sniffles

Well, I managed to make it until the end of February without getting sick all winter... until now. It's just a bad head cold but it's kept me in bed for two days and I can't wait to feel like myself again. I dragged my body out to the grocery for food since now the weathermen are warning us that more snow is on the way and our fridge was getting bare. Of course all of this happened during Craig's big 4-0 birthday yesterday. I didn't get to make dinner or anything! He had to go pick up food and warm it up for all of us. I did the big party on Saturday though-- beef tenderloin stuffed with mushrooms and spinach, garlic mashed potatoes, ceasar salad, strawberry and grape salad with a balsalmic wine reduction, marinated mushrooms, baked rolls, hors' d'oeuvres, and the most delicious triple layer mousse cake. And cleaned the whole house and decorated (with help from the kids). So, his birthday was actually quite big... it was just a little non-existent by the real day. So... hopefully I'll bounce back by the weekend and I will actually be able to lay my head horizontally without it pounding. I did discover that it's easy to kill time with online mahjong and lucky for me, American Idol is on. I also dyed my hair brunette and redecorated my house... no... that was one of my crazy feverish dreams! Anyways, I better stop writing before I sneeze all over my keyboard! Hope all is well in your corner of the world!

favorite movie

a little crochet from Valentine's Day

I made three cotton washcloths for each of my family this year, thinking they would be nice and soft (it's organic cotton) and found wonderful handmade soaps to put inside of them by two different etsy sellers, one being Kathy's daughter. She makes soap that looks and smells like creme brulee or lemon cake...yum! This pattern was pretty easy to do once I did the first one. I got that pattern here. I don't know if they really liked this gift as much as I enjoyed making them but it came from the heart. I also had limited options as we were snowed in at the time and I had to use my stash that was available. I did get some yarn to try to copy the sweater in Bright Star, so next week I will start that. And I'm embarrassed to admit that I finally finished my last curtain in the dining room. I think it took a year and a half to finish all of that. I really don't know why it takes me sooo long to make things. I'm going to try to get better about that this year!

Happy Valentine's Day!

What would Valentine's Day be without a good love story? We watched Bright Star last evening about Fanny Brawne and John Keats. I loved it, but the beginning was a little hard to make through... the costumes are what I fell in love with first! The filming was gorgeous and Abbey Cornish was just beautiful as Fanny. If you decide to rent this, just hang in there because it gets better and better until the end. Then you'll cry. But you expect that from a good love story, don't you? ;)

Janet Patterson is the real star with her costume designs... the movie has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Costumes...


I wish I lived back in this era! I want to try to recreate this crocheted sweater she has on below... it was gorgeous!
I will leave you with two Keats poems and I hope your day is full of love! xo Bethany

BRIGHT STAR (written to Fanny)

Bright star, would I were steadfast as thou art! -
Not in lone splendour hung aloft the night,
And watching, with eternal lids apart,
Like Nature's patient sleepless Eremite,
The moving waters at their priestlike task
Of pure ablution round earth's human shores,
Or gazing on the new soft fallen mask
Of snow upon the mountains and the moors -
No -yet still steadfast, still unchangeable,
Pillowed upon my fair love's ripening breast,
To feel for ever its soft fall and swell,
Awake for ever in a sweet unrest,
Still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,
And so live ever -or else swoon to death.

John Keats

A THING OF BEAUTY (from Endymion)

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its lovliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o'er-darkn'd ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits. Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old and young, sprouting a shady boon
For simple sheep; and such are daffodils
With the green world they live in; and clear rills
That for themselves a cooling covert make
'Gainst the hot season; the mid-forest brake,
Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms:
And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven's brink.

John Keats

elle's birthday

Elle turned 3 yesterday so I made cupcakes to celebrate. The icing is homemade buttercream which is the first time I tried that and so very worth it. It is so light and fluffy and just melts in your mouth! Here's Elle eyeing it while we sing to her... she got her own cupcake to eat which she quickly gobbled up!

There was more igloo building yesterday and the sun came out. The kids are off school again today because of all the snow and won't go back until next Tuesday!

Progress was made on the room yesterday... I painted all the walls purple but realized that those little edger tools never work so I have to tape off everything so I can do it right! Ugh!!! I hate painting walls. Here's a "Between" photo of everything white and the ceiling and closet done, which I have to touch up now!!! I think Craig is taking over from here because he's much better at it than I am!

I took this photo of the tulips that Craig brought to me when he came home from Pittsburgh earlier this week. This is unretouched... they are gorgeous!...

So, more painting and then hopefully we can get to Philly tomorrow. I need to get to the grocery today too. Luckily I have a car that can go into 4 wheel drive (did I say that I love my Jeep??) and I can get out on the roads. I'm almost finished with all my crocheting too, so when I am, I will take a photo and post it! Then I have to start my party planning for a big birthday that's coming up! ;)

more photos of blizzard!

Caroline and Nathaniel talked me into going out in the snow to see the igloo that they built! I put on my knee-high Wellies and the snow came up over them!!! Craig said we already had 15" of snow this morning so there's a couple more feet out there now. I couldn't walk in it! Here's pictures of our house and driveway and the kids igloo!:

we're in a blizzard!

As you might already know, the whole eastern seaboard is being hit again with lots of snow!! Having barely recovered from our 20-25" of snow over the weekend, a new storm came starting around 5pm last evening and turned into a blizzard today. It's still snowing as I write this at 2:00pm. It's beautiful but we're definitely snowed in! I heard on the news from New York that lots of people are still without power and heat from the weekend storm and that the heavy snow on the roofs could be a problem and might cave in some places. I haven't been outside today but the kids and the dog are out in the front yard playing.

Here's a photo of our backyard (from inside the warm house!):

Here's a photo from the front door... you can see that the steps are completely covered in feet of snow!:

Here's one of the kids and the dog... occasionally you can see a car or truck going by on the street. I'm not sure how anyone is getting around in this... the news here said we were having a whiteout and that the city declared a blizzard warning for Lancaster County:

From my kitchen window... a little contrast between my flowers and cacti and the snow outside!:

This photo was actually taken when we got the first snow last weekend. We've had lots of birds on the feeder and they are all there right now, trying to stay out of the blowing snow!:

I've been busy working on Caroline's room. This is a "BEFORE" photo. Craig and I painted several coats of KILZ to cover all the color in there. Then today we've painted the ceiling and the closet white. The whole room is white and bright now. Tomorrow I'll paint the lavender on the walls and then Friday I'll paint the trim. Hopefully on Saturday we'll drive to Philadelphia and get her bedroom furniture from IKEA! I'll do a post on her whole room "redo"!

Hope you are staying warm wherever you are. I think I may make homemade ravioli tonight for dinner. I'm still cooking a lot and my next foray is going to be in making my own bread. I picked up that book in my sidebar the other day and it has a great variety of really good looking breads. I'm also thankful I've found my love for yoga and just did this tape today. It makes me happy and peaceful and healthy. And Rodney Yee is one of my favorite instructors because he explains poses so well and does fluid sequences. I also pulled out my old Callanetics book and started doing that too for strength. I started to crochet again and am making little surprises for my family for valentine's day. (It's a secret so I can't write it here!) But I did get some goodies to go with it from Layla here (soap)! Lastly, I am addicted to this right now. I appreciate the sincerity in her music and it is good to paint to! ;) She was amazing at the Grammy's-- the performance was so beautiful. She makes me want to cut my hair short again too... my inner tomboy comes back out when I listen to the music!

That's it for now. Hopefully we'll be able to get out of the driveway tomorrow. Or maybe not.

love by Rob Ryan...

french love quote

Qu'elle est la plus belle des femmes ? Celle dont on est amoureux!
(Proverbe chinois)

from my friend...

translated "Who is the nicest of women? The one who is loving!"

(Chinese Proverb)

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! We're supposed to get 8-15' of snow this afternoon into tomorrow!

more love quotes...

Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.
Lao Tzu

I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.
Mother Teresa

Love is a canvas furnished by nature and embroidered by imagination.
Voltaire

Love is the beauty of the soul.
Saint Augustine

If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you.
A. A. Milne

call to action

I just received an email from Organic Valley (my choice of organic milk and cheeses) informing me of the USDA's plan to approve Genetically Engineered Roundup resistant Alphalfa!

Here's some of the letter:

You may not think about alfalfa much when you're drinking organic milk, but organic alfalfa is important to organic farming, as a nourishing animal feed that's also a nitrogen-fixing soil enhancer. Once GE alfalfa is introduced, its contamination of non-GE plants - including organic - is all but inevitable. And because alfalfa is fed to dairy cows and other livestock, contamination puts organic dairy and meat at risk, too!

In their EIS, the USDA states "There is no evidence that consumers care about GE contamination of organic alfalfa." We know that you do care. Let's not be Monsanto's guinea pigs!

Now is your chance to be heard. Tell the USDA to protect organic food and farmers from GE contamination, and NOT TO APPROVE Monsanto's GE Alfalfa. Comments are due by February 16, 2010.

You CAN make a difference. Tell the USDA that you care about GE contamination and your right to GMO-free organic foods.

Learn more and get talking points on our website. Then take action at the Center for Food Safety, or submit comments online to the USDA directly.

After you write, let us know at rootstock@organicvalley.coop. We'll post some comments on our website to inspire others to speak out.

If you don't remember me writing about Monsanto and the horrible results of GMO seeds that they manufacture-- putting farmers out of business because their own seeds got contaminated with Monsanto's Roundup Resistant seed which is patented. They sue you if they find their seed in your field! Not to mention the bad things GMO's will do to us and to our environment. They are trying to control the world's food sources and wiping out the vast variety of seeds that exist naturally. This is WRONG and we all need to speak up as a society to put a stop to the greed that companies like this consistently pursue.

I wrote to the USDA directly. I just copied the talking points from Organic Valley's article. It took all of 2 minutes. I think that's barely any time to help make a change for all of us!!!

******

From True Food Network: The Center for Food Safety

posted January 15, 2010

Monsanto Takes Center for Food Safety Legal Victory to Highest Court

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court decided to hear a first-time case about the risks of genetically engineered crops. Named Monsanto v. Geertson Seed Farms, No. 09-475, the case before the high court will be yet another step in an ongoing battle waged by the Center for Food Safety to protect consumers and the environment from potentially harmful effects of genetically engineered (GE) crops.

The modified alfalfa seed at the heart of the dispute has been engineered to be immune to Monsanto’s flagship herbicide Roundup. Monsanto intervened in a 2007 federal district court ruling that the Department of Agriculture’s approval of GE alfalfa was illegal. The Center for Food Safety (CFS) filed a 2006 lawsuit on behalf of a coalition of non-profits and farmers who wished to retain the choice to plant non-GE alfalfa. CFS was victorious in this case – in addition CFS has won two appeals by Monsanto in the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit: in 2008 and again in 2009. Now, upon Monsanto’s insistence, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case.

read more...

love quotes...

I thought I'd post something happy today! I will try to do this occasionally until Feb. 14th...

Find a guy who calls you beautiful instead of hot, who calls you back when you hang up on him, who will lie under the stars and listen to your heartbeat, or will stay awake just to watch you sleep... wait for the boy who kisses your forehead, who wants to show you off to the world when you are in sweats, who holds your hand in front of his friends, who thinks you' re just as pretty without makeup on. One who is constantly reminding you of how much he cares and how lucky he is to have YOU... The one who turns to his friends and says, thats her...

UNKNOWN

UNICEF hindering help for children

Alec & Ian in Haiti

I felt I needed to post about this because I couldn't believe what I was reading when my friend Terri posted this on her blog! UNICEF is not allowing the orpan children in Haiti to go the orphanages and hospitals to take care of them but keeping them in tent camps! This is outrageous to keep children from proper care just for their own self-interest. Terri's sister Stephanie has been in adoption proceedings for awhile now for her boys from Haiti and has written posts about what is happening. It makes my heart really sad and I hope that someone can do something about this tragedy. Putting the news out is one way to promote a change!

** At the end of this article there are two emails for people who work at UNICEF. I just emailed them about my concern for this issue.

**UPDATE: Christopher de Bono responded via email this morning: "Thanks for your email. What you are hearing is absolute nonsense." He should tell that to the people waiting for their adoptive children and who know what's going on.

it's coming...

Happy Groundhog Day! I guess our own Puxatony Phil saw his shadow and said that we will have 6 more weeks of winter today. That's not a surprise as we usually get most of our snow in February. And wouldn't you know, we just got a winter weather advisory that they expect the snow to come overnight! We'll see if it actually happens, but right now I'm ready to settle in, watch American Idol after dinner and maybe finish one of my books!

[The news of snow also inspired the little illustration above that I made with Adobe Illustrator!]

etsy love

I am on the etsy mailing list (dangerous to my addiction) and they sent this article today about creative unions on etsy. Their stories are really cute and you know I'm always up for a good love story! Celebrate February 1st and read it! ;)

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Just saw that Rubyellen did a guest post on Smile and Wave about her love for Ben! :) They are one of my favorite couples!!!