Yes, Peanut you were right...

Just a very quick post and a picture.

Last week I traded in our 2010 Subaru Forester for a 2013 Venetian Red Pearl Subaru Tribeca.  I had wanted to trade up for several years and Timbo always talked me out of it because our Forester was still so new.  I decided to take the plunge while I was in a position where I could.  I've been told this car will last easily ten years.

Well, that's it for now.  Sorry for the short and infrequent posts.  I'll get in the groove eventually.
 

Hello again

Just popping in to say hello.  This will be another short post with mostly pictures. My package to Peri arrived so I can show you the watercolor I did of her house in California.

I took this before it was framed, and the final version may have been tweaked just a bit.  She likes it and that's what is important.

I also sent her some crocheted slippers that I designed myself.  If by design I mean cut out a piece of paper to fit my own foot and just sort of went crazy from there...

How in the world can you call this pointed thing a slipper...

By folding and sewing the pointy ends together to form the top of the bootie and sewing the straight end together to form the heel I got this...

I thought she would get a kick out of the pointed toes.  When I tried them on my own foot (hey, we're sisters, she didn't care) they wouldn't stay on, so I created a tie to secure them around her foot.  Mission accomplished, ta da!

Each evening when we talk on the phone, we always discuss what we will be cooking for dinner.  This is something our family has done for years (not quite like Hee Haw's "Hey Grampa, what's for supper" but close).  Then one of us usually says, that sounds great I'll try that soon. Monday night I actually had ingredients on hand to make my version of her dinner.

She used beef and green peppers and onions, while I used chicken, celery and onions for what we are calling CA-VA fajitas.  She lives in California and I live in Virginia and since we tone down our spices a bit, (due to the sometimes delicate constitutions that we Southern Belles have developed) we didn't want to call it Tex-Mex.  Anyhoo, here is my version of fajitas made on flat bread instead of tortillas.

Pintos and cheese along with some seasoned up brown rice and it was a pretty good meal.

I also made what I'm calling a Frontier cake.  It didn't rise much for a variety of reasons, but it tasted delicious.  I topped it with a browned butter glaze and that did the trick.

I forgot to take into account the dark pan I was using and didn't adjust the time, so it stuck to the pan and I had to cut it into quarters and remove it with a spatula.  It had a very rustic, Little House on the Prairie look and taste and it was fun to make.  It was a different technique for me and if you are interested, let me know and I'll e-mail you the recipe.

Well, that's almost it for me today.  I'll leave you with a crazy shot of me wearing my new sparkly velour hoodie that one of my friends likened to a planetarium.  I'm all about the glitz.  Always have been shiny and flashy.

One last thing, this was going to be the year for Timbo and me to do things and buy things that we had been hesitating to do.  As you may remember, I decided to continue on in this vein, even though we won't be sharing these things together.  I bought a new couch, and am gradually getting a few items of clothing and jewelry. This week, I made a big purchase and I'll show you pictures next week.  He would be proud of me for handling things the way I am.

I'll never stop thanking all my friends and especially my sisters for helping me adjust to this new life. Whether it's sending me cards or e-mails, calling me on the phone, or offering up your prayers, I just want you to know I love you all.

What's up with me...

Hey guys, just a quick post to let you know I'm doing OK.  I have been doing art and crochet and have two things to show you, but I can't until Sister Peri receives them as gifts.

In the mean time, I will post a quick picture of the gift I bought myself.  Timbo and I never went overboard on Valentines Day.  Back when we first met, we were not financially able to do a lot, but when ever he could afford it he got me jewelry.  As the years went by, the jewelery got nicer and nicer.  Just for fun, I stopped by a local jewelers yesterday and decided to buy myself a Valentines Day gift.  I can hear him now saying "we can spend more than that, get whatever you want".  Well, I might get something more expensive later, but for now here are the earrings and pendant that I got.

The stones are pink tourmaline, peridot and topaz, set in gold on sterling silver.  There is a matching bracelet that I may get, but for now I was hesitant to spend too much.  These came to about $165.00, so it's baby steps for me. 

Since I've made jewelry for years, I tend to pick something that I probably wouldn't make and I like these pieces just fine.  I may change the chain on the pendant to something more substantial, but we'll see.

So that's it for me until Peri gets her goodie boxes.

Remember to hug the folks you love (OFTEN) and tell them how much they mean to you and you should have no regrets if something suddenly changes in your life.  It's important...believe me.

Self portraits

I've been thinking of doing a series of self portraits this year.  Don't know if they will all be photographs, or if some may end up as paintings. Who knows.  Anyway, here is just a basic one taken while holding the camera in my hand.

My hubby used to be so concerned about making sure every photo of him was flattering.  Me, not so much.  I've earned this silver hair and these crows feet and neck creases. Seriously, how many of you retouch photos of yourself before posting them?  I've decided not to.  What you see is what you get.

Happy Monday.

(Just noticed that this is my 500th post on blogger.  Do I get some kind of award?)