the heart of winter

We got walloped by another snowstorm on Sunday. I know...it's "nothing" compared to what the east coast just got. But we're making up for lost time here in Illinois, with January packing over 20" of snow. 

As much as I don't like winter, I have to admit, the fresh snow is pretty.

Even prettier, Mr. Cardinal peeking out of the snowy arborvitaes in our backyard. 

Looking down our street...

Pretty to look at - yes. Fun to shovel - no. Especially when the snow is wet and heavy like it was. I'm just thankful Brian had the day off of work.

The days after snowstorms aren't so pretty. Reality sets in. Cars are covered in road salt, the snow piles on the sides of the road are slushy and black from all the dirt, and even the bird feeders take a beating. I went outside and broke off these icicles for the poor little birdies.

So now it's February which brings Valentine's Day. One of my favorite holidays as it's no-frills, just cheery pops of red and pink in the middle of a dull, cold month. As a side note, this plant in the white pot is the newest to join my household. I found it at Trader Joe's ~ ceramic pot included. I believe it's English Ivy. The plant didn't have an ID tag. 

In Brian's office...

A vintage bowl on the table at the end of the hallway holds some handmade (not by me!) hearts.

Just a few heart touches on and in the china cabinet...

Speaking of china cabinets, in my last post I had talked about looking for a hutch for my kitchen and getting rid of the china cabinet. I explained that this skinny cabinet had sentimental value, as Brian and I bought it when we were first married. A few of you said that maybe I could find somewhere else in my house for it. 

Backtracking a moment, here is the hutch I saw on FB Marketplace that was listed for only $50. While I was thinking about it, it sold right away. 

Back to finding another place in my home where I could put my skinny cabinet...

Our house is small. The only place it could possibly go is the living room. There's no room in any of the small bedrooms. This corner and the wall to the right is currently a work-in-progress anyway. The cheap, ugly IKEA chair you partially see is just temporary. We desperately need a nice armchair for that wall. I've been looking for a deep blue velvet one. They're out there but wow, are they expensive! There are cheap ones, but we don't want a cheap one. We are looking for a quality piece of furniture that's going to last. Our second choice is leather. In the meantime, to fill in this space, I ordered that tall shelving unit from Target. It doesn't do a lot for me. This whole space is just "off". I'm leaving it alone until we find an armchair. Anywho...maybe the skinny hutch would indeed look good in this corner? Only time will tell. First things first: finding a new hutch for the kitchen and an armchair for the living room.

In the happy news department, Tim is flying in from California on Thursday for a quick visit. We're due for some more snow on Thursday, so I hope his plane isn't delayed. Of course, as a mom, these kinds of things worry me. And doesn't it just figure...we're in for an Arctic blast this weekend, with wind chills up to -30F! I'm sure he won't miss this weather one bit by the time he flies back to California. 

Stay well and safe. 💓

a few minutes of diversion ~ decorating

Hello friends, how is everyone doing? I'm definitely going stir-crazy and have moments where I feel sad and/or anxious, but I know everyone else is feeling the same. The main thing is that we all stay well and healthy. I'm enjoying reading on blogs and social media what everyone is doing to stay sane and upbeat...there's a lot of good ideas out there. I've been puttering with decor and rearranging some things, walking every day outside every day even though the weather is still pretty crappy (it feels good to get some fresh air and exercise; grateful we can at least go outside!), practicing yoga, cleaning out drawers and closets (ho hum!), talking every day via text or phone with friends and family members, reading, and doing even more cooking. I even tried my hand at acrylic painting, though it pretty much looked like a five-year old got into the paints.

To take your mind off the pandemic for a few minutes, I thought I'd share some of my latest putterings with you...

I didn't do much decorating for Easter. If we can't get together with family or friends, I feel there's not much of a point. I do like some of my bunny decor though, so I made a vignette on the dresser in the guest room.

I lightened up the china cabinet for spring and used washi tape to line each shelf.

The washi tape was such an easy, quick way to add a little cheer, so I stuck a couple of strips on the shelves on the kitchen wall, as well.

This yellow spring chick that I've had for years adds a little whimsy under the spider plant.

That's a new philodendron plant on top of the china cabinet. I grabbed a couple of plants when we had to run to Home Depot a few days ago for specialty light bulbs.

Here's the other plant - some sort of succulent - on top of my fridge. 

 The console table in the living room got a couple of small changes. The blue bottle used to be on the ledge of the wall cut-out, and I also added a couple of little bunnies.

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Do you remember my lamp dilemma in Brian's office? I couldn't decide whether to keep this lamp, as it wasn't the right height with the "window" above the black cube unit. Well, once I put a couple of books under the lamp and added decor to the cube and the shelf, I decided I liked the lamp after all. Brian likes it, too and said the lamp gives off the perfect reading light for when he's sitting in the arm chair. We still need a rug for this room, but I haven't found "just the right one" online yet.

Back to the Coronavirus (my few minutes of decorating diversion are up), Brian and I have been playing cards and board games on the days he's home from work. He's in the emergency services field, so yes, he's still working outside the home. Clementine loves to be wherever we are, which often means right in the middle of one of our games.

Lastly, I'll leave you with this piece that I just read on Facebook.
Love to you all!

******************

We (all of us) are currently going through

a collective traumatic experience.

Trauma is often thought of as "too much, too fast“…

which is exactly what’s happening.

Of course you’re exhausted. Of course you’re afraid.

Of course you’re overwhelmed. Of course you’re

clinging to certainty in the midst of so much unknown.

Of course you aren’t as productive, feeling foggy,

or wondering how you can possibly go through

so many waves of emotions all in the same day.

This all makes so much sense in the context

of our circumstances. Be gentle with yourself.

Have compassion for your process.

Give yourself grace. You are good,

no matter how you are managing

this completely new experience.

(Lisa Olivera)

the yin and yang of fall

 We've had just a few sunny days in-between a ton of gloomy, rainy ones. On one of those rare, sunny days we took a hike in the nearby State Park.

The one thing we forgot is that the mosquitoes have been extra bad this year. We have a contract service that sprays for mosquitoes around our property every three weeks, so it was easy to forget that they'd be in abundance in the park. We had to walk with our shirts up around our necks to avoid the blood suckers. Other people passing us had their hoodies up over their heads, though with the sun beating down, it was hot. We were a sweaty mess by the time we got back to our car.

 This might've been a better idea to keep the skeeters off our heads.

I'm not big into mums, but I do buy one big bunch every fall for my front porch. I think they look pretty in this galvanized tub. I just plopped the entire pot down in there; I didn't replant them in the tub.

This big summer pot of annuals is still somehow going strong on my porch, too. Must be the combination of morning sun and all the rain we've had.

Otherwise, this is what the patio side of the house looks like right now: a tad dismal. We haven't been able to keep the patio furniture cushions out because of all the rain. Will we ever get to use the patio again before it's too cold? 🙁 It's been buried in wet leaves, too. This was after I used the leaf blower to clear off the patio and the furniture.

As I do every fall, I've been taking photos of the neighbor's glorious maple tree. A few days ago when we had a little bit of sun, the colors of the sky and tree were absolute perfection.

The gray, gloomy mornings call for candlelight on the mantel...

And little touches of fall around the house...I added some fall cheer to the small china cabinet in my kitchen by putting scrapbook paper on the back of the middle shelf.

I needed a new pillow for the living room couch. A trip to HomeGoods yielded this beauty. A saleslady who saw me looking at this pillow said it was her favorite - and the last one left. I love the colors and textures.

And it's reversible!

Homemade soups are back in my cooking repertoire again. A simple vegetable soup with a sprinkle of fresh Parmesan cheese hits the spot on cool days.

It's rainy here (surprise, surprise), so we went to the movies today to see A Star is Born. It was phenomenal. I can't say enough good things about this movie. Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga blew me away. We were going to go to a fall fest tomorrow, but with all the rain, I'm sure it'll be cancelled. We need to do things like look for new eye glasses for Brian and check out washing machines and dishwashers (yes, we need both at once - ugh) at Home Depot.

Have a great weekend!

spring puttering pleasures

I'm glad I bought this beautiful orchid for a bit of spring cheer yesterday...

because this is what we woke to today.

Granted, it was only a few inches and light and fluffy, but still disappointing to see in mid-March.

Thank you all so much for the kind comments and support on my last post! I am feeling good and no longer use crutches, though I do use a cane here and there. That helps alleviate the limping. My knee is still quite swollen and feels tight and stiff, despite doing gentle physical therapy exercises at home and elevating and icing several times a day. I start formal PT tomorrow, so I know this will be a big help in the healing process. I've also been doing a lot of walking...I'm pretty much back to my usual home care routine and I even went grocery shopping by myself yesterday, including making several trips into the house to carry in the bags. I've been having some calf pain, but I think it's from too much walking. I had my post-op appointment this past Friday and the doctor thought perhaps I had a blood clot. I didn't think so - I had a blood clot in my other leg/calf after a surgery in 2001, so I know what one feels like - but the doc sent me to the hospital for an ultrasound just in case. Thank God, no clot.

One thing I really missed while being laid up was puttering around the house and playing with decor. Now that I can (slowly) walk up and down the stairs again, I'm able to go to the basement to dig out some spring decor. Nothing fancy, but I put some lighter colors in the china cabinet...

and fresh flowers on the mantel.

I made some other simple vignettes, too. I love using these mini Limoges teacups every spring.

I just bought this shamrock plant at Trader Joe's. I'll transfer it to a pretty planter after St. Patrick's day. I have another shamrock plant that I bought several years ago and it's lush and full of white flowers. The secret is a south-facing window and giving the plant a thorough saturation only when it starts to wilt a bit (about every 5 days).

Time to bring out the spring birdies...

Of course, it's also time to bring out the bunnies and Easter decor.

Since Mother Nature is still in winter mode despite the spring decor, I'm trying to keep this proverb in mind:

No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow.