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I took this picture last year. Gerbera Daisies are my favorite flower and I had oodles of them all over my kitchen last year for the Valentine's Day arrangements. (I'm taking a break from doing flowers this Valentine's Day and only doing a few special requests.) The blog's a little pink but it won't be that way for too long.

Dad C took the photo below somewhere in Michigan. It's too neat not to share!

Valentine's Cards

I get excited for Valentine's Day! The reds and pinks are just so cheerful. This idea was done by my sister, Kajsa, four years ago. And since I don't have a picture of hers, this (a Martha Stewart) is the second best.

Valentine Cookie Bags

Morgan found a Martha Stewart idea for making cookie bags out of glassine paper. We improvised a little;trying a few things that failed and then (thanks to Naphtali and Christine) came up with these. We used wax paper for the bags and tissue paper for the hearts. Now we just need to make the cookies to go in them!

Really??

For some reason Amara is condescending toward me. We don't know what it is - the faces I do that send Asa into giggles only cause her little brow to furrow deeper. Perhaps she knows I am related to Asa and since she can boss Asa around she tries to do the same with me. Who knows? But I captured her look the other day while babysitting. (And yes that is Asa's paci she has in her mouth. He doesn't even try to fight her. She holds out her hand and he immediately gives it to her.)

ahh .... we love our little niece!

Fun Party!

Happy Birthday Amara!

Original Works of my Dad For Sale

My dad has begun selling some of his originals. There's a new one up for auction every week so take a look!

Gurgle Pot

This is a Gurgle Pot.  I discovered them at Wild Ivy (over in Pullman by Safeway) and just love them!  They were made by a WSU grad who saw a similar pitcher in France.  When you pour the water the pitcher gurgles-lots of fun!  They come in all sorts of colors and a couple sizes - enjoy.

Update on my Mom - Finished Radiation

I realize it's been awhile since I've given an update on my mom. She's been undergoing radiation for the last 7 weeks and today is the last day! After this she'll have a few more check ups and tests to double check on everything. Then she'll start on medication which she'll take for the next 5 years - but nothing that should make her sick or too tired. Everything is looking pretty good. Thanks for all your prayers and support!

Maui!

Mike hit a sales goal so we got to go down to Maui last week! Mom and Dad C watched Asa for us and we all had a grand time.

Breakfast on our balcony. This tropical muesli was my favorite thing that we ate the whole time!

Our resort.

And this year we went snorkeling with underwater cameras!

Puffer Fish

This Puffer Fish was fearless. You'd turn around and he'd be right by your face, arm, or flipper. We had loads of fun taking pictures of him. Mike and I disagree over who took the better picture of him, so tell us if you prefer 1 or 2!

What Asa's been up to...

(I stole these from Dad's blog - we're not home yet!)  Hanging out at Nana and Poppy's!

Bath time at Nana's.  Not too sure about getting his hair washed.

Playing "peek a boo."  This is currently one of his favorite games.  He'll open and shut the door, hide the remote under blankets, or use his blanket while sitting in the grocery cart.  Can't wait to get home to this guy!

Snorkeling Kapalua Bay

We went snorkeling with another couple from our resort and our naturalist guide.  We all got underwater cameras and had a blast!!  Here's the sea turtle we saw!

For Asa

Our House is For Sale

We've finally finished remodeling our 3 Bed 2 Bath Home and now we're putting it up for sale!

Head on over to Key Properties to see the listing.

Bray Wilkins Blog

Kajsa and Bray have started an informative blog on their lives in opera. Take a look!

We're headed to Maui!

We're headed to the exact same spot we went last year; Kapalua on Maui! Of course last year I was 6 months pregnant at the time:

See you when we get back!

Stockings

I realized I never showed you what the stockings ended up looking like. So here they are hung by the front door with care (I didn't want to put holes in the mantle). I still need to find red pom-poms for the guys', but I'm pretty happy with them - and they held quite a bit. What do you think - should I put our names on the cuff?

Christmas with the Owens

Jennie and Jerry came over and celebrated Christmas/New Years with us!  Unfortunately the whole lot of us caught the nasty bug, but we still had a lot of fun.

C and her purse - made by Maggie!

They were ballerina cookies...