From my Hammock...

My dear husband is at work saving lives, my lovely daughter is taking a break from saving lives and is now chasing her own monster and I, I sit here relaxing on my hammock. Enjoying the still a little chilly for me breeze. The sun is back and shining brightly, making all the newly emerged chartreuse leaves glisten as if emeralds in Ireland would!

I think to myself, like who else would I ‘think’ to? I always seem to come up with some really off the wall stuff when I’m on my hammock. Okay, well you be the judge...

• At what ages does one’s wish or dream list become their Bucket List.
• Why do people wait till one dies before they have a funeral? Why not go ahead and do it at say 50. The loved ones can be there for those grieving and then everyone can live the rest of their lives without worrying about the funeral, you die, you get buried...isn’t that simple?
• Why do I feel chilly sometimes and warm at others when the temperature itself hasn’t changed?
• Why do some of the same kind of birds nest in one type bird house and others not? Exactly what does a bird look for in a house? If the houses are all nearly identical, why would a bird look in 3 or 4, then just choose one of them?
• Who the hell looked at a crop of cotton and thought, darn, I wonder if I sit here and spin and spin and spin and spin and spin this stuff, I can make me something to keep my toes warm? Or perhaps an old aged man whose wife was also aging and didn’t own a bra!
• I remember my mom mom saying “back in my time...” and I think of very recent times when I’ve said the exact same thing to my grandchildren?
• Will my grandkids ever know what an LP or an 8-Track tape player is?
• Why are some underwear better for wedgies than others?
• Who figured out that the gas that comes out of your um, bum bum; is flammable? I mean seriously...who???
• Oh yeah, I need to figure out something to do with that darn shower curtain to keep it from wrapping itself around my body when I’m trying to wash it?

Actually, I must admit, this is several hammock times accumulation of thoughts or musings. Normally I spend a considerable amount of time on each ‘thought’ trying to seriously figure these ponderings out.

Have you ever had the same thoughts? If you’ve ever come up with any explainable conclusions, I’d love for you to share them with me, so the next time these issues come up in my brain, I’ll be able to safely put them to rest.

Have a great day ya’ll and if this is the only 5 minutes of your day that you waste, I hope it made you chuckle, if even only on the inside!

Flip Flop Time

     Howdy!  Okay, it's not really flip flop time and this post has absolutely nothing to do with flip flops.  Last time I told you I'd catch you on the flip flop, so... this post had to have flip flop in there somewhere.  (I promise that before the summer is over, I will have a very creative flip flop post!) 

     So I've been looking at this empty shelf in my living room ever since we packed away the Christmas decorations.  I'm thinking to myself that whatever I put up there next must be able to coordinate with my blue and red accent colors AND last through maybe a couple of holidays/seasons (I change things with the weather and or holidays or on a whim.)  Oh yeah, and I have to be able to make something from what I already have on hand.

     Yes, yes, yes... I know that is a hideous light!!! My darling husband got it at the dump just for me.  Everything works, it's just ugly and in need of a makeover.  Trust me when I say, it won't be long and you'll be the first to see the transformation.

      Anyway, I felt like painting this morning.  I looked around and came up with this piece of wood and got all my painting supplies out and began the creation. 

     After I painted up the wood, I printed the word "Happiness" on an 8.1/2 x 11 piece of paper, gosh I hate to waste so much paper, but...  I tore the word out and burnt the edges very carefully and over the kitchen sink, just in case.  I modpodged the word on to my block after the paint had dried.  I always learn things the hard way and this was officially my first paper to wood modpodge project so yes, I know it's wrinkly!!!  Happiness is a year round word, don't you think? 

     I cut 4 hearts out of different 'valentine' colored pieces of felt.  Then I hot-glued a letter that I cut out of white felt on to each one so that the hearts spelled out the word " L O V E".  Then I cut a square piece of felt and hot-glued a white felt piece sign that I also cut out on to it.  (I usually and in this case did, singe the edges of felt with a lighter...my trademark I guess.) 

      When I finished with my hearts and the piece sign, I made some little holders for them out of some jewelry wire I had on hand.  I took my handy dandy dremel tool and drilled holes for each in the top of the painted wood, shot some hot glue in to the teeny tiny holes and then stuck my wire holders into the holes (for stability).

I'm so excited... I absolutely love it and it was finished before lunch time!!!  Don't you just love it?

     Now, after Valentines day is over, I'll just take the letters (and maybe piece sign...get it...peace, love and happiness) out of the little wire holders, pop them in a sandwich baggy for next year, and maybe put some tulips in the holders, or pictures of the grandkids, or some decorated felt easter eggs?  Then when Easter is over... spell out mom with some felt flowers, or oh my, the possibilities are endless!!!  (Snowflakes in the winter, leaves in the fall...) 

     I hope you are inspired to create something that will bring a smile to your face today, even if it's just a cup of tea with honey in it or a piece of chocolate melted on top of a triscuit!   Looking foward to our next visit, I bid you adooooo...

Simply Brilliant!

Everyone has a collection of T-shirts, don't you?  Ones that the kids have given you on special occasions or as souvenirs of their worldly travels?  I've been on this t-shirt kick lately.  I've decided I love the 20's flapper style clothes and thought I'd do me up a flapper t-shirt.  Boy, did I get side tracked! 

I asked my husband yesterday evening if he had any old t-shirts that he doesn't want or can't wear.  He brings me 5 shirts.  Of those 5 shirts, 3 are from our son.  I'm thinking I can't destroy those memories, so... what shall I do with them. 

Whelp, on our sofa my husband uses a pillow to put behind his head (yes, it's the reclining side) when he's watching television.  I've had it covered with a pillow case, because I can change them like my mood.  After staring at the t-shirts for like 20 minutes, waiting for my inspiration to come (which was quick compared to some times), it hits me!  I will make him a pillow case for his "pilly".  One of them is a camouflage pattern so that left me with 2 t-shirts to work with...perfect!  Couldn't be easier!

I chop the fronts off of those babies and sew them up and wallah!  He now has a perfect cover for his pilly!  I'm thinking it would be an awesome Father's Day present...but, yeah... I could never have something so awesome hidden for so long. 

T-shirts can't be worn everyday, but the pillow case can remind him every day of how much his children love him!!!  Much better than a T-shirt don't you think?

In the process of deconstruction...

Fully deconstructed...

  

The final product for the Coolest Dad!!!

I bought this really cool book about three years ago for my niece and when I gave it to her, she gave it back to me with a big blah...she has aspbergers so her social skills aren't the best.  Well lucky me, because it inspired me (okay has been staring at me since calling me, whispering "t-shirt" ever so lightly in my ear).

If you have mountains of or even just a few t-shirts, you should really check the book out...  Generation T, 108 ways to transform a T-shirt by Megan Nicolay.  I bought the Michaels edition for like $14.95 and I think I just made my money back!  I'm sure Amazon has it...

Y'all have an awesome day and I'll catch ya on the flip flop!!!

In the spirit of renewal...

Last year (or maybe it was the year before, yeah, I think the year before), my daughter-in-law gave me a lovely red Christmas purse.  It "had" an awesome lime green boa sewed to it and a sprarkly christmas tree with an embroidered star atop it!  Oh, and did I mention it has a red with white polka dot cotton lining?  I loved it 'sew' much I just wanted to carry it longer than 4-6 weeks, once a year.  As I pondered the possibility I decided I may be able to do without the lime green boa and the sparkly christmas tree.  Sssssooooo, I came up with this brilliant idea of renewing it!  Tell me, what do you think of the renewing of my purse?



Before

 

After





Renewal is in the details!!!



Not only did I kill the boa, I made an awesome gross-grain ribbon flower and some leaves and sewing them together and then sewed them to a snap barrette.  I also took a small piece of the ribbon and sewed it to my bag so that I can change my "flower" whenever I feel like it. 

for the spring maybe...

for when I wear my black t-shirt and red tennis shoes?

How easy is that...and the possibilities are limited only to my imagination (Okay, and if it will match with red and silver/gray, but what doesn't?).  Maybe I should start a photo blog, and I'll call it "As The Purse Turns"? 

Redefining Me...

2010 can only be described as wow!  It was a time of sweet reconciliation and direction.  A time for letting go and holding on.  You can call me the no more drama Mama!  I don't think I'll ever forget the year of 2010, but I'm only holding on to the good things, so get ready for a nice relaxing ride, as we travel up the road, never down.  I'm sure it will be an adventure for all of us.  I plan on letting go of things that tend to hold me back and seeking things that will only enrich my life and myself.  I hope you will join me in my adventure.  I hope that if you haven't yet come to the point in your life where you can enjoy every moment and even savor the sadness that sometime happens, 2011 will be your year of awakening.  I'm looking forward to being part of your 2011, I hope you will share it with me.  Here's a look at my 2010: 

In January, my baby's baby's daddy was deployed and he came home safely in July...



Aden and Kiersa helped me build my first ever snowman in February...



March brought to me the puppy I've always wanted...



The biggest redneck weekend reunion happened in April.

In May, we finished the play-yard and obviously everyone is enjoying it...

Aden, Kiersa, Walker enjoyed some fun summer time together in June...



July began a journey of reconciliation..

We 'broke ground' literally, for the Crazy Shack, aka Love Shack, aka downstairs; in August...

 

September gave our escape artist sufficient time to perfect his skills...

we did the traditional Halloween begging in October...

 

In November we were invaded by... Yankees!!!

and Santa came to visit in December!!!

Hope to see you back in January, I'll be here!