Memorial Day

First and foremost, today we humbly pay our respect today to those who went off to all corners of the world in service to our country, but did not get to come home.  There are so many in our country's history to whom we owe our deepest respect and gratitude.  While this is a holiday in the United States, it is one that is most solemn.  We pray for the safety of all who serve and that all they be returned safely to their families. 

 

I think that a holiday like this one reminds us of how precious every moment is with our loved ones.  I was particularly aware of my gratitude for those I love this weekend.  I felt totally present as I walked through the specialness of every moment.

 

I am just about finished with this class I am taking right now.  I am looking forward to getting back to doing the things I love to do. On Saturday, I did a little shopping on 123stitch.com and bought this: http://www.123stitch.com/item/Rosewood-Manor-Autumn-Quakers-Cross-Stitch-Pattern/14-1404  The threads were so gorgeous that I had to have them, too, and the set was less expensive than if I bought them individually.  I have not bought cross stitch in so long.  So I really looking forward to starting it.  I am looking forward to getting back to doing the things I love.

 

Yesterday, I had a fun day cooking.  I made a pan of Ina Garten's Rosemary Polenta, which is just so yummy.  I served it with dinner and it was just so delicious.  I could eat a whole pan of that all by myself.  I paged through a couple of her cookbooks while I had them out and there were just so many delicious recipes.  I like that she cooks real food and does not have recipes with odd ingredients that I have to go on a treasure hunt for all over town. 

 

Today we worked on the front yard.  It looks so much better.  Luckily, it was kind of cool and breezy today, one of the benefits of living on the coast.  So it was a good day to trim the  bushes down.  I had to do foxtail removal, too, because the front yard was starting to look like a vacant lot.  We filled a whole yard waste can and have a plan for next week.  My body is aching like nobody's business, but I am trying to play it off like I am all cool with my honey.  I think the loud groaning when I stand up from sitting may be tipping him off though.

 

In addition to my cross stitch purchase this weekend, I was excited to see that Amazon was running a special on certain magazine subscriptions for Kindle for the weekend.  After reading all of the teeny tiny print (I'm an accountant, I just can't help it) I ordered an annual Kindle subscription of Better Homes and Gardens and Eating Well for $5 each.  We both love BH&G but after we are done with it, I never know what to do with the issues.  I feel badly just throwing them out, so they just hang around for way too long until I finally just put them in the recycling.  So I am really happy about the Kindle version, plus it holds my place where I stopped reading. 

 

So it was a really good weekend and I am just so grateful that I got to spend it with the ones I love.

Where Did The Weekend Go?

I have been thinking about stitching again a lot lately.  Even though I am way beyond S.A.B.L.E. status, I am thinking about buying a gorgeous sampler, with all of the threads, of course.  I am in the process of finishing up a class that I am not really enjoying (there seems to be too much "busy work").  I am thinking that as soon as it is over, I will be all ready for stitchy-palooza.  I really am looking forward to having a needle and thread in my hands again. 

 

I am a bit sad about how fast this weekend went.  I had grand plans of all the things that I wanted/needed to get done this weekend.  However, we were dog tired.  I was so fried and stressed on Friday and was threatening that my head was probably gonna explode from my headache.  I walked in the house to the smell of homemade brownies baking, was immediately handed a beer and had a very handsome man telling me that he was putting a you-bake pizza in the oven.  I got lots of puppy kissies from Liesl then headed to change into my softest, comfiest jammies. I was still exhausted and in those same jammies through most of Saturday.  I was just too tired to get anything done.

 

Today was nice though.  We went to church, then had brunch with my bestest friend and her hubby.  It was wonderful to have a leisurely talk and eat some yummy food. 

 

I had to work on some clean up of my craft room today.  I really need to do an overhaul on the organization system in there so get the best space utilization.  So I have to do a little shopping on the internet, darn the luck.  I really would like to spend a bit more time in there and really just need to organize it better.

 

Well, off to bed and get ready for the week ahead!

 

 

 

 

Yosemite!

On Sunday I think I had one of the best days of my whole life.  My amazing sweetheart considers Yosemite one of his favorite places on this earth.  His birthday was on Monday, May 5th, so he made arrangements for us to visit Yosemite for the weekend.  He truly loves Liesl and respects how special she is to me so he searched high and low to find a nice dog friendly hotel. He made reservations for us to stay at the cottages at the Tenaya Lodge (on the South side of the park), which I can not recommend highly enough.  It was the perfect place to stay and I have to say that they are so accommodating to doggies. 

 

I am ashamed to say that as a forty year resident of California, I had never been to Yosemite.  My sweetheart was the perfect tour guide.   As we went through the tunnel, he mentioned that we had to stop for a moment when we exited the tunnel and he brought me to this view.  It was so stunning, magnificent, majestic and huge.  I sat down because I was so overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of it and started to cry.  It was so amazing.  Suddenly I totally understood why people I know love Yosemite so much.  I went with no preconceived notions as to what I was going to see.  I had hoped to see Half Dome or something out of an Ansel Adams photo, but here it all was.  We stood in the spray of Bridal Veil Falls, and had a pick-a-nick in shadow of Half Dome.  It was truly one of the best days of my life.

 

What made it the best was the Liesl was with us and she went to every site, energized and excited.  She walked all over Yosemite without missing a beat.  The valley floor of Yosemite is dog friendly and there were lots of dogs there.  There were also lots of people missing their dogs that were back home, so Liesl got lots of pets and love from people from all over the world.  So, of course, Liesl through that Yosemite was all about her.  LOL.  She just started to think that everyone wanted to pet her and befriend her.  We laughed all the way to the car because at the end of the day, we were crossing the lanes of traffic outside of Yosemite Falls.  She decided that the park ranger who was directing traffic must want to pet her because she is so adorable.  So she went trotting up to the ranger (yes, she was on a short leash) whereupon the ranger said, "What a cute dog!" and started rubbing Liesl's little head.  Afterwards, Liesl pranced to the car, with her ears back.  We were cracking up.  She slept for twelve hours straight after we got back to the hotel and she ate her dinner.

 

Both of us have been working some pretty long, stress filled days since the beginning of the year.  We have been exhausted.  Yosemite is so peaceful. so energizing, and so special.  Words truly can not describe it.  The two days we spent there were such a blessing.  One day was hot and sunny and the second was dark, cold and cloudy.  It looked totally different.  Here is the same view on the second day.

 

 

Yosemite is truly a special place.  Everyone should see it at some point in their lifetime!