Ash Wednesday

We burned all of our old palms this morning.

"Memento, homo, quia pulvis es,

et in pulverem reverteris."

("Remember, man, that thou art dust,

and unto dust thou shalt return.")

~Genesis 3.19.

Mardi Gras

We had Cinnamon Doughnut Muffins for breakfast. It's an old family favorite, and I smile to myself every time I fish out the recipe; written by my eleven or twelve-year-old hand. It calls for a jam filling, but I used some of the red wine peach preserves I canned last summer...................... tasty!

I can't believe that Lent starts tomorrow...........and part of me can hardly wait!.

Rain Turned Snow

It happened Saturday evening, and I took this shot early Sunday morning.

It was gone by Sunday afternoon, and everything is back to being dull and brown.......

Egg Rolls

They are time~consuming to make, so I don't do it often.........

........but they are so good!

Psychological Tactics

A few weeks back, Boots informed me that he is,

"The Neighborhood."

(????????!!!!!!)

It is a good thing that I am not intimidated by Neighborhoods.

~The Neighborhood doesn't want to take a bath?

Too Bad. Baths are mandatory around here.

~The Neighborhood wants lunch, now?

The Neighborhood can politely wait.

~The Neighborhood loudly protests against the injustice of naps?

Such protests fall on deaf ears. Utterly futile.

~The Neighborhood celebrates A Festival of Toys (~that's what it looks like, anyway) in my living room?

It is in The Neighborhood's best interest to clean it up. Pronto.

See?

"The Neighborhood" approach doesn't work well with me.

So yesterday, Boots stated that he is "The Dog."

I am becoming suspicious.

Knowing Boots, I am quite plausibly the target of a very complex psychological plot.

But I'm not in the least bit worried.

I'm "The Mom."

Meet the Pillow People

Below, we have the Salts:

From left to right: Verruca, Mrs. Cecilia (or "Cee") Salt, Mr. Rock Salt, and Morton.

Mr. Salt is a very successful London banker. His wife, Mrs. Salt, is a much celebrated mezzo~soprano and sang at the Opera House in London. Her daughter, Verruca, is aspiring to achieve even greater vocal heights than her mother. Morton's one dream is to become a drummer boy in the British Army.

On to the Peppers:

From left to right we have: Tom, Frank, Mrs. Isabelle (or"Belle") Pepper, Dr.Pepper, Molly, and Lizzy.
Dr. Pepper is a renowned physicist and inventor. He actually invented the most amazing roller~skates, which he wears everywhere. Too bad you can't see them. Mrs. Pepper is a retired school teacher. They reside in the hill country, on a nice farm. Lizzy tends the chickens, and Molly, the orchard. Frank loves to go on adventures with his dog, Einstein (~they actually went missing for several months last year, on some such adventure, and poor Mrs. Pepper was heartbroken!) Tom is quite the acrobat, and has great fun in the old barn.He wants to join the circus.

So there you are.

They are Miss Posy's pride and joy.

A Lesson in Cross~stitch

I blush to admit that I first started this project over ten years ago! But I fished it out of my collection of unfinished objects (UFOs;) a few weeks back, and am determined to see it through to completion. It has become a relaxing Sunday~afternoon occupation.

As I sat at it this past Sunday, I was suddenly struck by all of those tiny crosses. They are what daunted me the most, when I first began it. Sometimes I couldn't see the beautiful picture for the crosses. I allowed them to overwhelmed me, and I eventually gave up.

It can be like that with life. So many times I let myself be overwhelmed with all the little things ~all the little crosses~ that are a planned part of the fabric of my vocation......a part of my life. If I would only stop to remember that they are creating a beautiful picture, though I cannot yet see it. It doesn't matter how many years it is in the making. What matters is that I never give up.