Coldest Day of the Year

...so they tell us. That'd be good as another day like this wouldn't be much fun. The furnace has run all day long and still I can feel the chill about my feet.

It looked like this with the wind howling and blowing up puffs of snow. All pictures look as if patches of fog are drifting across the landscape, but it's really a fine snow powder.

We had company for lunch — my mother and sister. It was too bad that they chose this day to get out and about. My mother looked so small and cold when she came in that I wanted to gather her in like a child and wrap her in a cozy blanket. Instead, I served her tea right away and had her sit nearest the heat.

This afternoon while taking care of emails, the view beyond my window was this...



Inside it was this...



my nan's bed. I seriously considered asking her if I could climb in there and take a nap. She didn't need it...

Grandson and His Pirate Snowman

Huh?
(or)
A Hat on Backwards works just as well, if you don't mind not being able to see

Could It Be Any Easier?

No, I think not.

And it's delicious, too.

You can take my word for it.

What you ask?

This

We had it for supper last night. Three thumbs up.

And what's easier than a skillet cake? I've mentioned the recipe that I found at Cherry Hill Cottage. This time I substituted a cup of walnuts for the fruit and used chocolate cake mix. It's quite good. And easy. And easy is what I'm looking for these days.





This is one of those cakes that gets even better with time. A generous dollop of whipped cream or some ice cream doesn't hurt either. Hope that you'll give it a try.

Have a great Wednesday!

Being Present Through January's Final Week

It occurs to me that I should apologize for the quality of the photos here lately. It's either the camera, the photographer or the dreary days...




Dreary days require some warmth so I've been glad that I left some Christmas color around this January. I'm still celebrating winter though celebrating is much too strong a word; it's really more that I'm not anticipating spring yet. There's still this last week of January to live and I want to be like Teresa @ Plumwater Cottage who is working on being present.



The little snowman above is the direct result of visiting Dawn at The Feathered Nest and a blogger named Kerry whom she featured. *You must see Kerry's bottle,* if you've not already...such a good idea! I need to make a little quote for my snowman.

Last, I'm still playing with the centerpiece. This is where it is so far. Hope that it's done now, but I never know.

Oh good heavens! I now see that I am a total sham. Look at those roses! Nothing very January about those now is there?!

Have a great Tuesday, Dear Ones...

Up to Somethin'

Been thinking about this trouble spot since I visited Margo's Junkin' Journal a few days ago. The solution had been brewing and I knew that I had just the thing...just exactly "the thing," but where was it?




Not there...


Not there...


Not there...

Not there!




Bravely, I struck off after it...

twice! (This was a reenactment for blogging purposes don'tcha know.)



Much better! What's that? Yes, I was in my nightie. Doesn't every gal scamper about her backyard in January this way?

Yes! This will work...


if I don't get carried away with the cleaning


and leave just the right amount of dirt and mold. Gotta love those nice chippy cracks, too.

Determined to achieve my goal of creating a new centerpiece similar to Margo's, I decided not to even sneak a peek at the original.

Still no peeks, obviously... :-/

Had to peek

Calling it quits for today, though I'm going to try again soon. Stay tuned for further developments.

In the meantime, check out *Margo's Junkin' Journal Giveaway*

A Project Story Mosaic

Playing along with Mary at Little Red House...

Have been experimenting with repeating pictures in mosaics. Perhaps I'm getting ready to move on to my next kick — quilt making.

Comments are off so that you may enjoy visiting without pressure. My next post will tell the rest of this story: plenty of pictures minus the mosaic.

Enjoy your day and thank you for your visit!

God Leads

In shady, green pastures, so rich and so sweet,
God leads His dear children along;
Where the water’s cool flow bathes the weary one’s feet,
God leads His dear children along.

Chorus:
Some through the waters, some through the flood,
Some through the fire, but all through the blood;
Some through great sorrow, but God gives a song,
In the night season and all the day long.

Sometimes on the mount where the sun shines so bright,
God leads His dear children along;
Sometimes in the valley, in darkest of night,
God leads His dear children along.

Though sorrows befall us and evils oppose,
God leads His dear children along;
Through grace we can conquer, defeat all our foes,
God leads His dear children along.

Away from the mire, and away from the clay,
God leads His dear children along;
Away up in glory, eternity’s day,
God leads His dear children along.
~George A. Young

I've always liked this song and most especially the chorus. It reminds me that there is no parity with God and what is one person's story will not be another's.

We lost two family friends unexpectedly this week. One was a woman my mother's age who had never missed a day of work, until that last day. She was always asking John how my mother was doing and telling him to let us know that she was praying. The other was a gentleman who had befriended both my mother and grandmother and who often sent them beautiful roses. He had been ill, but no one expected him to fall in the night, hit his head, and go home to Glory just like that. As John prayed that first morning,"Thank you, Lord, that I could call her my friend." And again just Friday morning, "Thank you, Lord..."

We'll see them both again one day and that is great comfort. Even Death will not have his way.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ~Romans 8:37

And in the meantime, we'll trust God knowing that He has our lives and times in His hands. He will do the leading and the deciding. It's only up to us to follow.

Photo Source