Author: Arla

Winter arrived full-fledged and frigidly cold ... before Christmas. We have snow and sub-zero temps at night.This is perfect weather for catching a few snowflakes with a lens. I tried to cut a regular looking six-sided paper snowflake this morning. I have never known how to do this. All of mine to date have been… Continue reading A White Christmas

 December is commencing with the proper amount of Christmas events and plans. I love it. Decorating and cleaning and Cookie Day. I like this, too.    Today one of the young moms from church texted me to get an opinion about an idea for decorating at the church. I am reminded of our earthly way of… Continue reading Scribbling in December

A solitary drowsing by the fireside this Sunday afternoon makes for some retrospective thought. I have this moment to sort through the accumulated clutter of schedules, lists, problems, and busy-ness of this crazy life we live.  I am trying to settle on savoring the accomplishments.    I need a long "think" about the fact that our… Continue reading Sunday Afternoon Musings

Amy and I made two winter patio boxes for fun today. We have neat little solar lights from the store which we enjoyed all summer  ranged among the impatiens just so. They flicker and glow in the evening till late at night. So we moved them into the boxes for some more joy.This is an… Continue reading Patio Winter Decor

The cute kitten  that is no longer having succumbed to a fisher or mouse poison or neighbors gave Havilah much joy. He disappeared without a trace, as they say.We have had no luck with kittens in the past and evidently that hasn't changed.   You are seeing a little jet lag happening here. The Thai children… Continue reading Random Blurry Pictures of Our Thanksgiving Time

 We have begun to decorate for the Holidays. I want to keep it simple and homey as much as possible this year. It is a great opportunity to vacuum up the rather prolific spiders and their messes, too. So corner by corner, little by little we shall have a clean house again.  The fat cardinals… Continue reading Winter Cottage Decorating

    To record that I picked this bouquet of flowers from the garden today, the ninth of November. We had a little frost here this AM but not enough to kill the bachelor's buttons, nor the cosmos.   Today, I have an amazing quiet afternoon to brainstorm the holiday decorations. Christmas decor of snow covered pine… Continue reading Just a Note

   There's blue sky and sunshine outside today on a lovely mild day in November. It's a perfect out there for working a list of fall chores. First thing this morning I ransacked the refrigerator freezer to see what's for supper. There was spilled yeast and a few unidentifiable things that got thrown in the… Continue reading Fall Work List at Home

 Thailand. The travel experience we anticipated for months. The place of many people, busy streets, food vendors, colorful and over-flowing markets, motorbikes, humidity, elephants, green glass, exotic plants, palm trees, magpies, and hot weather.Where you'll find  inviting coffee shops around every corner with yummy iced java's and sorbet or ice cream. The place of strange-to-us… Continue reading Bringing Thailand Home

 By the time we get home from Thailand, these sights could well be history. So I wanted to get them on record at least.As soon as we get home there will be other things to document here: a bedroom remodel and a trip to Thailand.Besides, Dru's will be here and life will be busy with… Continue reading Capturing Autumn