Succulent Planting

My sweet nieces, Esme (left) and Cora (right)

came over for some succulent planting

and art!

They are very happy girls and I LOVE it.

I taught them how to plant succulents!

I had a bunch left over from a party I hosted for

my special needs volunteers in October,

and they definitely needed to be planted!

I also have gathered a bunch of small containers

from jars and pots from thrift stores.

This succulent came off one of our totem poles in our yard!

I planted the Mom from a different pole, and this one is one of her arms!

The girls were very focused.

They also watered lots of our other plants for us!

We found a birdie egg.

When we looked up in the tree, we saw a mourning dove

nest.  They are almost completely flat

and it's reasonable that any egg would roll right out.

I guess it controls the population?

Mark & Jillian joined in the planting party.

I was happy to have my loved ones so near.

After the planting, we made this reindeer

out of a fallen palm piece!

These pieces come off the trunk when the trunk gets

trimmed or when there's a lot of wind.

I picked this one up in the summer, meaning

to make a surprise reindeer for my parents' condo.

It turned out cute!

I think I'll make two more for the girlies.

Here are some of the succulents we planted!

These are the ones we hope my parents will be able to transport back to Minnesota

for Mark & Jillian, Cora & Esme when they go back.

There have been snuggles.

And bird watching!

We all love it when Daddy works from home!

We ate at my parents' one more time . . . this was before the Corona Virus

started its rampage, but my Dad had gotten tonsillitis.

He was self-quarantining in the kitchen while we were on the patio.

He's feeling much better now.  xo

Mark & Jillian came over on Friday night for "Sherlock"

and snacks!  It was delightful.

I finally finished the beautiful scarf I was crocheting for Jillian

and I'm proud of it.

Claude liked it, too, but she doesn't like being photographed.

She doesn't like sharing her beauty with the world.

We snuggled and enjoyed cookies and pudding and chips.

Mark & Jillian even got some good snuggles.

Allistair REALLY likes Mark especially.

I think he smells like me, and I'm Allistair's favorite person

(though he loves his Daddy a lot, too).

Cora wrote a journal entry about planting succulents.

It says,

"Went went to Christie's house.  We planted succulents.

We made a huge mess!"

Sorry about the blur; she's a MOVER!

Esme and I did some art, too.

Esme started drawing . . . 

She drew a very cute CAT!

Cats are her very favorite animals.

We took a cute photo of my parents, too,

to celebrate their generosity.

Here are some outfits I've been wearing lately.

I love this one!

I felt cute all day.

blouse: Maison Jules (Macy's)
skirt: Rekucci (Amazon)
shoes: Bandolino (Amazon)

I apologize for the blurriness.

The pattern is tiny little hearts and I love it.

This is what I wore to have MRIs of both ankles last Monday.

chambray top: Tommy Hilfiger (Macy's)
pants: INC International Concepts (Macy's)
sandals: Bob's for Sketcher's (Amazon)

I really liked this outfit, too.

I love the color of the sandals

and how the match the top.

And look!  The top has hearts made of polka dots!

The day the craziness started, my Mom and I met

to run some errands.  It was raining,

so I put my hair in a braid.

top: Calvin Klein (Ross)
pants: Anne Klein (Ross)
socks & house shoes (Target)
hair bow: J Crew Factory

bag: NEW! My Mom bought it for me as a Valentine's Day gift <3

Look how cute she is!!!

Here we are, wiping off the cart with wipes.

Here's another Sunday outfit.

I loved this, too, and once again felt cute all day.

Also, my hair turned out especially nice.

jacket: Allegra K (Amazon)
blouse: Anne Klein (Ross)
skirt: Rekucci (Amazon)

Here's what I'm wearing today!

blouse: A New Day (Target)
sweater: Walmart

pants: INC International Concepts (Macy's)
boot: Urgent Care after ankle sprain

It is backward in the photo, but it says, "Hello sunshine"!

 The MRI showed that I have a couple of stress fractures

in my left ankle join (the one that already had surgery)

and a torn ligament in my RIGHT ankle.

The orthopedist suspects I might have a connective tissue disorder

that makes my ankles more susceptible to spraining and tears.

Since the left one is still worse, he gave me a cortisone shot

in the left ankle and told me to wear the boot again for a month.

I ordered a new boot, though, that's more appropriate to my size,

and it should arrive on Saturday! 

I see him again in six weeks and we reassess.

He's hoping that the right ankle will be healing during the time

I'm resting the left ankle more.

My physical therapist has been very kind

and is going to give me a call to discuss the MRI results.

He said there's reason for hope even though it 

seems discouraging right now.

I had the chance to chat with my Mom via phone

(she's only 3 miles away but neither of us really felt like leaving the house today

for various reasons!), and it improved both of our moods a LOT.

Praise God for His gift of PEOPLE who love us!

Then I discovered that a pair of earrings I have been stalking

went on sale (25% off!), so I placed an order.

I'm excited.  Aren't they gorgeous?!

It rained a bunch today

with thunder and WIND.

It was refreshing and chilly.

Our succuluents are a-ok.

I hope you are all well in spirit, in mind, and in body.

Our fuzzy family members are helping our spirits.

They can tell we need extra love and care.

And they're being extra cute.

It's not so bad staying home!

Be well!
xo