Tea for Two and Two for Tea (insert musical notes here); One for You and One for Me….. (more musical notes…) Just Singin’ in the Rain, Just Singin’ in the Rain…. (continue with the musical notes, and sing along if you wish!)

So – what do the 2 songs have to do with each other? Not much unless you are a follower of Thursday Sweet Treat blog (http://www.thursdaysweettreat.blogspot.com/). Natasha publishes a phrase each Friday for artist’s inspiration during the week. The next Thursday, photos are published of what the artists’ created.

Last week the phrase was “Let Beauty Rain Down Upon Us”. I didn’t get a project done, but a lot of other artists did, including Lois from Our Name is Mud. Now – here’s where the 2 songs connect…. Lois created a cute little Tea Pot using the theme!! You can see her submission along with many other beautiful items on the Blog. And while you are blogging, be sure to stop by Lois’s blog – http://www.ournameisblog.blogspot.com/ . After reading about Lois’s vacation, I am glad my kids are grown!

After a dinner of homemade lasagna and decadent chocolate cake on Fat Tuesday, I woke up today still feeling full. Which won’t last long – it is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, and a day of fasting.

Lent is a time to reflect on my life and to work at making it better. A time to give up some bad habit, and a time to improve what I can. The 40 days of lent are based on the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert, fasting and praying before he was put to death. I can’t spend 40 days isolated, but I will do what I can, pray more than usual, and fast not by giving up all food, but by giving up some of my favorites. And it’s a time to look forward to Easter and Spring.

Something else to look forward to – I am going to start a series of instruction on intarsia and segmentation - the woodworking that I do. I want to take the same pattern and make it using both styles, and posting the steps involved. Stay tuned!

Mardi Gras Season

It's Mardi Gras season. Fat Tuesday is tomorrow, then lent begins. Enjoy this mask photo as you contemplate what the seasons mean to you. And have a donut or two while you can....

Winter in Michigan, Summer in Italy.

It's snowing again in Michigan this morning. After weeks of the cold, windy weather, I need to take a virtual vacation somewhere warm.

So I went through last summer's pictures of our trip to Europe. The hottest day there - the day we toured Venice.

As we were walking through town, I caught this display outside of a shop. I immediately thought of Dad and his wine making and snapped this picture for him.

What a (virtual) vacation! Eating gelato on the hot streets of Venice, and watching Dad make wine out of home grown grapes!

Thursday Sweet Treat

Dreaming in Color

The blog, http://www.thursdaysweettreat.blogspot.com/ puts out a wonderful Friday inspiration theme each week. Anyone who wants to participate then has the next week to work on a project and send a picture in to the blog. This week's theme was Dreaming in Color, and this was my submission. Be sure to visit her blog to see all the other great submissions, and to participate if you want!

Celtic Sun mirror
I believe your dreams are a reflection of who you are, and only you can make them come true. I found some of the more colorful woods in my shop to make this mirror. The satin wood, purple heart, oak, and red exotic wood are all natural colored - no stains or dyes were used in the sun.

A View from the Train

My husband and I got away for a weekend - no kids, no cooking, no dishes. We took a tour up to Soo Canada and the winter train ride to Agawa Canyon. 4 hours up, and 4 hours back. Because of the weather we couldn't get off at the canyon. That was OK - way too cold to hang out outside.

This is the view out our train window looking towards the engine.