Today!

Today I was not only able to play in the treehouse, I was able to shop using gift cards and 50% off coupons at Michael's! I find myself buying more stick-ons and glitter to make more snowmen for next year. I had planned on gifting this year's, but my Oldtimer loves them so much, he won't let me give them away.

While in the store, I was talking to Bekah about our Miss Olivia and her fondness for all things princess. We sent a pink tutu, a blue dress, and some high heels for gifts, along with some other princess items, but Bekah said that Miss O needs a magic wand and a tiara. Well! I have been happily working on a magic wand since I got back home, AND I purchased six foam tiaras, so she should be all set.

(Finished magic wand - going in the mail soon.)

Also in the works today - a mixed media collage on felt, as a follow up on a challenge prompt of "Stamps" from the CPS group - I think it was last September.

I got some wire in the mail for the Marilyn Radzat Whimsical Wabbit online class.

AND, I'm anxiously awaiting and gathering for a Prosperity Doll online group with Mais-Liis Peacock, here (look under "classes"). I'm still working on a gathering of angels from her Creative Sparks group.

Why does the creative stuff always get back-burnered? And on that note, I'm off to eat lunch and then shampoo rugs.

A Belated Rest in Peace

The summer before my senior year of high school, we moved. That's a tough time in a teenager's life to move. The fact that Lolo and Hawkshaw moved in large part to get me away from certain friends, made it even more difficult for me to handle.

So, I went from a big, inner city high school to a small town high school, where friendships had been formed years prior to my arrival, and I had to be bused nearly 20 miles from the outer edge of the school district. I started the school year alternating between sorrowful and full of attitude.

I had one girlfriend at the beginning of the year, and no real guy friends. No dates for the activities early in the year. Later, in the winter months, one of the guys became brave enough to ask me out - one very good looking wrestler. Denny Holmberg and I dated most of our senior year of high school, through graduation, and after graduation we even talked about getting married. Some issues arose, however, and we went very separate ways, despite the plans already in progress.

Now that our 40th reunion is being planned, some of those "kids" from my senior year have been in touch, including Denny's friend Mark. Mark wrote to me (in part):
"Denny passed away on Oct. 17th, just two months before his 58th birthday. He had put up a brave struggle for the last 10 years with brain cancer. He ran his bayou tour in the Honey Island Swamp in Lousiana for 20 years. It was a very popular alligator tour with Europeans who toured the US by bus. "

I also found this article about Denny by searching the web - a heartbreaker about how Denny suffered after Katrina:
http://risingfromruin.msnbc.com/2007/08/swamp-tour-oper.html

Rest in Peace, Denny. I'm so sorry we didn't get one last visit.

Kitchen Window

That gray circle in the lower right hand corner is the thermometer. If one could see it, the reading was 7 degrees above zero; the windchill at the time was -35 degrees.

Finished Snowfolks!

I was so inspired by the bottle snowpeople on the cover of a recent Cloth Paper Scissors, I had to make my own. Of course, I started two weeks ago, and just finished today. I love them! They were so much fun to make, and I kind of loosened up as I went along. Too bad I don't have more bottles I'm willing to give up - I'd really make some great ones! I know all the views are pretty much the same, but I was trying to give a hint of the glass glitter and other goodies on them.

Shopping and wrapping are done. Everything has been shipped. As soon as I vacuum up some dog hair, I think we can relax!

Decorating Weekend

'Tis the weekend for holiday decor! We were able to put up both of our Christmas trees, add some brightness around the house, and even add some lights to the front exterior. You might wonder about that photo for the blog header...more about that at the end of this post.


Once again this year, we decorated our 12 foot tall tree for the family room/office AND when decorated, my Oldtimer lifted the entire 12 foot tall tree up onto a table to fill the corner. This is the second time he's lifted the fully decorated tree onto a table - I have to turn my back and squeeze my eyes closed.



And here's the copper-colored tree in the freshly-painted living room. It's a little crowded in there!

I love the color scheme on this tree. Sometimes I miss the multi-colored tree filled with ornaments made by my kids, but I do love to have a theme, too.

We've always brought out the angels this time of year. Here are the willow angels on the front porch, as viewed through the wreath on the door.

And this year, we've managed to even put our lighted garland on the railing to the family room. Here we have hung some of the "kid" ornaments that I miss...

Included in the ornaments on the railing is the one you see on the top of this blog. To this day, it's my very favorite ornament. My son Chris made it while in pre-school. It's a bread dough ornament, painted and glittered and strung with a silver thread. I think it just represents all that is wonderful about children - when provided with paints and glitters, he slathered on the color, until the overall effect was a little murky. And when told it was a bread dough ornament, he, of course, had to take a bite to check it out. So, I treasure this ornament, probably above all others, because my first baby made it with his own hands, slathered it with love, and gave me a perfect imprint of his baby teeth. Now he's expecting his own little one, and this 30 year old ornament is even more of a treasure. I really miss my children this time of year.

Below, you'll see my offerings for the "Creativi-Tea" swap on the CPS yahoo group. My bags are called "Wonder Tea."


And this mess (below) is my attempt to make bottle snowmen like those on the cover of a recent Cloth Paper Scissors magazine. They should be completed soon...and once again, I've made a mess of my workspace!

This is NOT Creative

It wasn't even really very fun...other than reacquainting myself with my "stash." I can't even remember how my Friday evening in the treehouse transitioned from going to do something creative to re-organizing all my drawers of stuff. But I did it...and at the end of the afternoon today (Saturday) I have re-arranged the drawers, and even put some sticky note labels on them. I have NOT, however, created anything, finished anything, labeled any soaps or worked on the O&L website. What is wrong with me? I didn't do any housework, either, but that I understand.
These pics are after most of the stash was off the floor and back in drawers. Still...you get the idea. (See that drawer on the bottom left? It's now labeled - Paper Junkies. No....I don't have folks who are addicted to paper in the drawer, I have all sorts of little pieces of paper junk in that drawer. Pieces that may be big enough to use on something some day, but certainly not large enough for anything significant...and I no doubt have enough paper junk to make collages and cards and tags the rest of my life without ever needing to purchase or swap for more - but you know I will, without a doubt, accumulate more.)

(Do you suppose there is anyone else in the WORLD who still has brown shag carpet in their home?)
Well, this at least looks like something creative. This is the view from the floor up to the bulletin board where I keep a lot of inspiration.
I told my Oldtimer that when I die, he may as well just order a dump truck to back up to the house, open the window, and throw it all out into the waiting truck below. No one else is going to think this is a room full of treasure!

And in other news, it snowed most of the day...and the cat, especially, already has cabin fever. He's been on top of the book shelves, walking on window sills behind whatever is propped there, pouncing on the Murphy-dog from behind the dough bin. It's going to be a long winter. The dogs just slept, as usual.



(I still think Buddy, like most cocker spaniels, looks like the Luck Dragon in the movie Never Ending Story.)

More Elves!

Why do these things tickle me so? I just couldn't leave the dogs out of our annual Christmas dance. Como doesn't photo well, so he had to be the camera man.

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Holiday Greetings from Oldtimer, Lily & Cosmo!

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