In honor of yesterday’s brief and unbecoming snowfall (which, granted, has already melted away), it recalled a scene in Branford’s Youngs Pond Park and Mother Nature’s winter trickery: the day it fell cold once again after several successive, and convincing, spring-like days. Oh, how finicky she can be.

At Left Bank Gallery’s third annual Valentine’s Day workshop, close girlfriends do what we all did best at that age: create. Create anything. Create to our heart’s content. It’s no secret Valentine’s Day is known for breaking out the crafts. Maybe you remember an inkling of that special, precious feeling at this time in your life. How sublime to be carefree! What was especially wonderful about this workshop is how it brought together a wide variety of individuals – children, parents, wives, daughters, husbands – to make something completely unique for their valentine. It’s nothing less than heartwarming.

For those of you who will embrace the spirit of the consumer holiday, or have a cuddle bunny to, for no reason at all, celebrate your love, may you have a lovely Valentine’s Day.

It’s probable I had as much fun photographing these sled masters as they did sailing down the steep slopes at The Pit in East Haven. When I look at these particular frames, I hear an instrumental, operatic tune in my head. I cannot think of the title for the life of me, so much so it’s delayed this post, but I submit. What, if anything, do you hear? My phonetic translation is likely to get me nowhere because even I was confused after typing it out. Oh, bother!

The Essex Boat Show was the first of its kind situated in the historic hamlet. Aboard the At & Is, a sailboat named after his grandchildren, Atley and Elizabeth, Jim Eastland overlooks the docks as though he were out at sea.

Some more images of discerning bystanders:

In all honesty, I believe the kids just like the idea that they can run through a sprinkler on hot Summer-esque day.

Summer’s on the mind lately… Chris and I just bought our first grill the other day. We can cook 60 burgers at once. It’s part propance, part charcoal. No joke. We’ve been absolutely helpless without one; no idea what to cook night after night. Who uses a stove to make a steak? Pfft. I’ve made it a goal to cook such a quantity of burger magnitude. Just once. We can’t wait for the weather to turn so we can start enjoying our beachy apartment. It’s been beautiful snow-wise though, I must admit.

We’ve been talking vacation, so I thought posting a shot from a pretty little girl looking over the waters of the Douro River from Vila Nova de Gaia would sort of symbolize how I feel about Summer a’coming – through the looking glass. For now.

It’s coming, it’s coming, it’s coming…

The past weekend I spent much time in the local communities to enjoy the wholesome festivities of Christmas – tree lightings, little dancing jubilant children, historic reenactments, Santa on his giant sleigh led by horses and, of course, lines that went on for days to meet with Santa in his cabin. These girls were particularly entertaining; they were leaping up and down to keep themselves nice and toasty because sadly, it’s beginning to get a bit frigid.

Connecticut will grow on you quick, and the community events geared at kids are too cute for words. Delighted and more than keen to just touch a truck, a little boy leaps enthusiastically into rear of a fire truck. His father totally approved.