...photo overload last post

Talkeetna river view from this plane...Seward which was my favorite...and driving across the state with a busted window. North to the future!

Alaska Pictures

Going back through Alaska pictures - uploaded everything on photobucket.com. Cool site!

Pictures of me and my mate in Denali National Park...almost getting in trouble with a moose...Me & Chelsea in front of McKinley...

Fat, hairy cats! (with scary eyes)

Look! Feared Arctic snow cats indiginous to Whatcom County.

They always lick their bums on the nicest fabric in the house.

Investigative Wedding Planning

So there aren't many terra cotta pots out there without the distinct lip, but the prices are good.

Sunshine Liquidators sells their pots for $0.50 each and saucers for $0.05. 2 sizes to choose from: 6 3/4 inch diameter, 7.5 inch diameter.

Home Depot (not a great selection this time of year) had 4 inch pots for $0.78 and 8.5 inch for $2.18.

With the sage ribbon, the lip will be covered. What do you think, bride-to-be? I think they'll look fabulous whatever you choose. It would be fun to do a mix of small and large, some pots with 3 varieties, others with singles like basil and lavender. Here's the look we're going for friends:

http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.0e0eb51a2e6b5ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=1fae2e912b11f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&autonomy_kw=terracotta%20pots&rsc=header_9

A few projects:

Dad gave me a palm sander for Christmas compelling me to finally paint the molding in the bedroom and living room. Wow - it's almost been 3 years since we refinished the floors, so I'm a little late. Fortunately limited cat hair stuck to the oil based paint. I also repotted the 'Norfolk Pine' I won at the Birchwood Garden Club raffle. Nerd!

Joel built me a 12 x 3' bed for vegetables. The neighbor asked if we were "building a coffin for Seahawks hopes and dreams." Look how big my shadow is!

Hey good lookin'

What I've got cookin'.

Trying a couple of recipes from Bob Greene's Best Life Diet.

For Dinner: Corn Chowder with Shrimp Serves 6

One 10-oz box frozen Niblets corn in butter sauce (I used plain)
1 T light olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 c)
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped (1 c)
1 stalk celery, chopped (1/3 c)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 c reduced fat chicken broth
1 large potato, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 t chopped fresh or 1/4 t dried thyme leaves
1/8 t cayenne pepper
2 c nonfat milk
2 T flour
12 oz peeled and deveined shrimp

Heat olive oil over medium heat. Cook onion, pepper, celery and garlic until tender. Add broth, potato, thyme and cayenne. Heat until boiling. Reduce, cover and simmer 10 min.

Add corn to the mix. Bring back to a boil. Pour milk in a medium sized bowl and heat in the microwave for 2 minutes. Add flour to warm milk and whisk until smooth. Stir milk into chowder and bring back to boil. Reduce heat, simmer soup uncovered until thickened, about 5 min. Stir in shrimp, heat through, 1-2 min. Add S & P to taste, and chili flakes are good too.

Per serving: 242 cal, 21 g protein, 21 g carbs, 29 g fiber, 4 g fat, 1 g sat fat, 115 mg cholesterol, 159 mg calcium, 299 mg sodium.

...and for Breakfast: An Oprah Original: Chocolate-Strawberry Smoothies Serves 2

2 c light chocolate soymilk
1 medium banana, in chunks
2 c frozen unsweetened strawberries

Blend on high speed for a minute or two. Serve immediately.

Per serving: 192 cal, 8 g protein, 38 g carbs, 5 g fiber, 2 g fat, 0 sat fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 326 mg calcium, 183 mg sodium

Hell, if it gets Oprah through the day.

Fin-spiration

In addition to freshly painted molding in the bedroom (and fumes still) there is new artwork. After I saw the Martha Stewart show featuring this project by Anna Marie Horner I started to read her blog. She has great ideas and her entries are thoughtful. My painted silhouettes feature Coho salmon and cool fabric from Fourth Corner Quilts. Hopefully Joel will get a kick out of it.

House to Myself

Joel has been in Kentucky all week for work. I thought I'd feature a few of his favorite things on the new blog. He gets home tomorrow and there is more wood to chop, a big pile behind the garage - the future site of my vegetable garden.

Meow.

Here are replicas of Anne and Kenny's cats, Wampus & Squonk. Although they're really black, Joel had a HUGE pair of jeans that provided yards of denim - perfect for stuffed kitties. Pattern courtesy: Denyse Schmidt's QUILT.

"She's a Witch. Burn her!"

I purchased this 'Diane' witch hazel last year for winter interest in the front yard. I was starting to think it was a dud until it bloomed this week. The fragrant blooms are fire red.

About Peed My Pants...

I would've never found this kind of stuff online with a full time job! I look forward to spending money on etsy next time I have it. The Mutha Crafter created this!

A Hoot

I was short on funds this holiday season, but could afford felt. I made my sister Anne some owl ornaments inspired by the pattern on Anna Marie Horner's website.

Merry Christmas Mom

This project has been in the works since May - it turns out that triangles are hard to match up. It looks like an innocent enough lap quilt, but I think I took it apart 5 times. Thanks to my friend Christina for the lesson in bias tape, allowing me to finish before Christmas.