Happiness is getting onto my Blog again!

I've been locked out of my own blog!

For some reason all I ever got was a white page...

But today, I checked for the umpteenth time and it was working.
I don't know why....either way ....YAY!

Here is a bluebird I needle felted.

Pentecost

Can you tell I love religious art?

The Ascension of Our Lord

Siobhan Magnus

WE LOVE SIOBHAN

He Is Risen! Alleluia!

Good Friday

Agony in the Garden

Little Flower

Little flowers in my yard.

Remind me life is not so hard.

If only we could have no bills...

Like the croci and the daffodils.

If only we could feel no pain...

Like the breaking earth.

Or the falling rain.

Elaine '10

Xavier's Eighth Birthday

Before Xavier went to sleep I took his picture because it would be the last time I saw him as 7 years old. I'm sentimental that way...................................................................................................

Then while Xavier was at school I baked a chocolate cake and blew up 4 punching balls that look like big balloons I hung some crepe paper and wrapped a few small gifts to surprise him.

Tom frosted the cake and put a little plastic Mario, a number 8 candle and way too many sparklers! If I did this myself I would have only put 8 sparklers..........but it was very exciting to see all those tall sparklers shooting sparks at once. I couldn't get it on camera. Speaking of not getting a picture. I didn't even think to take a picture of his classroom treats this year. They were so pretty too. Ice Cream Cone Cup Cakes. I used wafer cones with flat bottoms. Inside each cone I put 8 M&M candies then I peeled the paper off of a store bought mini cup cake and placed it right inside the cone. It was just the right size and the way the store swirled the white frosting it looked like ice cream. They even had colored sprinkles on top. What kind of a blogger doesn't get a pictures of that? Oh well.....I live for the moment. Oh and when you make these be sure to find a pretty box to send them off in. (presentation!) Size is important these fall over unless they are packed tight. I lined the bottom with a sheet of waxed paper and covered the treats loosely with another sheet of waxed paper. Xavier told me that all of the kids loved them except Olivia complained the cone was stale......... but he told me she still ate it just the same. I imagine the cones sat in that box all day and the frosting probably was softening the cones where it touched. I will keep that in mind next time I make these and brainstorm a way to keep the cones crunchy. I know what Olivia means. There must be a way to keep that cone crunchy. No more birthdays in our house for a good while.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Another Birthday...

We had Chinese food for dinner. Emma is wearing chopsticks in her hair.

Tom made Papa a King Size Cake!
( Lemon cake with butter cream frosting.)

Xavier's birthday is next week!
***

Happy Birthday Emma

Emma is 19 now.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

click to see larger image:

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.