Can Spring Be Far Away?

If there are flowers blooming in Texas, can spring be far away from Wisconsin?

My friend, Chris, sent some pictures of the beautiful flowers in her yard down in Texas. So, as she says, there is hope for us all!




The potted geraniums have been blooming through the winter

Purple Lantana

The first Gardenia

Red Buds in bloom

Thanks, Chris, for this little glimpse of hope and spring!

The Radley House

The Radley House
Village of Rural, Wisconsin

The widow's walk. Back in New England, homes along the seacoast had an open or enclosed porch up on the roof of the house where one could look out to sea. It was called a widow's walk because often a woman would watch for her man who was lost at sea and would never return. Here in the Midwest these are more often called cupolas, though Belvedere may be used from time to time.

Eaves shelter the building on each side, decorated by double brackets.

The addition at the back of the house - off the kitchen - is being extensively reconstructed.

The Carriage House was built long after the main house. You can see the difference in the construction of the windows and the lack of eaves as well as in the shape of the doorways.

The Radley House is currently being carefully restored by it's owners. Even though restoration was not completed it was featured in the Rural House Walk for the first time in 2008.

A Powerful Valentine

Heart of Fire

Sherry Jackson - 1951 - 2007

As I was sitting here percolating ideas for this year's Valentine greetings my thoughts went to my dear friend, Sherry Jackson. During the last months of her courageous battle with stage IV breast cancer, Sherry turned to art to express her feelings. One of the results of her creative expression was a series of ATCs (artist trading cards) that she called "Heart of Fire".

Her design can be found on note cards, prints, clothing and even cute little Teddy Bears on CafePress. As Sherry would have liked, 100% of the proceeds from the sale of these items goes to support breast cancer research in her memory.

So this year I'm going to send Heart of Fire cards and Teddy Bears for Valentine's Day. Helping to find a cure for this terrible cancer seems like a real sweetheart of an idea. I hope you will join me!!

http://www.cafepress.com/HeartOfFire