Outside My Window ~ 12.26.2011

Outside my window…the day after Christmas is bright sunshine, blue skies and chilly.  Right now we are at 49°F with winds at 15 mph ~ gusting to 24 mph.  It is a beautiful day.  The picture above was taken a year ago today.  Last year we woke up to snow….lots of it too.  It was fabulous….no place to go, snuggled inside with a nice fire going….I kind of miss it this year.  Last year was a different season for a lot of us in regards to snow on the ground.  It appears as if we won’t be approaching average snow levels in many parts of the country unless the winter snow machine ramps up power in the next couple of months.  I will also be looking around to discover a new winter “window” for 2012.  🙂  The rest of our week includes rain and wind tomorrow but sunny skies and average temperatures for the next five days or so.

I am thinking about…what a good day it was yesterday.  I spent the morning with my daughters…then we spent the afternoon with my family that lives in the area…and the evening relaxing quietly at home.  It was a very good birthday.

I am glad…that I finally got my work area reorganized and it seems to be working.  Sorry, no photographs though ~ there was too much chaos as I moved everything, rearranged furniture….rearranged it again….until I finally got a set up I can work with.  Tiny houses are challenging when it comes to finding space to create in.

From my kitchen…is a sweet and simple recipe/procedure for homemade applesauce.  I don’t like applesauce you purchase in the store…but I like this.  The spices can be mixed up to your taste.   Right now I’m enjoying a French dip sandwich for lunch…yum!  I haven’t decided what will be for dinner this evening, maybe something simple and easy.  I have a few recipes I would like to try this week….and I have a new binder to store my printed recipes in thanks to a gift from my brother and his family.  🙂

I am going…to see if I can work on my budget this week before the start of the new year.  I would like to begin with a fine tuned plan on what I would like to accomplish this next year.  I have some ideas I think will be helpful so I’m willing to give it a try.

I am currently reading…a new book I received from my parents ~ Lighting Notebook by Kevin Kubota.  There isn’t an abundance of reading involved as much as lighting details for different looks for photographic shoots.  So far I like what I have seen….I may even try a few of the set ups.

I am hoping…that everyone had a wonderful holiday ~ and that Santa brought you your hearts desire.  🙂

I am hearing…the dryer tumbling my clothes dry….the ticking of my many clocks….the wind chimes singing to me every so often….an otherwise quiet house and neighborhood.  It really seems like a Sunday today…not a lot of activity outside.

Plans for the week include…I haven’t made any solid plans to tell the truth.  I have a lot I would like to accomplish, just don’t know the order in which it will happen.

One of life’s little pleasures…making it through the holidays relatively stress free.  I  think I managed to do that this year….I think I would like to make it a holiday tradition.  There were some things that didn’t want to cooperate {like why my wireless printer won’t work without a wire} but I managed through them….relatively stress free.  My only wish is that my step-father was doing better but I believe even he had a better day yesterday than he has in a while.

From my camera…a couple of images from yesterday….a gift to my parents from wonderful neighbors….and looking through a doorway at my mother’s tree at the end of the day….