Black & White

This past Thursday would have been my parents 49th wedding anniversary. My mom died 7 yrs ago at 61 of cancer and my dad died suddenly 9 months later at 66. This picture was taken on their wedding day...so young and happy and hopeful. My dad was straight from the "Old Country". County Leitrim, Ireland. Loved his brogue.

I purchased this piece from the online "Fiber Art for A Cause" in May. Pat Dolan is the maker. My mother's name was Pat and her maiden name was Dolan. I love this little crow.

And in keeping with the Black & White theme of this mornings post~

Meet my 86 lb. rescued Greyhound, Dean. We have had him for 5 yrs now. He is a big boy. The laziest, sweetest, non-aggressive, massively shedding dog. I mention the shedding in particular because he is white and I have a black oriental rug in my living room. Vacuum? Every day.

I recently learned:

1. I can refinance mortgage to 5%. Saves me over 10% a month and more than 1 payment a year. Seems worth the effort.
2. We live close to Canadian border. Starting June 1st you need more than just birth certificate and license to get back to U.S. I applied for a passport card, good only for land travel ($35.00 only). I hope I get it in time for my trip to Lake Nipissing in July!
3. With a little plain paper journal book and a glue stick, I started an idea/inspiration/ reference file. I cut out pictures of quilts from old mags...images from ads...anything that could serve as a spark to creativity and just quickly glue them to a page. No rhyme or reason, no organization, just cool pictures of things that I like.