Merry Christmas!

Christmas Scarves

Queen Anne's Lace Scarf

Spring Flowers Scarf

Goals and Motivation

I've been thinking about this today. I saw it on Facebook, posted by The Gracious Pantry. Earlier this year my hubby and I each lost close to 35 pounds. We did it by eating healthy foods, exercising and tracking both on My Fitness Pal.

In July we achieved a long-time goal of buying a mountain lot for a weekend retreat. Our focus turned from our health and weight loss goals to working on our lot. The purpose of the lot was for fun and leisure, but first we had to develop the lot to make it inhabitable. Our idea was to park our RV there for the summer, but we had to do things like remove weeds and overgrowth, dig a firepit, line the drive and walkways with rocks, lay gravel to keep the weeds down, and various other fun things.  I will post more about our awesome summer another time.

Even though we were doing all of that work, we've both gained back about 10 of those pounds we worked so hard to lose.  Right now I'm feeling like it's a struggle, but earlier in the year when I was doing it, it seemed so easy.  I know it's a mindset - so I've decided it's time to get my mind set again!

Sunburst Covered Stone

I'm still covering stones and enjoying it.  I used this pattern for inspiration.

Mountain Hummingbirds

This was taken on Saturday on our mountain lot.  I think these poor little creatures are destined for a journey south very soon.

My First Covered Stone

I've been inspired for ages by the likes of Resurrection Fern and more recently by Barbara from Made in K-town and the beautiful covered stones they make, which are pure art.  The stones have no real function, other than to look beautiful, and I find that inspiring.

I finally put aside my usual projects with deadlines and made a covered stone entirely for the joy involved and for no other reason.  It's my first one and so I will keep it for me.  I've already started work on another one that I will give away.

I've been experimenting with free actions from the Pioneer Woman.  This is boost and quick edge burn.  Almost all of the photos on this blog are SOOC (straight out of the camera), but I'm afraid I might be becoming somewhat addicted to these actions in Photoshop.

Another Little Star in progress

I love these colors together!

Squares, squares and more squares!

A Mid-West Sunset

On our way home somewhere in the middle of Kansas.

On the road again!

On our way to visit our new little grandson who is already four months old!

Finally finished!

The CD case is for size perspective.

My Little Star

I have about 16 more rounds until I'm done. It's for a very special birthday girl, who is definitely a star herself!

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Wonders of Spring

I'm so happy to see my friends, the Hummingbird family, back again.

Baby Crochet

I had so much fun making these cute baby things for my new grandson. I normally make blankets and other things that take forever, so these were a refreshing change.

Rain and Serendipity in Washington DC

This is one of my favorite shots from our trip to DC last week.

Spring in Utah

I've been making baby things...

Snowflakes and Words

I don't have a blogroll, but I do have my favorites and I am slightly addicted to reading blogs. I recently found a blog that I love; it's called Snowcatcher.

About 15 years ago, I crocheted snowflakes as ornaments for my Christmas tree. My mom, having stiffened many a doily, helped me stiffen them. I hung them on the tree with red ribbon and they have decorated my Christmas tree every year since. They are definitely some of my most favorite ornaments.

There are beautiful, free patterns at Snowcatcher. I intend to make some this year. Having been inspired by this photo from Snowcatcher, I am thinking of something a little more creative than just ornaments on the tree.

Snowcatcher also led me to Wordle, where I created this from all of the words on this blog:

Have an awesome Friday!

Heaven Rains Down

A Saturday Excursion

We drove up into the mountains to a nearby reservoir today.  It was so beautiful.

We stopped to let our puppies run around and they spooked out a whole herd of young deer.

I was so lucky to get this shot.

Full Moon in the Morning

I caught this walking into work this morning.

Reflections of 2010

January - I accepted a new position at work that involved more responsibility. In fact, when I think of spring 2010, work is the primary topic that comes to mind. Thankfully, some major achievements during the year have left the situation feeling more routine and less overwhelming.

February - The most major event that occurred this month is that I finally received my Nook! My kids went in together and bought it for me for Christmas, but I was on a wait list until February. This gadget is now well-used and has changed my life and my reading habits. I'm so happy and thankful to be able to download a book at a moment's notice.

January and February were difficult in terms of finances as our rental property remained vacant. Thankfully at the end of February we found an excellent tenant who we hope will stay after his lease expires this February.

March - I'm mostly blank about March, except that my niece got married and we successfully filed our taxes.

April - Also an unnoteworthy month. I can't think of one thing that happened during April, except that it was spring and I was busy admiring and photographing my garden.

May - We un-winterized our RV and drove east for Memorial Day Weekend, ending up camping near Vernal at Steinaker Reservoir. It was a good first camping trip. We enjoyed the inside of our RV while waiting out a dust storm, we fished, we toured and we ate good food with friends.

June - I traveled to a small town near Baltimore, MD to meet with a new contractor for work. The week after that my husband's family all met in Las Vegas to celebrate his 50th birthday and my mother-in-law's 70th birthday. It was definitely a memorable trip and we were happy to meet two new little nieces and one great-nephew.

One very notable thing that happened in June was that I was able to purchase a Canon T2i DSLR camera because of a cash award I received from work. I am absolutely in love with this camera. Possibly one of the biggest realizations I've had this year is that there is so much more that I need to learn about photography!

July - We hooked up our RV and traveled to Island Park, Idaho to camp at Buttermilk Campground for the 4th of July. My parents accompanied us and we had a wonderful time watching fireworks from the dock over Island Park Reservoir.  We fished at Henry's Lake. This was the first time I really used my new Canon camera and I was very happy with the results.

We also began looking at purchasing membership into the Sourdough Wilderness Ranch. While the combination of our finances and lack of finding the perfect lot did not allow us to buy in this year, it is at the top of our goal list for 2011. My parents did, however, find their perfect lot!

August - We again hooked up our RV and spent a long weekend at Mirror Lake. While we had a great time with family, this trip convinced us even more that we need a private camping area. At times we felt like we were camping in a parking lot. :) I did get some great photos on this trip.

In addition, I got two visits from my daughter who lives in California; one because she missed me and one because it was her 10-year high school reunion. I treasured my time with her very much. I also traveled back to the Baltimore area for work near the end of August.

September - We spent Labor Day weekend camping with my folks on their lot at Sourdough. It gave us a feel for what it will be like to have our own private lot.

I also officially created a room in my house dedicated to sewing and crafting! One other notable thing that happened this month is that I connected with my best friend from junior high through Facebook. I lost touch with her years ago and I am so happy to have found her again.

October - This month brought one of our longest and most enjoyable trips with the RV to date. We took three weeks and made a big circle, beginning with a drive south, spending the night in Las Vegas, then heading on to Malibu to spend time with the LA kids. After a few days, we headed to Three Rivers and then onto visit The Old Corner Saloon in Copperopolis. There we met up with some good friends and headed northwest to the wine country and the Redwoods. We continued north to end up camping for several days at Beachside, Oregon. From there we drove home happy and satisfied and ready to live in a 3000 foot home vice a 23 foot RV again.

November - My mother-in-law came to visit for a long Thanksgiving weekend. We had such a good time with her, including a midnight run on Black Friday to procure a special birthday present for my step-daughter. My mother-in-law is one of the sweetest people I know and I love her very much. Just as her visit came to an end, I got very sick and lost my voice for more than a week. It wasn't a good way to begin the holidays, but by mid-December I finally felt back to normal.

December - This is the easiest month to reflect upon since it just ended. We had a wonderful, if not unusual Christmas. It is the first time in the history of the world that none of my kids were home to celebrate for one reason or another. I made my peace with their situations and decisions and spent a lovely time with just my sweetie and the puppies. I was happy about some of the projects I was able to complete for gifts. Now I'm hoping to surpass my expectations for 2011 holiday giving.

If I do better in 2011 at posting here, I shouldn't have to recap like this next year. Reflections on resolutions are forthcoming.