Cut branches of Japanese quince, Forsythia or other spring flowering bushes and trees may be brought inside for forced blooming in January and February. At this late date the buds burst into delicate blooms in just a few days.

The branches in my living room are white Japanese quince from the back yard. This is a yearly tradition for me and I am always in awe of the Asian flavor of this dramatic arrangement that brings early springtime into my home and my heart.

Last Thursday it began to snow here. By Friday morning my little table and chairs on the kitchen deck had collected a lovely pillow of snow and the surrounding landscape was blanketed with white and every dark branch was outlined in snow.

Saturday it continued to snow and snow. The snowflakes floated gently down from the sky with no wind to interrupt the soft snow building up on trees and bushes and roofs and walls and my little table and chairs.

By Sunday it stopped and began to warm up. And today the snow has melted on the table and chairs, the trees are no longer outlined in white and our winter wonderland has almost vanished.

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I spent the last day of my Nebraska trip visiting dear friends that live on a farm near Seward. I have visited them many times, but each time I visit I am impressed with the stunning beauty of their home and surrounding landscape.

Allen and Lynn are both artists. Allen farms and Lynn teaches at Concordia University in Seward.

Allen designed and built this house during the winters from 1996 to 2000. His background in sculpture and farming influenced the design of the house and are inherent in the form and materials. Poured concrete shapes create the main structure of the house inside and out. The cement surfaces are raw and unfinished, reminiscent of natural stone – honest and powerful! Corrugated metal commonly used in farm and storage outbuildings connect and enclose the sculptural cement forms. The façade is interrupted with windows of traditional glass and others of recycled glass bricks. The tension in the overall design is at once dynamic and classic.

There is nothing shy or reticent about this structure, it stands as a monument of commanding presence in the wide open country and sky of the Great Plains.

Most of the inside walls are concrete, the floors are recycled slate from old school black boards that Allen cut into large tiles. The entrances are detailed with polished black river rock set into cement. The furniture and art are contemporary and the overall effect of the interior is subdued and elegant. Allen and Lynn worked together to design the interiors and the yard and garden.

One of the joys for me as an artist and designer is to enjoy the unique vision and work of other artists. What a pleasure it is to visit Allen and Lynn’s and see the beauty in the work of their hands.

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My daughter Caitlin had her birthday this month and I had fun preparing a small dinner party to celebrate. I was so happy that she and her friends wanted to come to my house for dinner!

The weather was still beautiful so we served cold cilantro-lime shrimp, cheese and fruit on the kitchen deck. We moved inside to the kitchen table for dinner. It is always festive and informal to eat in the kitchen where most of my parties end up anyway.

I brought in my darling little lemon thyme trees to decorate the dining table and put a large arrangement of white Japanese anemones on a side table. The beautiful fall arrangement of scented geraniums, rose hips and deep violet Dahlias was a hostess gift and graced the corner cabinet close by.

My menu was a lightly smoked salmon grilled with lemon parsley butter, mashed potatoes, green beans, caprese salad and “eggs in a cloud of herbs”. This egg recipe is in an earlier blog if you want to try them. They are one of Caitlin’s favorite. I make these eggs for holidays and many times when I entertain.

Good food, flowers, and most of all, family and sweet friends make a lovely evening to enjoy and remember. Caitlin and her friends left full and happy.

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I have given my topiaries their final haircuts for the year. Most of the topiaries are the traditional green boxwood, but I do have some variegated boxwood and several adorable thyme trees.

They will look trimmed and neat all winter now because there won’t be any new growth during these months.

I also like to use the potted topiaries inside for the holidays. In very little time and little effort, I can fill my home with Christmas greens.