A visit from a friend far away

My dad, Marina and I after dinner, dessert and of course tea.


Marina playing Liszt at my parent's home. Have a safe trip home and thanks for visiting me.

Scandinavian Woven Heart Baskets

Basic pattern
Heart pattern
I've been meaning to try this craft since Christmas. These are usually made smaller to hang on Christmas trees and traditional colors are red and white. I chose foam material to make these because I thought it would last longer but would not recommend it. It was very hard to weave this material and my 6 year old niece couldn't do it. I used this template from the Family Fun site. We might try some heavy construction paper next time.

What I have been up to lately...

It has been an interesting season for me the last 3 months. Yes, I have almost been home for 3 months now. It has been good for my family that I haven't a job yet because there have been so many needs. For example, staying with my grandmother so my parents can have a vacation; helping siblings with their children, sick pet and sick spouse. In the meanwhile, I haven't had much time to start looking for a job, although I have done some. I started back at my pianist job for Sunday morning services.
Going back to Russia at this point does not seem to be an option for me mainly because of lack of financial backing. I hope to get back there when the provision and timing are right. And I want to stop by and visit with my family in Sweden again. Hej!
I have been working on several knitting projects and reading some books. At the suggestion of my childhood penpal from Sweden, I began reading the Emigrant novels by Vihelm Moberg. I didn't care too much for the first novel but liked the second and am now reading the third called The Settlers. I hope to get some music recording done at a friend's home studio. I have written several songs that have been sitting around for awhile.

A Tribute to Petey

Looking sweet as he truly was.
Petey, a blessing from God. It is hard to accept that he is gone.