Foto Friday

No words necessary......Enjoy

A Very Wintry Foto Friday!

Welcome to Foto Friday!

Grab a cup of something warm and enjoy!

Winter in these parts has been grueling.  

We had become used to mild winters in recent years.  

With all this Arctic air and white stuff, we have had ample opportunity to just 

STAY HOME!

Winter has definitely afforded me the ability to do a lot of camera clicking

...and might I add....

with the new camera hubby bought me for Christmas!

In my last post, I promised more backyard winter bird pictures. 

 Since winter is 

For The Birds.....

Lets' start with those bird photos....

(These photos were taken out the window- from the comfort of my warm and cozy living room)

On Monday, we had a fresh coating of wet snow.  

As I was admiring its beauty, I noticed a flock of (very confused) robins in the trees. 

Beautiful!

On another day, we had a hawk circling during one of our doggie play dates.





 He may have been looking for a chicken dinner.  But he left hungry!

Monday, we had wet snow, and on Tuesday......a coating of Ice.

This gives new meaning to ICE SKATES

This morining.....

everything was that

 walk -on -top -of- the- snow -crispy!

But a little bit of ice never stopped Josie girl from havin' a little bit of fun!

Well, that's all for now folks.

Thanks for stopping by....  

Please stay tuned-

 for more

FOTO FRIDAYS

are coming soon!

Linked up to 
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2014/02/clever-chicks-blog-hop-73-with-three.html#

Post Christmas Busyness (and a trash to treasure!)

Greetings....

Let's do first things first and allow me to apologize for abandoning both you and this blog.
Where does time go?
 It seems as though the older one gets, the faster time flies.
Why is that??

Okay, so allow me to catch you up.....

We had a lovely holiday.  I hope you can say the same.

 We rang in the new year with friends.
We had a great time, just staying in and playing games.
 You know...
good friends + good food = great time!

Hubs really gets into playing Wii! 

For me, the new year has always been the perfect time to do some organizing.
It's the time of year, when we're held up inside.
 No gardening to do.
No holiday preparations.

So once the decorations were taken down and replaced with our home's usual vintage-ish decor,  I got busy on some re-organizing and purging.  As the title of this blog implies, I'm very into keeping things simple.
 While I can't really call myself a minimalist,
I do like to keep things simple, clutter free and organized.
So I started with the closet where I keep the wrapping paper, since it was a mess after all that holiday wrapping.

With all the snow (and cold) in these parts, we have had ample opportunity to play in the snow.
The dog loves the snow!
Okay, so she really doesn't care.
 She just likes to play.
When we take potty breaks, allowing her time to burn up some energy is a must.  Some days, we even have 

doggy play dates 

with a friendly German Shepherd.

I have been enjoying watching the birds this winter,  I have taken some awesome pictures out my front window that I plan to share with you each (Foto) Friday.   Hopefully, I can follow through on this!  :)

So as promised, 
a trash to treasure.  
While cleaning out a closet, I came across this cosmetic travel case.

 I can honestly say, I never use it anymore.
However, I deemed it keep-able.
But it was in need of a makeover.
 Sorry I didn't get a before picture of the inside.
Suffice it to say it was worn and ugly.

So a little scrapbook paper and a piece of burlap gave it a 

cute and quick fix. 
(I used spray adhesive for both the paper and the burlap)

At first, I thought it might make a good magazine holder for the bathroom.

But in the end, I needed something for some miscellaneous stuff in my bathroom.

Walah!

 In case you're wondering about this case....
 Yep, it was mine.... 

Given to me on my first day of beauty school some 35+ years ago.
 It seems like a lifetime ago.  

Since then.... 

I have raised and homeschooled 2 children....

and am currently caring for 2 darling grandchildren...

teaching water aerobics at the Y.....

 and yes, I am 

head chicken keeper and gardener.
One just never knows where life will lead them!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

RENEWAL-SAYING SO LONG TO WINTER

As you can probably tell my fresh new layout....

I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF WINTER!

Regardless of that nasty Phil's forecast of 6 more weeks of winter.....I'm done with it. Winter is officially over at my house! I'm turning the corner and bringing out the spring- time feel at my house! All remnants of winter decor are going to be banished from sight! First on the hit list is the front porch.

But before I completely close the book on winter, I want to share a few last pictures from these last days of winter at my house. I've been behind on my blogging because I have been cleaning out closets and getting the house reorganized. At our house, we have two seasons- holiday season and garden/canning season. So this is the in-between-time of year to roll up the sleeves and dig in. (more on that another day)

About 2 weeks ago, a flock of ROBINS made their debut to our back yard. Well actually they took up residence on the "hunting camper".

BIG mistake! What are they going to eat?

(Oh that reminds me...season number 3 at our house-HUNTING SEASON!)

Here's a great Reminder

We had a lot of snow this year!! Mother Nature dumped 2 feet on one occasion and a few days later another foot. You can imagine the grumbling going on around here with all the shoveling, and plowing. As I walked up the sidewalk one day from getting the mail, my little flag just set off a little giggle on the inside of me. It reads:

REJOICE IN EVERY GOOD THING!

Even snow!??!!

Valentines Day gave us a nice break from the weather. We enjoyed some card making, baking, and a family picnic together (indoors of course). Our menu:

Hamburgers and Hot dogs

Harvest Potatoes

Baked beans

Cookies

Punch in our festive lighted punch bowl

Cherry Pie

And one more thought .............hold on to your bloomers!

As I am closing the door on winter and looking toward spring.....

I'm dreaming of my gardens laden with seeds (already ordered)

that will produce abundantly,

a yard that is a gorgeous lush color of green, instead of a filthy dirty white,

oooh and can't forget the smell of fresh cut grass,

floral decorations and splashes of spring forsythia-like yellow about the house.....everywhere.

pantries and closets, cleared of the clutter and

windows clean and sparkly that allow the spring sun to shine through brightly,

a new batch of fuzzy little chicks,

and the RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD!

And as a water aerobics instructor

I'm dreaming of shedding a few winter pounds!

This little cartoon has given me the inspiration I needed to

KICK IT UP A NOTCH!

With that I'll close!!

I hope you'll take time to dream about spring Today!

Living Simply and Deliberately,

Tammy

FOTO FRIDAY- Chickadees, Nuthatches and Titmice (or is it Titmouses)

We awoke to another blanket of snow this New Year's Eve morning. And because there wasn't anything pressing to do today, I just enjoyed the morning. While shoveling off the sidewalk (yes I enjoy shoveling-it's a great workout) I noticed that my bird friends were really feeding. And since I had my camera stashed in my pocket, it was a great opportunity to get up close and personal with them. Watching the birds is not only relaxing but a simple way we enjoy God's gift of nature.

And God said, "Let the waters swarm with fish and other life. Let the skies be filled with birds of every kind."

Living Simply and Deliberately,

Tammy

Crazy Birds

The birds that call our neighborhood home have been very busy creating a place to raise their young. This year, several robins have chosen some crazy places to build their homes. This nest was built on top of a ladder that hangs in the overhead of my potting shed.

Another nest was constructed on the front porch on the top of my spring wreath. Everytime the door opens, she flies off. But if I'm really quiet, I can peek out at her through the beveled glass of the door.

I was even lucky enough to sneak a picture of her future family!

Sweet!

Have a great day! And take time to enjoy God's Glorious Creation!

Tammy