in the midst of the storm

bernie's phone needed to be replenished....
and i am hoping he's left to come home from work
meanwhile tuesday was our anniversary...37 years
it was mainly a day filled with chores....and preparing for this storm

now at the moment, i am sitting on pins and needles worried about him getting home during this
of course his phone needed replenishing... i am purposely keeping it on per call....as we're switching carriers and i don't want to lose a lot of money or of course...sign up for a plan
i wasn't paying attention though (i'm really that tired)

meanwhile
it's snowing out
ahem
i live in a brugel landscape now- and probably it's just as cold....i know it's just as white
in painting news.....
i finished the quail and hope they will forgive me soon
now i have a few paintings to photograph....something like 20 now
i am trying to decide which is next..... continue work on this more detailed nest series....
flesh out the other series?
move on to the teacup/teapot........
i think however it may be time to move on to something a bit more summery....as a LOT of the paintings in the past year or so have been so very cold.....arctic, winter.....
yeah maybe it's time for some sun and greens?
or maybe i need to do some peoples? i keep thinking of the inuit woman with her polar bear son...
she made me so happy while i was painting her
she almost painted herself
maybe i need to start a couple of series.....and set up multiple painting areas?

meanwhile stay warm and safe if you are within our bitter cold winter area
with this never ending snow and ice

i got the fever................ WARNING PHOTO heavy

spring fever it would seems......AGAIN
so these thankfully were on sale at homedepot.....i got three and really would have liked to get more (light blue, a clear purply purple and a white with yellow)--- they looked healthy and are loaded with buds..so they're here now---i have to repot the old ones i have..... and i am going to see about a pebble tray for them
meanwhile we're bracing for a storm..... up to 8'' of snow possible overnight tonight-20 with windchill

i am still wanting a terrarium, but maybe i'll do a water one...... with water plants instead of tropical?
now for today's look back to the archives humor post.......HERE
it is so appropriate for today as it happened during this time of year.....
in painting news.....the quail painting is progressing

oh and...... we have a new duckling..... she is about 3 months old, and had damage to her foot with the extreme cold ......so she came here to live.... bernie is torn about it.....he feels bad for her but at the same time, doesn't want another duck
she's very very scared..... she saw her nestmate/brother get dispatched and processed right before she came. they don't forget that.
so she's resting in her crate..... today i have to bath her and clip her wings
i think she'll be ok, and if i could only convince one of the girls to accept her we'll be great.....it would be best if the younger girls accepted her.....as she is their niece
and we're going to need a name for her i think.....no?

in cooking......i am working my way through chopmeat, (1.99 a pound at giants- i got about 20 pounds and then they ran out...so i got a raincheck too)

chili
meatloaf
salisbury steak
enchiladas

all for the freezer

ok everyone....those who are facing this storm......stay warm and safe
those who aren't
enjoy your week
i am going to start cooking now while watching the snow get heavier

take good care......

pictures....of pictures! and more pictures (sorry about that)

detail of male quail

almost finished

okey then, here is some of what i've been working on......i have an eye infection so things have slowed down a bit- bernie's new job slowed me down as well, since he's working (for now) 7pm to 3 am..... 

and then of course.... our little quail visitors took some times up..... so in retaliation, i painted them.

meanwhile it's cold here....got more snow today too. i am trying to settle in to painting daily again.

i have some odds and ends to mail to folks, as soon as i can get it together, there are all sorts of odds and ends paperwork and phone calls i've also had to be doing. 

beginnings

cookies

so with this post i figured i would show you some of the paintings as well as bernie's cookies (the recipe was the other day HERE) these are simple to just drop on the cookie tray as you can see.... i make the dough and then bernie can bake them when he wants them.

i also took a photo of bernie adding sugar to the tops of his cookies so you can see what they look like..it really is that simple....and the dough does get better after a few days in the fridge.

 
 here they are during the sugar part.... we use a rainbow mix now of decorator sugar, i love how festive these cookies look, and i love the almost sponge texture of them after baking. one of my friends baked them with anise and she said they liked them that way, which is something bernie and i were talking about doing with the next batch maybe.....i was also thinking of maybe lemon zest and lavender buds too for spring.

so there you have the cookies....and the paintings ......and what all is going on....i couldn't post the knitting (still working on vinelace in blue) as it got so long.....but still not finished, i am thinking it's going to be about 6' long when i'm done..... depending on how i block it out

ok folks.....til next time

and the day after

i hope you all have had a wonderful holiday, filled with memories and happiness.

we had a very brief and quiet holiday, bernie works nights so he got up at 1:30 in the afternoon, i didn't wake him earlier.
we had a nice meal, the ham i got the other day, brussels sprouts and roasted sweet potatoes
then we had tea and pfeffernusse cookies.

he had to leave at 5:30 so really he only had time to bring in wood....and relax a bit after dinner

now since this posts in the morning, my day after is going to be errands, post office, feed store, pet food store.
friday i have another eye doctor appointment, plus then some food shopping.
i am trying to get a handle on this new routine, so i can get back to painting
the painting that is currently on the board is the quail!
bernie and i aren't sure the quail are eating.....we put food in their bowl, and i moved the bowl to the back of the pen where they've been hanging out
if i don't see them eating tomorrow we'll move them back to the crate.....they seemed to do fine in there... so if that's what they prefer, that is what they will get.

luigi the baby buck hasn't been around, and i saw a small button buck on the side of the road the other day.......it maybe was him.
it's sad but it's life.
let's see........ oh i am going to be doing a bunch of freezer meals with ham (this is a big ham!) and then broth from the bone for beans ...ham broth makes a good base not only for beans but i also mix it half and half with chicken and make all sorts of mixed soups with it....
a potato or potato and leek soup in a ham broth is very good

i keep ham broth either frozen or i can it (pressure can the clear broth at 10-15 depending on your elevation, for 90 minutes for the quarts)

i hope those of you up north here are staying warm, it was BITTER cold this morning.
bernie called me from the parking lot of his job to tell me he was warming up the car to leave and that it was really cold.
since he put the storm in the one window i can't do myself (in the studio-he has trouble with it too but he's taller) the studio is staying much warmer for a longer time. i was able to sleep til midnight ......stoke the stove then sleep until 4am
i didn't sleep well without him there but i did get some light sleep

and i am so thankful that this year we aren't getting bernie ready to go over the road for almost three months.....he's grateful too.
anyway i hope you all had wonderful holidays.

PHOTO heavy this was our friday (and a letter to god)

our first thing this morning visitor

bernie walked out this morning to put the ducks out and discovered we had a visitor......in the duck pen,............and it was not a duck.

now if you remember the other day, we thought we had a loose flock of ruffed grouse...... and remember i have an eye infection in both my eyes.... (bernie is not good at identifying birds, or plants) so we've assumed that is what we had.......well yesterday (ahem...... i suppose it would be thursday for you then) we had pictures of two of these birds out on the driveway sunning themselves.... turns out...... not grouse at all but NORTHERN BOBWHITE QUAIL...girls

then this morning was just this one. ......... we found the bodies of two of the others out back in the duck pen, and from the looks of them it seemed to have been something pulled their heads through the chain link and broke their necks.... we didn't find the fourth body...... and we assumed the worst.

the colors don't show well here- they are brilliant

i am so happy to tell you that this afternoon the 'fourth body' showed up alive.......and these little birds are both now safely in the house in a warm safe crate with food and water. 

this bird in the picture saw the black grain pans that i use to feed the ducks and rushed over, hopped into it and started to eat...... 

AHHA.....i said to myself, ....THIS bird is domestically raised....... 

and i put the crate in the pen with sawdust and the little bird wisely ran into the crate

later in the afternoon the second one eventually did too...... 

so we have them now....

see how amazing the colors are?

   and it took me all damn day with a lot of help to find out WHAT these little birds are...... and they are girls it looks like, there was a boy but his body is out back. if they make it through to spring, i may think about getting them a boy and a pen

then when we went back out to bring in the ducks..... we surprised our newest son....luigi...... the button buck, (these are pictures from after we went in) i did explain to him that we weren't really his parents, and that he could eat now but had to learn to be wild......and that means don't get too attached or close to us....it's dangerous for him and for us.......

dear god, 
when i was talking about the partridge in the pear tree, or the duck in the apple tree, or the chicken in the whatever tree........
i kinda thought you KNEW i was kidding

however thank you for the two quail.........
as they are pretty little birds and as you know i will paint them

now about the baby buckling.......who apparently thinks we're mom and dad.......and wants to claim the duck room as his bedroom...........

CAN WE TALK?

i see you ignored the request for the 45 million lottery win....i can only assume that you think it would (ha............ yeah right but you will send me more mouths to feed) change me

love from your friend
violet