Greetings from Central Ohio!

Friends, I wish you:

I hope that this year finishes with happiness & love, 

and that 

brings you great health & prosperity, 

abundance & positivism,

time with loved ones, 

and plenty of time for pursuing your hobbies!

Do you love the busy-ness of the season?

 I do, and it's a good thing, because, 

this morning I have planned:

to attend a cooking class with my daughter.

After lunch,  I'm going to try to sneak in just a little time 

cutting some fabrics in preparation of a new quilt project.

Late afternoon, I'll prep a feast of foods, 

as I'm hosting a dinner and Bowl game/football party 

for about a dozen friends, 

followed by ringing in the New Year together!

Hope your time is just as blessed!  

And see you next year!!! 

💖💖💖💖💖

The end of January 2014

Another month gone!
January, 2014,  it was another great month.
A quick review:

During the first week,
I had influenza - that decided to stick around and morphed into bronchitis then walking pneumonia.
Don't think I stitched an inch that whole week and more.

About the end of the second week,
I met up with a local friend and we had dinner and exchanged Christmas gifts.
Yes, I know Christmas was the month before...but among other things, foul weather kept interrupting our plans.

About the third week,
I drove south an hour or so and met up with a non-local friend at a quilt shop and then had lunch and exchanged Christmas gifts.  Yes, I still know that Christmas was really the month before... but, oh, you know... if I couldn't get together with the in-town friend before now, how was I supposed to get together with the out-of-town friend?
I did stitch a few more blocks together on my Lucy Boston.  And , I machine-sewed more of my 3 inch Blocks of Fun.

Also, in this 3rd week, in between the snow/polar vortexes/sub zero weather, I hit the grocery to stock up before the next snows blow in.

Then, just for fun this fourth week of the month,
I had a tooth pulled...a first for me.
I didn't know it, but it was cracked AND had abscessed.  
Oh, and have I mentioned before that
I have a 'sensitivity' to the 'caine' family of drugs?  
Yes, that means that I get to 'go to sleep'
 and have dental work done,
 so when I awaken,
I get to feel all the great things that were done to my mouth whilst I slept.
Great fun!
So, I'm still recovering from that fun.

The grand kids came out a couple of evenings and went sledding.  Temps both times were up to the low 30's so it was perfect to sled.  I watched from inside, but would have much preferred to be outside with them.  The two year old grandson was SO excited to sled - of course he doesn't remember sledding last year, so it's great to see winter fun through his eyes and excitement and enthusiasm.    

And, finally, I'll leave you with a couple pictures of nature's January beauty...

There were these great 'snow rollers' this past week!

a photo taken at a family friends' farm:
Below Yarnell's Barn,
Westerville, Ohio
photo used with permission from Gary Gardiner, local photographer
 

Here is a photo that I took on the way to the dentist/fun -

A close-up of a 'snow roller'
that was about a foot and a half tall
(I think this was taken at the family homestead).
 

The conditions have to be just perfect for the formation of snow rollers.... snow, then a thin layer of ice with more snow on top, humidity just right, then winds to push a few crystals of snow to start to roll across the ice layer.  More winds, pushing more snow, to create this little snowball, rolling, wind pushing, gathering more snow crystals along the way, creating these great rolls of snow.   (I hadn't seen these since the the beginning of the blizzard of 1978, and they weren't so abundant then as this past week.)  They are an amazing phenomenon!
And it was a great way to finish out January, 2014!

OK, I know this is randomness, but, here goes:

It's a small world after all,

it's a small world after all, 

it's a small world after all,

it's a small, small, world.

The Disney ride by that name was designed to showcase different cultures and promote world peace.  In a perfect world, world peace.
I was sad when I heard Disney World in Orlando, Florida was renovating the area.  Sad, very, very, sad.  (I have heard there is also a Small World ride in California, but I have not experienced that one.)  I hope that they are just updating this attraction.  And, I hope it is not a goner.  How will we go on if it is no longer the same?
If you have ever been to Disney World and gone through the ride "Small World", you will understand.  Maybe it is just an urban legend...the tune really does not stay with you forever... just a few weeks... 


No where else could you go and have that song stick in your head for the next week or month like it would after going through  "Small World" just one time. 

And if you were really tired toward the end of the park day, you could ride through that air conditioned, gentle boat ride, get back in the queue and right back on the ride again with hardly any break in the music! 

Ask my children or my nieces and nephew:  you sing it over and over the first day, day and a half.  As you are about to drift off to sleep, the song just springs from your tired little lips.  The rest of that week you hum or sing it over and over with really no provocation at all.  After the second week you only hum it in the shower or when driving. 
My children are grown and on their own, and I promise you they will still tell you the same thing:  "It's a small world after all, it's a small world after all, it's a small world after all, it's a small, small, world".

Really.  Sing it along with me. 
Sing it out loud.
I know you know it...
Ready?
Go:

It's a small world after all,

it's a small world after all,

it's a small world after all,

it's a small, small, world.

I was going to put a link here, but I decided that would have been mean. 
You really would be singing it all week along with me.

'smiling, and humming' - hope you have a great day in your small, small world! 
Life is good!