· Clinging Snow, Letting Go

April 19, 2011 - Clinging Snow, Letting Go

- Short and factual - Going...going...still...going...

Sam took the highway photos earlier today, when he drove to Custer for a load of wood which he needed for his current project.

Click on the snowmanand he will take you on probably the lastsnowy fling of spring!There are 12 photos in the album,posted on the facebook page ofMountains To Prairies Bed and Breakfast. Enjoy the scenery!

Mountains To Prairies Bed and Breakfast
bed and breakfast hospitality inn
hill city - central black hills national forest - south dakota
convenient lodging location near
mount rushmore - 1880 train - custer state park
- wind cave national park - jewel cave national monument
- crazy horse memorial - black elk wilderness
- mountain lakes - harney peak - norbeck scenic byway
- george s. mickelson trail - the centennial trail
- historic downtown hill city - antiques

· Mountain Bluebirds Stained Glass Window

We special ordered the octagon window(shown below) for the new wall Sam built,and are experimenting with names for it...Suggestions are welcome!"Mountain Bluebirds in a Pine Tree""Bluebirds in the Heart of the Hills"
Male and female bluebirds come in a variety of colors!
When the window arrives, the plan is to frame iton the exterior with ponderosa pine, bark intact.
See the previous post to read about the wall andSam's display case project,Brach's Pure Candies Exclusively.

Mountains To Prairies Bed and Breakfast
bed and breakfast hospitality inn
hill city - central black hills national forest - south dakota
convenient lodging location near
mount rushmore - 1880 train - custer state park
- wind cave national park - jewel cave national monument
- crazy horse memorial - black elk wilderness
- mountain lakes - harney peak - norbeck scenic byway
- george s. mickelson trail - the centennial trail
- historic downtown hill city - antiques

· Brach's Pure Candies Exclusively

Sam gets to hibernate very little in the off-season,

with always a project for the handyman!
This spring he busied himself withclosing in a corner nook of the porch,opening space to the inside foyer.For the exterior beautification of this projectwe have collected a fancy array of mossy rocks,which can only mean...Sam will soon be learning another handy tradewhen it comes to applying the rocks to his new wall.While awaiting the arrival of a stained glass windowfor installation into the wall,Sam is not one to idle on pause.His in-between project is shown below...
— Brach's Pure Candies Exclusively —
The pictured antique slant-front displaywill have a new life in the gift shop foyer,tempting visitors of the shop with treats and snacks.Sam wanted to preserve the feel of original pastel colors,since he saw it as a confectionery display;and since I love the shabby chic look, we negotiated...
The former life of the displayincluded time in a Standard Station.Hidden in the shambles was the color scheme...

On Friday (April 8) I made an experimental cookie.

Surprisingly, Sweet-Tooth Sam asked for slightly less sugar next time.

So I asked him to give most of that first batch of Sam's Perfect Cookies

to the men working on the church addition,

so I could produce the second edition of the recipe.

As shown in the Monday (April 11) photo, below,

Sam was persuaded to take a break from his refurbishing work

to test the slightly less-sweet cookie.

Shortly after this photo was taken, Sam said,

while trying to install the doors on the display case,

"I ran into a problem getting the doors to fit.

I need another cookie, to think." :)

Mountains To Prairies Bed and Breakfast
bed and breakfast hospitality inn
hill city - central black hills national forest - south dakota
convenient lodging location near
mount rushmore - 1880 train - custer state park
- wind cave national park - jewel cave national monument
- crazy horse memorial - black elk wilderness
- mountain lakes - harney peak - norbeck scenic byway
- george s. mickelson trail - the centennial trail
- historic downtown hill city - antiques

· Memorabilia Shelf

Mountains To Prairies Bed and Breakfast - To give Sam a break from all the building projects for guest rooms, I requested a shelf above the kitchen window. Now I can enjoy my collection of memorabilia (mostly related to granddaughters) without it being considered clutter on the windowsill. Thank you, Sam!...with a Sweet Spiced Chai Latte, since you are so sweet.

The pink sticky note on the mirror was stuck there by our oldest granddaughter just before it was time to return home for the school year. The note says, 'I am here, I ♡ U', three times. smile

(click on the picture to enlarge, will go to M2P at facebook)

· Multi-Tasker Hungry as a Bear

Sam is a devoted multi-tasker,

as shown in the above photo of him

painting his thumb and watching TV at the same time.

In this second photo of Sam, below,

notice how he resembles the character in the third photo.

· Project Roundup

Mountains To Prairies Bed and Breakfast (Black Hills Home Cabins) - Here is an album showing several of Sam's projects, as well as a peek at our Rhubarb's current stage of development. Rhubarb is a beautiful plant, and it doesn't require much patience, like some of Sam's projects do. We can just look out the door and watch it grow from day to day.

(Click the first picture to enlarge...will take you to the album on facebook,

then click 'next' in upper right corner to continue through the album.)

Project Roundup 04.28.10

13 new photos

· Antique Table Finishing and Micro-Shelf

Mountains To Prairies Bed and Breakfast (Black Hills Home Cabins) Finishing the antique table has become for Sam more of a CHALLENGE than a mere Project. He asked me to come look at it, thinking we'd also carry it into the house. BUT...he had applied the last coat of finish in the late afternoon ...and ...well ...who would think of gnats in mid-April? Hohum, here we go again—except it is raining, so challenge delayed. On the sunnier side...

How do you like the new micro-shelf that Sam built for the Bluma Madle Suite? In the second pic, Sam is demonstrating an old magnetic toy of Shelby and Ava's (granddaughters), which was placed on the little fridge for one of our toddler guests...

See More (click the link below pics)

Microwave Shelf in Bluma Madle Suite

· Opening Day and Ongoing Projects

Yesterday morning, Sam continued the task of refinishing one of the B&B's antique breakfast tables. His completed new gate was victoriously checked off his (never-ending) to-do list. He also raked leaves...to keep his weight down while waiting for me to finish our long shopping list.

Then we spent the remainder of the day in Rapid City. We became very hungry just as we were nearing a new Mexican Restaurant, South of the Border—Excellent food, attentive service...and we recommend it!

This morning, our guests have enjoyed their breakfast and French Vanilla Cappuccino. They are now out and about for the day. Shortly after they left, we opened Smiling Bear Antique Shop and Espresso Bar for the first time this season!

When these guests say good-bye to their Black Hills vacation, Sam will apply more finish to the newly constructed outside wall which compliments the CLP Suite. After a little more elbow grease on the new microwave shelf of the Bluma Madle Suite, shall we give him a 15-minute break? :-)

The RHUBARB is breaking ground fast, and beginning to unfurl...