Helicopters and other cool stuff.

 Expecting company for Super Bowl Sunday later in the day, we got an early start to Lake Geneva Wisconsin, for their Winterfest and U.S. National Snow Sculpting Competition. The excitement started when two helicopters flew over our shoulders, and over the lake.  They turned and headed back our way and landed about 100 feet away from us on the frozen lake.

 I am usually terrified of hovering helicopters, but they were relativity quiet.  It was really cool to see them close up.  I'm not sure if it was an exercise or demo or what, but WOW.

 Some of the sculptures were creepy...

 Some were divine...

 This one was creepy one way...

beautiful the other...

 With the winter light there is very little contrast between the snow and the sky.  This was a monster under the bed...

 The drawing of the above...

 and his hand on the book.

 This one was lovely...

 The back of which had this rose carved into it.

 The circus...Penny corrected me.  We face timed as we walked about and I told her this was a lion.  She said that tigers have their ears on top of their head, not lions.  

 This was my favorite, all these graceful dancers.

Lake Geneva is beautiful in all seasons, but I like winter best.

We usually go to Starved Rock State Park to see the eagles that roost along the river on Superbowl Sunday, but since we had just visited in the fall, decided not to.  I missed our pals but we'll meet soon to celebrate our winter birthdays like we've done since we were teens.

I never took a photo of our football festivities, but here's what we ate.  Tacos and fajitas, taco rice.  Mike made the peppers and chicken for the fajitas, also Amanda and Mike brought little Smokey sausages they cooked in their crock pot with barbecue sauce and cherry jelly.  Jon and Charlotte brought their blender and made margaritas.  Chips, salsa and quesso dip. Ice cream cones or donuts for dessert.  Always great to have the kids home.  Kris and Doug and Penny were home since Kris has been sick.  We missed you guys. 

Seven years ago I wanted to do something brave to mark my 55th birthday, and this blog, At Home in English Valley was that brave thing.  Seven years later I am still at it, chronicling my life.  I am amazed that I've kept it up, and can't believe that you dear reader take the time to stop by... 

 I thank you for your friendship.  

Thanks so much for your kind comments. Welcome to a new follower. 

Enjoy this beautiful day.

Love, Penny  

February Love

 February, that lovely month that bridges winter, to the hope of spring.  I've been making some Valentine hearts with Tim Holtz embellishments.  My hands just are not what they used to be.  I love hand sewing, the zen like feeling of pulling a needle through fabric again and again.  Unfortunately since I dislocated my finger last year, sewing takes it's toll and my finger and hand ache after a day of sewing or any repetitive work.  Old age plays a part too. ;-)

 Instead of blanket stitching around all the hearts, I took them to the machine for a zigzag stitch and they still look lovely.  The embellishments each have a thought...I hope my friends each find one that touches their hearts. (They hearts were cut from a thrifted placemat.)

 These are the vintage style Valentines I made last year.  Just can't get past the vintage shabby chic look.  It might be here to stay, at least for me.

 In times of trouble or distress, (and didn't we all have plenty in January?) I find solace in small projects, my home and especially my dearest and my family.

 I an living the very life I imagined as a girl.  Being a wife and mother and now the pure joy of grand mothering. I am very grateful.

Had our babygrand for several days as Kristen was traveling for work. Since Grandpa is working, it was Penny x 2 time.  From making the bed in the morning to story time at night we were very busy. We walked out in the cold and snuggled under covers inside. Shopping for our fairy garden, visits with Uncle Mike and Amanda and Uncle Jon.  Topped off with a visit from the cousins.  That's where Grandma is sometimes called Auntie Penny, by Penny, just for fun.

This is a fairy garden that the cousins all worked on yesterday after an impromptu afternoon and evening together.  Elizabeth came for a visit with the girls and stayed for dinner and a few Fixer Uppers.  The girls played and pretended.  Even brother Greg came by for dinner.  Nothing fancy, Penny asked for baked ziti.  There was plenty for all and even a castle cake the girls decorated for Valentine's/Christmas.  Yes Santa made an appearance on the cake as did ginger bread men.  We never did get around to making the Christmas castle this year, so the Valentine castle was born. (Photos are all on my phone... imagine an explosion in the Wilton aisle at Michael's ;-)

Valentine's Day will be here before you know it, and so will our February birthdays.  Mom's was on the 3rd, I'll be 62 this month, (What the ...How in the heck? ;-)  Doug has a big birthday this year and Jon Jon ends the month with his birthday. We hope to celebrate together sometime this month.

 Little touches here and there.  I didn't even open a box of decorations I have in storage.

 Just a candle from Christmas in a hurricane, some thrifted roses and a bunny just waiting for spring.

 I need green this time of year, even if it isn't real.

 I have a disappointing Amaryllis.  Just green shoots, no flower stem.  Last year the flower stem almost grew while I was watching.

 Faux roses are a sure thing.

 My geranium I brought inside is flourishing but no blooms.  Considering we have had the cloudiest
January, it's no surprise.

 I also get my flower fix from this lovely embroidered pillow I thrifted.

The red touches I added for Christmas seem just right for Valentine's Day too.

Other projects will have to wait.  Grandma is pooped and company is coming soon.  Thanks so much for stopping by, for your friendship and kindness,

Enjoy this beautiful day.

Love, Penny

January Thaw

 We were blessed with the most beautiful January Saturday.  The temperature was in the fifties with bright sunshine and a beautiful clear sky.  This is my Christmas gift from my hubby...a membership to the Chicago Botanic Gardens.  We have visited once this year with our babygrand to see the Holiday Wonderland Express exhibit.   Since we had a day with our girl, we headed back to the gardens.

 We brought the stroller in case of tired legs...mostly Grandma and Grandpa's.  Sometimes our girl is so tired, she can't walk another step...and we are too old to carry 40+lbs around the gardens.;-) The truth is this was the last time she sat in the stroller, she ran for our whole visit.

 After a cloudy and rainy week this day was truly a gift.

 We visited all the greenhouses.  So sweet to see flowers blooming...

 and topiary bears, a big gummy bear is what Penny thought of this guy.

 Spots of color...

 dappled sunlight...

 tropical trees and flowers.

 Delicate orchids and

 sturdy leaves...

 ...proud grandparents.  Yes, Penny took this photo.  Our girl is amazing...and almost five.

 These were Penny's favorite find of the day, Snowball Cactus.  They looked almost cuddly.

 Grandma and Grandpa have a soft spot for bonsai.  I photographed these before, outside in the summer.  They live in a light filled hall during the winter.

 So elegant. They are living works of art.

 Some might walk past a pile of sand and gravel, but not our girl.  She saw it as a opportunity to make sand castles.

My daughters Kris and Charlotte were marching in the Women's March in downtown Chicago.

I am so proud that they represented all the women in our family.  Kristen carried tokens of her grandmother, best friends and a penny for Penny and me. Chicago's march had 250,000 marchers.

At one point during the march, Kris looked over to see a man with a name tag she recognized.  It was our old and dear friend named Floyd. Floyd was marching with the Sierra Club.  She introduced herself as Penny's daughter... I am sure that Floyd was amazed to see Kristen, now a beautiful grown woman.  It has been such a long time since we had last seen Floyd.  Kristen never forgets a face, and a happy reunion ensued. What are the odds?  They left me a message on my answering machine at home.  It was so sweet.

That daughter of mine is amazing. It was a significant day for all women, made more so by Kristen's fierce determination to make the world a more tolerant, inclusive and peaceful place to raise her daughter.  Charlotte walked on a painful foot determined to have her feelings known.  I am so proud of my girls.

Later on Saturday evening Penny got to visit with her cousins, well, cousin cats.  Mike and Amanda invited us over for dessert and some cat cuddling.  Penny is a cat whisperer and loves Henry( the cutest cat ever )and Oden and Luna.  We had such a nice visit and Penny was in cat heaven.  Mike and Amanda have settled into life back home.  They have a cozy and welcoming home, and we are so glad to have them close.

 Silly that I need to share,  but I got a delivery from Pottery Barn!  I received gift cards for Christmas and after not finding anything at my local store, started searching the web.

 I choose this wire hamper.

It is so cool.  One other gift will arrive next month.  Thanks to my generous hubby and kids I got to shop PB, just for fun.  Of course I got sale prices and free shipping. 

I have Valentine's to craft, crocheting to do, laundry awaits.  Another gloomy day, but memories of our happy weekend will warm my heart and get me through.

Thanks so much for stopping by and enjoy this beautiful day.

Love, Penny 

January Crafting.

 As soon as the guests leave at Christmas, I get the crafting bug.  Little projects, big projects...  Like this heart wreath.  Tie some strips of fabric to a wire wreath form.  These were very popular back in the 80's/

I love the combo of teal and pink.  It looks pretty on my Tiffany box blue door.

(photographs green on a gloomy day.)

 Have you seen the tutorial going around for this vintage looking mirror project?  They are replicating a mirror sold at Anthropology.  I thought I'd try. I found this stamp at HobLob.  I took it off it's wood mount and put it onto a clear acrylic mount.  So much easier to place the stamp correctly..

 I pulled out my brayer.  Haven't used it in years. .Never get rid of your tools.

Found this chalk paint at the Walmart.  I used the brayer on a glass tile to spread the paint evenly on the stamp.

 Stamped on the wrong side of the glass...

 even mitered the corners.

 After the stamping dries you spray a light misting of water, then apply a coat of mirror glass spray paint. This helps you get the mercury glass look. I had to wait for a day that was at least 40 degrees.  My first attempt went very badly!  It was just too cold.  I scrubbed off all the paint and had to start over.

 After a couple of coats of the mirror finish, you can distress the paint to make it look like an ancient mirror. I used a green scotch-brite  pot scrubber. Then you coat the back of the mirror with black spray paint. When it's all dry, pop it back into the frame.

 Very hard to photograph, but the results are lovely.  The frame was a thrift store find.

 My glass is non glare, which I would avoid if I make another...and I will.

 Makes a pretty tray.

Now I.m working on a few fabric Valentines.

 I have these Tim Holtz tags with inspirational sayings on them.  Now to stitch them all around with some floss and a blanket stitch.

Or maybe a ribbon rose and a crocheted leaf...

Hope to have a finished product to show you next time.

As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Day, I am remembering his quote that says, "I have decided to stick with Love. Hate is too great a burden to bear." I have been dreading this week since the November election.  I will try to remember how brave Dr. King was in the face of adversity. How he spent his life working to overcome challenges that I can't even imagine. I pray that we can have peace, equality and especially love, in all of our lives.  America! America! God mend thine ev'ry flaw, confirm thy soul in self control, Thy liberty in Law! Amen.

Thank you for stopping by and enjoy this beautiful day.

Love, Penny