Thinking of Mom

Happy Monday to you!  You all know that our weather has been so unusual this  year~lately we've enjoyed warmed days, but snow is expected tonight and tomorrow.  Only in Colorado!  This morning when I took Hunter outside, I was so surprised to see these lovelies, gifted me last summer from a dear friend.  I didn't expect them to be up so soon, but they are gorgeous!  My friend gave me about a dozen, maybe more bulbs.  Every time I see them I will think of her and being that my mother loved these beauties-they will remind me of her as well.  One thing I love about Iris plants-you don't need to dig them up every year. I think this will be a gardening match!
Have a great day!
Noreen

Happy Saturday! Yesterday I took my two daughters for a Pedicure as part of their birthday presents from last year. As moms, they often don't indulge in pampering themselves and I'm so glad I treated them; in fact, I think it will become a tradition.

They give so much to so many and it was a privilege to bless them; they bless me so much. Have a great weekend!
Noreen

Misc. Friday

Happy Friday to you! Some of you have wondered why you can't leave comments, right now~well I've been getting a lot of spam from Asia, which are long. The only way to avoid it was to stop comments for awhile; please don't give up on me. It's Friday and started out gorgeous, but has gotten cooler this afternoon. I gifted my two daughters certificates for Pedi's as a birthday present and today we are going to have them done. Of course, I'm going too; its definitely more fun that way. Here is one of the puppies from Copper's litter; they've all have forever homes and will be leaving by Mother's Day weekend. With them being 7 weeks old, it has gotten a lot more work for the family. Let me tell you that they are so cute though!

I received this picture this morning from my walking buddy who is on St. John's Island for the week-isn't that a glorious site.  Have to say I was a bit envious when I received this; just so glad she and her hubby went.

Not much else new here; we are getting ready for our traveling friends to come in a week-lots to do around the house.  She will be going to hear several quilt speakers with me and we will be taking them to Steamboat for a couple of days; of course we'll stop in Laramie to have lunch and hit two quilt stores.  We so miss them; she is my quilting mentor and we always have a blast playing cards and games.  We also have another trip planned with them to Yellowstone and the Tetons.  Can't wait for that one.
Have a fantastic weekend!
Joy to  you!
Noreen

Happy Wednesday to you! Spring is finally here in Colorado and we've been enjoying beautiful days. Yesterday I joined two friends at the Colorado Cherry Company for lunch. It recently opened, so they still have some things to work out-like their service. Food was good~lots of flat breads, great salads, quiches, hand pies and they are known for their Cherry Pies. The dressing on the beet salad I ordered was Cherry Vinargarette and so delicious. They also had lots of local merchandize for sale; it is just a really cute place.

My two girlfriends, Ruth and Julie.

Love this covered bridge; it is the first in our area.

The colors on this tractor just said spring to me.

Today I'm off to the gym and then this afternoon going to see the new movie Unbreakable starring Chrissy Metts.
I've closed  comments due to a lot of spam I'm getting from other countries, hopefully none of you are having the same issues.
Have a wonderful day!
Joy to you.
Noreen

Our Easter

Hello All, Yesterday we had the entire Colorado clan gather for lunch at our home. While our girls host Thanksgiving and Christmas, when we are here I take Easter. We came together for an easy pot luck lunch of cold cuts, cheeses, all the fixings, rolls, potato salad, deviled eggs, green salad, drinks and two wonderful dessert that I didn't get photos of. This year, we added in Eric's parents, his sister and her little girl; it was such fun, but would have been better if it had been sunny out.

Today I'm off to the gym, then to walk with neighbors and finally to sew. I'm still plugging alone of our Eleanor Burns quilt; it is so fun for our mini group to be working on the same project, but some of the blocks are getting more difficult. I hope you had a great weekend, Passover or Easter.
Joy to you!
Noreen

Easter Blessings

From our heart and home to  yours, may you experience the Risen Lord Jesus in Glory and Love.  We will gather with all of our family that are here in Colorado today and there will be 21 of us for lunch. Rain is in the forecast, so all we be inside-such fun!   Blessings to you and yours.
Happy Easter~
Noreen

Sisters

Last weekend we celebrated two of Kim's girls birthdays; Miss S is 14 and our Peanut-Miss M is 12. Where have the years gone?! When you have a family our size it is a party in and of itself. Look at that spread-so good.

The best gifts are those of love.

Eric once again outdid himself decorating the cake-it was so good.

It's rainy today here in beautiful Colorado and all our lawns are bright green, my bulbs are coming up too.  I won't plant anything new until mid May, due to the possibility of frost or snow.
This weekend will be full with food preparation for Easter~we will have 21 here for lunch on Sunday.  It is supposed to rain, so we will stay inside; we are so thankful for a large home that can easily accommodate that many people.  Blessings to you this Easter!
Noreen

Only In Colorado

Hello friends~yesterday we had a beautiful, warm day-it was 80 degrees and our hope for spring was truly there.  About a month ago, we got a storm from California and it was a big one-they called it a Cyclone Bomb, with blizzard conditions.  So when the news kept telling us we were in for another, those hopes of spring quickly disintegrated. Thankfully, hubby and I got out early to the gym and grocery store, prior to the snow.  We've been told that the snow will not hurt out spring bulbs and shrubs, but I'll see.
I'm heading downstairs now to sew. Later we will watch a couple of movies that we got.
I know it will move east from here, so hope that it doesn't hit you too hard.
Hugs,
Noreen

Catch UP

Happy Monday to you!  The birds are singing this morning, the sky is blue, warmer temps today and life is good.  The quilt above has been such a trial for me-while I love the colors and pattern that I got last spring in Kauai, the fabric ended up have something other than cotton in it and stretched. You can see the wobbles.  I was so frustrated with it, but it is for our grands to use for picnics at the park.  In fact, when it's done I'm handing it off to them.  Although in many ways, I'm not a perfectionist, I try to be and this has just bugged me so much.  I will get the dark green back on and call it good; if anything spills on it or if it gets stained, it's fine.  It's one of those projects that I would have just folded and put away.
On another note-six puppies have sold, so just one girl and the smaller male  have to find their forever homes.  I'm off to the gym today and plan to have a three mile walk later on as well.  I'm also working on a small project that I can't share as it is a little love gift for a friend.  I pray this finds you all well.
Joy to you!
Noreen

AWWW

Happy Wednesday to you!  On Sunday I got to puppysit again and it is amazing how big they are getting; here they are at 3 weeks.  Another amazing thing is how they love dog piling-it is so funny to see how they will pile on top on one another and crawl under their litter mates.  They are all growing so fast and are now playing with each other and barking.  I actually rubbed one on Sunday, who was sound asleep and she growled; it was funny.  So far, five already have forever homes and two more have inquiries.
Each day continues to fly by and I wonder where in the world the hours went and why I didn't get more done.  I wonder if anyone else feels this way?
Off to cut fabric.
Blessings,
Noreen

Take Me To The Mountains

Happy April to you! If you are one of those folks who indulge in Practical Jokes, watch out-you might be next. Yesterday afternoon hubby and I took a drive up to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park; Estes was so deserted, though there were a few tourists but not what we are used to. Due to last weeks snow, we couldn't get into the area we wanted to hike. It was fine, we just did the loop through the park looking for wildlife. You can see by these photos storm clouds were moving in.

Mule Deer were the only wildlife we saw; they are pretty scrawny, I'm sure because of the lack of vegetation.

It was an enjoyable drive; my heart sings when we go up there.  Today has been busy, but productive.
Tomorrow I'm planning on spending the day sewing, other than a meeting with our financial manager.
I hope you have a great first week of April!
Blessings~
Noreen