A LOVE-ly Day

Happy Valentine's Day! We currently have a lovely floral display in our kitchen – thanks to the tulips from the girls last night and the roses from hubby this morning! Smells great. Now just gotta keep them all alive!

Sometime this morning, my sister Rachel texted me to see if we had plans for the day. Turns out that she and our sister Rayna were not anxious to get home to Wisconsin after a month-plus in Florida so they wanted a detour.

So they came from St. Louis and made it here to have a tasty Valentine's dinner at The Ridges. Rachel got her hair braided and beaded when they hopped over to the Bahamas last week. How fun!

After dinner, the four of us played cards – competing like it was an Olympic sport, naturally – then watched some real Olympic recaps so we could see our Wisconsin boy speed skate to another gold! That's so awesome.

My sisters are staying here tonight at the Bloody Run Creek Cabin and we'll figure out the mayhem of church choir and pancake breakfast and BINGO in the morning.

For now it's just nice to have a house full of love. Hope you can say the same! 

We're All Seniors at Some Point

Tonight was Senior Night for our Lady Royals basketball squad. They've been fun to watch in various sports over the years and a few of them, I took their senior pictures.

So after I took pictures of them tonight introduced with their parents tonight, one of them came over to me with flowers. FOR ME!

I was so surprised and touched. And when I got home, I realized the "thank you" card was signed by all 5 seniors. That really touched my heart. I mean I love taking pictures, but I never know in this digital age how much it matters to this generation.

And technically, I am a SENIOR but not in the way I like to acknowledge. So yay, Senior Night!

What I do promise... is that I'll try my hardest to keep these tulips alive and thriving because, honest to God, it's not every day that people appreciate this little photography skill. I already told hubby he's off the hook for Valentine's Day. He can't top flowers on behalf of 5 people.

Or can he? 💜

Dinner and a Movie... and Snow

Happy Valentine's Day! Hope you're all feeling the love from somebody – even yourself!

Since we both had to work today, we couldn't be Valentine-ing all day. But we made plans to go to a 4:40 p.m. movie in hopes of beating the snowstorm.

What movie? Well it's the Craig T. Nelson one about John Deere tractors.... you know, Green and Gold? Honestly, the hardest part was saying the name of the movie out loud to get the tickets. But it's not a Packer movie. If you are a farmer, or know a farmer, or appreciate farmers, this movie will tug at your heartstrings. A neat story you should see... and bring Kleenex. Lots of Kleenex. 

Since the snow was really coming down when the show let out, we headed straight home and got a pizza from Italia's down the road. Which we both love, so that counts as a romantic Valentine's dinner to me!

Now we wait to see how much snow silently falls while we're sleeping. Latest forecasts I saw were 5-7  inches here. But Wisconsin Rapids is right on that imaginary line on the weather map, so may just get 3-5. Either way, I am not setting any alarm. It will be a minute before I can leave the house tomorrow.

Be careful out there! 

Love Stories

First of all, happy belated Valentine's Day! I was busy doing things I love yesterday. Sort of. I mean there was work first, but the our boss got us heart-shaped pizza for lunch. So what's not to love about that?

From work, I raced back to Rapids so I could practice choir a few minutes before our Ash Wednesday church service. Yes, Lent is here. The ultimate love story, right? 

Singing went well and then we had practice to learn a new song to sing this coming Sunday. By time I got home to see my valentine, it was after 8 p.m. We exchanged gifts AND he had a Shamrock Shake waiting for me. What's not to love about that? I will have to make that last a few days!

After that, I had a few hundred hockey photos from the night before to edit so it was definitely straight to bed and no blogging when I got done at 11 p.m. – on a "school night" as we say.

Woke up this morning to a sight I do not love. I know I shouldn't be surprised to see snow – it is February after all – but I was loving the mild temps and DRY commute. It was a bit on the slick side this morning!

Tonight, as I previously blogged about, we went the Rapids airport to hear author John Armbruster share his experience writing the book Tailspin – a nonfiction account of WWII vet Eugene Moran's survival of falling 4 miles in the air after being shot down by Germany fighter pilots AND being a POW. 

As I also mentioned previously, we got ahold of the book a few months ago because our friend's daughter is married to Moran's grandson. Tonight I got to talk to him and asked it he knew about any of this story before the book was done. He said his grandpa died when he was about 20 and all he knew was about the 4-mile fall.

Mr. Armbruster (I'm just going to call him John) had quite a display there tonight. Lots of newspaper articles about Moran and various artifacts...

Including a letter to Moran's mother when he was first declared missing in action.

Very interesting to look at.

And interesting to hear the story and see pictures and hear actual audio of Moran telling John about some of the things that happened in the Rikki Tikki Tavi aircraft.

Loved that John signed all our books and loved that there was a good crowd in the airport hangar to support him and learn more. As someone who loves reading (and writing), that was great to see and be a part of.

If anyone wants to borrow our book, you can. Otherwise it's available on Amazon and quite possibly Target and Wal-Mart. One of my sisters is reading it on Kindle right now and texted me how intense it is. I said, yep, and I feel badly that even though I say "Thank you for your service" to veterans, that I didn't give a lot more love and attention to those WWII survivors.

I'm sure there's a lot of untold stories out there. We're glad John was able to share this one.

Hug your loved ones! And appreciate them for their sacrifices – big or small. 

Family of the Month

OK, we didn't win a family award. Today was our monthly family game day-dinner at my oldest sister's house in Siren. 

We all can't make it every month, but we had Mom and 7 of the 8 R's there today. The 8th R was just landing after a warm vacay, so she was excused.

Jim and I couldn't believe that we traveled 4 hours NORTH and still didn't find winter. Obviously no ice fishing going on.

Lots of folks out enjoying another spring-like day.

Shared the road with three such vehicles between Neillsville and Osseo. Since it wasn't quite as spring-y as previous days this week, I was happy to be inside our heated vehicle!

Our hostess Rayna said we could dress for whatever occasion we wanted – red for Valentine's Day (or Super Bowl colors) and Mardi Gras colors. Since she's actually been to Fat Tuesday in New Orleans, she greeted us with her colorful self!

I tried on the Jester's hat and determined it had too much green for this purple and yellow loving gal.

After a delicious lunch, we tried our hand at Mexican Train Dominoes. Now the last time Mom and I played this was probably 10 years ago when Rayna and Paul lived in Texas. The others hadn't played it before at all. Took a bit to remember but I managed to win one round and Mom won two in a row. And one time she just had one tile left – to represent her 8 R's, I say.

"Mom, teach me your winning ways!"

Got to see my twin today, too, so that was a bonus, as always. Oh I see I'm wearing beads here. Trust me, I did nothing ontoward to earn them!

Here's the gang with Mom somewhat squeezed into the picture.

And just us kiddos. Jim and brother-in-law Rick were the plus-ones of the day. So fun!

We wanted half of our drive to be in daylight so we left late afternoon and got home at 7:30 p.m. That gives us time to rest up for church and the Super Bowl tomorrow (in that order).

Hope you're enjoying a good weekend and are blessed to have a family as amazing as mine!

Off the Rails Date Night

Hubby and I finally celebrated Valentine's Day tonight in grand style at The Grand Theater in Wausau. Well, we used the tickets I bought him, that is. And seeing comedian Lewis Black in person was pretty darn cool.

We've been fans of this sharp-witted, sharp-tongued sense of humor and sarcastic rants for a long time. He was a regular on the Bob and Tom Show we'd listen to on the radio on our hour commute to Iola for 10-plus years. We've also seen him on the Daily Show and very funny guest appearance on Big Bang.

We headed up to Wausau after Jim got home from baseball practice. Since The Grand is located on the 400 block, we parked near the theater and walked to check out nearby restaurants. And who should we run into behind the theater but the man of the hour...

After gushing all over him like a fan girl, Mr. Black happily obliged to a selfie with us. We really couldn't stop smiling after that. How cool, right?

And after a quick Italian dinner at Ciao, we resumed our smiling and laughing until after 10 p.m. My face hurts!

But boy did we need that! Other than running into a former co-worker, there was 4 blissful hours of no thoughts about work or any stressors in life. Just like running into Mr. Black in the back alley, the timing of this date night was impeccable.

Laughter might just be the best medicine!

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day! Hope you could feel the love today from someone! I did. It was a sweet day!

Got some sweet gifts from hubby. Heard from that sweet child of mine. Heard from my sweet momma and my sweet siblings. Had that sweet trifle at work today. And tonight took pictures at senior night when our boys got a sweet 87-53 victory!

Sweet!

Now I have some photos to edit and am hoping for a sweet 8 hours of sleep!

Love and all that mushy stuff, friends! XOXO

Vic-Tory Valentines

Neither rain nor sleet nor snow – or all 3 – was going to prevent us from celebrating Valentine's Day. Well my gift to hubby anyway. I got tickets to Vic Ferrari's Symphony on the Rocks concert because our friend Kat is the lead female vocalist.

And she used to sing with Jim in swing choir. 

Yup, a longtime friend that I've gotten the privilege to know over the years, too! 

After enjoying fish fries at the nearby Great Dane Brew Pub, the stage was set for a fun night. 

I got tickets in the front row of the balcony so we could see everything – because to see violins, cellos, and brass accompanying a rock 'n' roll band. Very, very cool!

And Kat is so cool and so talented! Those boots, though! Wow. The whole band is talented. This is their 35th and final year together so I'd encourage you to see them if you can this summer.

Afterward the classmates got to catch up a few minutes before more adoring fans whisked her away for a photo of her in her boots. They definitely wanted those. What a rock star.

On the way home – while snowing and raining – we were listing to the very close Badgers game on the radio. Got home with 3 minutes and 13 seconds left of the game! 

Just in time to see them win and move on in the NCAA tourney. Victory!

By then, it was too late for this old lady to blog. Got up at 8 a.m. today so I could go to book club. Great that all 6 of us were there today! Then after lunch, I went to a bridal shower for my friend Brenda's future-in-law. Nice time! And before you ask, of course I won one of the games. Yup, even at bridal showers I'm competitive!

This afternoon, since it was actually sunny and in the upper 40s and the snow we woke up to was melted, I took a walk/run and got to meet a few of the new neighbors.

There's so cute! And they actually came up to me – not at all like that princess in this house.

Though she might pay attention to me tonight. There's only so much college basketball a girl can take!

Love Wins

I was excited to share my lovely Valentine gift from hubby but then I realized how much this holiday is not just sad for some people, but heartbreakingly painful, too. 

As I look upon this faded rose from my brother-in-law's funeral, I'm reminded that not everyone who's "single" on Valentines Day is the victim of poor dating choices. Some are suffering from broken hearts that may never mend. 

Like my sister and a few friends who lost their spouses just this year. Not to mention those who lost a loved one 2021 and are facing this first heart holiday alone.

Just remember – it's about love today. Not just the romantic kind, but family, and your friends, and even your pets. 

If you're feeling an empty space in your heart today, think about those people. Even if one person is gone, love is still there. Love is still HERE, I mean. Love always wins over heartbreak. Sometimes it takes a while to see that. To feel that. And I'm so sorry.

Sending love to my sister and all of you who need a loving hug today! 

My Loves

I guess everyone celebrates Valentine's Day in this house. And the two women here love the same man. How does that work?

I used to think I was lucky only one of us could talk. Now, it seems we both can, thanks to my Meow Talk app. I tell hubby "Happy Valentine's Day" and she gets her two cents, er meows, in... 

It's pretty spot on with its translation. She loves him. I love him. And he loves both of us. She gets more back rubs. But I'm the one who got chocolate, new towels and rugs for the bathroom, and a gold-dipped rose today.

This year's color is Baby Blue. Pretty! I guess roses are red AND blue!

That was the extent of excitement today. Got some chores done and relaxed in my warm recliner while Jim was off golfing (indoor simulator). It didn't get above zero degrees here so I was not motivated to leave the house for any reason! Schools are called off tomorrow already, too, since the windchill (likely -36 ish) makes it impossible to breathe outside. Uff da.

If I didn't know better, I'd say Cupid and Ol' Man Winter teamed up to force us all to snuggle on this Valentine's Day. 

Works for me. I might even turn off Meow Talk for the night. Nothing ruins a romantic holiday like a cat fight.

Very Cold Hands, Warm Heart

Thank goodness we had the warm fuzzies of Cupid Eve to carry us through Valentine's Day. It was 21 below zero on my morning commute. Thankfully, no wind so it felt warmer than that.

Right.

One of those days where it hurts to breathe. Still, I was all set to go to opening day of King Cone in Plover. However, since I had to got straight from work to chiropractor without passing go and without collecting 200 calories, I'll have to wait another day.

Still, I do have a little pint of peanut butter flavored Halo ice cream warming up a touch as I type. Since we already celebrated Valentine's Day, I have not guilt about snuggling up with my pint and watching some of those Hallmark movies that I must see before they're gone!

Since our night is free, I could do some work around the house or something. But it is a holiday, after all. I have a Hallmark card to prove it!

Hope you have someone or some thing to snuggle with tonight! Happy Valentine's Day!

Cupid Eve

I don't think we intentionally planned to celebrate Valentine's Day a day early, but we did. Maybe it had to do with waking up to below zero temps and some 20 or so below zero windchills. We needed some love to warm our hearts – and hands.

It started with a surprise delivery at work. A dozen beautiful red roses! The card from hubby said this way I could enjoy the flowers at work for two days instead of one. Plus it did (or should have) inspired the guys in the office to take action for their own valentines.

Chalk one up for Cupid Eve!

Got home and we had our Valentine's Dinner, too!

Thank you, Papa Murphy's! You know the way to a valentine's heart is through their stomach. Both of our stomachs. Yum!

I hope these warm fuzzies do the trick for the next 24 hour because we're dipping down to minus 13 degrees or so. And who knows what windchill.

Good thing I've got my valentine – and my electric mattress pad – to see me through!

Oh No Ho Ho

No time to blog tonight. I have Hallmark emergency. Yes, it is a thing!

We got good news and bad news from our cable provider today. The good news is that they're upgrading our cable experience in two weeks. The bad news is that when they do, the reset will erase all of our DVR'd content.

And by content, I mostly mean Hallmark Christmas movies! And Lifetime ones, too!

I am under a serious deadline here, folks. Thankfully, some of the programming belongs to hubby. But you all know the bulk of it is tied to this Christmas movie maniac.

On a positive note, I'm really getting into the holiday spirit. Who cares if the nearest holiday is Valentine's Day? The story lines probably wouldn't change much.

OK, gotta get back to it. Deadlines, deadlines, deadlines!

Love Is...

You don't have to have a spouse or significant other to appreciate Valentine's Day. You just need love! To follow the lead of my favorite Valentine friends at Peanuts, love is:

• Three brown-eyed bandits who have the world's best dad.
• Getting a 1 a.m. "I love you" on Valentine's Day from someone 7 hours ahead of you.
• A funny card from hubby that shows he seriously loves you.
• Friendships that have lasted decades.
• A steaming pile of love from kitty – even after I fed her!
• Knowing she gave her favorite human a similar pile later.
• Hugs from friends.
• Special time with people you are proud of – and privileged to know.
• A date at the basketball game. (Unfortunately, the boys lost.)
• Girlfriend time in the bleachers.
• Welcoming babies to the world of our friends and family (cousins, not us).
• Giving a practical gift – slippers a.k.a. work shoes – and it's "just what he wanted."
• Having the most amazing family from siblings and in-laws to nieces and nephews.
• Being appreciated for your gifts and talents.
• A mint chocolate bar hidden at the bottom of the gift bag.
• A good book in hand with the electric mattress pad heating your back.

Sweet dreams! I hope you found some love today! Happy Valentine's Day!

Feel the Love

It seems so weird to have Ash Wednesday fall on Valentine's Day. Or does it? We are talking about the greatest love, after all.

Of course, it's a bonus to hear from your loved ones who currently walk the earth with you, too.

With hubby out of town – exotic Columbus, Ohio, this time – it's just the Princess and me. So far, no special valentines from her, thank goodness. Did hear from hubby and the boys via text so that was nice, too. Even if all were home, I wouldn't have been able to fit anything romantic into the schedule.

Since it's Ash Wednesday, choir sang at our 6:30 p.m. service. Then I begged out of practice afterward to nurse a scratchy throat. I think there is hot tea with honey and a triple lutz or twizzle in my near future.

Kitty, who's laying on my desk here, thinks that's a good idea, too. Just bonding and reboosting our immune system... and pretending we love each other since it's Valentine's Day and all.

My wish for you on Valentine's Day is that YOU love YOURSELF as much as you are loved. Re-read the bible verse above if you have to. You'll realize you are loved A LOT!

XOXO

Pre-Spring Thaw

Has the spring thaw hit? Yes, it's short-sleeves weather and you probably opened the windows today. But "Spring" during Valentine's week? It's fun to wish, that's for sure.

Today was definitely part one of the pre-spring thaw. No, it did not melt that much here. The photo above belongs to my sister Renell who is ready to plant flowers in Minnesota.

Meanwhile in central Wisconsin we're like, flowers? Grass? What does that look like again? Crazy what a difference location makes. Apparently Wisconsin Rapids is in the heart of a "snow belt" because friends and family Up North and down south (near Milwaukee) do not have snow like we do.

It did melt some today. I saw more patches of brown grass starting to show in the back yard. But the front looks pretty much the same. It was still nice enough to get out for a run and enjoy a quick fire at the neighbor's.

Was excited on my walk back that the snow melted at the edge of my rock garden just enough for a solar light to see the light of day again!

Mr. Deck Chair, however, is not quite ready to come out of hibernation. We'll see how the next few days play out. It's still February, I know, but that's what's tempting me.

I've got pre-Spring Fever. And I've got it bad!

Feeling the Love

Tom Cruise said it best as Jerry Maguire, but give hubby props for his romantic side...

I'm kidding. He did not give me this for Valentine's Day. Though I suspect he would have if he had thought of it! And I couldn't fault him for that. I am a complete mess. And he loves me anyway.

Lucky me!

I did feel the love today. Actually yesterday. First, I got a package at work – a red rose preserved and dipped in gold. That's one way for Jim's flowers to last!

Later, when I got home and picked up the mail, there was a handmade card from my mother.

She decided to paint them this year, but made it clear she was only making them for her 8 kids (no grandkids) or she'd never get them in the mail. You can tell where I get my creativity from, right? And that penmanship... It does not look like the cursive of a woman about to turn 85. She's amazing.

It was our first Valentine's Day without Carter in the house. So that was weird. Like my mother, I had to mail his greetings. Actually I was shipping a package anyway with a few things he needed. So I sneaked a valentine and chocolate and, naturally, some cold cash. Nothing says love like that.

Since my nephew Tony is underfoot, he got a sweet treat, too. Hoping he is willing to share some of his peanut butter cup hearts... That would be a loving thing to do!

For a Tuesday, I am having a romantic evening. Jim was gone bowling and Tony is out of the house on a date. So it's just me, my recliner and the remote. Oh, and did you know there is a new Hallmark movie on just for Valentine's Day? And, since it's Tuesday, my favorite show This Is Is is on, too.

Feeling the love.

Cupid's Not the Only One Working

My Valentine's Day is depicted by a robot because I sort of felt like one. After taking yesterday "off" to work my way around central and eastern Wisconsin, I had to stay put today... And address my list of things to do.

Had to get those pesky "Saturday chores" out of the way first. Too bad I don't really have a robot to do that! Then it was time to lock myself in my office and take care of some freelance design projects. Had quite the variety today. One was for an event, one for a magazine and one was a t-shirt design. Fun stuff!

Got it mostly done in time to visit with our friend Pete, who was in town from Denver visiting family. Pete graduated from Assumption with Jim and he and his wife were the ones who hosted us for our Colorado vacation back in 2014. We were supposed to see them this past fall to see The Who in Minneapolis. Now we'll see them in early May for the rescheduled concert – if things stay on schedule. We're crossing our fingers.

After Pete left, it was time to drag the teenager into my To Do List. It seems we have a dozen scholarship applications staring us in the face. And by us, I mean he does but I am the nagging co-pilot. He's got 2 essays down and 4 more to go... basically in the next week. We got the putzy stuff done today. I can't tell you how easy it is to do everything online compared to when I had to apply. Yes, computers were invented back then but we didn't use them as word processors then. Had to neatly write my applications and essays or type them.

Man, this senior year is making me feel like a senior!

Thank goodness for Valentine's Day. Love and hugs always make us feel younger, don't they? And they soften the robotic side, too, which I need once in awhile!

Hope you were able to give or receive love in some form today!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Restorative Nature

Restorative: Having the ability to restore health, strength, or a feeling of well-being.

 

 

Just inside the grounds of the Winnebago Correctional Center lies a garden. I don't recall seeing it this past summer or fall, but today, under a clear bright sky reflecting on the stark white snow, it caught my attention.

WCC Restorative Justice Garden.

I love that name. It speaks volumes for what that place is doing for my nephew. On one side of the equation we have "restorative" – restoring health, strength and a feeling of well-being – and on the other we have "justice" – the quality of being fair and reasonable.

In Tony's case, he is getting his physical and mental health back so that he can return to being the fair, reasonable – and even responsible – young man we all love. It is such a blessing to see that I want to cry sometimes.

We talked about this in my visit there this afternoon. A lot of bad stuff had to happen to get him to the good "restoration in progress" place he is in today. The key will be tending to that "garden," even in the off season, so it can continue to grow in the positive direction. I know that and he knows that. It will take work, dedication and serious support.

"I'll be your wingman," I told him, and pointed to my sagging triceps. "Which wing do you want?" (Hey, if you can't laugh in prison, where can you laugh?)

It was just great to see him and give him Valentines hugs from a dozen people! It always puts my troubles and blessings in perspective. In fact, my entire day was restorative.

I managed to get up for strength class followed by a relaxation segment. I stopped in at Assumption to see part of a grade-school hoops tourney game my friend's son was playing in. Got to drop off some donations at Goodwill. Had a nice visit with Tony followed by a great visit with my former "work husband" Angelo and his wife, Robyn, who live less than 15 minutes up the road from WCC. Then I shopped in Appleton a bit for my Valentines back home. And had sunny, safe travels all around in the subzero temperatures.

Time with friends and family are definitely the perennial blessings in my garden. What's growing in yours?