My Personal Snack of Choice

Umm... straight from the jar, thank you very much.

Hello. My Name is Rosemary.

It's seeding season in Pensacola. Although our parsley (above) has obviously survived quite well and is flourishing, none of our other herbs were quite so hardy. Today we put Dill, Cilantro, Basil, Rosemary and Jalapeno Pepper seeds 1/4" under the soil and told them to grow.
New home until the weather gets above 60.... take that, Virginia snow! *sigh*


In the dried spice department, check out my new spice rack! Jon finished it up for me and helped me alphabetize the spices (not that I needed help with my alphabet, but we were both too excited to patiently allow the other the privilege of organization). Please excuse my messy pantry. It is not new and did not get the above-mentioned excitement-induced privilege.




I'm sorry, Virginia snow. I really do miss you...

And I Thought, "I Like Their Name, Too"

My generous new sister-in-law, whom I love (but not for her generosity), gave me a book for Christmas entitled Entertaining Simple. It's lovely. And among the various resources in the back, I found Fishs Eddy. My new favorite entertaining decor website. Above is one of their many modern-chic designs for dinner ware. They also have a plethora, yes a plethora, of white ware, which is an obsession of mine now. It's a new obsession, though, so don't expect a plethora of it in my kitchen. Not yet. Only on the website.

But if I get my way, it will soon make its way into my kitchen. Especially the white napkin rings and the pitcher. They want to live with my white cream and sugar set. They want to bring the teapot along, too.

One Dungeon and Two Throw Pillows

I'm sorry. It's been a very long time.


No good excuses.


THIS is one of our new pillows. I can't contain my excitement about them. They turned out just right. When I was lining them up to take pictures, they looked so good on our couches, that I abandoned my original idea of putting them in the guest room.
They lighten up the room that Jon has termed, "The Dungeon", due to it's heavy furnishings and lack of light.

In other significant news, Jon is in the process of building me two floating shelves and a spice rack. I will put pictures up as they are finished. Which should be soon. Jon has very little work to do and my spices are on the washer & dryer until he makes them a new home.

They don't like living on the washing machine. It's too loud for them.

Oops

When I posted last, I forgot that I had these pictures, taken especially to go with that topic.

THIS is how we feel about Jon selecting helos.

The Hus practices his new role as a Rotorhead. With glee.


Also, one of my favorite phrases is "perfectly apportioned". I want to use it more. I feel that it is the Grace Kelly of descriptions. Can't you just see these lips saying, "The room was perfectly apportioned. I decided to take up residence." ?

The Hus Will Fly Helicopters

Hurray! The Hus got his first choice - he will begin helicopter training in April!

These are the Hus' flight boots, which he (proudly) never once shined during Primary Training:


This the book that kept me excited through primary... I got to highlight each flight or sim as the Hus completed them. It made it seems less interminable. Here I am checking the last ones off:


DONE!



So. No more Primary. On to checking off the little blocks for helos.

Shall we be in a new home next Christmas? I put away the decorations today... I hope I don't take them out again in Pensacola... Jacksonville? San Diego? Who wants our Christmas?

The Hus Finds Out What He's Going to Fly Today, but Until We Find Out, This is the Most Exciting Thing Lately

I got a sewing machine for Christmas, about which I am terrifically excited. Especially because I found this fabric:


Which is beautiful and perfectly matches the duvet cover and $5 sheets (clearance at B,B&B... Hallelujah for them!) that currently grace our guest room. So I decided to make a pillow out of cheap fabric to test my pillow-making-skills before ruining the above fabric, which happens to be pricey.

As a side note, I am scheduled for a sewing class "How to Use Your Machine", but they couldn't get me in until the 22nd and terrifically-excitable-me, I can't wait that long to play. Besides, my momma showed me how to thread the thing and the bobbin and that's all I need to know, right?

So I make myself a pillow, or rather, I cover the pillow form I have, using instructions I find online. *whoo hoo!!!* Surprisingly enough, it turned out alright. Alright enough to use in our home. However, the fabric is subtle creamy beige, which matches the duvet cover too closely to look good. So I think to myself, "What if I added an applique? Such as a bird? I really like birds on decorationy things." Because I had already gone through this thought process, when the Hus showed appreciation for my pillow and suggested I put something on it... like a bird, I determined the pillow's fate to be divinely decided and searched for bird applique patterns online. Nothing. But I had a bird candle holder (which I LOVE) and decided to draw him, making my own pattern:


Note that the tail is rather formless and void. I cut it out as is, but had no intention off making curly-cues out of fabric. Instead I used random bits of cloth I had from the cutting out of the bird.

On another side note, the bird fabric is from an old apron that I saved because the fabric is beautiful and I was going to make something out of it. When I got a sewing machine. Which I have now. I always keep promises to myself.

Finally, HERE is the finished product. I don't believe in bragging unless it is well deserved. That being said, isn't the bird adorable?!


There are many future pillows to come (after all, it IS a removable pillow cover, so I can create endless options with which to adorn the underlying pillow form!) and said future pillows will have straighter stitching and neater appliqued birds. But, oh the JOY of decorating a home with things I made all by myself! I'm SO grown up now!

I love my new sewing machine! It's creativity with a foot pedal.

"Is that the one where the girl falls down the stairs?"

I never finished talking about Christmas. We took our family wine tasting. To Prince Michel Winery in Leon, Virginia, north of Charlottesville. Dad Butterfield was unable to make it (boo work!), but we got the remaining three parents and drove down scenic 29 to sniff, sip & swallow award-winning Virginia wines.On rare occasions we achieve *almost* cultured snapshots. The wine in the ear and my toothy grin keep us from achieving full maturity (we are talking wine, are we not?) in this picture.



Common Jon quote:

Me: blah blah blah Gone with the Wind blah blah blah
Jon: Is that the one where the girl falls down the stairs?

((Note: said quote also occurs upon mention of The Sound of Music. Totally different movies, except in the mind of the Hus))

Today's quote:

Jon: You've seen Black Hawk Down, right?
Me: The one with the artery? ((as I make a motion, reminisent of a medic holding onto an artery to keep a soldier from bleeding to death. It's the only thing I remember about the movie.))


Virginia is for Lovers.

Quote of the Day

"Paul, I think I'm gonna be a lousy wife. But don't be angry with me. I love you very much... and I'm very sexy!"

Barefoot in the Park, 1967

In the Kitchen With Recently Purchased-on-Clearance Crate & Barrell Casserole Dishes

What's better (and more grown-up) than homemade chicken pot pie? Homemade chicken pot pie in cute single-serving casserole dishes! When convincing the Hus to purchase these (granted, he brought them to ME, so it wasn't as though it was difficult) I promised to make homemade chicken pot pie in this perfectly-apportioned bakeware. I fulfilled said promise last night. I am very proud of myself. I even made my own crust. AND chopped the carrots (no frozen mixed vegetable here!).

Honestly. I'm so grown up now.