Out of the Mouths of Babes

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It Doesn't Take Much to Amaze Me

So...this evening I'm at my sink doing dishes and I'm looking at my rose. The same one Tom gave me for Valentine's Day. Then I start thinking wow this flower is really lasting a long time. Hmmm it was the 14th and today is the 23rd. That was 9 days ago! Look at it. Of course it's hard to see because as always I just grab the camera.............point ---> shoot and then subject the world to my poor photography skills. Oh well. What a Rose!

My Rose

My Single Valentine's Day Rose

from Tom. xox

More of the ark animals

I know you might have been hoping that I change the subject...but I promised some people I would send some more pictures here. Just bear with me. Enjoy the cuteness. Thanks you guys.

I know I mentioned this but it bears repeating. The animals need a good preening. If I didn't already have so much on my plate I would be happy to take on the task. I guess you would need to use tweezers and a magnifying glass. Then finish off with a gentle artists brush.

I'm sorry to my blogging friends...I haven't been to visit you in a while...but thank-you for stopping by to check up on me. It seems since I left my job I've been busier than ever. I think it's because when I worked late at night I lost so much sleep that I was a zombie. Now that I get more sleep..I get more done.

Now to get a quick game of scrabble in before sleep. xox

Just Noah Alone

A little bit of yesterday....

I listed this antique set of toys on ebay...
but I wouldn't mind if they didn't sell. I love 'em!

Christmas needles stuck in them and all.

I even started naming them.

I call one sweetie pie.

The 5th picture down on this page.

What animal is that?

bbye for now

The Empty Dinner Table

I'm having so much fun going through 2 little boxes of antique toys to sell on ebay. Setting them up to get their pictures taken allows me to play with them. I wonder how many other people imagine this little couple talking to each other....like I do. I would love to set this table.

Sadly... another dealer will probably scoop this couple up for resale. That's usually what happens.

Most likely they will end up on some lonely dusty shelf. Or worse still...go back into a box where they'll sit for another 100 years.

What I hope would happen is that they would find their way to a little girl's hands.

And she will make them come to life with her imagination.

She will set the table with a table cloth made of kleenex and bottle cap dishes filled with meals prepared with love. For dessert she would make little chocolate cakes out of mud, decorated with flower petals and cooked dry by the sun. The dolls would tell eachother all their deepest thoughts and dreams.

.................... Words that could only be uttered by a 7 year old.

I have a 7 year old boy. He wouldn't care one bit to play with this set. It doesn't "do" anything. Besides, it would require that he take his eyes off his Mario game. oh well.

Winter is ....

A time for planning.

These are all books on gardening.
That's not counting the magazines...
Like a garden the shelves need to be weeded out.
The next yard sale....purge!
I spend so much time at this computer I hardly even open them.

A Closer Look

For me, taking good pictures is pure LUCK!
Most of the day the sun is too bright.

Or the day is way too gray.

Sometimes....

when I wake up in the morning the sun is just coming around to my window.

One morning I laid in bed thinking of how pretty the light was

as it streamed through my window panes.
I didn't waste another minute more just thinking about it.

I got up,

took a piece of art paper and made a small stage for the animals.

and Noah.

I clicked and clicked on my camera.

This angle and that angle.

People buying things from me on ebay

want to see as much as I can show them.

I thought I would be able to do ALL of them...

but the striking stream of light was soon gone.

***

Daily chores, errands, phone calls, emails and

if I'm so lucky to squeeze in some Scrabble

before the school bus comes then my day is well rounded.

Then comes another special light.

The late afternoon.

It's so fast and fleeting I sometimes miss it all together.

The animals you see above are going to be listed on ebay.

I'm in no hurry to get this project listed.

(only 12 different animals)

Because .....

I like having their little smiles around.

Trying to sort things out...

We have this small stash of antique toys.
Here's what it looks like trying to take an inventory.
Each item has to be photographed and listed for sale.
These will be going on ebay this week.
...( I hope )...

Something New ...

Please welcome Monica Monkey. Monica is needle felted with 100% wool rovings. She measures 6" long and has no wire armature. All day long she lays on her tummy with her legs in the air and reads a book that she just can't put down. (because it's permanently attached!) Monica is wearing a red short sleeved sweater with white peter pan collar, a pair of old faded blue jeans and colorful striped stockings. The title of this creation is "Many Hours of Enjoyment".....as reading a good big book is. Plus - I had many hours of enjoyment creating this O.O.A.K. doll.

***

That's what I put in my Etsy Shop today. I really need to start creating things that don't take so long. It took me a very long time to call this monkey done. For example... I gave her socks. That wasn't enough I wanted more. So I added stripes to them and that pleased me. I won't bore you with the details but there are many. If I figure out how much time went into making this one little monkey and then charged by the hour for my time..... oh ..... it's better that I can't even keep track. It's true that I enjoy needle felting, but I was so hoping that finding my niche would be easier. I suppose speed will come with more practice. We'll see. I'll keep you posted.

A Parent's Prayer

Heavenly Father, make me a better parent.
Teach me to understand my children.

To listen patiently to what they have to say,
and to answer all their questions kindly.

Keep me from interruping or contradicting them.

Make me as courteous to them
as I would have them be to me.

May I never laugh at their mistakes,
or resort to ridicule when they displease me.

Bless me with the confidence to grant them
all their reasonable requests and the courage
to deny them privileges I know will do them harm.

May I not rob them of the opportunity to think,
to choose and to make decisions for themselves.

Make me fair and just and kind.

And fit me, O Lord, to be loved and respected
and imitated by my children. Amen.

Cary C. Myers

<3

Be awed by the newness of each present moment.

Hand Book 2010

Health:

1. Drink plenty of water.

2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.

3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants..

4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy

5. Make time to pray.

6. Play more games

7. Read more books than you did in 2009 .

8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day

9. Sleep for 7 hours.

10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:

11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Insteadinvest your energy in the positive present moment.

13. Don't over do. Keep your limits.

14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.

16. Dream more while you are awake

17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need..

18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.

20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

23. Smile and laugh more.

24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree...

Society:

25. Call your family often.

26. Each day give something good to others.

27. Forgive everyone for everything..

28. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.

29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

30. What other people think of you is none of your business.

31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:

32. Do the right thing!

33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

34. GOD heals everything.

35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change..

36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

37. The best is yet to come..

38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.

39. Your inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

Last but not the least:

40. Please Forward this to everyone you care about, I just did.

*I received this as an email from a very close friend...

Wishing a Very Happy New Year to ALL

If it wasn't for bad pictures I would have no pictures.

* * * * * * *

The pictures below are random and my usual poor quality photography.

The picture of the door opening to the bright outside,

was my attempt to take a picture of the guys going out to shovel.

First Tom bundled up and went out then Papa followed after.

(I would have my turn after the snow stopped.)

Look how bright it looks outside.

It looks like a sunny day.
...

But when I opened the door to click some more...

this is what it really was like...

it was a blizzard.

then the battery on the camera died

( so typical)

and even though I charged it right away

Quite a few days would go by before I used it again.
Christmas came.

Some pictures are too personal to show.

Some pictures are too blurry.

Doesn't it seem as if all these boys do is play video games?

Emma was feeling a bug coming on but she still smiled for us.

She called it Merry Sickness.

Nora was so relieved to have passed another semester in the nursing program.

One more to go. We are all so happy for her.

I don't know what's going on in this picture,

but it's Tom with Nana and Grandpa.

Just some dark and blurry memories...

but they shine in my heart.

Behave or bee-have

This started out to be a cat but it looks very much like a dog.
Also, I tried to make him look scared. The bee skep is added just to give him something to be worried about,
but sometimes he seems to be saying...
I couldn't care less, it's a bead not a bee!
All depends on how closely you look.

This is my desk top picture now a days.

So you can imagine my shock...when I got offline and saw THIS!

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THANKS TOM!

(yes it's quite an amazing resemblance)

you have much prettier eyes.

Thanksgiving

Here's just a glimpse, so many pictures came out blurry. I don't want to make you dizzy. We had a wonderful turkey dinner with Nana and Grandpa. So thankful to be alive and together. The kids were awesome. Pat and I danced. I wish I was a better photographer and writer. Just want to share some good times here...

The Holy Family

This came out blurry but I love it.