More!!!

No, it's not even that it's supposed to be spring and the snow should go away....
But we had more today...again.
It's not even that I took a couple of days off hoping for peace and quiet on the home front to get things done....and it's been anything but.


It was coming home today from work, exceptionally physically and mentally tired and saw a drain wizard truck in the drive.  Hmmmm.
 I had called a heating, plumbing company a few days ago to come check out a hose from our furnace that had been draining a small amount of dark liquid into a basement drain.  They came, inspected and said we needed a new humidifier.  OK....and they said they would turn it off so it would quit draining.  Yesterday, it continued to drain.  I called and said they should re-inspect before putting in a new humidifier because maybe that was not the problem.   They agreed but today when I came home, they had installed it anyway.  Husband came home midmorning to find a HUGE amount of raw sewage in drain...and in the bathroom...and all over carpet. Hmmmm. We spent many hours tonight cleaning with bleach, and throwing out everything in sight.   Problem was tree roots in pipes.  I almost stripped and put all my clothes in the washer before showering but decided to go over it all again, when someone came in without knocking to tell us he had to go get parts.

THEN, they left and came back...to get stuck in the drive with all the snow.  I have 4 wheel drive and drove around them to get more bleach and buckets while they waited to be towed out.  I returned to find his brother-in-law stuck too....AND a towing company that they called for help!!  I was only gone 20 minutes!!

I went inside to finish cleaning.  When I got done, I thought I should at least make them all hot chocolate for working so long digging out of the snow. I carefully made snacks and 4 cups of hot chocolate, carried them outside....and they were all gone!!

I'm going to bed, my back aches and the headache is way worse.  Is it April Fools yet????!!?

Friends and Family....

Bryden left, Emma right and Bailey above

 What is the best thing you can put on a Grandma's lap on a Sunday afternoon??  A bunch of grandchildren!!! (only missing one....we missed you Cooper!!!) After church,  Mike and Lori stopped this afternoon on their way back from Cincinnati so it was a special unexpected treat to see them! They enjoy seeing each other and it was fun to watch them play!!

 The girls are always sweet and fun to be with...Emma had a 2 1/2 hour nap sleeping the whole way from Cinci!

 Aunt Chelsea with them...

 It's always hard to see them go again!!

Then in the evening Larry, Chelsea and I had birthday celebration plans with long time friend Cindy for her birthday.  We have been friends since college which was a looonnnggg time ago!!

 Husband Harvey was there too...
and friend Judi. (below) We have been friends since high school and then all went to nursing school together.  Life's little celebrations mean more the older you get.  Grandkids do too....it was a sweet day!!

My Neighbor's House

Painting by daughter Chelle

Last night was a birthday celebration at  a neighbor's house.  I love to go to their house because it's so much fun!  Virg was a record producer and produced 60 some records.  Joan is a house wife who is warm, personable, cooks fantastically and is very "artsy".  An invitation to their house always promises to be with an interesting, "eclectic" group of people.  This time it was with a group of beloved neighbors. 

 Windchimes are by an artist named Dr.  Seus ( ?)

 Their house is a step back in time full of art work and records.  You can see in this pic that the views are wonderful too...much better in the spring, summer and fall than now...but stellar nontheless.  

 Joan putting away dishes from the party today...

 This painting was by daughter Chelle....I think.

 I love this one over the fireplace too, done by an artist (obviously) not one of the family.














View from the deck....creek down hill below.

 View out the front window...

 Painting in the den...I think Virg did this one.

 Not even sure who painted these....Joan told me ...there is so much art that I am not adding and I can't remember it all.  It's worth showing though because it's so amazing to see!!

 I think Virg did the one on the right...

 and this one in the kitchen is by Joan!  She did it on tile.

 This, in the kitchen,  is by a famous primitive artist friend.

 And the black and white is by Virg, far corner with hat on.  We all gather at a large dining table and the conversation is the best part!

Our house is down a path from theirs, you can hardly see it for the trees....down the path and through the woods....from a really terrific time!!

Emma and company....

 Here are a few pics I got from Mike & Lori today.  Lori takes wonderful pictures of the girls and we enjoy them so much. Above is Emma....

 and in her crib....

 being kissed by her dad...













with older sister Bailey...

and with her mother Lori (Michael must have taken this one...way to go Mike!!)

Not sure she likes her first winter in the snow....

Nope!  A lot like me!!!!

The sisters...:-)  Soon they are going down south on vacation, I will enjoy seeing photos of something warmer....but these couldn't be sweeter!!

Finally...a taste of spring!

Yeah!!!  This is the only snow left in our yard!!! It was 60 degrees yesterday and I was excited to have the windows open and hear the birds sing!

The grill master enjoyed his first outdoor meal last night and we all enjoyed eating it!

Even Scoobie was happy to be outdoors....

And even though I didn't get good pics, Bryden had fun eating cheese from the cheeseburgers, taking a walk in the stroller, and catching bubbles as we blew them from the bubble maker.  Yeah spring!!

Finished Project...

 This is my corner by our entrance from the garage....

 a place where we sit to put on boots or chat for a moment when entering the house.  Many times it has coats thrown on it. 

 It was my weekend project to recover it.  Yep...it's still there! This is the old original fabric before I covered it the last time, many years ago.  I'd forgotten what was there..ha!

 This is it!  -my finished product...

 I'm happy with the way this corner turned out.  The picture of the sunflowers (my mother's favorite) was painted by a family friend.  The portrait above that is my great-great maternal grandmother.  Next to it are photographs taken in Ireland when we were there, and next to that is the Starkey family crest that I had made for my husband when we were there, so you can see this spot has little treasures in it.

Last here is the chair and pillow.  I'm glad to be done with it.  The chair across will be done in a few weeks by a professional...too big for me to tackle!  It feels "spring cleaned".....now, to do the rest of the house!!!!

March Pete & Repeat....

One might have thought it was April Fool's on awakening today....more dumpage of snow!!! It was a damp heavy snow but so beautiful!   

Each window I looked out of had such a pretty view even though I am sooo ready for spring!

I just read Yaya's blog over at Whispering Pines and she said my thoughts before I could...that any problem seems minute compared to Japan's right now.

So....what's a girl to do to cheer herself up in cabin fever? 

Maybe spring cleaning!

This is an OLD, beloved Ethan Allen chair that we have had forever...about 26 years!  I remember Chelsea being about a year old sitting on my lap one Easter in our old house taking pictures in it!

We had a faithful dog who liked to jump up and sit on it when I was gone.  Scoobie wanted to sit with him but was too small to jump up so tore up the chair corners trying

:-(  poor little guy.  I bought fabric last week and it will soon be recovered in a black brocade.  Below is a chair & bench we got many years ago too in an antique store.  I covered it  when I bought it, but it too, is fading.  I bought striped silk fabric for it and plan to recover it again this weekend.  Wish me luck, I need it!!

My Mischief Maker...

What can one little boy think of in the space of an hour???

He can turn Nana's decorative basket upside down...

He can climb the stair up and down.  (Yes, I have a baby gate and use it)...

He can reach the phone and dial but who is on the other end???

I have plenty of toys for him but sometimes they seem a bit boring.

and finally....naptime!!! 

The weather here has been a little crazy lately.  Last week it snowed a lot!!  Monday it warmed up and melted most of the snow.  Monday night it thunderstormed and rain torrential rains.  Many basements were flooded, roads closed and so was school. 

Our little town creek runs through our yard.  It overflowed it's banks.  It's fun to watch from our porch during a summer rain.  It doesn't happen often but the power of running water is awesome to watch!   Here is the debris left where the water line was. 

 Mother Nature left her signature on the lawn too.  I like to think she's saying, "Helloooo!  Spring's comin""!!!