Happy Anniversary to Me!

Today makes thirteen years we have been happily married!  Lucky 13!  Oh, and this was the first wedding.  The second is May 15, and the third is July 5.  I'll post photos from each event.  :)

Our first wedding took place on the island of Tortolla, just us and a couple dozen complete strangers who became friends. 

Signs of Spring

Hello my lovely... I worried about you during the last freeze, but you did not fail to please!

LuLu's preschool is watching out for butterflies and other signs of spring.  This little guy has been "spotted" in our backyard twice now.

Naturalized pansies doing their thing!

My strawberries are blooming!

These started out as just a couple of store bought plants and some tiny transplants from our old house.

Pretty little geraniums are beginning to bloom.

My ferns overwintered in the basement.  This was an experiment, as I had never kept ferns from one season to the next.  They look a little rough... but are showing some signs of new fronds poking up.

Super Hubby tuned up my lawnmower!  Yep, I do all the mowing.  I actually enjoy doing it.

Oh, and of course, the weeds are doing well too!

Finally!!!

This little face says it all....

She finally can ride her bike without training wheels!

Not to be outdone, little sister has that determined look on her face.

Well, I think that is definitely a mission accomplished!

Thrifty Thursday

I went to an estate sale and stopped by my local St Vincent's today.  Those items are still in the trunk of my car.  But I do have some pics of finds from last week.  Here we go....

This soooo reminds me of when I was a little girl.  I loved Holly Hobby and the "Little House on the Praire" series.  This little wooden box purse is in great condition, decoupaged with lots of Holly Hobby images.

I found this little birdie in perfect condition.  She has the faintest hint of a blue underglaze.

More birds, little ceramic ones, in orange and white.

Some old canning jars...

I'll use these for storage in the craft room.  Maybe buttons?

Being a former teacher, I LOVE vintage school items.  Imagine my squeal when I found this for 1.99!

It's an old one. I wonder how many school children heard this ring?

Lastly, I found two matching art deco aluminum bread plates manufactured by Kensington.  I think this is the pineapple pattern, but I was reminded of Scottish thistle which is why I bought them. 

Happy thrifting!

Happy Birthday Nana!

Today is Nana's birthday!  Happy, happy birthday Nana!!!

I hope she has a wonderful day!

Operation Ladybug Rescue!

Today I went down to our basement to open the windows.  What I found  in the unfinished part of our basement was a swarm of ladybugs, or ladybeetles, flying around and crawling around on the walls.  Cute little guys, but not at all what I was expecting! 

I quick-grabbed a ziplock and started stuffing bugs inside.  Well... not one of my smarter ideas but it made for great entertainment for the girls. 

I scooped up beetles, filled the bag partially, then took them outside on the porch where the girls helped me release them "into the wild". 

There were red ones, orange ones, ones with lots of spots and some with no spots at all.

We made several trips to the basement to gather these little critters.

Eventually I figured out that I could just remove the window screens, open the windows completely and they would (almost) all fly outside into the sunshine.  I hope they stay in the garden and not fly away too far!

Happy Easter!