Flowers on a Rainy Day

Hello, dear friends, I hope that you had 

a lovely Valentine's Day and 

if you don't have a sweetheart, 

I hope you treated yourself to 

something nice. 

I know that Valentine's Day can 

be lonely for some of us, 

reminding us of those we 

no longer have near. 

 Ramblin' Man and I have lost all of our parents 

within the last 5 years. 

Remembering to say, 'I love you' is even 

more important to us now, after 

experiencing so much loss. 

We were both close to our dear Mothers and 

never forgot to send them sweet Valentines. 

For Ramblin' Man, the loss is still new, 

having lost his dear Mother in December. 

We have been married a long time.....

True, we married young, and we 

have had many years of ups and downs. 

There were even years when we didn't 

even have time to stop and say, 'Hello', 

never mind celebrate a special day. 

Years of raising four children, building a home, 

demands of work, extended family, caring for ageing parents.....

left us little time just for ourselves. 

It was always, 'Someday'.......

Now we know that 'someday' is here, 

that time never stops, 

and we must make the most of 

every single day. 

He works long hours and frequently travels. 

I am alone more than I would like. 

My Ramblin' Man knows this, 

and so he makes it up to me on 

special days. <3

Bless his heart. 

xoxo

My 'Blessings Jar' is filling up <3 

I started this on New Year's Day. 

Next New Year's I will open it up and 

read my year of blessings. 

 xx

He is back at work today, 

and I am looking out at a very rainy day, 

although it is getting warmer here and 

there are some signs of spring. 

I actually spent the day outside on Monday, 

working in the gardens and doing winter clean-up. 

It was a beautiful, sunny day in the 50's. 

Yesterday the clouds moved in with this dramatic scene

over Mt. Rainier. 

Two jet-trails creating parenthesis.....

Lots of rain today....

The flowers are enjoying the warmer temperatures.

Primroses blooming cheerfully despite the rain. 

These were all buried in 2 ft. of snow last week! 

Pansies always make me smile :)

They have a sweet scent, too. 

My poor fairy garden on the bottom-right 

did not survive the winter, although 

we have to wait to see.......

You can see my dog grooming brush 

hanging here :) 

I was drawn to the unusual colors of these primroses,

and bought them all....there were only a few this color. 

My new garden sign :)

My whisker-faced pansy looks like a wet cat ! 

There are a few sporadic blooms right now, but 

soon there will be litters of little faces 

making me smile. 

And check out these buds on my camellia bush! 

Spring is just around the corner.....

only 5 more weeks. 

Four more weeks until daylight savings time! 

So much to be thankful for <3 

xoxo

Linking with:

Floral Bliss
and
Thankful Thursday

Won't you join the fun? 

Cupcakes for Valentine's Day

Hello, my Friends, I hope that you had a 

very nice weekend, with time to do 

a few things that you love. 

I was fortunate to spend time with both of 

my little grandsons - my sweet little Valentine's <3

xoxo

The sun was shining so beautifully

in my kitchen this morning, 

inspiring me to do some baking. 

There's something about a sunny kitchen

that makes my heart sing! 

I wanted to bake something sweet for 

Ramblin' Man's Valentine's Day, 

and of course it had to be cupcakes! 

My dear daughter, Heather gifted me with 

the sweet mixing bowl and spoon on Christmas. 

The mixing spoon says, ' Live, laugh...and lick the spoon!' 

The bowl and spoon are from 'The Pioneer Woman's' 

cooking line. 

All ready for the oven......

While they cook, I whip up some pink frosting 

and set out the sweet decorations in my re-decorated
heart box. 

All done - the kitchen smells so good......

While they cool, let's look at some 

Valentines! 

I made the Valentine with the gold heart. 

I love the Tennyson quote.

I also made the red heart doily Valentine. 

A favorite <3

I crocheted these little hearts 

many years ago when my first child,

Heather, was a baby. 

Let's decorate the cupcakes! 

For Ramblin' Man. 

The 'hearts' are cherry flavored gummy hearts. 

Tiny cupcakes for me :)

I'm trying to watch my waistline....

The key word is 'trying'  :)

Let's put on the tea-kettle and have one! 

While the kettle heats, we'll look at a few more Valentines. 

I remember, as a child in school, we

brought a tissue box from home and decorated it 

with crepe paper and pink and red hearts,

so we could receive sweet Valentines

like these, from our classmates.

In those days we weren't required to give one
to everyone in the class.

I was very shy and only received a few,
but those precious few were that much
more appreciated.

When I was 14, I met my future husband
(little did I know......:)
in my first year of high-school,
and the first Valentine he gave me was
a gold bracelet with my name engraved
on it and a tiny dangling heart.

He saved for it by doing 'odd-jobs'.

Here it is, a little worn and
scratched, but still very much treasured.

I knew then, that he was a 'keeper'.

Oh, I hear the tea-kettle whistling! 

Let's sit down for tea and a cupcake! 

I just found this darling tea-cozy at Rose Petal Blessings, 

one of my favorite Etsy shops. 

Stephanie, from the blog, 'The Enchanting Rose', 

sews and crafts the sweetest things. 

Do you take cream? 

My dear friend Pat, from the blog, 'Lilly My Cat',

crocheted me these precious little tea coasters. 

Thank you, my friend.

Pat does exquisite needlework and takes
us on wonderful travels via her beautiful blog. 

Let's take a few moments to browse through my latest

issue of 'Romantic Homes' magazine.

This lovely article about botanical illustrations caught my eye. 

It's getting late in the day and I had better 

clean up and start dinner. 

Ramblin' Man will be home soon. 

I've planned his favorite meal;

 Sweet and Sour chicken with rice. 

And cupcakes for dessert :) 

I hope you have a Happy Valentine's Day, 

sweet friends. 

xoxo

Today I am linking with:

Cooking and Crafting with J&J

Won't you join the fun?