Horse Heads In The Garden

January 27, 2017January 27, 2017 - robin

My Larry’s birthday is in December

and

he is not a birthday guy.

{we are a birthday family and he pisses us off sometimes

by not wanting to celebrate}

Excuse my French.

So, for his birthday, I gave him a hollow horse head.

He filled it with nuts and seed,

(using peanut butter for the seed to stick to….. hung it in the garden

and

squirrels were supposed to flock to it and would be hilarious!

This is where it hangs in the back garden.

This is the view from above.

Note seed and corn on the ground.

{there is food IN the hollow horse head,

but Larry sprinkled food on the ground with hopes

of attracting one of the hundreds of squirrels in the neighborhood}

This darn thing has been hanging there

since the second weekend in December.

No squirrels yet, but look, corn and sunflowers are growing!

This is the ad for the squirrel feeder…..

I think they saw me coming.

****

There are 17 days till Valentine’s Day!

Today’s love quote:

Sometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eye.

~h. jackson Brown jr~

Love you.

Bloggers Block

January 26, 2017January 26, 2017 - robin

I am struggling with the blog today.

There is no sweet story or funny moment to share.

I just feel agitated.

This new web site is dreamy.

I love it and love the complexities of it

but, as you might have noticed, I have not made it “mine” yet.

I did try a few things when I was not feeling well the past few days.

BAD IDEA.

I should never work on a computer when sick.

So here I am, wanting to change everything I did.

And, another thing, no one hardly ever leaves me comments,

except the idiot spammers trying to sell me something.

HELP! How do I block them?

I am just thinking out loud…

I just wanted to thank you for being patient as I figure

the new site out.

*******

A Valentine gift arrived Tuesday night.

He was in a huge box and was expected.

He will live in the gazebo

and

create a spot for me of calm and where I can

practice yoga.

There are 18 days till Valentine’s Day

Today’s love quote:

Love has no uttermost,

as the stars have no number

and the sea no rest.

~eleanor farjeon~

I wish you a calm, pleasant day

filled with your favorite things.

Love you.

Beyond The Roue de Paris

January 25, 2017January 25, 2017 - robin

Yesterday, I felt under the weather.

{had a cold}

It was beautiful outside and felt like I missed the entire day.

I read in bed then knitted and watched TV.

Last night, I cuddled next to My Larry

and

watched a great documentary on William Shakespeare.

It was kind of awesome.

*****

There are 19 days left till Valentine’s Day.

Today’s Love Quote:

Doubt thou the stars are fire;

Doubt that the sun doth move;

Doubt truth to be a liar;

But never doubt I love.

~william shakespeare~

Larry Is in San Antonio and he always reads Toujours..

Hello Love.

I hope that you have a nice day

and that your meetings go well.

Do you remember the year that we spent

Valentine’s Day In France?

That was kind of awesome too.

Libby and I miss you

and

love you beyond Le Grande Roue Ride.

American Sampler

January 23, 2017January 23, 2017 - robin

It is funny to me,

that something can be hidden in a drawer for thirty years

and

once found, it can become an important possession.

A few weeks ago,

I found a crewel embroidery kit in the guest room dresser.

I stashed it in the work room to deal with later

and last Friday,

while watching the inauguration of President Trump,

I saw it on my work table.

The long lost crewel embroidery kit.

{dated 1980-when on earth did I buy it?}

As I opened the crumpled old packaging,

my lap top was streaming Donald Trump vowing

to be the best president that he can be.

The linen fabric, in my hand became an important reminder.

Oh beautiful for spacious skies…..

In all of the drama surrounding the presidential election,

citizen voices have forgotten one thing.

This is our country.

Amber waves of grain and purple mountain majesties…..

how can we expect someone to step up and make everything “good”

if we are not willing to make the same promise for OUR country?

I hope that I never forget that feeling.

I have promised that each night I will put stitches in this beautiful sampler

and with each stitch promising to be a better citizen.

Started on January 20, 2017.

This is the Inauguration Sampler.

It is in a basket by my bed.

Each stitch, it will be my promise to never forget

how beautiful this country is

and

how lucky we are to live here.

I wish everyone had an Inauguration Sampler.

It is a wonderful reminder

that God shed his grace on thee…from sea to shining sea.

Love you.

Six Year Molars and Assorted Fun

January 20, 2017January 20, 2017 - robin

On Wednesday night, my phone rang.

A little voice said: Robi, tomorrow is my 1/2 birthday.

Will you and Pa come for cake?

I said: of course!

After dinner yesterday, we headed to Matilda’s house.

We were greeted by Matilda, wanting to show off her 6 year molars.

Yup.

They are coming up!

Then we watched as she opened her 1/2 birthday gift.

{a bead craft set}

Her 1/2 birthday balloons were awesome!

I think that she was very happy yesterday.

She put, 5 and 1/2 candles on her cake….

Her Momma lit the candles, we sang

and

Ma Cherie made a wish.

Then we

Played CLUE!

It was a fun evening.

Larry and I are thankful that we were included.

The sun is shining today and my cup runneth over…

*******

There are 24 days till Valentine’s Day

Today’s Love Quote:

There is never a time or place for true love.

It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat.

~sarah dessen~

I wish you a lovely weekend…

Love you.

A Wink and a Smile

January 19, 2017January 19, 2017 - robin

He loves everything with sugar.

Perhaps that is why he is so sweet?

I know that is a bit corny, but true.

My Larry is a candy eating, wine collecting, man.

But,

{there is always a but, isn’t there?}

But…..he is absolutely killing me.

I am on medications that make me gain weight.

I am happy just staying where I am {wight wise}

but

temptation is all around me.

Good grief.

I quit smoking, cold turkey in 1995,

{June 26th to be exact}

since I am married to Mr Enabler,

this journey to health has been, interesting.

The photo above was taken this morning after he left for work.

Humm, do you think that he is hinting for me to bake a cake?

Ok. I surrender. Wink.

********

There are 25 days till Valentine’s Day.

Today’s love quote:

Love conquers all things; let us too surrender to love.

~virgil~

I believe when Virgil wrote that,

he was not thinking of me eating a piece of cake.

Have a happy, wonderful day.

Love you.

Of Course

January 18, 2017January 18, 2017 - robin

It was so gloomy outside, I felt quite undone.

Larry was away all day and I planned something quiet and calm.

A spaghetti dinner, with salad, left-over pizza and wine.

Of course, candles and music.

We sat at the table as the fog turned into dark…and we talked.

It was a perfect evening.

Life is such an interesting string of events that make us who we are.

How awesome is it that mine include a man like Larry?

*********

There are 26 days till Valentine’s Day.

Today’s love quote:

The consciousness of loving and being loved brings a warmth

and

richness to life that nothing else can bring.

~oscar wild~

No matter where you are or how you are,

please remember that only you can make this day into something special.

Love you.

Pretzel Pizza~Chef Valentine

January 17, 2017January 17, 2017 - robin

I do not love pizza as much as I love pretzels,

but this was exactly what I was craving.

I did a little research and here is what I came up with.

Pretzel Pepperoni Pizza

1 box of any pretzel mix – I used Fleishmans Pretzel mix.

{Auntie Ann has a box also}

1/4 pound Boarshead pepperoni {I like it sliced fresh cut at the deli}

1 jar Tostitio queso {medium heat}

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 egg- well beaten. {for egg wash}

********

Follow directions on the pretzel box to make dough.

{it is super easy}

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

When dough is ready, spray Pam on cookie sheet or pizza pan.

Spread dough out, pizza style on prepared baking pan.

Brush egg wash just around outside edge.

Sprinkle pretzel salt over egg wash. {the outside edge of pizza}

Place oven and bake for 5 minutes.

Bring out the crust.

Now, spoon thin layer of cheese queso over the center of crust

spreading to just the outside crust, do not cover the egg wash.

Place pepperonis in the center, I use 6-8 of them

and

then cover with shredded mozzarella cheese.

Bake pizza for about 15 minutes at 450 degrees or till crust is golden.

Serve with a crisp salad.

This was so good….Larry wants to heat up left overs tonight!

Enjoy!

Till next time.

Valentine

Joy

January 17, 2017January 17, 2017 - robin

Last summer, I left Face Book for a few months.

The negitive postings

either upset me or made me sad.

I returned because I was missing many of my daughters posts.

{and photos of grand daughter, Matilda!}

Last evening, after being appalled at a friends post,

I thought why do I log on to this ignorant site?

Half of my friends voted red, half blue.

Do you know what is awesome?

They VOTED!

But now they are trying to convince the population of Face Book

that they made the best choice.

Really?

I wish I had that kind of time to waste.

So, in honor of the “dear ones”

who find that fighting about politics on Face Book is productive,

I am going to buy a case of beans

and

donate it to Minnie’s Food Pantry in Plano.

TODAY I CHOOSE JOY

{wouldn’t it be awesome, for every political argument on Face Book

a case of food would be donated to a food pantry?}

Libby Pug is lazy in the studio,

but will be asleep soon. It is early.

*******

There are 27 days till Valentine’s Day

Love quote for today is:

Love must be as much a light as a flame.

~henry david thoreau~

I love you.

robintolbert.com

Ramblings of an Artsy Grandmother~Blogging since 2005

Author: robin

Horse Heads In The Garden

Bloggers Block

Beyond The Roue de Paris

American Sampler

Six Year Molars and Assorted Fun

A Wink and a Smile

Of Course

Pretzel Pizza~Chef Valentine

Joy