A long overdue Stay-Cation!!!!!

I love stay-cations!!!!  I actually love them more than vacations.  I love to travel, but I always end up missing home and my comfort zone.  Usually when I go away some place, it is pretty special and I end up getting inspired and want to rush home to do whatever it is that has inspired me.

Thanks to blogs and all of the amazing creative people I have discovered because of blogs, I now don't have to go anywhere to be inspired.  I am able to see into the homes, gardens, kitchens and creative spaces of so many people and it gives me so much inspiration.

So this stay-cation is going to be spent taking photos with my camera and not just my I-Pod, gardening and getting my feet and hands in the dirt and a touch of sun on my face, make some fun art for myself, do some creative cooking, hatch more peeps AND celebrate Robby's and my 3 year wedding anniversary:)

So without further adieu, here are a few of the photos I have taken.  I'm off to go make some pulled venison tacos for dinner and use lettuce from our garden and our last onion from last year's harvest for some of the toppings.

Have a fantastic night and a terrific Tuesday.  And please say some prayers for the poor people in Oklahoma who are going through such a devastating time.

XXOO

Iris or Flags as my mother-in-law calls them

 Joseph's Coat Climbing Rose

 Peonies are a little behind this year.  But that's okay, I just get to enjoy them longer.

 My little succulent garden waking from a cold winter's sleep.

 Someone help me out here, because I cannot for the life of me remember what this is called!!!

 More Iris......

 and more.

 Columbine in the front, Japanese Maple in the back.

 Oh yeah, that would be......more Iris.....

 and another, similar but not the same.

 They have no scent, but they are still pretty in their own simple way.

Knock-Out Roses

 Did I mention I have some Iris?

 My Wisteria is so close to blooming.

 One of the 3 Robin's nest around the house, built in the corner of the arbor where the Wisteria grows.

 Robin's nest number 2, built in our Redbud Tree.

My favorite one, built under the umbrella on our deck.  Last year was her first year building a nest here and she came back again this year.

 

A little blurry, but these are the 4 eggs that are in the nest under the umbrella:)

 Papa Robin from the Redbud Tree nest, hanging with our bunnies who also have a nest in one of my flower beds!!!  Such a little haven here for the wildlife!!!

 I just love this little statue.

It makes me wonder what they are saying to each other!!

 A little bit of shady lushness. (is lushness a word?)

 

 

 

 













Family always makes it better

There is just something so wonderful about having family around.  Family that you can completely be yourself around, know you are going to have tons of laughs with, maybe shed a tear or two with, say silly and stupid things with and just know it is all okay!!!!

That was how this weekend was for me.  Two of my nieces came for the weekend along with my one niece's husband and their two dogs.  It was such a great weekend filled with food, crafting, food, baby chickie lovin, food, some Skeet shooting and shooting lessons, food, garden planting, food, baby bump lovin and last but not least, food.  Yes, I guess you could say we did a lot of eating this weekend.  Well, I do have a niece who is expecting in August and she is married to a wonderful man who has the most incredible appetite for food.  So, I was in heaven to say the least.  I got to cook for people that I love the most, and they in turn, made the past 2 and a half days perfect. 

I will let the pictures tell most of the story and fill in the words where needed.

Prayer Flags I hung on the deck Friday before our company arrived.  I purchased these in Frenchtown, New Jersey at Elizabeth Gilbert's store, Two Buttons.  Love the way they blow in the breeze.

 



Mesclun Salad greens I planted from seed and harvested for our Beet and Orange Salad we would be having for dinner that night.

Baby Spinach to be picked for the salad also.  Love that I am able to once again go to the garden to pick fresh veggies for dinner.

Beet and Orange Salad with fresh baby greens and pistachios.  It was so yummy and fresh!!!!

First thing Kristina wanted to do was get her hands on the baby peeps.  This girl loves her some chickens, just like her Aunt Deb:)

This is a little propaganda photo to make my brother feel guilty and agree to let Kristina get some chicks of her own.  See how sad she is because she doesn't have chicks?  How could any daddy say no to that cute pouty face?

Once Jess and Joe arrived, Kristina had to show her sister the babies.  Jess was won over immediately and agreed that yes indeed, peeps are just the cutest little creatures ever.

It was time to focus on real baby love.  Jess is expecting her first child in August and Kristina is so excited about being an Aunt.  She can't help herself and has already started buying lots of little gifts for sweet baby girl.

Saturday morning Robby and I had some planting that needed to be done in the veggie garden.  Kristina was more than happy to help us plant over 30 tomato plants and some other veggies.  Jess was bit by the Veggie Garden Bug too and began making plans for the garden she and Joe could start once they got back home.

We decided to channel our inner Brit and do a little Skeet shooting.  Kristina has never shot Skeet before, so Joe gave her a little lesson.  I don't think Kristina will be doing it again anytime soon.  Her little body isn't use to the kick of the gun.

Next it was time for a little DIY craft time.  Kristina is the Queen of DIY in our family.  There is nothing this gal can't make when she decides she wants something.  She has become a pro with power tools and this former clothes horse now would rather go shop at Loews than shoe for clothes.  She had a little project she wanted all 3 of us to make as a little token of our weekend together.  She brought everything with her we needed and we provided the power tools.  FUN TIMES!!!!!

We started by sanding our blocks of wood Kristina had brought for us to use.  Rounding the corners and creating a super smooth surface.  Let's just say the palm sander is now my favorite power tool!!!
After we sanded our wood, we stained it and then either left it stained and applied a tinted wax to it, or we could paint it like I did to give it more of an antique, weathered look.  A few bangs with the hammer to add some dents, and you have an instant "old" piece of refurbished wood.

Next Kristina showed us how to attach a mason jar to the board using a pipe clamp so that the board could be hung and used as a vase, a planter or for storage of just about anything you could think of that would fit inside it.

Our finished project.  Love how they turned out and can't wait to get mine hung in the guest room so I can use it to put fresh flowers in when guests come to stay:)  Thanks Kristina, it was so much fun and I will think of all our fun laughs the three of us had every time I look at it!!!

I was officially bit by the DIY bug at this point.  Robby had found 6 really old wooden doors that had belonged in a farm house that was built in the 1800's.  I snatched those beauties right up but I wasn't really sure what I would do with them.  Jessica suggested I use them to make a  headboard for the guest room.  I have a bed with no frame in that room and I hate that there is no headboard.  So, that is what we decided to do.  Kristina said it was really easy to do and we could finish it in a day.  But, it was getting late and I still had dinner to make for all of us, so it would have to wait a day.

Dinner was going to consist of roasted chickens and asparagus risotto made with asparagus picked from our garden.

With some help from the girls, we got those chickens roasted, that risotto stirred and cooked, dinner rolls made, green beans cooked and homemade gravy that was delicious.  It was a perfect meal and another great time around the family dinner table with people I love.  I am such a firm believer in eating meals together at the kitchen table!!!!  We have the most awesome, sometimes inappropriate,  conversations during dinner and then during the time we are just sitting at the table once the food is gone.  I highly recommend all families incorporate at least one family meal at the table a day.

This morning after we ate a huge breakfast of sausage gray, scrambled eggs and homemade buttermilk biscuits, it was time to start back to DIYing.  Time to make my headboard.  First up was sanding the very rough and worn doors down to a nice smooth finish hopefully without losing all of the lovely chippy paint that was on them.

First door before we put the sander to it.  Hard to tell in this picture, but it is a really nice, worn yellow.

After we were done.  The grain in the door was exposed and it turned out so very pretty.  We rubbed in some finishing wax, sanded it one last time with very fine sand paper, and it was done.

The second door had old blue paint on it.  We sanded that down too and it became a really nice light turquoise color.  I was in love and in awe of what these doors were turning out to look like.

 

 

After it was sanded, we applied the finishing wax to it too.  Now all that was left was to use the original hinges to attach the doors together and put it in it's place.  I just love the old, tarnished hardware and handles on these doors.  I love to think about all the people who ever opened those doors to the rooms of their home.  Oh, if those doors could talk........

 

 

 



Here they are in place.  Now I just need to get a few finishing touches, like a different duvet cover and pillow cases, re-paint the room and find some new lamps and I will have a guest room I can be proud of.  Just have to avoid making it too girly so that when the boys come home for a visit from college, they will still want to sleep in their old rooms:)

 

I really love it and just can't believe we got it done in one day.  Pictures just don't do it justice because my cameras kind of suck.

Our weekend was winding down as everyone needed to get back on the road to go home.  This weekend was such a nice treat for me.  The week was a long one worrying about my dad, who is getting stronger and better with each passing day, and knowing I had my extended family to make my weekend special, made it so much easier.  I love having girl time with my nieces!!!!!!  And being able to walk past a room in my house and see the fruits of our labors makes it even more sweet.  I hope that you all were able to do something really special this weekend with people that you love being with. I know I will start my week with a little extra spark in my heart and a smile on my face thinking about the fun that was had by all.

Hope you all have a wonderful week and look forward to the upcoming weekend:)
XXOO

 

 

 

 

 

 







The High and now for the Low

This is me writing for me.  What I would normally write in a journal that was for my eyes only, not for other people to read and where I have a little voice in the back of my head telling me to be mindful of what I write.

Yesterday was my 48th birthday and what a grand day it was.  Three of my amazing sons were here from Friday afternoon until late yesterday evening.  My son Reed brought his girlfriend who just happens to be a girl that worked in the same doctor's office as I did a few years ago.  She is wonderful and it made that whole awkward, getting to know someone stage, non-existent because we have been friends for years.  Having my kids around me, laughing, joking, talking, sleeping, eating, just being my kids, is just the greatest of joys to me.  We just have such a great time together and a bond that can never, ever be broken.  We are a goofy bunch and I am certain very different from many other families.  When they leave, it leaves such a hole in my heart.  The house is so quiet today and it is rainy and cloudy outside, so it just makes that hole seem even more gaping than usual.  I miss them.

We also had baby chick eggs hatching since Friday.  That has been stressful but is finally over.  Out of 21 eggs, only 12 of them hatched and survived.  This was a much more difficult incubating and hatching experience from what I remember from last year and our survival rate was not as good.  I am hoping all 12 will do well and continue to grow and live.  I am nervous to get to attached to them in case something should happen over the next few days.  One chick who had been born with what I thought was something called spraddle leg, died this morning.  I was afraid this would happen as she was not able to walk like the others.  I had band her legs to try and help her, but in the end, she wasn't strong enough and lost her short little battle.

Dad is also very sick right now which is making me so sad.  I don't know what to do for him to make him better, and what is being done for him, to make him better, makes him so sick feeling in the process.  His voice is so weak sounding on the phone and I know his body is weak too.  My birthday just wasn't the same without him feeling good.  He didn't even remember until the day before that it was my birthday.  He has just been feeling so bad and out of it.  He didn't even remember to tell me Happy Birthday when I talked to him yesterday morning but did remember when I talked to him last night.  He was so apologetic for forgetting and felt so bad.  I am not upset that he forgot my birthday but upset that he is so sick that this is happening.  I feel like I am losing him and it just makes me so sad.  I just really, really need for him to get better and be back to his normal self.  I just really, really need for my mom to be alive still to take care of him so he is not alone.  He is just sitting in his house, sick, all by himself with know way of making himself better.  When he goes to dialysis on  Monday, Wednesday and Friday, they do what they can to help make him better, but it's just not fast enough. I keep praying for him and I will not stop.  Yesterday as I thought about the fact that I was turning 48, I felt so conflicted about my reactions to daddy's being sick.  I am 48, just 2 years from 50.  My dad is 83 but yet I feel like a little girl whose daddy is sick.  When I think about my daddy, I don't view myself as a grown up who knows these things come with older age and that this process is inevitable.  I just think and feel like a little girl who doesn't want to see her daddy sick and doesn't know how to deal with it as a grown up.  I don't know how to accept it and realize it is the way things are. 

I need the sun to come back out to play, to light up the green freshness in the woods, to make the flowers lift their heads and rejoice in the brightness of the day, to make my seeds want to sprout and grow to the sky.  I need another day of hope and possibilities.  I need to feel it is all going to be okay and for yesterday's pure happiness to return, right now.

And That My Friends, Is What I Call, A Great Weekend

Oh my goodness!!!

Did this weekend really just happen?

This was one of the most perfectly relaxing weekends ever!!!!

 

It started out perfect when I went to work on Friday.

I was certain we were having a St. Patty's Day party

in our classroom, but I was wrong.

But I didn't care.

Another teacher made me a party hat, I went and bought some

kid friendly (that means stuff I wouldn't normally eat) snacks

and we had a St. Patty's Day party by crackie!!!!

 

My Party Hat clearly shows that I am always down for a party!!!!!

 

Nothing says 2 year old party like Cheese Puffs and Sugar Cookies!!!!

 

Kids were happy when they woke up from their naps

and I didn't feel like I had let them all down.

Next year I will remember we don't normally do

St. Patrick's Day parties;)

 

So once I was home, the weekend had begun.

The sun was still up, the temps were comfortable,

I poured a glass of wine and headed outside to

find my husband.

 

Cheers to the weekend and St. Patty's Day:)

 

Saturday started off with a fabulous visit from our lovely post lady.

When I saw her car coming up the drive, I knew I had goodies arriving.

I had been anxiously awaiting a necklace I had bought from the

amazing Danita's Etsy Shop.

It was a Frida necklace she had made and I wanted it badly.

 

Isn't it pretty in it's little pouch and the cute little post card with it too?

Love this lady!!!!!

 

I had to put the necklace on immediately and hoped that the spirit of Frida

and some inspiration from Danita would send me straight to my

studio ready to create, create, CREATE!!!!!!

 

Isn't she just the most precious little thing you have ever seen?

God I love Frida!!!!!!

 

I had also ordered two books to help with my creative process.

The first one is called Daring Adventures In Paint by the wonderfully talented

Mati Rose McDonough,

The other is by the equally amazing and talented

Flora Bowley

and it is called

Brave Intuitive Painting

let go. be bold. unfold.

 

These two books are filled with great ideas of how to get in touch

with your own style and learn to let what is inside of you come out

onto a canvas as art.

 

I was so excited, I didn't know what to do first,

read my books, work in my art journal, work on a piece i am making for a friend or

work on my LifeBook 2013 class.

I started reading but then all I wanted to do was start making art.

So that's what I did.

First I did a few pages in my art journal.

 

 

 

Then I decided to get serious.

I have a friend I have wanted to make an art piece for.

She said something to me a few weeks ago that stuck in my head.

After a while, I realized this was actually a little snip of inspiration to create a

new piece of mixed media.  So I went to my studio and set myself to work.

 

Several layers of papers, layers of color, some molding paste for texture,

a transfer or two, a sketch and then....

 

 

I topped it off with a layer of beeswax which I have never done before.

That was a lot of fun and I do need much more practice, but now the finished

piece has not only color, but it feels good and has a very earthy smell from the wax.

 

 I used some of my old patterns I inherited from my mom for some of the

under layers.

Used some of my stamps and a few of my transfers

and was so proud that I could draw my elephant free hand:)

 

Wish you could tell I had sealed this in the beeswax but you will just

have to take my word for it.  I need a lot more practice with this technique

but I really enjoyed it.

 

This is how happy i am after all is said and done and all that is left

is cleaning up.  What a great day in my favorite "space".

 

The only thing left to do was to make a wonderful dinner.

I had started dough for french bread earlier in the morning so all I had to

do was put that in the oven.

 

Two lovely loaves of french bread.

 

Next was to start up some homemade pasta sauce with garlic, olives, peppers we preserved from

our garden last summer and some Italian Sausage.

Oh my goodness, the kitchen smelled so wonderful!!!!!

 

 

My sweet hubby had been watching his beloved NASCAR Race while i was spending

amazing time in my studio and kitchen.  At last it was all ready and we came together

for a lovely Italian dinner on a wonderful Irish Holiday.

 

 

What more can one ask of a weekend?

(only that the snow falling outside right now is enough to keep me from having to go

to work in the morning ;) )

 

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and that the week ahead brings you so much

happiness and love you think you are going to burst at the seams.

Make it a great one!!!!

Hugs and kisses

Deb