Love is Tender

Hello, Dear Friends, I hope that you are 

taking time to celebrate the 

tenderness of love 

this Valentine's Day. 

There are so many different ways to express 

this sweet emotion. 

I'm sure you can think of all the people 

(and pets) that you love dearly, 

and all the devoted ways that you show your love.  

I think it is definitely worth celebrating! 

"There is no charm equal to tenderness of heart."

- Jane Austen -

Like many of you, 

I always like to celebrate every holiday by doing a little decorating. 

Valentine's Day is no exception. 

Any excuse to create a change of scenery! 

Especially this time of year when we 

are spending so much of our time indoors. 

This year I am keeping things soft and low-key. 

A little sanctuary 

from the cares of the world. 

It all started with a lovely shopping trip with my daughter, Heather

to Hobby Lobby. This is an all-day endeavor! 

We have a 30-minute drive, which is when we catch up on 

the latest 'goings on' with each other, fueled by a stop 

at our local 'Starbucks'. 

Then when we get there, we peruse every aisle as we consult our shopping lists

(which we may or may not stick to!)

and consider whether this or that will work here or there! 

We have so much fun! 

I had a vision of what I wanted to achieve - an 'old world' style

with an olive and cream colorway. 

I've seen this trend on Pinterest lately. 

I had the cream-colored quilt and some of the pillows, 

but I needed to buy some olive fabric. 

I couldn't find what I wanted and was about to give up

when this lovely, soft corduroy caught my eye. 

I bought two yards and was able to stitch up 4 pillow covers. 

I had some needlework fabric with a soft, loose weave and 

sewed the (lumpy - Lol) heart pillow and fringed the edges.

It's very tender! :) 

I had the knitted throw already. 

These three 'paintings' are all Hobby Lobby offerings. 

I fell in love...

They were perfect for my theme. 

This wonderful painting is the real deal, and very vintage. 

My dear Sis-in-law, Donna sent it out to me

all the way from New England. 

She knows I love pansies. 

It was originally much larger, but had a tear, so I removed it from the frame, 

cut it down and reframed it with one I already had. 

I was able to keep the signature, too. 

The pottery vase was a flea-market find. 

The stone heart was a gift from the Mr. years ago. 

 

A vignette with faux tulips and ivy, and 'love' frame that I found on our shopping trip. 

'Love' is embroidered on black velvet. 

The sweet card is from my sis-in-law, Terry

from years past. 

The pretty dish was a Christmas gift from my grandson, Ethan, 

with cookies. 

xx

A precious correspondence. 

I covered a heart-shaped candy box with scrapbook paper and lace 

a few years ago. 

A sampler that I found at a flea-market. 

I can't imagine anyone giving it away. 

It has a date of 1987. 

Harmonious colors. 

The old hutch faces the daybed. 

Paper hearts. 

Sweet hearts. 

I found this wood riser on our trip, too. 

Perfect for my cookie cutter collection :)

My beautiful friend, Carrie, from the blog, Northwoods Scrapbook 

had a giveaway and I was one of two winners! 

One of the prizes was this beautiful 

bouquet of roses! 

You would never guess that they are not real! 

It is a large, pop-up card! Isn't it amazing? 

She painted this beautiful card to go with it! 

Definitely frame-worthy! 

xx

There were so many lovely things, including 

hand-made earrings, tag, recipe card and stickers.

And a mystery book delightfully wrapped in brown paper, with 

a bookmark and post-it markers and even a highlighter pen

(not pictured).

 And these teeny-tiny books and coffee mug refrigerator magnets! 

Thank you, again, dear Carrie. 

I love it all. 

xx

Check out Carrie's sweet blog, 

which you can find on my side bar

or click on the name of her blog, mentioned above. 

All this decorating made me hungry! 

So, I baked a batch of Oatmeal-Blueberry Streusel muffins.

Baking just so happens to be one of my love languages. 

xx

Something from the heart. 

Of course, I had to sample the goods first! 

Do you like my coasters? 

'Gather and be grateful'

I found these at a Christmas market 

when we went to visit my son and his family 

at his mountain cabin on Thanksgiving weekend. 

Earth and sky.

Sand and sea. 

xx

Here's the muffin recipe:

Oatmeal Blueberry Streusel Muffins 

Serves 12

Bake @ 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes

Use paper liners in pan

Muffin ingredients

1 cup oatmeal 

1- 1/4 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

Combine all dry ingredients together in medium sized bowl and set aside. 

1 cup milk

1/4 cup butter, melted

2 eggs

2 Tbsp maple syrup or honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl. 

Add dry ingredients 1 cup at a time, folding gently until mixed. 

Fold in 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen. 

Do not overmix. 

Streusel Topping

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup oatmeal

1/4 cup chilled butter, cut into pea-sized pieces

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp salt

Mix all together in small bowl. 

Fill muffin cups 2/3 full, then top with 2 Tbsp streusel. 

Bake 20-25 minutes in 400 degree oven until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool 20 minutes. 

Enjoy!!!

I was outside on a recent beautiful day, 

when I spied this little beauty - the first of the season! 

And to my surprise, this little guy backed out and flew away! 

He looks a little skinny, but his pollen sacks were full. 

We've had a few unusually warm and sunny days recently.

I was able to do a bit of garden tidying

and even some pansy potting. 

Hopefully they will be blooming soon. 

 

But now, it is back to rain and cooler temperatures. 

We had a little house guest recently when my son and his family 

went on vacation to Hawaii for a week. 

His name is Ramsey. 

Isn't he cute? 

Kai was equal parts thrilled and jealous to have this little guy

spend time with us :) 

They got along great - chasing each other around and stealing 

each other's bones.

Kai is smiling but doesn't realize Ramsey has his bone in his mouth. Lol! 

xx

 Nap time. 

xx

Some interesting skies over Mt. Rainier recently. 

xx

I hope that you have a lovely Valentine's Day, dear friends. 

It's a good excuse to buy yourself some 

flowers and chocolates. 

And maybe share with someone you love. <3

xx

Oh, and how about our Seattle Seahawks winning the Superbowl? 

So exciting! 

xx

" Love is a friendship set to music."

- Joseph Campbell - 

" Love is like the wind, you can't see it,

but you can feel it."

- Nicholas Sparks - 

'A Walk to Remember'

" A loving heart is the truest wisdom."

- Charles Dickens -