Out with the old broken dishwasher...
make room for the new...
and installation... see the cute installer under my sink?
We finally cajoled W into sending us some photos from their recent ice storm. Isn't this amazing?
And a beautiful shot of the campus with the trees encased in ice. I thought it looks rather like entering Narnia...
And even when the sun was shining and the sky was blue, the air was frozen!
But, back to my day. Phil was off on an outing with a friend, so I braved the compact snow and ice on the roads around our house and drove into town for a few errands. I went to Sharin Memories and found some good stuff - even though they didn't have much in the UPS sale. I spent a whole $4 and some change! 
I thought I was done buying cigar boxes. But these two (especially the top one) I just had to have! The little Casa Blanca is only 4 1/2" x 3" x 1 1/2". Its so cute! There is always room for a few more. Phil really liked them and said there was a table FULL of cigar boxes at the show he went to! He was tempted to buy some. hello???? Why didn't he bring me home some? Now, every time he goes out I'll have to remind him! He knows what I like. 
I went down to the mailbox and got these scenic shots...I stood on top of our green "power" box at the bottom of the driveway to get these.
See the Olympics back there?
Our peek-a-boo view over our neighbor's rooftop.
I wanted to share what I did in my studio with my cigar boxes. I printed out numbers, cut them out and attached them to the outside of the boxes. Then, I made a master list - showing the box number and what is in it...taped inside a cupboard door. Now when I want something I know is in one of those boxes, I consult my list and go right to it! I have 20 boxes at this time.
And just a box of some of my buttons and jewels, to be used in future projects. 
I didn't really do ALL of the below today, just got around to taking some pictures of my on-going projects.
Baby quilt for little Adrielle. Mostly finished!
A project I'm making with the scraps from Adrielle's quilt. Maybe for an unnamed baby girl, maybe for a holiday craft fair. 
Doll clothes! This one isn't quite finished - see the pins? I just need to decide whether to do buttonholes and buttons, or fake it with Velcro. Can you see the tiny pocket? It's adorable. This doll was named "Lillian" (Lily) by Victoria. She has beautiful brown eyes.
The pattern is a slip, and I made some matching undies. This doll's name is Alexandra (named by Tori also). She has gorgeous blue eyes. I didn't even notice the eye color of the dolls until Tori pointed it out to me!
This isn't a project, but my bundle of fabrics and stuff I have collected for doll clothes. Hmmm, everything's pink!
Today I did start my "scrap-o-dex". 
This is the first inside page of the book "House Blessings" I started a little while ago. This page is named "crossing the threshold". The key flopped out of the center of the doily, where it belongs.
and "a feeling of home". The picture at the top is from a brochure I got at Ellis Island when W and I went there several years ago.
"morning's gift" (can you see the netting?)
and "breathing deeply". I still have several pages to continue. It's a process. It takes several days, even once I have a good idea of what I want it to look like. I may add photos to the earlier pages too. . . 
This picture doesn't really show the depth of the snow, as it's under the trees.
The lovely blankets on our cars shows a little better - about four inches I think, although this is fluffy, drifty snow, so it's hard to tell how much really fell.
This is unusual to see snow blown onto the trunks of the trees. It's pretty.
We went out for a nice walk, about a mile in the snow. Not many cars were out.
Even though it's annoying that I can't get out and do things I had planned, sometimes an unplanned day of rest is just what I need.
Its very pretty from our house...
I'm like the cat - I like to be inside where its nice and warm and just watch it falling outside.
We're in for a few days of snow and ice I think, but it's nothing compared to Minnesota and Michigan's weather. This hardly even counts.
Sometimes if I don't have a picture, I don't post anything on my blog. 
I have some artificial twigs with crystal droplets on them that look JUST like this!
I picked Tori up this morning. School holiday! We headed back to our house to do fun stuff. I thought we would have her from 8:30 - 5:00, but she needed to be home by 2:00 - so we had to work fast!
First, we baked cookies. I got this mix for Christmas and today was the PERFECT day to mix it up and bake them with Miss T.
She is getting very handy in the kitchen.
I think she will still want to stand on the red step stool when she's taller than me! That's part of the fun!
Oh and sprinkling powdered sugar on top of the cookies, and eating them with milk in teacups. Ummmm.
Yesterday at Goodwill, I found these two ladies. I couldn't decide which one to buy so I got them both. I have a feeling they are sisters, so it felt best not to separate them. I needed a doll of my own to model doll clothes that I make! These are Madame Alexander Dolls. Very similar to American Girls. Certainly they wear the same size clothes. I think they have pretty sweet faces, all three of them! Tori enjoyed helping me brush out their hair, which was a mess! 
I made some too - but Tori's were the best!
We also started a secret sewing project, but that's another story. I am looking forward to a rainy weekend and getting lots of projects done at home.
Aren't these sweet valentines? OK, its a little distorted, but my daughter is definitely expecting!
Last night, after our nice dinner at Iron Rabbit, we stopped at Trader Joe's for a few things. We turned down tiramisu at the restaurant, but we thought maybe we'd find a tasty treat for later at Trader Joes. We found many things, but chose Chocolate creme brulee. All we had to do was let it thaw! 
They were in chocolate cups. Phil made espressos. We enjoyed. That was our Valentines Day celebration...or so I thought!
Fast forward to today -- when I came home this afternoon, I found THIS! A chocolate-fall of Lindor chocolates (five kinds!), a bottle of champagne and a lit candle. Very decorative!
We decided to go for a walk today in the nice weather. But, by the time we got going, it was pretty overcast. This is the only picture I got walking around Capitol Lake and around the City of Olympia.
The master plan was to go for a walk, then to go to the IRON RABBIT for a nice early Valentines Day Dinner.
I ordered their Southwestern Salad (bbq chicken, black beans, cheese, tomatoes, bacon, lettuces, etc. all in a huge bowl - delicious); Phil had Smoked Salmon fettuccine. We were both very happy with our dinners.
There was not so much to take pictures of in the restaurant, and I forgot to photograph our plates until it was too late, but this lacy curtain was charming and reminds me of our sweet dinner there...
This picture should have been first on my posting. This morning I took down the SNOWMAN flag, and put up this cheery springy (valentiney?) flag. Pretty huh?
This is really out of order, but is a "scrap-o-dex" that I seriously admire and would like to copy. 
And last but not least, the early blooming rhododendron. Its not actually mine, its my neighbors, but it is right on our border and so I get to enjoy it every spring. It is such a cheery sight, especially on a gray and wintry day. 
