Pot Roast

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Our yummy meal on Friday night.  I sauteed onions and garlic and then browned the chuck roast.  I deglazed with just a bit of Marsala wine.  I added in some leftover stock from another meal  along with carrots.  I simmered on low for FOREVER (3 hours).  The sugar snap peas were steamed on the side and then sauteed in some bacon grease.   Yum!

Red-Bellied Woodpecker

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If you look closely, you can just see the red patch on her belly.  This is a female.  You can tell the difference by the red patch on their heads.  If it stops half way around, it's a female.  If it goes back to beak all the way around, it's a male.  I have both at my suet feeder.  These guys are shy and loud but also the biggest birds at my feeders except the occasional Blue Jay.

I know this shot is not very good technically,m but it's the best thing I shot today in the gray rain, and I thought you might enjoy it anyway.  A bit far away, low light, through glass, and worst focused on the tree bark and not really the bird.  Sigh.  She flew as soon as I took it.  On days when the sun is out, this area is shadowed or a bright glare.  I an't seem to win.

ACC

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As seen in Wal-Mart earlier this week. The Pepsi guy was having some fun getting customers in the mood advertising the upcoming ACC tourney. Notice the duke and Carolina (UNC) flags. Hey! Where is NC State!

Petal and Drops

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A shot of my wet gas grill top with a camellia petal.  Sad yet vibrant at the same time.

I found a new recipe for cubed steak where you dredge in flour, brown, and then simmer in gravy for 2 hours.  What a difference!  Broke apart with a fork.  Yum!

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My cute little Johnny Leprechaun!

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Pine Sisken

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Not the prettiest bird at my feeders, but right now, the largest in number.  They aren't here in the summer but always show up in large numbers in the winter.  I finished my Great Backyard Bird Count today and entered my counts on their website.

We took the Valentine's Bear inflatable down today and put up the Leprechaun.  The kids were excited to see him after school.  I really need to get another shot of them with him when they are decked out in their green shirts, spiffy bow ties, green hats, etc.

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Celery Roses

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I saw a picture of Facebook this last week showing how to use the root end of a head of celery to create roses with paint.  Johnny has a new assignment for school.  Apparently the whole elementary school is involved in an economics lesson on supply and demand.  Johnny needs to make some 'goods' for his class and do some good deeds around the school to earn buying power.  The kids will then have a sale where they can buy each other's goods.  One of the suggested items to make, and we have to make 19 of them, was greeting cards.  We made used the celery stub to try to make rose cards (5)  last night, and it turned out pretty cool.  We'll finish them today with Happy Mother's Day stamps and other flower stamps or drawings.  I plan to help him come up with 3 other card themes (5 each) until we have his goods done.  We have until March 1st.

Pictured in the daily is one I tried using a single celery stalk (at Donnie's suggestions and using both the long and short ends).  We decorated the envelopes too.

I put out a bit too much paint out, and Johnny made good use of it doing some other Easter and Family drawings.  I had Donnie and Johnny do the hand prints for me too.  Donnie's first time finger painting:-)

I did the lower leftmost picture of the 3 eggs.  I used pot scrubber egg-shaped sponges to make the egg shapes.

I was really impressed with Johnny's Easter Bunny in the lower rightmost picture.

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