proportions.”  Warm cookies, super cute bully dog napkins, kids on couches, cats on couches, dvd in the player, lots more waiting to be played … not too bad.  We’re also saying lots of prayers that the storm doesn’t knock out our power….

– the outdoor Christmas decorations are finally down and in storage – my car passed state inspection without incident or drama – I bought a bunch of these to give away (hand made in Kirkwood, I might add) – it’s time to start reading (and eating) conversation hearts  – my best boys are settled in…

 From a walk with Tanner on the short path at Powder Valley. I was so glad for his company because it was such a muddy, icky trek. The path was slushy, slick and prohibitive. Even this bench seems to be saying, “I miss spring.” But the bright sides of the day outweighed the dreary ones….

If the neighbors ask why we still have our Christmas decorations up outside, I’m going to point to our amaryllis. Apparently it didn’t get the “hey, the holidays are over” memo either. I’ve done absolutely nothing to encourage this, but look who’s sprouted greens again. Seriously — I haven’t even watered this poor thing in…

Can I do this until spring gets here? Can I just hunker down and hide under an avalanche of blankets and quilts until such time that winter coats are put away? It’s a really, really nice thought. Some other thoughts (nice or otherwise random): – Happy Australia Day! – Discovered today that I’m simply unable…

We’ve gotten so much snow … and the closest I’ve gotten to it is looking at it through the front and back doors. Looks like our house has been hit by some sort of bug, so Drew and I haven’t left the house in a few days. But the snow is still wonderful from a…

My treasure from today’s trip to the store. I now have the overwhelming urge to cut up some red and pink construction paper, cut a hole in the top of of a shoebox, cover it with hearts and hope that the class will stuff it with conversation hearts and pretty little cards. 

A blog called Poppytalk is a happy, creative oasis on the web and it is one of my absolute favorite places to visit. I love their myriad of funky do-it-yourself projects, gorgeous photos and artful features. And this week they have a neat little project going that has made me so happy. They call it…

My cats have never met a box, bag or newspaper they didn’t like. This brown wrap was wrapped around some wonderful art paper that I picked up for use in my sketchbook. I haven’t bothered to throw the wrapper away because the cats have enjoyed it so much. But I am ready to part with…

It would’ve been much more effective to walk around the door in an attempt to scare me, but it wouldn’t have been nearly as cute.

I know there’s nothing unusual about a robin in the snow, but look at the size of this guy! No neck… enormous belly … he’s like the sumo wrestler of robins. 

Look who made himself at home in our back yard this afternoon! He started out on our bushes (above), but when I tried to sneak out on the porch for a closer look, he took off for the neighbor’s tree (below). He’s been napping there ever since.  I wasn’t the least bit upset when he…

  Not only has its loveliness exceeded my expectations, so has its scale. I’ve loved watching this unfold every day of the new year. It’s extended that fresh start/clean slate feeling for the whole house. I don’t really make new year’s resolutions, but I’m seriously considering making this a belated one:  “I wonder what the…

 Today we went to an interesting little restaurant for a belated office Christmas lunch. It had lovely light and ceramic floors… … a funky old elevator …  … sky lights …  … and some neat little details. In all fairness, these selling points were in the cafe area and we were seated inside the dining…

This was Murphy on my way out the door to work this morning. Actually, this was Murph after I woke him while his face was buried in his paws. I kind of related to his lack of enthusiasm. 

With the chilly air and clear skies, it was an ideal day to make a short road trip to Alton for some eagle watching. It took a while before we spotted what we were looking for, but there was plenty of loveliness to be found at the water fowl sanctuary. The frozen waves were awesome. …

Happy to see bloom #1 on 1.1.11.

A low key kind of day. Tiramisu cupcakes baked for my mom’s New Year’s festivities, progress on my sketchbook, dvd-a-thon with the boys (including the best of the Cosby Show!).  Get a load of the amaryllis that I’ve been working on since around Thanksgiving. It’s like a foot and a half tall and is trying…

Every now and then, I get the urge to rummage through my blog’s archives and look back to the same date a year ago and see what was going on. Since we’re calling it a wrap for 2010, I thought it would be fun to take a bigger look at a few highlights from the…