Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Unusual Small Necklace


I have 4 humming bird feeders. I had 2 last year and added 2 more this year. Hummingbirds bring me great pleasure to watch. This year I found 2 hummingbird feathers underneath my feeders. I was so excited! I put a penny next to them so you could get an idea of the actual size of them -very tiny.

I wanted to preserve them and showcase them at the same time. I thought about a necklace that I had seen my friend Katy wear (she's a Stampin' Up rep, you can check her out here). Anyway, I contacted Katy and had her order me a necklace and this is what I did with my hummingbird feathers...



I wore them to church one Sunday and everyone thought that it was so neat. I love wearing my hummingbird feathers, that too brings me pleasure.

Another blogging friend of mine has a couple of neat posts on her hummingbird, you can check it out here and here.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Nursery Ensemble

A good friend of mine (the one that suggested me putting a boutique in my home salon) needed a baby gift for a friend and asked me to make it. She said the mom bought a black w/ white polka dot diaper bag and she wanted a bib, burp cloth, receiving blanket and wipes case to match. She said that she also wanted the baby's name embroidered in hot pink on the items.

This is what I came up with...



...a wipes case (top view)...



...a wipes case (angled view)...



...a burp cloth (free instructions here)...



...a bib...



...a receiving blanket (free instructions here).





I used jumbo rick rack in hot pink for trim to match the embroidered name. On the back of the receiving blanket I used black flannel. It is soft and it won't show stains (spit up, if you lay it down on a dirty surface to keep baby clean, diaper blow-outs, etc.).

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Taste of Summer (Sort of)





In the June issue of Martha Stewart Living magazine on page 38, she showcased Watermelon pot holders, suggesting collecting and then displaying them. I loved the idea, but I didn't have any. Since I am all about instant gratification, I decided that finding them and collecting them could take quite awhile (after all I do not have a full staff and resources like Martha does) - it still sounds fun and is something that I might do, but for now - I made a couple myself.

I had some cotton yarn (bought a little more) and I perused the internet for free watermelon crocheted pot holder patterns. There are several out there, I chose a couple and made them (I can continue to add to my collection each month or every year). I thought it would be cute to decorate the table with them this summer or to use them on picknicks. Watermelons definitely make me think of summer.

While I was making the watermelon pot holders, something in the back of my mind kept nagging me. Something else summery. I remember seeing a pattern for this...



I searched my favorites files and found the pattern here. An orange slice potholder in bright cheery orange yarn. It too is very summery. (You could take this pattern and run with it, do it in bright green for a lime or in bright yellow for a lemon.) Lots of fun!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Summer Fun



Still having fun with my Cricut!

I bought this cute red tub at Lowe's and I used the vinyl for the Cricut machine and this is what I came up with.

I used the Plantin Schoolbook Font cartridge (that came with my Cricut) and cut out Happy 4 in navy blue vinyl using 2 inch letters with the shadow effect. I cut the th (in 4th) out in 1 inch letters - the rest being the same.

Then I used the Plantin Schoolbook Font and cut out Happy 4 in white vinyl using 2 inch letter w/o the shadow effect. I cut the th (in 4th) in 1 inch letters - the rest being the same.

I then layered the white over the blue. I measured the center of my bucket with a measuring tape and marked it with a dry erase marker. Still using the dry erase marker and measuring tape, I drew a line so that my letters would be straight.



Using the Accent Essentials cartridge (that also came with my Cricut) I cut some stars out of the white vinyl and the blue vinyl. I did some plain with each color and some using the shadow effect also of each color. I layered some stars and others I did not as I placed them randomly around the words 'Happy 4th'.

This can be used for self-service while picknicking, by filling with ice and drinks. Another great thing about it is, after the holidays I can remove the vinyl and have a plain bucket or add other decorations on it (eg. Merry Christmas in green vinyl letters and put poinsettias in the bucket - you get the idea).

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Happy Birthday Champ


Today you are 11! Wow, already? It is hard to believe. Just a short while ago I was going into the hospital to induce you (before the Dr. went out of town, you were due on the 8th and he was leaving on the 8th). We walked right in and the nurses did all the hospital stuff.

After everything was done, we just had to wait for your arrival. Dad and I had visitors off and on all morning, but at lunch time - we had several. Papaw came to the hospital during his lunch time, Meme came to the hospital during her lunch time and grandma came early that morning and stayed the whole time. I guess you were really anxious to meet everybody because you decided to come while they were all there. You came so fast that they barely got most of the people out of the room. Grandma and Meme stayed (Meme said that she was supposed to go back to work, but she wouldn't leave with you on the way). You are the only grandchild that grandma was able to watch being born. You are the only child grandma ever saw born (she wasn't even able to witness the birth of her own children b/c things were done so differently back then).

I remember that I wanted to name you Champion from the moment that I found out you were a boy (after my great...great..a few more greats-grandfather). All during my pregnancy everybody tried to convince me to choose another name. Your Uncle Tony said that he was going to call you by your initials (CW), your grandma told me that Nannie told her to tell me not to name you Champion - even though grandma wouldn't admit it I don't think she wanted me to name you that either. Other people would give their opinions (not so favorable). I was so distressed over it that I began to second guess myself.

I asked your dad what he thought about it. (He normally doesn't have an opinion unless he doesn't like something. There were several names that I threw out before we knew you were going to be a boy and he sure did tell me the one's he didn't like.) He said that you were our child and we could name you whatever we wanted. He liked Champion and if that's what I wanted to name you, then that was o.k. with him.

People kept telling me that you would grow up to hate your name, that other kids would make fun of you, there were so many negative opinions that I decided not to name you Champion. I still couldn't find a name that I liked (I really had my heart set on Champion). When people started asking me again what I was going to name you I would tell them I didn't know (and I meant it).

Your grandma got a little perturbed at me b/c she thought I knew what I was going to name you and I just wasn't telling her.

Right after your birth, the nurse looked at me and said, "What name do I put on the birth certificate?" I looked at your dad and said, "I don't know." He just grinned and nodded. I said, "Are you sure?" He asked me if I liked the name. I said, "yes," of course and he said that he did too. We looked at the nurse and said "Champion Wayne."

You have been a Champ ever since and you just wouldn't be the same if we had named you something else.

Thanks for being you!

Monday, June 6, 2011

My Very Special Mother's Day Gift




My husband found this discarded bench (wish I had before pictures) and brought it home, I spray painted it green and set it out in the yard. It needed to be braced (thought I'd get around to it, but never did), but it was o.k. to sit on. I liked the 'park bench' look about it. I have no idea how old it is or how old it was when Frank brought it home, but it had definitely seen better days.

After sitting out in the weather (for who knows how long, 5 or 6 years at my house alone) it was beginning to go downhill.

The boys were in the backyard playing a game of 'Cornhole' and Lee mis-threw (is that a word?) a bag and it hit the back of the bench. It broke one of the slats. It wasn't a big deal at all, but Lee felt really bad that he broke 'Mom's' bench (not sure why it's called 'Mom's' bench b/c I thought it was for the whole family, but that's it's nickname anyway). ;o)

So, for Mother's Day, Lee decided to fix the bench for me. He fixed the broken slat with duct tape (gave it some support by duct tapping it to another slat) and re-painted it a golden-honey color. (He was using spray paint from my stash and there wasn't enough of either color to paint the whole bench, so he used both of them - they were real similar in color.)



I think it is so precious. He was very thoughtful to think of it and he did all of it by himself. I was not allowed to go out into the yard until it was finished (and he didn't tell me why I couldn't go out into the yard).



After all that work that Lee did, after he showed it to me he asked for my camera. He took all the pictures because he knew I'd want it documented (for scrapbooks and such) and that I might even want to post it to my blog. (I had almost forgot until I was looking through some pictures.) Is he thoughtful or what? I love my boys. God sure knew what he was doing when he blessed me with them.

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Lovely Quote


"That which is striking and beautiful is not always good, but that which is good is always beautiful." ~Ninon de L'Enclos

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Another Dawn - Book Review



Another Dawn by Kathryn Cushman was an very good Contemporary Fiction novel. I loved the setting, down in the South - Tennessee to be exact. It was a novel that expressed the difficulties in coming to terms with decisions a person has made in the past, coming full circle with those decisions and the effects that they had (even on others), forgiveness and moving forward.

Grace Graham is known for running when things get difficult. Her sister blatantly pointed that out to her and told her she was needed back home in Tennessee. Grace agreed to help out, that is until things didn't go as she had expected.

When family and locals began to turn on Grace for a decision that she made, Grace decided that it wasn't worth the fight - especially since her decision could cost the lives of children. Running now would only prove her sister right, but what good would staying do?

A neighbor helped Grace see that standing up for what you believe in (even when the going gets tough) can be worth it. With God's help, we can overcome anything.

Then Grace was surprised when an unlikely friend (a formal rival) gave her support when she least expected it, but needed it the most.

Grace wanted forgiveness for the hurt that she caused, but was she willing to give others forgiveness when they had hurt her? Was the cost of forgiveness just too much? Did forgiving someone mean that she was backing down from what she believed?

Read Another Dawn by Kathryn Cushman to meet Grace Graham and her family and to see how she handles the situations that arise. It is an excellent summer read.

I received this book for free from Bethany House Publishing for this review, but the review and opinions are my own.
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