All things bright & beautiful

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite stories was from the Sweet Pickles series, the day it snowed and Goosie Goose-off didn't have to clean up her yard, because everything was covered in a lovely blanket of white snow! We got about 2 inches today. It is bright & beautiful! Look at those icicles...

Juliana (2 years old) just asked me "Who give it to you?" as she touched my amber necklace. Then she asked "Unca Rob?" (my husband). She is so sweet... I actually got it in St. Petersburg in 1999 for 300 rubles, which is about $10, such a steal!

Sweethearts

Right now, I have a batch of banana bread muffins baking away. I have a few friends who can't eat wheat-gluten and I don't know what I would do if I had an allergy like that!!! Yesterday was President's Day and so, I didn't have to work. My sister and her daughters came over and we had this scrumptious tortellini dish for lunch, along with meatball soup that she brought. It was an odd day, it snowed a lot, but nothing stayed because it had been so warm, it looked like a blizzard and then the clouds receded and the sun peeked out and then it snowed more, etc.

Saturday, we went to a gun show. I didn't know what to expect, but Rob said that women and children were free, so we went. I like to spend time together as a family when we have the chance! They had some really old things.
Hannah wore her cowboy boots and was really interested in the spurs we saw there. We found a nice silver and jasper ring for her instead. Olivia fell asleep on Rob's shoulder and I took a turn with her, she's too big to ride in a stroller, but like a 30 lb. sack of potatoes! Rob ended up buying a Russian rifle made in 1946 for just $100. I have to admit it's pretty cool. Sunday, he went to a friend's house and shot targets with it!

It's been warmer, so we've been spending more time outside! The girls beg each day to go ride bikes. I actually have to run beside them. Pretty soon, I'll be riding my bike along with them, but I feel more comfortable if I can devote my attention to them, instead of my bike! Rob and Olivia are watching Hannah ride (without training wheels)!!!

We just got back from Target. I was looking for a nice breakfast tray (for one of the baskets I'm helping to put together for Russian Winter's Night) and ended up buying a lot of other little things... sweaters for my nieces for $2.50 each (they have hearts on them, all the valentines day stuff was 75% off), picture frames, Play-Doh (on sale, I thought I'll save them for party favors), and more...
My sweethearts! XOXOXO

More than you wanted to know

I'm changing some of these questions...and added my own, that's the photo one!

• What is your occupation? Wife, mom, teacher's aide (pre-school) & consultant with Pampered Chef
• What color are your socks right now? off white with blue toes and heels
• What are you listening to right now? my girls talk about what they're drawing, Hannah is working on a lesson (we're homeschooling her), so I'm sitting here, while she works, in case she has questions. Oh, on that subject, I had a dream that snuggled in a pile of pajamas in the drawer was a mouse family, a mother nursing babies...we're doing a unit on mammals for real. Isn't it interesting how life influences your dreams?
• What was the last thing that you ate? cinnamon swirl bread
• Can you drive a stick shift? sure, the first car I bought was a standard, an 1988 Toyota Tercel
• If you were a crayon, what color would you be? cornflower blue
• Last person you spoke to on the phone? Chris (one of my brothers-in-law)Favorite Drink? definitely milk
• What is your favorite sport to watch? ballet...it's physical
• Have you ever dyed your hair? never, I like what God gave me and don't plan to change it
• Pets? yes, a bunny named Minty
• Favorite food? piroshki
• Last movie you watched? The Sound of Music
• Favorite day of the year? Pascha! (Orthodox Easter)
• What do you do to vent anger? count, sometimes, or eat chocolate
• What was your favorite toy as a child? Freddy, my little teddy that squeaked
• What is your favorite, fall or spring? spring with all the bulbs blossoming
• Hugs or kisses? actually a big warm hug
• Cherry or Blueberry? We loved picking highbush blueberries in Georgia
• Do you want your friends to reply? Yes, you should all answer these questions, I'd love to know some random facts about YOU
• When was the last time you cried? it's been a long time, I don't cry much
• What is on the floor of your closet? shoes
• Favorite smells? fresh air
• What inspires you? nature
• What are you afraid of? sometimes of (stepping on unknown objects, toys, in the) dark
• Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers? sure, I'll take cheese on my burger, depends on what kind of spices
• Favorite car? I love my Toyota Echo....but it would be nice in sparkly blue
• Number of keys on your key ring? about 5
• How many years at your current job? at the one that pays me $ regularly...just about a year
• Favorite day of the week? Sunday
• What was the last thing you took a photo of? Olivia in her pink-striped pajamas this morning
• How many states have you lived in? New York, Massachusetts, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Connecticut, Ohio, California and Georgia

So, I thought I'd share this recipe for PIROSHKI with you:






Click to enlarge it....
We LOVE them. I'm making a bunch for our Russian Winter's Night (see post below), with ground turkey, instead of beef.
I hope you had a LOVELY valentines day! Rob gave us each a chocolate filled heart (I got turtles, the girls got cream filled ones....Olivia was thrilled to bite into a pink one that tasted like strawberry) and I got a lot from my students...the highlights were a paper airplane that a boy made and wrote his name on and mom wrote "sending his love" on the other side, some tattoos (that Hannah and Olivia immediately put on, when I got home), a pencil (I'm glad for no sugary things), a box of cookies dipped in white chocolate and sprinkles on one side, and a sweet mug with hot cocoa mixes inside! Yesterday, the girls and I each had cup of cocoa, I had hazelnut, Hannah the mint one, and Olivia the raspberry flavored one!

Snow day!

Today, was a "snow" day! It's actually more ice, plus just an inch of snow. It was nice to have a day off. I can't find my camera...I'm sure it's around here somewhere, but I wanted to share this photo of Olivia, she's smiling, because she just put her coat on and was going to play, when I told her that her hood was by her bottom!

I got my Longaberger order. Such fabulous huge cappuccino mugs, which are going into a lovely large basket for the auction Feb. 22nd at the Russian Winter's Night, a fundraiser for our church! We are planning a ground-breaking very soon, probably this May! The building we are in right now is sufficient, but small. My little sister is going to get married in September, for example, and needs to find a place for the reception, it would be great if it could be where the wedding will be, but we don't have enough space!

Sunday is the night our family will watch television. On PBS there are usually (when they're not doing fundraising) some good shows: Nova is usually interesting, WILD is great, Nature is always fabulous and then after that, there is something I usually like....Foyle's War (a few months ago), Miss Marple and recently, films based on books by Jane Austen. The 1st in the Pride and Prejudice series was on, and it's just great, Darcy who is cold, yet attracted to Lizzy, and she always has something great to say to him, when he is being a jerk!
http://www.sonyclassics.com/thejaneaustenbookclub/ Although this looks interesting, I think it may be a bit risqué. Not like Austen's romantic and modest books.

Oh, we learned about the Red Knot (a small bird that migrates from Chile to the Artic) and the Horse Shoe Crab (which has blue blood, did you know that?). There are many controversies surrounding their lives, which are possible in danger.

This mug cosy looks so cute. I wish I could knit better. It's something small, so I will work on it, and probably finish! http://audm.wordpress.com/2008/01/10/mug-cosy-pattern/ I'm participating in a swap, but I am crocheting...and I need to get them in the mail, as soon as possible! Why do I always wait til the last minute to finish things??

Yarn

(That color is really yellow ochre, but it appears more green in this scan.)

Fibers....ah, I love a chunky sweater. Nothing like a homemade scarf, right? Too bad I don't make more! Mom taught me to knit when I was about 9 years old. I made a lot of little bracelets, a 1 inch by 6 inch rectangle! I remember getting my own knitting needles with my Grandma Greene when we went to Scotland.
Then, when I was 15, I learned how to crochet. Now, my 6 year old daughter wants to join in! One of the students in my class today was wearing some cute purple knit legwarmers (mom said her aunt made them!), so now I want to figure out how to do "round" knitting! This book, The Friday Night Knitting Club, is next on my list!

Look at this lovely heart I made today! Check out Michelle's instructions to make your own!

Hannah's hair is now 6 inches shorter. After being so sick last week that brushing her hair hurt her head (admit it, you don't want to brush you hair when you have a fever), we had quite a tangly mess! It would've been a lot of hard work, she was sad, but now, thankfully, she loves her new short hair, it's very cute!

Enjoying the weather while we can, even if there's a LOT of water. I think I need a pair of rainboots. Maybe I'll check out TJ Maxx....if I find a super deal, I might splurge, I'd sure get good use out of them!
(Thanks, Jo, for the coats, the girls love 'em!)

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Tomorrow is my mom's 63rd birthday! I'm hoping we can bake her a cake, if no one else beats us to it (or I guess we'll have lots of sweets)!

We are feeling much better today, still coughing a lot, though. It was the first day back to ballet in a LONG time.

Sunday night, Rob and the girls (we are not football people) watched Nature on PBS and then I watched week 2 of the Austen special, it was pretty good, although it was a little modernized (I think) in some respects.

Dad reading the Sunday comics to Hannah and Olivia!
Thank you, Kim. So, if you want someone to be able to click on your photo so that it appears in a new window, larger...select none, when they ask photo placement ("none - left - center - right ")!

Say a prayer for us, please!

Well, we have been under-the-weather here this week. Thankfully, Rob is fine, so he has been taking care of us, pretty well! I can't wait to be 100% again. I'm regaining my strength, but I'm so tired, even though I've been eating hardly anything and sleeping half of the days away!

It's so chilly here, when I feel better, I plan on making this soup, it looks so warm & scrumptious! (P.S. Can someone help me out? How come sometimes if you click on the photos they will come up big on a new page, and sometimes not?)