11-19-09 Out of the Blue

This yummy loaf of fresh, homemade pumpkin bread
just showed up at our front door!!!
Thanks Dionne and Shelly!
You brought some sunshine
on a cloudy day.
How sweet of you to think of us!

11-18-09 Slow but Sure

Today's progress on my new knitting project.
I've never done a pattern with cable stitch before
so I'm taking it slow but sure...
and so far, so good!!!
As with so many other things in life,
this is teaching me that working
slowly and steadily
with lots of perseverance
wins the race!

11-17-09 Card Club

There's a few extra tables in my kitchen today!
"Card Club" meets the 3rd Tuesday of each month.
Each of the 12 members takes their turn hosting the group in their home once a year,
and tonight it is my turn to welcome the girls to my home for a night of cards (we play Progressive 500),
food, companionship and competition for a cash prize!
We all throw $1 into a pot, and top score wins $5 ,
second place wins $4 and third place wins $3.
No matter what our scores are at the end of the night,
we always feel like winners
because of the wonderful food and friendships.

11-16-09 New Project

Starting a new project tonight...
wish me luck...
it has cables!

11-15-09 Intricate

I gaze in fascination
and envy
at the intricate pattern
in my new hand-knit sweater
from Peru
(purchased at Sinsinawa yesterday)
and wonder if I will ever be able
to create anything so beautiful!!!

I also purchased an amazing book
about Prayer Shawls and their making.
I may never be able to knit so beautifully
as my new sweater
but I CAN bind prayers to the simple shawls
that I do create...
and thank God that my fingers are
willing and able.

11-14-09 Sinsinawa WI

Attended a weekend class at Sinsinawa Mound, WI today and was sad to see that they have demolished the "dormitory building" east of the main entrance. Altho the presenter was amazing and did a great job, I did not learn anything NEW or HELPFUL... I hate it when that happens! Makes me feel like I wasted my time and money. Oh well... nothing ventured, nothing gained.

11-13--09 Friday the 13th

Are you superstitious? I am!
So, I put the black cat outdoors all day... just in case!!!
(Just kidding!)


DH & I put up some Christmas lights on the house
for the first time in YEARS!!!

And we went to see "This Is It"
(the movie of Michael Jackson's final rehearsals for his "This Is It" tour.
It was amazing!

11-12-09 Footings

Pouring footings today...

How deep & where are MY footings/roots?

11-11-09 And so it begins...

in our backyard...
the last empty lot on the block
is getting a basement dug...
looks like a small hole
so it's probably a two story?
We will get to enjoy construction
noise and dirt for the next 100 days!
A shout out to all veterans and active duty:
"Thank you for your service!!!"

11-10-09 V

The aliens have landed!!! They are here in peace.
I watched the premiere of this new television show last Tuesday
and am looking forward to the next installment tonight!

11-9-09

Other than my morning jog,
here is the excitement of my day today...
a trip to SAMS.
I know someone who does not get out of the house much these days (jjee), so you can live vicariously through my pictures, and pretend you went shopping today. :-)

11-8-09 Shopping Michigan Ave.

A reflection of our hotel in the building across the street...
There was one floor above us (the windows with the white stonework around them)...
we stayed in room #1509... a coincidence???

We did some shopping on Michigan Ave. and at Oakbrook Mall
before heading back home to Iowa.
Downtown Chicago is all decorated for the Christmas holidays and desperately hoping people will spend their money!!! It will be interesting to see how this recession affects this holiday shopping season!

11-7-09 SOFA

Saturday, Nov. 7, DH & I drove to Chicago for the weekend.
We attended the SOFA (Sculpture Objects & Functional Art) Art Show on the Navy Pier, which was F A B U L O U S !!!!!!
Too bad they didn't allow cameras into the show
or I'd have some pix of the amazing artwork...
Instead, I just have some pix from walking around the pier
on a beautiful, 70*F day:

Lake Michigan...

some of the downtown Chicago skyline from Navy Pier...

Ferris Wheel on Navy Pier...

Crystal Garden on Navy Pier...

Shakespeare actors performing for shoppers...

After the SOFA art show, lunch, and window shopping on Navy Pier, we checked into our hotel, were treated to dinner at Joe's Seafood-Steak-Stone Crabs Restaurant by our dear son (thanks so much, kiddo!!!), then the three of us went to see the show "Jersey Boys," which was also F A N T A S T I C !!!!!

11-6-09 Busy as a Beaver

DH spotted this tree on our morning jaunt along the creek
and decided we needed to investigate it more closely...
here is what we saw on the front side, from the path:


Looks like Bucky's been busy on the backside!!!


Let the chips fall where they may...


Close-ups of Bucky's toothprints and the tree rings...

So, of course, we had to walk over to the creek to look for Bucky...

didn't see him, but saw his footprints!

We'll have to keep an eye out for Bucky the Beaver

(and falling trees!!!)

next time we pass this way!!!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

11-5-09 Oil & Water

don't mix...
but they sure make cool designs on the wet pavement!
This oil spot reminded me of a peacock feather...

11-4-09 Crabby

Crab apples, anyone?
They looked so pretty against the blue sky this morning...

11-3-09 Balls & Lights

DH & I bought new balls and lights
to decorate our little 3' tall Christmas tree...
just to change it up a bit...

11-2-09 Twilight Saga...

Had to make a trip to the library today...
just finished the 3rd book in the Twilight series, Eclipse...
and wanted to read the 4th and final book in the series, Breaking Dawn...
to see what happens to Bella, Edward and Jacob!!!

11-1-09 Barucha

My Halloween kitty...
had to smell my homemade chicken noodle soup cooking all afternoon while I made a batch to take to a sick neighbor...
she (the cat) is waiting for the chicken liver for dinner.

10-31-09 Halloween

Come trick-or-treat at MY house...
I dare ya!!!

10-31-09

After our 5 mile jaunt this morning,
DH bought and installed some brackets
to hang our bikes in the garage for the winter...
now we're eating lunch and watching
Hawkeye football! ~Go Hawks!!!

10-30-09 Bloodsuckers!!!

Just in time for Halloweeeeeeen...
the Bloodsuckers at the LAB about drained me dry today!!!
Yesterday it was spit...
Today it was blood...
Tomorrow it will be ??? Pee?
Ah, one must maintain a sense of humor when changing doctors!!!

10-29-09 New Makeup

Just me playing with my new makeup...
(over several days)

10-29-09 Spitting

I spent today spitting into these little jars every 5 hours...
everyone who's done this knows what that's all about!

10-28-09 Morning Mist

And they say Missouri is humid...
Check out Iowa!!!

10-27-09 Misc.

An inspiring hedge of burning bushes along my jogging path this morning (5.25 miles @ 39*F!!!), and an inspiring blue sky (after a week of rain!!!), and a reflection from DH's water glass at lunch, and a chocolate sheet cake I just baked for a funeral lunch at church tomorrow... now to go cook the frosting...

10-26-09 Goat's Milk

As outdoor temperatures dip and indoor furnaces fire up,

I find myself at the beginning of "Dry & Itchy Skin Season!"

For the past several Iowa winters, the only thing that doesn't

make me itch is Goat's Milk soaps and lotions...

so I did some shopping today

in the Village

with our new pastor's wife

to get prepared for the coming winter!

10-25-09 Seeing Red!

This is the Sunday that Christians of the Lutheran faith tradition celebrate the Reformation that Martin Luther brought to the church years ago. Red flowers, altar cloths, banners, etc. let people in church know that we are celebrating something special. Today we also confirmed 5 young ladies, and installed our newly called Pastor. Dear husband did all the cantor-ing, as neither of the pastors present can sing!!!

10-24-09 Mondo's

Sesame Chicken Asian Salad @ Mondo's for lunch today.
DH and I took our DD and SIL out to lunch to celebrate her birthday earlier this week.
Then we went back to her place for some angelfood cake + strawberries + ice cream!!!
And some BE for birthday presents!!! Happy birthday, DD!!!

10-23-09 Spot & Sweater

This spot was on my arm when I woke up this morning...
wasn't there yesterday...
a spider bite during the night?!?!?


Chelsea, I LOVE the sweater you made me buy! :-)

See you tomorrow to watch your DH's soccer game and to celebrate your birthday!

10-22-09 This and That

My mail today...


My supper today... a "Pumpkin Pizza" from Papa Murphy's...


My accomplishments today...
I ran 5+ miles in the rain this morning, and
after dinner, I finished and bound off the first panel for my knitted shrug (see post on 8-27-09):

Now I'm going to cast on the second panel while watching "Fast Forward" on ABC!!!