A Gift of Norman

Someone is curious about items that were

delivered to my door today: gifts from my daughter

and son-in-law. I noted a theme as I carefully

unpacked the special delivery. 

Characters from the soon to be released movie 

ParaNorman adorn a tin box w/mints, a shiny black

 mug, a refrigerator magnet, and a lined journal. 

Unrelated items consisted of a lovely canvas tote,

a hand-embroidered kitchen towel, a special Kaweco

 writing pen w/ink cartridges, Fruition Chocolate Jalapeno

Dusted Corn Nuts (yum!), and a small handmade leather pouch

embellished with my name. A special delivery indeed! 

Cornucopia—Filled

They said it was my birthday. . . 

The celebration included pinks, whites, and

 greens; and various forms of chocolate brown.

Did someone say Chocolate?

Machu Picchu

Rica Organica

Lemongrass w/Ginger

Happy mouth!

The weekend also included lunch with Mom and my

sisters; and a seaside dinner with other family members. The

Macadamia Nut Encrusted Grouper and chocolate cake—and

the great company—activated you know what: Happy Mouth! 

A bookstore find after dinner. I'm eyeing the 

cute Cable-Edged Vest (bolero) on page 77.

Another gift: Time to reflect upon the

special people who make my life what it is.

Thursdays

Thursdays. They seldom go as planned.

I say to myself, "Thursday, what a

magnificent day to shop (unlike Friday)." 

There will be three less people in the checkout lane.

And my dollar will buy 10% more in the

natural and organic department.

Plus parking will be a breeze—

no circling around the parking lot.

Yes, today would be an outstanding day to shop.

But my feet are instead resting upon the

coffee table and I have a mug of java in my hand.

The patio door is wide open and I'm listening to

a symphony of sounds: caws, chatters, tweets,

gobbles, coos, and twit-twitters.

And now I say,

"Tuesday. What a magnificent day to shop."

Mom Times Four

Mothers and daughters. Four generations are 

represented in this Mother's Day photo.

 I hung out with my mother, daughter, granddaughter, 

and a few other family members on Mother's Day; and my

daughter again today. I accompanied her to a doctor's visit.

This colorful bovine sets in the clinic's waiting room.

It was part of the Cow Parade Wisconsin, a 2006 fundraiser 

held in Madison. The life-size decorative cows were placed around

the State Capitol building and at various other locations. The cows

were auctioned off afterwards, raising more than $550,000.

During time spent with my daughter today, we drank

coffee and shared quiche and a cream cheese danish. She

also shared some interesting iPhone photos and videos; and an

amusing bit about the neighbors that live directly behind her.

The neighbor's names are Laverne and Shirley. . . really.

Lorene Eleanor

Thursday night was spent with a very special lady who was just 16 years old in the framed photograph shown here. The book beside it is one that a sister and I co-authored a couple years ago; with Mom's help of course. It is about the life of a child who grew up during the Depression and whos mother fought to keep her family clothed and fed.

This is Lorene Eleanor, the girl in the framed photo. She is my mother. (Well, I actually share her with five siblings.) Lorene's mother, Lou Vina Mae, named her after Eleanor Roosevelt. Mom will be 82 years young in a little over a month.

Thursday night with Mom was an early start to this weekend's Mother's Day celebration. She loved the hydrangeas that I picked up on my way there. The beautiful purple butterfly is a gift from other adoring family members. It accented the arrangement perfectly.

Whenever I visit with Mom, Scrabble is part of our routine; one that we both thoroughly enjoy. This time was no different. We played two games, one on Thursday and another on Friday. The board shown here is from Friday's game.

As you see the X, Z, and Q were played early in the game. Guess who played these high-scoring letters. . . and guess who completely diverted my attention from one area of the board to another so she could play her Z. . . and guess who just had to tell me that she did it intentionally. . . and guess who won this game as well the one played on Thursday.

It was the cat that ate the canary, that's who.

I love this little canary cat with all my heart. Happy Mother's Day, Mom.

Sign of the Bull

The Zodiac is not something I spend much time thinking about but I will be celebrating a birthday in a couple weeks and that makes me a Taurus, the sign of the bull. Although I heard that the Zodiac calendar of today does not coincide with one from centuries ago, I do note certain bull-like traits within myself. The most dominate is a strong will. I simply don't give up on people or things very easily.

This pewter necklace is one that I acquired when I was still a teen. The chain, which is lighter weight than it appears to be, is 32" long and the pendant is 2 1/2" high and 1 1/2" wide. It has somehow survived four children and numerous moves over the years. It feels quite substantial when held. Maybe that why it still has a place in my jewelry box.

I don't know whether or not my horoscope in a recent magazine holds any truth but I still like what it says:

"Communicator Mercury tours Taurus for three weeks, giving you the green light to plug your ideas and talents."

"You're poised to earn your living doing something you love."

I especially like this excerpt: "when you're on the right path, results will come easily"

The Sky

I'm a sky watcher and

I take a lot of sky photos.

And I now know why.

It keeps my chin up.

Something's In The Air

It's Supermoon! Look for one tomorrow night. Although the sound of the narrator's voice in this video takes me back a few years (about 50 in fact), it is quite interesting. Makes me want to climb to the highest mountain hill and howl my sandals off. . .



The photo below shows the super moon from March 2011.

And here is a shot from last August (not a super moon). Don't be alarmed

by the sleeping giant lying beneath it. He does us no harm.

The Eye of the Fish

Lovely Spring.

FYI: I'm not really referring to myself as a

fish in the title of this post.

The Eye of the Fish was just a way to grab attention.

This post is actually about plants, weeds, and other things

that caught my attention in the yard today

"Fish-eye" is the setting on my camera that I used to

photograph the bottom four photos including the next one. 

Sometimes too close isn't all that appetizing.

Even a closeup of this tree makes my belly button hurt.

A little addition to tonight's salad.

Don't tell my husband.