Yes, I know it's almost March!

Astrid was just giving me a hard time for not posting any new picture lately. Sorry, folks, there hasn't been too much exciting going on. I'm sure nobody wants to see pictures of my dead, forlorn winter garden. There's hasn't been any decorating going on in the inside either. C. leaves for Prague this Saturday. I'll be following him a week later. We'll have a week to run around the Czech Republic. Hopefully, lots of interesting photos to post after that.

In more recent news, give a shout to my good friends, Mark and Astrid. Hopefully, they will have a new addition to their family today or tomorrow.

Christmas Just Past

I ended up working Christmas day. I'll be working again New Year's Eve. It's been the first time that I've had to work on Christmas. I managed a couple of days earlier in December to fly to Oklahoma and see my parents. Of course, my real joy in going back to Ponca is visiting the best burrito joint ever....Taco Stop! So now, may I present to you, my annual Christmas burrito!

Yet more tasty burrito action!

Thanksgiving break

The past few weeks have been quite hectic. My little sister came to visit over Thanksgiving. We realized it as been 4 years since we last saw each other. The visit was brief but we had a great time. With all the holiday preparations, I haven't had much of a chance to do things around the house. Instead, I'll give you a picture of the glorious leaves that showed up on the tree in my front yard.

Pardon the Pause

A brief pause in posting there. My parents left wednesday after a two week in and out visit. They spent a good portion of their time in DC and South Carolina with visits here in between. It was great seeing them! Dad finally got to see the house. They both did a tremendous job of insulating and drywalling my garage. Now I will have a toasty warm car in the winter. Thanks so much to the both of you!!

Tasty train food

Not a lot of time today, but wanted to show off an example of an excellent train picnic. Chocolate, beer, and a leberkase sandwich. Leberkase is a tasty blend of beef and pork that is usually sliced and served warm from streetside booths. Yummmm.

More craftiness

In a continuation of my wreath theme, I put this one together for the guest room. Up close, it has a dried, faded flower look that I like.

The guest room with the addition of the wreath. I hope to build a picket fence style headboard this winter after the garden is put to rest.

I recently found a book giving instructions on how to knit teddy bears. Here is my first attempt. The pen is there just to give you a size reference.

Here's a close up of his face. He's so cute! Handmade teddy bears may become my new standard baby gift.

Austrian photographs - not photographs of Austrians

This fountain was around the corner from our hotel in Salzburg. What a wonderful site to walk past every evening!

Fabulous summer palace and gardens in Salzburg.

The clock tower in Graz. The hour and minute hands are reversed.

Tasty Austrian breads in Graz.

For anyone who doesn't know him, C. is a certifiable coffee freak. Thus, the classic Viennese coffee house.

More pics of Rome

One of the great halls in the Vatican museum. Our necks were a bit sore after this museum visit.

The Romans weren't vain at all. This little sign was found in the Roman Forum basically declaring Rome the birthplace of civilized life.

The Mouth of Truth. Very cool....seen formerly in the movie "Roman Holiday. They think it may have once been a drain cover in the street. Rumor has it if you tell a lie with your hand in the mouth, the mouth will clamp down on your hand forever.

More roads to Rome

We took an overnight train to Rome. What a big, overwhelming city. There was so much to see and so much history on top of history. We went to a church that was built on top of another church and that was built on an ancient temple which was on top of a burial ground. Here are a few pictures to get you started.

We spent a good chunk of time walking to the top of one of Rome's seven hills. There were a lot of monasteries and cloisters up there. We found this cool building. Look below to see it.

Cool building, but what is that guy doing? Let's take a closer look, shall we?