Gibbs Lake Road

I put new batteries in the moon lights in my kitchen window in Lexington which should take me through the rest of the winter...or at least until I'm sick of it. These sweet little lights come on automatically at 4:00 and go off at 10 and I adore them.  We are certainly in the throws of winter....so the snow people are quite happy....and I added the little Valentine heart ornament Becky just gave me.  

A few weeks ago I wrote about a project I did where I described how comforting it was when my mom waited up for me after my late night waitressing job. Paul and I drove down Gibbs Lake Road when we were in Wisconsin....and I snapped a picture at that point over the hill where you could see the farm...and the light in the dining room. You can read about it here in this post: Where Mom Was.

Cake Light

As I settle back into regular life....I'm still traveling down memory lane.  That's what happens after a family visit....and it's better than writing about laundry and house chores.  

On Christmas Eve I shared memories of going to my grandmother's house and mentioned her light fixture that looked like an upside down cake.  I had forgotten that my sister LaVonn has that fixture in her dining room now...seeing it took me right back to my grandmother's house all over again.


My brother Doug gave me this picture of the three brothers sitting in the dining room at grandma's house Christmas Eve, 1964. I can still picture the festive holiday table settings my grandmother put together and that floral wallpaper. 

And those pillows....they just ooze grandma!

Edwin, Richard and Doug

My sister Marilyn had this fun picture....my Aunt Helen on the left...my mom, and my grandmother all holding baby kittens at her house.  They look exactly how I picture them when I think of them these days.

Twenty-Something

I'm home!  It was good to spend time with family and friends....to gather, share stories and celebrate our history. But it's always good to be home.

Ben and his new wife Sarah.

While I was at my sister LaVonn's I saw one of the most impressive pieces of art I've seen in a long time.  My twenty-something nephew Ben was a Pokemon fan as a kid....and probably still is as an adult. When he was a sophomore in college he happened upon an on-line pattern for a Pokemon cross stitch and thought..."how hard can it be?"  So he took it on.

Ben graduated from college a year or so ago and just recently finished his masterpiece.  From a distance it looks like a vibrant piece of abstract art....up close you can't help but smile at the colorful and quirky characters.

This isn't even the whole thing.

The details are incredible! His million + stitches are just perfect and I think he said the pattern called for around 120 different colors of DMC floss.  

And....being a good mom my sister promised to frame it when he finished. Well....she was a bit surprised that he actually did finish...but she'll follow through and get it to the framers.

I was blown away with it and really wanted to sneak it in my suitcase.  I can't wait to see it framed!

Good job Ben!

Frozen Midwest

Here are a few more photos from the frozen midwest.  

Becky and her husband put their Christmas tree out on their deck to enjoy the rest of the winter.  It was just lovely this evening under a layer of fresh new snow.

I am getting out of Madison just in time... starting tomorrow temperatures are going to plummet and by Wednesday wind chills could reach 50 below.

Here are a few lovely photos of a lovely sunrise from my sister LaVonn's front porch a few days ago.

And finally.....my siblings.  Once there were nine...now there are six.

MaryAnn, Angie, Nancy, Marilyn, Doug, and LaVonn

We miss you Rich, Becky and Ed.

The nine of us plus cousin Cindy.  

Tea and Goodies

Another bonus of this unexpected trip to Wisconsin was getting to spend a few hours today with my goddaughter Emily and her boyfriend Keegan.  Her mom and I were treated to homemade goodies, tea,  and wonderful conversation.  And tomorrow I'll get a whole day with her mom (Becky) before I fly home on Tuesday.  Connecting with people I love = Joy.

The Bike

This is one of my favorite photographs.....my oldest brother Ed sitting tall on the bike with my three older sisters looking on.  We're guessing  Ed was around eight or nine years old...which means I wasn't born....but maybe on the way. I remember this bike....it was red....and hung around the farm for a long time.

We had a wonderful family gathering today with lots of story telling, memory sharing, and laughter. 

Odd Little Group

"The more you praise and celebrate life, the more there is in life to celebrate."   found at iHeart123 Quotes

So...did anybody else get an odd little group of tiny animals in their stocking? I did.

They've joined these happy little snow people on the window sill in Portland. Don't the snow people look like they're dancing and celebrating!

Paul and I are safely in Wisconsin. I started a draft of this post before I left home so I would have a something to share after a travel day.  Now that I'm reading it late this evening I'm thinking that all families are wonderful odd little groups...and I love mine dearly.  It will be good to gather with my family as we celebrate the life of my brother Ed.

2000

I love it when people share their joy with me.  I got an e-mail from my friend Linda after my post about my 2000 piece puzzle where she shared her recent masterpiece...and I have her permission to share it with you.

Even thought Linda said she would never do one this big again....she loved every minute of it. At the beginning she had 19 box lids filled with the 2000 sorted pieces and she had to complete it in two chunks because it wouldn't fit on her card table.

The image of colorful art supplies is so much fun!  Thanks for sharing Linda...I love everything about this!

Peace Wall

I stopped by Margie's this afternoon for a visit and she was working on a puzzle too...I'm not the only one!  And this is her 4th or 5th this month!  January IS the month of puzzles!

As I sat there visiting with her I was quite taken with the view from my chair. Margie was all cozy under her blanket with the puzzle ready to go in front of her and the room was warm and inviting. A few weeks ago we hung things in her living room and kitchen area that were meaningful to her....things that shows who she is and what she values.  Around her bookcase (which we still are going to style a bit more)  is her "Peace Wall" that we put together for her last home.

It includes Gandhi's Seven Deadly Social Sins, Martin Luther King Jr's What is your Life's Blueprint?, a Lion and the Lamb Pewter Peace tray, and my favorite poster proclaiming "It will be a great day when our schools get all the money they need and the air force has to hold a bake sale to buy a bomber!" I think the blue and gray tones work well in the room and flow nicely into the kitchen where her favorite "gratitude" painting hangs along with some international treasures.  It works!

 Janet...if you're reading this you can see your kitchen cart has a perfect new home.

We are auditioning some other things in a few places including some of my art show leftovers and we'll start hanging things in the bedroom in the next couple of weeks. This apartment is starting to feel like a home....especially with a peace wall and a puzzle going on the coffee table.

Solace

It's enough to pay attention to the little things. The steam rising off that first cup of coffee. Sunlight coming through the window. There's no right answer for what's going to make you happy. There are only these little things that add up to how you spend your days & it can take a long time so see it's as simple as that. " Brian Andreas, Story People

I am reunited with my computer....and for better or worse that means I back on the blog. It's been ridiculously cold here in New England so between that and the reality of my brother's death I've given myself permission to lay low....letting myself off the hook for not accomplishing much of anything.

January seems to be the month of puzzles....and I apologize for being so boring.  But right now puzzles are my distraction...my entertainment...and now my solace.

So guess what I did with parts of the last several days in cold snowy Lexington?.....I started a crazy 2000 piece puzzle given to me by the same friend who gave me the book puzzle.

I cleared off our large dining room table leaving just enough room for two placemats at the end so there would still be room to eat dinner. I spent the first day laying out all the pieces chunking them by color.  This took a while....but I was listening to a book on tape....so all was well. This is the first time I've had all the pieces of a large puzzle on one surface....kind of fun....but also a little daunting.  

On day two I started collecting patterns and putting together chunks of solid colors....I was off and running but I could see it was going to be slow going.

Day three I kept building on those parts....it seemed to be going pretty well.  This is a pretty big chunk done...but when you look at the picture...it's a tiny part.

This is where I left it this morning....just three or four pieces in during breakfast.  I'm back in Maine for a few days now....then Paul and I fly out Friday for the funeral in Wisconsin.  So it will sit....my puzzles are good at sitting. This will most certainly be a long term project...but I'm going to stick with it hopefully getting it done by spring.  If anyone wants to come work with me and have a cup of tea...they are most certainly welcome.

Preoccupied Pause

I’m in Lexington...my computer is in Portland...and I’m a little preoccupied. It’s time to pause for a few days. Have a good weekend and I’ll be back soon.

Getting Ready

I was hoping to paint again today...but I have a hard time being creative when I'm getting ready for something. My mind is scattered and I feel a little restless....I need to work on that.

Today was about getting ready for a trip to Wisconsin for my brothers funeral next weekend.  Plans needed to be made, tickets needed to be booked, and overthinking needed to happen.  Well...overthinking never needs to happen....but until I develop better skills that just what I do.

We also hosted guests for dinner...so I got ready for that too.....cleaning, prepping, cooking....all the things you do for guests.  It was delightful.

And I finished the stamp puzzle....a calm color journey.  Thank goodness for puzzles to fill in the gaps while I'm getting ready for things.

You can see that Paul and I are having trouble letting go of our Christmas tree.  All the ornaments are off except for the snowflakes but we're still enjoying the lights. So it's going to stay for a while and I'm renaming it our winter tree. And...winter's coming....we're "getting ready" for a big snow storm here in the north east!

Life is Short

"Life is very short, so break your silly egos, forgive quickly, believe slowly, love truly, laugh loudly, and never avoid anything that makes you smile." author unknown

My niece Kay posted this quote on Facebook today...a good reminder of what's really important. Today, her dad, my oldest brother Edwin, passed away at just 69.  May he rest in peace.

I spent some time today going through the posts on Ed's Facebook page...an interesting mix of things that filled his days with delight and just helped pass the time.

There were lots of videos of recipes, comics and images that made you chuckle, cute kids and animals, and beautiful images from nature.

He also posted lots of lists like this....good reminders for us all. Thanks Ed!

"Someone once gave me a box full of darkness.  It took me years to understand that this too, was a gift."  Mary Oliver, may she also rest in peace.

Imitation

"You should do what you said you were going to do that one time before you got all tired and then got super busy and pretty much forgot...you really should."  author unknown....but very wise.

They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery. Inspired by these sweet motifs by Susan Black I spent some time watercoloring today.  I follow Susan on instagram have her large calendar hanging in my kitchen in Lexington and last year I had her smaller desktop calendar.  I think her work is delightful.

Susan has been working on a "100 day art project" ....she's almost there.

I think I liked it the best at this stage....before I overworked.  

I experimented with several things....too many things....watercolor, white pen, black pen, silver pen. I'm going to try another one and practice restraint!  But I had fun...learned some lessons....and I painted!!!

The best part was sitting  here watching the afternoon fade into dusk....my favorite time of day.

MA in MA

You knew it was coming....the book puzzle is done! I have to celebrate the small stuff.....especially on a transition day.  I'm back in Portland again for a stretch and hope to get to something creative in the next few days. But then again....I have that awesome stamp puzzle going up here.

 This was pretty challenging....but I really enjoyed it.

I didn't know this was coming....a sparkly green package from Emily, my goddaughter.  She addressed it to MA in MA and the gift is from MI and maybe I'll do it in ME just for fun.  

Emily works for the state of Minnesota so I will think of her as I take on this colorful collage puzzle...always good to have another one in the wings.  She included a thoughtful letter about all the wonderful things going on in her life complete with color pictures.  She's pretty special!  Thanks Emily!!!

Little and Big

A few days ago Jane stopped by the condo and gave me a couple of Andy's funky little reindeer I admired at their house. Jane and Andy used to live near Town Landing Market...so it makes sense that they've found their new home beneath the Town Landing print.

And just today Anita and I visited a friend in Lexington and this big brother reindeer was on the front porch.  I thought the Rudolf nose just perfect!

                               
I sat worked on the book puzzle for a few minutes here and there all day. My last "ten minutes" of the day turned into a couple of hours so I'm down to just a few pieces.  I was starting to get a little blurry eyed but I have the last pieces sorted by shape so they will just fall into place with my morning coffee.

I do like to savor those last pieces.  This one has been a fun challenge and just perfect for these cold winter days.