The other day I showed you an image of crocus that is managing to grow at the edge of garden cloth that we put down last Fall to kill the weeds. In the same space as all of the weeds there are just a few flowers left over from 30 or more years ago.
Well, those wonderful old tulips just won't give up!
After they have bloomed, I plan to rescue both the tulip and crocus bulbs and find new homes for them next year.
Happy Gardening!
Lois
I'm trying to get more iron and protein in my diet so made a really delicious dinner that accomplished that goal. This one is a double serving of baked cod and a large salad. I had a small spoonful of mac and cheese on the side. My Honey had requested the mac and cheese. It looked so good I had to have a little of it.
Thanks go to daughter Catherine who is keeping me in fresh salads. Our Kroger stores have single serving salads that are just wonderful. They probably work out to be less expensive in the long run than buying all of the ingredients and making them myself. The trick is getting a few of them every three days or so to be sure they are fresh.
Healthy eating!
Lois
Our Elsa (left) had a client meeting at the office this week with Miss Golden. I love how they are both smiling for the camera.
Catherine's CPA firm is paws-itively pup friendly!
;),
Lois
Flowers and more rich cream flowers! When there are 80 of them, they'll all go together with an even deeper shade of green to produce a lovely Green Lovers Large Afghan Blanket.
What are you making, baking, growing this week?
All the best,
Lois
Since our neighbor cut down trees that provided shade to most of our driveway, we have had problems with way too much weed growth along the side of our home.
Since we don't use herbicides for a variety of reasons, last Fall we had garden cloth put down to cover the areas where we don't want the weeds to grow. In that area there were just a few die-hard crocus and these beauties have managed to push their way to the sun at the edge of the garden cloth.
I'll try to rescue the bulbs after they have finished blooming this year and find a new home for them.
How does your garden grow at this time of the year?
Lois
The King Alfred Daffodils have begun to bloom. I love how they respond to the first warm days at the end of winter. We could still have snow, but these lovelies don't seem to mind.
Happy Almost Spring!
Lois
See our little possum friend? She was scared around to the front of the yard when Elsa saw her in the driveway from the back fence and barked. I went to investigate when the motion light on one side of the front porch came on. I managed to get this picture through a clear section of our leaded glass front door.
Some people are afraid of possums, but they get a bad rap. They are great for your garden. They truly don't want to be bothered as they eat slugs that chow down on your flowers and ticks that could bother your pets. Fortunately, we haven't had problems with either, and are glad to see the possums (Opossum is also correct) in the yard.
While I was taking that first image through the front door, Kjell was capturing the video above on one of our security cameras using his phone to remotely operate the movement.
And, I downloaded this from another security camera. Look carefully at the bottom of the window on the left to see our two girls watching the critter on their front porch. As soon as they barked, the possum waddled away.
It's amazing how many wild critters we have nearby considering we live in the city.
Fun stuff!
Lois
The Snowdrops have put in their appearance again this year. They blossom early every Spring near the gold fish pond.
So sweet!
Lois
We've had high winds and lots of rain lately, but when the sun comes out, so do the pups to play.
Wendy is up to her old tricks again this year. Even though the chair was still wet from the rain and had small sticks from the trees blown from the high winds, she climbed into a patio chair. She sits there for a few minutes regally observing her property, then decides she wants to get down.
The only problem with "getting down" is that the chair sometimes kicks up as she is jumping down. It happened when she was a pup so always requires help from her human to hold that chair. If I'm in the house, I hear a relaxed, calm, "bark....bark....bark...." It's not a frantic bark, just a "Come get me, Mom," bark.
I laugh every time, but I obey her commands. I am a very well trained human.
;),
Lois
These images are of Kjell's current Work in Process. He has built his own tool to create beautiful edges on his boxes.
It is made at perfect right angles so that he can add the inset of contrasting wood.
The intarsia inset images will be eagles and Old Glory.
This will be gorgeous! It will be in the shop when finished.
Take a look here to see Kjell's other wood creations.
All the best,
Lois
The crocus I showed you a few days ago were only the beginning! It seems they have gone wild this year!
We are so looking forward to Spring!
:),
Lois
It was fun watching Elsa go through her yoga routine last night while Erik snoozed nearby.
They are such sweet pups.
We like them so much, we think we need another one. Hmmm....
;),
Lois
This is the shawl I've been working on for the past couple of days. I had a similar one in the shop that sold and I'm delighted I have enough yarn to make another one. The colors are so very pretty.
What are you making, baking, growing this week?
All the very best,
Lois
Happy Valentine's Day!
From Elsa and all the rest of us in the Evensen Household
I've been making mostly oat bread lately, but made a little switch this time.
These two loaves are Sour Cream Egg Bread.
This is really good stuff! I only sample it since I'm supposed to limit starches. None of it goes to waste (only to waist) in this house, though.
:),
Lois
I absolutely LOVE the crocus in our garden. They multiply and seem to move around from year to year.
I planted these between 30 and 40 years ago and they never fail to greet me every Spring!
Happy (almost) Spring!
Lois
There is a fun story about these two decanters. They were commissioned by the Swank Mens Jewelry Company in 1957. There were three, but I only bought two, probably because the third one wasn't available at the time. I bought them in the early 1960's and gave the "Scotch" decanter to a now-extended family member. I kept The Jolly Twosome for more than 60 years and for the past 43 years, it has had a home tucked behind the curtain on the window sill in my Butler's Panty. It was never used to hold any type of fluid.
Fast forward to last Christmas. A next generation family member of the person to whom I gave Mr. Scotch, gave me this very fellow gift wrapped for Christmas. I don't think she has ever noticed The Jolly Twosome tucked away on the window sill of my home. I'm confident Mr. Scotch is the same one that has moved around the family for the past 60 years.
I haven't mentioned anything about this, but if she should read my blog, I'm sure we will share a laugh.
It's fun getting older. So many things come full circle.
;),
Lois
Welcome to this month's Needlework and Wood Working Update featuring the items Kjell and I have completed during the past month.
Above is a beautiful jewelry box featuring a cardinal on the lid.
We have many other afghan blankets in an assortment of sizes and colors available to ship now. Click here to take a look.
Thank you for your comments, likes, shares, favorites, pins, and purchases, too! We are proud to have been here providing hand crafted in the USA items since 2011.
All the very best,
Lois
I made two large loaves of Oat Bread that we sliced while it was still warm. It was marvelous with ham and eggs for a "breakfast for dinner."
I'm limiting some starchy foods these days, but oat bread just sounds so healthy, doesn't it! I don't eat it every day, so I'm being pretty good.
;),
Lois
I have been having some back pain so take breaks during the day to stretch out on the bed for a few minutes before going back to whatever I need to do. Shortly after I got there Monday, Elsa arrived, cuddled next to me, and put her paw into my hand.
She just knows when I am in pain and she wants me to know she is there with me. What a sweetheart.
I hope you have experienced the love of a dog as I have.
Lois
I was thrilled to see the daffodils emerging from the ground.
Spring is coming soon!
:),
Lois
Brats, Kraut, and Applesauce. OK, it's not healthy. I did pass on the bread if that counts.
It sure was good on a Sunday afternoon, though.
Happy Monday!
Lois
I made a glazed ham yesterday and it was so very good!
It was so pretty I had to take a picture.
:),
Lois
This is an image from Kjell. He took it while eating his dinner in his recliner while we were watching the news.
Of course he was being "watched" by Elsa just in case he might drop something. Her head is resting on his leg.
Our pups are so helpful.
;),
Lois
We order almost everything on line now so the delivery people from a variety of companies are here often.
When Kjell went outside to pick up the two items delivered by Amazon today, this Milk Bone Dog Cookie was on top of the packages. Now is that sweet, or what!
I'm confident the drivers can see Wendy and our other pups watching them as items are delivered. That's Wendy in the Blog header watching out the front french doors.
Our pups have never come into direct contact with the drivers, but they all surely know the others are there. Maybe the "Wipe Your Paws" front door mat is a clue, too....
I'm so impressed and so are the pups.
Lois
A pretty presentation from a rather easy preparation was the rule of the evening.
That's my baked cod in a corning dish (lemon juice, lemon pepper, dill, topped with mozzarella cheese, surrounded by diced tomatoes), baked in preheated oven at 350 F for 30 minutes.
I served it on a mound of fresh spinach prepared on the cook top (steamed spinach, small amount of bacon added for flavor, garlic, red wine, mushrooms).
Both versions look beautiful and tasted fantastic!
It was definitely a hit! Yum!
Tomorrow it's his turn to make dinner.
:),
Lois
Here comes more snow. Those snow clouds look loaded and ready to unload.
I remember winters when we had no snow at all.
This year is making up for that.
:),
Lois
