It feels like it’s been practically forever since I’ve blogged! Blame it on QuickBooks. I think, however, that except for the dreaded PayPal account, I have everything entered, and all accounts reconciled. Whew. I’ll tackle the PayPal beast another day. I can make no sense of their totals. Things that apparently clear the account on one day, actually do so on another. Frustrating.

On to better things!

Perhaps you remember way back when Dave cleaned up the lamps that flank our garage doors… He did a capital job. Huge, huge improvement. We have a lot of decks around this house, and every deck had a down-pointing black can to “light” it. Pathetic things. They were all taken down when we had our house painted—a year and a half ago—and never put back up. There were problems with every one of them, in addition to the lack of illumination they provided. Friday evening, as Dave was looking through the paper, he saw a Lowe’s ad for some exterior fixtures. Not only was there a style we liked, but it was in our price range—a combination that is rare. We ran down to Lowe’s on Saturday, and the lamps were actually in stock. Dave put the up all around the house over the course of the weekend, even replacing the two brass ones out front. Now, not only do we have outdoor fixtures everywhere we want them, but they all match! I know. What a concept. Not only that, but they’re bright. Very bright. We might have to get new, smaller wattage bulbs for some of them, and install dimmers for others.

Saturday evening we spent over at Ron and Rachel’s house, having a fun little visit. We chatted each other up for a while, then Ron brought out four different bottles of cognac that were left over from a tasting. I wish I remembered who made them, same winery for all four. They ranged in price from $60 to $150, retail. You guessed it, we all liked the most expensive one best, though all were quite good.

Sorry the pictures are so horrid. I’m actually surprised they’re as good as they are since I took them with the camera in my telephone.

Knowing that I’d appreciate them, Rachel pulled out these old buttons that she bought a long time ago at some cute little boutique somewhere. She’s wanted to put them to use, but at the same time rather hates the idea of breaking them up, as it were. Aren’t they fabulous? They’d be perfect on a Channel-style knit suit, or…

When I was out front, checking on Dave’s handiwork hanging all those lanterns, I saw this guy. I just love furry little caterpillars. He was in a spot where there are no good plants to eat, so I moved him. We’re a little short on roughage this season due to the lack of rain, but I managed to find some for him. Isn’t he cute? He was very brave while I carried him around, uncurling almost immediately, and walking around on my hand. He’ll make a fine moth, when he grows up.

The truly fabulous thing that happened on Saturday?

That’s right. My needle order arrived from KnitPicks. I bought four sets, to replace the four Susan Bates circulars I sold. Before you ask, no, I haven’t had a chance to swatch for Isabella yet. Soon, though, soon. The yarn and needles are staring me down. I’m planning on taking a day off one day soon, when I’m done with the whole QuickBooks thing, and do some stuff, like finishing up my knitting bag, swatching for Isabella, finishing Conwy (that’s turned into a long, ugly story), and finishing up my latest swatch for the Walker Treasury Project.

It’s definitely spring here. My bougainvillea are in full bloom.